Enduring Angel // Angelic Enforcer MTG Card

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Enduring Angel offers a unique form of card advantage by transforming into a potent celestial, Angelic Enforcer, when your life total would be reduced to zero. Rather than losing the game, you gain a second chance with a potentially game-winning creature on the field.

Resource Acceleration: Though the Angel itself does not directly accelerate resources, its transformation resets your life total to three, effectively giving you an additional resource in the form of extra life points which can be crucial in the late game.

Instant Speed: While not an instant, Enduring Angel’s flash ability allows you to deploy it at instant speed, catching opponents off guard and providing defensive maneuvers that can disrupt their strategy during their turn.

Card Cons

Specific Mana Cost: Enduring Angel requires a precise blend of mana types with a casting cost of two plain and three colorless mana. This specific mana demand might restrict the angel’s integration in decks that run more than one color or lack a consistent mana base.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Coming in at a total of five mana, Enduring Angel is on the higher end of the mana curve. This makes it less accessible in the early game and can be a significant drawback in fast-paced formats where speed is critical. Other creatures or spells at this cost point might provide immediate impact or broader utility.

Discard Requirement: Although Enduring Angel itself doesn’t have a discard requirement, its transformative ability could potentially be a downside. If you’re unable to maintain a higher life total than your starting one when its ability triggers, you’ll have to sacrifice the angel without the upside of transforming it, leading to a significant loss of board presence and resources.

Reasons to Include Enduring Angel in Your Collection

Versatility: Enduring Angel presents itself as an adaptable addition to any deck leaning towards life gain or angelic themes. Its ability to serve as a formidable blocker and potentially flip into a powerful alternate win condition makes it a multipurpose tool in many different strategies.

Combo Potential: This card shines when combined with effects that can manipulate life totals or provide protection, allowing for unexpected game swings. Its synergistic potential with other cards can lead to dynamic and game-ending plays that catch opponents off guard.

Meta-Relevance: In a meta-game where large swings in life totals are prevalent or against decks that work towards one big turn, Enduring Angel can be vital. It holds its ground strongly in the current environment, where maintaining a high life total can mean the difference between victory and defeat.

How to beat

The challenge of overcoming Enduring Angel in MTG is no small feat, requiring a strategic approach to circumvent its potent transformation ability. This celestial card sets itself apart with its dual nature—the ability to flip into a daunting Angelic Enforcer when your life total would be reduced to 0. The key here is to either go above or fly under the radar. To effectively suppress this angelic force, consider using removal spells that exile or cause the player to sacrifice the creature before its trigger can protect them. There are several notable cards like Swords to Plowshares or Thoughtseize that can effectively address creatures with transformative abilities before they become a problem.

In addition, having instant speed answers that can disrupt the opponent’s strategy at a moment’s notice gives you the upper edge. A card like Skyclave Apparition can remove Enduring Angel without triggering its transformation, as it exiles rather than destroys. It’s also essential to manage your attacks and spells in a way that ensures the Angel is taken care of before your opponent reaches the precarious life total threshold.

Ultimately, swift removal and strategic planning are your allies in ensuring that Enduring Angel’s second coming is nothing but a myth, allowing you to maintain control of the battlefield.

BurnMana Recommendations

Understanding the nuances of Enduring Angel can turn the tides in your MTG matches. Its ability to transform as a fail-safe gives it a unique position in any deck focused on life total manipulation. Whether you are bolstering your life gain strategy or considering new angles of defense, this angel offers both versatility and a splashy way to avoid defeat. Integrating Enduring Angel within your MTG collection can lead to exciting and unexpected victories by providing an alternative path to winning the game. Dive deeper with us to unravel the best ways to utilize this celestial card and refine your gameplay to celestial heights.