Harvestguard Alseids MTG Card
| Mana cost | |
| Converted mana cost | 3 |
| Rarity | Common |
| Type | Enchantment Creature — Nymph |
| Abilities | Constellation |
| Released | 2014-05-02 |
| Set symbol | |
| Set name | Journey into Nyx |
| Set code | JOU |
| Power | 2 |
| Toughness | 3 |
| Number | 13 |
| Frame | 2003 |
| Layout | Normal |
| Border | Black |
| Illustred by | Igor Kieryluk |
Text of card
Constellation — Whenever Harvestguard Alseids or another enchantment enters the battlefield under your control, prevent all damage that would be dealt to target creature this turn.
Not all shields are forged of iron or bronze.
Cards like Harvestguard Alseids
Harvestguard Alseids serves a unique role in bolstering creature defenses in Magic: The Gathering. It echoes the life-preserving abilities of cards like Mending Touch, which shields a single creature from destruction with its regenerate mechanic. However, Harvestguard Alseids stands out due to its constellation ability, triggering every time an enchantment enters the battlefield under your control to grant protection from damage to your creatures.
Another kin in the realm of defense is Gods Willing. This spell provides protection from the color of your choice, which can be pivotal in dodging targeted removal or unfavorable blocks. Although it doesn’t blanket multiple creatures like Harvestguard Alseids, its scry 1 ability offers card selection to set up future plays. Then, we have Center Soul, which doesn’t just protect a creature from all damage but also gives it rebound, allowing for repeated use across two turns. This feature presents a strategic advantage, albeit on a limited scale, compared to the recurring utility offered by Harvestguard Alseids’ enchantment synergy.
Conclusively, Harvestguard Alseids occupies a valuable niche within the spectrum of protection spells in Magic: The Gathering, providing consistent fortification that scales with your enchantment strategy.
Cards similar to Harvestguard Alseids by color, type and mana cost
Card Pros
Card Advantage: Harvestguard Alseids plays a central role in strategies looking to optimize card draw. By providing protection to your key creatures, it ensures that your valuable assets remain on the board, enabling you to leverage more card interactions and maintain an upper hand.
Resource Acceleration: Although not directly contributing to mana ramp, the presence of Harvestguard Alseids can often speed up your game plan. By safeguarding your creatures that are pivotal in resource acceleration, this card indirectly contributes to a faster and smoother development of your board state.
Instant Speed: The ability to bestow Harvestguard Alseids at instant speed provides a flexible tactical advantage. Employing this during the opponent’s turn can disrupt their strategy, turning what would be a routine combat phase into a favorable interaction for you, or simply saving key components of your own strategy after your opponent has committed to their plays.
Card Cons
Discard Requirement: Harvestguard Alseids necessitates a discard from your hand, potentially depleting your resources at crucial moments during the game. This requirement may cause players to lose grip on their strategic assets, hindering their ability to control the game’s flow.
Specific Mana Cost: Harvestguard Alseids has an exact color requirement in its mana cost, demanding a commitment to white mana. This may restrict deck-building options and complicate casting in multicolored decks, reducing its versatility across various playstyles.
Comparatively High Mana Cost: With its mana cost being on the higher side, players might find Harvestguard Alseids less economical compared to other cards with similar protective abilities. The need to invest more mana could slow down a player’s pace, giving the advantage to opponents with more cost-effective plays.
Reasons to Include Harvestguard Alseids in Your Collection
Versatility: Harvestguard Alseids offers a flexible role in enchantment-focused decks. Its constellation ability provides a reliable form of protection for key creatures, making it a solid inclusion in a variety of MTG formats where enchantments are prevalent.
Combo Potential: This card synergizes well with decks that capitalize on enchantment triggers. It can be part of combos that aim to create a stronghold by preventing damage to important combo pieces, ensuring your pivotal strategies go uninterrupted.
Meta-Relevance: In a meta ripe with removal spells and board wipes, Harvestguard Alseids can safeguard your most critical creatures. Its relevance grows in environments where keeping your creatures safe on the board is crucial for maintaining an edge over opponents.
How to beat Harvestguard Alseids
Harvestguard Alseids presents players with a charming yet challenging constellation ability that’s unique to the enchantment-centric world of Theros. This card, when paired with other enchantments, has the potential to protect creatures from your removal spells, making it a bit of an obstacle to overcome in combat situations.
To navigate around this protective creature, consider employing board wipes that don’t target, like ‘Supreme Verdict’ or ‘Shatter the Sky’, which bypass Harvestguard Alseids’ safeguarding ability. Additionally, utilizing removal spells that force a sacrifice, such as ‘Diabolic Edict’, can be an effective strategy since it circumvents target-specific defenses.
Also, if enchantments are fueling your opponent’s strategy, turn the tables with enchantment removal like ‘Revoke Existence’ or ‘Banishing Light’, stripping the Alseids of its protective capability. In essence, when you’re up against Harvestguard Alseids, adaptation and strategic removal are key. By answering enchantments directly and using non-targeted removal or sacrifice effects, you keep the board in your favor and diminish the impact of these celestial protectors.
Where to buy
If you're looking to purchase Harvestguard Alseids MTG card by a specific set like Journey into Nyx, 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 Harvestguard Alseids 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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Legalities
Magic the Gathering formats where Harvestguard Alseids has restrictions
| Format | Legality |
|---|---|
| Commander | Legal |
| Legacy | Legal |
| Paupercommander | Legal |
| Modern | Legal |
| Oathbreaker | Legal |
| Pauper | Legal |
| Vintage | Legal |
| Duel | Legal |
| Pioneer | Legal |
| Penny | Legal |
Rules and information
The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering Harvestguard Alseids card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.
| Date | Text |
|---|---|
| 2014-04-26 | A constellation ability triggers whenever an enchantment enters the battlefield under your control for any reason. Enchantments with other card types, such as enchantment creatures, will also cause constellation abilities to trigger. |
| 2014-04-26 | An Aura spell without bestow that has an illegal target when it tries to resolve won't resolve and will be put into its owner's graveyard. It won't enter the battlefield and constellation abilities won't trigger. An Aura spell with bestow won't be countered this way. It will revert to being an enchantment creature and resolve, entering the battlefield and triggering constellation abilities. |
| 2014-04-26 | When an enchantment enters the battlefield under your control, each constellation ability of permanents you control will trigger. You can put these abilities on the stack in any order. The last ability you put on the stack will be the first one that resolves. |