Heliod, the Radiant Dawn // Heliod, the Warped Eclipse MTG Card


Card setsReleased in 3 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost4
RarityRare
TypeLegendary Enchantment Creature — God
Abilities Transform
Power 4
Toughness 4

Key Takeaways

  1. Grants steady card advantage by enhancing battlefield creatures and saving hand resources.
  2. Indirectly accelerates resources, pairing well with cards activated by gaining life.
  3. Introduces surprise combat dynamics with lifelink ability, affecting attack and defense strategies.

Text of card

When Heliod, the Radiant Dawn enters the battlefield, return target enchantment card that isn't a God from your graveyard to your hand. {PU}: Transform Heliod, the Radiant Dawn. Activate only as a sorcery. ({PU} can be paid with either or 2 life.)

"*Compleat* the faith, *compleat* the god." —Ajani Goldmane


Card Pros

Card Advantage: Heliod the Radiant Dawn shines in its ability to steadily provide card advantage through its reliable creature buffs. By empowering creatures already on the battlefield, it often negates the need for additional card plays, thus preserving hand resources while influencing the board.

Resource Acceleration: A key feature of Heliod the Radiant Dawn is its indirect resource acceleration. Each activation of its abilities can be viewed as saving mana investment on other cards. Moreover, its ability to give life link to creatures enables potential synergy with cards that trigger upon gaining life, effectively accelerating your access to additional effects and resources.

Instant Speed: While Heliod itself doesn’t operate at instant speed, it allows creatures that gain life link to instantly become relevant during any combat phase. This adds a layer of complexity and surprise to the battlefield, forcing opponents to consider the risks of attacking or blocking when your life-total could unpredictably spike, potentially thwarting their strategies.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: While Heliod the Radiant Dawn doesn’t directly require you to discard cards, integrating it into your deck can pressure your hand since you’ll often need to ensure you have sufficient devotion to white to utilize Heliod’s full potential. This could inadvertently lead to a strategic discard of other valuable cards to maintain board presence.

Specific Mana Cost: Heliod the Radiant Dawn demands a focused mana base with its white-heavy casting cost. This requirement potentially restricts its integration, making it less versatile in multi-colored decks that might struggle with generating enough white mana consistently.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a mana value of three, including double white, it can be considered a significant investment for an early game board presence. Other creatures or enchantments at this cost could provide more immediate impact or flexibility in deck-building strategies.


Reasons to Include Heliod, the Radiant Dawn in Your Collection

Versatility: Heliod, the Radiant Dawn shines in its ability to adapt to various playstyles. As a legendary enchantment creature, it can enhance decks that capitalize on enchantment synergies or creature-based strategies.

Combo Potential: This card offers excellent combo potential with its ability to grant lifelink and place +1/+1 counters on creatures you control. This can be especially potent in decks designed around gaining life and growing an unstoppable board presence.

Meta-Relevance: Its presence on the battlefield can be significant in today’s game environment, where it can disrupt opponent strategies and strengthen your creatures against the meta’s prevalent removal spells. Heliod, the Radiant Dawn can be a formidable addition to any collection with its ability to thrive in the current competitive landscape.


How to Beat Heliod the Radiant Dawn

Heliod the Radiant Dawn shines as a formidable force in MTG, offering both a powerful indestructible enchantment and a god card that can quickly escalate the strength of your opponent’s creatures. However, there are effective strategies to dim Heliod’s luminous presence on the battlefield. Employing removal spells that exile, such as Path to Exile or Dire Tactics, bypasses Heliod’s indestructible nature.

Tackling the board before Heliod becomes a creature is also wise. Since Heliod only transforms with enough devotion to white, controlling the number of white mana symbols your opponent has in play can prevent Heliod from coming into full strength. Lastly, consider enchantment hate cards like Fragmentize or Back to Nature, especially if Heliod hasn’t yet met his devotion threshold and remains an enchantment on the field. Ultimately, smart resource management and timely removal will help ensure Heliod the Radiant Dawn doesn’t eclipse your path to victory.


BurnMana Recommendations

Embracing the prowess of Heliod the Radiant Dawn can significantly enhance your MTG gameplay. This deity’s gift of bolstering creatures and fostering life gain combos lays the foundation for a formidable deck that rivals many. Whether it’s through cards that flourish alongside lifelink or the strategy of growing a threatening board presence, Heliod stands as a crowning jewel in any collection that values resilience and versatility. Equip yourself with knowledge and the right synergies to wield Heliod’s divine might effectively. Unveil more strategies and synergies to make your deck truly shine—join the BurnMana community today.


Cards like Heliod, the Radiant Dawn // Heliod, the Warped Eclipse

Heliod, the Radiant Dawn shines brightly in the pantheon of MTG’s powerful divine beings. This celestial entity bears a resemblance in function to cards like Ajani, Caller of the Pride, which also empower creatures and bolster life totals. Both cards excel in decks focused on life gain and creature enhancement. Unlike Ajani, however, Heliod provides a constant presence on the battlefield, granting a lifelink ability and the opportunity to create creature tokens with each gain of life.

Looking at Authority of the Consuls, we find another life-oriented card, providing a passive benefit similar to Heliod’s devotion to white mana. While Authority of the Consuls affects all the opponent’s creatures and gains life whenever one enters the battlefield, Heliod focuses on leveraging those life gains for building board presence. Another kin among these cards is Archangel of Thune, whose power to place +1/+1 counters on all creatures you control with each life gain mirrors Heliod’s strategy of growing a mighty army.

Comparatively, Heliod thrives in an environment rich with synergies, capitalizing on each instance of life gained, securing its revered spot in MTG strategy as a deity that demands attention, and demonstrates resilience in the heat of battle.

Ajani, Caller of the Pride - MTG Card versions
Authority of the Consuls - MTG Card versions
Archangel of Thune - MTG Card versions
Ajani, Caller of the Pride - MTG Card versions
Authority of the Consuls - MTG Card versions
Archangel of Thune - MTG Card versions

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Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Heliod, the Radiant Dawn // Heliod, the Warped Eclipse MTG card by a specific set like March of the Machine and March of the Machine, 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 Heliod, the Radiant Dawn // Heliod, the Warped Eclipse and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Heliod, the Radiant Dawn // Heliod, the Warped Eclipse Magic the Gathering card was released in 2 different sets between 2023-04-21 and 2023-04-21. Illustrated by 2 different artists.

#ReleasedNameCodeSymbolNumberFrameLayoutBorderArtist
12023-04-21March of the MachineMOM 172015TransformBlackVictor Adame Minguez
22023-04-21March of the MachineMOM 2932015TransformBlackJason A. Engle
32023-04-21March of the Machine PromosPMOM 17s2015TransformBlackVictor Adame Minguez

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Heliod, the Radiant Dawn // Heliod, the Warped Eclipse has restrictions

FormatLegality
StandardLegal
HistoricbrawlLegal
HistoricLegal
LegacyLegal
OathbreakerLegal
GladiatorLegal
AlchemyLegal
PioneerLegal
CommanderLegal
ModernLegal
FutureLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
ExplorerLegal
BrawlLegal
PennyLegal
TimelessLegal

Rules and information

The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering Heliod, the Radiant Dawn // Heliod, the Warped Eclipse card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.

Date Text
2023-04-14 If a spell you cast has in its mana cost, you choose the value of X before calculating the spell’s total cost. For example, if a spell’s mana cost is and your opponents have drawn two cards this turn, you could choose 5 as the value of X and pay to cast the spell.
2023-04-14 If there are additional costs to cast a spell, or if the cost to cast a spell is increased by an effect (such as the one created by Thalia, Guardian of Thraben’s ability), apply those increases before applying cost reductions.
2023-04-14 That ability can’t reduce the amount of colored mana you pay for a spell. It reduces only the generic mana component of that cost.
2023-04-14 The cost reduction can apply to alternative costs such as flashback costs.
2023-04-14 The last ability of Heliod, the Warped Eclipse doesn’t change the mana cost or mana value of any spell. It changes only the total cost you pay.
2023-04-14 The “as though they had flash” effect applies only to casting spells. It does not, for example, change when you may activate abilities that can be activated “only as a sorcery.”