Azorius Guildgate MTG Card
2012-10-05 - Number 237
2013-05-03 - Number 146
2013-11-01 - Number 275
2017-03-17 - Number 230
2017-06-09 - Number 240
2018-08-09 - Number 234
2019-01-25 - Number 243
2019-01-25 - Number 244
2021-02-05 - Number 107
2024-01-12 - Number 272
2024-01-12 - Number 396
2024-02-23 - Number 230
| Card sets | Released in 12 setsSee all |
| Rarity | Common |
| Type | Land — Gate |
Key Takeaways
- Essential for mana consistency in white and blue decks, ensuring access to both colors for varied strategies.
- Despite entering tapped, it’s paramount for resource acceleration and supporting powerful gate synergies.
- Strategic inclusion for control decks, even with its tempo setback in the early game phases.
Text of card
Azorius Guildgate enters the battlefield tapped. : Add or to your mana pool.
Enter the Senate, the seat of justice and the foundation of Ravnican society.
Card Pros
Card Advantage: Azorius Guildgate, while not directly allowing you to draw cards, facilitates smoother draws by ensuring land drops. It provides access to both white and blue mana, crucial for decks that require a consistent mana base for card draw spells and control strategies.
Resource Acceleration: While the Azorius Guildgate enters the battlefield tapped and doesn’t accelerate mana like a traditional ramp card, it does serve the purpose of mana fixing. This can be an essential aspect of resource acceleration in multicolor decks, enabling more complex plays in subsequent turns.
Instant Speed: Though Azorius Guildgate itself is not an instant and does not function at instant speed, its presence in your mana base can support instant speed interaction by providing the necessary colored mana to cast counter spells, removal, or end-of-turn effects crucial for maintaining tempo and board control.
Card Cons
Discard Requirement: The Azorius Guildgate does not directly demand the discard of cards; however, the use of taplands like this one can lead to a slower gameplay, potentially forcing you to discard if your hand size exceeds the limit by your next cleanup step.
Specific Mana Cost: This nonbasic land provides only blue or white mana, which can restrict deck-building options, especially in multi-colored decks that require access to other types of mana beyond Azorius colors.
Comparatively High Mana Cost: Entering the battlefield tapped, Azorius Guildgate has an implicit high mana cost in terms of speed. It delays your capacity to deploy threats or hold up defenses compared to using untapped lands, which can be a significant drawback during the crucial early turns of a game.
Reasons to Include in Your Collection
Versatility: Azorius Guildgate provides a cost-effective dual-land card option, making it suitable for budget decks that necessitate both white and blue mana without the need to invest in more expensive lands.
Combo Potential: As a Gates card, it can be integral to strategies that rely on Gate synergies, enabling mechanics and bonuses from other cards that recognize the presence of Gates.
Meta-Relevance: In a slower-paced game, the entry of Azorius Guildgate tapped is less of a downside, making it a strategic fit for control or combo decks that can afford this tempo in exchange for consistent mana fixing.
How to beat
Azorius Guildgate is a nonbasic land that has become a staple in many Magic: The Gathering decks, particularly those that require a stable mana base across two colors—white and blue. Its key advantage lies in the dual mana it provides, albeit with the downside of entering the battlefield tapped, potentially slowing down your game tempo.
Overcoming the strategic edge that Azorius Guildgate provides your opponent involves a few tactics. Aggressive decks can capitalize on the slowed pace by applying early pressure and curbing your opponent’s development before they can fully leverage their mana diversity. Using land destruction cards or land hate strategies, like those found with cards such as Ghost Quarter or Field of Ruin, can disrupt your opponent’s mana base directly. Moreover, incorporating cards that punish nonbasic lands, like Blood Moon, will negate the mana flexibility that Azorius Guildgate offers.
It’s critical to remember that while Azorius Guildgate is beneficial in providing a diverse mana pool, its benefits can be neutralized with the right strategy, allowing you to maintain the upper hand. Keeping your plays sharp and responsive will help ensure that the entrance of a seemingly innocuous land card doesn’t tilt the match in your opponent’s favor.
Cards like Azorius Guildgate
The Azorius Guildgate stands as a fundamental option within the dual land cards in Magic: The Gathering, filling a vital role in many deck structures. It draws a parallel with Tranquil Cove, which also enters the battlefield tapped and taps for either white or blue mana. Nonetheless, Azorius Guildgate does not offer the additional benefit of gaining 1 life upon entry like Tranquil Cove does.
Sejiri Refuge is another card with some resemblances, providing the same mana options with the added life gain, yet Sejiri Refuge isn’t part of the Gate subtype, and this distinction can be pivotal in decks that benefit from cards like Gatekeeper Gargoyle. Meandering River is also similar, but lacks any additional effects beyond the mana provisions. Though it’s part of the basic land types, it doesn’t support the synergies related to the Gate archetype.
While comparing Azorius Guildgate to its counterparts, it is clear that, despite missing life gain perks, its strength lies in its integration with gates-matter strategies, often enabling powerful interactions in dedicated decks. Therefore, Azorius Guildgate possesses a unique value for those seeking to capitalize on those specific synergies in their MTG endeavors.
Cards similar to Azorius Guildgate by color, type and mana cost
Where to buy
If you're looking to purchase Azorius Guildgate MTG card by a specific set like Return to Ravnica and Dragon's Maze, there are several reliable options to consider. One of the primary sources is your local game store, where you can often find booster packs, individual cards, and preconstructed decks from current and some past sets. They often offer the added benefit of a community where you can trade with other players.
For a broader inventory, particularly of older sets, online marketplaces like TCGPlayer, Card Kingdom and Card Market offer extensive selections and allow you to search for cards from specific sets. Larger e-commerce platforms like eBay and Amazon also have listings from various sellers, which can be a good place to look for sealed product and rare finds.
Additionally, Magic’s official site often has a store locator and retailer lists for finding Wizards of the Coast licensed products. Remember to check for authenticity and the condition of the cards when purchasing, especially from individual sellers on larger marketplaces.
Below is a list of some store websites where you can buy the Azorius Guildgate and other MTG cards:
- eBay
- TCG Player
- Card Kingdom
- Card Market
- Star City Games
- CoolStuffInc
- MTG Mint Card
- Hareruya
- Troll and Toad
- ABU Games
- Card Hoarder Magic Online
- MTGO Traders Magic Online
See MTG Products
Printings
The Azorius Guildgate Magic the Gathering card was released in 10 different sets between 2012-10-05 and 2024-02-23. Illustrated by 2 different artists.
| # | Released | Name | Code | Symbol | Number | Frame | Layout | Border | Artist |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2012-10-05 | Return to Ravnica | RTR | 237 | 2003 | Normal | Black | Drew Baker | |
| 2 | 2013-05-03 | Dragon's Maze | DGM | 146 | 2003 | Normal | Black | Drew Baker | |
| 3 | 2013-11-01 | Commander 2013 | C13 | 275 | 2003 | Normal | Black | Drew Baker | |
| 4 | 2017-03-17 | Modern Masters 2017 | MM3 | 230 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Drew Baker | |
| 5 | 2017-06-09 | Commander Anthology | CMA | 240 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Drew Baker | |
| 6 | 2018-08-09 | Commander 2018 | C18 | 234 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Drew Baker | |
| 7 | 2019-01-25 | Ravnica Allegiance | RNA | 243 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Titus Lunter | |
| 8 | 2019-01-25 | Ravnica Allegiance | RNA | 244 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Titus Lunter | |
| 9 | 2021-02-05 | Kaldheim Commander | KHC | 107 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Drew Baker | |
| 10 | 2024-01-12 | Ravnica Remastered | RVR | 272 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Drew Baker | |
| 11 | 2024-01-12 | Ravnica Remastered | RVR | 396 | 1997 | Normal | Black | Drew Baker | |
| 12 | 2024-02-23 | Ravnica: Clue Edition | CLU | 230 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Drew Baker |
Legalities
Magic the Gathering formats where Azorius Guildgate has restrictions
| Format | Legality |
|---|---|
| Historicbrawl | Legal |
| Historic | Legal |
| Legacy | Legal |
| Paupercommander | Legal |
| Oathbreaker | Legal |
| Gladiator | Legal |
| Pioneer | Legal |
| Commander | Legal |
| Modern | Legal |
| Pauper | Legal |
| Vintage | Legal |
| Duel | Legal |
| Explorer | Legal |
| Penny | Legal |
| Timeless | Legal |
Rules and information
The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering Azorius Guildgate card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.
| Date | Text |
|---|---|
| 2013-04-15 | Gate is not a basic land type. |
| 2013-04-15 | The subtype Gate has no special rules significance, but other spells and abilities may refer to it. |
