Serene Sleuth MTG Card
2024-02-09 - Number 325
2024-02-09 - Number 14
| Card sets | Released in 2 setsSee all |
| Mana cost | |
| Converted mana cost | 2 |
| Rarity | Rare |
| Type | Creature — Human Detective |
| Abilities | Goad,Investigate |
| Power | 2 |
| Toughness | 2 |
Text of card
When Serene Sleuth enters the battlefield, investigate. At the beginning of combat on your turn, investigate for each goaded creature you control. Then each creature you control is no longer goaded.
Card Pros
Card Advantage: Serene Sleuth offers consistent card draw, ensuring you stay ahead in the trenches of library warfare. Each clue it investigates unravels another layer of your deck’s potential, increasing your options and overwhelming your opponents with sheer card volume.
Resource Acceleration: Not merely a detective story, Serene Sleuth’s ability to generate clues which can later be converted into card draw not only bolsters your hand but can serve as indirect mana ramp, as you’re effectively drawing into more lands or spells that propel your game forward without expending additional resources.
Instant Speed: The value of Serene Sleuth is significantly buoyed by its capability to operate at instant speed, allowing strategists to maximize mana efficiency. You can adeptly navigate your turn, opting to reveal the sleuth’s findings when most advantageous, be it during a lull in combat or as a counterbalance to your opponent’s end-of-turn moves.
Card Cons
Discard Requirement: The Serene Sleuth requires a player to discard a card to trigger its transform ability, which could set you back if you’re running short on hand options.
Specific Mana Cost: This card’s blue and green mana cost demands a firm commitment to a Simic deck archetype, potentially limiting its flexibility in multicolor deck strategies.
Comparatively High Mana Cost: With its transform cost and the mana needed to cast, the card comes with a significant investment which might outweigh the benefits when compared to other more mana-efficient creatures in the MTG universe.
Reasons to Include in Your Collection
Versatility: Serene Sleuth is a flexible addition to any collection with its capability to adapt to various deck archetypes. Its presence can enhance control as it hinders opponents’ strategies through investigative actions.
Combo Potential: With Serene Sleuth, players can unlock powerful card interactions. Crafting clues and then drawing from those clues can synergize with strategies centered around artifacts and card advantage.
Meta-Relevance: Serene Sleuth shines in environments where knowledge of an opponent’s hand is crucial. It can provide continuous value in the face of the ever-evolving MTG metagame, keeping your deck competitive and informed.
How to beat Serene Sleuth
Serene Sleuth is a unique card in the world of Magic: The Gathering due to its transforming ability, turning from a curious detective into a formidable creature. The card demands careful play from opponents, as its cunning can quickly turn the tide of a battle. To effectively counter this card, players must focus on disrupting the clue-gathering process essential for its transformation.
One strategic approach is to utilize instant-speed removal spells that can eliminate Serene Sleuth before it accumulates enough clues to transform. Additionally, players can opt for graveyard disruption to prevent the retrieval of clues via other cards’ abilities. Another angle is to employ countermeasures like artifact removal to directly target the clues themselves, thus stalling the Sleuth’s progression.
Overall, while Serene Sleuth presents a challenge, its reliance on clue tokens can be its Achilles’ heel. By prioritizing the containment and control of these tokens, players can maintain an upper hand and ensure that the sleuth never unravels the mystery it seeks to solve, keeping the game in their favor.
Where to buy
If you're looking to purchase Serene Sleuth MTG card by a specific set like Murders at Karlov Manor Commander and Murders at Karlov Manor Commander, 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 Serene Sleuth and other MTG cards:
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- eBay
- 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
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Printings
The Serene Sleuth Magic the Gathering card was released in 1 different sets between 2024-02-09 and 2024-02-09. Illustrated by Fay Dalton.
| # | Released | Name | Code | Symbol | Number | Frame | Layout | Border | Artist |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2024-02-09 | Murders at Karlov Manor Commander | MKC | 325 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Fay Dalton | |
| 2 | 2024-02-09 | Murders at Karlov Manor Commander | MKC | 14 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Fay Dalton |
Legalities
Magic the Gathering formats where Serene Sleuth has restrictions
| Format | Legality |
|---|---|
| Commander | Legal |
| Legacy | Legal |
| Oathbreaker | Legal |
| Vintage | Legal |
| Duel | Legal |
Rules and information
The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering Serene Sleuth card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.
| Date | Text |
|---|---|
| 2024-02-02 | Clue is an artifact type. Even though it appears on some cards with other permanent types, it’s never a creature type, a land type, or anything but an artifact type. |
| 2024-02-02 | If an effect refers to a Clue, it means any Clue artifact, not just a Clue artifact token. For example, you can sacrifice Wrench to pay for Alquist Proft, Master Sleuth’s activated ability. |
| 2024-02-02 | Some abilities trigger “whenever you sacrifice a Clue”. Those abilities trigger whenever you sacrifice a Clue for any reason, not just to activate a Clue’s activated ability. |
| 2024-02-02 | Some spells and abilities that investigate may require targets. If each target chosen is an illegal target as that spell or ability tries to resolve, it won’t resolve. You won’t create any Clue tokens. |
| 2024-02-02 | You can’t sacrifice a Clue to pay multiple costs. For example, you can’t sacrifice a Clue token to activate its own ability and also to activate Alquist Proft, Master Sleuth’s ability. |