Arboretum Elemental MTG Card

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	9
Rarity	Uncommon
Type	Creature — Elemental
Abilities	Convoke,Hexproof
Released	2018-10-05
Set symbol
Set name	Guilds of Ravnica
Set code	GRN
Power	7
Toughness	5
Number	122
Frame	2015
Layout	Normal
Border	Black
Illustred by	James Paick

Key Takeaways

Arboretum Elemental demands strategies leveraging its card advantage to dominate the game.
Flash and convoke mechanics synergize with the Elemental for dynamic play.
Despite its power, the Elemental’s high mana and deck restrictions may limit flexibility.

Text of card

Convoke (Your creatures can help cast this spell. Each creature you tap while casting this spell pays for or one mana of that creature's color.) Hexproof (This creature can't be the target of spells or abilities your opponents control.)

Card Pros

Card Advantage: The Arboretum Elemental can be a significant presence on the battlefield that often demands an answer from your opponent. With its formidable size, this creature is capable of swinging the game in your favor, ensuring that you maintain board control while potentially forcing your opponent to expend multiple cards in efforts to deal with it.

Resource Acceleration: Casting this creature can be quite the mana investment, but for decks that specialize in ramping, Arboretum Elemental benefits greatly from resource acceleration. Being a high-cost card means it’s a prime payoff for your ramp strategy, enabling you to utilize your accrued resources efficiently and pose a sizable threat earlier than expected.

Instant Speed: While Arboretum Elemental itself isn’t an instant, it synergizes well with cards featuring convoke or flash that can be played at instant speed. By tapping creatures you control, including newly summoned ones that have flash, you can deploy the Elemental at a potentially reduced cost, allowing you to maintain mana for other instant-speed interactions.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Playing Arboretum Elemental often requires a significant discard, especially if you’re leveraging its convoke ability. This could diminish your hand, leaving you with fewer responses or options later in the game.

Specific Mana Cost: With its specific green mana cost, Arboretum Elemental demands a heavy commitment to green mana production. This cost can restrict deck-building flexibility, narrowing the card’s usability to predominantly green or green-focused multicolor decks.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Costing a total of nine mana, this Elemental may arrive too late in matches where speed is crucial. Even with convoke potentially lessening the cost, in fast-paced games or against decks that can efficiently deal with large creatures, the Arboretum Elemental’s mana expense might outweigh its board impact.

Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Arboretum Elemental is a flexible addition to decks that leverage high toughness creatures. Its inherent hexproof attribute ensures it remains a resilient threat on the battlefield across various game scenarios.

Combo Potential: As a creature with substantial bulk, Arboretum Elemental synergizes well with effects that capitalize on creature size, such as those that scale with toughness or provide benefits for controlling creatures with hexproof.

Meta-Relevance: In a meta that favors lengthy games and creature-based strategies, Arboretum Elemental’s durability and evasion from targeted removal can shift the tide in your favor, making it a strategic inclusion for enduring the long game.

How to beat

Arboretum Elemental is one of those formidable creatures in Magic: The Gathering that can be a real challenge to overcome. It boasts not only substantial stats but also comes with hexproof, making it resistant to your opponent’s targeted spells. Getting past this verdant wall requires strategic play and the right cards. Board wipes are your best friend here, with wrath effects from cards like Shatter the Sky or Damnation being particularly effective, as they don’t target and thus bypass hexproof.

Graveyard play can also be an ally against Arboretum Elemental. If you can entice your opponent into a position where the Elemental is discarded or milled, graveyard removal spells like Scavenging Ooze gain value. And remember, while it stands strong against most targeted removal, it is still susceptible to universal debuffs or -X/-X effects such as Massacre Girl or Toxic Deluge which can level the field and take down even the mightiest of creatures.

Ultimately, the key to success against Arboretum Elemental lies in preparation and picking the right counter-strategies. With a targeted removal option off the table, focus on universal solutions to ensure this giant doesn’t turn the tide of the game in your opponent’s favor.

Cards like Arboretum Elemental

The Arboretum Elemental is a formidable creature card that brings a touch of hardy resilience to any Magic: The Gathering green deck. It finds parallels with other high-cost creatures such as Carnage Tyrant. Both Arboretum Elemental and Carnage Tyrant carry significant mana value, but the Elemental’s hexproof ability shields it from targeted spells and abilities, mirroring the Tyrant’s strength in some ways.

Another card worth comparing is the Plated Crusher, which is also adorned with the hexproof ability, making it a challenge for opponents to remove without using board wipes or forced sacrifice effects. However, it trades off the Elemental’s Convoke feature, which allows for a potentially earlier play by tapping creatures instead of paying mana. This makes the Arboretum Elemental versatile in summoning strategy.

Taking all aspects into consideration, the Arboretum Elemental stands out in green creature decks, providing both an offensive and defensive advantage with its considerable stats and protective hexproof. While it doesn’t entirely eclipse similar high-cost creatures, its Convoke mechanic adds a layer of strategic depth that can be leveraged for powerful board presence.

Cards similar to Arboretum Elemental by color, type and mana cost

Myojin of Life's Web - MTG Card versions

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Arboretum Elemental MTG card by a specific set like Guilds of Ravnica, 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 Arboretum Elemental and other MTG cards:

Continue exploring other sealed products in Amazon
See MTG Products

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Arboretum Elemental 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
Penny	Legal
Timeless	Legal

Rules and information

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

Date	Text
2021-03-19	If a creature you control has a mana ability with in the cost, activating that ability while casting a spell with convoke will result in the creature being tapped before you pay the spell’s costs. You won’t be able to tap it again for convoke. Similarly, if you sacrifice a creature to activate a mana ability while casting a spell with convoke, that creature won’t be on the battlefield when you pay the spell’s costs, so you won’t be able to tap it for convoke.
2021-03-19	When calculating a spell’s total cost, include any alternative costs, additional costs, or anything else that increases or reduces the cost to cast the spell. Convoke applies after the total cost is calculated. Convoke doesn’t change a spell’s mana cost or mana value.
2021-03-19	You can tap any untapped creature you control to convoke a spell, even one you haven’t controlled continuously since the beginning of your most recent turn.