Selfless Glyphweaver // Deadly Vanity MTG Card


Card setsReleased in 5 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost3
RarityRare
TypeCreature — Human Cleric
Power 2
Toughness 3

Key Takeaways

  1. Brings double utility as a proactive creature and a reactive safeguard, adapting to complex board states.
  2. Enables strategic combos and amplifies death trigger effects, boosting synergy within creature-focused decks.
  3. Demonstrates flexibility and meta relevance, guarding creatures or clearing boards at critical moments.

Text of card

Exile Selfless Glyphweaver: Creatures you control gain indestructible until end of turn.


Card Pros

Card Advantage: Selfless Glyphweaver offers a unique edge in card utility by providing not just one, but two impactful abilities. Its double-faced nature means you’re effectively getting two cards in one, enhancing your in-game flexibility and options.

Resource Acceleration: As a part of your deck, the Selfless Glyphweaver can act as a potent form of resource acceleration by protecting your other creatures from board wipes or targeted destruction. This allows you to safely develop your board presence without the fear of losing key pieces, indirectly speeding up your game plan.

Instant Speed: Although the card itself isn’t an instant, the protection ability it grants can be utilized like an instant speed effect. This creates tactical advantages by allowing you to respond to threats at a moment’s notice, saving your most valuable creatures from unexpected removals during your opponent’s turn.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Selfless Glyphweaver demands a significant commitment; in its rotated form, Deadly Vanity, you’re asked to forfeit another creature to protect your key assets, which can dent your board presence considerably if not timed impeccably.

Specific Mana Cost: The card’s mana value leans heavily on white, requiring three white mana sources. This restricts deck-building options, tying you into a color that may not align with your strategy or mana base.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a mana value of five for Selfless Glyphweaver, there are alternative lower-cost creatures that could provide more immediate board impact or have less restrictive mana requirements, offering strategic flexibility in fast-paced games.


Reasons to Include Selfless Glyphweaver in Your Collection

Versatility: Selfless Glyphweaver brings a dual nature to the table, offering both protection and offense. As a creature, it can shield your key pieces from board wipes, and with its flip side, Deadly Vanity, it transcends into a powerful board control spell capable of turning the tide of the game.

Combo Potential: Pairing with cards that benefit from or facilitate creature sacrifices, Selfless Glyphweaver increases the potency of death triggers, making it a prime component in synergistic strategies. This duo opens up a plethora of combo avenues in a carefully crafted deck.

Meta-Relevance: In a game state where creature-based strategies dominate, the Glyphweaver’s ability to selectively guard your creatures or sweep the board through its alternate mode keeps it highly relevant. The flexibility it brings is a considerable advantage in ever-shifting metagames.


How to beat

Selfless Glyphweaver emerges as a unique creature card that brings both utility and protection to your creatures on the battlefield. To effectively navigate against this card, it’s crucial to recognize its abilities—namely, its power to grant indestructible to your opponent’s creatures for a turn. Unlike blanket protection spells, however, its effect is locked to a single turn which provides a strategic window to retaliate.

Timing is everything when facing the Selfless Glyphweaver. Employ instant speed removal after the indestructible effect has been played, target the Glyphweaver directly with removal spells that exile or force sacrifice to ensure it can’t be a recurring problem. Also, consider counterspells to prevent it from hitting the field in the first place, or simply play around its ability by holding off on board wipes or targeted removal until the coast is clear.

The key to overcoming the Selfless Glyphweaver is in the strategic pacing of your own spells and abilities, making sure to leverage the moments when your opponent’s guard is down. With careful planning, the Glyphweaver’s protection can be circumvented, allowing you to maintain control over the game.


BurnMana Recommendations

Delving into the detailed analysis of Selfless Glyphweaver, we’ve uncovered both its strengths and limitations within the MTG realm. Versatility remains at the card’s core, offering safeguarding layers or a sweeping assertion of power as the situation demands. Such adaptability can prove indispensable, aligning with diverse tactics and elevating your deck’s resilience. Acknowledge the nuances of mana requirements and the strategic timing of its abilities to harness its full potential. If you’re looking to fortify your collection with a dual-faceted card holding strategic depth and combo opportunities, we encourage you to study Selfless Glyphweaver further and embrace the tactical advantages it may bring to your MTG confrontations.


Cards like Selfless Glyphweaver // Deadly Vanity

Selfless Glyphweaver is a unique card in Magic: The Gathering, boasting abilities that cater to various strategies. When evaluating cards akin to this versatile creature, Dauntless Escort from the Alara Reborn set springs to mind. Much like Selfless Glyphweaver, Dauntless Escort provides a safeguard for your creatures, ensuring they survive potential board wipes. The difference lies in their activations; the Glyphweaver requires a sacrifice and can be activated at instant speed, offering a surprise element during your opponent’s turn.

Another card that echoes the Glyphweaver’s protective theme is Heroic Intervention. This instant spell from the Aether Revolt set confers both hexproof and indestructibility to your creatures, protecting them from removal spells as well as board clears. The comparison here is fascinating as Heroic Intervention is not a creature, therefore it can’t contribute to board presence like Selfless Glyphweaver does. However, its lower mana cost and broader protection sometimes give it an edge.

Ultimately, Selfless Glyphweaver holds its own among its peers due to its dual nature as both a proactive creature and a reactive protective spell. These characteristics ensure that it maintains a valued spot in decks seeking to shield their forces from harm.

Dauntless Escort - MTG Card versions
Heroic Intervention - MTG Card versions
Dauntless Escort - Alara Reborn (ARB)
Heroic Intervention - Aether Revolt (AER)

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Selfless Glyphweaver // Deadly Vanity MTG card by a specific set like Magic Online Promos and Strixhaven: School of Mages, 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 Selfless Glyphweaver // Deadly Vanity and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Selfless Glyphweaver // Deadly Vanity Magic the Gathering card was released in 3 different sets between 2021-04-23 and 2021-04-23. Illustrated by Johannes Voss.

#ReleaseNameCodeSymbolNumberFrameLayoutBorderArtist
12002-06-24Magic Online PromosPRM 902242015modal_dfcblackJohannes Voss
22021-04-23Strixhaven: School of MagesSTX 3292015modal_dfcblackJohannes Voss
32021-04-23Strixhaven Art SeriesASTX 39s2015art_seriesborderlessJohannes Voss
42021-04-23Strixhaven: School of MagesSTX 1572015modal_dfcblackJohannes Voss
52021-04-23Strixhaven Art SeriesASTX 392015art_seriesborderlessJohannes Voss

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Selfless Glyphweaver // Deadly Vanity has restrictions

FormatLegality
HistoricbrawlLegal
HistoricLegal
LegacyLegal
OathbreakerLegal
GladiatorLegal
PioneerLegal
CommanderLegal
ModernLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
ExplorerLegal
PennyLegal
TimelessLegal

Rules and information

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

DateText
2021-04-16 As Deadly Vanity resolves, you choose which creature or planeswalker you are saving. Once the choice is made, there is no window for players to respond before the rest of the creatures and planeswalkers are destroyed.
2021-04-16 Because Deadly Vanity does not target the permanent you choose to save, you may choose creatures with hexproof or protection from black.
2021-04-16 You may activate Selfless Glyphweaver’s ability only if Selfless Glyphweaver is on the battlefield. Only creatures you control as that ability resolves will gain indestructible. Creatures that come under your control later in the turn will not.
2021-04-16 You may choose any creature or planeswalker, even one controlled by an opponent.
2021-04-16 You must choose a creature or planeswalker if there is one on the battlefield.

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