Hedron Crawler MTG Card

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	2
Rarity	Common
Type	Artifact Creature — Construct
Released	2016-01-22
Set symbol
Set name	Oath of the Gatewatch
Set code	OGW
Power	0
Toughness	1
Number	164
Frame	2015
Layout	Normal
Border	Black
Illustred by	Daniel Ljunggren

Key Takeaways

Swift mana ramping allows for early high-cost spell casting, enhancing deck performance.
Provides flexibility for instant-speed interactions, maintaining strategic advantage.
Though limited by colorless mana production, its versatility supports various archetypes.

Text of card

: Add to your mana pool. ( represents colorless mana.)

"It's endearing, in a mystical, pointy sort of way." —General Tazri, allied commander

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Hedron Crawler may not directly provide card draw, but its consistent mana acceleration lets you deploy your hand much faster, effectively increasing the utility of each card drawn. This translates to indirect card advantage as you can smoothly cast more impactful spells.

Resource Acceleration: This two-cost artifact creature is a workhorse for ramping up your mana pool. By providing an additional colorless mana each turn, Hedron Crawler can be crucial in speeding up your game, allowing you to cast high-cost spells several turns earlier than you normally could.

Instant Speed: While Hedron Crawler itself doesn’t operate at instant speed, the mana it provides gives you the flexibility to use other instant-speed interactions in your deck, ensuring you’re always a step ahead. And since it’s a reliable source of mana from the creature slot, it keeps your lands free to tap for those critical split-second plays.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: The Hedron Crawler, despite not having a discard requirement itself, can indirectly lead to discard situations by contributing to hand-size issues if you’re drawing many low-impact creatures like this instead of your high-impact spells.

Specific Mana Cost: Hedron Crawler’s colorless mana cost doesn’t exactly limit its deck inclusion; however, since it only adds {C} (one colorless mana) to your mana pool and not any specific color, it may not be as helpful in mana-fixing situations for multicolored decks requiring specific mana combinations.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: While costing only two mana may seem low, in highly competitive formats where maximized efficiency is key, the impact of a 0/1 creature with no immediate board influence might not justify even that small cost. Other two-mana rocks or dorks could offer additional benefits or produce colored mana, which could be considered a more advantageous investment.

Reasons to Include Hedron Crawler in Your Collection

Versatility: Hedron Crawler is a cost-effective mana accelerator that can smoothly fit into numerous deck archetypes. Its ability to tap for mana of any color makes it particularly useful in multicolored decks requiring efficient color fixing.

Combo Potential: This artifact creature is not only a reliable mana dork but also serves as a critical component in various combo decks. It can enable early plays, ramp up to potent spells sooner, or synergize with artifact-centric cards that benefit from its presence on the field.

Meta-Relevance: Adaptability is key in ever-shifting metagames, and Hedron Crawler maintains relevance due to its facilitation of faster gameplay. In environments where quick setup is crucial, having a Hedron Crawler can mean the difference between victory and defeat by accelerating your strategy ahead of the curve.

How to beat

Hedron Crawler is a simple yet efficient card in MTG, serving as a mana accelerator for colorless decks. Its primary function is providing an additional mana source, which is essential for ramping up to larger threats quickly. While it might seem daunting to face an opponent who’s scaling their board state faster than you, overcoming a Hedron Crawler strategy requires a blend of removal and tempo.

One effective tactic is to target Hedron Crawler with cheap removal spells early in the game. This ensures that your opponent loses their momentum, setting them back in their game plan. Another approach is to overwhelm the board with creatures, pressuring your opponent before they can make use of the extra mana provided by Hedron Crawler. Additionally, leveraging cards that restrict the tapping of artifacts or creatures can impede the effectiveness of Hedron Crawler, thus stifling your adversary’s mana acceleration.

Ultimately, while Hedron Crawler can be a cornerstone for power plays, its impact can be mitigated with strategic plays and mindful deck building, allowing you to stay ahead of the game.

Cards like Hedron Crawler

Hedron Crawler finds a niche in the realm of mana acceleration in Magic: The Gathering. This colorless creature shares functional similarities with other mana dorks such as Manakin and Millikin. Each taps for mana, but Hedron Crawler requires no setup, providing an immediate increase to your mana pool. Manakin, while identical in mana production, doesn’t carry the inherent ingenuity of a Hedron design. Millikin, on the other hand, offers a mill effect to fuel graveyard strategies, trading off the colorless mana feature of Hedron Crawler.

Another analogous card, Plague Myr, not only taps for mana but also carries infect, a powerful mechanic that can be integral to an alternative win strategy. However, its two-for-one utility comes at the cost of being situable only for specific deck archetypes. Meanwhile, Hedron Crawler’s colorless identity allows it to slip effortlessly into any deck, emphasizing its versatility.

Considering mana efficiency, ramp potential, and ease of inclusion, Hedron Crawler elegantly stands out. It’s a testament to its seamless integration across various MTG formats, embodying the very essence of a mana rock encased in a creature’s shell.

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Hedron Crawler MTG card by a specific set like Oath of the Gatewatch, 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 Hedron Crawler and other MTG cards: