Volrath, the Shapestealer MTG Card
| Mana cost | |
| Converted mana cost | 5 |
| Rarity | Mythic |
| Type | Legendary Creature — Phyrexian Shapeshifter |
| Released | 2019-08-23 |
| Set symbol | |
| Set name | Commander 2019 |
| Set code | C19 |
| Power | 7 |
| Toughness | 5 |
| Number | 51 |
| Frame | 2015 |
| Layout | Normal |
| Border | Black |
| Illustred by | Heonhwa Choe |
Key Takeaways
- Volrath offers card advantage by cloning high-value creatures without expending extra cards.
- Activating at instant speed, it allows for reactive play and strategic battlefield adaptation.
- Requires strategic deckbuilding due to specific mana needs and high casting cost.
Text of card
At the beginning of combat on your turn, put a -1/-1 counter on up to one target creature. : Until your next turn, Volrath, the Shapestealer becomes a copy of target creature with a counter on it, except it's 7/5 and it has this ability.
Card Pros
Card Advantage: Volrath the Shapestealer can potentially generate significant card advantage by using its ability to clone the best creatures on the battlefield. This means you can acquire the abilities of high-value targets without actually having to expend additional cards from your hand.
Resource Acceleration: By copying creatures that have mana abilities or other resource-generating effects, Volrath can bolster your mana pool or create other forms of in-game acceleration. This ability to shift roles depending on what the battlefield offers can lead to unexpected and powerful synergies.
Instant Speed: Volrath’s ability to become a copy of another target creature until your next turn can be activated at instant speed, which offers strategic flexibility. You can respond to your opponents’ moves by adapting Volrath’s abilities on the fly, creating dynamic lines of play that can disrupt your opponents’ strategies.
Card Cons
Discard Requirement: Volrath the Shapestealer necessitates that you have another creature on board to utilize its copying ability. This could be seen as a form of discard since you’re potentially sacrificing other creatures’ original plans or synergies to fuel Volrath’s power.
Specific Mana Cost: Tapping into Volrath’s abilities requires a specific mana mixture, including both green and blue mana. This can make it difficult to incorporate into decks that are not already running these colors, limiting its versatility in multicolored formats.
Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a casting cost of five mana, including three generic and one each of green and blue, Volrath the Shapestealer is a sizable investment. This may delay your game plan as you need to reach a significant mana threshold before you can put this shapeshifter into play.
Reasons to Include in Your Collection
Versatility: Volrath the Shapestealer can adapt to numerous types of decks due to its ability to become a copy of another creature on the board. This means it can become anything from a powerful finisher to a key combo piece depending on the state of play.
Combo Potential: With Volrath’s shape-shifting attribute, it can seamlessly integrate into combos, particularly in decks that exploit counters or activated abilities of creatures it copies. This opens up a myriad of strategic avenues and interactions that can surprise unsuspecting opponents.
Meta-Relevance: Volrath’s capacity to copy creatures with powerful abilities makes it relevant in many metagames. Whether you’re facing aggressive creature decks or going up against control archetypes, it has the potential to shift the tide of battle by using the best traits of creatures from either side of the field.
How to beat
Volrath the Shapestealer is a versatile and formidable creature in Magic: The Gathering, challenging players with its unique copying abilities. With the power to assume the form of other creatures and escalate threats on the battlefield, it takes strategic planning to counter it effectively. When dealing with Volrath, removal spells that exile are particularly effective as they prevent its return from the graveyard. Strategies such as graveyard hate can disrupt the recurring nature of Volrath’s mechanics.
Timing is crucial when playing against Volrath. Players must monitor the board closely and choose the right moment to act. It’s advisable to eliminate potential copy targets, limiting Volrath’s transformative options. Cards with hexproof or shroud can protect your key creatures from becoming Volrath’s duplicates. Moreover, constant board control and keeping a check on your own creature abilities that could be exploited by Volrath if copied are essential. Reducing the number of creatures you control could minimize the impact of Volrath’s power, while cards that prevent the activation of abilities can also circumvent its shapeshifting threat.
Ultimately, to outmaneuver Volrath the Shapestealer, players should aim for a proactive approach, focusing on disruption and removal strategies that bypass the benefits Volrath provides to the opponent.
BurnMana Recommendations
Mastering Volrath the Shapestealer is like unlocking a vault of strategic potential. Its chameleon-like abilities can redefine the battlefield, turning the tide in your favor with each cleverly executed transformation. If you’re intrigued by the prospect of commanding this dynamic shapeshifter, we encourage you to delve deeper. The nuances of mana balance, timing, and strategic cloning await your command. Tap into the synergy between Volrath and your deck’s ecosystem to unleash new levels of gameplay sophistication. Visit us for a deep dive into strategies that can help you leverage Volrath’s unique powers to their fullest.
Cards like Volrath, the Shapestealer
Volrath the Shapestealer emerges as a compelling choice among clone creatures in the vast universe of MTG. This unique card offers versatility similar to Lazav, the Multifarious, both enabling on-the-fly adaptation to the board state by copying other creatures. Yet, Volrath the Shapestealer distinguishes itself with the added advantage of not being confined to creatures in your own graveyard but also those on the battlefield, offering more dynamic play options.
Similarly, with The Mimeoplasm, we are introduced to another card that excels in mimicking others. The Mimeoplasm not only copies creatures but also merges them by adopting one creature’s form and another’s size, creating a potentially more overpowering entity. Unlike Volrath, however, it lacks the repeating versatility each turn. Then there’s Progenitor Mimic, capable of not only copying a creature but also creating token copies turn after turn. However, Progenitor Mimic’s lack of immunity to removal each combat is where Volrath the Shapestealer stands superior with its protective color-changing feature.
In evaluating these similar cards, the flexibility and defensive capabilities of Volrath the Shapestealer position it as an incredibly strategic card, particularly in Commander games where adaptability can lead to overwhelming control over the course of a match.
Cards similar to Volrath, the Shapestealer by color, type and mana cost
Where to buy
If you're looking to purchase Volrath, the Shapestealer MTG card by a specific set like Commander 2019, 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 Volrath, the Shapestealer and other MTG cards:
- eBay
- TCG Player
- Card Kingdom
- Card Market
- Star City Games
- CoolStuffInc
- MTG Mint Card
- Hareruya
- Troll and Toad
- ABU Games
- Card Hoarder Magic Online
- MTGO Traders Magic Online
See MTG Products
Legalities
Magic the Gathering formats where Volrath, the Shapestealer has restrictions
| Format | Legality |
|---|---|
| Commander | Legal |
| Legacy | Legal |
| Oathbreaker | Legal |
| Vintage | Legal |
| Duel | Legal |
Rules and information
The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering Volrath, the Shapestealer card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.
| Date | Text |
|---|---|
| 2019-08-23 | Activating Volrath’s last ability causes it to lose its first ability until your next turn, so if you activate it before the beginning of combat step, it won’t trigger during that turn. Players can cast instant spells and activate abilities (such as the second ability) during the beginning of combat step after that first ability has triggered or resolved but before attackers are chosen in the declare attackers step. |
| 2019-08-23 | If Volrath becomes a copy of a creature whose power and toughness are defined by an ability (usually printed as */* or similar), Volrath doesn’t copy the ability that defines its power and toughness. Volrath remains a 7/5 creature. |
| 2019-08-23 | If Volrath becomes a copy of a face-down creature, Volrath becomes a 7/5 creature with no color, cost, or creature type. Volrath is still face up. |
| 2019-08-23 | If Volrath becomes a copy of a legendary creature you control, you’ll put one of them into your graveyard. |
| 2019-08-23 | If Volrath copies a creature that’s copying something else, it will become whatever the target is copying. |
| 2019-08-23 | If Volrath copies a creature the same turn Volrath enters the battlefield, you can’t attack with it or use any of its abilities (if it gains any) unless the copied creature has haste. |
| 2019-08-23 | If Volrath copies a creature with an ability that can be activated only once each turn (such as Chainer, Nightmare Adept), you can activate that ability once. If Volrath then becomes a copy of that same creature, you can activate that ability another time, and so on. |
| 2019-08-23 | If a creature has +1/+1 counters and -1/-1 counters on it, state-based actions remove the same number of each so that it has only one of those kinds of counters on it. This may cause the creature to no longer have any counters on it. |
| 2019-08-23 | If an effect begins to apply to Volrath before it becomes a copy of another creature, that effect will continue to apply. |
| 2019-08-23 | If another object becomes a copy of Volrath, it has the ability to become a copy of something else and it’s 7/5. |
| 2019-08-23 | If the target creature is a token, Volrath copies the original characteristics of that token as stated by the effect that created the token. Volrath doesn’t become a token in this case. |
| 2019-08-23 | Volrath copies the printed values of the target creature, plus any copy effects that have been applied to it. It won’t copy counters on that creature. It also won’t copy any effects that have changed its power, toughness, types, color, or so on. Notably, it won’t copy effects that made the target become a creature if it’s not normally a creature. |
