Nantuko Tracer MTG Card

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	2
Rarity	Common
Type	Creature — Insect Druid
Released	2002-05-27
Set symbol
Set name	Judgment
Set code	JUD
Power	2
Toughness	1
Number	125
Frame	1997
Layout	Normal
Border	Black
Illustred by	Greg Staples

Key Takeaways

Nantuko Tracer offers card advantage through strategic graveyard reordering, enabling future gameplay synergies.
Its strict mana requirement and discard condition can limit its versatility and early game impact.
Versatile in decks focused on library and graveyard manipulation, it’s a tactical asset against common strategies.

Text of card

When Nantuko Tracer comes into play, you may put target card from a graveyard on the bottom of its owner's library.

Your past is a map to where you will go. —Nantuko teaching

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Nantuko Tracer has the potential to generate card advantage by rearranging the cards in your graveyard. This can prepare you for other effects or cards that benefit from certain cards being on top of the graveyard.

Resource Acceleration: The Nantuko Tracer’s ability interacts with your graveyard, which can act as a resource accelerator when paired with mechanics that play off of top-deck manipulation or graveyard synergies.

Instant Speed: Although not an instant itself, the Nantuko Tracer can set up advantageous situations at sorcery speed that you can capitalize on with instant speed spells at a later stage in the game.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: One downside to Nantuko Tracer is its demand for a specific card in the graveyard to target upon casting. This prerequisite can hamper its effectiveness, especially in the early game when graveyards tend to be less populated.

Specific Mana Cost: With a need for green mana, Nantuko Tracer’s cost confines it to green-inclusive decks. This limitation inhibits deck-building variety and can be a stumbling block in multi-color decks requiring a more flexible mana base.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: This card has a somewhat steep casting cost for a creature of its size, which may lead to it being outclassed in efficiency by other creatures in the same mana range. For instance, similar cost creatures often come with built-in abilities or larger stats, providing more immediate board presence and value.

Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Nantuko Tracer’s unique ability to reorder graveyards makes it a solid choice for strategies that capitalize on both graveyard and library manipulation. Its low mana cost also allows it to seamlessly integrate into a diverse range of deck builds.

Combo Potential: With the right setup, Nantuko Tracer can work wonders in combination with cards that benefit from specific graveyard orders, or it can be used to disrupt your opponent’s graveyard-based plans, making it a tactical addition to your deck.

Meta-Relevance: In a gameplay environment where graveyard strategies are prevalent, having Nantuko Tracer can provide a significant advantage. The ability to alter graveyard order can be critical in matchups where cards like reanimator spells or flashback are common.

How to Beat Nantuko Tracer

In the sphere of creature cards within Magic: The Gathering, Nantuko Tracer presents a unique playstyle by allowing players to delve into an opponent’s graveyard and rearrange their top library cards. This ability can be disruptive but it is not undefeatable. To counteract Nantuko Tracer’s disturbance, strategic deck building and tactical foresight are needed.

One approach is to incorporate graveyard shuffling effects in your deck. Cards like Feldon’s Cane or Gaia’s Blessing refresh your graveyard by shuffling it back into your library, nullifying Nantuko Tracer’s rearranging effect. Additionally, running instant removal spells ensures you can deal with the Tracer before it can utilize its ability, thus keeping your deck’s integrity intact.

Moreover, incorporating ‘graveyard hate’ cards like Bojuka Bog or Relic of Progenitus can exile key cards from the graveyard, leaving the Tracer with minimal impact. It’s also beneficial to play cards with abilities that trigger when they are targeted by an opponent, potentially turning the tables on an unsuspecting Nantuko Tracer user. Ultimately, well-prepared players can mitigate the effects of Nantuko Tracer, keeping their strategy and their decks from being derailed.

Cards like Nantuko Tracer

Nantuko Tracer introduces a unique twist to graveyard manipulation within Magic: The Gathering. This green card bears resemblance to cards like Grapple with the Past, which also provides graveyard-to-hand retrieval. Nantuko Tracer’s distinct advantage is the triggered ability to examine the top four cards and reorder them, offering more control over your upcoming draws, although it doesn’t directly place any cards into your hand.

Comparing it to Satyr Wayfinder, another card that sifts through the top four cards of a library, we see a divergence in function. Satyr Wayfinder allows you to choose a land card from the four revealed and add it to your hand, providing land consistency rather than graveyard management. Eternal Witness is another card that often comes into the conversation, offering direct return of a card from graveyard to hand without the milling aspect.

Ultimately, Nantuko Tracer suits players looking to strategize their top deck with the added benefit of reshuffling a creature into the library, setting the ground for potent draw manipulation and recursion strategies, making it a card to consider for decks that exploit the top of the library and graveyard synergies.

Grapple with the Past - MTG Card versions

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Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Nantuko Tracer MTG card by a specific set like Judgment, 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 Nantuko Tracer and other MTG cards: