Lumbering Battlement MTG Card

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Lumbering Battlement’s unique ability to exile any number of other non-token creatures you control and put a +1/+1 counter on it for each grants you significant card advantage. This strategic play not only safeguards your key creatures from removal but can also set up for a game-winning return play.

Resource Acceleration: While not directly providing mana, the Lumbering Battlement can be a part of a strategy that accelerates your resources. By temporarily removing creatures with enter-the-battlefield effects, you can later return them to the battlefield to reuse those abilities, effectively doubling your resource gain in certain scenarios.

Instant Speed: The ability to activate its flicker effect at instant speed is enormously powerful. This grants the flexibility to respond to threats or optimize your board state on the fly. A well-timed activation during a complex board state can easily turn the tides of a match in your favor.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: The Lumbering Battlement demands a notable strategic setup, as it exiles your own creatures. This mechanic can be likened to a discard requirement since you’re temporarily removing these cards from play which may reduce your battlefield presence.

Specific Mana Cost: With a casting cost that includes both generic and white mana, the Lumbering Battlement requires a mana base tailored to accommodate white spells. This may restrict its inclusion only to decks where white mana is plentiful.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Five mana for an initial 4/5 body may seem steep, especially in a format where tempo plays are key. While its ability can be powerful, the high cost can slow your game down if you’re unable to capitalize on the Battlement’s exile ability immediately.

Reasons to Include Lumbering Battlement in Your Collection

Versatility: Lumbering Battlement can be included in a variety of deck archetypes, particularly those that seek to leverage enter-the-battlefield (ETB) effects or need defensive capabilities. As a creature that can both protect your board and potentially reset your own ETB creatures for additional value, it offers a multitude of strategic options.

Combo Potential: This creature has inherent synergies with decks focused on combo plays. By exiling your own creatures with useful ETB effects, you can create a loop that allows you to gain those benefits multiple times. Additionally, with enough creatures underneath it, Lumbering Battlement can become an overwhelmingly large attacker that can end games if not properly dealt with.

Meta-Relevance: In a meta where creature-based strategies prevail, having a card like Lumbering Battlement that can disrupt opponent plays while providing you with a considerable blocker can be quite significant. Its ability to keep other creatures safe from removal or board wipes until the time is right can be a game-changer.

How to beat Lumbering Battlement

Lumbering Battlement stands as a unique creature in the world of MTG, mainly due to its ability to exile other creatures you control and grow more formidable with each one it tucks away beneath its shell. It can function as a protective measure as well as a combat trick, often catching opponents off-guard and escalating through the ranks of a formidable battlefield presence.

But how can you strategize effectively against this behemoth? Removal spells that don’t target, such as board wipes like Wrath of God or Damnation, can clear the board without having to engage with the Battlement’s complex ability. Enchantment-based removals such as Detention Sphere or exile effects like Path to Exile bypass the need to deal with the exiled creatures at all.

Moreover, countering the creature with spells like Mana Leak or Negate before it can enter the battlefield is a clean and efficient way to prevent its ability from even starting. Additionally, forcing it to fight a creature it cannot easily defeat via spells like Domri’s Ambush or Prey Upon can also be a straightforward solution to the threat it poses.

Addressing Lumbering Battlement necessitates a blend of timing and the right choice of removal to ensure that the advantage it delivers to the opposing side is neutralized promptly before its protective shell becomes a fortress impossible to breach.