Knacksaw Clique MTG Card


Knacksaw Clique - Shadowmoor
Mana cost
Converted mana cost4
RarityRare
TypeCreature — Faerie Rogue
Abilities Flying
Released2008-05-02
Set symbol
Set nameShadowmoor
Set codeSHM
Power 1
Toughness 4
Number42
Frame2003
Layoutnormal
Borderblack
Illustred bySteven Belledin

Key Takeaways

  1. Generates card advantage and lets you use opponent’s cards, shaping the flow of the game.
  2. Its instant speed activation disrupts opponents, offering strategic timing and versatility.
  3. Demands careful hand and mana base management, given its discard requirement and specific mana costs.

Text of card

Flying , {Q}: Target opponent removes the top card of his or her library from the game. Until end of turn, you may play that card. ({Q} is the untap symbol.)

Most of the Knacksaw clique's skills were hewn from the minds of others.


Card Pros

Card Advantage: Knacksaw Clique excels at incrementally increasing the resources in your hand. Each time it activates, you not only glimpse into your opponent’s deck, but potentially acquire their spells to use against them, thus gaining a significant advantage.

Resource Acceleration: Not only does Knacksaw Clique offer insight into the opponent’s strategy, but it also has the potential of putting their cards into play under your control. This can lead to unexpected resource acceleration by effectively using your opponent’s resources against them.

Instant Speed: The real power of Knacksaw Clique lies in its flexibility. It functions at instant speed, giving you the ability to disrupt your opponent’s plans on their turn. This makes it a versatile tool that keeps your opponents guessing and allows you to maximize the efficiency of your plays.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Engaging with Knacksaw Clique demands precision in your gameplay. One of the notable downsides is its discard requirement, which forces players to weigh carefully their hand management. In scenarios where your hand is already depleted, triggering its untap ability comes at a significant cost that could compromise your position in the game.

Specific Mana Cost: Building your mana base to accommodate Knacksaw Clique’s exact mana requirement can be a strategic pain point. The card calls for a specific combination of blue mana, which might not seamlessly fit into every deck’s strategy, especially those with a more diverse color palette.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Players are often looking for the most efficient ways to utilize their mana, and in this respect, Knacksaw Clique’s mana cost can be a limiting factor. Considering its four mana (including triple blue) for the initial summoning, some may find it a bit steep, particularly when compared to other options that could potentially offer more immediate board impact or versatility in a blue-dominated deck.


Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Knacksaw Clique offers unique flexibility to players, seamlessly fitting into various deck types. Its ability to untap during each player’s upkeep allows it to be utilized multiple times around the table, which is crucial for both offensive and defensive strategies.

Combo Potential: This faerie’s talent for milling and gaining control of noncreature cards synergizes with multiple combo setups. By enabling the pilfering of key spells from opponents, it can turn the tide by incorporating their strategies into your arsenal.

Meta-Relevance: With the fluctuating environment of competitive play, Knacksaw Clique remains relevant by countering strategies reliant on specific noncreature cards. Its disruptiveness can dismantle meticulous plans, giving its controller an edge over decks that are heavily dependent on such cards.


How to beat

Knacksaw Clique is a unique card in the vast universe of Magic: The Gathering that can often catch players off guard with its ability to steal the top card of an opponent’s library. Its synergy with artifacts and the untap mechanic makes it a card that can potentially disrupt an opponent’s strategy by exiling their key cards. However, as with all cards, there are strategies to mitigate the impact of Knacksaw Clique on your game.

One effective method is to restrict the activation of its ability. This can be achieved by removing artifacts from your opponent’s battlefield, thus limiting the ways in which they can untap Knacksaw Clique. Additionally, employing instant-speed removal when the Clique taps to activate its ability can ensure it never gets a chance to use the stolen cards. Keeping your graveyard stocked with removal spells or creatures that can block and eliminate Knacksaw Clique is another viable strategy. Regardless of the method you choose, the key is to be prepared and responsive, dealing with Knacksaw Clique before it becomes a sustained threat on the board.


Understanding Knacksaw Clique’s Role in Decks

Knacksaw Clique offers a unique twist to MTG gameplay, blending control tactics with potential combo applications. When evaluating its uses in decks, it’s essential to recognize the cliqu’s potential in manipulating opponent strategies and existing synergies within the game. Its activated ability, which exiles the top card of an opponent’s library and lets you play it without paying its mana cost, is not just a disruptive force but also expands your own strategic options, similar to how commanders like Sen Triplets allow for playing opponents’ cards.

Cards like Knacksaw Clique

Knacksaw Clique aligns itself with a niche group of MTG cards that manipulate opponents’ decks. It shares similarities with Gonti, Lord of Luxury who also exiles cards from the top of an opponent’s library and allows you to cast them. While Gonti’s effect is a one-time deal, Knacksaw Clique’s ability can be used multiple times, scaling with the amount of untap synergy in your deck. Another card worth mentioning is Thief of Sanity. Although Thief of Sanity requires dealing combat damage to gain access to an opponent’s cards, like Knacksaw Clique, it offers the advantage of playing those cards and spending mana as though it were any color.

Nevertheless, the distinctive quality of Knacksaw Clique lies in its repeatable nature. This contrasts with the singular effects of Gonti and the conditional activation of Thief of Sanity, highlighting the Clique’s consistent and potentially game-ending threat when combined with untap mechanics. In the world of MTG, such subtle differences may significantly impact playstyles and deck construction, showcasing Knacksaw Clique’s specialized role.

Gonti, Lord of Luxury - MTG Card versions
Thief of Sanity - MTG Card versions
Gonti, Lord of Luxury - Kaladesh Promos (PKLD)
Thief of Sanity - Guilds of Ravnica Promos (PGRN)

Cards similar to Knacksaw Clique by color, type and mana cost

Phantasmal Forces - MTG Card versions
Wall of Vapor - MTG Card versions
Tradewind Rider - MTG Card versions
Archivist - MTG Card versions
Thieving Magpie - MTG Card versions
Inga Rune-Eyes - MTG Card versions
Sakashima of a Thousand Faces - MTG Card versions
Laboratory Drudge - MTG Card versions
Johnny, Combo Player - MTG Card versions
Dream Prowler - MTG Card versions
Clone - MTG Card versions
Cytoplast Manipulator - MTG Card versions
Crookclaw Transmuter - MTG Card versions
Turtleshell Changeling - MTG Card versions
Glen Elendra Archmage - MTG Card versions
Fatestitcher - MTG Card versions
Argent Sphinx - MTG Card versions
Lumengrid Drake - MTG Card versions
Vedalken Infuser - MTG Card versions
Phantasmal Dragon - MTG Card versions
Phantasmal Forces - Fourth Edition Foreign Black Border (4BB)
Wall of Vapor - Chronicles (CHR)
Tradewind Rider - World Championship Decks 1998 (WC98)
Archivist - Urza's Legacy (ULG)
Thieving Magpie - Seventh Edition (7ED)
Inga Rune-Eyes - Magic Online Promos (PRM)
Sakashima of a Thousand Faces - Magic Online Promos (PRM)
Laboratory Drudge - Magic Online Promos (PRM)
Johnny, Combo Player - Unhinged (UNH)
Dream Prowler - Tempest Remastered (TPR)
Clone - Ninth Edition (9ED)
Cytoplast Manipulator - Dissension (DIS)
Crookclaw Transmuter - Time Spiral (TSP)
Turtleshell Changeling - Lorwyn (LRW)
Glen Elendra Archmage - Eventide (EVE)
Fatestitcher - Shards of Alara (ALA)
Argent Sphinx - Scars of Mirrodin (SOM)
Lumengrid Drake - Scars of Mirrodin (SOM)
Vedalken Infuser - Mirrodin Besieged (MBS)
Phantasmal Dragon - Magic 2012 (M12)

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Knacksaw Clique MTG card by a specific set like Shadowmoor, 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 Knacksaw Clique and other MTG cards:

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Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Knacksaw Clique has restrictions

FormatLegality
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
ModernLegal
OathbreakerLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
PredhLegal
PennyLegal

Rules and information

The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering Knacksaw Clique card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.

DateText
2008-05-01 If a creature with an {Q} ability hasn’t been under your control since your most recent turn began, you can’t activate that ability, unless the creature has haste.
2008-05-01 If the permanent is already untapped, you can’t activate its {Q} ability. That’s because you can’t pay the “Untap this permanent” cost.
2008-05-01 If you don’t play the exiled card that turn, it remains exiled but you can’t play it.
2008-05-01 The exiled card is played using the normal timing rules for its card type, as well as any other applicable restrictions such as “Cast
-his card] only during combat.” For example, you can’t play the card during an opponent’s turn unless it’s an instant or has flash. Similarly, if the exiled card is a land, you can’t play it if you’ve already played a land that turn. If it’s a nonland card, you’ll have to pay its mana cost. The only thing that’s different is you’re playing it from the Exile zone.
2008-05-01 When you activate an {Q} ability, you untap the creature with that ability as a cost. The untap can’t be responded to. (The actual ability can be responded to, of course.)

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