Magus of the Abyss MTG Card

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Harnessing the power of Magus of the Abyss allows you to systematically dismantle your opponent’s side of the board, potentially gaining significant card advantage over time as you remove key creatures from the game while maintaining your own.

Resource Acceleration: Although not directly contributing to resource acceleration, the presence of Magus of the Abyss can indirectly speed up your game strategy by keeping your opponent’s resources at bay, ensuring they spend valuable turns and cards reacting to your threats rather than advancing their own position.

Instant Speed: While Magus of the Abyss is a creature and doesn’t operate at instant speed, this powerful card can create a pseudo-instant speed effect. By threatening an activation at the beginning of your upkeep, you can force your opponent to play around your potential to disrupt their board at a critical moment every turn. This allows you to essentially dictate the pace of the game, often putting you in a favorable position as you maneuver through each match.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Magus of the Abyss necessitates a heavy sacrifice, asking you to forfeit one of your creatures during each of your upkeeps. This can quickly deplete your board presence and may not always be sustainable, particularly in creature-centric decks.

Specific Mana Cost: This card’s casting cost demands two black mana, which can sometimes be a challenge, especially in multicolored decks. This requirement potentially restricts its inclusion to predominantly black decks or those with a reliable mana base to support its casting cost.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: At four mana total, including two black, Magus of the Abyss may be seen as an expensive investment when considering other available options for controlling the battlefield. Players often evaluate the cost-to-effect ratio and might opt for alternatives that offer more immediate or versatile interaction with the game.

Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Magus of the Abyss is highly adaptable and can be a game-changer in multiple deck archetypes. Its ability to destroy creatures can be integrated into control decks seeking to maintain a clear board or into sacrifice strategy decks that capitalize on destroying their own creatures for value.

Combo Potential: This card has the inherent ability to enable and be part of combos. It synergizes well with cards that grant indestructibility or undying to your creatures, turning it into a recurring threat that can systematically dismantle your opponent’s board.

Meta-Relevance: In a meta dominated by creature-based strategies, Magus of the Abyss stands out as a potent tool. It can continuously disrupt your opponents’ board state, removing key threats and potentially forcing them to alter their game plan, which makes it a relevant choice for competitive play.

How to beat

Magus of the Abyss is a formidable force in MTG, known for its ability to force players to sacrifice creatures during each upkeep, making it a serious threat on the board. To turn the tide against this powerful creature, seasoned players know that swift removal spells are the key. By incorporating instant-speed removal like Path to Exile or the versatile Assassin’s Trophy, you can effectively neutralize the threat before it dismantles your creature base. Moreover, utilizing creatures that can regenerate or have indestructible is another savvy strategy to ensure your side of the battlefield remains unaffected by the Magus’s ability.

Artifact removal can also be an effective weapon against Magus of the Abyss. Cards that specifically target artifacts like Disenchant or Abrade can disrupt the synergy that makes Magus a considerable problem, especially if it’s equipped with artifacts enhancing its capabilities. Lastly, counterplay measures such as countering the spell before it settles or using cards that grant your creatures hexproof or shroud will prevent Magus of the Abyss from targeting them, ensuring your creatures’ safety and maintaining board presence.