Emrakul's Influence MTG Card

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Emrakul’s Influence allows you to draw a card whenever you cast an Eldrazi creature spell, ensuring a steady flow of options as you deploy colossal threats onto the battlefield. This effect keeps your hand replenished, giving you an edge over opponents in longer, grinding matches.

Resource Acceleration: This card is particularly adept at ramping up your available resources. By giving you an extra card for each Eldrazi spell, it effectively reduces the cost of those spells by providing additional resources, which can lead to casting multiple spells in a turn or playing your game-ending Eldrazi sooner than expected.

Instant Speed: Although Emrakul’s Influence itself is not an instant, its effect operates anytime you cast an Eldrazi spell, even on your opponent’s turn. This means it synchronizes well with Eldrazi creatures that can be flashed in or with effects that allow you to play creatures as though they had flash, adding surprise and flexibility to your game plan.

Remember, when employing Emrakul’s Influence in your deck, focus on the synergy with other Eldrazi spells. By doing so, you’ll optimize card advantage, increase your resource acceleration, and leverage instant speed interactions to dominate the game.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: The inclusion of Emrakul’s Influence in your deck necessitates a discard mechanism to tap into the full potential of the card, which can be counterproductive when your hand size is diminishing.

Specific Mana Cost: The mana cost of Emrakul’s Influence is steeped in a particular color identity, demanding a dedicated deck build to consistently meet its casting requirements, and not just any deck can accommodate such a heavy color commitment.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: While the benefits of controlling Emrakul’s Influence can be game-changing, its comparatively high mana cost is a significant consideration. There are cheaper alternatives that may not be as powerful but can be more easily incorporated into various stages of the game.

Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Emrakul’s Influence adds value to various strategies by allowing players to control the board while advancing their own monstrous threats. It’s a boon in decks designed to capitalize on powerful Eldrazi and other colossal creatures.

Combo Potential: This dynamic card excels in engine-based builds, facilitating combinations with various types of creature casting triggers and abilities that play off big plays, making it a lynchpin in setups aiming to exploit massive swings in board presence.

Meta-Relevance: Given its ability to sway games by its mere presence on the field, Emrakul’s Influence remains a relevant choice in environments dominated by creature-heavy decks or where generating large threats is key to victory.

How to beat

Emrakul’s Influence in the MTG universe represents one of the most formidable challenges due to its immense power and unique abilities that can take over a game. When up against this Eldrazi titan, the key to success lies in preventing its casting altogether or mitigating its impact. Counterspell strategies work effectively to stop Emrakul from hitting the battlefield. Cards like Negate or Essence Scatter should be ready in your hand the moment your opponent reaches enough mana for a summon. Alternatively, leveraging graveyard manipulation can disrupt strategies centered around cheating Emrakul into play using reanimation tactics.

For decks without access to blue counterspells, exile effects are your next line of defense. Cards like Path to Exile or Declaration in Stone can remove Emrakul after it’s been cast. Since Emrakul grants protection from instants, it’s crucial to utilize these spells strategically, possibly in response to an animation or reanimation effect before Emrakul becomes untouchable. Finally, pressure your opponent early and reduce their health before Emrakul can become an insurmountable obstacle. Rapid aggression can outpace the setup required to utilize Emrakul’s power, allowing you to claim victory before the Eldrazi’s influence can be fully felt.