Silkbind Faerie MTG Card

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	3
Rarity	Common
Type	Creature — Faerie Rogue
Abilities	Flying
Released	2008-05-02
Set symbol
Set name	Shadowmoor
Set code	SHM
Power	1
Toughness	3
Number	148
Frame	2003
Layout	Normal
Border	Black
Illustred by	Matt Cavotta

Key Takeaways

Silkbind Faerie offers card advantage and resource acceleration through its tap/untap abilities at instant speed.
Demands card discard for activation and is mana-specific, which might limit its integration into diverse decks.
Its flying utility and ability to disrupt opponents strategically make it a valuable addition to your collection.

Text of card

Flying {WU}, {Q}: Tap target creature. ({Q} is the untap symbol.)

"The bigger they are, the more fun it is to watch them fall flat on their faces."

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Silkbind Faerie provides a subtle yet consistent card advantage. The ability to tap or untap a permanent can disrupt an opponent’s strategy or benefit you by reusing activated abilities of your own permanents without requiring additional cards to do so.

Resource Acceleration: While Silkbind Faerie does not directly produce mana or treasure tokens, its untap ability could effectively be used for resource acceleration by untapping your mana-producing permanents, thus allowing you to cast more spells or activate more abilities in a single turn.

Instant Speed: The versatility of Silkbind Faerie shines at instant speed. Its flash ability means you can play it unexpectedly, using it as a blocker or to tap down a crucial attacker or blocker at a pivotal moment in the combat phase, potentially swinging the match in your favor without the need for additional spells.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Silkbind Faerie demands a card to be discarded each time you want to activate its ability. While this can enable certain strategies, it could also deplete your hand, leaving you vulnerable if the game prolongs.

Specific Mana Cost: Its activation cost requires blue mana, which means it cannot be seamlessly integrated into all decks. This can restrict its play to heavily blue or compatible two-color combinations.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: To cast Silkbind Faerie, you need a moderate amount of mana, that could potentially be employed for more impactful cards at the same cost. This may affect your tempo, especially during the crucial early to mid-game phase.

Reasons to Include Silkbind Faerie in Your Collection

Versatility: Silkbind Faerie offers a flexibile role in various deck builds due to its ability to tap or untap another target creature or artifact. This utility can support both aggressive and defensive strategies.

Combo Potential: This faerie’s untap ability pairs well with cards boasting tap-triggered abilities, creating opportunities for repeatable effects within a single turn. In addition, this can enable infinite combos with the right setup, appealing to players who love complex play sequences.

Meta-Relevance: Given that control and tempo decks tend to perform well in many metagames, Silkbind Faerie’s potential to disrupt opponents’ strategies by controlling the combat phase makes it a significant asset. When the metagame leans toward creature-heavy decks, its presence is even more essential.

How to beat Silkbind Faerie

Silkbind Faerie presents a unique challenge on the battlefield with its capacity to lock down an opponent’s creature each turn. To effectively counteract this strategically advantageous creature, players should consider using removal spells that can bypass its untap ability. This includes instant-speed spells like Path to Exile or Fatal Push, which are effective at swiftly removing Silkbind Faerie from play before it can establish control.

Another approach involves altering the rhythm of your gameplay. Silkbind Faerie requires a consistent mana source to maintain its ability, so hindering your opponent’s mana base or exhausting their resources with cards such as Blood Moon or Ghost Quarter can reduce the Faerie’s impact. Similarly, deploying creatures with hexproof or protection from blue can render Silkbind Faerie’s ability moot, allowing you to maintain an aggressive stance without the fear of being locked down.

Ultimately, adapting your strategy to include these measures or sideboarding in appropriate answers will enhance your resilience against Silkbind Faerie and similar control-oriented cards, keeping your deck competitive and dynamic.

Cards like Silkbind Faerie

Silkbind Faerie joins the ranks of flying creatures with utility in Magic: The Gathering. This card shares features with the likes of Pestermite, another fairy that can also tap or untap permanents. Silkbind Faerie, however, carries an additional ability to lock down an opponent’s artifact or creature each turn it’s equipped with an aura. This makes it a versatile choice in decks that can exploit enchantments and tapped states.

Likewise, Glimmerdust Nap is a card that can serve a similar purpose as Silkbind Faerie. While it requires enchanting an opponent’s creature to tap it, it also has persist, allowing it to have a second life on the battlefield. The main difference is that Glimmerdust Nap isn’t a creature itself and doesn’t provide an evasive body like Silkbind Faerie does. Then there’s Icy Manipulator, an artifact that can tap any one target without being limited to creatures or artifacts. However, unlike Silkbind Faerie, Icy Manipulator doesn’t offer the ability to attack or block.

Each of these cards carries strategic benefits and drawbacks. When it comes to adding flexibility with flying and control over the board state, Silkbind Faerie holds a distinct place, particularly among enchantment-centric decks.

Cards similar to Silkbind Faerie by color, type and mana cost

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Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Silkbind Faerie 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 Silkbind Faerie and other MTG cards:

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Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Silkbind Faerie has restrictions

Format	Legality
Commander	Legal
Legacy	Legal
Paupercommander	Legal
Modern	Legal
Oathbreaker	Legal
Pauper	Legal
Vintage	Legal
Duel	Legal
Predh	Legal
Penny	Legal

Rules and information

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

Date	Text
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	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.)