Elesh Norn, Mother of Machines MTG Card
2023-02-03 - Number 420
2023-02-03 - Number 416
2023-02-03 - Number 298
2023-02-03 - Number 419
2023-02-03 - Number 415
2023-02-03 - Number 418
2023-02-03 - Number 414
2023-02-03 - Number 10s
2023-02-03 - Number 10p
2023-02-03 - Number 421
2023-02-03 - Number 345
2023-02-03 - Number 10
2023-02-03 - Number 2
2023-02-03 - Number 64
Text of card
Vigilance If a permanent entering the battlefield causes a triggered ability of a permanent you control to trigger, that ability triggers an additional time. Permanents entering the battlefield don't cause abilities of permanents your opponents control to trigger.
Understanding Elesh Norn’s Place Among Other MTG Cards
Elesh Norn, Mother of Machines cements its presence in MTG as a formidable card, much like its predecessors in the Phyrexian Praetor cycle. It shares the characteristic of impacting the game in a monumental way, similar to Jin-Gitaxias, Core Augur, which dramatically disrupts opponents by forcing card discards while boosting the controller’s hand size every turn. Elesh Norn extends this lineage of control, but goes further, granting or denying abilities from artifacts and creatures across the battlefield.
Cards like Elesh Norn, Mother of Machines
In the family of game-changing MTG cards, Elesh Norn, Mother of Machines offers a unique comparison to its siblings. Though not a direct analog, it can be likened to Sheoldred, Whispering One for its persistent board control. Sheoldred represents a constant threat with its reanimation ability each turn, while Elesh Norn expands that threat to artifacts and creatures, ideally rendering your opponent’s tools useless. Yet, the broader approach of Elesh Norn comes at a higher mana cost, illustrating the balance between power and resource management in MTG.
Another parallel can be drawn with Urabrask the Hidden, which similarly affects the pace of the game by hindering opponent’s creatures. However, Elesh Norn’s ability to potentially switch off activated abilities or enhance your own artifacts and creatures offers a wider and more strategic advantage in various deck builds. Its versatility places it at a distinct point of comparison, allowing it to stand out among powerful influence cards within MTG.
Elesh Norn’s blend of versatility and control provides an insightful look into the dynamics of power within MTG. Its unique capabilities forge a path that is unique yet honorably similar to the impactful nature of its Phyrexian counterparts.
Cards similar to Elesh Norn, Mother of Machines by color, type and mana cost
Decks using this card
MTG decks using Elesh Norn, Mother of Machines. Dig deeper into the strategy of decks, sideboard cards, list ideas and export to play in ARENA or MOL.
| # | Name | Format | Archetype | Event |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | 5c Enigmatic Fires | Pioneer | 5c Enigmatic Fires | Pioneer Challenge 32 2024-04-25 |
 | 5c Omnath | Modern | 4/5c Omnath | Modern Challenge 64 2024-04-22 |
| 4c Omnath | Modern | 4/5c Omnath | Modern League 2024-04-24 |
 | 4c Land Combo | Standard | 4c Land Combo | Standard Super Qualifier 2024-04-28 |
| Cascade | Standard | Cascade | Standard Challenge 32 2024-04-27 (1) |
 | Orzhov Midrange | Standard | Orzhov Midrange | Standard League 2024-04-28 |
 | Amulet Titan | Modern | Amulet Titan | Modern League 2024-04-22 |
 | Tron | Modern | Tron | Modern Challenge 64 2024-04-27 |
 | Selesnya Company | Pioneer | Selesnya Company | Pioneer Challenge 32 2024-04-26 (1) |
 | Mono-White Midrange | Modern | Mono-White Midrange | Modern Challenge 32 2024-04-26 |
Card Pros
Card Advantage: Elesh Norn, Mother of Machines shines in providing you with consistent card advantage, particularly in strategies that utilize a wealth of artifacts and enchantments. Each time an artifact or enchantment enters the battlefield under your control, you get to draw a card, thus fueling your game plan and overwhelming opponents with a steady flow of options.
Resource Acceleration: Beyond her card-drawing ability, Elesh Norn also accelerates your resources by doubling the triggered abilities of your permanents. This amplification can rapidly advance your board state by generating extra tokens, life, or any other effects your artifacts and enchantments might have, far outpacing your adversary’s development.
Instant Speed: While Elesh Norn herself is not cast at instant speed, her passive ability stays active, allowing you to gain the benefits of instant-speed spells and abilities with enhanced effect. With her in play, every instant becomes a potential double-threat, whether it’s producing additional tokens or gaining more life, ensuring that the momentum is firmly in your favor each turn.
Card Cons
Discard Requirement: While Elesh Norn, Mother of Machines doesn’t directly require you to discard cards, its presence on the battlefield can force you to make more cautious decisions about which cards to keep in hand, especially since its ability can put a target on it, leading to potential card disadvantage if it’s swiftly removed.
Specific Mana Cost: The mana cost of Elesh Norn, Mother of Machines involves both white and Phyrexian mana. This specificity necessitates a deck that can consistently generate the needed colors, potentially limiting its inclusion to decks with a heavy white and Phyrexian mana base or those that can manipulate mana types.
Comparatively High Mana Cost: At seven mana, Elesh Norn can be a hefty investment in terms of mana economy. In faster-paced games, by the time you have the mana to cast Elesh Norn, you could be at a strategic disadvantage or behind in board presence compared to lower-cost, more immediate threats.
Reasons to Include Elesh Norn, Mother of Machines in Your Collection
Versatility: Elesh Norn, Mother of Machines is a card with a home in numerous deck archetypes. Its ability to grant your artifacts, creatures, and enchantments protection from your opponents’ abilities can defend your board and disrupt their plans, making it a potent addition to both aggressive and control strategies.
Combo Potential: Regarded for her ability to exponentially increase the effectiveness of Enter-the-Battlefield (ETB) triggers, Elesh Norn can generate game-winning advantages. Whether it’s doubling token creation or enhancing creature abilities, she can turn a simple board state into a complex and lethal puzzle for the opponent.
Meta-Relevance: As the metagame fluctuates, a constant factor is the need to deal with opponents’ strategies effectively. Elesh Norn can tilt the balance of any match in your favor by limiting the efficacy of your opponents’ responses, making her a relevant force in an ever-evolving competitive scene.
How to beat
Elesh Norn, Mother of Machines, stands out as a formidable card in the MTG universe. This card is unique, making it quite the challenge to tackle. Its ability to amplify your abilities by copying each triggered ability an additional time is a game-changer, catapulting your strategy to new heights. Knowing the right counters can mean the difference between victory and defeat when facing this powerful card.
To effectively counter Elesh Norn, inclination toward removal spells that can bypass its protections is key. Employing instant-speed removal can disrupt the opponent’s game plan before they have a chance to benefit from Elesh Norn’s duplicating ability. Alternatively, one could include cards with hexproof or shroud in their deck, adding an extra layer of security against triggered abilities.
Maintaining a strategic deck composition and responsive playstyle is imperative when up against this powerhouse. It’s not just about having the right cards—it’s about playing them wisely. Understanding Elesh Norn’s strengths and weaknesses is crucial, and building your strategy to mitigate those strengths can turn the tide of battle in your favor.
Where to buy
If you're looking to purchase Elesh Norn, Mother of Machines MTG card by a specific set like Phyrexia: All Will Be One and Phyrexia: All Will Be One, 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 Elesh Norn, Mother of Machines and other MTG cards:
BUY NOW BurnMana is an official partner of TCGPlayer
- eBay
- 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 Elesh Norn, Mother of Machines Magic the Gathering card was released in 3 different sets between 2023-02-03 and 2023-02-03. Illustrated by 5 different artists.
| # | Released | Name | Code | Symbol | Number | Frame | Layout | Border | Artist |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2023-02-03 | Phyrexia: All Will Be One | ONE | 420 | 2015 | Normal | Borderless | Dominik Mayer | |
| 2 | 2023-02-03 | Phyrexia: All Will Be One | ONE | 416 | 2015 | Normal | Borderless | Richard Whitters | |
| 3 | 2023-02-03 | Phyrexia: All Will Be One | ONE | 298 | 2015 | Normal | Borderless | Dominik Mayer | |
| 4 | 2023-02-03 | Phyrexia: All Will Be One | ONE | 419 | 2015 | Normal | Borderless | Junji Ito | |
| 5 | Phyrexia: All Will Be One Art Series | AONE | 2 | 2015 | Art series | Borderless | |||
| 6 | 2023-02-03 | Phyrexia: All Will Be One | ONE | 415 | 2015 | Normal | Borderless | Junji Ito | |
| 7 | 2023-02-03 | Phyrexia: All Will Be One | ONE | 418 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Martina Fačková | |
| 8 | 2023-02-03 | Phyrexia: All Will Be One | ONE | 414 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Martina Fačková | |
| 9 | 2023-02-03 | Phyrexia: All Will Be One Promos | PONE | 10s | 2015 | Normal | Black | Martina Fačková | |
| 10 | 2023-02-03 | Phyrexia: All Will Be One Promos | PONE | 10p | 2015 | Normal | Black | Martina Fačková | |
| 11 | 2023-02-03 | Phyrexia: All Will Be One | ONE | 421 | 2015 | Normal | Borderless | Richard Whitters | |
| 12 | Phyrexia: All Will Be One Art Series | AONE | 64 | 2015 | Art series | Borderless | |||
| 13 | 2023-02-03 | Phyrexia: All Will Be One | ONE | 345 | 2015 | Normal | Borderless | Pedro Potier | |
| 14 | 2023-02-03 | Phyrexia: All Will Be One | ONE | 10 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Martina Fačková |
Legalities
Magic the Gathering formats where Elesh Norn, Mother of Machines has restrictions
| Format | Legality |
|---|---|
| Standard | Legal |
| Historicbrawl | Legal |
| Historic | Legal |
| Legacy | Legal |
| Oathbreaker | Legal |
| Gladiator | Legal |
| Alchemy | Legal |
| Pioneer | Legal |
| Commander | Legal |
| Modern | Legal |
| Future | Legal |
| Vintage | Legal |
| Duel | Legal |
| Explorer | Legal |
| Brawl | Legal |
| Timeless | Legal |
Rules and information
The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering Elesh Norn, Mother of Machines card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.
| Date | Text |
|---|---|
| 2023-02-04 | Abilities that apply "as -his permanent] enters the battlefield," such as choosing a card type with Stenn, Paranoid Partisan, are also unaffected. |
| 2023-02-04 | Elesh Norn's abilities don't look at who controls the permanent entering the battlefield, only who controls the permanent that has the triggered ability. For example, if you control Elesh Norn and a permanent with the ability "Whenever a creature enters the battlefield, you gain 1 life," a creature entering the battlefield under an opponent's control will cause that ability to trigger twice. |
| 2023-02-04 | Elesh Norn's first ability doesn't copy the triggered ability; it just causes the ability to trigger twice. Any choices made as you put the ability onto the stack, such as modes and targets, are made separately for each instance of the ability. Any choices made on resolution, such as whether to put counters on a permanent, are also made individually. |
| 2023-02-04 | Elesh Norn's second and third ability each affects a permanent's own enters-the-battlefield triggered abilities as well as other triggered abilities that trigger when that permanent enters the battlefield. Such triggered abilities start with "when" or "whenever." Some keyword abilities also include a triggered ability that happens when a permanent enters the battlefield, such as For Mirrodin! |
| 2023-02-04 | If a permanent entering the battlefield at the same time as Elesh Norn (including Elesh Norn itself) causes a triggered ability of a permanent you control to trigger, that ability triggers an additional time. |
| 2023-02-04 | If a triggered ability is linked to a second ability, additional instances of that triggered ability are also linked to that second ability. If the second ability refers to "the exiled card," it refers to all cards exiled by instances of the triggered ability. |
| 2023-02-04 | If you somehow control two Elesh Norns, a permanent entering the battlefield causes abilities to trigger three times, not four. A third Elesh Norn causes abilities to trigger four times, a fourth causes abilities to trigger five times, and so on. |
| 2023-02-04 | In a Two-Headed Giant game, Elesh Norn does not affect triggered abilities of permanents your teammate controls. |
| 2023-02-04 | In some cases involving linked abilities, an ability requires information about "the exiled card." When this happens, the ability gets multiple answers. If these answers are being used to determine the value of a variable, the sum is used. For example, if Elite Arcanist's enters-the-battlefield ability triggers twice, two cards are exiled. The value of X in the activation cost of Elite Arcanist's other ability is the sum of the two cards' mana values. As the ability resolves, you create copies of both cards and can cast none, one, or both of the copies in any order. |
| 2023-02-04 | Replacement effects are unaffected by Elesh Norn's abilities. For example, a creature that enters the battlefield under your control with one +1/+1 counter on it won't receive an additional +1/+1 counter. |
| 2023-02-04 | Similarly, a permanent entering the battlefield at the same time as Elesh Norn (still including Elesh Norn) won't cause abilities of permanents an opponent controls to trigger. |
Guide to Vigilance card ability
In the strategic universe of Magic: The Gathering (MTG), the vigilance ability stands out as a powerful tool for players. This potent keyword allows creatures to attack without tapping, keeping them ready and alert to defend against incoming threats. It represents a perfect balance between aggression and defense, offering a dynamic approach to gameplay. Lets dive deeper into how vigilance shapes the battlefield.