The Maelstrom MTG Card
2009-09-04 - Number 23
2018-12-25 - Number 49
| Card sets | Released in 2 setsSee all |
| Rarity | Common |
| Type | Plane — Alara |
Key Takeaways
- The Maelstrom’s cascade effect offers notable card advantage, potentially unleashing multiple spells for no extra cost.
- Rapid resource acceleration through cascading can overwhelm opponents with an advanced board state unexpectedly.
- Utilizing The Maelstrom at instant speed adds a surprise element, enhancing strategic flexibility during gameplay.
Text of card
When you planeswalk to The Maelstrom or at the beginning of your upkeep, you may reveal the top card of your library. If it's a permanent card, you may put it onto the battlefield. Otherwise, put that card on the bottom of your library. Whenever you roll chaos, return target permanent card from your graveyard to the battlefield.
Card Pros
Card Advantage: The Maelstrom card is well-known for its ability to cascade, which not only casts the initial spell but potentially unleashes additional spells at no extra cost. This powerful mechanic can quickly turn the tide of the game, offering a significant card advantage as players effectively get two or more spells for the price of one. With such a mechanic, the card becomes a staple in decks aiming to outpace the opponent in resources.
Resource Acceleration: Many versions of The Maelstrom facilitate rapid resource acceleration. When the cascade effect triggers, it can potentially reveal high-impact cards earlier than you would normally cast them. This means that what might have been laid out across multiple turns could now be in play much sooner, accelerating the deck’s strategy and overwhelming opponents with your burgeoning board state ahead of schedule.
Instant Speed: If The Maelstrom can be utilized at instant speed, it opens up a realm of strategic depth. The ability to cast during an opponent’s turn, or in response to an action, allows players to retain mana for countering or playing other spells and can create advantageous situations that are unforevisible to an opponent. The surprise factor and flexibility of instant speed make The Maelstrom a formidable tool in the hands of a skilled player.
Card Cons
Discard Requirement: Often, accessing The Maelstrom’s chaotic powers comes at a cost, including the necessity to discard other cards from your hand. This can set you back, especially if your strategy relies on maintaining a full grip of spells and threats to execute your game plan effectively.
Specific Mana Cost: One of the immediate hurdles when incorporating The Maelstrom into your deck is its specific mana requirement. The card demands a diverse color commitment, which can be a deck-building challenge, limiting its inclusion to decks that can reliably generate multiple colors of mana.
Comparatively High Mana Cost: Besides its demanding color requirements, The Maelstrom also comes with a high mana cost. This can slow down your tempo, and in the fast-paced environment of the game, you might find that by the time you’re able to cast it, your opponents may already have established a commanding presence on the battlefield or set up their defenses.
Reasons to Include The Maelstrom in Your Collection
Versatility: The Maelstrom card is a dynamic addition to a number of strategies due to its ability to manipulate the top cards of a player’s library and potentially play them for free. It can adapt to various builds, enhancing their efficacy.
Combo Potential: With The Maelstrom, players can orchestrate powerful combinations by cascading into multiple spells, significantly advancing their board presence and creating chain reactions that can turn the tide of the game.
Meta-Relevance: In a meta that constantly shifts and where players seek an edge, The Maelstrom remains relevant for its capability to outpace and outmaneuver more predictable strategies, and effectively combat various opposing decks.
How to beat
The Maelstrom is an MTG card that embodies chaos and unpredictable effects, often leaving opponents scrambling for answers. To navigate the whirlwind of change this card brings to the battlefield, strategy and foresight are key. One effective tactic to overcome its influence is to deploy consistent control measures, such as counter spells or abilities that limit the casting of spells, which help to maintain a stable game state against the unpredictability that The Maelstrom fosters.
A powerful tool against such chaotic strategies is graveyard manipulation. By using cards that remove or exile cards from the graveyard, players can undermine The Maelstrom’s potential to recycle or leverage various effects. Moreover, proactive measures, such as quick aggression to pressure life totals or disruptive spells aimed at hand disruption, can divert the game away from The Maelstrom’s optimal conditions. Containment and suppression, in harmony with a solid offensive approach, prove to be the cornerstones of quelling the storm that The Maelstrom is capable of conjuring.
Thus, countering The Maelstrom’s erratic nature is quite tangible with the right deck composition and a disciplined playstyle. Focusing on control and disruption leads to victory against the whirlwind’s volatile forces and solidifies the notion that even the most formidable cards can be overcome with careful strategy and cunning tactics.
Cards like The Maelstrom
In the vibrant landscape of Magic: The Gathering, The Maelstrom is a card that exudes chaotic magic and potential. The Maelstrom breeds comparisons with Wheel of Fortune, as both reel you into a mire of unpredictability, offering new hand options and the chance for game-altering plays. Where Wheel of Fortune exudes equity by refilling each player’s hand with seven cards, The Maelstrom thrives on asymmetry, favoring only its caster with the advantage of cascading spells.
Cascade cards like Maelstrom Nexus echo this mechanism, allowing each of your spells to dip into the chaotic flow of the Maelstrom and cast additional spells for free. This mirrors the essence of The Maelstrom, but Nexus extends this benefit across all your spells, broadening your control over the cascade. Meanwhile, Yidris, Maelstrom Wielder also harnesses cascade, but it mandates you to connect with an opponent before unleashing the torrent of free spells – a caveat where The Maelstrom requires no such condition.
Exploring these kinships, The Maelstrom stands out in MTG’s multiverse. It is not just a card—it’s a spectacle of chance and strategy, combining the unpredictability of the game with the skill of harnessing chaos to your advantage.
Cards similar to The Maelstrom by color, type and mana cost
Where to buy
If you're looking to purchase The Maelstrom MTG card by a specific set like Planechase Planes and Planechase Anthology Planes, 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 The Maelstrom and other MTG cards:
- eBay
- TCG Player
- Card Kingdom
- Card Market
- Star City Games
- CoolStuffInc
- MTG Mint Card
- Hareruya
- Troll and Toad
- ABU Games
- Card Hoarder Magic Online
- MTGO Traders Magic Online
See MTG Products
Printings
The The Maelstrom Magic the Gathering card was released in 2 different sets between 2009-09-04 and 2018-12-25. Illustrated by James Paick.
| # | Released | Name | Code | Symbol | Number | Frame | Layout | Border | Artist |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2009-09-04 | Planechase Planes | OHOP | 23 | 2003 | Planar | Black | James Paick | |
| 2 | 2018-12-25 | Planechase Anthology Planes | OPCA | 49 | 2015 | Planar | Black | James Paick |
Rules and information
The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering The Maelstrom card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.
| Date | Text |
|---|---|
| 2009-10-01 | A face-up plane card that’s turned face down becomes a new object with no relation to its previous existence. In particular, it loses all counters it may have had. |
| 2009-10-01 | A permanent card is an artifact, creature, enchantment, land, or planeswalker card. |
| 2009-10-01 | A plane card is treated as if its text box included “When you roll {PW}, put this card on the bottom of its owner’s planar deck face down, then move the top card of your planar deck off that planar deck and turn it face up.” This is called the “planeswalking ability.” |
| 2009-10-01 | As The Maelstrom’s first ability resolves, you choose whether or not to reveal the top card of your library. If you reveal it and it’s a permanent card, you have two choices: Put it onto the battlefield, or put it on the bottom of your library. It can’t remain on top of your library. On the other hand, if you reveal it and it’s an instant or sorcery card, it must be put on the bottom of your library. There is no way you can leave a card revealed this way on top of your library. |
| 2009-10-01 | If an ability of a plane refers to “you,” it’s referring to whoever the plane’s controller is at the time, not to the player that started the game with that plane card in their deck. Many abilities of plane cards affect all players, while many others affect only the planar controller, so read each ability carefully. |
| 2009-10-01 | If you reveal a permanent card that can’t enter the battlefield (because it’s an Aura and there’s nothing it can enchant, for example), then you must put it on the bottom of your library. |
| 2009-10-01 | The controller of a face-up plane card is the player designated as the “planar controller.” Normally, the planar controller is whoever the active player is. However, if the current planar controller would leave the game, instead the next player in turn order that wouldn’t leave the game becomes the planar controller, then the old planar controller leaves the game. The new planar controller retains that designation until they leave the game or a different player becomes the active player, whichever comes first. |
