Zara, Renegade Recruiter MTG Card


Card setsReleased in 4 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost5
RarityRare
TypeLegendary Creature — Human Pirate
Abilities Flying
Power 4
Toughness 3

Key Takeaways

  1. Zara offers card advantage by previewing and commandeering opponent’s creatures, disrupting their strategy.
  2. Her ability to cheat out high-cost creatures early adds pressure and gives players a significant lead.
  3. While powerful, Zara’s abilities require careful handling to mitigate potential drawbacks and mana constraints.

Text of card

Flying Whenever Zara, Renegade Recruiter attacks, look at defending player's hand. You may put a creature card from it onto the battlefield under your control tapped and attacking that player or a planeswalker they control. Return that creature to its owner's hand at the beginning of the next end step.


Card Pros

Card Advantage: Zara, Renegade Recruiter, shines in creating card advantage by allowing you to peek into an opponent’s deck and potentially put a creature card onto the battlefield under your control. This not only disrupts your opponent’s next draw but also can turn the tides by giving you access to new resources and strategies.

Resource Acceleration: This daring sky captain accelerates your resources by potentially bringing in creatures without paying their mana cost. The ability to cheat out high-cost creatures early in the game can lead to a significant lead and pressure on your opponents, making Zara a threat they can’t ignore.

Instant Speed: While Zara herself doesn’t operate at instant speed, the creatures you snag with her ability might possess flash or instant-speed abilities, granting you more flexibility and surprise elements during the game. This adaptability can catch opponents off guard and shift the momentum in your favor during critical turns.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Zara, Renegade Recruiter’s ability necessitates you to discard a card, potentially putting you at a resource disadvantage. For players who are already struggling to maintain card advantage, this can pose a significant setback, especially in the heat of a match where every card in hand counts.

Specific Mana Cost: Zara’s casting cost demands both blue and red mana. This specificity can be restrictive, as players must have access to both color sources, limiting the card’s inclusion to only certain types of decks, primarily those running on an Izzet mana base. Building around these constraints may require a more complex land configuration.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a mana cost that sums up to five, including three generics, Zara’s deployment onto the battlefield comes barely ahead of mid-game. Considering other options in the CMC5 slot, Zara competes with a variety of powerful cards that might bring instant value or impact the board state more significantly upon casting.


Reasons to Include Zara Renegade Recruiter in Your Collection

Versatility: Zara Renegade Recruiter offers a unique ability to cheat creatures from an opponent’s deck onto the field under your control. This provides a significant advantage in a variety of deck builds, from piracy-themed to control decks, making it a flexible card worth considering.

Combo Potential: With the right setup, Zara can consistently pull high-value threats from the opposition. This makes her a combo enabler, particularly in decks that manipulate the top of opposing libraries to ensure the most impactful creatures are commandeered for your benefit.

Meta-Relevance: In a game that’s heavily focused on creature strategies, having a card that can potentially steal your opponent’s biggest threats is invaluable. Zara’s ability to disrupt the opponent’s game plan keeps her relevant, especially in multiplayer formats where board presence is critical.


How to beat

Zara, Renegade Recruiter presents a unique challenge on the battlefield with her ability to potentially snatch a powerful creature from an opponent’s deck. To counter this formidable MTG card, players should consider strategies that limit her impact. This can include the use of instant-speed removal spells like Fatal Push or Path to Exile, which can remove Zara before she triggers her ability. Permission-based control strategies that include counter spells like Counterspell or Negate can also prevent her from entering the battlefield altogether.

Another effective tactic is to manipulate the deck itself, reducing the likelihood of Zara capturing a valuable asset. Cards like Brainstorm or Thoughtseize allow a player to have more control over the cards that remain on top of their deck, making it less profitable for an opponent to deploy Zara’s ability. Ensnaring the recruiter with enchantments that keep her tapped down and unable to attack, such as Pacifism or Frogtosser Banneret, can also be a game-changer. Whichever strategy you choose, quick thinking and early interference are critical in diminishing the advantage Zara, Renegade Recruiter can give to your opponent.


BurnMana Recommendations

Dive deep into deck dynamics and upgrade your MTG prowess with cards like Zara, Renegade Recruiter. This airborne ace not only gives you the thrill of pilfering opponents’ creatures but also ushers in new paths to victory. While crafting your next blue-red deck, consider Zara’s power to tip the scales in your favor by leveraging the might of your adversaries’ prized monsters. Explore tactics that complement her abilities and counter strategies to maximize her impact. Ready to harness the might of commandeered creatures and revolutionize your gameplay? Delve further into strategic gameplay with us and discover how to make Zara an MVP in your MTG collection.


Cards like Zara, Renegade Recruiter

Zara, Renegade Recruiter offers a unique twist on the theme of borrowing opponents’ creatures in Magic: The Gathering. She can be likened to Gonti, Lord of Luxury, both cards allow you to play with your opponent’s toolkit. Gonti, though, lets you look at the top four cards of their library and exile one of them. Zara, on the other hand, directly attacks your opponent’s hand to commandeer a creature during combat.

Another card in the same realm is Etali, Primal Storm which also focuses on playing cards from other players’ decks. But unlike Zara, it doesn’t target specific cards in your opponent’s hand, and it triggers when attacking, allowing you to cast any spell from the top of each player’s library for free. This represents a broader, less controlled approach compared to Zara’s precision in picking creatures to attack with.

Assessing the available options, Zara stands out for those strategies intending to exploit the specific contents of an opponent’s hand and steering their creatures in mid-battle. She may excel in a focused build that leverages this tactical edge, showcasing her unique position in the colorful tapestry of creature control Magic: The Gathering offers.

Gonti, Lord of Luxury - MTG Card versions
Etali, Primal Storm - MTG Card versions
Gonti, Lord of Luxury - Kaladesh Promos (PKLD)
Etali, Primal Storm - Resale Promos (PRES)

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Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Zara, Renegade Recruiter MTG card by a specific set like Magic Online Promos and Commander Legends, 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 Zara, Renegade Recruiter and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Zara, Renegade Recruiter Magic the Gathering card was released in 3 different sets between 2020-11-20 and 2023-11-17. Illustrated by Chris Rallis.

#ReleaseNameCodeSymbolNumberFrameLayoutBorderArtist
12002-06-24Magic Online PromosPRM 862642015normalblackChris Rallis
22020-11-20Commander LegendsCMR 6142015normalblackChris Rallis
32020-11-20Commander LegendsCMR 2942015normalblackChris Rallis
42023-11-17The Lost Caverns of Ixalan CommanderLCC 2972015normalblackChris Rallis

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Zara, Renegade Recruiter has restrictions

FormatLegality
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
OathbreakerLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal

Rules and information

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

DateText
2020-11-10 Although the creature is attacking, it was never declared as an attacking creature. This means that abilities that trigger whenever a creature attacks won't trigger when the creature enters the battlefield attacking.
2020-11-10 Any effects that say the creature can't attack affect only the declaration of attackers. They won't stop the creature from entering the battlefield attacking. For example, you could put a creature card with defender onto the battlefield tapped and attacking this way.
2020-11-10 If a creature is attacking a planeswalker, that planeswalker's controller is the defending player.
2020-11-10 If you lose the game before the creature put onto the battlefield under your control returns to its owner's hand, that creature is exiled. If that creature's owner loses the game while you control the creature, the creature leaves the game with them.
2020-11-10 The creature is returned to its owner's hand only if it's still on the battlefield as the delayed triggered ability resolves. If it's somewhere else at that time, it stays where it is.

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