Graf Mole MTG Card
2016-04-08 - Number 207
2023-03-21 - Number 197
2024-02-09 - Number 170
| Card sets | Released in 3 setsSee all |
| Mana cost | |
| Converted mana cost | 3 |
| Rarity | Uncommon |
| Type | Creature — Mole Beast |
| Power | 2 |
| Toughness | 4 |
Text of card
Whenever you sacrifice a Clue, you gain 3 life.
"Their keen sense of smell draws them to the unnatural. To find one is a boon." —Veka, hinterland inspector
Cards like Graf Mole
Graf Mole is a creature card that offers a unique advantage for players leveraging land or clue tokens in Magic: The Gathering. It is akin to Tireless Tracker, a card that also capitalizes on the clue-generating mechanic to give its controller an edge, allowing both card draw and powering up through landfall. However, unlike Tireless Tracker, Graf Mole doesn’t have the ability to grow bigger with each clue sacrificed but provides a reliable life gain instead.
Analogous to Graf Mole in terms of life gain is Trostani’s Summoner. While both cards bolster a player’s life total, Graf Mole does so incrementally with each clue sacrificed, offering a steady means of padding health. Trostani’s Summoner, however, does it through creating multiple creature tokens that could translate to a significant one-time life boost with the right conditions.
Through the lens of functionality and niche exploitation, Graf Mole maintains a sound position within its category. Its combination of moderate cost, reasonable stats, and life gain per clue offers an intriguing balance, catering to decks that value incremental advantage and consistent health support.
Cards similar to Graf Mole by color, type and mana cost
Card Pros
Card Advantage: Graf Mole thrives in a deck where clues are a frequent occurrence, offering you the chance to gain life each time a clue token is sacrificed. This can create a consistent and beneficial exchange, turning each clue into extra health and keeping you ahead in the game.
Resource Acceleration: While Graf Mole itself doesn’t produce clues, its ability synergizes with other cards that do. By playing cards that generate clue tokens, you not only build a formidable board presence but also leverage those tokens for enhanced survival through the life gain, accelerating your resource advantage.
Instant Speed: Despite Graf Mole not having an instant-speed ability itself, its presence on the battlefield turns each clue into an instant source of life. This enables you to strategically sacrifice clues in response to an opponent’s actions, maintaining your life total at critical moments and potentially disrupting their plans.
Card Cons
Discard Requirement: Graf Mole doesn’t require you to discard cards, but it does necessitate having a mechanism in place to generate Clue tokens to capitalize on its life-gain ability, which may not always align with your strategy.
Specific Mana Cost: This creature card requires one green mana, which could potentially restrict it to green-centric or two-color decks, making it less flexible in multicolored deck builds.
Comparatively High Mana Cost: Graf Mole’s casting cost of three mana might seem steep for a creature with modest stats. Considering other creatures and spells in the same mana range, players might find alternatives with more impactful board presence or versatility.
Reasons to Include in Your Collection
Versatility: Graf Mole shines in decks that capitalize on Clue tokens, offering a reliable source of life gain alongside investigation mechanics. Its ability to plug into different build strategies, such as token or life gain decks, adds a layer of adaptability to your gameplay.
Combo Potential: This creature pairs exceptionally well with cards that create or utilize Clue tokens, enabling synergistic combos that can sustain your life total while developing board presence. Its interaction with other investigation-themed cards can form potent combinations that outpace your opponents.
Meta-Relevance: In a meta where incremental advantages matter, Graf Mole finds its place. It thrives against aggressive decks by providing a recurring source of life gain, effectively staving off damage while you draw into your win conditions with the extra card advantage from Clues.
How to Beat
The Graf Mole card presents a unique challenge on the battlefield. This creature thrives in a deck that maximizes clue token mechanics, gaining you life every time you sacrifice a clue to draw a card. With a decent body of 2/4, it can be a pesky blocker. To outmaneuver this mole, one could consider a direct removal strategy. Cards that exile creatures, like Path to Exile or Declaration in Stone, can efficiently deal with the Graf Mole preemptively.
Another approach is to limit its life-gain advantage by using cards that disrupt the controller’s ability to generate or sacrifice clue tokens. A well-timed counter spell such as Cancel or a Thoughtseize to remove supporting cards from your opponent’s hand can sever the synergy the Graf Mole relies on. Additionally, cards that offer blanket life gain denial, such as Tainted Remedy, could invert the mole’s advantage into a liability.
Lastly, focusing on aggressive strategies that overwhelm your opponent before the Graf Mole’s advantage becomes significant could be key. Rapid aggro decks or burn strategies that can outpace life gain tend to perform well. In summary, while Graf Mole can be a tough nut to crack, various strategies can effectively undermine its advantages on the MTG battlefield.
Where to buy
If you're looking to purchase Graf Mole MTG card by a specific set like Shadows over Innistrad and Shadows over Innistrad Remastered, 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 Graf Mole and other MTG cards:
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- 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
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Printings
The Graf Mole Magic the Gathering card was released in 3 different sets between 2016-04-08 and 2024-02-09. Illustrated by Lars Grant-West.
| # | Released | Name | Code | Symbol | Number | Frame | Layout | Border | Artist |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2016-04-08 | Shadows over Innistrad | SOI | 207 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Lars Grant-West | |
| 2 | 2023-03-21 | Shadows over Innistrad Remastered | SIR | 197 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Lars Grant-West | |
| 3 | 2024-02-09 | Murders at Karlov Manor Commander | MKC | 170 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Lars Grant-West |
Legalities
Magic the Gathering formats where Graf Mole has restrictions
| Format | Legality |
|---|---|
| Historicbrawl | Legal |
| Historic | Legal |
| Legacy | Legal |
| Paupercommander | Restricted |
| Oathbreaker | Legal |
| Gladiator | Legal |
| Pioneer | Legal |
| Commander | Legal |
| Modern | Legal |
| Vintage | Legal |
| Duel | Legal |
| Explorer | Legal |
| Timeless | Legal |