Elvish Visionary MTG Card


Card setsReleased in 19 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost2
RarityCommon
TypeCreature — Elf Shaman
Power 1
Toughness 1

Key Takeaways

  1. Elvish Visionary’s enter-the-battlefield card draw sustains player resources effectively.
  2. Being a green creature, the card is a fit for diverse deck strategies.
  3. It lacks instant speed action but compensates with low casting cost and versatility.

Text of card

When Elvish Visionary comes into play, draw a card.

Before any major undertaking, a Cylian elf seeks the guidance of a visionary to learn the will of the gargantuan ancients.


Card Pros

Card Advantage: Elvish Visionary’s strength is in its simplicity — when it enters the battlefield, it allows you to draw a card. This helps keep your hand replenished, providing continual options as you progress through the match.

Resource Acceleration: While the Elvish Visionary itself doesn’t directly accelerate resources, it effectively replaces itself in your hand, making it essentially ‘free’ in terms of card economy. In decks designed around elves or creature synergies, this can lead to chaining multiple spells or creatures in a single turn.

Instant Speed: Although Elvish Visionary doesn’t operate at instant speed, its low casting cost and the immediate benefit it provides remains compatible with strategies that value remaining mana-flexible. You can deploy it after keeping mana open during your opponent’s turn, ensuring you do not fall behind in board state development.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Elvish Visionary’s utility is distinct in that it grants an immediate card upon entering the battlefield. However, unlike other methods of card advantage, it does not impose a discard requirement, which can often strain one’s hand if not leveraged correctly.

Specific Mana Cost: Elvish Visionary requires a specific mana investment, including one green. This makes it less flexible for some decks, especially those that are not focused on green mana or multicolored decks that might struggle to consistently meet color-specific requirements.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: While the card itself is not exceptionally mana-intensive, its low impact as a single 1/1 creature means the two-mana investment may not always align with a player’s strategy, particularly when compared to other two-mana value creatures or spells that might offer more immediate or substantial board presence or other types of utility.


Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Elvish Visionary is a staple in green decks that can seamlessly adapt to various play styles. Whether you’re piloting an aggressive elf tribal deck or a slower, methodical control build, the additional card draw provides consistent value.

Combo Potential: This card is a linchpin in combos, especially in engine-based decks. Its ability to draw a card when it enters the battlefield can be exploited with bounce and clone effects, allowing for potential infinite draws or other synergies.

Meta-Relevance: Due to its low casting cost and the advantage of card draw, Elvish Visionary remains relevant irrespective of the ever-changing meta. It’s a key piece in responding to control strategies and keeping up in the card advantage race.


How to Beat

Elvish Visionary is a frequently encountered creature card in MTG, offering a straightforward yet valuable ability – drawing a card upon entering the battlefield. This green card synergizes well within elf-based strategies and adds to the card advantage for players fond of green decks.

To effectively counter the Elvish Visionary, you can utilize instant-speed removals that can disrupt your opponent’s play by quickly dealing with the creature before its card draw can be repeated through flickering or bouncing back to hand. Cards like Fatal Push or Shock are excellent options against the Elvish Visionary for a timely response.

In a broader strategy, consider including spells that limit your opponents’ ability to capitalize on small creatures. Cards that prevent creatures from entering the battlefield, such as Torpor Orb, can be effective in shutting down the Elvish Visionary’s entrance-triggered ability. Additionally, taxing effects like those from Thalia, Guardian of Thraben, can make it less efficient for your opponent to continually replay creature-based strategies that rely on cards like Elvish Visionary.


BurnMana Recommendations

Dive deep into the intricacies of MTG with a card like Elvish Visionary, a versatile addition to your collection that complements a variety of strategies. Capitalizing on its card draw allows for consistent hand replenishment and can serve as a pivotal part of combo mechanisms. While it’s crucial to consider its place in your deck, the value it offers through synergy and meta-relevance is undeniable. Whether you’re an elf aficionado or looking for efficient card advantage, let Elvish Visionary guide your path. For insights on integrating this subtle powerhouse into your deck and maximizing its potential, join BurnMana as we uncover the strategies and deck-builds that can transform your game play.


Cards like Elvish Visionary

Elvish Visionary stands as a staple in decks that favor creature-based strategies while integrating card draw in MTG. Its parallel in terms of card draw can be found in cards like Wall of Blossoms, which also allows a player to draw a card upon entering the battlefield. The key difference lies in the creature type and defensive capabilities provided by the Wall over the elf.

Another analog is Fibblethip, the Lost; though it’s slightly more costly mana-wise, it provides the potential for additional card draw if it gets shuffled into a library and drawn later on. Then there’s Dusk Legion Zealot, embracing a darker flavor in vampire lore. It costs the same as Elvish Visionary but comes with a minor setback, causing you to lose 1 life when you draw a card.

Evaluating alternatives in the strategy incorporating creatures that draw cards, Elvish Visionary remains an enduring choice given its synergy with elf decks and the immediate value it adds without any additional cost to the player’s life total or board state.

Wall of Blossoms - MTG Card versions
Dusk Legion Zealot - MTG Card versions
Wall of Blossoms - Stronghold (STH)
Dusk Legion Zealot - Rivals of Ixalan (RIX)

Cards similar to Elvish Visionary by color, type and mana cost

Wyluli Wolf - MTG Card versions
Whirling Dervish - MTG Card versions
Grizzly Bears - MTG Card versions
River Boa - MTG Card versions
Albino Troll - MTG Card versions
Silverglade Pathfinder - MTG Card versions
Priest of Titania - MTG Card versions
Quirion Elves - MTG Card versions
Blurred Mongoose - MTG Card versions
Llanowar Loamspeaker - MTG Card versions
Genesis Hydra - MTG Card versions
Jolrael, Mwonvuli Recluse - MTG Card versions
Scavenging Ooze - MTG Card versions
Heir of the Wilds - MTG Card versions
Mayor of Avabruck // Howlpack Alpha - MTG Card versions
Wren's Run Vanquisher - MTG Card versions
Muscle Sliver - MTG Card versions
Utopia Tree - MTG Card versions
Bloodline Shaman - MTG Card versions
Sakura-Tribe Elder - MTG Card versions
Wyluli Wolf - Arabian Nights (ARN)
Whirling Dervish - Pro Tour Collector Set (PTC)
Grizzly Bears - Seventh Edition (7ED)
River Boa - Magic Online Promos (PRM)
Albino Troll - World Championship Decks 1999 (WC99)
Silverglade Pathfinder - Mercadian Masques (MMQ)
Priest of Titania - World Championship Decks 2000 (WC00)
Quirion Elves - Duel Decks: Phyrexia vs. the Coalition (DDE)
Blurred Mongoose - Invasion (INV)
Llanowar Loamspeaker - Magic Online Promos (PRM)
Genesis Hydra - Iconic Masters (IMA)
Jolrael, Mwonvuli Recluse - Magic Online Promos (PRM)
Scavenging Ooze - Modern Masters 2017 (MM3)
Heir of the Wilds - Magic Online Promos (PRM)
Mayor of Avabruck // Howlpack Alpha - Magic Online Promos (PRM)
Wren's Run Vanquisher - Magic Online Promos (PRM)
Muscle Sliver - Secret Lair Drop (SLD)
Utopia Tree - Ninth Edition (9ED)
Bloodline Shaman - Salvat 2005 (PSAL)
Sakura-Tribe Elder - Junior APAC Series (PJAS)

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Elvish Visionary MTG card by a specific set like Magic Online Promos and Shards of Alara, 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 Elvish Visionary and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Elvish Visionary Magic the Gathering card was released in 19 different sets between 2008-10-03 and 2023-06-23. Illustrated by 3 different artists.

#ReleaseNameCodeSymbolNumberFrameLayoutBorderArtist
12002-06-24Magic Online PromosPRM 368652003normalblackLucio Parrillo
22008-10-03Shards of AlaraALA 1302003normalblackD. Alexander Gregory
32009-07-17Magic 2010M10 1782003normalblackD. Alexander Gregory
42010-06-04Duels of the PlaneswalkersDPA 632003normalblackD. Alexander Gregory
52010-11-08Magic Online Theme DecksTD0 A692003normalblackD. Alexander Gregory
62012-07-13Magic 2013M13 1692003normalblackD. Alexander Gregory
72014-11-07Commander 2014C14 1932015normalblackD. Alexander Gregory
82015-07-17Magic OriginsORI 1752015normalblackD. Alexander Gregory
92015-11-13Commander 2015C15 1822015normalblackD. Alexander Gregory
102016-09-02Duel Decks: Nissa vs. Ob NixilisDDR 82015normalblackD. Alexander Gregory
112017-06-09Commander AnthologyCMA 1052015normalblackD. Alexander Gregory
122018-06-08BattlebondBBD 1962015normalblackD. Alexander Gregory
132019-11-07Mystery BoosterMB1 11952015normalblackD. Alexander Gregory
142019-11-21Historic Anthology 1HA1 132015normalblackD. Alexander Gregory
152019-12-02Secret Lair DropSLD 7632015normalblackD. Alexander Gregory
162020-09-26The ListPLST BBD-1962015normalblackD. Alexander Gregory
172020-11-20Commander LegendsCMR 2232015normalblackD. Alexander Gregory
182022-10-14Game Night: Free-for-AllGN3 962015normalblackD. Alexander Gregory
192023-06-23Tales of Middle-earth CommanderLTC 2402015normalblackZuzanna Wużyk

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Elvish Visionary has restrictions

FormatLegality
HistoricbrawlLegal
HistoricLegal
LegacyLegal
PaupercommanderLegal
OathbreakerLegal
GladiatorLegal
PioneerLegal
CommanderLegal
ModernLegal
PauperLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
ExplorerLegal
PredhLegal
PennyLegal
TimelessLegal

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