Storm Elemental MTG Card


Card setsReleased in 3 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost6
RarityUncommon
TypeCreature — Elemental
Abilities Flying
Power 3
Toughness 4

Key Takeaways

  1. Storm Elemental offers card advantage and enhances turns by increasing hand options and bolstering strategies.
  2. Flexibly played at instant speed, it allows players to respond to opponents and manage resources effectively.
  3. Demands specific mana and brings a discard requirement, which can challenge deck resource management.

Text of card

Flying o U: Remove the top card of your library from the game to tap target creature with flying. o U: Remove the top card of your library from the game. If that card is a snow-covered land, Storm Elemental gets +1/+1 until end of turn.


Card Pros

Card Advantage: Storm Elemental enables you to tap additional cards for a potentially more decisive turn. This can increase your hand options, bolstering your strategies.

Resource Acceleration: If used strategically, this card can lead to a surge in mana usage, potentially allowing you to cast more spells or utilize activated abilities more effectively during critical game moments.

Instant Speed: The ability to play Storm Elemental at instant speed gives you the flexibility to react to your opponent’s actions. This means you can better manage your resources while keeping your adversaries guessing about your next move.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: One of the drawbacks of the Storm Elemental card is the discard clause attached to its ability. This requirement means you must part with another card from your hand, potentially depleting your resources and decreasing your in-game options.

Specific Mana Cost: Storm Elemental demands a particular combination of mana to be played, namely blue mana. This specificity can pose a challenge in multicolor decks that might struggle to produce enough of this type of mana at the right time, impacting the card’s playability and flexibility.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: The card demands a substantial mana investment, which can be quite steep when weighing its abilities against other options. Players often evaluate the cost-to-benefit ratio, and in some cases, Storm Elemental may not make the cut, especially when more efficient alternatives are available that allow players to optimize their deck’s mana curve.


Reasons to Include Storm Elemental in Your Collection

Versatility: Storm Elemental offers a level of flexibility that makes it a suitable addition to decks focused on manipulating the weather or those requiring creatures that can consistently adapt to various board states.

Combo Potential: This creature’s ability to alter its power based on the number of blue mana spent can work wonders in combos, especially when paired with cards that generate substantial blue mana or spells that benefit from high power creatures.

Meta-Relevance: Given its unique mechanics and the importance of creatures in the current gameplay environment, Storm Elemental can be a clever inclusion to outmaneuver opponents who might not expect the sudden power shift this card can bring to the battlefield.


How to beat

Storm Elemental is a card that can create turbulent winds in any MTG game with its ability to shift the tides of battle through its prowess in manipulating the weather on the battlefield. To overcome this tempestuous foe, one must approach strategically, keeping a close eye on both your own board state and the resources at hand. Cards that can remove creatures irrespective of their size or abilities are particularly effective. Direct removal spells are your best allies when dealing with Storm Elemental. Consider employing instant-speed spells like Swords to Plowshares or Path to Exile that can banish the creature before it accumulates too much power on the board.

Another tactic is to starve Storm Elemental of its nourishment; without lands to fuel its ability, it’s just a gentle breeze. Counteract land-based strategies by controlling the number of lands your opponent can play and focus on land destruction if needed. Don’t forget to maintain creature superiority – by keeping the Storm Elemental outnumbered, you reduce its chances to make a significant impact. Finally, make sure to save resources for the key moment to act, and Storm Elemental’s roar will quickly diminish to a whisper under your calculated plays.


Cards like Storm Elemental

Storm Elemental holds a niche space among Magic: The Gathering creatures, especially when looking at its elemental kin. In comparison to other elemental cards, Storm Elemental stands out with its ability to manipulate blockable conditions on a whim. It shares a thematic link with cards like Ball Lightning, characterized by a brief but powerful board presence. However, Ball Lightning offers direct damage potential the turn it comes into play, where our subject card requires buildup.

Looking at cards such as Scourge of Fleets, we note a similarity in the strong board impact ability, where Scourge of Fleets returns opposing creatures to the hand dependent on the number of islands you control, while Storm Elemental utilizes the weather to prevent creatures from blocking. Both offer a way to dominate combats but excel under different conditions. Then there’s Cloudthresher, delivering an immediate effect of damage to flying creatures and an option to flash in as a surprise, quite dissimilar to Storm Elemental’s approach of shaping the battlefield over time.

Assessing elemental creatures across MTG, Storm Elemental offers a unique approach to combat strategy. It may not have the immediate impact of some counterparts but possesses a distinct and tactical advantage in games that reward patience and weathering the storm.

Ball Lightning - The Dark (DRK)
Scourge of Fleets - Journey into Nyx Promos (PJOU)
Cloudthresher - Lorwyn (LRW)

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Storm Elemental MTG card by a specific set like Alliances and Coldsnap Theme Decks, 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 Storm Elemental and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Storm Elemental Magic the Gathering card was released in 3 different sets between 1996-06-10 and 2008-09-22. Illustrated by John Matson.

#ReleaseNameCodeSymbolNumberFrameLayoutBorderArtist
11996-06-10AlliancesALL 371993normalblackJohn Matson
22006-07-21Coldsnap Theme DecksCST 372003normalblackJohn Matson
32008-09-22Masters Edition IIME2 681997normalblackJohn Matson

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Storm Elemental has restrictions

FormatLegality
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
PaupercommanderRestricted
OathbreakerLegal
PremodernLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
PredhLegal
PennyLegal

Rules and information

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

DateText
2008-10-01 Even though the two activated abilities have the same cost, they’re separate. You choose which one you’re activating before you exile the top card of your library (and see what it is).
2008-10-01 If you activate Storm Elemental’s third ability and the exiled card is not a snow land, the ability has no effect.

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