Great Hart MTG Card


Great Hart ensures board stability and can enhance your creature-based game strategy effectively. Requirement to discard and specific mana needs may limit the card’s adaptability in diverse decks. This card is a solid addition in creature-focused and defensive MTG strategies, offering meta relevance.
Great Hart - Born of the Gods
Mana cost
Converted mana cost4
RarityCommon
TypeCreature — Elk
Released2014-02-07
Set symbol
Set nameBorn of the Gods
Set codeBNG
Power 2
Toughness 4
Number15
Frame2003
LayoutNormal
BorderBlack
Illustred byChristopher Moeller

Cards like Great Hart

The Great Hart stands tall in the field of creatures designed for easing the early game in Magic: The Gathering. Comparable to cards such as Loxodon Smiter, Great Hart offers a sturdy body to shield against aggressive starts. Where the Smiter excels with its no-discard clause and ability to be played from hand even when an opponent would force a discard, Great Hart trades these for a more cost-effective presence on the board.

Additionally, cards like Centaur Healer enter the arena with similarities to Great Hart. While providing a similar buffer in terms of toughness, the Healer also brings a welcome life gain aspect to the table, potentially swinging the health advantage in your favor. Conversely, Great Hart leans more on a pure defensive aspect without life gain but holds its own with a lower mana cost.

When it comes to choosing a card to fit the defensive needs of your MTG deck, Great Hart has its merits, especially for players valuing an economical yet durable defender. Its presence in a deck helps shape early game strategy and can be a key player in outlasting more aggressive opponents.

Loxodon Smiter - MTG Card versions
Centaur Healer - MTG Card versions
Loxodon Smiter - MTG Card versions
Centaur Healer - MTG Card versions

Cards similar to Great Hart by color, type and mana cost

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Cho-Manno, Revolutionary - MTG Card versions
Hero of Bladehold - MTG Card versions
Northern Paladin - MTG Card versions
Moorish Cavalry - MTG Card versions
Witch Hunter - MTG Card versions
Carrier Pigeons - MTG Card versions
Tormented Angel - MTG Card versions
Seasoned Marshal - MTG Card versions
Coalition Honor Guard - MTG Card versions
Teroh's Vanguard - MTG Card versions
Mangara, the Diplomat - MTG Card versions
Akroma's Devoted - MTG Card versions
Leonin Abunas - MTG Card versions
Kami of Old Stone - MTG Card versions
Aven Cloudchaser - MTG Card versions
Blinking Spirit - MTG Card versions
Seht's Tiger - MTG Card versions
Valor - MTG Card versions
Guardian Seraph - MTG Card versions
Lightkeeper of Emeria - MTG Card versions
Cho-Manno, Revolutionary - MTG Card versions
Hero of Bladehold - MTG Card versions

Card Pros

Card Advantage: The Great Hart card provides a stable presence on the board, ensuring you are not falling behind in maintaining a beneficial creature count.

Resource Acceleration: While not directly impacting resources, Great Hart’s cost-efficiency can play a crucial role in curving out your plays, thus smoothing out your resource allocation across turns.

Instant Speed: Though Great Hart operates at sorcery speed, its synergy with deck types that benefit from its presence can contribute indirectly to your game’s tempo, allowing for tactical plays that can catch your opponent off-guard during your turn.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Great Hart requires you to discard another card to capitalize on its abilities. This can be a significant downside when your hand is already depleted or each card plays a crucial role in your strategy.

Specific Mana Cost: Great Hart’s casting cost demands specific mana types which may not align with multi-color decks. The necessity for plain mana restricts the card’s versatility and ease of integration into diverse decks.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a casting cost that may be considered steep for its stats and effect, Great Hart competes directly with other creatures and spells that could offer a greater impact on the game. This can result in the card being overlooked for options that provide more immediate or potent benefits relative to their mana investment.


Reasons to Include Great Hart in Your Collection

Versatility: Great Hart can seamlessly blend into various deck archetypes, especially those that favor creatures with substantial toughness or require a high creature count for synergy effects.

Combo Potential: Its creature type can complement tribal-based mechanics or strategies focused on life gain, as it often finds resonance with cards designed to benefit from the presence of other creatures.

Meta-Relevance: In metas with an abundance of aggro decks, Great Hart serves as an efficient blocker with its considerable toughness, potentially stalling opponents and allowing for favorable board state transitions.


How to beat

The Great Hart card presents a unique challenge in MTG, embodying not just a creature on the battlefield but also a potential life buffer for your opponent. Unlike direct damage spells or aggressive creatures that might simply overpower this steadfast hart, effective strategies involve removal spells that bypass its considerable toughness. Cards like Murder or Path to Exile offer clean solutions, removing the beast no matter its size. Another approach is to sidestep combat altogether, utilizing enchantments like Pacifism to neutralize it without engaging directly.

Additionally, strategic players might employ board wipes like Wrath of God to reset the playing field, sweeping the Great Hart away along with any other creatures on the board. For those favoring a less direct route, countering the spell as it’s cast with a Cancel or employing a Thoughtseize to remove it pre-emptively from an opponent’s hand are viable tactics. Ultimately, defeating this grand creature requires a blend of foresight, resource management, and a well-timed execution of control elements within the game.


Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Great Hart MTG card by a specific set like Born of the Gods, 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 Great Hart and other MTG cards:

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Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Great Hart has restrictions

FormatLegality
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
PaupercommanderLegal
ModernLegal
OathbreakerLegal
PauperLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
PioneerLegal
PennyLegal