Etali, Primal Storm MTG Card

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Introducing Etali, Primal Storm into your deck is essentially a cheat code for card advantage. Every attack lets you play a card from each player’s deck without paying their mana costs, essentially offering multiple cards per combat phase.

Resource Acceleration: The value Etali, Primal Storm provides isn’t just limited to drawing cards. It’s about the acceleration of your resources as well. By playing spells for free, you’re saving valuable mana each turn that can be allocated to deploying other threats or bolstering your defenses.

Instant Speed: While Etali, Primal Storm operates at sorcery speed, the instant-speed spells you nab from your opponents add a layer of surprise and flexibility. You can disrupt their strategies or protect Etali without spending your mana, maintaining pressure while being responsive.

Card Cons

Specific Mana Cost: Featuring a strict casting requirement of six mana, including four that must be red, Etali, Primal Storm can strain mana resources and may not fit seamlessly into multicolored decks that can’t consistently provide the necessary red mana.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: As an impactful creature, Etali comes with a high mana value that makes it a late-game play. This cost can be a setback in faster-paced games where early board presence is crucial.

Discard Requirement: While Etali itself doesn’t have a discard requirement, playing a high-cost card like Etali means you may have to forgo casting other spells, which can be akin to discarding opportunities to develop your board or respond to threats.

Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Etali, Primal Storm is a dynamic presence in any red commander deck, as it doesn’t rely on any single strategy to prove valuable. With its ability to cast spells from the top of each player’s library, Etali fits comfortably in various builds, from chaotic fun to finely tuned competitive decks.

Combo Potential: Etali has immense synergy with cards that manipulate the top of the library, setting up potential free casts of spells that can swiftly change the game’s landscape. Additionally, combining Etali with ways to give it haste maximizes its impact, allowing for immediate and often game-altering attacks.

Meta-Relevance: With the ever-shifting landscape of MTG, Etali remains a relevant threat. It’s particularly effective in formats where the battlefield can become crowded with high-impact permanents. By utilizing Etali, players can capitalize on the value generated from each attack, often swaying the game in their favor against various opponents.

How to beat

Etali, Primal Storm represents a significant threat on any battlefield in Magic: The Gathering, with its ability to cast cards for free from the top of each player’s library whenever it attacks. To neutralize this fearsome dinosaur, players must come prepared with a reliable strategy. Utilizing instant-speed removals like Swords to Plowshares or Path to Exile allows you to deal with Etali before it can trigger its ability. Counter-spells are also effective to prevent it from hitting the battlefield in the first place.

Alternatively, playing with cards that manipulate the top of your library, like Brainstorm or Sensei’s Divining Top, can mitigate the impact of Etali’s ability by ensuring the dinosaur excavates less valuable cards. Engaging in proactive measures, such as playing disruption cards to keep the ramping player off balance, can also be a potent way to stay ahead. Ultimately, swiftly addressing Etali, Primal Storm with precision and intelligent library management can turn the tide of battle in your favor in this exciting game.