Stonecoil Serpent MTG Card


Card setsReleased in 6 setsSee all
Mana cost
RarityRare
TypeArtifact Creature — Snake
Abilities Protection,Reach,Trample
Power 0
Toughness 0

Key Takeaways

  1. Its X-cost allows flexibility, scaling from early blocker to late-game threat depending on mana available.
  2. Its reach, trample, and protection from multicolored create significant board control and dodge common removal.
  3. Though powerful, it’s vulnerable to single-color removal and requires strategic mana investment for impact.

Text of card

Reach, trample, protection from multicolored Stonecoil Serpent enters the battlefield with X +1/+1 counters on it.

Cast out of Garenbrig for his crimes, Ennor turned to fae magic to fashion the perfect weapon for his revenge.


Card Pros

Card Advantage: The Stonecoil Serpent shines in giving you a customizable threat that can scale with your available resources. As an X-cost creature, it can come into play as large as your mana can support, serving as a late-game powerhouse with a potentially higher value than standard mana-to-power/toughness ratio cards. Moreover, with its reach, trample, and protection from multicolored, it exerts board presence while circumventing specific threats and defenses.

Resource Acceleration: While Stonecoil Serpent doesn’t directly accelerate resources in terms of mana, its versatility in cost allows for efficient use of mana at any stage of the game. This means you can curve it out to complement your mana development, ensuring you always have a proactive play.

Instant Speed: Although Stonecoil Serpent is not an instant, its ability to be cast at any size makes it an excellent card to hold back mana for. Whether it’s during your opponent’s end step or after they’ve committed to a non-ideal play assuming you’re tapped out, Stonecoil Serpent can be a surprise play that capitalizes on unspent mana, akin to the strategy behind instant-speed interaction.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: One aspect some players find limiting with Stonecoil Serpent is that while it doesn’t have a direct discard requirement, it forces you to commit all available mana to get the most value. This means you might miss out on other opportunities or be unable to respond with other cards in your hand during your turn.

Specific Mana Cost: Stonecoil Serpent’s X cost is highly flexible, allowing you to invest as much mana as you see fit. However, this can also work against you. In a multi-colored deck, you may be in a tough spot if you have mana in the colors you need for other spells, as the Serpent can only be cast with colorless mana, which could limit your strategic plays.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: To make Stonecoil Serpent a considerable threat on the board, a substantial amount of mana is necessary. A 1/1 Serpent may not impact the game much, but a 5/5 or larger can be a force—albeit at a high cost. This makes it less mana-efficient compared to other creatures or spells that could provide immediate board presence or effects for less investment.


Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Stonecoil Serpent shines across multiple deck archetypes due to its scalable cost and ability to enter the battlefield with +1/+1 counters equal to the mana spent. This flexibility allows it to be an early blocker or a late-game threat.

Combo Potential: This creature’s variety of keywords, including reach, trample, and protection from multicolored, enable synergy with numerous strategies. It can amplify the value of counter manipulation mechanics or provide protection for key turns.

Meta-Relevance: With the constantly evolving metagame, Stonecoil Serpent holds its ground as a formidable adaptable creature. Capable of dodging multicolored targeted removal, it fits well in a meta flush with diverse threats and answers.


How to beat

Stonecoil Serpent emerges as a versatile creature in Magic: The Gathering, boasting benefits like reach, trample, and protection from multicolored spells. This creature can become a formidable force, adaptable to various levels of mana investment. Yet, no card is without its weaknesses. To overcome Stonecoil Serpent, the focus should shift to exploiting its susceptibility to single-colored removal spells or board wipes.

Single-colored spells such as Fatal Push or Bloodchief’s Thirst can efficiently remove the Serpent at a low cost, regardless of its size. Alternatively, utilizing global effects like Wrath of God or Shatter the Sky can clear the Serpent along with other threats without concern for its protection. Including versatile removal options in your deck ensures you’re prepared not only for Stonecoil Serpent but a range of other formidable adversaries as well.

Ultimately, understanding your opponent’s strategy and maintaining a selection of answers in your deck can help ensure that Stonecoil Serpent, while robust, doesn’t become an insurmountable obstacle. Being equipped with the right removal tools is essential in achieving victory against this adaptive creature.


BurnMana Recommendations

Dive deeper into the world of MTG with our expert insights. Stonecoil Serpent serves as a testament to the game’s complexity and potential for customization. Versatile and powerful, it’s a card that can adapt to your mana resources, giving you an edge in battle. Whether you’re defending against multicolored spells or looking to add a scalable creature to your arsenal, Stonecoil Serpent is a valuable addition to any collection. Its unique abilities make it a standout choice for various deck builds. Ready to expand your knowledge and optimize your deck with Stonecoil Serpent? Engage with us to uncover more strategies and become the skilled duelist you’re destined to be.


Cards like Stonecoil Serpent

Stonecoil Serpent offers a flexible presence in multiple MTG decks, sharing similarities with cards like Walking Ballista and Hangarback Walker. Stonecoil Serpent is a versatile card with its X cost mechanic, allowing for scalability in different game stages. Walking Ballista similarly operates on X cost, providing a modular creature sculptable to a player’s current mana pool, but is also capable of dealing direct damage. Hangarback Walker embodies the X cost for growth, depositing +1/+1 counters, and when defeated, it spawns a number of 1/1 Thopter tokens equal to its +1/+1 counters.

Additionally, Chamber Sentry enters the conversation as a creature card that’s highly adaptable due to its ability to spend mana of any color for its X cost, granting its entry at various power levels. While it lacks the trample or protection abilities of Stonecoil Serpent, it can deal damage to any target upon tapping, presenting a strategic asset in removal. The protection from multicolored that Stonecoil Serpent has is particularly useful, setting it apart in a meta dense with multicolored spells and abilities.

In the spectrum of X cost creatures, Stonecoil Serpent stands out with its unique capabilities, offering MTG enthusiasts a reliable option that adapts to various in-game situations and counters diverse threats.

Walking Ballista - MTG Card versions
Hangarback Walker - MTG Card versions
Chamber Sentry - MTG Card versions
Walking Ballista - Aether Revolt (AER)
Hangarback Walker - Love Your LGS (PLGS)
Chamber Sentry - Guilds of Ravnica (GRN)

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Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Stonecoil Serpent MTG card by a specific set like Resale Promos and Throne of Eldraine, 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 Stonecoil Serpent and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Stonecoil Serpent Magic the Gathering card was released in 5 different sets between 2007-01-01 and 2023-08-04. Illustrated by 2 different artists.

#ReleaseNameCodeSymbolNumberFrameLayoutBorderArtist
12007-01-01Resale PromosPRES 2352015normalblackMark Poole
22019-10-04Throne of EldraineELD 3852015normalblackMark Poole
32019-10-04Throne of EldraineELD 2352015normalblackMark Poole
42019-12-02Secret Lair DropSLD 12262015normalborderlessLaynes
52020-09-26The ListPLST ELD-2352015normalblackMark Poole
62023-08-04Commander MastersCMM 9762015normalblackMark Poole

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Stonecoil Serpent has restrictions

FormatLegality
HistoricbrawlLegal
CommanderLegal
HistoricLegal
LegacyLegal
ModernLegal
OathbreakerLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
ExplorerLegal
GladiatorLegal
PioneerLegal
TimelessLegal

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