Surrakar Banisher MTG Card


Card setsReleased in 4 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost5
RarityCommon
TypeCreature — Surrakar
Power 3
Toughness 3

Key Takeaways

  1. Surrakar Banisher provides card advantage by returning creatures to the hand upon entering the battlefield.
  2. Its ability to return creatures may indirectly contribute to resource acceleration and tempo.
  3. While versatile and valuable, the Banisher’s discard requirement and specific mana cost are notable drawbacks.

Text of card

When Surrakar Banisher enters the battlefield, you may return target tapped creature to its owner's hand.

Surrakar grab things they *don't* want.


Card Pros

Card Advantage: Surrakar Banisher can return a target creature to its owner’s hand upon entering the battlefield, potentially removing an opponent’s threats or recurring your own creatures with beneficial enter-the-battlefield effects. This can help swing the game in your favor by disrupting your opponent’s plays or providing you with additional value.

Resource Acceleration: Although Surrakar Banisher itself doesn’t directly accelerate resources, bouncing a creature back to the hand can indirectly lead to tempo advantage. This setback for your opponent can give you the upper hand, allowing you to be more efficient with your turns and mana.

Instant Speed: While Surrakar Banisher is a creature card and not an instant, its ability to bounce creatures upon entry works well with flash mechanisms. Pairing it with cards that allow it to be summoned at instant speed can lead to strategic plays during your opponent’s turn, effectively using your mana at the most opportune moments.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Surrakar Banisher’s ability necessitates discarding a card from your hand. This can be a steep price in gameplay, particularly if your hand is already running low on spells or when each card holds critical strategic value.

Specific Mana Cost: The specific mana cost demands both blue and generic mana, which can be a bottleneck in multicolored or mana-intensive decks. Ensuring you have the right mana at the right time to play the Banisher could be challenging.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a five mana value required to bring Surrakar Banisher into play, it sits on the higher end of the curve, potentially slowing down your tempo. In faster-paced games or in a meta with lower-cost alternatives, the Banisher may not provide the timely impact needed.


Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Surrakar Banisher can adapt to a multitude of gameplay styles. The card’s ability to return a target creature to its owner’s hand makes it a flexible choice for both tempo and control decks, where disrupting the opponent’s board is crucial.

Combo Potential: This card pairs well with effects that trigger when a creature enters the battlefield or leaves it. Such synergies can lead to powerful plays, allowing you to gain extra value each time you cast Surrakar Banisher.

Meta-Relevance: In a meta where creatures hold the line, Surrakar Banisher’s bounce effect becomes exceedingly potent. By temporarily removing critical threats or blockers, it provides a strategic edge, ensuring its relevance in many deck configurations.


How to Beat Surrakar Banisher

Surrakar Banisher, while not a heavyweight in most MTG decks, carries a unique ability that can disrupt gameplay by returning target creatures to the owner’s hand. This ability, reminiscent of the classic Unsummon, provides a temporary advantage by clearing a path for combat or removing a pivotal piece from your opponent’s strategy. To mitigate the Banisher’s effect, consider using creatures with enter-the-battlefield triggers, turning a potential setback into an advantage by recasting them for their beneficial effects.

Employing instant-speed removal spells like Murder or Path to Exile can effectively neutralize the Banisher before its ability triggers. Moreover, utilizing counterspells such as Cancel or Dovin’s Veto gives you the upper hand by preventing the Banisher from ever hitting the board. Lastly, playing with cheap, hexproof creatures, like Slippery Bogle or Invisible Stalker, provides a reliable defense as they are immune to the Banisher’s targeting ability. Understanding and anticipating key interactions ensures that Surrakar Banisher becomes less of a nuisance and more of an afterthought in your matches.


Cards like Surrakar Banisher

Surrakar Banisher, contributing to the arsenal of blue creature cards in Magic: The Gathering, bears similarities to cards like Man-o’-War and Aether Adept. Much like Surrakar Banisher, both Man-o’-War and Aether Adept possess abilities that bounce opposing creatures back to the owner’s hand upon entering the battlefield. While all three cards serve the same fundamental purpose, the nuances in their casting cost and creature stats provide ample strategy considerations.

Man-o’-War is more modestly costed and can hit the field earlier, yet it offers a less robust body in comparison. In the case of Aether Adept, although it shares the same converted mana cost as Surrakar Banisher, it stands out for being castable with only two blue mana. This can be crucial in mono-blue or heavy blue decks aiming for consistency. Surrakar Banisher, with its somewhat higher mana cost, compensates by bringing a stronger creature into play which can be more impactful in the later stages of the game.

Every addition to a player’s deck must be considered through the lens of the overall strategy and Surrakar Banisher definitely finds its place in scenarios where a more potent creature is favorable alongside the utility of creature bouncing.

Man-o'-War - MTG Card versions
Aether Adept - MTG Card versions
Man-o'-War - Visions (VIS)
Aether Adept - Magic 2011 (M11)

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Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Surrakar Banisher MTG card by a specific set like Worldwake and Duel Decks: Elspeth vs. Kiora, 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 Surrakar Banisher and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Surrakar Banisher Magic the Gathering card was released in 4 different sets between 2010-02-05 and 2019-11-07. Illustrated by Matt Cavotta.

#ReleaseNameCodeSymbolNumberFrameLayoutBorderArtist
12010-02-05WorldwakeWWK 392003normalblackMatt Cavotta
22015-02-27Duel Decks: Elspeth vs. KioraDDO 432015normalblackMatt Cavotta
32019-11-07Mystery BoosterMB1 5102015normalblackMatt Cavotta
42020-09-26The ListPLST DDO-432015normalblackMatt Cavotta

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Surrakar Banisher has restrictions

FormatLegality
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
PaupercommanderLegal
ModernLegal
OathbreakerLegal
PauperLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
PredhLegal
PennyLegal

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