Nantuko Monastery MTG Card
2002-05-27 - Number 142
2010-06-18 - Number 131
2023-01-13 - Number 252
| Card sets | Released in 3 setsSee all |
| Rarity | Uncommon |
| Type | Land |
| Abilities | Threshold |
Text of card
oc T: Add one colorless mana to your mana pool. Threshold o Go W: Nantuko Monastery becomes a 4/4 green and white creature with first strike until end of turn. It's still a land. (Play this ability only if seven or more cards are in your graveyard.)
Cards like Nantuko Monastery
Nantuko Monastery is a distinctive land card that finds its place in Magic: The Gathering’s vast array of versatile lands. Noteworthy for its potential to become a creature, it shares traits with cards like Mishra’s Factory. Both cards can transform into creatures, offering dynamic options for defense or offense. Mishra’s Factory can become a creature at a lower activation cost, yet it’s less powerful compared to the Monastery’s formidable stats once animated.
Stirring Wildwood is another similar land card, capable of turning into a creature with reach and a stout power and toughness. While Stirring Wildwood offers evasion against flying creatures, it comes at a higher activation cost than Nantuko Monastery. On balance, the Monastery provides a more potent creature for a lesser mana commitment, though without the reach provided by the Wildwood.
When evaluating practical in-game utility, Nantuko Monastery stands out for its efficient transformation ability and significant impact as a sizable creature once animated. Its presence enriches the strategic depth of a game in Magic: The Gathering, especially in decks that value versatility in their land slots.
Cards similar to Nantuko Monastery by color, type and mana cost
Card Pros
Card Advantage: Nantuko Monastery enables you to transition lands into potential threats, thereby expanding your options without losing card equity. This flexibility helps you to capitalize on having more active threats, while not diminishing your hand.
Resource Acceleration: The ability to transform from a land into a creature can act as a form of resource acceleration, synergizing well with graveyard strategies that fill the yard quickly, ensuring the threshold condition is met to activate its ability.
Instant Speed: The Monastery’s activation can be done at instant speed, allowing strategic players to wait until the end of an opponent’s turn to turn it into a creature. This keeps up the element of surprise and allows for mana to be used for other spells or abilities if the situation changes.
Card Cons
Discard Requirement: Nantuko Monastery demands that you have Threshold – seven or more cards in your graveyard – to transform it into an attacking creature. This requirement can be tough to achieve, particularly in faster games or if you’re up against an opponent adept at keeping graveyards clean.
Specific Mana Cost: To activate its ability, Nantuko Monastery requires both green and white mana, which might not always be readily available. This specific mana cost makes it less flexible and might restrict its incorporation into a variety of decks, potentially hindering your deck building strategies.
Comparatively High Mana Cost: Although transforming into a creature with power and toughness of 4/4 for two mana is reasonable, having to reach Threshold first can be a deterrent. Considering that the metamorphosis into a creature isn’t instantaneous, there may be other land options that provide more immediate value or versatility at a lower investment.
Reasons to Include Nantuko Monastery in Your Collection
Versatility: Nantuko Monastery offers a unique blend as both a land card and a creature threat. It can sit as an unassuming land until a threshold of cards is reached in your graveyard, at which point it can transform into a sizable creature. This duality makes it a flexible choice in decks that capitalize on graveyard mechanics.
Combo Potential: The monastery’s ability to become a creature also plays well in decks that are heavy on land synergies or need backup threats. Its potential to become a 4/4 with first strike means it can slot into offensive strategies or defensive lines as your game plan evolves.
Meta-Relevance: In environments where graveyards quickly fill up, whether due to self-mill, aggressive draw-discard strategies, or natural cycling through one’s deck, Nantuko Monastery can consistently become a creature. This relevance gives it a niche but potentially powerful role in current metagames that favor graveyard interaction.
How to beat
Nantuko Monastery is a unique land card that presents Magic: The Gathering players with a creature-land dynamic. The Monastery itself does not pose a threat until its threshold condition is met, with seven or more cards in the graveyard, turning it into a formidable insect monk creature. Keeping graveyard card counts low is crucial in preventing an opponent from activating its ability. Graveyard management spells like Tormod’s Crypt can efficiently exile cards from the graveyard, thus keeping the Monastery in check.
Cards offering land destruction or creature removal also come in handy. Once the Nantuko Monastery becomes a creature, it is vulnerable to spells such as Path to Exile or Fatal Push, which can remove it from play. Players should also be wary of timing, as the Monastery can only become a creature on its controller’s turn. In matches, prioritize swift removal after it has transformed but before it attacks. Recognizing the right moment to disrupt the Nantuko Monastery’s transition from land to creature can be decisive in overcoming this adaptable card.
In brief, controlling the graveyard count, packing removal, and timing your responses are all strategies to negate the advantages that Nantuko Monastery provides. Using these tactics will ensure that the Monastery remains just another land rather than a significant threat.
Where to buy
If you're looking to purchase Nantuko Monastery MTG card by a specific set like Judgment and Archenemy, 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 Nantuko Monastery and other MTG cards:
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- eBay
- Card Kingdom
- Card Market
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- MTG Mint Card
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Printings
The Nantuko Monastery Magic the Gathering card was released in 3 different sets between 2002-05-27 and 2023-01-13. Illustrated by Rob Alexander.
| # | Released | Name | Code | Symbol | Number | Frame | Layout | Border | Artist |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2002-05-27 | Judgment | JUD | 142 | 1997 | Normal | Black | Rob Alexander | |
| 2 | 2010-06-18 | Archenemy | ARC | 131 | 2003 | Normal | Black | Rob Alexander | |
| 3 | 2023-01-13 | Dominaria Remastered | DMR | 252 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Rob Alexander |
Legalities
Magic the Gathering formats where Nantuko Monastery has restrictions
| Format | Legality |
|---|---|
| Commander | Legal |
| Legacy | Legal |
| Oathbreaker | Legal |
| Premodern | Legal |
| Vintage | Legal |
| Duel | Legal |
| Predh | Legal |
Rules and information
The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering Nantuko Monastery card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.
| Date | Text |
|---|---|
| 2022-12-08 | A noncreature permanent that becomes a creature can attack, and its abilities can be activated, only if its controller has continuously controlled that permanent since the beginning of their most recent turn. It doesn’t matter how long the permanent has been a creature. Notably, if you turn Nantuko Monastery into a creature on the turn it entered the battlefield, you won’t be able to tap it for mana. |
| 2022-12-08 | After it becomes a creature, Nantuko Monastery will still have all its abilities. |
| 2022-12-08 | Once you activate the last ability, it doesn’t matter what happens to the number of cards in your graveyard. Nantuko Monastery will remain a creature that turn even if that number falls below seven. |