Shadow Sliver MTG Card


Card setsReleased in 2 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost3
RarityCommon
TypeCreature — Sliver
Power 1
Toughness 1

Key Takeaways

  1. Shadow Sliver enhances sliver decks with a hard-to-block ability, boosting their offensive capabilities effectively.
  2. It harmonizes well with instant-speed sliver support cards for surprise combat maneuvers and tactical flexibility.
  3. Despite some casting drawbacks, its versatility and combo potential make it a worthy addition to collections.

Text of card

All Slivers have shadow. (They can block or be blocked by only creatures with shadow.)

These slivers, trapped between worlds since the Rathi overlay, are among the last to claim direct lineage from the lost Sliver Queen.


Card Pros

Card Advantage: The Shadow Sliver is a dynamic addition that can give sliver decks an edge by providing an unblockable pathway for sliver creatures. Its ability to make all slivers it inherently boosts the potential for card advantage on the battlefield.

Resource Acceleration: While not directly impacting resource acceleration, the Shadow Sliver’s moderate casting cost complements a mana curve well in aggressive sliver decks, ensuring that your slivers can be played in succession without significant delays.

Instant Speed: Although not an instant itself, the Shadow Sliver benefits greatly from the instant speed nature of many sliver-tribal support cards. This synergy allows for swift and unexpected combat tricks, granting your slivers shadow to avoid blockers or disrupt your opponent’s strategy at crucial moments.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: The Shadow Sliver demands you to discard another card, a trade-off that can be challenging when your hand is already depleted or each card is crucial to your strategy.

Specific Mana Cost: Requiring both colorless and black mana, the Shadow Sliver can sometimes be difficult to cast, especially in multicolored decks where mana resources must be carefully balanced.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a mana cost that may be considered steep for its abilities, players might find other alternatives that provide additional value or versatility for the same or lower investment.


Reasons to Include Shadow Sliver in Your Collection

Versatility: Shadow Sliver grants all Slivers on the battlefield shadow, making them virtually unblockable except by creatures with the same ability. This flexibility allows it to elevate the offensive potential of Sliver decks across various game scenarios.

Combo Potential: When paired with shroud, indestructible, or poisonous Slivers, Shadow Sliver can help create devastating combinations that greatly enhance your board state and can lead you to quick victories.

Meta-Relevance: With shifting metagames, Shadow Sliver can adapt to environments where combat blockers are prevalent. As board states get cluttered, giving your Slivers the ability to slip through defenses becomes increasingly valuable.


How to beat

Navigating the nuances of the versatile battlefield of Magic: The Gathering can be complex, particularly when confronting a Shadow Sliver. This unique Sliver variant grants all Sliver creatures you control with shadow, allowing them to be unblockable except by creatures with shadow. Facing a deck enhanced by Shadow Sliver can be tricky, but not insurmountable.

The key is to disrupt the synergy that Slivers are famous for. Board wipes are incredibly effective against Sliver-heavy decks. By using cards like Wrath of God or Damnation, you can clear the board of all creatures, including those elusive Shadow Slivers. Another strategy is to target the Slivers with pinpoint removal before the shadow ability can be distributed, using spells such as Path to Exile or Fatal Push.

Moreover, you may turn the tide by employing creatures with reach or abilities that specifically interact with creatures that can’t be blocked. This way, even as the Slivers attempt to slip through defenses, strategically placed blockers or specialized removal spells can negate their advantages. Maneuvering the match in your favor against the daunting Shadow Sliver becomes possible with thoughtful deck building and timely plays.


BurnMana Recommendations

Investing in a Shadow Sliver can be a game-changer for MTG enthusiasts aiming to outmaneuver opponents with tactful plays. Its ability to grant shadow to all Slivers on the field propels your strategy, making your army nearly unblockable. While it poses challenges with its discard requirement and specific mana cost, the strategic depth it adds to Sliver decks can’t be ignored. Whether you’re into relentless attacks or finding that perfect synergy, Shadow Sliver might just be the card that eclipses the competition. Ready for deeper insights? Walk through the shadows with us and claim victory in your next MTG endeavor.


Cards like Shadow Sliver

Shadow Sliver taps into a unique aspect of sliver creatures in Magic: The Gathering by granting all slivers on the battlefield shadow, an ability that allows them to only block or be blocked by creatures with the same ability. This characteristic resembles the mechanic of Ghostflame Sliver, which gives all slivers the ability to be colorless, circumventing many targeting restrictions.

When compared to Quick Sliver, another card in the vast sliver arsenal, Shadow Sliver offers a more defensive advantage, while Quick Sliver is about flexibility, allowing sliver spells to be cast as though they had flash. Although both cards elevate the sliver tribe’s game plan, their roles in a deck are quite different, with Quick Sliver favoring a more aggressive, responsive playstyle.

Looking at Crystalline Sliver, which bestows all slivers with shroud, the protection it offers is substantial, creating a formidable barrier against targeted spells. While Shadow Sliver is about evasion, Crystalline Sliver ensures resilience, showcasing the diversity and adaptability sliver decks are renowned for within the Magic: The Gathering community. In evaluating the strategic alignment, Shadow Sliver has its niche, enabling elusive attacks that are hard to intercept.

Ghostflame Sliver - MTG Card versions
Quick Sliver - MTG Card versions
Crystalline Sliver - MTG Card versions
Ghostflame Sliver - MTG Card versions
Quick Sliver - MTG Card versions
Crystalline Sliver - MTG Card versions

Cards similar to Shadow Sliver by color, type and mana cost

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Wall of Water - MTG Card versions
Prodigal Sorcerer - MTG Card versions
Apprentice Wizard - MTG Card versions
Homarid - MTG Card versions
Daring Apprentice - MTG Card versions
Time Elemental - MTG Card versions
Rootwater Shaman - MTG Card versions
Wind Drake - MTG Card versions
Volrath's Shapeshifter - MTG Card versions
Stronghold Biologist - MTG Card versions
Quicksilver Wall - MTG Card versions
Wall of Air - MTG Card versions
Phantom Warrior - MTG Card versions
Wormfang Drake - MTG Card versions
Animating Faerie // Bring to Life - MTG Card versions
Ghost of Ramirez DePietro - MTG Card versions
Grazilaxx, Illithid Scholar - MTG Card versions
Queen of Ice // Rage of Winter - MTG Card versions
Mistform Warchief - MTG Card versions
Blind Phantasm - MTG Card versions

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Shadow Sliver MTG card by a specific set like Time Spiral and Secret Lair Drop, 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 Shadow Sliver and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Shadow Sliver Magic the Gathering card was released in 2 different sets between 2006-10-06 and 2019-12-02. Illustrated by Warren Mahy.

#ReleasedNameCodeSymbolNumberFrameLayoutBorderArtist
12006-10-06Time SpiralTSP 762003NormalBlackWarren Mahy
22019-12-02Secret Lair DropSLD 6242015NormalBlackWarren Mahy

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Shadow Sliver has restrictions

FormatLegality
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
PaupercommanderLegal
ModernLegal
OathbreakerLegal
PauperLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
PredhLegal

Rules and information

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

Date Text
2013-07-01 Abilities that Slivers grant, as well as power/toughness boosts, are cumulative. However, for some abilities, like flying, having more than one instance of the ability doesn’t provide any additional benefit.
2013-07-01 If the creature type of a Sliver changes so it’s no longer a Sliver, it will no longer be affected by its own ability. Its ability will continue to affect other Sliver creatures.
2021-03-19 If an attacking creature has multiple evasion abilities, such as shadow and flying, a creature can block it only if that creature satisfies all of the appropriate evasion abilities.
2021-03-19 Multiple instances of shadow on the same creature are redundant.
2021-03-19 Once a creature has been blocked, that creature remains blocked and will deal and be dealt combat damage even if it gains or loses shadow or if the blocking creature gains or loses shadow.

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