Onulet MTG Card

Onulet’s death-trigger provides life, potentially shifting game momentum in your favor at critical moments. Constraints include a specific mana cost and dependency on having another artifact in play. Serves as a versatile card for artifact-centric strategies and synergizes well in certain combos.
Card setsReleased in 8 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost3
RarityUncommon
TypeArtifact Creature — Construct
Power 2
Toughness 2

Text of card

If Onulet goes to the graveyard, its controller gains 2 life.

An early inspiration for Urza, Tocasia's Onulets contained magical essences that could be cannibalized after they stopped functioning.

Cards like Onulet

Onulet is an intriguing artifact creature card in Magic: The Gathering, falling into the artifact synergies that many decks aim to exploit. It bears similarities to cards like Myr Retriever, which also provides utility upon hitting the graveyard. Where Myr Retriever allows you to return another target artifact card from your graveyard to your hand, Onulet offers a different type of advantage – granting you life upon death.

In contrast, there’s Workshop Assistant, a card that, like Myr Retriever, offers you the retrieval of an artifact from your graveyard. Though not as impactful in terms of board presence, its effect can be critical in the late game. Another comparable card is Salvager of Ruin, which lets you choose to salvage an artifact from your graveyard, mirroring a recurring theme among these artifact creatures. Yet, Onulet stands out with its life-gain ability, which can be pivotal in games where maintaining a high life total is crucial.

Assessing the comparative strengths, Onulet is a worthy option in decks that aim to capitalize on artifacts and the life gain it offers can be appealing to players in need of durability as well as synergy.

Myr Retriever - MTG Card versions
Workshop Assistant - MTG Card versions
Salvager of Ruin - MTG Card versions
Myr Retriever - MTG Card versions
Workshop Assistant - MTG Card versions
Salvager of Ruin - MTG Card versions

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Onulet provides a compensatory benefit upon leaving the battlefield, granting its controller life points that could be critical in prolonging the game and swinging its momentum.

Resource Acceleration: While not directly increasing mana resources, the life gained from Onulet can be indirectly advantageous in strategies that convert life into other resources or enable life-dependent abilities to trigger.

Instant Speed: Although Onulet itself does not operate at instant speed, its triggered ability does. This means it can interact with the game at times that are less predictable for an opponent, such as during their end step or in response to a removal spell.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: One of the downsides of Onulet is that upon destruction, it requires another artifact to be in play to fully capitalize on its death trigger, potentially leaving you without that additional benefit if you’re short on artifacts.

Specific Mana Cost: Onulet carries a specific casting requirement of two generic mana and one mana from the colorless mana pool. This can impose deck-building constraints, especially in multicolored decks with tight color requirements.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a casting cost requiring three mana for a creature that provides two life upon death, Onulet can be less appealing compared to other lower-costed creatures. This makes it less optimal in formats where efficiency is key.

Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Onulet, while an older card from the Antiquities set, can glide into a variety of artifact-centric or graveyard-based decks. Having the ability to add value to your gameplay even after it leaves the battlefield makes it a practical choice for players who enjoy nuanced strategy.

Combo Potential: When paired strategically, Onulet’s death-triggered ability can synergize with other card effects that benefit from triggered abilities or artifact sacrifice. It can serve as a cog in a larger machine that capitalizes on life gain or recycling artifacts.

Meta-Relevance: While perhaps not at the forefront of the competitive scene, Onulet can find its place in casual circles where players appreciate the interaction with historical cards. Its ability to provide incremental life points can serve as a buffer and its artifact nature may be exploited in the right meta.

How to Beat Onulet

Onulet is an artifact creature that presents a unique challenge in MTG due to its ability to convert its destruction into life points for its controller. This can make it a pesky blocker or a surprise buffer against damage. To effectively counter Onulet, one strategy is to use exile removal spells, bypassing its death trigger completely. Something as straightforward as Path to Exile can neatly remove Onulet without allowing its controller to gain the life benefits.

Another approach is to prevent Onulet from reaching the battlefield in the first place. Cards that counter artifacts, like Annul or artifact removal like Nature’s Claim, work well to mitigate its effects on the game. Alternatively, employing strategies that reduce the impact of life gain itself can also diminish Onulet’s value – cards like Erebos, God of the Dead, prevent opponents from gaining life, making Onulet’s ability less advantageous.

In essence, tackling Onulet effectively requires a two-pronged approach. Either eliminate it without triggering its ability or ensure that its life gain does not tip the scales in your opponent’s favor. Succinct planning and strategic use of spells will ensure that Onulet becomes more of a minor nuisance than a major threat on the board.

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Onulet MTG card by a specific set like Antiquities and Revised Edition, 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 Onulet and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Onulet Magic the Gathering card was released in 8 different sets between 1994-03-04 and 2011-01-10. Illustrated by Anson Maddocks.

#ReleasedNameCodeSymbolNumberFrameLayoutBorderArtist
11994-03-04AntiquitiesATQ 591993NormalBlackAnson Maddocks
21994-04-01Revised Edition3ED 2691993NormalWhiteAnson Maddocks
31994-04-01Foreign Black BorderFBB 2691993NormalBlackAnson Maddocks
41994-06-21Summer Magic / EdgarSUM 2691993NormalWhiteAnson Maddocks
51995-04-01Fourth Edition Foreign Black Border4BB 3401993NormalBlackAnson Maddocks
61995-04-01Fourth Edition4ED 3401993NormalWhiteAnson Maddocks
72007-09-10Masters EditionME1 1611997NormalBlackAnson Maddocks
82011-01-10Masters Edition IVME4 2191997NormalBlackAnson Maddocks

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Onulet has restrictions

FormatLegality
OldschoolLegal
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
PaupercommanderLegal
OathbreakerLegal
PauperLegal
PremodernLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
PredhLegal
PennyLegal