Deepwood Elder MTG Card

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	2
Rarity	Rare
Type	Creature — Dryad Spellshaper
Released	1999-10-04
Set symbol
Set name	Mercadian Masques
Set code	MMQ
Power	2
Toughness	2
Number	240
Frame	1997
Layout	Normal
Border	Black
Illustred by	Greg Hildebrandt & Tim Hildebrandt

Key Takeaways

Deepwood Elder ensures card draw, maintaining hand resources by tapping with untapped forests.
The card’s ability to untap forests can significantly accelerate mana, aiding in faster gameplay.
Strategic removal of Deepwood Elder is crucial for opponents to negate its tactical benefits.

Text of card

o Xo Go G, oc T, Discard a card from your hand: X target lands become forests until end of turn.

They'd guarded the Henge so long that they were as attuned to the powerstones as they were to the trees.

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Deepwood Elder can help you ensure that your hand is never empty by allowing you to tap it along with two untapped forests for the benefit of drawing a card. This is a valuable tactic for staying ahead of your opponents and maintaining pressure through consistent resource availability.

Resource Acceleration: The ability to untap forests is particularly powerful in green decks that focus on ramping up their mana production. By untapping your forests, Deepwood Elder effectively acts as a form of resource acceleration, enabling earlier plays of large creatures or spells that can turn the tide of a match.

Instant Speed: While Deepwood Elder’s ability itself isn’t instant speed, it can be used during any player’s turn whenever you could cast an instant. This aspect allows you flexible decision-making, as you can wait to see what your opponent does before choosing to tap Deepwood Elder for its card-drawing ability.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: When leveraging the power of the Deepwood Elder, players must take note of its inherent drawback – the necessity to discard a card. This cost comes into play when utilizing the Elder’s ability to seek out a Forest card, potentially straining your hand if you’re already running short on cards.

Specific Mana Cost: Deepwood Elder’s utility is chiefly tied to decks abundant in green mana due to its strict green mana requirement for casting. This reliance on a particular mana type can constrain deckbuilding options and may not fit seamlessly into more diverse mana base strategies.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a casting cost that may be deemed steep by some players for its ability set, the Deepwood Elder demands a significant mana investment upfront. Other cards on the market could fulfill a similar role at a lesser or more flexible mana cost, giving them an edge over the Elder in a competitive setting.

Reasons to Include Deepwood Elder in Your Collection

Versatility: Deepwood Elder offers a rare blend of mana acceleration and land disruption, which can be adapted to various green-centric decks. Its ability to untap forests provides a consistent mana boost, while also having the potential to hinder opponents’ land strategies.

Combo Potential: With the right setup, this card can become a key piece in creating a soft lock by denying the opponent access to crucial lands. It pairs well with cards that can tap or disable opponent’s lands, amplifying both disruption and mana ramp effects.

Meta-Relevance: In environments where resource denial is a valid strategy, Deepwood Elder can shine. Its capacity to disrupt opponent’s mana base while expanding your own makes it a practical choice for decks aiming to outpace and out-resource competitors.

How to Beat Deepwood Elder

Deepwood Elder can be an elusive target in the forest of Strategies in Magic: The Gathering. As a modest creature with the ability to tap for a forest reveal, it poses a unique challenge to players looking to maintain the tempo of their game. Understanding its strengths is key to unlocking a strategy to defeat it. Comparable to cards like Arbor Elf or Llanowar Elves, which also provide mana acceleration, Deepwood Elder requires a larger initial investment but has the added advantage of fetching lands directly into your hand.

Counterplay involves prioritizing the removal of this creature before its ability can be used excessively, relying on spells like Shock or Fatal Push to quickly dispatch it. Alternatively, ensuring a sturdy board presence can outweigh the advantages that Deepwood Elder might offer an opponent. In essence, maintaining aggressive plays and keeping removal options at the ready are the cornerstones of thwarting the Elder’s strategic advantage.

In the grand theater of Magic: The Gathering, proactive play can often prevent the advantage that cards like Deepwood Elder seeks to provide. Staying one step ahead of mana acceleration tactics is a sound strategy in controlling the game.

Cards like Deepwood Elder

Delving into the world of mana dorks in Magic: The Gathering, the Deepwood Elder card brings versatility to the table. Its attributes draw parallels to cards such as Arbor Elf, which, like Deepwood Elder, focuses on untapping lands. Arbor Elf concerns itself exclusively with forests, while Deepwood Elder has the flexibility to untap any land type, albeit at a higher activation cost.

Similarly, the allure of Voyaging Satyr cannot be overlooked in this discussion. The Satyr offers the same utility as Deepwood Elder, with the ability to untap lands, though it does so without the tapping cost. In contrast, the Krosan Restorer escalates the land untapping game, touting a threshold ability that can untap multiple lands, giving it an edge in potential mana generation.

While each card caters to strategies around ramping up mana, Deepwood Elder’s versatility and the added ability to exchange untapped lands for cards gives it room in decks wanting flexibility at a cost. Understanding the unique roles these cards play helps players optimize their deck’s synergy and mana economy.

Cards similar to Deepwood Elder by color, type and mana cost

Eladamri, Lord of Leaves - MTG Card versions

Silverglade Pathfinder - MTG Card versions

Llanowar Loamspeaker - MTG Card versions

Jolrael, Mwonvuli Recluse - MTG Card versions

Mayor of Avabruck // Howlpack Alpha - MTG Card versions

Wren's Run Vanquisher - MTG Card versions

Ayula, Queen Among Bears - MTG Card versions

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Deepwood Elder 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 Deepwood Elder and other MTG cards: