Hidden Predators MTG Card

Offers a powerful creature and enchantment utility without extra cards, enhancing card advantage. Transforms instantly, responding to opponents’ creature growth, which can be strategically significant. Demands strategic deck building and play due to specific activation requirements and mana cost.

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	1
Rarity	Rare
Type	Enchantment
Released	1998-10-12
Set symbol
Set name	Urza's Saga
Set code	USG
Number	263
Frame	1997
Layout	Normal
Border	Black
Illustred by	John Matson

Text of card

When one of your opponents controls a creature with power 4 or greater, if Hidden Predators is an enchantment, Hidden Predators becomes a 4/4 creature that counts as a Beast.

Cards like Hidden Predators

Hidden Predators is a unique enchantment in Magic: The Gathering that transforms into a 4/4 green Beast creature under certain conditions. Comparable to it is the card Lurking Predators, which has a more interactive mechanism, revealing cards from the top of your library whenever an opponent casts a spell and potentially putting a creature card directly onto the battlefield. Both offer a surprise element but succeed in different scenarios.

Another card to consider is Deeproot Champion, a merfolk shaman that grows stronger with each noncreature spell you cast, thriving on the casting rather than the condition of life total like Hidden Predators. There’s also the enchantment Bear Umbra, which offers a similar grow-your-creatures concept by awarding extra land untaps and protections, again a different route to enhancing your board compared to the hidden-to-revealed creature transformation that Hidden Predators provides.

Ultimately, when evaluating the synergies and potential impact on the game, Hidden Predators sits in a niche of its own, offering an unsuspecting threat that can deter opponents from making aggressive advances toward your life total, all while preparing to unleash its own power on the battlefield.

Cards similar to Hidden Predators by color, type and mana cost

Concordant Crossroads - MTG Card versions

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Hidden Predators can be a key player in gaining card advantage. When the conditions are met, this enchantment transforms into a powerful creature without requiring an additional card, effectively giving you two types of utility from a single card.

Resource Acceleration: While Hidden Predators itself doesn’t provide direct resource acceleration, getting a creature without needing to cast another spell can save your mana for other game-changing plays, indirectly contributing to acceleration.

Instant Speed: The power of this card is in its transformative ability at instant speed. As soon as an opponent fulfills the condition – namely controlling three creatures with greater power – this enchantment becomes a creature right away. This allows for surprise blockers or an unexpected presence your opponent must deal with, often at times most inconvenient for them.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Hidden Predators requires a specific trigger to transform, necessitating strategic planning and potentially sacrificing valuable board presence to unlock its full potential.

Specific Mana Cost: This card demands a spot in green-centric decks with its color-bound mana cost, potentially limiting its versatility across various deck archetypes.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Costing four mana to cast, it may compete for a slot in your deck with other four-mana threats or game-changers, which could be more impactful right upon casting without conditional requirements.

Reasons to Include Hidden Predators in Your Collection

Versatility: Hidden Predators can adapt to different playstyles and deck themes. As an enchantment that transforms under specific conditions, it can quietly sit on the field until it’s ready to become a substantial creature threat.

Combo Potential: This card excels in decks that manipulate +1/+1 counters or creature transformations. Its ability to become a 4/4 creature when an opponent controls three or more creatures offers excellent synergy with various counter strategies and combat tricks.

Meta-Relevance: In a meta where opponents often flood the board with creatures, Hidden Predators becomes an automatic answer by transforming into a formidable green creature, ready to affect the board state significantly.

How to beat

Hidden Predators is a unique enchantment in Magic: The Gathering that can become quite a challenge if left unchecked. At its core, it transforms into a 4/4 green Beast creature when an opponent controls more creatures than you. This card advantage can quickly turn the tides of a match. To effectively counteract Hidden Predators, it’s essential to manage your board presence carefully. Utilizing removal spells to keep your opponent’s creature count low is one strategy, preventing the enchantment from triggering its ability.

Another tactic is to employ control elements to dictate the pace of the game. Counterspells, bounce spells, or anything to disrupt the opponent’s strategy can prevent them from gaining the advantage from Hidden Predators. Moreover, you can also take advantage of sacrifice effects to maintain parity or superiority in creature numbers. Cards like Plaguecrafter force each player to sacrifice a creature, nullifying the potential of Hidden Predators to activate. To ensure success against this enchantment, focus on tactical creature play and maintaining control of the board state.

Adaptability is key, and with cautious strategy and calculated plays, triumph over Hidden Predators in your games of Magic: The Gathering can be achieved, keeping its latent threat at bay.

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Hidden Predators MTG card by a specific set like Urza's Saga, 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 Hidden Predators and other MTG cards:

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Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Hidden Predators has restrictions

Format	Legality
Commander	Legal
Legacy	Legal
Oathbreaker	Legal
Premodern	Legal
Vintage	Legal
Duel	Legal
Predh	Legal

Rules and information

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

Date	Text
2004-10-04	When it turns into a creature, it is no longer an enchantment.
2008-08-01	A noncreature permanent that turns into a creature can attack, and its abilities can be activated, only if its controller has continuously controlled that permanent since the beginning of their most recent turn. It doesn’t matter how long the permanent has been a creature.