Armored Skaab MTG Card
| Mana cost | |
| Converted mana cost | 3 |
| Rarity | Common |
| Type | Creature — Zombie Warrior |
| Abilities | Mill |
| Released | 2011-09-30 |
| Set symbol | |
| Set name | Innistrad |
| Set code | ISD |
| Power | 1 |
| Toughness | 4 |
| Number | 43 |
| Frame | 2003 |
| Layout | Normal |
| Border | Black |
| Illustred by | Volkan Baǵa |
Key Takeaways
- Armored Skaab provides card advantage by fueling graveyard-dependent tactics without hand depletion.
- Supports resource acceleration through synergies with Delve and Flashback, expanding strategic possibilities.
- Despite its merits, its mandatory milling and specific mana cost may deter some deck builders.
Text of card
When Armored Skaab enters the battlefield, put the top four cards of your library into your graveyard.
Literally made for battle.
Card Pros
Card Advantage: Armored Skaab serves as a consistent method to fill your graveyard. By putting cards from your library into the graveyard, it provides fodder for various graveyard-centric strategies, effectively expanding your pool of resources without losing hand advantage.
Resource Acceleration: This creature sets you up for potential resource acceleration. It synergizes with mechanics like Delve or Flashback, allowing you to harness your graveyard as an extension of your hand or to enable powerful combos and plays sooner than usual.
Instant Speed: Though not an instant itself, Armored Skaab supports decks that operate at instant speed. By stocking the graveyard, it can indirectly accelerate instant-speed plays like casting spells with Flashback or powering up creatures with abilities that trigger on instant or sorcery casts. Moreover, it can quickly alter your graveyard’s dynamics right after it hits the battlefield, offering immediate support for instant speed interactions.
Card Cons
Discard Requirement: Armored Skaab’s entrance to the battlefield prompts you to mill cards, which could unwillingly discard crucial spells or creatures from your library, potentially disrupting your game plan.
Specific Mana Cost: This creature card requires both blue mana and generic mana, which might not seamlessly fit into multicolor decks that aren’t heavily blue, slightly limiting its versatility.
Comparatively High Mana Cost: Costing three mana might seem steep for a 1/4 creature. In a game where efficiency is key, players may find alternatives that provide bigger bodies or additional abilities for the same cost or even less.
Reasons to Include in Your Collection
Versatility: Armored Skaab’s role as a self-mill enabler allows it to be slotted into various blue-centric decks, particularly those that benefit from filling the graveyard as a resource.
Combo Potential: With this card, you set the stage for potent graveyard-based combos, providing fodder for reanimation strategies or powering up spells and abilities that count the number of creature cards in your graveyard.
Meta-Relevance: In a metagame that prizes graveyard interactions, Armored Skaab emerges as a relevant player, disrupting opponent plans with its death-trigger milling while serving as an early blocker.
How to Beat
Armored Skaab is a formidable blue creature in the world of Magic: The Gathering that serves a unique role in self-mill strategies, placing the top four cards of a player’s library into their graveyard upon entering the battlefield. The key to overcoming this undead horror lies in its lack of self-defense against exile effects. Strategic use of exile cards negates the potential graveyard synergies that Armored Skaab may provide to your opponent.
Additionally, Armored Skaab only boasts a modest attack power which makes it less of a direct threat. To neutralize this creature, it’s advantageous to have removal spells ready or to prioritize creatures with greater power to outmatch it in combat. Remember, while it contributes to the long game for graveyard-utilizing decks, on its own, it does not present an immediate game-ending threat. Always evaluate the board and determine if the Skaab’s utility is worth the immediate attention or if it’s a diversion from more pressing threats your opponent may have lying in wait.
Stripping away the graveyard resources or suppressing its ability to trigger enter-the-battlefield effects with cards like Rest in Peace or Grafdigger’s Cage, can significantly limit the effectiveness of Armored Skaab, making it a manageable obstacle in your quest for victory.
Cards like Armored Skaab
Armored Skaab stands as an intriguing creature in the diverse universe of Magic: The Gathering. It bears resemblance to other cards that self-mill, such as Deranged Assistant, which mills cards and generates mana at the same time. However, Armored Skaab exclusively mills upon entering the battlefield and bolsters defenses with a more substantial toughness. This self-milling mechanic is particularly synergistic in graveyard-focused decks.
Scrutinizing further, we encounter Stitcher’s Supplier, a card that also sends cards from the library to the graveyard, but with a lower casting cost and the potential to mill more cards throughout its lifecycle on the battlefield. Although less durable than Armored Skaab, it can become a recursive nuisance. Comparatively, Armored Skaab offers a persistent defensive presence once played, essential for slowing down aggressive opponents.
Ultimately, among creatures that help stock the graveyard, Armored Skaab offers a unique blend of resilience and strategic self-milling, making it a valuable asset for decks that capitalize on having a well-stocked graveyard and require a defensive line to protect life totals.
Cards similar to Armored Skaab by color, type and mana cost
Where to buy
If you're looking to purchase Armored Skaab MTG card by a specific set like Innistrad, 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 Armored Skaab and other MTG cards:
- eBay
- TCG Player
- Card Kingdom
- Card Market
- Star City Games
- CoolStuffInc
- MTG Mint Card
- Hareruya
- Troll and Toad
- ABU Games
- Card Hoarder Magic Online
- MTGO Traders Magic Online
See MTG Products
Legalities
Magic the Gathering formats where Armored Skaab has restrictions
| Format | Legality |
|---|---|
| Commander | Legal |
| Legacy | Legal |
| Paupercommander | Legal |
| Modern | Legal |
| Oathbreaker | Legal |
| Pauper | Legal |
| Vintage | Legal |
| Duel | Legal |
| Penny | Legal |
Rules and information
The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering Armored Skaab card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.
| Date | Text |
|---|---|
| 2011-09-22 | If you have fewer than four cards in your library when Armored Skaab enters the battlefield, you’ll put all of them into your graveyard. |
