Walker of the Grove MTG Card

Provides board advantage with a 4/4 token upon exiting, ensuring a continued presence. Evoke offers early-game presence or a surprise factor later, maximizing mana resources. While powerful, it requires careful resource management due to its echo cost.
Card setsReleased in 5 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost8
RarityUncommon
TypeCreature — Elemental
Abilities Evoke
Power 7
Toughness 7

Text of card

When Walker of the Grove leaves play, put a 4/4 green Elemental creature token into play. Evoke (You may play this spell for its evoke cost. If you do, it's sacrificed when it comes into play.)

Cards like Walker of the Grove

Walker of the Grove holds an interesting spot in the world of MTG creature cards, offering a blend of power, size, and resilience. When comparing this creature to others like it, Penumbra Wurm immediately springs to mind. Both cards leave behind a green creature token upon death. However, Walker of the Grove has the advantage with its leave-the-battlefield ability, granting a sizeable 4/4 token even if it was exiled or bounced back to hand.

Another card that presents a similar impact is Jungle Weaver, which also carries a large body. Although Jungle Weaver can cycle to draw a card, it doesn’t match the token-generating ability of Walker of the Grove. Additionally, looking at Thragtusk, we see a creature that also leaves behind a token, specifically a 3/3 Beast. It shines with its life-gain ability, but it’s smaller in size than what the Walker ensures upon its departure.

Ultimately, when picking between these options, Walker of the Grove stands tall as a go-to choice for players aiming to maintain board presence even after their creature has been dealt with, solidifying its unique role in MTG’s pantheon of creature cards.

Penumbra Wurm - MTG Card versions
Jungle Weaver - MTG Card versions
Thragtusk - MTG Card versions
Penumbra Wurm - MTG Card versions
Jungle Weaver - MTG Card versions
Thragtusk - MTG Card versions

Card Pros

Card Advantage: With Walker of the Grove, when it leaves the battlefield, you get a 4/4 green Elemental creature token. This essentially provides you with two substantial bodies for the price of one card, helping you to stay ahead in terms of presence on the board.

Resource Acceleration: Walker of the Grove costs a hefty eight mana, but it can also be evoked for just four mana. This flexibility can accelerate your game plan, giving you a significant creature early on, or a token later without having to invest all your resources at once.

Instant Speed: While Walker of the Grove itself doesn’t operate at instant speed, its evoke cost can be utilized in a way that it synergizes well with other cards that can manipulate it or benefit from creatures entering or leaving the battlefield within the same turn, adding a layer of surprise and adaptability to your strategy.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: One of the trade-offs when playing Walker of the Grove is its echo cost. If you can’t pay the echo, you’ll have to sacrifice it, which can be detrimental to your board position and resource management.

Specific Mana Cost: Walker of the Grove demands a heavy investment towards green mana, requiring a total of seven mana including four green. This can be restrictive and may not align well with multicolored or mana-flexible strategies.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With its hefty total cost, Walker of the Grove competes for a slot with other high-impact creatures and spells. Players often have to weigh its inclusion against other potent options that might provide more immediate or versatile benefits to the game.

Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Walker of the Grove is a dynamic card that can be a formidable presence in a variety of Green-based decks. It’s designed to work well in ramp strategies that prioritize bringing large creatures onto the battlefield. Its flexibility comes from the fact that when it leaves the battlefield, a 4/4 green Elemental creature token is created, ensuring you’re never left without a substantial presence on the board.

Combo Potential: This card can be particularly synergistic with effects that capitalize on creatures entering or leaving the battlefield. Combine Walker of the Grove with sacrifice outlets or flicker effects to repeatedly take advantage of its leave-the-battlefield ability, amassing a legion of Elemental tokens to overrun opponents.

Meta-Relevance: In metas where attrition and long games are the norms, this card can shine. The looming threat of an additional 4/4 token can complicate opponents’ combat math and removal decisions. Especially in a commander or casual format, where the ebb and flow of creatures can dictate the pace of play, Walker of the Grove holds its own.

How to beat

Walker of the Grove is an intriguing card in MTG, known for its leaves-the-battlefield effect that creates a 4/4 green Elemental creature token. For those looking to outplay an opponent wielding this card, the key is disruption and timing. Effective strategies include countering Walker of the Grove before it enters the battlefield or utilizing removal spells that can exile it before the leave-the-battlefield ability triggers.

One potent tactic is leveraging cards like Path to Exile or Swords to Plowshares, which not only manage the threat before its ability can be impactful but also prevent the token creation altogether. Players might also resort to bounce spells, enforcing multiple casting costs on the opponent and disrupting their board presence. Another approach is to use graveyard hate cards that can remove Walker of the Grove from the game after it dies, nullifying its ability when it tries to leave play.

In essence, the objective is to recognize the pivotal moments when Walker of the Grove can swing the game and meticulously plan the counters. Understanding the nuances of these interactions ensures players stand a better chance at maintaining control of the game state against this formidable foe.

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Walker of the Grove MTG card by a specific set like Morningtide and Modern Masters, 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 Walker of the Grove and other MTG cards:

TCGPlayerBUY NOW
BurnMana is an official partner of TCGPlayer
Continue exploring other sealed products in Amazon
See MTG Products

Printings

The Walker of the Grove Magic the Gathering card was released in 5 different sets between 2008-02-01 and 2018-12-07. Illustrated by Todd Lockwood.

#ReleasedNameCodeSymbolNumberFrameLayoutBorderArtist
12008-02-01MorningtideMOR 1382003NormalBlackTodd Lockwood
22013-06-07Modern MastersMMA 1732003NormalBlackTodd Lockwood
32013-11-01Commander 2013C13 1752003NormalBlackTodd Lockwood
42016-09-02Duel Decks: Nissa vs. Ob NixilisDDR 242015NormalBlackTodd Lockwood
52018-12-07Ultimate MastersUMA 1912015NormalBlackTodd Lockwood

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Walker of the Grove has restrictions

FormatLegality
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
PaupercommanderLegal
ModernLegal
OathbreakerLegal
PauperLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
PredhLegal
PennyLegal

Rules and information

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

Date Text
2008-04-01 Effects that cause you to pay more or less to cast a spell will cause you to pay that much more or less while casting it for its evoke cost, too. That’s because they affect the total cost of the spell, not its mana cost.
2008-04-01 Evoke doesn’t change the timing of when you can cast the creature that has it. If you could cast that creature spell only when you could cast a sorcery, the same is true for cast it with evoke.
2008-04-01 If a creature spell cast with evoke changes controllers before it enters the battlefield, it will still be sacrificed when it enters the battlefield. Similarly, if a creature cast with evoke changes controllers after it enters the battlefield but before its sacrifice ability resolves, it will still be sacrificed. In both cases, the controller of the creature at the time it left the battlefield will control its leaves-the-battlefield ability.
2008-04-01 If you’re casting a spell “without paying its mana cost,” you can’t use its evoke ability.
2008-04-01 When you cast a spell by paying its evoke cost, its mana cost doesn’t change. You just pay the evoke cost instead.
2008-04-01 Whether evoke’s sacrifice ability triggers when the creature enters the battlefield depends on whether the spell’s controller chose to pay the evoke cost, not whether they actually paid it (if it was reduced or otherwise altered by another ability, for example).