Malamet Veteran MTG Card

Malamet Veteran offers consistent lifelink ability, enhancing creature threat and challenging opponents’ strategies. The card’s ability can be activated at instant speed, allowing for greater tactical flexibility in combat. While providing advantages, it requires careful deck integration due to specific mana and discard demands.

Malamet Veteran - The Lost Caverns of Ixalan

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	5
Rarity	Common
Type	Creature — Cat Warrior
Abilities	Descend,Trample
Released	2023-11-17
Set symbol
Set name	The Lost Caverns of Ixalan
Set code	LCI
Power	5
Toughness	4
Number	201
Frame	2015
Layout	Normal
Border	Black
Illustred by	Steve Prescott

Text of card

Trample Descend 4 — Whenever Malamet Veteran attacks, if there are four or more permanent cards in your graveyard, put a +1/+1 counter on target creature.

The mightiest Malamet warriors train as titan-killers, elite champions capable of facing down the caverns' most fearsome beasts.

Cards like Malamet Veteran

The Malamet Veteran card is a solid creature that shines in decks that value life gain strategies in Magic: The Gathering. It stands shoulder to shoulder with Ajani’s Pridemate, a creature that significantly benefits from each instance of life gain by getting stronger with more counters. Unlike Ajani’s Pridemate, Malamet Veteran focuses on protective measures by tapping to shield other creatures or planeswalkers, thereby yielding a tactical advantage during combat phases.

Another card that resonates with Malamet Veteran is the renowned Alabaster Mage. Both cards have the ability to impact life totals, with Alabaster Mage providing the flexibility of granting life link to various creatures. However, Malamet Veteran boasts a stalwart defensive position by offering a more consistent form of protection throughout the game.

Analyzing various options, Malamet Veteran emerges as a unique choice for players looking to fortify their defenses while capitalizing on life gain mechanics. Its blend of offensive and protective capabilities creates new angles for strategizing, especially in combat-centric and life gain-focused decks. This marks Malamet Veteran as a noteworthy inclusion for players valuing resilience in their Magic: The Gathering battles.

Cards similar to Malamet Veteran by color, type and mana cost

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Card Pros

Card Advantage: Malamet Veteran’s ability to tap to give another target creature lifelink until end of turn can help maintain card superiority by fostering a beneficial life total buffer. This repetitive ability can effectively turn any creature into a lifelink threat, which often compels opponents to deal with your creatures more urgently or risk falling behind.

Resource Acceleration: With each turn, this card progressively tilts the resource balance in your favor. By consistently leveraging the lifelink ability, you continue gaining life which can be potent in archetypes that benefit from high life totals or use life as a resource.

Instant Speed: The Veteran’s ability operates at instant speed, offering a tactical advantage where you can decide the most opportune moment to grant lifelink. This flexibility allows for surprise shifts in combat outcomes or the ability to respond to an opponent’s actions during their turn, keeping them guessing and making your strategies less predictable.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Malamet Veteran obliges you to part with another card to unleash some of its potential. This cost can be counterproductive when your hand is already running on empty, limiting your strategic options and diminishing your ability to respond to opponents’ moves.

Specific Mana Cost: Being locked into a particular color scheme, Malamet Veteran demands white mana for casting. This requirement can be restrictive and may not align with the mana base of all deck types, leading to potential mana issues in multi-colored decks.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With an investment of three mana, including a specific white, Malamet Veteran’s impact on the game needs to be weighed against other cards in the same mana bracket. You might find other creatures or spells that achieve more for a similar, or even lower, mana expenditure.

Reasons to Include Malamet Veteran in Your Collection

Versatility: Malamet Veteran is a versatile choice for decks that thrive on creature-based strategies. Its ability to boost other combatants makes it a useful addition in a wide array of deck archetypes, from aggressive builds to more synergistic, creature-focused lists.

Combo Potential: The lifelink ability of Malamet Veteran pairs well with cards that capitalize on life-gain, enabling potent combinations that can outlast opponents in prolonged games. It can also serve as a key piece in decks that trigger effects each time you gain life.

Meta-Relevance: In environments where creature combat is prevalent, Malamet Veteran stands out by enhancing your board’s resilience and offensive capabilities, maintaining relevance against various decks in the current meta.

How to beat

In the realm of MTG, Malamet Veteran is recognized for its ability to stabilize board states with its lifelink ability. This attribute allows it to act as a deterrent, discouraging opponents from attacking due to the potential to grant you life with every engagement. It shines in decks that emphasize durability, leveraging life as a resource to outlast opponents.

When facing off against Malamet Veteran, it’s crucial to prioritize removal spells or effects. These can efficiently remove the card from the battlefield before it can capitalize on its life-gaining potential. Employing strategies that bypass lifelink, such as using direct player damage or leveraging flying creatures, can also be effective. Additionally, countering this card before it sees play or utilizing abilities that prevent lifelink from triggering are viable tactics. Timing is also key, as players should aim to nullify Malamet Veteran’s impact before it can synergize with other cards to create formidable life buffers.

Evaluating the strengths and weaknesses of Malamet Veteran, it becomes clear that it’s a card to approach with respect. Understanding its role and deploying the right countermeasures will be instrumental in your success against decks that feature this veteran of the battlefield.

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Malamet Veteran MTG card by a specific set like The Lost Caverns of Ixalan, 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 Malamet Veteran and other MTG cards:

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Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Malamet Veteran has restrictions

Format	Legality
Standard	Legal
Historicbrawl	Legal
Historic	Legal
Legacy	Legal
Paupercommander	Legal
Oathbreaker	Legal
Gladiator	Legal
Alchemy	Legal
Pioneer	Legal
Commander	Legal
Modern	Legal
Pauper	Legal
Vintage	Legal
Duel	Legal
Explorer	Legal
Brawl	Legal
Penny	Legal
Timeless	Legal

Rules and information

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

Date	Text
2023-11-10	Cards with the ability word "descend N" have abilities that care if you have at least N permanent cards in your graveyard.
2023-11-10	Some descend triggered abilities include intervening "if" clauses (i.e. "if you have -our or eight] permanent cards in your graveyard" in the middle of the ability). Each of these abilities checks your graveyard at the moment it would trigger to see if it does. If you don't have the required number of permanent cards in your graveyard at that time, the ability doesn't trigger at all. If it does trigger, it will check again as it tries to resolve. If you don't have the required number of permanent cards in your graveyard at that time, the ability won't resolve and none of its effects will happen.