Thornscape Familiar MTG Card
| Mana cost | |
| Converted mana cost | 2 |
| Rarity | Common |
| Type | Creature — Insect |
| Released | 2001-02-05 |
| Set symbol | |
| Set name | Planeshift |
| Set code | PLS |
| Power | 2 |
| Toughness | 1 |
| Number | 95 |
| Frame | 1997 |
| Layout | Normal |
| Border | Black |
| Illustred by | Heather Hudson |
Key Takeaways
- Thornscape Familiar aids in efficient plays by indirectly offering card advantage through cost reduction.
- Accelerating resources, it allows earlier deployment of impactful spells and potential board dominance.
- Enhancing instant speed play, it permits more strategic and reactive maneuvers during crucial game phases.
Text of card
Red spells and white spells you play cost o1 less to play.
Blessed with many options, Thornscape masters favor scarabs as familiars.
Card Pros
Card Advantage: Thornscape Familiar may not directly offer card draw, but its ability to reduce the casting cost of green and red spells can lead to a sequence of more efficient plays, effectively giving you more options and better utilization of your hand, contributing to a sort of indirect card advantage.
Resource Acceleration: While it doesn’t produce additional land or mana tokens, Thornscape Familiar can be considered a form of resource acceleration. Its cost-reduction effect stretches your mana further, allowing you to deploy more spells or heavier hitters earlier in the game. This acceleration can be crucial in outpacing your opponents and establishing board dominance.
Instant Speed: Thornscape Familiar itself isn’t an instant; however, reducing the mana cost of green and red instants in your deck can be a substantial boon. This enables you to maximize the potential of playing at instant speed, keeping mana available for reactive plays, and making your instant spells more efficient, which might give you the upper hand during more strategic phases of the game.
Card Cons
Discard Requirement: Though not applicable directly to Thornscape Familiar, cards necessitating a discard can deter players from including it in strategies where hand size is paramount.
Specific Mana Cost: As a card that costs one red and one green mana, it necessitates a deck that can reliably produce both types of mana, restricting deck-building flexibility.
Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a casting cost that may be steep when considering the creature’s impact on the game, Thornscape Familiar might not always be the most mana-efficient choice, especially in formats that favor low-cost creatures.
Reasons to Include Thornscape Familiar in Your Collection
Versatility: Thornscape Familiar isn’t just a niche pick. Its unique ability to reduce the cost of green and red spells makes it a flexible addition to decks that run either color, encouraging a more dynamic playstyle and helping you cast your heavy hitters sooner.
Combo Potential: In deck builds where you’re casting a lot of spells each turn, Thornscape Familiar can be a game-changer. It works well with combos that churn out green and red spells, allowing for an aggressive and potentially game-winning chain of plays.
Meta-Relevance: As the meta shifts, spells of all costs come into the limelight. Thornscape Familiar has the potential to shine in a meta where speed and efficiency reign supreme. By smoothing out mana curves, it keeps your deck competitive against fast-paced opponents.
How to beat
Thornscape Familiar is a card that can give green and red spells you cast a cost advantage, making it a staple for players looking to optimize mana efficiency in their MTG decks. To effectively neutralize this card, consider strategies that reduce its impact or remove it from play quickly. Spot removal spells, such as Fatal Push or Path to Exile, can dispatch Thornscape Familiar before its cost-reduction ability becomes a significant advantage for your opponent.
Another approach is to negate the Familiar’s effect with counter-strategies. Using counter spells to prevent green or red spells from being cast at a discounted rate will undermine the Familiar’s utility. Ensuring that you maintain board control and apply pressure can also distract your opponent from fully capitalizing on Thornscape Familiar’s benefits. Furthermore, board wipes like Supreme Verdict can reset the field, negating the Familiar’s accumulative advantage over time.
Ultimately, understanding the decks that incorporate Thornscape Familiar and preparing your strategy accordingly will enhance your chances of overcoming its cost-saving potential. Maintaining flexibility in your responses and knowing when to prioritize its removal can be pivotal in securing victory against decks that leverage Thornscape Familiar.
Cards like Thornscape Familiar
Thornscape Familiar is a creature that acts as a great support card for players leveraging multicolored decks in Magic: The Gathering. Functionally akin to fellows like Sunscape Familiar, it reduces the cost of red and green spells, paving the way for an accelerated play. Sunscape Familiar lowers blue and green spell costs but uniquely aids in defense with its ability to block flying creatures, a capability Thornscape Familiar lacks.
Exploring the dynamics further, Stormscape Familiar is another member of this family, offering cost reductions for white and blue spells. However, it diverges by supporting a more control-oriented strategy with a defensive edge. In contrast, Thornscape Familiar invites an aggressive playstyle, assisting in the rapid deployment of red and green spells for a swift offensive.
The advantage of Thornscape Familiar in MTG is evident when we consider its role in reducing spell costs and how it synergizes with decks that value speed and aggression. Its siblings serve different tactical purposes, making the choice between them contingent on the desired deck theme and game strategy.
Cards similar to Thornscape Familiar by color, type and mana cost
Where to buy
If you're looking to purchase Thornscape Familiar MTG card by a specific set like Planeshift, 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 Thornscape Familiar 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
Legalities
Magic the Gathering formats where Thornscape Familiar has restrictions
| Format | Legality |
|---|---|
| Commander | Legal |
| Legacy | Legal |
| Paupercommander | Legal |
| Oathbreaker | Legal |
| Pauper | Legal |
| Premodern | Legal |
| Vintage | Legal |
| Duel | Legal |
| Predh | Legal |
Rules and information
The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering Thornscape Familiar card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.
| Date | Text |
|---|---|
| 2004-10-04 | Can never affect the colored part of the cost. |
| 2004-10-04 | If a spell is both red and white, you pay less, not less. |
| 2004-10-04 | If this card is sacrificed to pay part of a spell’s cost, the cost reduction still applies. |
| 2004-10-04 | The effect is cumulative. |
| 2004-10-04 | The generic X cost is still considered generic even if there is a requirement that a specific color be used for it. For example, “only black mana can be spent this way”. This distinction is important for effects which reduce the generic portion of a spell’s cost. |
| 2004-10-04 | The lower cost is not optional like with some other cost reducers. |
| 2004-10-04 | This can lower the cost to zero, but not below zero. |
