Burr Grafter MTG Card

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	4
Rarity	Common
Type	Creature — Spirit
Abilities	Soulshift
Released	2004-10-01
Set symbol
Set name	Champions of Kamigawa
Set code	CHK
Power	2
Toughness	2
Number	203
Frame	2003
Layout	Normal
Border	Black
Illustred by	Heather Hudson

Key Takeaways

Burr Grafter grants recurring value, retrieving creatures from the graveyard to your hand.
Its instant speed can disrupt opponents’ actions, providing a strategic edge in play.
While potent, associated costs and mana requirements may limit Burr Grafter’s versatility.

Text of card

Sacrifice Burr Grafter: Target creature gets +2/+2 until end of turn. Soulshift 3 (When this is put into a graveyard from play, you may return target Spirit card with converted mana cost 3 or less from your graveyard to your hand.)

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Burr Grafter enables you to generate card advantage by bringing creatures back from your graveyard to your hand. This recurring value can sway the game in your favor over time.

Resource Acceleration: When paired with sacrifice mechanics, Burr Grafter can provide an essential mana boost. Sacrificing creatures for greater effects can accelerate resource access, impacting the pace of the game.

Instant Speed: As an instant, Burr Grafter can be played at the most opportune times, possibly saving your creatures during combat or in response to an opponent’s removal, thus maintaining board presence and momentum.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Utilizing Burr Grafter’s ability comes with the price of discarding a card. This can put you at a disadvantage, particularly if your hand is already depleting and every card counts.

Specific Mana Cost: Burr Grafter requires not just any mana, but a precise blend including green. This necessity could potentially constrain its inclusion to decks that are heavy in green or have a reliable mana-fixing base.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a mana cost that may be deemed steep by some players, Burr Grafter demands a significant investment. When assessed against other options available in the game, players might find alternative creatures or abilities that provide similar benefits without the hefty mana expenditure.

Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Burr Grafter can seamlessly adapt to a variety of deck types, serving as a useful creature with useful abilities in both offensive and defensive roles. Its inclusion can support decks looking for a solid two-drop creature and those that need flexible sacrifice outlets.

Combo Potential: Thanks to its ability to sacrifice another creature for a benefit, Burr Grafter can play a key part in combos, particularly in decks that thrive on creature synergy and sacrifice mechanics to power their strategy.

Meta-Relevance: As the game evolves, a card like Burr Grafter can become increasingly important, especially if the meta favors decks that capitalize on efficient creature play and the loss-of-life mechanic it can utilize.

How to beat

Burr Grafter is an interesting creature card that brings resilience to the battlefield with its ability to give a creature +2/+2 until end of turn. Integrating this ability into your deck adds strategic depth, much like the bolstering effects found in other tricks such as Giant Growth or Stonewood Invocation. Yet, these effects alone do not make Burr Grafter insurmountable.

Countering Burr Grafter effectively involves a few tactical approaches. Removal spells like Doom Blade or Path to Exile can be key to dealing with this creature before its ability becomes relevant. Alternatively, instant-speed interaction, such as countering it upon cast with Essence Scatter, can nullify its impact entirely. If you’re facing a Burr Grafter on the board, it’s essential to either address it before it can affect combat or ensure you have the tools to overpower the temporary buff it provides.

In essence, Burr Grafter requires an answer to its trickery, but it’s not unbeatable. With the right removal or counters, it becomes just another manageable aspect of the complex and thrilling game that is MTG, where strategy and timely reaction are paramount to securing victory.

Cards like Burr Grafter

In the realm of creature cards within Magic: The Gathering, Burr Grafter stands out as a member of the spirit creature class. It draws a fair comparison to other cards like Sakura-Tribe Elder, both sharing the same objective of player benefits at the cost of sacrificing the creature. While Burr Grafter provides a shield in the form of life gain, Sakura-Tribe Elder allows you to ramp up by fetching a basic land card from your deck.

Another card worth mentioning alongside Burr Grafter is Kitchen Finks. Both cards offer life gain benefits, with Kitchen Finks potentially doing it twice thanks to its persist ability. Burr Grafter, however, offers added versatility by being able to boost another creature’s toughness. This can be particularly valuable in combat or to protect key creatures from damage-based removal. Spore Frog is also in the conversation, offering a repeatable fog effect by sacrificing itself, which can stall aggressive opponents, although it doesn’t provide the life gain or creature buff that Burr Grafter does.

Overall, what makes Burr Grafter a competitor in its category is the combination of life gain and combat influence that can make a notable impact on the battlefield, showing its unique stance among MTG creatures that offer sacrificial benefits.

Cards similar to Burr Grafter by color, type and mana cost

Ulvenwald Oddity // Ulvenwald Behemoth - MTG Card versions

Viridian Lorebearers - MTG Card versions

Monkey Monkey Monkey - MTG Card versions

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Burr Grafter MTG card by a specific set like Champions of Kamigawa, 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 Burr Grafter and other MTG cards: