Hordewing Skaab MTG Card


Card setsReleased in 2 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost5
RarityRare
TypeCreature — Zombie Horror
Abilities Flying
Power 3
Toughness 3

Key Takeaways

  1. Hordewing Skaab maintains card advantage by returning creature cards from graveyard to hand.
  2. Its exploit mechanic accelerates resources, allowing for the potential of drawing two additional cards.
  3. Synergy with instant-speed interactions readies counters and tricks, enhancing strategic play.

Text of card

Flying Other Zombies you control have flying. Whenever one or more Zombies you control deal combat damage to one or more of your opponents, you may draw cards equal to the number of opponents dealt damage this way. If you do, discard that many cards.


Card Pros

Card Advantage: Hordewing Skaab helps you keep the pressure on by returning a creature card from your graveyard to your hand when it enters the battlefield. This effectively replaces itself in your hand, maintaining your resources and giving you options for future turns.

Resource Acceleration: With its exploit mechanic, Hordewing Skaab can be a catalyst for resource acceleration. By sacrificing another creature you may draw two cards, potentially putting you ahead and providing the fuel for powerful plays in the mid to late game.

Instant Speed: Although Hordewing Skaab itself doesn’t operate at instant speed, it synergizes well with cards that do. The ability to return an instant-speed interaction creature to your hand means you can set up for tricks and counters during your opponent’s turn, keeping them on their toes and enabling you to maximize the impact of your instant speed spells.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Hordewing Skaab demands that you discard a card to take advantage of its reanimation ability. During gameplay, this can lead to a situation where you’re sacrificing valuable hand assets that may have been crucial to your strategy, thus potentially putting you at a disadvantage when resources are sparse.

Specific Mana Cost: Hordewing Skaab’s casting cost requires both blue and generic mana, narrowing its integration mainly to blue-centric or two-color decks that can reliably provide the necessary mana. As such, decks without a strong blue mana base may find it difficult to play this card efficiently.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a four mana value, Hordewing Skaab might not always align well in terms of cost-efficiency. There are alternatives in the card pool that could potentially reanimate creatures or provide other types of utility at a lower cost, making it essential to weigh this card against other options in your deck-building process.


Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Hordewing Skaab is a natural fit in various blue-based decks that thrive on graveyard synergy or need a sturdy flier. Its ability to self-mill enhances graveyard strategies and helps dig for key cards.

Combo Potential: This card works well with decks that capitalize on casting spells from the graveyard or benefit from having creature cards in the bin, such as those that include cards like “Rise from the Tides” for a massive zombie army.

Meta-Relevance: Within the format where flyers are impactful and graveyards are a resource, Hordewing Skaab proves its worth. It excels in metagames where it’s essential to block popular flying threats or make use of discarded spells.


How to beat

Hordewing Skaab makes a splash in the world of blue flying creatures in Magic: The Gathering. This card advantages players by granting a way to exploit other creatures, allowing for the draw and discard mechanic to be used to its full potential. Plus, as a zombie bird, it aligns well with decks that leverage graveyard strategies and reanimation tactics. Nonetheless, overcoming the sway of Hordewing Skaab in a match isn’t insurmountable.

Combat tactic is crucial against Hordewing Skaab. Since it boasts flying, ensuring you have ample reach or flying creatures can mitigate its aerial dominance. Additionally, removal spells that can target creatures regardless of flying—think “Terminate” or “Doom Blade”—can remove Hordewing Skaab without requiring combat. It’s also worth noting that Hordewing Skaab’s exploit mechanic can be used once. Thus, disrupting the creature it targets to exploit, with instant-speed removal or bounce spells, can foil the opponent’s plans and card advantage aspirations.

To sum up, acknowledging Hordewing Skaab’s strengths and leveraging your deck’s removal or flying creatures can deftly neutralize this menace. A strategic approach and maintaining control over the board can lead to victory against opponents wielding this formidable zombie bird.


BurnMana Recommendations

Diving into the depths of MTG plays can be as strategic as it is rewarding. Hordewing Skaab is a card that undeniably offers resourcefulness and tactical advantage in the right setup. From returning creatures to your hand to accelerating your card draw, this card can be a game-changer. However, every card’s value is determined by how well it slots into your deck’s overall strategy. With insights on both the highs and the challenges it offers, ensuring Hordewing Skaab aligns with your gameplay is essential. For further strategy tips and how to make the most of this card in your arsenal, step into our world of expertise and let’s elevate your game together.


Cards like Hordewing Skaab

Hordewing Skaab is an intriguing flying creature card that players find useful in their blue-aligned decks. Its closest relatives might include cards like Advanced Stitchwing and Stitched Drake. Both compare as they also offer flying abilities and require a bit of set-up to become truly effective on the battlefield.

Advanced Stitchwing has a slightly higher power and toughness but comes at a greater casting cost and also requires the discarding of cards to return it from the graveyard to play. Stitched Drake, while less demanding in the casting cost department, necessitates the exiling of a creature card from the graveyard to summon it. Hordewing Skaab stands out by allowing the player to exile any two cards from their graveyard to bring it back to hand, giving a bit more flexibility.

In summary, Hordewing Skaab offers a balanced blend of cost, power, and the utilitarian ability to bounce back to a player’s hand from the graveyard, making it a competitive choice for players seeking aerial dominance with recursive potential.

Advanced Stitchwing - MTG Card versions
Stitched Drake - MTG Card versions
Advanced Stitchwing - Eldritch Moon (EMN)
Stitched Drake - Innistrad (ISD)

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Coastal Hornclaw - Eighth Edition (8ED)
Meloku the Clouded Mirror - Champions of Kamigawa (CHK)
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Cloudhoof Kirin - Saviors of Kamigawa (SOK)
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Infiltrator il-Kor - Future Sight (FUT)
Mulldrifter - The List (PLST)
Chasm Drake - Magic 2012 (M12)
Mirror-Mad Phantasm - Innistrad (ISD)

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Hordewing Skaab MTG card by a specific set like Midnight Hunt Commander and Midnight Hunt Commander, 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 Hordewing Skaab and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Hordewing Skaab Magic the Gathering card was released in 1 different sets between 2021-09-24 and 2021-09-24. Illustrated by Sidharth Chaturvedi.

#ReleaseNameCodeSymbolNumberFrameLayoutBorderArtist
12021-09-24Midnight Hunt CommanderMIC 532015normalblackSidharth Chaturvedi
22021-09-24Midnight Hunt CommanderMIC 152015normalblackSidharth Chaturvedi

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Hordewing Skaab has restrictions

FormatLegality
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
OathbreakerLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal

Rules and information

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

DateText
2021-09-24 If some of your Zombies have first strike but others don't, or if you have a Zombie with double strike, the ability will trigger twice, the first time counting the number of opponents who were dealt damage in the first strike combat damage step, and the second time counting the ones who were dealt damage in the second combat damage step.
2021-09-24 The number of cards you discard is equal to the number of opponents that were dealt combat damage by your Zombies, even if another effect changed the number of cards you drew.

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