Gift of Tusks MTG Card

Gift of Tusks transforms formidable creatures, balancing power and maintaining card value for strategic advantage. Its one-mana cost allows efficient mana use and instant speed ensures flexible, optimal play. Gift of Tusks is versatile, suitable for disruption or adjusting to surprise combat situations effectively.

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	1
Rarity	Uncommon
Type	Instant
Released	2016-01-22
Set symbol
Set name	Oath of the Gatewatch
Set code	OGW
Number	55
Frame	2015
Layout	Normal
Border	Black
Illustred by	Kev Walker

Text of card

Until end of turn, target creature loses all abilities and becomes a green Elephant with base power and toughness 3/3.

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Cards like Gift of Tusks

Gift of Tusks stands out as an intriguing utility spell within the pantheon of Magic: The Gathering polymorph effects. Its strength lies in its ability to temporarily transform any creature into a 3/3 Elephant, a birlliant move for both offensive and defensive maneuvers. In a similar mold lies Snakeform, which not only changes a creature’s stats to that of a 1/1 but also strips it of all abilities and grants it the snake subtype until end of turn. However, Snakeform hands over the additional advantage of drawing a card.

Dive into your strategy toolkit and you may find Turn to Frog, another card akin to Gift of Tusks, both visually and functionally. Turn to Frog reduces the targeted creature to a 1/1 blue Frog with no abilities, similar in its capacity to neutralize threats instantaneously. While Turn to Frog offers an arguably more significant reduction in power and toughness, it does not provide the surprise potential of transforming an opponent’s blocker into an ally, which can occur with Gift of Tusks.

Assessing these enchanting polymorph magic cards, Gift of Tusks may initially seem modest, yet its one-mana cost and instant speed present a wealth of tactical surprises on the battlefield, situating it firmly as a valuable card in Magic: The Gathering’s vast array of transformational spells.

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Gift of Tusks might not let you draw cards directly, but by transforming a potentially game-ending creature into a harmless 3/3 Elk, it effectively negates the threat without losing card value. This shifts the balance of power and can lead to a card advantage as your opponent’s investment becomes minimized.

Resource Acceleration: Although Gift of Tusks does not explicitly accelerate resources, its low casting cost acts as a form of indirect acceleration. Being only one blue mana, it allows you to utilize your mana efficiently, maintaining the ability to play other spells in the same turn.

Instant Speed: The strength of Gift of Tusks also lies in its instant speed, enabling reactive play to surprise an opponent during combat or at the end of their turn. This versatility ensures that your mana is used optimally, keeping your options open until the most advantageous moment.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: While Gift of Tusks doesn’t necessitate discarding as a cost, it’s important for players to be aware of their hand size before playing any spell. Managing your resources is key in MTG, and anytime you play a card, you effectively discard it from your hand, costing you a potential future asset.

Specific Mana Cost: Gift of Tusks requires a blue mana to cast. This mana color requirement can restrict its use to decks that already run blue mana or force multi-color decks to have access to the right mana source at the right time, potentially affecting the card’s playability in certain situations.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Though the mana cost for Gift of Tusks is only a single blue mana, when evaluated against other options in the game, there may be alternative spells or creatures that offer more strategic flexibility or powerful effects for a similar or slightly higher cost. Players should consider if this polymorph effect is worth the slot in their deck over other utility options available.

Reasons to Include Gift of Tusks in Your Collection

Versatility: Gift of Tusks shines in its ability to be a flexible addition to a wide array of decks. Not only can it suddenly diminish a formidable creature’s power, turning a game’s tide, but it can also be used on your own creature in a pinch to strategically navigate around enchantments or abilities targeting non-Elephant creatures.

Combo Potential: This card can be a linchpin in intricate combos, especially in blue-centric decks that utilize creature type manipulation for various effects. With its low mana cost, it’s an ideal choice for surprising and disruptive plays during critical moments of interaction.

Meta-Relevance: Considering the fast-paced and often creature-heavy dynamics of the current meta, Gift of Tusks provides an inexpensive and instantaneous way to alter creature abilities, potentially negate incoming damage, or even mess with opponent synergies relying on a specific creature type.

How to beat

When facing Gift of Tusks in your MTG matchups, understanding its transformational impact on the battlefield will enhance your strategic advantage. This card, notable for temporarily turning any creature into a humble 3/3 Elephant until the end of the turn, can disrupt your well-laid plans or serve as a lifesaver against formidable threats. To outplay an opponent wielding this whimsical polymorphic spell, consider the timing and board state before committing your big creatures to the fray.

Keep in mind that Gift of Tusks shines in situations where surprise is key—such as turning an opponent’s major threat into a less intimidating force, or cleverly altering combat math to favor your side. However, if you suspect this spell is in an opponent’s hand, holding back your most crucial threats or waiting until after it’s been played can mitigate its effect. Deploying creatures with enter-the-battlefield abilities or providing instant speed responses to Gift of Tusks can further diminish its impact, maintaining your momentum and protecting your most valuable assets on the board. Awareness and patience often prove to be the best strategies in safeguarding your creatures against this enchanting but fleeting transformation.

Remember, while Gift of Tusks offers a temporary shift in power dynamics, being prepared for such tricks and knowing how to navigate around them can keep you in control of the game’s outcome.

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Gift of Tusks MTG card by a specific set like Oath of the Gatewatch, 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 Gift of Tusks and other MTG cards:

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Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Gift of Tusks has restrictions

Format	Legality
Commander	Legal
Legacy	Legal
Modern	Legal
Oathbreaker	Legal
Vintage	Legal
Duel	Legal
Pioneer	Legal
Penny	Legal

Rules and information

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

Date	Text
2016-01-22	Effects that modify a creature’s power and/or toughness, such as the effect of Titanic Growth, will apply to the creature no matter when they started to take effect. The same is true for any counters that change its power and/or toughness and effects that switch its power and toughness.
2016-01-22	Gift of Tusks doesn’t counter abilities that have already triggered or been activated. In particular, there is no way to cast this spell to stop a creature’s ability that says “At the beginning of your upkeep,” “When this creature enters the battlefield,” or similar from triggering.
2016-01-22	Gift of Tusks overwrites all previous effects that set the creature’s base power and toughness to specific values. Any power- or toughness-setting effects that start to apply after Gift of Tusks resolves will overwrite this effect.
2016-01-22	If the affected creature gains an ability after Gift of Tusks resolves, it will keep that ability.
2016-01-22	The creature will lose all other colors and creature types, but it will retain any other card types (such as artifact) or supertypes (such as legendary) it may have.