Proteus Machine MTG Card

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	3
Rarity	Uncommon
Type	Artifact Creature — Shapeshifter
Abilities	Morph
Released	2003-05-26
Set symbol
Set name	Scourge
Set code	SCG
Power	2
Toughness	2
Number	141
Frame	1997
Layout	Normal
Border	Black
Illustred by	Greg Staples

Key Takeaways

It offers card advantage and versatility, turning underperformers into powerful threats on the board.
Instant speed usage adds strategic depth, allowing unexpected gameplay twists.
Despite benefits, the discard requirement and mana cost can limit its playability.

Text of card

Morph (You may play this face down as a 2/2 creature for . Turn it face up any time for its morph cost.) When Proteus Machine is turned face up, its type becomes the creature type of your choice. (This effect doesn't end at end of turn.)

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Proteus Machine offers the potential for significant card advantage, as it can enable you to transform underperforming pieces on your board into potentially more powerful threats. This transformation mechanic increases the versatility and utility of your deck, especially in longer games where the right piece can turn the tide in your favor.

Resource Acceleration: This card can act as a form of resource acceleration by converting existing, perhaps less useful, permanents into new threats that could have a higher mana value. This makes it a potent addition to strategies looking to cheat on mana costs and deploy high-impact cards ahead of schedule.

Instant Speed: The ability to use Proteus Machine at instant speed offers strategic depth and surprise value. Using it during your opponent’s end phase or responding to an opponent’s actions ensures optimal timing and can shift the course of the game suddenly in your favor, catching unprepared opponents off guard.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: The Proteus Machine presents a discard obligation to activate its effect, posing a challenge when your hand is already depleted or when every card in your possession proves vital to your strategy.

Specific Mana Cost: Its activation necessitates a blend of colorless and blue mana, potentially complicating its inclusion in multicolored or color-intensive decks that cannot reliably produce the required mana types.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Despite its transformative capabilities, the emphasized mana investment for Proteus Machine is substantial when compared to other artifacts or spells in the game. This cost analysis could make you reconsider its role in an optimized deck build, especially when lower-cost alternatives might achieve a similar purpose with less resource expenditure.

Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Proteus Machine brings flexibility to any deck with its ability to morph into any creature type. This flexibility lets it easily adapt to various game situations and synergize with tribal themes.

Combo Potential: As a faceted tool in combo strategies, Proteus Machine can shift forms, contributing to surprising combos and interacting dynamically with other cards that react to creature type changes or morph abilities.

Meta-Relevance: With the shifting landscape of competitive play, Proteus Machine can be a critical tool against decks that are vulnerable to specific creature types or abilities. Its ability to slide into various roles makes it a smart pick for an ever-evolving meta.

How to beat

Confronting the Proteus Machine on the battlefield requires both strategy and keen attention to its unique transformative capabilities. This artifact shines in its ability to copy other creatures on the battlefield, potentially turning into the most formidable presence. To dismantle its utility, consider removal spells that specifically target artifacts, such as Abrade or Naturalize. These ensure the Machine’s versatility is nipped in the bud before a threatening creature can be mimicked.

Another effective approach to dealing with the Proteus Machine is by employing counter strategies during the time it activates its ability. Cards like Stifle or Tale’s End can disrupt the sequencing of the Proteus Machine, leaving it as a mere inert artifact on the battlefield. Lastly, maintaining pressure on your opponent and limiting their pool of formidable creatures to copy can reduce the impact of the Proteus Machine, ultimately rendering it less of a threat to your path to victory.

When you’re prepared for the Machinations of the Proteus Machine, it becomes less of an unpredictable wildcard and more of a manageable hurdle on your way to dominating the game.

Cards like Proteus Machine

Proteus Machine is a unique artifact creature card that invites comparisons with other metamorphic cards in Magic: The Gathering. A card with a chameleon-like ability, it allows players to adapt it to the current battlefield demands. Shape Anew, another transformative card, shares the concept of turning something lesser into more impactful options, although it does so by fetching an artifact directly from the deck and not by morphing the card itself on the battlefield.

Mimic Vat too stands out as a card capable of duplicating creatures, but it requires a creature to die first before it can create a token copy. Proteus Machine, however, can become a copy of any creature already on the field simply by revealing a card from your hand, providing a direct and versatile response to the game’s state. Then there’s Volrath’s Shapeshifter, which also changes its identity based on graveyard dynamics, offering yet another angle from which to explore the theme of adaptability.

Assessing the functionalities and their strategic applications, Proteus Machine holds its ground as a valuable component in decks focused on flexibility and surprise, a testament to its singular ability to shift forms at a moment’s notice within the diverse landscape of Magic: The Gathering.

Volrath's Shapeshifter - MTG Card versions

Cards similar to Proteus Machine by color, type and mana cost

Scale of Chiss-Goria - MTG Card versions

Sword of Feast and Famine - MTG Card versions

Guardians of Meletis - MTG Card versions

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Proteus Machine MTG card by a specific set like Scourge, 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 Proteus Machine and other MTG cards: