Port Inspector MTG Card

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	2
Rarity	Common
Type	Creature — Human
Released	1999-10-04
Set symbol
Set name	Mercadian Masques
Set code	MMQ
Power	1
Toughness	2
Number	90
Frame	1997
Layout	normal
Border	black
Illustred by	Dan Frazier

Key Takeaways

Port Inspector excels in card advantage, allowing consistent strategic deck insight every turn.
It accelerates resources via the investigation mechanic, which can alter the game’s pace.
The card’s instant speed inspection adds flexibility and surprise to gameplay.

Text of card

Whenever Port Inspector becomes blocked, you may look at defending player's hand.

"There may be a few minor additional fees, levies, duties, surtaxes, tariffs, imposts, tolls . . . ."

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Port Inspector excels at providing players with continuous insight into their deck by allowing them to sift through the top card each turn. This ensures that they maintain a steady flow of useful cards, greatly enhancing their strategic options during the game.

Resource Acceleration: By enabling the investigation mechanic, where players may draw a card whenever a nontoken artifact enters the battlefield under their control, Port Inspector can vastly speed up resource accumulation. This can lead to significant gains in the long run, keeping the player resource-rich and ready for any challenge.

Instant Speed: The ability of Port Inspector to perform its inspection at instant speed makes it an incredibly flexible tool. Players can wait until the end of an opponent’s turn to activate its ability, thereby keeping their options open and responding to threats or opportunities that arise during the course of play.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Playing Port Inspector might force a player to part with a card from their hand, which can be detrimental during the game’s crucial decision-making points. This cost of entry sets back players who are struggling to maintain card advantage on the battlefield.

Specific Mana Cost: With a casting cost that includes blue mana, Port Inspector squarely fits into decks that can produce this color. This requirement potentially sidelines the card in multicolored decks where blue might not be a primary focus, limiting its versatility across the broad spectrum of deck archetypes.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Possibly requiring a fair chunk of the player’s mana pool, Port Inspector competes with other cards at similar casting costs that might provide more immediate or impactful effects. MTG enthusiasts often weigh the mana cost against the benefits received, and this balance may sway against Port Inspector when alternatives are considered.

Reasons to Include Port Inspector in Your Collection

Versatility: Port Inspector offers a unique skill set by allowing you to investigate whenever a vehicle you control becomes tapped. This mechanism seamlessly integrates into artifact and vehicle decks while providing consistent card advantage.

Combo Potential: Port Inspector is prime for combination with cards that tap vehicles for various effects, enabling you to not just gain those benefits but also to churn out clue tokens that can be sacrificed for card draw or synergized with artifact strategies.

Meta-Relevance: In a game that’s constantly evolving, Port Inspector maintains relevance, particularly in metas where artifacts and engines are prominent. This card can provide the edge needed to stay one step ahead by ensuring a steady stream of resources and options.

How to beat

Port Inspector is an intriguing creature card that can provide a strategic edge in the game of Magic: The Gathering. This card has the ability to scrutinize opponents’ actions by inspecting artifacts that the opponent casts, offering you the potential to draw and maintain card advantage. To effectively neutralize the edge that Port Inspector provides, it’s crucial to limit the artifacts in your own strategy, focusing on non-artifact spells which evade the inspector’s ability.

Moreover, removal spells that can directly target and eliminate Port Inspector are invaluable, with numerous low-cost options enabling you to dispatch the inspector before their monitoring ability can significantly impact the game. Direct damage spells or those with exile effects can ensure that Port Inspector’s ability is only a brief concern. Additionally, prioritizing the control of the board state, with broader removal spells or board wipes, can remove Port Inspector along with other threats, circumventing any advantage the card could provide your opponent.

Ultimately, staying one step ahead involves adapting your strategy to reduce the impact of Port Inspector’s ability or employing timely removal to ensure that it does not turn the tide of the game against you.

Cards like Port Inspector

Port Inspector offers a unique spin within the selection of creature control spells in MTG. It bears a resemblance to cards like Thalia, Heretic Cathar, which also hamstrings opponents by affecting the tempo of their game. Thalia forces opponents’ creatures and nonbasic lands to enter the battlefield tapped, whereas Port Inspector provides a different angle of control – the ability to inspect an opponent’s incoming card while detaining a newly arrived creature to the battlefield.

Comparing it further, we stumble upon Lavinia, Azorius Renegade. Similar to Port Inspector, Lavinia can restrict an opponent’s ability to play noncreature spells for free or with mana that wasn’t generated by lands they control. This is a subtle yet powerful way to keep a check on opposing strategies. Tocatli Honor Guard is another such influential card, shutting down enter-the-battlefield abilities, which could indirectly impact creatures that have effects when they come into play just like how Port Inspector could detain them.

Assessing the distinct impact of Port Inspector in the control archetype, it offers a strategic advantage by combining creature detention with informational insight. This differentiates it from others and makes it a noteworthy contender in the MTG universe’s vast roster of control creatures.

Thalia, Heretic Cathar - MTG Card versions

Lavinia, Azorius Renegade - MTG Card versions

Thalia, Heretic Cathar - Eldritch Moon Promos (PEMN)

Lavinia, Azorius Renegade - Ravnica Allegiance Promos (PRNA)

Cards similar to Port Inspector by color, type and mana cost

Soratami Cloudskater - MTG Card versions

Vodalian Soldiers - Fallen Empires (FEM)

Lord of Atlantis - Wizards Play Network 2024 (PW24)

Wu Light Cavalry - Portal Three Kingdoms (PTK)

Overtaker - Mercadian Masques Promos (PMMQ)

Darting Merfolk - World Championship Decks 2001 (WC01)

Sneaky Homunculus - Eighth Edition (8ED)

Aquamoeba - World Championship Decks 2003 (WC03)

Soratami Cloudskater - Champions of Kamigawa (CHK)

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Port Inspector 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 Port Inspector and other MTG cards: