Mercadian Lift MTG Card


Mercadian Lift offers progressive card and mana advantages, rewarding players for long-term strategy. Demands careful play, balancing its discard and mana cost against potential deck synergies. Comparison with similar cards highlights its unique role in nuanced resource management strategies.
Mercadian Lift - Mercadian Masques
Mana cost
Converted mana cost2
RarityRare
TypeArtifact
Released1999-10-04
Set symbol
Set nameMercadian Masques
Set codeMMQ
Number306
Frame1997
LayoutNormal
BorderBlack
Illustred byGary Ruddell

Text of card

o1, oc T: Put a winch counter on Mercadian Lift. oc T, Remove X winch counters from Mercadian Lift: Put a creature card with converted mana cost X from your hand into play.


Cards like Mercadian Lift

The Mercadian Lift is a unique asset in the realm of Magic: The Gathering, offering a distinct approach to resource management. It finds parallels with other cards such as Storage Matrix that also regulate the flow of resources. Just like Mercadian Lift, Storage Matrix can restrict opponents, but unlike the Lift, it does not allow for the incremental buildup of counters that can later be cashed in for creatures.

In the sphere of mana acceleration and creature deployment, we also encounter Springleaf Drum, which necessitates tapping a creature for an immediate mana boost. While it provides speed and immediate resource access compared to the gradual build-up strategy that Mercadian Lift employs, it lacks the Lift’s potential for strategic deployment timing. Peering into creature-based strategies, Skyship Weatherlight offers a more direct method for accessing creatures, though it requires an investment upfront and a focus on deck building around its effect.

Assessing these cards alongside Mercadian Lift reveals the strategic depth that MTG offers. While each card has its unique methods of resource manipulation and tactical advantages, Mercadian Lift’s ability to amass and utilize counters at a controlled pace allows for nuanced gameplay that can synergize well with various strategies.

Storage Matrix - MTG Card versions
Springleaf Drum - MTG Card versions
Skyship Weatherlight - MTG Card versions
Storage Matrix - MTG Card versions
Springleaf Drum - MTG Card versions
Skyship Weatherlight - MTG Card versions

Cards similar to Mercadian Lift by color, type and mana cost

Chaos Orb - MTG Card versions
Winter Orb - MTG Card versions
Ankh of Mishra - MTG Card versions
Jandor's Saddlebags - MTG Card versions
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Demon's Horn - MTG Card versions
Energy Chamber - MTG Card versions
Water Gun Balloon Game - MTG Card versions
Chaos Orb - MTG Card versions
Winter Orb - MTG Card versions
Ankh of Mishra - MTG Card versions
Jandor's Saddlebags - MTG Card versions
Amulet of Kroog - MTG Card versions
Nacre Talisman - MTG Card versions
Howling Mine - MTG Card versions
Essence Bottle - MTG Card versions
Emerald Medallion - MTG Card versions
Scrying Glass - MTG Card versions
Cursed Totem - MTG Card versions
Mask of Intolerance - MTG Card versions
Tsabo's Web - MTG Card versions
Millikin - MTG Card versions
Swiftfoot Boots - MTG Card versions
Ark of Blight - MTG Card versions
Surestrike Trident - MTG Card versions
Demon's Horn - MTG Card versions
Energy Chamber - MTG Card versions
Water Gun Balloon Game - MTG Card versions

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Mercadian Lift provides an ongoing source of card advantage, cycling new tools into your hand turn after turn, ensuring you’re never short on options.

Resource Acceleration: With its ability to generate fade counters that can be exchanged for permanent resource gains, the lift boosts your mana pool, enabling faster deployment of high-cost cards.

Instant Speed: Despite being an artifact, Mercadian Lift synergizes well with instant speed spells by providing an alternative outlet for your mana, allowing you to keep pace in the fast-moving MTG landscape.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Mercadian Lift presents players with a hurdle by demanding the discard of a card to generate a lift counter. This condition can be particularly taxing when a player’s hand is nearly empty, turning a potential asset into an unwelcomed liability.

Specific Mana Cost: Mercadian Lift requires a precise mana investment—one generic and two white mana. This cost might not easily align with multicolored or colorless strategies, thereby limiting the card’s versatility across various deck archetypes.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Requiring three mana to cast and additional resources to leverage its abilities, Mercadian Lift’s utility could be overshadowed by other cards in the same mana range. Players might find alternative cards that provide quicker or more consistent advantages for a similar or lower investment.


Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Mercadian Lift offers a unique mana mechanism that allows for flexibility across various deck archetypes, appealing to players who appreciate adaptable card choices.

Combo Potential: This card’s ability to generate fade counters and use them to put creatures onto the battlefield synergizes well with strategies that play around counter manipulation or benefit from cheating creatures into play.

Meta-Relevance: In environments where games extend to longer rounds or in formats where incremental advantage is key, Mercadian Lift’s capacity to provide ongoing value makes it a potentially powerful asset.


How to beat

Mercadian Lift is a unique card from Magic: The Gathering that introduces a nuanced strategy to the game. It operates on a counter mechanism – stocking up storage counters to eventually cash in for mana. While versatile, beating this card relies on timing and disruption. Unlike other mana accelerators, Mercadian Lift requires a buildup over turns to truly harness its potential.

To effectively counter Mercadian Lift’s advantage, disrupting the counter accumulation is key. Cards that remove or neutralize artifacts should be held until your opponent commits to filling the Lift with counters. Artifact removal spells like Disenchant or Abrade can be used to dismantle the Lift before it becomes a significant threat. Maintaining pressure on your opponent also reduces the chances they can utilize the mana boost for a game-turning play. Timing is everything – wait for your opponent to invest in the Lift, then strike. By controlling the pace and removing the Lift at a pivotal moment, you ensure that the invested resources are lost, and the player’s tempo is disrupted.

Understanding the mechanics and having the right counter in hand makes Mercadian Lift a manageable obstacle on the path to victory in Magic: The Gathering.


Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Mercadian Lift MTG card by a specific set like Mercadian Masques, 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 Mercadian Lift and other MTG cards:

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Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Mercadian Lift has restrictions

FormatLegality
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
OathbreakerLegal
PremodernLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
PredhLegal

Rules and information

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

Date Text
2007-05-01 Putting the card onto the battlefield is optional. When the ability resolves, you can choose not to.