Tornado Elemental MTG Card

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Tornado Elemental comes into play with immense board impact. Not only does it have the potential to clear multiple flying creatures your opponent controls, but it also serves as a significant threat itself. This grants card advantage by dealing with several of your opponent’s threats with a single card and providing you with a strong presence on the field.

Resource Acceleration: Although Tornado Elemental doesn’t directly accelerate resources in terms of mana, its presence can rapidly accelerate the game in your favor. Deploying this card forces your opponent to find answers quickly, potentially depleting their hand and resources – indirectly accelerating your path to victory.

Instant Speed: Despite Tornado Elemental not being an instant itself, its ability to deal with a swath of flying creatures instantaneously upon entry shifts the momentum at a crucial instant. Its combat damage prevention ability can also be a game-changer during instant-speed interactions in combat, allowing you to dictate the flow of battle.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Playing Tornado Elemental requires that you have a heavy green presence in your mana base, which may not always be optimal if you are running multiple colors. It can be a setback if your deck doesn’t consistently produce the required green mana.

Specific Mana Cost: Tornado Elemental comes with a specific and somewhat rigid mana cost, demanding six mana including two green. This can pose a limitation for decks that aren’t mono-green or that don’t have enough mana fixing to accommodate such a cost.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a seven total mana requirement, Tornado Elemental stands on the higher end of the mana curve. In competitive play, where speed and efficiency are crucial, the card may be too slow, especially when there are creatures with similar or better effects at a lower mana cost.

Reasons to Include Tornado Elemental in Your Collection

Versatility: Tornado Elemental is not confined to a single deck archetype. Its ability to sweep the board of flying creatures makes it an excellent choice for green decks needing a way to mitigate aerial threats.

Combo Potential: With its substantial 6/6 body, Tornado Elemental pairs well with effects that care about dealing damage or when you need a significant creature to apply pressure or block efficiently.

Meta-Relevance: In a game rich with flyers, including commanders or popular flying creatures, Tornado Elemental offers a tactical advantage. Its presence on the board could sway the outcome in matches where controlling the skies is crucial.

How to beat

Tornado Elemental is an intriguing creature card in MTG, known for its capacity to wipe out multiple flying creatures upon entering the battlefield. The key to overcoming this powerful force of nature is to focus on preventive measures. Counter spells like Negate or Essence Scatter can stop Tornado Elemental before it even hits the playfield, essentially neutralizing its devastating entrance ability.

Removal spells are another effective strategy. These can include targeted removal like Doom Blade or board clears such as Wrath of God, which can handle Tornado Elemental after it lands. Moreover, excluding your creatures from combat when Tornado Elemental attacks or utilizing abilities that grant indestructibility or protection from green, can limit the damage this colossal elemental brings to the table. Remember, the element of surprise and strategic preparation can be just as powerful as the mightiest storms in MTG. A well-timed counter or removal can turn the tide, leaving Tornado Elemental’s whirlwind of destruction nothing more than a gentle breeze.