Heart-Piercer Bow MTG Card
2014-09-26 - Number 221
2019-07-12 - Number 228
2022-12-02 - Number 773
2023-08-04 - Number 390
| Card sets | Released in 4 setsSee all |
| Mana cost | |
| Converted mana cost | 2 |
| Rarity | Uncommon |
| Type | Artifact — Equipment |
| Abilities | Equip |
Text of card
Whenever equipped creature attacks, Heart-Piercer Bow deals 1 damage to target creature defending player controls. Equip
Designed by an ancient artificer, the finest Mardu bows are carved from dragon bone and strung with the wind itself.
Cards like Heart-Piercer Bow
Heart-Piercer Bow is a distinctive artifact in Magic: The Gathering, offering a means of dealing extra damage to your opponent’s creatures. Its nearest relative in function is Viridian Longbow, which similarly permits creatures to deal damage directly to another target creature or player. However, unlike the Heart-Piercer Bow which requires the equipped creature to attack to trigger its damage, Viridian Longbow allows you to tap the equipped creature to deal damage without needing to declare an attack.
The comparison extends to cards like Wolfhunter’s Quiver, which shares a similar equipped creature damage-dealing theme. Although Wolfhunter’s Quiver offers more flexibility, allowing for multiple activations if you have the mana, it comes at a higher cost and setup investment compared to Heart-Piercer Bow. Meanwhile, cards like Pathway Arrows provide creature control at a low cost but require additional mana for each use, unlike Heart-Piercer Bow which is operative upon attacks at no extra cost.
Assessing the unique properties of these cards, Heart-Piercer Bow stands out in MTG for its balance of cost-efficiency and the continuous threat it poses to opponents’ creatures as you keep on the offensive.
Cards similar to Heart-Piercer Bow by color, type and mana cost
Card Pros
Card Advantage: The Heart-Piercer Bow allows for repeated damage output, potentially leading to consistent creature elimination and thereby indirectly contributing to card advantage on the board.
Resource Acceleration: While the Heart-Piercer Bow itself doesn’t provide direct resource acceleration, the ability to remove key blockers can enable your creatures to attack more freely, which could result in connecting with effects or hitting land drops thanks to cards like “Sword of the Animist” attached to unblocked attackers.
Instant Speed: Although the equip ability of Heart-Piercer Bow doesn’t operate at instant speed, equipping it in preparation for combat can serve as a deterrent, influencing opponents’ actions during their turns. The threat of potential damage at any combat phase can indirectly affect the pace and flow of the game in your favor.
Card Cons
Discard Requirement: When including Heart-Piercer Bow in your deck, you need to be mindful that it requires a creature to maximize its effect. In games where your board is wiped clean or creatures are scarce, the Bow may linger in hand without targets for its ability, potentially clogging your hand.
Specific Mana Cost: Although the Bow itself has a generic mana cost that fits into any deck, equipping it requires a specific mana investment. This can be taxing in multi-colored decks that need to manage their limited mana wisely.
Comparatively High Mana Cost: The Bow’s initial cost is low, but the cumulative cost of repeatedly equipping it can be steep. Ponder over whether your deck’s strategy justifies this expense, particularly when there are numerous lower-cost or more impactful equipment options available in the MTG universe.
Reasons to Include Heart-Piercer Bow in Your Collection
Versatility: Heart-Piercer Bow is a flexible card that can be included in numerous deck types, specifically those looking to capitalize on noncreature artifacts or aiming to control the board by picking off smaller creatures.
Combo Potential: This artifact can work in tandem with creatures that have tap or attack triggers, allowing for additional damage output or synergizing with abilities that revolve around dealing damage.
Meta-Relevance: Given that creature-based strategies are common in many metas, Heart-Piercer Bow remains a relevant choice for disrupting opposing creature plays and maintaining board control without having to commit to high-cost spells or abilities.
How to beat
The Heart-Piercer Bow is an intriguing equipment card within Magic: The Gathering, offering players a way to ping creatures as they attack. To effectively tackle this artifact, consider incorporating enchantment or artifact removal in your deck. Cards like Naturalize or Disenchant are excellent choices as they can take the Bow out of play before it becomes a recurring nuisance.
Another strategy is to overwhelm the opponent with creature-based decks that can replenish faster than the Bow can pick them off. This way, the incremental damage dealt by the Heart-Piercer Bow becomes less significant. Additionally, decks that focus on creature protection or indestructibility like with the spells Sheltering Word or Unbreakable Formation, can nullify the Bow’s impact, letting your creatures survive the piercing damage during combat.
Finally, applying pressure with aggressive plays can divert the opponent’s use of mana towards defending rather than equipping and utilizing the Heart-Piercer Bow. It’s about staying one step ahead, ensuring that the Bow doesn’t tip the scales in your opponent’s favor. By considering these tactics, the Heart-Piercer Bow becomes far less threatening, allowing you to maintain control of the battlefield.
Where to buy
If you're looking to purchase Heart-Piercer Bow MTG card by a specific set like Khans of Tarkir and Core Set 2020, 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 Heart-Piercer Bow 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 Heart-Piercer Bow Magic the Gathering card was released in 4 different sets between 2014-09-26 and 2023-08-04. Illustrated by Franz Vohwinkel.
| # | Released | Name | Code | Symbol | Number | Frame | Layout | Border | Artist |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2014-09-26 | Khans of Tarkir | KTK | 221 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Franz Vohwinkel | |
| 2 | 2019-07-12 | Core Set 2020 | M20 | 228 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Franz Vohwinkel | |
| 3 | 2022-12-02 | Jumpstart 2022 | J22 | 773 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Franz Vohwinkel | |
| 4 | 2023-08-04 | Commander Masters | CMM | 390 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Franz Vohwinkel |
Legalities
Magic the Gathering formats where Heart-Piercer Bow has restrictions
| Format | Legality |
|---|---|
| Historicbrawl | Legal |
| Historic | Legal |
| Legacy | Legal |
| Paupercommander | Legal |
| Oathbreaker | Legal |
| Gladiator | Legal |
| Pioneer | Legal |
| Commander | Legal |
| Modern | Legal |
| Pauper | Legal |
| Vintage | Legal |
| Duel | Legal |
| Explorer | Legal |
| Penny | Legal |
| Timeless | Legal |
Rules and information
The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering Heart-Piercer Bow card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.
| Date | Text |
|---|---|
| 2019-07-12 | Heart-Piercer Bow (not the equipped creature) is the source of the triggered ability and the source of the damage. This means that a creature with protection from green may be targeted even if Heart-Piercer Bow is equipped to a green creature, but a creature with protection from artifacts may not. |
| 2019-07-12 | If a creature is attacking a planeswalker, the controller of that planeswalker is the defending player. |