Jadelight Spelunker MTG Card
2023-11-17 - Number 382
2023-11-17 - Number 196
2023-11-17 - Number 403
| Card sets | Released in 3 setsSee all |
| Mana cost | |
| Converted mana cost | 1 |
| Rarity | Rare |
| Type | Creature — Merfolk Scout |
| Abilities | Explore |
| Power | 1 |
| Toughness | 1 |
Text of card
When Jadelight Spelunker enters the battlefield, it explores X times.
The River Heralds found clues to a grand heritage below Ixalan's surface.
Cards like Jadelight Spelunker
Jadelight Spelunker introduces exciting mechanics to the world of MTG gatherers and explorers. It shares traits with cards like Merfolk Branchwalker, which also features the explore mechanic, revealing cards and potentially putting lands into play. But Jadelight Spelunker digs deeper into the deck, poking around two layers of soil compared to Merfolk Branchwalker’s one-time delve. This makes the spelunker potentially more valuable for deck filtering and field presence.
Analogous to the spelunker, there’s the Tishana’s Wayfinder. It shares the theme of exploration, yet only with the occasional strength boost instead of Jadelight Spelunker’s consistent growth potential through its double explore. The Wayfinder’s reliability on top-deck variability constrains it in comparison.
Jadelight Spelunker can be a linchpin in green-based strategies, akin to the function Gatherer of Graces provides in aura-focused builds. While the Gatherer benefits from the enchantment-heavy deck, the Spelunker shines with land-rich compositions, rewarding the player with both a formidable creature and a refined deck.
Cards similar to Jadelight Spelunker by color, type and mana cost
Decks using this card
MTG decks using Jadelight Spelunker. Dig deeper into the strategy of decks, sideboard cards, list ideas and export to play in ARENA or MOL.
| # | Name | Format | Archetype | Event |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Simic Merfolk | Pioneer | Simic Merfolk | NRG Series $5,000 Trial - Madison, Wisconsin (Pioneer) |
 | Simic Tempo | Gladiator | Sword and Sandals Showdown: AM Week 10 2024 | |
| Simic Aggro | Standard | Simic Merfolk | Jaffer's Mini Mosh - Standard |
 | Decklist | Free form | Torino Tournament - Lost Caverns of Ixalan | |
 | Simic Burn | Standard | Simic Merfolk | BLACK - FRI - 11AM - Chicago 75K Standard Open |
 | Naya Midrange | Gladiator | Gladiator Proving Grounds: Week 06 2024 | |
 | Bant Tempo | Gladiator | Gladiator Proving Grounds: Week 06 2024 | |
| Simic Cauldron | Standard | Simic Merfolk | 02/10 Standard RCQ (Two Slot) Round 6 |
| Mono-Green Ramp | Standard | Mono-Green Ramp | ~~ Izzet Explosive Experiment Event |
 | Amalia Combo | Pioneer | Abzan Amalia Combo | Sat. 9:30 AM U.S. Regional Championship - Dreamhack Atlanta 2023 |
Card Pros
Card Advantage: Jadelight Spelunker offers players a unique way to explore their deck. When it enters the battlefield, you get to explore not once but twice. This can lead to drawing additional cards if lands are revealed, thus potentially providing a significant boost in card advantage and helping you find key components for your strategy more consistently.
Resource Acceleration: The explore mechanic can also act as resource acceleration. Each time a nonland card is revealed during the explore process, Jadelight Spelunker receives a +1/+1 counter, effectively strengthening your board presence. If a land card is revealed, you have the choice to put it into your hand or onto the battlefield tapped, ensuring that your mana resources grow and you can cast high-cost cards sooner.
Instant Speed: Although Jadelight Spelunker operates at sorcery speed, its interaction with top-deck manipulation can indirectly benefit instant-speed plays. By smoothing out draws, it supports maintaining a hand ready to respond to an opponent’s actions efficiently, allowing you to keep mana open for those critical instant-speed interactions.
Card Cons
Discard Requirement: Engaging with the Jadelight Spelunker necessitates pitching another card from your hand, a move which might leave you at a disadvantage, especially during the late game when hand size dwindles.
Specific Mana Cost: Casting the Jadelight Spelunker requires precise mana, specifically green. This can be a hurdle for multicolor decks that may struggle with mana consistency.
Comparatively High Mana Cost: Allocating three mana for this creature could be costly. In the realm of green spells, this investment might not yield the most efficient battlefield presence or board impact.
Reasons to Include Jadelight Spelunker in Your Collection
Versatility: Jadelight Spelunker is designed to adapt to various gameplay styles. Its explore mechanic not only smoothens out your draws but can also beef up the creature itself, making it a flexible addition to a range of green-centric decks.
Combo Potential: With each explore, you’re digging through your deck, setting up the perfect play. In the right deck, the Spelunker can work wonders with graveyard strategies or landfall triggers, which could pivot your position from stable to dominant on the board.
Meta-Relevance: As the metagame fluctuates, creature efficiency remains constant. Jadelight Spelunker’s ability to potentially grow while providing card advantage keeps it relevant in trending deck types that require consistent performance and value generation.
How to beat
Jadelight Spelunker introduces a nuanced dynamic to exploring strategies within Magic the Gathering, yet understanding this card’s innate strengths can illuminate ways to effectively counter it. The card’s double explore ability allows players to filter their deck or bolster the Spelunker’s power, which necessitates strategic responses. Just as Jadelight Spelunker sifts through the deck, responders can leverage targeted removal spells that can preemptively address the creature before its abilities trigger further value.
Counterspells, such as Negate or Essence Scatter, offer a frontline defense when played judiciously to deny Jadelight Spelunker entry into the battlefield. Similarly, efficient spot removal like Fatal Push or Path to Exile can disrupt your opponents’ carefully laid plans, removing the creature before it can become a more substantial threat. Lastly, graveyard manipulation strategies can limit the benefits gained from explore by controlling the resources that Jadelight Spelunker seeks to optimize. It’s not about overpowering; it’s about precise interventions that underpin a successful strategy against a card like Jadelight Spelunker.
Altogether, while Jadelight Spelunker might provide advantageous deck filtering and growth potential, it’s by plotting the timing and targeting of spells that one can nullify its impact and maintain the upper hand in the game’s complex dance of actions and reactions.
Where to buy
If you're looking to purchase Jadelight Spelunker MTG card by a specific set like The Lost Caverns of Ixalan and The Lost Caverns of Ixalan, 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 Jadelight Spelunker and other MTG cards:
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Printings
The Jadelight Spelunker Magic the Gathering card was released in 1 different sets between 2023-11-17 and 2023-11-17. Illustrated by 2 different artists.
| # | Released | Name | Code | Symbol | Number | Frame | Layout | Border | Artist |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2023-11-17 | The Lost Caverns of Ixalan | LCI | 382 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Izzy | |
| 2 | 2023-11-17 | The Lost Caverns of Ixalan | LCI | 196 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Izzy | |
| 3 | 2023-11-17 | The Lost Caverns of Ixalan | LCI | 403 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Ovidio Cartagena |
Legalities
Magic the Gathering formats where Jadelight Spelunker has restrictions
| Format | Legality |
|---|---|
| Standard | Legal |
| Historicbrawl | Legal |
| Historic | Legal |
| Legacy | Legal |
| Oathbreaker | Legal |
| Gladiator | Legal |
| Alchemy | Legal |
| Pioneer | Legal |
| Commander | Legal |
| Modern | Legal |
| Future | Legal |
| Vintage | Legal |
| Duel | Legal |
| Explorer | Legal |
| Brawl | Legal |
| Timeless | Legal |
Rules and information
The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering Jadelight Spelunker card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.
| Date | Text |
|---|---|
| 2023-11-10 | If Jadelight Spelunker enters the battlefield without being cast, or if it was cast with X equal to 0, the enters-the-battlefield ability will still trigger, but Jadelight Spelunker won't explore at all. |
| 2023-11-10 | If a resolving spell or ability instructs a specific creature to explore but that creature has left the battlefield, the creature still explores. If you reveal a nonland card this way, you won't put a +1/+1 counter on anything, but you may put the revealed card into your graveyard. Effects that trigger "whenever a creature explores" trigger as appropriate. |
| 2023-11-10 | If an ability instructs a creature to explore, its controller reveals the top card of their library. If it's a land card, they'll put it into their hand. Otherwise, they'll put a +1/+1 counter on that creature, then choose to either leave that card on top of their library or put it into their graveyard. |
| 2023-11-10 | If no card is revealed, most likely because that player's library is empty, the exploring creature receives a +1/+1 counter. |
| 2023-11-10 | In some unusual cases, noncreature permanents may explore. For example, if the creature card returned by Defossilize is somehow not a creature once it's on the battlefield, it can still explore. You'll take all the same actions, and you may end up putting a +1/+1 counter on the permanent. (Note that some effects target a creature, and those effects would still require a legal target to have it explore.) |
| 2023-11-10 | Once an ability that causes a creature to explore begins to resolve, no player may take any other actions until it's done. Notably, opponents can't try to remove the exploring creature after you reveal a nonland card but before it receives a counter. |
| 2023-11-10 | Some spells or abilities might cause a creature to explore multiple times in a row. If you reveal a nonland card when a creature explores and leave it on top of your library, then the creature explores again immediately afterwards, you'll reveal the same card again. |