Mire Shade MTG Card

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	2
Rarity	Uncommon
Type	Creature — Shade
Released	1996-10-08
Set symbol
Set name	Mirage
Set code	MIR
Power	1
Toughness	1
Number	131
Frame	1997
Layout	normal
Border	black
Illustred by	Randy Gallegos

Key Takeaways

Mire Shade provides card advantage by allowing repeated usage and flexibility in gameplay.
Its instant speed and scalability make it adaptable, but it does require careful resource management.
The card’s specific mana requirements and higher cost can restrict its deck compatibility.

Text of card

o B, Sacrifice a swamp: Put a +1/+1 counter on Mire Shade. Play this ability as a sorcery.

"We realized the bog had not given up a soul but had come to claim a new one." —Scout Ekemet, final journal

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Mire Shade comes with the potential to offer card advantage due to its ability to recur from the graveyard. This mechanic grants you repeated usage of the card, ensuring that you get more value out of a single card over the course of a game.

Resource Acceleration: While not directly providing mana, Mire Shade can effectively serve as a resource accelerator. Its scalable power allows you to manage your mana more efficiently, ensuring that you can adapt to various situations without overcommitting resources.

Instant Speed: Mire Shade’s abilities can be utilized at instant speed, giving you the flexibility to react to an opponent’s actions during their turn and potentially disrupting their strategies while maintaining the pressure with your own board state.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Mire Shade asks players to part with a card from their hand, forcing you to weigh the benefits against the potential depletion of valuable resources.

Specific Mana Cost: This creature requires black mana, a constraint that can dictate the deck types it fits into. Not all strategies can accommodate such specific requirements without hampering mana consistency.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Considering its utility and impact on the board, Mire Shade comes with a mana cost that may seem steep. This can be particularly challenging in fast-paced games where efficiency is key.

Reasons to Include Mire Shade in Your Collection

Versatility: Mire Shade’s ability to adapt on the fly makes it a suitable addition to many deck archetypes. Being able to scale its power in accordance to available mana makes it a flexible threat at any stage of the game.

Combo Potential: With its capacity to grow in power instantly, Mire Shade can synergize with cards that reward creatures with high power, or can be used to feed sacrifice strategies for an unforeseen advantage.

Meta-Relevance: In a meta where board presence can dictate the pace of the game, having a creature that can consistently apply pressure or become a formidable blocker can be incredibly valuable. Mire Shade holds its own against various deck strategies and remains relevant in different meta scenarios.

How to beat

Understanding the nuances of Mire Shade can give players the edge they need to overcome this card in Magic: The Gathering. The card’s strength lies in its scalability, as it allows players to boost its power by investing additional mana. However, this same feature can be turned against it by strategically timing your removal spells. Spells that remove or lock down creatures before the opponent has the chance to accumulate enough mana can neutralize Mire Shade’s potential. Managing your resources to ensure you have the tools to deal with it when it hits the board is critical.

Manipulating the flow of the game can also be key to besting Mire Shade. By controlling the pace and pressuring your opponent, you can force them to allocate mana elsewhere, preventing significant investments into powering up Mire Shade. Cards that alter the battlefield, such as mass removal spells or those that limit the number of lands a player can untap, can also significantly hamper the effectiveness of mana-hungry cards like Mire Shade.

Overall, while Mire Shade might pose a growing threat if left unchecked, its dependency on mana makes it vulnerable to disruption and strategic counterplay. Players who can capitalize on this, either through removal or control, will find themselves well-equipped to handle the challenge it presents.

Cards like Mire Shade

Mire Shade offers a unique approach to creature enhancement in Magic: The Gathering. It finds parallels with other creatures like Nantuko Shade, both utilizing the mana sink ability to boost their power. Mire Shade, with its ability to grow in power with each swamp you tap, caters to a strategy that rewards players for having a wealth of mana at their disposal.

Comparable to Mire Shade is the card Looming Shade, which also exhibits a similar ability to increase its strength. The key difference is Looming Shade’s lower initial cost, allowing for a quicker presence on the battlefield yet lacking the same potential for a late-game impact. Another akin creature is Drifting Shade, with the flexibility to fly over blockers, providing evasion besides power scaling. However, it requires a steeper initial mana investment, making it a less flexible option early on.

Assessing these options, Mire Shade manages to carve out its niche, offering players a potentially substantial late-game threat that can become an unstoppable force should the game extend and the swamps be plentiful.

Cards similar to Mire Shade by color, type and mana cost

Order of the Ebon Hand - MTG Card versions

Nezumi Graverobber // Nighteyes the Desecrator - MTG Card versions

Erg Raiders - Fourth Edition Foreign Black Border (4BB)

Order of the Ebon Hand - Pro Tour Collector Set (PTC)

Piper of the Swarm - Magic Online Promos (PRM)

Undead Augur - Magic Online Promos (PRM)

Nezumi Graverobber // Nighteyes the Desecrator - Commander Anthology Volume II (CM2)

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Mire Shade MTG card by a specific set like Mirage, 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 Mire Shade and other MTG cards: