Sol'Kanar the Tainted MTG Card
2022-09-09 - Number 318
2022-09-09 - Number 219
2022-09-09 - Number 219s
2022-09-09 - Number 219p
2022-09-09 - Number 359
| Card sets | Released in 5 setsSee all |
| Mana cost | |
| Converted mana cost | 5 |
| Rarity | Mythic |
| Type | Legendary Creature — Elemental Demon |
| Power | 5 |
| Toughness | 5 |
Key Takeaways
- Enables card advantage by drawing more cards when dealing damage to opponents.
- Generates flexible mana of any color, empowering diverse spellcasting.
- Has instant-speed mana utility, pairing well with counterplay options.
Text of card
At the beginning of your end step, choose one that hasn't been chosen — • Draw a card. • Each opponent loses 2 life and you gain 2 life. • Sol'kanar the Tainted deals 3 damage to up to one other target creature or planeswalker. • Exile Sol'kanar, then return it to the battlefield under an opponent's control.
Card Pros
Card Advantage: Sol’Kanar the Tainted features an ability that can potentially provide ongoing card advantage. By generating draw opportunities through damage dealt to opponents, you maintain a steady flow of new cards that can be crucial for outpacing your adversary in longer games.
Resource Acceleration: This card excels in resource acceleration by generating mana of any color. Sol’Kanar’s mana ability can be a game-changer, giving you access to a broader range of spells in your deck and enabling more flexible and powerful plays each turn.
Instant Speed: While Sol’Kanar the Tainted is not an instant itself, its mana-generating ability can be critical when held alongside instant-speed spells. The mana it provides can be used to cast instants on your opponent’s turn, keeping your options open and leaving your opponent guessing about your next move.
Card Cons
Discard Requirement: One downside of Sol’Kanar the Tainted is the necessity for additional resource expenditure. While the card itself doesn’t require a discard, creating a deck around it might necessitate supports that do, potentially leaving you at a disadvantage during crucial moments of gameplay when your hand is dwindling.
Specific Mana Cost: The casting cost of Sol’Kanar the Tainted demands a precise combination of mana types. Requiring one black, one red, and one blue mana in addition to two generic mana, it can be a challenge to seamlessly integrate into a multi-colored deck or may restrict its use to dedicated three-color decks.
Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a mana value of five, Sol’Kanar the Tainted sits at a higher point on the curve. In fast-paced games, the ability to play impactful creatures earlier can be a deciding factor, making Sol’Kanar’s cost a potential liability when compared to other lower-costed options that provide similar or greater impact on the game state.
Reasons to Include in Your Collection
Versatility: Sol’Kanar the Tainted offers a flexible fit across multiple deck archetypes. Ideal for Commander formats, its ability to add mana of any color aligns with multicolored decks and strengthens mana bases.
Combo Potential: Sol’Kanar’s passive ability to gain life whenever a black or red spell is cast opens up synergies with life-gain strategies or spells that thrive on life-point transactions.
Meta-Relevance: In a game environment with a prevalence of black or red spells, Sol’Kanar can consistently provide life advantage. This relevance makes the card a tactical choice against specific deck trends in the meta.
How to beat
Sol’Kanar the Tainted stands out in MTG as a formidable multi-colored legend with a special gift for generating extra value through its Swampwalk ability and life gain feature. When facing this iconic card, it is essential to have a strategy. Utilize removal spells that can handle multi-colored creatures, such as Path to Exile or Swords to Plowshares, to efficiently take Sol’Kanar off the board before its abilities can dominate the game.
Another effective approach is to adjust your land base. Since Sol’Kanar benefits from the presence of Swamps, tweaking your mana-generating lands to non-Swamp varieties can render the Swampwalk ability irrelevant. Moreover, adding cards that specifically restrict life gain—think Tainted Remedy or Erebos, God of the Dead—can be a serious disruption to your opponent’s strategy. Cards like Rest in Peace that exile cards can prevent graveyard interactions, further weakening strategies that might revolve around Sol’Kanar and similar cards that rely on such synergies.
By carefully planning your deck with these considerations in mind, you can turn the tide against Sol’Kanar the Tainted, ensuring it becomes more a fleeting threat rather than a tainted nightmare on the battlefield.
Cards like Sol'Kanar the Tainted
Sol’Kanar the Tainted offers MTG players a multifaceted legendary creature card that stands out for its unique abilities, similar to other cards in its category. Notably, it shares some traits with Crosis, the Purger – another legendary dragon that also thrives on opponents’ disadvantages. While Sol’Kanar provides a consistent life gain mechanic as it interacts with opponents’ spells or lands, Crosis capitalizes on causing card disadvantage through direct player attacks.
Another relative of Sol’Kanar is Thraximundar, a card that also carries a heavy hitting presence and forces opponents to sacrifice creatures. Though Thraximundar lacks the passive life gain of Sol’Kanar, it boasts a potent ability to grow stronger with each sacrificed creature, making it an imposing threat on the battlefield. Furthermore, we see a contrast in mana flexibility, with Sol’Kanar requiring three specific colors and Thraximundar adding one more to the mix.
Evaluating the dynamics of Sol’Kanar alongside these comparable MTG legends, it’s evident that while Sol’Kanar may not have the sheer power growth of Thraximundar or the targeted hand disruption of Crosis, it offers a stable blend of aggression and incremental life gain that can be crucial for a sustained advantage in multi-color decks.
Cards similar to Sol'Kanar the Tainted by color, type and mana cost
Where to buy
If you're looking to purchase Sol'Kanar the Tainted MTG card by a specific set like Dominaria United and Dominaria United, 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 Sol'Kanar the Tainted and other MTG cards:
- eBay
- TCG Player
- 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
See MTG Products
Printings
The Sol'Kanar the Tainted Magic the Gathering card was released in 2 different sets between 2022-09-09 and 2022-09-09. Illustrated by 2 different artists.
| # | Released | Name | Code | Symbol | Number | Frame | Layout | Border | Artist |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2022-09-09 | Dominaria United | DMU | 318 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Lisa Heidhoff | |
| 2 | 2022-09-09 | Dominaria United | DMU | 219 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Filip Burburan | |
| 3 | 2022-09-09 | Dominaria United Promos | PDMU | 219s | 2015 | Normal | Black | Filip Burburan | |
| 4 | 2022-09-09 | Dominaria United Promos | PDMU | 219p | 2015 | Normal | Black | Filip Burburan | |
| 5 | 2022-09-09 | Dominaria United | DMU | 359 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Lisa Heidhoff |
Legalities
Magic the Gathering formats where Sol'Kanar the Tainted has restrictions
| Format | Legality |
|---|---|
| Standard | Legal |
| Historicbrawl | Legal |
| Historic | Legal |
| Legacy | Legal |
| Oathbreaker | Legal |
| Gladiator | Legal |
| Alchemy | Legal |
| Pioneer | Legal |
| Commander | Legal |
| Modern | Legal |
| Future | Legal |
| Vintage | Legal |
| Duel | Legal |
| Explorer | Legal |
| Brawl | Legal |
| Timeless | Legal |