Consul's Shieldguard MTG Card

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Consul’s Shieldguard not only acts as a reliable defender on the battlefield but also has the potential to generate card advantage. With its ability focused on deterring opponents from targeting your other creatures, it can indirectly contribute to maintaining a better board presence which in the long run amounts to a sort of card economy.

Resource Acceleration: While Consul’s Shieldguard itself may not directly provide resource acceleration, its role in protecting key creatures can be pivotal. By safeguarding your valuable mana dorks or creatures with abilities that tap for resources, it helps to ensure your resource acceleration isn’t disrupted, which is instrumental in outpacing your opponent in a game.

Instant Speed: Although Consul’s Shieldguard doesn’t operate at instant speed, the flexibility it offers during combat can influence decisions made at a similar pace. By forcing your opponent to think twice before attacking or targeting, it adds a layer of psychological instantaneity to the game, affecting opponent’s plays as if reacting at instant speed.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Consul’s Shieldguard demands a card to be discarded in order to activate its ability. This can lead to a disadvantageous exchange, particularly in situation where your hand is nearly empty, putting you at a potential card disadvantage compared to your opponent.

Specific Mana Cost: The mana cost for Consul’s Shieldguard includes white mana symbols, which can restrict its integration into multicolored decks. This specific requirement could limit the card’s flexibility and may deter it from being included in decks that aren’t heavily white.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a higher casting cost, Consul’s Shieldguard competes with other 4-mana drops in the white-creature slot. Players might find that other cards at the same mana cost offer them more in terms of sheer power or immediate board impact, making the Shieldguard a less appealing option in competitive play.

Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Consul’s Shieldguard is adaptable to various deck builds, offering a robust battlefield presence that can fit into strategies emphasizing defense as well as offense. Its ability to protect other creatures makes it a solid addition across numerous playing styles.

Combo Potential: The card can synergize well with strategies that capitalize on +1/+1 counters or abilities triggered upon attacking or defending. When paired with the right cards, Consul’s Shieldguard enhances intricate play sequences and elevates your tactical game.

Meta-Relevance: In an environment that favors aggressive gameplay, Consul’s Shieldguard provides a strategic advantage by safeguarding key creatures on your board. It fortifies positions against common threats and can be a game-changer by preserving your board state against removal-heavy opponents.

How to beat

Consul’s Shieldguard is a challenging card to face in MTG due to its ability to provide indestructibility to another target creature when it attacks. To effectively counter this, it’s essential to have control over the battlefield. Removal spells that don’t target, such as board wipes like “Wrath of God” or “Damnation,” can clear the field without being hindered by the indestructibility granted by Consul’s Shieldguard. Additionally, cards that reduce the effectiveness of creature abilities, such as “Hushbringer” or “Tocatli Honor Guard,” can neutralize Consul’s Shieldguard’s defensive utility.

Alternatively, forcing your opponent to sacrifice creatures bypasses the indestructibility altogether. Execute this strategy with cards like “Liliana of the Veil” or “Diabolic Edict.” Also, countering Consul’s Shieldguard before it hits the battlefield with counterspells like “Mana Leak” will prevent your opponent from leveraging its power. In a wider approach, managing the pace of the game with cards that restrict the number of creatures that can attack each turn, such as “Propaganda” or “Ghostly Prison,” will also diminish the Shieldguard’s impact, making it less of a threat to your strategy.