Thundering Ceratok MTG Card

Thundering Ceratok provides trample, leveraging combat damage by pressuring opponents into disadvantageous blocks. While not generating mana, its 4/5 body can accelerate game plans significantly on the board. Demands a mindful deck building approach due to its specific mana cost and impact on the board.

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	5
Rarity	Common
Type	Creature — Rhino
Abilities	Trample
Released	2019-05-03
Set symbol
Set name	War of the Spark
Set code	WAR
Power	4
Toughness	5
Number	179
Frame	2015
Layout	Normal
Border	Black
Illustred by	Izzy

Text of card

Trample When Thundering Ceratok enters the battlefield, other creatures you control gain trample until end of turn.

"I thought this was a civilized plane. How are there so many feral beasts?" —Dovin Baan

Cards like Thundering Ceratok

In the dynamic landscape of Magic: The Gathering, the Thundering Ceratok presents a robust presence on the battlefield. This creature can be compared to other four-mana green creatures like the Scaled Behemoth. While the Behemoth boasts a larger body and hexproof, it lacks the immediate board impact of the Thundering Ceratok, which grants trample to another target creature you control—a significant combat advantage on the turn it’s played.

Similarly, Bristling Boar serves as a comparable creature with a lower cost, but the Boar’s inability to be blocked by more than one creature doesn’t quite offer the same aggressive push as the empowerement from the Ceratok’s trample-giving ability. This gift of trample can be decisive in matches where pushing through damage is critical. The Thundering Ceratok also finds competition in the Affectionate Indrik, another four-mana creature that can impact the board by fighting another creature when it enters, though it lacks the ongoing board presence and the synergy with other creatures that have trample.

When considering the versatility and board influence of four-mana creatures in Magic: The Gathering, Thundering Ceratok holds its ground with its unique blend of size, immediate impact, and encouraging offensive strategies through trample synergy.

Cards similar to Thundering Ceratok by color, type and mana cost

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Card Pros

Card Advantage: While Thundering Ceratok doesn’t allow direct drawing of cards, its trample ability helps maintain pressure on the opponent, potentially leading to indirect card advantage by forcing unfavorable blocks or using up their resources.

Resource Acceleration: Though not directly providing mana or tokens, the presence of Thundering Ceratok can accelerate your game plan by having a significant 4/5 body on the board, potentially overshadowing the need for additional resource generation.

Instant Speed: The Ceratok, as a creature, doesn’t operate at instant speed, yet it supports your strategies that benefit from having a substantial creature at the ready after surviving an opponent’s turn, paving the way for instant-speed synergies with other cards in your deck.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: The card does not have this mechanic, yet it’s vital to be aware of the importance of maintaining card advantage in gameplay. Decks that run cards like Thundering Ceratok often need to keep a full hand to respond to the opponent’s threats.

Specific Mana Cost: Thundering Ceratok requires both green mana and generic mana, which can be a challenge in multicolored decks that may have mana base issues or need a more flexible mana curve.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a casting cost of five mana, Thundering Ceratok competes with other impactful creatures and spells. Players must evaluate if its abilities justify the slot in a deck over lower-cost creatures with potentially greater value or impact.

Reasons to Include Thundering Ceratok in Your Collection

Versatility: Thundering Ceratok adds value to various green-focused decks, particularly those that appreciate a sturdy creature that provides an immediate board presence. Its trample ability ensures that excess damage can be pushed through defensive lines, making it a solid option for decks aiming to deal combat damage consistently.

Combo Potential: This hefty creature synergizes with strategies that capitalize on +1/+1 counters or effects that benefit from trample. It can play a pivotal role in combos that might involve proliferate mechanics or buffing creatures to overwhelm opponents.

Meta-Relevance: In a game state dominated by small creatures or token strategies, the Thundering Ceratok can be especially effective. It can break through crowded battlefields and turn the tide with its substantial body and trampling capability, making it pertinent in certain metagames where size and power matter.

How to beat

Thundering Ceratok has carved its niche in the MTG environment as a formidable green creature, thanks to its trample ability and the boost it gives to other creatures when it enters the battlefield. While it provides a decent body at 4/5, it isn’t invulnerable. There are effective strategies to overcome it, such as using removal spells that can handle creatures of its size, like Murder or Doom Blade, which are staple removal spells in many black decks.

Control decks often have access to counter spells, such as Counterspell or Essence Scatter, which can negate the Ceratok’s entry altogether, thus preserving your board state. For those preferring a white deck approach, cards with exile effects, like Path to Exile, provide a clean solution to the ceratok’s threat. Moreover, since Thundering Ceratok relies on having other creatures on the board to exploit its triggering ability, cards that can clear multiple creatures at once, like Wrath of God or Blasphemous Act, can efficiently reset the playing field.

Overall, Thundering Ceratok can be bested with a bit of planning, using the right removals at the opportune moments, and keeping the board state under control.

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Thundering Ceratok MTG card by a specific set like War of the Spark, 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 Thundering Ceratok and other MTG cards:

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Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Thundering Ceratok 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 Thundering Ceratok card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.

Date	Text
2019-05-03	Thundering Ceratok’s triggered ability affects only creatures you control at the time it resolves. Creatures you begin to control later in the turn won’t gain trample.