Yarok's Wavecrasher MTG Card

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	4
Rarity	Uncommon
Type	Creature — Elemental
Released	2019-07-12
Set symbol
Set name	Core Set 2020
Set code	M20
Power	4
Toughness	4
Number	81
Frame	2015
Layout	Normal
Border	Black
Illustred by	Randy Vargas

Key Takeaways

Gives second life to creatures with valuable enter-the-battlefield effects, enhancing your strategic options.
Has specific mana requirements, best suited for blue-green decks, limiting its versatility in other color builds.
Can be costly with a four-mana investment, potentially slowing down early game momentum.

Text of card

When Yarok's Wavecrasher enters the battlefield, return another creature you control to its owner's hand.

"Yarok's waters rush and rage Where armies bled into the sand." —*Lament for Bala Ged*, stanza 2

Card Pros

Card Advantage: When Yarok’s Wavecrasher enters the battlefield, it can return another creature you control to your hand, essentially rescuing it from an unfavourable board state or reusing valuable enter-the-battlefield effects.

Resource Acceleration: This functionality can ramp your game play by enabling combo plays or setting up a string of actions that provide a strategic advantage, leveraging the creature returned to your hand as a fresh resource.

Instant Speed: While Yarok’s Wavecrasher is not an instant itself, the flexibility it provides can be synergized with instant-speed spells or abilities. The tactical retreat it offers aligns well with a strategy that requires versatility and reactive play.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: The ability of Yarok’s Wavecrasher necessitates returning another creature you control to your hand, which can set you back in terms of board presence. This return mechanic can be particularly disruptive if you don’t have expendable creatures or if the creatures in play are critical to your strategy.

Specific Mana Cost: This creature card requires both blue and green mana, making it exclusively useful in decks that can reliably produce both types of mana. Players running mono-colored or color-limited decks will find it challenging to accommodate Yarok’s Wavecrasher.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a casting cost of four mana, including one green and one blue, Yarok’s Wavecrasher might be considered a bit costly for its stats and effect. There are other creatures or spells in MTG with a lower mana cost that provide equal or greater immediate impact on the game, thus potentially offering better value.

Reasons to Include Yarok’s Wavecrasher in Your Collection

Versatility: Yarok’s Wavecrasher excels in its flexibility within decks built around entering the battlefield effects. The ability to return another creature to your hand not only protects your valuable assets from removal but also allows you to reuse those vital enter-the-battlefield triggers.

Combo Potential: This Elemental offers substantial combo potential in decks that capitalize on bouncing creatures for value. When paired with creatures that have powerful enter-the-battlefield benefits or with cards that take advantage of creatures entering or leaving the battlefield, Yarok’s Wavecrasher can become the linchpin of intricate and powerful in-game interactions.

Meta-Relevance: With metagames that often include various forms of removal or board wipes, having the capability to rescue a key creature from an imminent threat, only to redeploy it for an additional benefit, can keep you ahead of the competition. Yarok’s Wavecrasher provides this tactical advantage, making it a suitable consideration for decks that face a constantly evolving competitive landscape.

How to beat

Yarok’s Wavecrasher enters the battlefield as an Elemental with an ability that can disrupt your strategy by returning another creature you control to your hand. To effectively combat this card, it becomes crucial to minimize the value your opponent can derive from this return effect. Employing cards that negate abilities or using instant speed removal can catch your opponent off guard, effectively removing the creature before its ability has a chance to trigger. Alternatively, strike a pre-emptive approach by limiting the number of viable targets for the Wavecrasher through controlled board presence.

This strategy ensures the Wavecrasher’s entrance is less impactful. Another effective tactic includes applying pressure to force opponents to play Yarok’s Wavecrasher defensively, thus utilizing it as an expensive blocker rather than an offensive asset. It’s about understanding the tempo of your opponent’s deck and playing around the bounce mechanic that this card brings to the table.

Remember, Yarok’s Wavecrasher can be a formable opponent, but with the right strategy and a well-timed response, you can mitigate its influence and maintain dominance on the battlefield, securing your path to victory.

Cards like Yarok's Wavecrasher

Yarok’s Wavecrasher enters the vast panorama of return-to-hand creatures in MTG with a unique angle. It resembles cards like Man-o’-War, commonly used to bounce an opponent’s creature to their hand. The Wavecrasher shifts this paradigm by targeting your own creatures instead, enabling reactivation of enter-the-battlefield (ETB) effects that can be pivotal in the game.

In a similar category, we find Aether Adept, another creature with the ability to return creatures to hand upon entering the battlefield. However, it restricts the user to return a creature an opponent controls, limiting strategic play based on your own board state. Then there’s Roaring Primadox, which obliges you to return a creature you control to your hand at each upkeep, providing a recurring advantage but less control over the timing.

Yarok’s Wavecrasher boasts a specific synergy with decks that capitalize on ETB effects, offering repeated value that neither Aether Adept nor Roaring Primadox can provide as consistently. In a world where maximizing the utility of every card is critical, Yarok’s Wavecrasher offers a distinct and valuable role in ETB-focused decks in MTG.

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Yarok's Wavecrasher MTG card by a specific set like Core Set 2020, 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 Yarok's Wavecrasher and other MTG cards:

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Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Yarok's Wavecrasher has restrictions

Format	Legality
Historicbrawl	Legal
Historic	Legal
Legacy	Legal
Paupercommander	Restricted
Oathbreaker	Legal
Gladiator	Legal
Pioneer	Legal
Commander	Legal
Modern	Legal
Vintage	Legal
Duel	Legal
Explorer	Legal
Penny	Legal
Timeless	Legal

Rules and information

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

Date	Text
2019-07-12	If you control no other creatures when the triggered ability resolves, you simply don’t return anything. There’s no penalty for being unable to do so.