Deranged Assistant MTG Card


Card setsReleased in 5 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost2
RarityCommon
TypeCreature — Human Wizard
Abilities Mill
Power 1
Toughness 1

Key Takeaways

  1. Deranged Assistant offers card advantage and strategic self-mill, beneficial for graveyard-utilizing strategies.
  2. As a mana dork, it accelerates gameplay by providing colorless mana, essential for quick setups.
  3. It aids instant-speed plays, increasing board state flexibility and responding capability.

Text of card

, Put the top card of your library into your graveyard: Add to your mana pool.

"Garl, adjust the slurry dispensers. Garl, fetch more corpses. Garl, quit crying and give me your brain tissue. If he doesn't stop being so rude, I'm quitting."


Card Pros

Card Advantage: Deranged Assistant helps sift through your deck by milling the top card of your library. This can strategically place key cards into your graveyard, aiding strategies that capitalize on this zone and potentially increasing your access to valuable resources.

Resource Acceleration: By tapping to add one colorless mana, Deranged Assistant grants you the ability to speed up your plays, ramping up to more significant spells ahead of schedule. This mana generation is particularly useful in formats that value quick setup and execution of game plans.

Instant Speed: While Deranged Assistant itself doesn’t operate at instant speed, the mana it provides can fund instant-speed interactions or end-of-turn plays, giving you the flexibility to respond to opponents’ moves while further developing your board state.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Deranged Assistant demands you to mill a card from the top of your library whenever you tap it for mana. This self-mill can sometimes backfire, particularly if you have no means to retrieve important cards from your graveyard.

Specific Mana Cost: Despite generating colorless mana which is versatile, Deranged Assistant itself requires blue mana to cast. This locks it into blue-centric or multicolored decks, limiting its universal appeal.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Although it costs only two mana, in a game where tempo is key, some players might prefer opting for lower-cost mana dorks or alternative ramp strategies that offer immediate impact or additional benefits.


Reasons to Include Deranged Assistant in Your Collection

Versatility: Deranged Assistant proves its usefulness in various deck builds, notably those that use the graveyard as a resource. Its ability to mill and produce mana simultaneously sets it up as a fundamental piece in self-mill strategies or decks that harness the power of the graveyard.

Combo Potential: This card effortlessly slots into combos that capitalize on creatures being put into the graveyard or extra mana being available. It enables plays that can swing a game in your favor through explosive turns or sustaining resources.

Meta-Relevance: If you are dealing with a meta where graveyard strategies are dominant, Deranged Assistant can become an enabler, providing you with the mana acceleration needed to keep pace or giving you the edge with an unexpected milling of key cards.


How to beat

Deranged Assistant adds strategic depth to any MTG player’s arsenal as a creature capable of fueling spells by milling cards and generating mana. Navigating around this card involves disrupting the synergy it creates within graveyard-reliant decks. One effective strategy is to target the assistant with removal before the player can utilize the milled cards or the mana boost. Countering it early is vital; otherwise, it can set up a potent engine for the opponent.

Graveyard hate also proves to be a vital component in stifling Deranged Assistant’s effectiveness. By employing cards that exile cards from the graveyard or prevent cards from going there in the first place, you can significantly reduce the value the assistant provides. Additionally, monitoring your opponent’s graveyard and keeping graveyard interaction cards at the ready can catch them off guard, nullifying potential combos or resurrecting effects they might have been relying on through the help of their diligent assistant.

Deranged Assistant may not present an immediate and obvious threat like other powerful creatures or spells, but letting it operate unchecked can result in a disadvantageous game state for you. Proactive measures and constant pressure will ensure that this card does not become the linchpin in your opponent’s strategy.


BurnMana Recommendations

Deranged Assistant isn’t just another cog in the MTG machine; it’s a versatile tool for decks that recognize the graveyard as more than a card cemetery. Whether it’s ramping up mana or intricately setting up your graveyard for grand plays, this card offers more than meets the eye. If you’re intrigued by the strategic depth it adds, especially in metagames accentuating graveyard tactics, delve deeper with us. There’s a wealth of knowledge waiting for you, and we’re here to guide you through harnessing the full potential of your collection, including the multifaceted Deranged Assistant. Dive into our resources for a comprehensive understanding and give your deck the underrated edge it deserves.


Cards like Deranged Assistant

Deranged Assistant adds a unique flavor to the array of mana acceleration creatures in Magic: The Gathering. It stands in comparison with utility creatures like Millikin, a fellow mana dork that also involves the top card of your library and adds {1} to your mana pool. Like Deranged Assistant, Millikin requires no tapping costs, but it does not provide the additional self-mill bonus that can be crucial for graveyard-centric decks.

Comparatively, there’s Hedron Crawler which offers guaranteed colorless mana without the milling aspect—making it a safer bet for decks that don’t interact with the graveyard. However, the self-milling synergy from Deranged Assistant can be indispensable, especially in archetypes that thrive on such mechanics, thus setting it apart from its non-mill counterparts.

In summary, while the Deranged Assistant may not be the definitive go-to for every deck seeking mana ramp, for those that capitalize on graveyard interactions, it can be incredibly efficient. It meshes the utility of mana acceleration with a strategic layer of self-mill, catering to a specific niche within Magic: The Gathering that surely appreciates its dual capability.

Millikin - MTG Card versions
Hedron Crawler - MTG Card versions
Millikin - Odyssey (ODY)
Hedron Crawler - Oath of the Gatewatch (OGW)

Cards similar to Deranged Assistant by color, type and mana cost

Vodalian Soldiers - MTG Card versions
Zephyr Falcon - MTG Card versions
Giant Albatross - MTG Card versions
Phantasmal Sphere - MTG Card versions
Skyshroud Condor - MTG Card versions
School of Piranha - MTG Card versions
Coral Merfolk - MTG Card versions
Wu Light Cavalry - MTG Card versions
Sea Eagle - MTG Card versions
Overtaker - MTG Card versions
Hazy Homunculus - MTG Card versions
Darting Merfolk - MTG Card versions
Thought Eater - MTG Card versions
Spellstutter Sprite - MTG Card versions
Sneaky Homunculus - MTG Card versions
Coral Eel - MTG Card versions
Storm Crow - MTG Card versions
Aquamoeba - MTG Card versions
Soratami Cloudskater - MTG Card versions
Minamo Sightbender - MTG Card versions
Vodalian Soldiers - Fallen Empires (FEM)
Zephyr Falcon - Fourth Edition (4ED)
Giant Albatross - Homelands (HML)
Phantasmal Sphere - Alliances (ALL)
Skyshroud Condor - Tempest (TMP)
School of Piranha - Exodus (EXO)
Coral Merfolk - Seventh Edition (7ED)
Wu Light Cavalry - Portal Three Kingdoms (PTK)
Sea Eagle - Starter 1999 (S99)
Overtaker - Mercadian Masques Promos (PMMQ)
Hazy Homunculus - Prophecy (PCY)
Darting Merfolk - World Championship Decks 2001 (WC01)
Thought Eater - Odyssey (ODY)
Spellstutter Sprite - Secret Lair Drop (SLD)
Sneaky Homunculus - Eighth Edition (8ED)
Coral Eel - Eighth Edition (8ED)
Storm Crow - Eighth Edition (8ED)
Aquamoeba - World Championship Decks 2003 (WC03)
Soratami Cloudskater - Champions of Kamigawa (CHK)
Minamo Sightbender - Betrayers of Kamigawa (BOK)

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Deranged Assistant MTG card by a specific set like Innistrad and Ultimate Masters, 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 Deranged Assistant and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Deranged Assistant Magic the Gathering card was released in 5 different sets between 2011-09-30 and 2023-08-04. Illustrated by Nils Hamm.

#ReleaseNameCodeSymbolNumberFrameLayoutBorderArtist
12011-09-30InnistradISD 522003normalblackNils Hamm
22018-12-07Ultimate MastersUMA 492015normalblackNils Hamm
32020-11-20Commander LegendsCMR 652015normalblackNils Hamm
42022-07-08Double Masters 20222X2 452015normalblackNils Hamm
52023-08-04Commander MastersCMM 872015normalblackNils Hamm

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Deranged Assistant has restrictions

FormatLegality
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
PaupercommanderLegal
ModernLegal
OathbreakerLegal
PauperLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
PennyLegal

Rules and information

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

DateText
2018-12-07 If you activate Deranged Assistant's ability while casting a spell, you can't choose to rewind the ability once you see the card that was put into your graveyard.

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