Stalking Yeti MTG Card


Stalking Yeti - Coldsnap
Mana cost
Converted mana cost4
RarityUncommon
TypeSnow Creature — Yeti
Released2006-07-21
Set symbol
Set nameColdsnap
Set codeCSP
Power 3
Toughness 3
Number98
Frame2003
Layoutnormal
Borderblack
Illustred byBrian Snõddy

Key Takeaways

  1. Stalking Yeti excels in creature removal and board control without losing hand advantage.
  2. Its synergy with snow lands makes it a formidable force in snow-focused decks.
  3. Flexibility at instant speed allows for strategic plays and disruption during opponent’s turns.

Text of card

When Stalking Yeti comes into play, if it's in play, it deals damage equal to its power to target creature an opponent controls and that creature deals damage equal to its power to Stalking Yeti. {S}: Return Stalking Yeti to its owner's hand. Play this ability only any time you could play a sorcery. ({S} can be paid with one mana from a snow permanent.)


Card Pros

Card Advantage: When activated, Stalking Yeti brings direct impact to the board by allowing you to potentially remove an opponent’s creature. This can shift the board state in your favor without losing card equity from your hand.

Resource Acceleration: While Stalking Yeti itself doesn’t accelerate resources in the traditional sense, its synergy with snow mana can make it a considerable threat in a deck designed around snow mechanics, effectively utilizing the snow mana resources to gain repeated benefits.

Instant Speed: One of the most relevant features of Stalking Yeti is its capacity to act at instant speed upon returning to your hand. This gives you the flexibility to disrupt your opponent’s strategy during their turn, potentially saving your turn for further development of your own game plan.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: For card enthusiasts looking to play Stalking Yeti, they might find the requirement to discard a card less than ideal when their hand is already running low. This aspect of the Yeti can put players at a disadvantage in close matches where every card in hand counts.

Specific Mana Cost: Stalking Yeti comes with a mana cost that includes both generic and specific mana, which can be a drawback for players not running a deck optimized for its snow mana requirement. This can create hurdles in deck construction and reduce the card’s versatility.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: While Stalking Yeti has certain abilities that can be beneficial, its four mana value for activation may be considered a steep investment. Players often weigh the ability to impact the game state against the mana spent and, in some scenarios, there might be alternatives that offer a better cost-to-benefit ratio.


Reasons to Include Stalking Yeti in Your Collection

Versatility: Stalking Yeti’s ability to be returned to your hand and recast offers a flexible control tool against creature-heavy decks, ensuring you always have an answer to new threats.

Combo Potential: It interacts well with decks focused on enter-the-battlefield effects or those using snow mana to maximize its repeated exile ability, providing both creature control and board presence.

Meta-Relevance: In environments where creatures dominate, Stalking Yeti’s reusability makes it a persistent nuisance, keeping opposing boards clear and maintaining a tempo advantage.


How to beat Stalking Yeti

Stalking Yeti brings a cold strategy to a game of MTG with its unique comeback mechanics and creature control aspects. This creature can become a challenging obstacle, especially within a snow-themed deck where it can truly capitalize on its reusability. To counter the Yeti’s abilities, smart removal choices can shift the game in your favor. Instant speed removal spells allow you to react to the Yeti’s summoning before it can utilize its ability to remove your creatures from the battlefield.

Exile effects provide a permanent solution, ensuring that the Yeti doesn’t make a return from the graveyard. Board wipes can also serve as a reset button, clearing out the Yeti along with other threats your opponent might be cultivating. Yet, tempo plays should not be overlooked. Use cards that can bounce the Yeti back to the opponent’s hand or deck, disrupting their mana investment and delaying their plans, giving you more time to strengthen your board position.

Ultimately, understanding how and when to disrupt the summoning or recurring process of Stalking Yeti is key. Efficient handling of this creature reassures your dominance on the board, mitigating the chilling presence of this snowy menace.


Cards like Stalking Yeti

Stalking Yeti stands out in the snow creature lineup of Magic: The Gathering with its unique come-into-play ability to target creatures. Fans of Frost Lynx will notice the similarities, as both creatures temporarily neutralize a threat when they hit the battlefield. However, Stalking Yeti ups the ante by being able to return to its owner’s hand, allowing for repeated use of its ability given enough snow mana.

Within this frosty theme, Icefall Regent is another card that shares the essence of control over opponents’ creatures. Though it comes at a higher mana cost, the Regent not only taps an opposing creature but makes it costlier to target with spells or abilities. The Yeti lacks this taxing aspect but compensates with its flexibility and lower cost. Then there’s the classic Numbing Cold, which also freezes creatures in place, albeit as a non-creature enchantment. It’s a one-time deal unlike Stalking Yeti’s repeatable nature.

Comparing these icy contenders, Stalking Yeti provides a unique combination of board presence and control, making it a versatile choice for players who value the ability to adapt their strategy on the fly in Magic: The Gathering.

Frost Lynx - MTG Card versions
Icefall Regent - MTG Card versions
Frost Lynx - Magic 2015 (M15)
Icefall Regent - Dragons of Tarkir (DTK)

Cards similar to Stalking Yeti by color, type and mana cost

Dragon Whelp - MTG Card versions
Keldon Warlord - MTG Card versions
Crimson Manticore - MTG Card versions
Márton Stromgald - MTG Card versions
Reckless Embermage - MTG Card versions
Wildfire Emissary - MTG Card versions
Flowstone Giant - MTG Card versions
Rathi Dragon - MTG Card versions
Mogg Bombers - MTG Card versions
Warmonger - MTG Card versions
Bloodfire Kavu - MTG Card versions
Whipkeeper - MTG Card versions
Anger - MTG Card versions
Nalathni Dragon - MTG Card versions
Everquill Phoenix - MTG Card versions
Goblin Goon - MTG Card versions
Lesser Gargadon - MTG Card versions
Krark-Clan Engineers - MTG Card versions
Shimatsu the Bloodcloaked - MTG Card versions
Rocket-Powered Turbo Slug - MTG Card versions
Dragon Whelp - Unlimited Edition (2ED)
Keldon Warlord - Collectors' Edition (CED)
Crimson Manticore - Fourth Edition Foreign Black Border (4BB)
Márton Stromgald - Ice Age (ICE)
Reckless Embermage - Mirage (MIR)
Wildfire Emissary - Mirage (MIR)
Flowstone Giant - Tempest (TMP)
Rathi Dragon - Tempest (TMP)
Mogg Bombers - Stronghold (STH)
Warmonger - Mercadian Masques (MMQ)
Bloodfire Kavu - Apocalypse (APC)
Whipkeeper - Odyssey (ODY)
Anger - Judgment (JUD)
Nalathni Dragon - Magic Online Promos (PRM)
Everquill Phoenix - Ikoria: Lair of Behemoths (IKO)
Goblin Goon - Legions (LGN)
Lesser Gargadon - Eighth Edition (8ED)
Krark-Clan Engineers - Fifth Dawn (5DN)
Shimatsu the Bloodcloaked - Champions of Kamigawa (CHK)
Rocket-Powered Turbo Slug - Unhinged (UNH)

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Stalking Yeti MTG card by a specific set like Coldsnap, 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 Stalking Yeti and other MTG cards:

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Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Stalking Yeti has restrictions

FormatLegality
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
PaupercommanderRestricted
ModernLegal
OathbreakerLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
PredhLegal

Rules and information

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

DateText
2006-07-15 If either Stalking Yeti or the targeted creature is no longer on the battlefield when the enters-the-battlefield triggered ability resolves, the ability does nothing.

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