Tower of Calamities MTG Card

Tower of Calamities - Scars of Mirrodin (SOM)

Scars of Mirrodin (SOM)
2010-10-01 - Number 212

The List (PLST)
2020-09-26 - Number SOM-212

Card sets	Released in 2 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost	4
Rarity	Rare
Type	Artifact

Key Takeaways

Tower of Calamities is a resilient control tool that excels in long-format games.
Despite steep costs, its ability to obliterate creatures provides significant advantage.
Comparable artifacts offer various trade-offs, highlighting Tower’s specific niche.

Text of card

, : Tower of Calamities deals 12 damage to target creature.

The ur-golems concealed one of their towers out of fear that its power would be abused, and in anticipation of a time when its power would be sorely needed.

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Tower of Calamities offers a unique advantage in dealing with multiple threats on the board. While it doesn’t directly draw you cards, its ability to potentially clear out several blockers or threats over the course of a game can ensure you retain superiority in field presence.

Resource Acceleration: Though not a direct source of resource acceleration, the Tower can be a form of indirect acceleration. By removing key pieces from your opponent’s board, you reduce the need for using your resources on expensive creature removal spells, allowing you to deploy more impactful spells sooner.

Instant Speed: Tower of Calamities operates at a sorcery speed; however, its ability is an activated one that can be used at any time during your main phases. This characteristic provides flexibility, enabling you to choose the most opportune moment to disrupt your opponent or eliminate a critical threat just before your attack phase.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: One of the downsides of the Tower of Calamities is that, although it doesn’t require a card to be discarded, its activation cost might lead players to deplete important cards from their hand in order to generate the required mana, indirectly impacting their card advantage.

Specific Mana Cost: The activation cost of this artifact requires a significant amount of generic mana, which might not align well with decks that are mana-color intensive or those that rely on synergy between spells with specific color requirements.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Tower of Calamities comes with a high cost to both play and activate. At eight mana to deal 6 damage to a creature, it is a heavy investment when considering alternative removal options that could be more mana-efficient or provide additional utility for the same or less investment.

Reasons to Include Tower of Calamities in Your Collection

Versatility: Tower of Calamities offers a flexible removal tool that can be incorporated into decks that aim to control the board. Its ability to destroy a creature with defender enables it to act as both a defensive asset and a surprise counter to certain strategies.

Combo Potential: With its scalable damage ability, this card can be a key piece in decks designed around manipulating artifact activations or powering up for a one-shot destruction of powerful creatures. Its high damage capacity can synergize with other cards that untap artifacts or double triggered abilities.

Meta-Relevance: In formats where big creatures dominate or where games tend to go long, Tower of Calamities can be a game-changer. The ability to repeatedly remove key threats can tilt the battlefield in your favor, making it a relevant choice for decks looking to outlast the opponent.

How to beat

The Tower of Calamities demands respect on the battlefield due to its potential to cause significant destruction. It’s a card that illustrates the high-impact effects artifacts can bring to a game of MTG. With a steep activation cost to deal massive damage to a creature, it’s a force to be reckoned with, especially in the late game where resources are plentiful.

Countering this articraft’s influence involves a twofold strategy. Firstly, focus on increasing the pace of your game. Faster decks can outstrip the Tower’s potential by overwhelming an opponent before they accumulate enough resources to activate it. Secondly, hold onto artifact removal spells. Keeping a Naturalize or a Shatter in hand can promptly dismantle the Tower before it looms over the battlefield. Control decks could negotiate around it, manipulating an opponent’s resources or bouncing the Tower back to the hand, effectively delaying its activation.

Ultimately, while the Tower of Calamities can be an intimidating presence, it is surmountable with clever play and the right answers at the right time. Understand its weaknesses—high activation cost and reliance on the board state—and you’ll transform a potential disaster into a mere obstacle easily overcome.

Cards like Tower of Calamities

When exploring the realm of destructive artifacts in Magic: The Gathering, Tower of Calamities stands out as a potent control tool. It shares operational similarities with cards like Lux Cannon and Argentum Armor which are also capable of annihilating problematic permanents on the board. Lux Cannon, with its build-up counters, eventually clears any permanent, echoing Tower of Calamities’ devastating potential. On the flip side, Tower of Calamities requires a considerable mana investment for its activation, making it less flexible compared to the steady progression of Lux Cannon’s counter mechanism.

Argentum Armor, while having a costly casting and equip price, merges board impact with creature enhancement, offering a more aggressive route of play upon connecting with the opponent. It’s a blend of offensive and removal capabilities which Tower of Calamities lacks, as the latter purely focuses on the control aspect. Additionally, Spine of Ish Sah presents as a one-time investment permanent removal tool, though with a high upfront cost, it removes any permanent without the need for repeated mana payments.

In the arena of heavy artillery within Magic: The Gathering, Tower of Calamities is a specialized choice for long-term board control strategies, particularly for decks that can afford its activation cost, ensuring its place in the arsenal of targeted removal artifacts.

Cards similar to Tower of Calamities by color, type and mana cost

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Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Tower of Calamities MTG card by a specific set like Scars of Mirrodin and The List, 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 Tower of Calamities and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Tower of Calamities Magic the Gathering card was released in 2 different sets between 2010-10-01 and 2010-10-01. Illustrated by Aleksi Briclot.