Hired Giant MTG Card

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	4
Rarity	Uncommon
Type	Creature — Giant
Released	1999-10-04
Set symbol
Set name	Mercadian Masques
Set code	MMQ
Power	4
Toughness	4
Number	194
Frame	1997
Layout	Normal
Border	Black
Illustred by	Ben Thompson

Key Takeaways

Hired Giant grants board advantage by fetching artifacts or equipment directly into play.
The card accelerates your mana resources, enhancing your ability to play bigger threats.
Strategically manage your hand and mana to harness the Giant’s full potential in your deck.

Text of card

When Hired Giant comes into play, each other player may search his or her library for a land card, put that card into play, then shuffle that library.

Card Pros

Card Advantage: The Hired Giant enables you to add a significant creature to your board while also fetching an equipment or artifact directly to the battlefield, nicely setting you up for a lead in resources.

Resource Acceleration: By potentially retrieving a mana-generating artifact, the Hired Giant can escalate your resource pool, accelerating your gameplay and allowing you to cast bigger threats earlier than expected.

Instant Speed: Although Hired Giant itself doesn’t have instant speed, its ability to pull in instant-speed artifacts can drastically change the pace and playstyle of your deck, giving you more flexibility and surprise factors against opponents.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: When deploying the Hired Giant, players must contend with the mandatory discard of another card. For those managing a slim hand, this can result in a palpable depletion of strategic options, potentially leaving them exposed to an opponent’s tactics.

Specific Mana Cost: The casting cost of Hired Giant insists on a precise combination of mana, including not only a generic amount but also a prerequisite of red mana. This requirement inherently narrows deck compatibility, confining the card’s usage primarily within red or multicolored decks that can accommodate such a demand.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Harnessed with a mana value that might be considered on the higher end for its provided effect, Hired Giant faces stiff competition from alternatives within the MTG landscape. There are myriad creatures and spells available that could offer a more cost-efficient impact, possibly relegating the giant to the role of a less favoured choice among deckbuilders.

Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Hired Giant offers broad appeal to various decks as it serves not just as a hefty creature but also as a utility piece that can impact the board immediately upon entering the battlefield.

Combo Potential: With its ability to potentially disrupt opponents’ strategies or synergize with your own big-creature strategy, Hired Giant has the potential to be a combo enabler, paving the way for game-winning turns.

Meta-Relevance: In a meta where large creatures can dominate and provide significant advantages, incorporating Hired Giant into your deck can offer competitive edges essential for thriving in diverse play environments.

How to beat

The Hired Giant card in Magic: The Gathering is known for its ability to significantly impact the board with its formidable presence. Tackling this card effectively requires a strategic approach. Firstly, it is vital to manage your resources efficiently; keep removal spells in hand for when the Giant hits the battlefield. Spells that can exile or bounce creatures back to an opponent’s hand are especially valuable against a Hired Giant.

Another method is to outpace the Giant with swifter creatures. Aggressive decks can apply pressure early on, forcing the opponent to use their mana defensively rather than casting a high-cost creature like the Hired Giant. This strategy can often lead to a dominant position before the Giant even comes into play.

Control decks have their advantages, too. Counter magic, especially for high-cost cards, can prevent the Hired Giant from ever entering the battlefield. For decks focusing on longer games, this is often the key to exhausting the opponent’s options, paving the way for a win. By knowing your deck’s strengths and when to deploy these tactics, the Hired Giant can be effectively neutralized.

Cards like Hired Giant

Hired Giant enters the realm of creature spells in Magic: The Gathering as a powerful behemoth with a twist. Standing tall among similar cards, it bears resemblance to other high-cost creatures such as Phyrexian Gargantua. Both cards offer significant power and toughness on the battlefield. Hired Giant, unique in its requirement, mandates that an opponent creates a 1/1 creature when it enters play, tipping the scales slightly in your opponent’s favor for the moment.

Comparable in the category is Desecration Demon, a creature of similar power level. It boasts a recurring choice for opponents to sacrifice a creature or have it grow stronger—both significantly impacting gameplay. Although Hired Giant doesn’t have that kind of board influence, it compensates with immediate board presence. Lastly, we examine Meteor Golem, which offers an immediate impact by destroying a nonland permanent upon entry. While less powerful in stats, the instantaneous utility it brings can often overshadow the raw power granted by the likes of Hired Giant.

Ultimately, Hired Giant holds its ground with a balance of cost-to-power ratio and strategic gameplay. It nestles into a niche where the player can leverage its considerable presence to sway the game, considering the minor setback of gifting an opponent a creature. Each card brings its own dynamic to a match, making the choice of inclusion a matter of strategy and preference.

Cards similar to Hired Giant by color, type and mana cost

Krark-Clan Engineers - MTG Card versions

Shimatsu the Bloodcloaked - MTG Card versions

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Hired Giant 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 Hired Giant and other MTG cards: