Grim Guardian MTG Card


Grim Guardian - Journey into Nyx
Mana cost
Converted mana cost3
RarityCommon
TypeEnchantment Creature — Zombie
Abilities Constellation
Released2014-05-02
Set symbol
Set nameJourney into Nyx
Set codeJOU
Power 1
Toughness 4
Number73
Frame2003
Layoutnormal
Borderblack
Illustred byRyan Barger

Key Takeaways

  1. Strongly synergetic with enchantments, Grim Guardian excels in dedicated black-themed decks.
  2. Optimal for inflicting steady, incremental damage and shaping the battlefield to your advantage.
  3. It demands specific strategic choices, potentially restricting deck versatility.

Text of card

Constellation — Whenever Grim Guardian or another enchantment enters the battlefield under your control, each opponent loses 1 life.

Occasionally the living wander to the Rivers, but the wardens of Athreos ensure that only the dead pass.


Card Pros

Card Advantage: The consistent damage output of the Grim Guardian card can effectively grind down your opponent’s life value, maintaining your advantage in the longer term.

Resource Acceleration: The card’s constellation effect triggers anytime an enchantment comes into play. This allows players to get the most value out of their enchantment resources, providing incremental advantages as the game progresses.

Instant Speed: Although Grim Guardian is not an instant, its effect triggers each time you play an enchantment, effectively offering real-time responses to your game strategy. Such an on-demand response can be a game-changing asset in the fast-paced dynamics of competitive MTG.

The Grim Guardian MTG Card can be a strong critical component in an enchantment-focused deck, improving resource utilization and keeping your edge in the game. The unique combination of features not only paves the way for strategic diversity but also introduces a new level of dynamism for every MTG player.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Grim Guardian demands a combo of devotion to black and enchantment spells as part of your strategy, making you discard other possibilities. With limiting flexibility, you may find yourself at a disadvantage during high-stakes moments.

Specific Mana Cost: Grim Guardian’s total cost comes with two black philotype mana requirements. This specification narrows its deployment to primarily black-themed decks, constraining the use of the card to only particular game scenarios.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: While Grim Guardian has a potent effect, its three mana cost might seem steep compared to other cards with similar abilities. In a pacey game, every mana counts, and more cost-effective options could provide equivalent utility, mitigating the relative value of deploying Grim Guardian within your game plan.


Reasons to Include Grim Guardian in Your Collection

Versatility: Grim Guardian fits into a variety of decks, specifically those with a focus on enchantments, benefiting from every enchantment played.

Combo Potential: This card offers combo potential with Constellation triggers, dishing out damage each time you play an enchantment, which can stack up and chip away at your opponent’s life total.

Meta-Relevance: Grim Guardian is relevant in a meta dominated by aggro and midrange, where consistent life drain can make all the difference. Its ability to whittle down an opponent’s life total while being a solid blocker makes it an advantageous inclusion in your collection.


How to Beat

Grim Guardian, a unique creature card in Magic: The Gathering, stands out with its constellation mechanic. This ability allows the card to spring into action once it or another enchantment enters the battlefield, dishing out damage and chipping away at opponents’ life totals. Knowing how to deal with this card is crucial to maintain momentum in the game.

Players have discovered various countertactics, such as artifact cards that can break enchantments, like Smash to Smithereens, which also adds an extra layer of damage. Non-targeted removal spells, such as Merciless Eviction, can likewise alleviate Grim Guardian’s pressure. Alternatively, players can opt for cards with life-gain capabilities like Ajani’s Pridemate that inversely correlate to Grim Guardian’s effect, helping to keep your life total steady.

Asia Dusk is also a perfect attack card. As you know, this card deals with all creatures within constellation principles, including Grim Guardian, without causing a backlash from its enter-the-battle effect.

In essence, the effective counters for Grim Guardian in Magic: The Gathering balances shrewdness, strategy, and utilisation of appropriate cards, ultimately setting a player on the pathway to victory.


BurnMana Recommendations

Exploring the strategic depths and nuances of MTG cards like Grim Guardian enriches your gameplay and could give you the edge in competitive matches. If you find delight in crafting decks around enchantments, tapping into the potential of Grim Guardian can be a smart move – it ensures a steady chisel to your opponent’s life total. Consider including this versatile card in your arsenal, especially if you thrive in an enchantment-heavy deck that can capitalize on the damage making abilities. For more tips on mastering the art of enchantments and incorporating Grim Guardian into your winning strategy, delve deeper with us.


Cards like Grim Guardian

Grim Guardian splendidly diversifies the category of cards with entering the battlefield abilities in Magic: The Gathering. It invites comparison with cards like Underworld Coinsmith, which also features the constellation ability. Yet Grim Guardian presents a subtle difference – it deals 1 damage to each opponent whenever it or another enchantment enters the battleground. Coinsmith, by comparison, lacks this ability, offering a life gain possibility instead.

Taking this comparison a notch higher, we encounter Doomwake Giant. This card shares Grim Guardian’s constellation ability but opts for an area effect, debuffing enemy creatures instead of wearing down opponents. Being a creature card of higher cost, Doomwake Giant brings on amplified effects matching its inflated cost. Meanwhile, Grim Guardian’s lower mana cost makes it a more readily playable card.

Hence, when we dissect crucial characteristics and evaluate various contender cards, Grim Guardian certainly stakes its claim among the cards featuring the constellation ability in Magic: The Gathering. Its unique balancing between cost, damage, and the constellation feature adds a distinct edge to its profile.

Underworld Coinsmith - MTG Card versions
Doomwake Giant - MTG Card versions
Underworld Coinsmith - Journey into Nyx (JOU)
Doomwake Giant - Journey into Nyx Promos (PJOU)

Cards similar to Grim Guardian by color, type and mana cost

Gloom - MTG Card versions
Season of the Witch - MTG Card versions
Tourach's Gate - MTG Card versions
Withering Wisps - MTG Card versions
Funeral March - MTG Card versions
Casting of Bones - MTG Card versions
Blanket of Night - MTG Card versions
Necropotence - MTG Card versions
Hecatomb - MTG Card versions
Megrim - MTG Card versions
Recurring Nightmare - MTG Card versions
Contamination - MTG Card versions
Oppression - MTG Card versions
Maggot Therapy - MTG Card versions
Murderous Betrayal - MTG Card versions
Noxious Field - MTG Card versions
Tainted Well - MTG Card versions
Phyrexian Arena - MTG Card versions
Gravestorm - MTG Card versions
Mortiphobia - MTG Card versions
Gloom - Masters Edition IV (ME4)
Season of the Witch - The Dark (DRK)
Tourach's Gate - Fallen Empires (FEM)
Withering Wisps - Masters Edition II (ME2)
Funeral March - Homelands (HML)
Casting of Bones - Alliances (ALL)
Blanket of Night - Visions (VIS)
Necropotence - Wilds of Eldraine: Enchanting Tales (WOT)
Hecatomb - Masters Edition (ME1)
Megrim - Stronghold (STH)
Recurring Nightmare - Exodus (EXO)
Contamination - Urza's Saga (USG)
Oppression - Urza's Saga (USG)
Maggot Therapy - Mercadian Masques (MMQ)
Murderous Betrayal - Nemesis (NEM)
Noxious Field - Prophecy (PCY)
Tainted Well - Invasion (INV)
Phyrexian Arena - Phyrexia: All Will Be One (ONE)
Gravestorm - Hachette UK (PHUK)
Mortiphobia - Torment (TOR)

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Grim Guardian MTG card by a specific set like Journey into Nyx, 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 Grim Guardian and other MTG cards:

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Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Grim Guardian has restrictions

FormatLegality
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
PaupercommanderLegal
ModernLegal
OathbreakerLegal
PauperLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
PioneerLegal

Rules and information

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

DateText
2014-04-26 A constellation ability triggers whenever an enchantment enters the battlefield under your control for any reason. Enchantments with other card types, such as enchantment creatures, will also cause constellation abilities to trigger.
2014-04-26 An Aura spell without bestow that has an illegal target when it tries to resolve won't resolve and will be put into its owner's graveyard. It won't enter the battlefield and constellation abilities won't trigger. An Aura spell with bestow won't be countered this way. It will revert to being an enchantment creature and resolve, entering the battlefield and triggering constellation abilities.
2014-04-26 When an enchantment enters the battlefield under your control, each constellation ability of permanents you control will trigger. You can put these abilities on the stack in any order. The last ability you put on the stack will be the first one that resolves.

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