Alpine Guide MTG Card
| Mana cost | |
| Converted mana cost | 3 |
| Rarity | Uncommon |
| Type | Snow Creature — Human Scout |
| Released | 2019-06-14 |
| Set symbol | |
| Set name | Modern Horizons |
| Set code | MH1 |
| Power | 3 |
| Toughness | 3 |
| Number | 117 |
| Frame | 2015 |
| Layout | Normal |
| Border | Black |
| Illustred by | Wayne Reynolds |
Key Takeaways
- Alpine Guide provides card advantage and resource acceleration through land-fetching abilities.
- The card’s specific mana cost and land sacrifice requirement are notable constraints.
- Despite drawbacks, its meta-relevance and combo potential make it a valuable collection piece.
Text of card
When Alpine Guide enters the battlefield, you may search your library for a Mountain card, put that card onto the battlefield tapped, then shuffle your library. Alpine Guide attacks each combat if able. When Alpine Guide leaves the battlefield, sacrifice a Mountain.
Card Pros
Card Advantage: Alpine Guide brings an immediate boost to your land base when it enters the battlefield. As it allows you to search your library for a mountain card and put it directly onto the battlefield, you essentially draw into additional resources without expending a separate card or action. It offers a tactical edge in games where land draws equate to progress and power.
Resource Acceleration: The Alpine Guide shines in strategies focusing on resource acceleration, helping you access more mana earlier in the game. The extra Mountain it secures can make a significant difference by ramping up your board state, enabling you to cast more expensive spells ahead of schedule and overwhelming opponents with faster plays.
Instant Speed: While Alpine Guide itself isn’t an instant, the land it fetches is untapped and ready to use, effectively functioning at instant speed by giving you immediate access to additional mana. This facet is excellent for keeping options open and allowing you to respond to your opponent’s actions with speed and efficiency, a key maneuver for maintaining the upper hand in MTG’s dynamic gameplay.
Card Cons
Discard Requirement: Alpine Guide asks you to sacrifice a land when it leaves the battlefield. This can set back your mana development and be a substantial drawback in land-focused decks.
Specific Mana Cost: This card comes with a strict mana requirement, needing both red and generic mana. This cost restricts its use, making it less flexible for multicolor decks that may find the requirement hard to meet consistently.
Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a casting cost of three, including one red, Alpine Guide might not be the most mana-efficient creature, especially considering you can potentially end up losing a land. In a format where efficiency is key, there are other, lower-cost creatures without this downside, which can provide better value over the course of a game.
Reasons to Include Alpine Guide in Your Collection
Versatility: Alpine Guide offers a unique mix of land ramp and creature presence on the board. It can be slotted into decks that are in need of ramp to secure crucial mana resources while also providing a three-power body on the battlefield.
Combo Potential: When it leaves the battlefield, Alpine Guide allows you to fetch a Mountain card from your deck, aiding strategies that revolve around landfall triggers or mountain synergies. It’s great for setting off chain reactions with cards that care about lands entering play.
Meta-Relevance: In game environments where land interaction is a key to victory, Alpine Guide can rise as a potent ally. Its ability to manipulate the land base subtly yet significantly could give players who use it an edge in matches where pace and resource acceleration dictate the victor.
How to beat
Alpine Guide presents a unique challenge on the battlefield. This red creature card comes with an interesting land-search mechanic that can quickly amplify your opponent’s mana base. However, it leaves behind a vulnerability in that when Alpine Guide leaves the battlefield, the fetched land is forced to be sacrificed unless a proper substitute is found.
Overcoming Alpine Guide requires a strategic approach. One effective method is to use removal spells that exile instead of destroying, such as Path to Exile or Swords to Plowshares, bypassing the leave-the-battlefield trigger. Alternatively, forcing an opponent to sacrifice Alpine Guide without attacking ensures the land is lost without benefit. It’s also beneficial to take advantage of the momentary land advantage by preparing for an accelerated opposing play or countering potential big threats enabled by the additional mana.
In essence, dealing with Alpine Guide boils down to timing and precision in your responses. Understanding when to let the Guide’s ability resolve and when to disrupt your opponent’s plans is key to maintaining control over the game. Focus on this card’s inherent risks as much as its rewards to ensure Alpine Guide leads you to victory instead of your adversary.
Cards like Alpine Guide
Alpine Guide is an intriguing creature in Magic: The Gathering, rooted firmly in the realm of land-centric strategies. It’s reminiscent of cards like Wood Elves, which fetch forests directly to the battlefield when they enter the play area. However, Alpine Guide offers a unique twist by allowing the player to search for any Mountain card, not just basic ones, providing a specific advantage in deck-building diversity. Unlike Wood Elves, Alpine Guide also mandates that the fetched land be sacrificed upon its departure from the battlefield, creating a balancing act for deck strategists to consider.
Likewise, Solemn Simulacrum presents a similar fetch-land effect, but with broader options, allowing for the search of any basic land card, not just mountains. While it doesn’t condition the land’s sacrifice, it also doesn’t offer the aggressive stats that come with Alpine Guide. Then there’s Oreskos Explorer, a card that benefits from searching for plains if you’re behind on land count, proving useful for catching up in the game. However, it lacks the immediate board impact that Alpine Guide can have.
Ultimately, while there are several cards in Magic: The Gathering that mirror some abilities of Alpine Guide, this card stands out for decks that seek to exploit land-based mechanics, offering both aggressive play and strategic depth.
Cards similar to Alpine Guide by color, type and mana cost
Where to buy
If you're looking to purchase Alpine Guide MTG card by a specific set like Modern Horizons, 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 Alpine Guide and other MTG cards:
- eBay
- TCG Player
- Card Kingdom
- Card Market
- Star City Games
- CoolStuffInc
- MTG Mint Card
- Hareruya
- Troll and Toad
- ABU Games
- Card Hoarder Magic Online
- MTGO Traders Magic Online
See MTG Products
Legalities
Magic the Gathering formats where Alpine Guide has restrictions
| Format | Legality |
|---|---|
| Commander | Legal |
| Legacy | Legal |
| Paupercommander | Restricted |
| Modern | Legal |
| Oathbreaker | Legal |
| Vintage | Legal |
| Duel | Legal |
| Penny | Legal |
Rules and information
The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering Alpine Guide card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.
| Date | Text |
|---|---|
| 2019-06-14 | If Alpine Guide can’t attack for any reason (such as being tapped or having come under a player’s control that turn), then it doesn’t attack. If there’s a cost associated with having it attack, its controller isn’t forced to pay that cost, so it doesn’t have to attack in that case either. |
