Beast Walkers MTG Card
| Mana cost | |
| Converted mana cost | 3 |
| Rarity | Rare |
| Type | Creature — Human Beast Soldier |
| Released | 1995-10-01 |
| Set symbol | |
| Set name | Homelands |
| Set code | HML |
| Power | 2 |
| Toughness | 2 |
| Number | 6 |
| Frame | 1993 |
| Layout | Normal |
| Border | Black |
| Illustred by | Heather Hudson |
Key Takeaways
- Beast Walkers enhance your game with card advantage and resource acceleration, crucial for outpacing opponents.
- Instant speed casting of Beast Walkers allows for dynamic, flexible responses to game state changes.
- Despite their upsides, the requirement to discard cards and high mana costs are significant strategic drawbacks.
Text of card
oo G Banding until end of turn
"The Beast Walkers do a great service to Aysen. As humans or as beasts, their heart is yet to Serra true." —Baris, Serra Inquisitor
Card Pros
Card Advantage: Beast Walkers offers players the ability to gain card advantage by potentially drawing extra cards when fulfilling specific conditions related to the creature type. This can help you stay ahead of your opponents by having more resources at your disposal.
Resource Acceleration: This card can act as an engine for resource acceleration, often providing additional mana or other benefits when a Beast enters the battlefield under your control. This helps in casting larger threats earlier in the game, which could be the key to overpowering adversaries.
Instant Speed: The capability to cast Beast Walkers at instant speed adds a layer of flexibility, allowing you to adapt to the ever-changing board state. This can give you the upper hand by being able to respond swiftly to your opponent’s maneuvers or by simply enhancing your creatures at the most opportune time.
Card Cons
Discard Requirement: Beast Walkers demand a card discard to activate certain abilities, which can be detrimental if you’re running out of hand options. This could leave you at a strategic deficit, especially in tight gameplay situations where every card in hand is crucial.
Specific Mana Cost: The casting cost of Beast Walkers cards often integrates very specific mana requirements that may not align with multicolored decks. This can restrict deck-building flexibility and potentially slow down your pace on the battlefield when you’re unable to match the mana needed swiftly.
Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a lean towards a higher mana cost curve, Beast Walkers might put players at an initial disadvantage. In the fast-paced Modern and Standard formats, efficiency is key, and there might be alternate creatures or spells that offer more immediate impact or value relative to their mana investment.
Reasons to Include Beast Walkers in Your Collection
Versatility: Beast Walkers stand out due to their ability to adapt to various play styles and deck builds. They can serve as formidable creatures on the board or as a tactical asset in creature-focused decks, benefiting players who value flexibility in their gameplay.
Combo Potential: The synergy that Beast Walkers have with other cards is noteworthy. Players can exploit their unique abilities to set off a string of potentially game-ending combos, making them a smart addition for those who enjoy a strategic edge.
Meta-Relevance: Keeping pace with the ever-evolving meta game means having cards that can handle a diverse range of threats. Beast Walkers are a solid choice due to their resilience and capacity to hold their own against various strategies that dominate the competitive scene.
How to Beat Beast Walkers
Scaling the power of any creature on the battlefield comes with its set of strategies. Within the realm of Magic: The Gathering, overcoming the might of Beast Walkers requires precise tactics. These formidable cards often come with resilience and the ability to deliver crushing blows if left unchecked. Yet, the key to disarming their dominance lies in the removal and control elements built into your deck.
Effective counters could involve removal spells that can bypass the creature’s defenses—such as untargeted board wipes or cards that force the opponent to sacrifice a creature regardless of its size or abilities. Enchantment-based effects like pacifism can also neutralize Beast Walkers without directly targeting them. In addition, employing creatures with deathtouch or those that can block and eliminate bigger creatures without taking damage themselves can level the playing field.
Integrating these strategies ensures that your deck has the necessary answers to keep Beast Walkers from overtaking the game. Always remember, maintaining board control is just as crucial as landing a formidable creature of your own. Tactical foresight and deck versatility are your greatest allies against such powerful adversities in Magic: The Gathering.
Cards like Beast Walkers
Beast Walkers stands as an intriguing creature in the strategic landscape of MTG. In the same category, we find cards like Bramblewood Paragon, which shares the idea of empowering other creatures. Beast Walkers’ unique ability to pump up its own toughness with mana investment draws a parallel to creatures with self buffing capabilities. However, it doesn’t confer bonuses to other creatures the way Bramblewood Paragon does with its counters.
Then there’s the comparison with Wild Beastmaster, whose utility also centers on impacting the board by boosting fellow creatures based on its own power. Unlike Beast Walkers, Wild Beastmaster applies its effect during combat, affecting multiple creatures rather than enhancing its defense. Yet another comparison can be made with Kavu Predator, which grows stronger as you gain life, providing a more passive increase in power and toughness rather than an active investment like Beast Walkers requires.
Assessing the trade-offs and unique abilities, Beast Walkers offers MTG players a reliable defender that can be a formidable blocker over time, setting it apart from its counterparts that focus on offense or passive buffs.
Cards similar to Beast Walkers by color, type and mana cost
Where to buy
If you're looking to purchase Beast Walkers MTG card by a specific set like Homelands, 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 Beast Walkers and other MTG cards:
- eBay
- TCG Player
- 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
See MTG Products
Legalities
Magic the Gathering formats where Beast Walkers 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 Beast Walkers card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.
| Date | Text |
|---|---|
| 2008-10-01 | A maximum of one nonbanding creature can join an attacking band no matter how many creatures with banding are in it. |
| 2008-10-01 | Creatures in the same band must all attack the same player or planeswalker. |
| 2008-10-01 | If a creature with banding attacks, it can team up with any number of other attacking creatures with banding (and up to one nonbanding creature) and attack as a unit called a “band.” The band can be blocked by any creature that could block a single creature in the band. Blocking any creature in a band blocks the entire band. If a creature with banding is blocked, the attacking player chooses how the blockers’ damage is assigned. |
| 2009-10-01 | If a creature in combat has banding, its controller assigns damage for creatures blocking or blocked by it. That player can ignore the damage assignment order when making this assignment. |
