Tah-Crop Elite MTG Card
2017-04-28 - Number 31
2020-08-13 - Number 40
| Card sets | Released in 2 setsSee all |
| Mana cost | |
| Converted mana cost | 4 |
| Rarity | Common |
| Type | Creature — Bird Warrior |
| Abilities | Exert,Flying |
| Power | 2 |
| Toughness | 2 |
Text of card
Flying You may exert Tah-Crop Elite as it attacks. When you do, creatures you control get +1/+1 until end of turn. (An exerted creature won't untap during your next untap step.)
Cards like Tah-Crop Elite
Tah-Crop Elite has carved its niche in the aerial aggression department of Magic: The Gathering. Its similarities to other flyers like Aven Sentry make it a card worth considering in limited formats. Both are four mana fliers, yet Tah-Crop Elite brings an added benefit to the battlefield with its exert ability, potentially swelling the power of your entire squad during an attack. This can provide a substantial swing in board state that Aven Sentry simply cannot match.
Examining Gust Walker, another low-cost creature with the exert option, reveals a more individualistic approach, offering the creature a power boost and flying for the turn. Tah-Crop Elite, conversely, is designed to support your team, making it a pivotal play in scenarios where a coordinated strike is necessary. Looking at another comparison, Steadfast Sentinels also shares the exert feature and offers the eternalize ability. However, the Tah-Crop Elite stands out in its ability to boost multiple creatures, an effect that’s not to be overlooked when building a synergistic army.
In essence, while there are numerous creatures with flying and exert in the game, Tah-Crop Elite’s team-wide impact offers a strategic advantage that can lead to victorious combat phases more reliably.
Cards similar to Tah-Crop Elite by color, type and mana cost
Card Pros
Card Advantage: The Tah-Crop Elite’s ability to bolster other creatures on the battlefield can be seen as an indirect form of card advantage. By strengthening your existing forces, you’re essentially getting more value out of the cards already played, making your army harder to deal with without the need for additional cards.
Resource Acceleration: While Tah-Crop Elite itself doesn’t directly accelerate resources, its synergy with other cards that do can be valuable. For instance, in a deck that ramps up mana, deploying this creature could quickly tilt the scales in your favor by enhancing your offensive capabilities.
Instant Speed: Although Tah-Crop Elite operates at sorcery speed, it still plays well with instant-speed strategies. After holding back mana for potential instant responses during your opponent’s turn, you can cast this creature in your second main phase if you’ve deemed it safe to develop your board, effectively keeping your options open.
Card Cons
Discard Requirement: Although Tah-Crop Elite doesn’t have a discard requirement itself, its performance in decks that focus on synergies with discarding can be lackluster due to the absence of this mechanic. In such decks, every card counts towards leveraging discards for advantageous effects, and Tah-Crop Elite may not always align with those strategic goals.
Specific Mana Cost: Meeting Tah-Crop Elite’s casting cost can be restrictive due to its need for specific mana types. Requiring two white mana in its total cost of four, it may not fit smoothly into multi-color decks that could struggle to produce sufficient amounts of white mana consistently when it matters the most.
Comparatively High Mana Cost: Weighed against other options, Tah-Crop Elite’s mana value might be considered on the higher side. With a mana cost of four for a 2/2 creature that provides a limited Exert ability, there are alternatives that could potentially bring more value or impact to the battlefield at a similar or lower cost threshold. Players often evaluate such costs critically when optimizing their decks for competitive play.
Reasons to Include in Your Collection
Versatility: Tah-Crop Elite is a solid addition to decks that thrive on bolstering their flying creatures. It’s a functional piece in any aggressive or token strategy that values evasion and pushing through additional damage in the air.
Combo Potential: With its ability to give all attacking creatures a boost, Tah-Crop Elite complements strategies that aim to go wide with multiple creatures, synergizing particularly well with exert mechanics and cards that benefit from tapped creatures.
Meta-Relevance: In a game state where evasive attacks are key to victory, Tah-Crop Elite stands out. Its relevance increases in a meta filled with ground-based blockers, where its flying and exert abilities can turn the tide of battle in your favor.
How to Beat Tah-Crop Elite
In the realm of MTG, overcoming the challenges presented by certain cards demands strategy. Tah-Crop Elite, a force in the skies with its Flying ability, can be a powerful adversary when bolstering its fellow creatures. Its exert ability, which grants other creatures you control a +1/+1 boost until end of turn, can shift the tide of battle in your opponent’s favor.
However, to neutralize Tah-Crop Elite’s advantage, consider using removal spells that can target creatures in flight, such as Fatal Push or Path to Exile, ensuring they never get the chance to exert their influence. Including spells in your deck that can thwart its ability, like Essence Scatter, will help you keep control of the game. Having instant-speed interactions ready when Tah-Crop Elite is about to attack is crucial. By disabling its momentary power spike, you prevent your opponent from gaining significant combat leverage.
Remember to maintain board presence with capable defenders or employ direct damage spells to keep flying threats at bay. With these tactics, the Elite’s impact on the battlefield can be mitigated, keeping you one step ahead in your MTG matchups.
Where to buy
If you're looking to purchase Tah-Crop Elite MTG card by a specific set like Amonkhet and Amonkhet Remastered, 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 Tah-Crop Elite and other MTG cards:
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Printings
The Tah-Crop Elite Magic the Gathering card was released in 2 different sets between 2017-04-28 and 2020-08-13. Illustrated by Raoul Vitale.
| # | Released | Name | Code | Symbol | Number | Frame | Layout | Border | Artist |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2017-04-28 | Amonkhet | AKH | 31 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Raoul Vitale | |
| 2 | 2020-08-13 | Amonkhet Remastered | AKR | 40 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Raoul Vitale |
Legalities
Magic the Gathering formats where Tah-Crop Elite has restrictions
| Format | Legality |
|---|---|
| Historicbrawl | Legal |
| Historic | Legal |
| Legacy | Legal |
| Paupercommander | Legal |
| Oathbreaker | Legal |
| Gladiator | Legal |
| Pioneer | Legal |
| Commander | Legal |
| Modern | Legal |
| Pauper | Legal |
| Vintage | Legal |
| Duel | Legal |
| Explorer | Legal |
| Penny | Legal |
| Timeless | Legal |
Rules and information
The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering Tah-Crop Elite card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.
| Date | Text |
|---|---|
| 2017-04-18 | All cards in the Amonkhet set that let you exert a creature let you do so as you declare it as an attacking creature, as do some of the cards in the Hour of Devastation set. You can’t do so later in combat, and creatures put onto the battlefield attacking can’t be exerted. Any abilities that trigger on exerting an attacking creature will resolve before blockers are declared. |
| 2017-04-18 | If an exerted creature is already untapped during your next untap step (most likely because it had vigilance or an effect untapped it), exert’s effect preventing it from untapping expires without having done anything. |
| 2017-04-18 | If you gain control of another player’s creature until end of turn and exert it, it will untap during that player’s untap step. |
| 2017-04-18 | You can’t exert a creature unless an effect allows you to do so. Similar effects that “tap and freeze” a creature (such as that of Decision Paralysis) don’t exert that creature. |