Gravitational Shift MTG Card


Gravitational Shift - Rise of the Eldrazi
Mana cost
Converted mana cost5
RarityRare
TypeEnchantment
Released2010-04-23
Set symbol
Set nameRise of the Eldrazi
Set codeROE
Number69
Frame2003
Layoutnormal
Borderblack
Illustred bySvetlin Velinov

Key Takeaways

  1. Gravitational Shift can decisively alter the battlefield, tipping combat in your favor through its impactful enchantment.
  2. It demands strategic deck building, pairing well with flyers while requiring careful mana management.
  3. Countering involves removal or control spells, ensuring your deck can neutralize its board-altering effects.

Text of card

Creatures with flying get +2/+0. Creatures without flying get -2/-0.

As they awakened, the Eldrazi reasserted their mastery over all of Zendikar's natural forces.


Card Pros

Card Advantage: Gravitational Shift offers a unique form of card advantage, as it can dramatically alter the board state in your favor. By boosting the power of your creatures with flying and diminishing the power of your opponents’ creatures without it, you can shape the battlefield to create favorable exchanges and potentially draw into more valuable air threats.

Resource Acceleration: Though not a direct source of resource acceleration, Gravitational Shift can indirectly accelerate your resources by enabling swifter and more decisive attacks. This can lead to a quicker end game, conserving your in-hand resources for the decisive moments and potentially putting your opponent on the back foot, struggling to catch up.

Instant Speed: While Gravitational Shift doesn’t benefit from instant speed, its strategic impact on the game is vast. It compensates for the lack of instant speed by potentially turning all your flying creatures into immediate threats, requiring a response from your opponent. This disruptive element can force your opponent to react hastily, which is a soft form of tempo acceleration that can work in your favor.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: With Gravitational Shift, players need to manage their hand carefully as there’s no discard involved, focusing instead on managing creature types to maximize benefits.

Specific Mana Cost: Gravitational Shift requires a specific blend of mana – two blue and three of any color – making it less flexible for multicolored or color-fluid decks.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a casting cost of five total mana, this card’s impact on the board must be significant to justify its inclusion over potentially more versatile lower-cost options.


Reasons to Include Gravitational Shift in Your Collection

Versatility: Gravitational Shift offers a unique effect that caters to flying-themed decks and can also serve as a deterrent to opponents’ ground forces. Its ability to influence the board on multiple levels makes it a powerful addition to both offense and defense strategies.

Combo Potential: With its broad impact on flying creatures, this card has the potential to be a linchpin in combos that amplify either the attack power of your aerial arsenal or that exploit the weakened state of grounded creatures, paving the way for decisive combat phases.

Meta-Relevance: As aerial attacks become more prevalent and players scour for advantages in the skies, Gravitational Shift stands out as a meta tool. It can tilt the balance in matchups where reach or evasion is critical, ensuring your collection remains competitive in shifting play environments.


How to beat

Gravitational Shift is an impactful card in MTG that can alter the course of gameplay by enhancing flying creatures’ strength and weakening those without this ability. This dynamic effect can tip the scales, especially in decks built around aerial superiority. To counteract Gravitational Shift, focusing on removal is key. Employing instant-speed spells like Disenchant or Krosan Grip can dismantle the enchantment before its influence becomes overwhelming.

Additionally, it’s essential to employ creatures with reach or flyers of your own to circumvent the detrimental effects on non-flying creatures. Cards like Clip Wings force opponents to sacrifice flying creatures, mitigating the enhanced threat. Alternatively, turning to sweepers like Wrath of God or Damnation can reset the board, nullifying the Shift’s advantage. Lastly, countermagic should not be overlooked. A well-timed Negate or Counterspell can prevent Gravitational Shift from ever taking effect, preserving the balance of power.

In essence, by strategically incorporating removal, creature control, and counterspells into your deck, you can effectively neutralize the gravitational pull of this powerful enchantment and maintain your footing in the match.


BurnMana Recommendations

Mastering MTG is both an analytical puzzle and an art of deck construction. If you seek to elevate your gameplay, Gravitational Shift can be your ally. This enchantment offers a tactical advantage for those aiming to soar above the competition. It’s a card that commands respect on the battlefield, altering the dynamics of power in the skies. For enthusiasts eager to exploit its full potential or those simply expanding their collection to stay ahead of the curve, further insights await. Discover new strategies, synergies, and ways to outmaneuver opponents. Embark on a journey to gain aerial dominance and outclass adversaries with Gravitational Shift at your side. Learn more about ensuring your deck remains an indomitable force in the ever-evolving game of MTG.


Understanding Gravitational Shift

Gravitational Shift is a unique enchantment that carves its own space in the MTG pantheon of game-altering cards. By granting +2/+0 to flying creatures while weakening non-flyers by -2/-0, it presents a dual-threat on the battlefield. This card shines in decks dominated by creatures with flying, tipping the scales in your favor both offensively and defensively.

Cards like Gravitational Shift

Gravitational Shift shares its skies-favoring trait with cards like Favorable Winds, a more economical enchantment that boosts flying creatures by +1/+1. Although Favorable Winds might appear modest in comparison, its lower mana cost makes it more readily accessible early in the game. Looking at Levitation, which provides all your creatures with flying, one can see how Gravitational Shift leverages a different approach, advantaging inherent flying creatures and penalizing ground-based threats simultaneously.

Another card worth comparing is Archetype of Imagination, which strips enemies of flying while giving your entire board aerial superiority. This illustrates the versatility of Gravitational Shift, which, rather than changing creature abilities, focuses on augmenting power disparities to control the battlefield. Spiraling Embers is also reminiscent of Gravitational Shift in terms of leveraging air superiority—though instead of a persistent enchantment effect, it’s an instant that deals damage based on the number of flying creatures you control.

Ultimately, Gravitational Shift stands out not just as an anthem for flying creatures but also as a strategic tool to weaken opponents on the ground, making it a unique and potent card choice for MTG players aiming to dominate the aerial aspect of the game.

Favorable Winds - MTG Card versions
Levitation - MTG Card versions
Archetype of Imagination - MTG Card versions
Spiraling Embers - MTG Card versions
Favorable Winds - Avacyn Restored (AVR)
Levitation - Urza's Legacy (ULG)
Archetype of Imagination - Born of the Gods (BNG)
Spiraling Embers - Saviors of Kamigawa (SOK)

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Gravitational Shift MTG card by a specific set like Rise of the Eldrazi, 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 Gravitational Shift and other MTG cards:

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Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Gravitational Shift has restrictions

FormatLegality
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
ModernLegal
OathbreakerLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
PredhLegal
PennyLegal

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