Aurification MTG Card

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	4
Rarity	Rare
Type	Enchantment
Released	2002-10-07
Set symbol
Set name	Onslaught
Set code	ONS
Number	6
Frame	1997
Layout	Normal
Border	Black
Illustred by	Gary Ruddell

Key Takeaways

Aurification preserves hand quality by deterring attacks, indirectly boosting your hand advantage.
Indirectly acts as resource acceleration by saving life and creature defenses for strategic plays.
Transforms the battlefield dynamic instantly, discouraging enemy assaults with its enchantment effect.

Text of card

Whenever a creature deals damage to you, put a gold counter on it. Each creature with a gold counter on it is a Wall in addition to its other creature types. (Walls can't attack.) When Aurification leaves play, remove all gold counters from all creatures.

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Aurification excels at preserving your hand quality by deterring attackers. Since opponents are less likely to swing into golden statues, you can maintain your defenses without having to replace creatures as often, indirectly leading to sustained hand advantage.

Resource Acceleration: Even though Aurification doesn’t produce mana or tokens, it acts as indirect resource acceleration by protecting your life total and valuable creatures. It enables you to deploy resources elsewhere, whether that’s developing your board or advancing your strategy without dedicating more assets to defense.

Instant Speed: While Aurification is an enchantment played at sorcery speed, its effect can change the course of combat instantly. Once on the battlefield, this enchantment discourages sudden assaults, giving you the semblance of a reactive play as opponents must consider the transformation of their aggressors into defensive walls on each attack.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Aurification does not directly require discarding as a cost, but it can indirectly lead to card disadvantage. Players need to balance its defensive benefits against other cards they might need to hold onto for a strategic advantage.

Specific Mana Cost: With a specific mana requirement of two colorless and two white mana, Aurification could be restrictive. It’s tailored for white or white-combined decks, limiting its flexibility for players running multicolor decks that don’t heavily feature white.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Costing four mana to cast, Aurification comes into play later than some other defensive enchantments. Players may find the cost somewhat steep, especially in high-paced games where early game defense is crucial.

Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Aurification offers a unique approach to defense that can be integrated across different types of control decks. Its ability to turn attacking creatures into gold statues not only protects your life total but can also deter opponents from swinging in with their creatures.

Combo Potential: Aurification can be part of both offensive and defensive combos. It works well with cards that punish or remove creatures for being tapped, or that benefit whenever a creature becomes tapped, adding layers of strategy to your gameplay

Meta-Relevance: In metas where aggressive creature-based strategies dominate, Aurification provides a reliable line of defense. It can effectively negate the advantage that fast-paced decks seek to establish early in the game by shutting down successive attacks.

How to beat

Aurification stands out in Magic: The Gathering as a unique enchantment that can turn attacking creatures into harmless walls. This transformation occurs when your life total is dealt damage by a creature, providing a creative defensive mechanism. To circumvent this card’s protective ability, consider using enchantment removal spells that are staple in most deck builds. Cards such as Disenchant or Naturalize offer a direct and effective way to eliminate Aurification and resume your offensive strategy.

Another approach involves using spells that prevent life loss in the first place—thus never triggering Aurification’s effect. Look for cards like Angel’s Grace or cards that redirect damage such as Shunt. Alternatively, one could deploy indirect forms of creature removal, like board wipes or exile effects, to manage the creatures turned into walls without directly engaging with Aurification itself. It is essential to explore these strategies as relying solely on combat damage can lead to a stalemate against Aurification’s transformative defense.

Understanding and employing the right countermeasures against Aurification is the key to preserving your aggression on the battlefield. With these methods, it becomes just another hurdle in your path to victory.

Cards like Aurification

Aurification stands out in Magic: The Gathering as a unique enchantment card with the potential to transform aggressive matchups. Much like Ghostly Prison, it serves as a formidable defensive tool by deterring attacks. Unlike Ghostly Prison, which requires opponents to pay mana for each attacking creature, Aurification provides a different disincentive by turning attackers into Gold artifacts if you’ve been dealt damage. So while Ghostly Prison aims to prevent attacks outright, Aurification lets the damage through but offers a more permanent solution to repeated aggression.

Propaganda is another card that shares some defensive similarities. It also imposes a cost on attackers, reinforcing your protection without altering the creature’s state. In contrast, Aurification leaves you open to attack but ultimately deactivates the attacking creatures that deal damage to you after the fact. Then there’s No Mercy, a deadly warning to aggressors as it outright destroys creatures that dare deal damage to you. Aurification’s approach, in comparison, is less terminal but offers a strategic value by populating the battlefield with artifacts that can deter future attacks or be utilized in other strategic ways.

Assessing the various defense mechanisms of these cards, Aurification offers a distinctive blend of threat management and resource generation, making it an intricate and multifaceted response to opposing forces within Magic: The Gathering.

Cards similar to Aurification by color, type and mana cost

Divine Transformation - MTG Card versions

Diversionary Tactics - MTG Card versions

Teleportation Circle - MTG Card versions

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Aurification MTG card by a specific set like Onslaught, 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 Aurification and other MTG cards:

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Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Aurification has restrictions

Format	Legality
Commander	Legal
Legacy	Legal
Oathbreaker	Legal
Premodern	Legal
Vintage	Legal
Duel	Legal
Predh	Legal
Penny	Legal

Rules and information

The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering Aurification card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.