Hero's Blade MTG Card


Card setsReleased in 9 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost2
RarityUncommon
TypeArtifact — Equipment
Abilities Equip

Key Takeaways

  1. Free equip to legendary creatures saves mana, enabling other plays and surprises in-game.
  2. Hero’s Blade’s mana investment may compete with other strategic plays in fast-paced games.
  3. Automatic equip provides versatility and combat advantage in creature-focused decks.

Text of card

Equipped creature gets +3/+2. Whenever a legendary creature enters the battlefield under your control, you may attach Hero's Blade to it. Equip

The best swords are forged with dragonfire.


Card Pros

Card Advantage: When equipped to a legendary creature, Hero’s Blade can be a game-changer without the need to spend mana for attaching it, essentially getting an equipment equipped for free. This creates a more efficient use of the cards in hand, as you have more resources available for other strategies.

Resource Acceleration: Hero’s Blade provides an excellent form of resource acceleration in decks that focus on legendary creatures. It automatically attaches to any legendary creature that enters the battlefield, saving crucial mana that can be used to cast additional spells or activate abilities earlier in the game.

Instant Speed: The automatic equip ability of Hero’s Blade triggers at instant speed, providing a surprise boost to newly played legendary creatures. This can turn the tide of battle unexpectedly, strengthening creatures during combat or in response to your opponent’s actions, making it highly versatile in swiftly evolving game situations.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Despite not having a discard requirement, Hero’s Blade can be a liability if you’re playing a deck that values hand size or card advantage. Without inherent card draw or a way to recover the card spent equipping, it may indirectly contribute to a card disadvantage over time, particularly in formats where tempo is crucial.

Specific Mana Cost: Hero’s Blade requires both generic mana and a commitment to playing creature-heavy decks for optimal use. Its mana cost can be restrictive in decks that also want to allocate resources to control elements or non-creature strategies.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a casting cost of two and an equip cost of four, the total investment of six mana to fully utilize this artifact can be cumbersome. In fast-paced games, the mana required to get a creature equipped with Hero’s Blade might be better spent on more impactful plays, especially since the equipment doesn’t provide any immediate board presence on its own.


Reasons to Include Hero’s Blade in Your Collection

Versatility: Hero’s Blade is a flexible equipment card that can easily slot into a variety of Commander decks. Its ability to automatically attach to legendary creatures for free when they enter the battlefield makes it a useful tool for enhancing creature-based strategies.

Combo Potential: With its auto-equip feature, Hero’s Blade can instantly turn your legendary creatures into more formidable threats, synergizing with commanders that can enter the battlefield multiple times or have enter-the-battlefield triggers. This can be essential for creating impactful combos and maintaining board presence.

Meta-Relevance: In a meta where voltron strategies are prevalent or where having a robust commander is crucial, Hero’s Blade becomes an incredibly relevant piece of equipment. Its ability to provide a significant power and toughness boost can be the difference-maker in games where tempo and efficiency are key.


How to beat

Hero’s Blade is an intriguing equipment card that can swiftly enhance your creatures and turn the tide of a game. As a card that auto-equips to a legendary creature when it enters the battlefield, Hero’s Blade can present a formidable challenge. Nonetheless, there are targeted removal strategies that can effectively dismantle this advantage. One such approach is to employ instant-speed removal spells to destroy the equipped creature before the blade gives its substantial power and toughness boost. Disenchant and Naturalize are notable examples, capable of outright removing either the blade itself or the aura granting it additional power.

Artifact removal also plays a crucial role, as it can directly address Hero’s Blade and similar equipment cards that buff creatures beyond regular combat capabilities. Cards like Shatter or Smash to Smithereens can disrupt your opponent’s momentum, removing the blade before it becomes a significant threat. Additionally, countering the creature spells that would trigger Hero’s Blade’s auto-equip ability is a preemptive strike, preventing your opponents from leveraging their synergy to begin with.

Ultimately, dealing with Hero’s Blade comes down to timing and choosing the right moment to disrupt the combo, prioritizing the removal of either the equipment or the creatures destined to wield it.


BurnMana Recommendations

Gathering insights from the intricacies of MTG, Hero’s Blade has emerged as a strategic piece in creature-focused decks, particularly where legendary creatures take center stage. A versatile tool, this card accelerates your game by saving mana and surprising opponents with instant buffs. Exploring its potential further could be crucial for those aiming to sharpen their commander tactics or amp up their voltron strategies. Dive into our comprehensive resources to enhance your deck-building skills and discover how to seamlessly integrate Hero’s Blade into your winning combos. Your MTG journey is just unfolding—let’s forge your path to victory together.


Cards like Hero's Blade

Hero’s Blade stands out as a unique equipment card in Magic: The Gathering. It shares traits with other equipment cards such as Swiftfoot Boots and Sword of the Animist in granting immediate and tangible benefits to creatures. Swiftfoot Boots provides both hexproof and haste, thereby protecting and hastening your creatures, yet it does not boost their power and toughness as Hero’s Blade does. Conversely, Sword of the Animist is primarily used for its ability to ramp land, a different advantage than the stat increase offered by Hero’s Blade.

Analogous to Hero’s Blade in its auto-equip feature is the card Ronin Warclub. Both equipment cards automatically attach to a creature when it enters the battlefield, yet Hero’s Blade is more manageable with its lower equip cost for future creatures. Additionally, another parallel card is Obsidian Battle-Axe, which favors Warrior creatures and similarly has the auto-equip mechanic. However, it grants haste instead of a static power and toughness enhancement.

In essence, Hero’s Blade is a card that finds its niche in granting a significant power and toughness boost with an auto-equip feature. It provides immediate combat influence and can turn any creature into a larger threat upon entering the battlefield, distinguishing itself in the realm of MTG equipment.

Swiftfoot Boots - MTG Card versions
Sword of the Animist - MTG Card versions
Ronin Warclub - MTG Card versions
Obsidian Battle-Axe - MTG Card versions
Swiftfoot Boots - Magic 2012 (M12)
Sword of the Animist - Magic Origins (ORI)
Ronin Warclub - Betrayers of Kamigawa (BOK)
Obsidian Battle-Axe - Morningtide (MOR)

Cards similar to Hero's Blade by color, type and mana cost

Chaos Orb - MTG Card versions
Winter Orb - MTG Card versions
Amulet of Kroog - MTG Card versions
Nacre Talisman - MTG Card versions
Howling Mine - MTG Card versions
Essence Bottle - MTG Card versions
Emerald Medallion - MTG Card versions
Scrying Glass - MTG Card versions
Cursed Totem - MTG Card versions
Tsabo's Web - MTG Card versions
Millikin - MTG Card versions
Ark of Blight - MTG Card versions
Surestrike Trident - MTG Card versions
Energy Chamber - MTG Card versions
Water Gun Balloon Game - MTG Card versions
Angel's Feather - MTG Card versions
Demon's Horn - MTG Card versions
Elsewhere Flask - MTG Card versions
Steel Overseer - MTG Card versions
Wurm's Tooth - MTG Card versions
Chaos Orb - Unlimited Edition (2ED)
Winter Orb - 30th Anniversary Edition (30A)
Amulet of Kroog - Rinascimento (RIN)
Nacre Talisman - Ice Age (ICE)
Howling Mine - Fifth Edition (5ED)
Essence Bottle - Tempest (TMP)
Emerald Medallion - Commander Anthology (CMA)
Scrying Glass - Urza's Destiny (UDS)
Cursed Totem - World Championship Decks 2000 (WC00)
Tsabo's Web - World Championship Decks 2001 (WC01)
Millikin - Odyssey (ODY)
Ark of Blight - Scourge (SCG)
Surestrike Trident - Darksteel (DST)
Energy Chamber - Fifth Dawn (5DN)
Water Gun Balloon Game - Unhinged (UNH)
Angel's Feather - Ninth Edition (9ED)
Demon's Horn - Ninth Edition (9ED)
Elsewhere Flask - Shadowmoor (SHM)
Steel Overseer - Magic 2011 (M11)
Wurm's Tooth - Magic 2011 (M11)

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Hero's Blade MTG card by a specific set like Fate Reforged and Commander 2017, 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 Hero's Blade and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Hero's Blade Magic the Gathering card was released in 7 different sets between 2015-01-23 and 2023-10-13. Illustrated by 2 different artists.

#ReleaseNameCodeSymbolNumberFrameLayoutBorderArtist
12015-01-23Fate ReforgedFRF 1602015normalblackAaron Miller
22017-08-25Commander 2017C17 2142015normalblackAaron Miller
32020-11-20Commander LegendsCMR 3142015normalblackAaron Miller
42020-11-20Commander LegendsCMR 4642015normalblackAaron Miller
52022-09-09Dominaria United CommanderDMC 1862015normalblackAaron Miller
62022-12-02Jumpstart 2022J22 7762015normalblackAaron Miller
72023-08-04Commander MastersCMM 3912015normalblackAaron Miller
82023-10-13Doctor WhoWHO 8322015normalblackRandy Gallegos
92023-10-13Doctor WhoWHO 2412015normalblackRandy Gallegos

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Hero's Blade has restrictions

FormatLegality
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
ModernLegal
OathbreakerLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
PioneerLegal

Rules and information

The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering Hero's Blade card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.

DateText
2014-11-24 The triggered ability will trigger when one of the Gods from Theros block enters the battlefield only if your devotion is high enough that it's a creature when it enters. If Hero's Blade is attached to a God that stops being a creature (or any creature that stops being a creature), it will become unattached.
2020-11-10 If the legendary creature that entered the battlefield leaves the battlefield before Hero's Blade becomes attached, Hero's Blade stays as it was. If it's already attached to another creature, it remains attached to that creature.

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