Mantle of Leadership MTG Card

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	2
Rarity	Uncommon
Type	Enchantment — Aura
Abilities	Enchant, Flash
Released	2007-02-02
Set symbol
Set name	Planar Chaos
Set code	PLC
Number	9
Frame	2003
Layout	Normal
Border	Black
Illustred by	Thomas M. Baxa

Key Takeaways

Boosts entire board presence, significant when timed perfectly to capitalize on creature control.
Enhances tactics with instant flexibility, impacting combat outcomes or end-of-turn scenarios.
Mantle’s colored mana requirement may limit deck inclusion to specific strategies.

Guide to Flash card ability

Explore the dynamic Flash ability in Magic: The Gathering (MTG), a feature that allows you to cast spells at lightning speed, often leaving your opponents reeling and your strategy several steps ahead. This versatile ability can turn the tide of a game, providing the element of surprise and tactical advantage. It places a premium on timing and foresight, transforming an ordinary deck into a formidable arsenal of instant threats and responses.

Text of card

Flash (You may play this spell any time you could play an instant.) Enchant creature Whenever a creature comes into play, enchanted creature gets +2/+2 until end of turn.

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Mantle of Leadership has the potential to provide significant card advantage by boosting your entire board. When played at the right moment, it’s like drawing the perfect card to amplify every creature you control.

Resource Acceleration: Although Mantle of Leadership doesn’t directly produce mana or tokens, it can turn the tide by enhancing your creatures, which can lead to an accelerated win. A strong board presence can quickly pressure your opponents, effectively accelerating your path to victory.

Instant Speed: The instant-speed nature of Mantle of Leadership provides tactical flexibility, allowing you to surprise your opponent by increasing your creatures’ power and toughness during combat or at the end of their turn for a potential lethal swing on your turn.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Mantle of Leadership charges its bearer with the task of parting with a precious card from their hand whenever a creature you control becomes the target of a spell or ability. This can tug at the threads of strategy, especially when you’re battling with a scant collection of cards in your grip.

Specific Mana Cost: Cast from a blend of colors that calls for both white mana and a hue of your choice, it fits not in every mage’s color scheme. This specific mana cost can restrict its use, confining it to decks that are kin to white’s order and virtue.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: At the cost of three mana, its boon of bolstering a creature’s might and vigilance comes at a steeper price than some alternatives. Savvy summoners might ponder if the mantle’s weight in mana measures up to the advantage gained in battle.

Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Mantle of Leadership affords a dynamic addition to decks that capitalize on creature-heavy playstyles. Its ability to buff a single creature whenever another creature enters the battlefield pairs well with token strategies or decks that consistently cast creatures.

Combo Potential: This enchantment shines in combinations that generate a flurry of entry triggers, effectively building a commanding presence on the board. It can rapidly turn even the smallest creature into a significant threat and works exceptionally well with flicker or bounce strategies.

Meta-Relevance: In a meta where creature-based tactics prevail, Mantle of Leadership could prove immensely valuable. It supports the swarm strategies by making your growing army increasingly formidable, which is especially potent against slower-paced control or combo decks.

How to beat

Mantle of Leadership can be a tricky card to face in MTG due to its ability to rapidly boost a creature’s power and toughness during gameplay. This enchantment shines in decks built around creature volume, where playing or token generation is prevalent. To counter it effectively, control and removal spells are your best allies. Instant speed removal like Path to Exile or Fatal Push can disrupt your opponent’s plans by removing the enchanted creature before it becomes too large a threat.

Additionally, consider utilizing enchantment removal cards like Disenchant or Naturalize to directly address the Mantle of Leadership itself. It’s also beneficial to limit the number of creatures your opponent has on the battlefield, as each creature entering under their control will trigger the Mantle’s ability. Board wipes such as Damnation or Supreme Verdict can be a clean answer to reset the board and nullify the accumulating bonuses from the enchantment.

Being one step ahead and predicting when your adversary might cast Mantle of Leadership allows for a proactive response, ensuring you maintain control of the pace and power on the board. Remember, in MTG, timing and the element of surprise can be just as powerful as the spells you play. Keeping these strategies in hand, you’re well-equipped to dismantle the strength that Mantle of Leadership adds to your opponent’s lineup.

Cards like Mantle of Leadership

Mantle of Leadership in MTG highlights a distinct approach to power boosts tethered to creature counts. Comparable in effect, we observe the card Oakenform, which grants a sole creature a solid +3/+3 enhancement. Unlike Mantle of Leadership, which potentially offers a wider range of power fluctuation, Oakenform’s benefit is a consistent numerical increment. Delving into a more synergistic comparison, Sigil of Valor stands out; it rewards attacking alone by allocating a power bonus reflective of your total creatures. Still, this artifact limits its benefits to singular offensive pushes per turn.

Exploring a unique enchantment twist, there’s Favorable Winds, giving each of your flying creatures a +1/+1. Although steady and collective in its approach, it restricts the boon to a particular creature type, unlike the broader applicability of Mantle of Leadership. Lastly, we consider Always Watching, providing a static +1/+1 to non-token creatures alongside vigilance—offering an all-round permanent combat readiness without Mantle’s creature accumulator mechanics.

Analyzing these cards side by side, Mantle of Leadership secures its niche with the potential for scaling advantages, adapting well with swarm strategies within MTG gameplay.

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Mantle of Leadership MTG card by a specific set like Planar Chaos, 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 Mantle of Leadership and other MTG cards: