Crystalline Crawler MTG Card


Card setsReleased in 4 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost4
RarityRare
TypeArtifact Creature — Construct
Abilities Converge
Power 1
Toughness 1

Key Takeaways

  1. Acts as both a mana accelerator and storage, enhancing players’ strategic options.
  2. Particularly effective in multicolored decks, aiding in mana consistency and variety.
  3. Its removal can be tactically timed to mitigate its utility and maintain control.

Text of card

Converge — Crystalline Crawler enters the battlefield with a +1/+1 counter on it for each color of mana spent to cast it. Remove a +1/+1 counter from Crystalline Crawler: Add one mana of any color to your mana pool. : Put a +1/+1 counter on Crystalline Crawler.


Card Pros

Card Advantage: Crystalline Crawler not only provides a steady flow of mana but can also accumulate charge counters that can translate into card advantage. With the ability to convert counters into colored mana, you can tap into additional resources for card draw spells or other effects, ensuring that you keep your hand filled with options.

Resource Acceleration: As a versatile mana source, Crystalline Crawler excels at speeding up your gameplay. By entering the battlefield and potentially gaining a counter for each color of mana spent on it, it acts as a boon for decks that require a diverse spread of mana sources. This mana dork moves you ahead by not just one, but potentially multiple steps in your mana curve.

Instant Speed: Although Crystalline Crawler itself is not an instant, its ability to generate mana at instant speed is incredibly valuable. This flexibility lets you react to your opponent’s moves by freeing up mana necessary for instant-speed responses, such as counterspells or removal, ensuring you’re never caught off guard.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: The Crystalline Crawler does not directly require a discard, but as a four-mana creature that hinges on accumulation of counters for mana production, any disruption leading to its removal can equate to a sizeable loss of invested cards and turns, making it a potential liability in a fast-paced game.

Specific Mana Cost: Deploying Crystalline Crawler demands a diverse mana base due to its convergent mana cost. Without access to all colors, you might not fully capitalize on its ability to stockpile counters, thus reducing its efficiency and synergy in your deck.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With an initial casting cost of four mana, Crystalline Crawler may be slower compared to other mana dorks or rocks. Aggressive and tempo strategies often prefer lower-cost accelerants, meaning the Crawler could be a cumbersome draw when speed is crucial.


Reasons to Include Crystalline Crawler in Your Collection

Versatility: Crystalline Crawler fits seamlessly into a myriad of strategies. Its color-fixing capability can make it a cornerstone in multicolored decks, ensuring that mana of any color is available when needed.

Combo Potential: This creature excels in decks that capitalize on +1/+1 counters and mana acceleration. Its ability to store and manipulate counters for an instantaneous mana boost opens up avenues for combo plays and can be the linchpin in executing complex strategies at optimal times.

Meta-Relevance: In a game where adaptability can turn the tides, Crystalline Crawler holds its ground. It thrives in environments where efficiency and flexibility reign supreme, making it relevant in various meta scenarios and an asset for responsive play.


How to beat

Crystalline Crawler is a unique creature in the world of Magic: The Gathering, offering players both mana storage and acceleration capabilities. It stands out due to its ability to manipulate mana across different phases of the game. With the Crawler, players can tap into a diverse mana pool, making it a linchpin in multicolored decks that demand a flexible mana base.

Tackling this mana dynamo requires strategic planning. One approach is employing instant-speed removal spells. By responding to the Crawler’s entry onto the battlefield with removal before it accumulates counters, its utility is severely hampered. Additionally, board wipes can be highly effective, wiping out accumulated counters regardless of how many are present. Ensuring sufficient answers to artifacts in your deck can also be crucial, as the Crawler is susceptible to artifact removal, allowing you to bypass its manifold abilities and maintain the flow of your own game plan.

Effectively shutting down Crystalline Crawler’s advantages relies on timing, precision, and having the right mix of countermeasures in your deck. By prioritizing its removal or countering its activations, you can preserve your standing in the game and diminish the extra value it provides to your opponent’s strategy.


BurnMana Recommendations

The magic of MTG is in building a deck that resonates with your playstyle, combining strategy, creativity, and a solid knowledge base. Crystalline Crawler illustrates the complexity of crafting a powerful mana base. Offering both acceleration and flexibility, it’s a vital component in decks that thrive on multicolored strategies. Whether it’s about fine-tuning your mana curve or seeking to outmaneuver opponents with intricate plays, adding this card to your collection could be the edge you need. Dive deeper into the synergies and dynamics of mana dorks like the Crawler with us, perfecting your deck one card at a time.


Cards like Crystalline Crawler

Crystalline Crawler showcases unique versatility in the world of MTG mana acceleration creatures. Comparable to well-known mana dorks like Birds of Paradise, Crystalline Crawler grants the benefit of producing multiple mana of any color. Whereas Birds of Paradise offers immediate mana diversity, the Crawler also doubles as a storage for mana, widening its tactical uses in multi-turn strategies.

Mana Reflection is another analogue, albeit an enchantment, that can double the mana from your permanents. However, it lacks the mobility and incrementing power of the Crystalline Crawler, which can be essential in direct creature confrontations or when facing enchantment disruption. Conversely, Gemstone Array bears a resemblance to Crystalline Crawler’s storage capability, allowing mana to be saved and unleashed when most advantageous. Yet it falls short in providing the additional body for combat or sacrifice synergies that the Crawler presents.

By examining the nuances and synergies each card offers, Crystalline Crawler maintains a strong position within MTG for its ability to both buff itself and manage resources across multiple phases, making it an asset for decks that thrive on flexibility and foresight in resource allocation.

Birds of Paradise - MTG Card versions
Mana Reflection - MTG Card versions
Gemstone Array - MTG Card versions
Birds of Paradise - MTG Card versions
Mana Reflection - MTG Card versions
Gemstone Array - MTG Card versions

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Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Crystalline Crawler MTG card by a specific set like Commander 2016 and Treasure Chest, 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 Crystalline Crawler and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Crystalline Crawler Magic the Gathering card was released in 4 different sets between 2016-11-11 and 2018-06-08. Illustrated by Jason Felix.

#ReleasedNameCodeSymbolNumberFrameLayoutBorderArtist
12016-11-11Commander 2016C16 542015NormalBlackJason Felix
22016-11-16Treasure ChestPZ2 692015NormalBlackJason Felix
32018-06-08Commander Anthology Volume IICM2 1832015NormalBlackJason Felix
42020-09-26The ListPLST C16-542015NormalBlackJason Felix

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Crystalline Crawler has restrictions

FormatLegality
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
OathbreakerLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal

Rules and information

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

Date Text
2016-11-08 If there are any alternative or additional costs to cast a spell with a converge ability, the mana spent to pay those costs will count. For example, if an effect makes Crystalline Crawler cost more to cast, you could pay to cast it and have it enter the battlefield with five +1/+1 counters.
2016-11-08 If you cast a spell with converge without spending any mana to cast it (perhaps because an effect allowed you to cast it without paying its mana cost), then the number of colors spent to cast it will be zero.
2016-11-08 The colors of mana are white, blue, black, red, and green. Colorless is not a color.
2016-11-08 Unless a spell or ability allows you to, you can’t choose to pay more mana for a spell with a converge ability just to spend more colors of mana. Likewise, if a spell or ability reduces the amount of mana it costs you to cast a spell with converge, you can’t ignore that cost reduction in order to spend more colors of mana.

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