Nyx-Fleece Ram MTG Card


The Ram’s passive life gain each turn can force opponents to expend more resources. Boosting your life total could enable specific strategies for spells and abilities. While mana-specific, its defensive nature makes it valuable against aggressive decks.
Card setsReleased in 5 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost2
RarityUncommon
TypeEnchantment Creature — Sheep
Power 0
Toughness 5

Text of card

At the beginning of your upkeep, you gain 1 life.

The gods are fascinated by innocence, perhaps because it's a quality they themselves lack.


Cards like Nyx-Fleece Ram

Nyx-Fleece Ram is a unique and defensive creature in the vast Magic: The Gathering card library. This enchantment creature shines in lifegain and enchantment-based decks and offers a consistent increase in life totals at the beginning of your upkeep. The Wall of Hope, while not an enchantment, offers a similar life-gain benefit, granting you life whenever it blocks an attack. The similarity lies in the defensive utility they provide.

Another card, Ajani’s Mantra, echoes the Ram’s incremental life-gain approach by giving you one life on your upkeep. It lacks the creature body, but offers reliable life padding. By contrast, Courser of Kruphix provides life gain with a different twist, by granting you a little life boost each time you play a land card – which can happen more often than the once-per-turn trigger of Nyx-Fleece Ram. Additionally, Courser of Kruphix lets you have a peek at the top card of your library, a strategic advantage during play.

Despite the existence of these alternatives, Nyx-Fleece Ram’s combination of being both a creature and enchantment, as well as its steadfast life gain, elevates it in themed decks in Magic: The Gathering, especially when every life point counts.

Wall of Hope - MTG Card versions
Ajani's Mantra - MTG Card versions
Courser of Kruphix - MTG Card versions
Wall of Hope - MTG Card versions
Ajani's Mantra - MTG Card versions
Courser of Kruphix - MTG Card versions

Cards similar to Nyx-Fleece Ram by color, type and mana cost

Blessing - MTG Card versions
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Hypochondria - MTG Card versions
Soulcatchers' Aerie - MTG Card versions
Circle of Protection: Green - MTG Card versions
Blessing - MTG Card versions
Circle of Protection: White - MTG Card versions
Island Sanctuary - MTG Card versions
Crusade - MTG Card versions
Circle of Protection: Blue - MTG Card versions
Circle of Protection: Artifacts - MTG Card versions
Circle of Protection: Red - MTG Card versions
Energy Storm - MTG Card versions
Circle of Protection: Black - MTG Card versions
Ward of Lights - MTG Card versions
Gossamer Chains - MTG Card versions
I'm Rubber, You're Glue - MTG Card versions
Absolute Grace - MTG Card versions
Seal of Cleansing - MTG Card versions
Absolute Law - MTG Card versions
Sacred Ground - MTG Card versions
Pacifism - MTG Card versions
Hypochondria - MTG Card versions
Soulcatchers' Aerie - MTG Card versions
Circle of Protection: Green - MTG Card versions

Decks using this card

MTG decks using Nyx-Fleece Ram. Dig deeper into the strategy of decks, sideboard cards, list ideas and export to play in ARENA or MOL.

#NameFormatArchetypeEvent
Abzan ComboAbzan Combo GladiatorSword and Sandals Showdown: EMEA Week 13 2024
Abzan MidrangeAbzan Midrange GladiatorSword and Sandals Showdown: AM Week 08 2024
Five-color MidrangeFive-color Midrange GladiatorSword and Sandals Showdown: AM Week 06 2024

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Nyx-Fleece Ram provides ongoing advantage by giving you a life point at the beginning of your upkeep. This consistent life gain can help outpace your opponent by making it harder for them to reduce your life total to zero. It’s a subtle form of card advantage, as it can force opponents to use more resources to overcome the life disparity.

Resource Acceleration: While Nyx-Fleece Ram itself doesn’t directly accelerate your resources in terms of mana quantity, the life it provides can be utilized as a resource in decks that benefit from high life totals. This could indirectly lead to resource acceleration by enabling certain spells or abilities that depend on your life total being above a certain threshold.

Instant Speed: Although Nyx-Fleece Ram is a creature and doesn’t operate at instant speed, its ability triggers at the beginning of your upkeep, which means you gain its benefits without using mana on your turn. This can effectively save your mana for actual instant speed interactions or other strategic plays, ensuring that you’re always ready to respond to your opponents’ actions efficiently.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: While Nyx-Fleece Ram doesn’t have a discard requirement itself, it operates in a deck environment where discarding can be a part of the game strategy. For a card that’s meant to provide consistent life gain, having to discard other valuable cards to maintain that benefit could present a drawback in certain gameplay scenarios.

Specific Mana Cost: Nyx-Fleece Ram requires both white and generic mana to cast. This mana cost specificity can potentially limit the card’s inclusion to predominantly white or two-color decks, which may not blend well with decks that have a broader mana base or those that rely on a different color identity.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Although a two-mana 0/5 creature may seem cost-efficient for its toughness, when compared to other creatures or enchantments that can be played at the same cost, Nyx-Fleece Ram may fall short in providing proactive game impact. Its passive ability offers life gain but lacks direct board presence or threat capability, which might not justify its place in faster, more aggressive decks that require immediate influence on the game state.


Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Nyx-Fleece Ram offers utility across various deck archetypes, serving as both an early blocker and a consistent source of life gain. Its defensive capabilities make it a solid choice for control or lifegain-focused decks looking for stability.

Combo Potential: This card excels in synergy with enchantment-based strategies and can be a cornerstone in decks that capitalize on enchantments entering the battlefield or life gain triggers. Its presence can strengthen both offensive and defensive combos.

Meta-Relevance: In environments where aggressive strategies are prevalent, the consistent life gain and valuable defensive presence of Nyx-Fleece Ram can be key to stabilizing the board and maintaining your life total against early onslaughts.


How to beat

Nyx-Fleece Ram is a well-known enchantment creature card that finds a comfortable niche within life-gain and defense-oriented MTG decks. Boasting not only an increase in your life total at the beginning of your upkeep but also an impressive toughness, overcoming this card can be quite the hurdle. Looking deeper into overcoming this Aries-inspired adversary, consider employing removal spells that don’t rely on damage, such as Path to Exile, as the Ram’s resilience lies in its ability to withstand damage-based strategies.

Additionally, bringing in enchantment exile cards like Banishing Light can be a game-changer by removing the Ram from the battlefield, regardless of its toughness. Cards that force opponents to sacrifice creatures, like Diabolic Edict, also circumvent the Ram’s defensive prowess. Victory against a deck featuring Nyx-Fleece Ram could hinge on a calculated approach that negates the card’s life-gain and brick wall defense. By equipping your arsenal with strategic removal, you not only nullify the Ram’s impact but also gain momentum, potentially steering the match in your favor.


BurnMana Recommendations

Dive deeper into the dynamic strategies of MTG where recognizing the value of each card, like Nyx-Fleece Ram, can be a game-changer. In control or lifegain decks, this enchantment creature provides a consistent life buffer and defensive bulwark that’s hard to overlook. Understanding the subtleties of when to employ such a card and the intricacies of its matchups is crucial. Looking for new deck ideas that synergize with Nyx-Fleece Ram or ways to fortify your existing builds? We’re here to guide you through that journey. Enhance your gameplay with insights from seasoned players and ensure your collection stands resilient against the competition.


Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Nyx-Fleece Ram MTG card by a specific set like Journey into Nyx and Masters 25, 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 Nyx-Fleece Ram and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Nyx-Fleece Ram Magic the Gathering card was released in 5 different sets between 2014-05-02 and 2020-03-12. Illustrated by Terese Nielsen.

#ReleasedNameCodeSymbolNumberFrameLayoutBorderArtist
12014-05-02Journey into NyxJOU 182003NormalBlackTerese Nielsen
22018-03-16Masters 25A25 262015NormalBlackTerese Nielsen
32019-11-07Mystery BoosterMB1 1852015NormalBlackTerese Nielsen
42020-03-12Historic Anthology 2HA2 12015NormalBlackTerese Nielsen
52020-09-26The ListPLST A25-262015NormalBlackTerese Nielsen

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Nyx-Fleece Ram has restrictions

FormatLegality
HistoricbrawlLegal
HistoricLegal
LegacyLegal
PaupercommanderRestricted
OathbreakerLegal
GladiatorLegal
PioneerLegal
CommanderLegal
ModernLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
ExplorerLegal
TimelessLegal