Aetherling MTG Card

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	6
Rarity	Rare
Type	Creature — Shapeshifter
Released	2013-05-03
Set symbol
Set name	Dragon's Maze
Set code	DGM
Power	4
Toughness	5
Number	11
Frame	2003
Layout	Normal
Border	Black
Illustred by	Tyler Jacobson

Key Takeaways

Aetherling provides considerable card advantage through evasion and manipulation during gameplay.
Strategic mana management accentuates Aetherling’s untouchable nature on the battlefield.
Instant speed interaction allows Aetherling to dynamically counter threats and strategies.

Text of card

: Exile Ætherling. Return it to the battlefield under its owner's control at the beginning of the next end step. : Ætherling is unblockable this turn. : Ætherling gets +1/-1 until end of turn. : Ætherling gets -1/+1 until end of turn.

Card Pros

Card Advantage: The Aetherling gives players the edge by allowing various tactics to outmaneuver opponents. Its ability to blink out of the battlefield and return can protect it from removal spells, essentially negating opponents’ attempts at card-for-card trades and maintaining your board presence.

Resource Acceleration: Though not a direct resource accelerator, Aetherling benefits from mana availability, enabling it to exploit its abilities to the fullest. Through adept mana management, this card can become an unassailable threat, adjusting to the flow of the game and providing a persistent advantage.

Instant Speed: With its capacity to act at instant speed, Aetherling allows players to adapt their strategy dynamically. By using its self-blinking ability, it can escape unfavourable exchanges or removal during the opponent’s turn, which amplifies its threat level and forces opponents to play around its ever-present potential to vanish and reappear unscathed.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: While Aetherling itself doesn’t require a discard, its need for consistent hand management to maximize its abilities can feel like an implicit discard pressure, especially in games where maintaining card advantage is crucial.

Specific Mana Cost: Aetherling demands a heavy blue mana investment, necessitating at least two Islands to be played effectively. This specificity can challenge deck flexibility, particularly in multicolored or mana-hungry decks.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Clocking in at six mana for its base casting cost, Aetherling competes with other high-impact cards in the same range. Players may find that allocating such a substantial amount of their mana pool to one card can be a strategic setback, especially if faced with an aggressive opponent or a board that demands more immediate answers.

Reasons to Include Aetherling in Your Collection

Versatility: Aetherling shines as a flexible finisher in control decks. Its ability to dodge removal and adjust its power and toughness allows it to excel in a range of situations, making it a solid choice for various game plans.

Combo Potential: With its flicker ability, Aetherling can be a key piece in combos, working especially well in strategies that profit from creatures entering and leaving the battlefield. This capacity enables savvy players to craft game-ending sequences.

Meta-Relevance: Aetherling can frequently outmaneuver the prevalent creature removal spells in many metagames. Its resilience to most forms of interaction makes it a formidable threat that can dominate games if left unchecked.

How to beat

Aetherling is a versatile creature card that has garnered attention in the MTG community for its resilience and evasive abilities. This blue creature can be challenging to remove due to its ability to flicker in and out of the battlefield. Understanding the card mechanics is key — it can exile itself and return under its owner’s control, which makes targeting it with removal spells a complex endeavor.

Combatting Aetherling effectively requires strategic planning. Counterspells are a formidable tool against it, ensuring it never hits the board in the first place. Also, it’s vulnerable to mass removal spells that don’t target individual creatures, such as Wrath of God or Damnation, which can clear the board irrespective of Aetherling’s blinking ability. Moreover, limiting your opponent’s mana can hinder their ability to use Aetherling’s abilities, making cards that restrict mana usage or untap lands, such as Damping Sphere or Stasis, potential assets.

Thus, while Aetherling can be a difficult adversary, wise use of control elements and an understanding of its play patterns can turn the tide in your favor, ensuring that this seemingly untouchable creature is handled with strategy and foresight.

Cards like Aetherling

Aetherling is an exceptional creature in the realm of Magic: The Gathering. It draws parallels with cards like Morphling, dubbed the “Swiss Army Knife” of creatures due to its array of abilities. Much like its predecessor, Aetherling offers a flexibility that can turn the tides of a game, including its capacity to adjust power and toughness, and importantly, to blink out of harm’s way. Where Aetherling diverges is its potential for an explosive offensive strategy, being able to increase its power significantly.

Comparatively, we find Torchling, which boasts a suite of abilities akin to Morphling and Aetherling. Although Torchling emphasizes redirection and can manipulate combat interactions, it doesn’t quite match Aetherling’s raw ability to avoid being targeted and to reliably close out games. Furthermore, Torchling misses out on the evasion capabilities that make Aetherling a formidable presence on the battlefield.

When surveying the spectrum of utility creatures, Aetherling stands out. Its blend of offensive power and defensive guile makes it a favored finisher in many control decks. Its unique skill set allows players to adapt to various challenges, securing its place as a well-valued asset in the world of Magic: The Gathering.

Cards similar to Aetherling by color, type and mana cost

Sun Quan, Lord of Wu - MTG Card versions

Arcanis the Omnipotent - MTG Card versions

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Aetherling MTG card by a specific set like Dragon's Maze, 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 Aetherling and other MTG cards:

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Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Aetherling has restrictions

Format	Legality
Commander	Legal
Legacy	Legal
Modern	Legal
Oathbreaker	Legal
Vintage	Legal
Duel	Legal
Pioneer	Legal
Penny	Legal

Rules and information

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

Date	Text
2013-04-15	Aetherling’s first ability will return it to the battlefield only if that ability also exiled it. If Aetherling left the battlefield in response to that ability, it won’t return, even if it was exiled by another spell or ability.
2013-04-15	Aetherling’s last ability can be activated even if its power is 0 or less. If a creature would assign 0 or less damage in combat, it doesn’t assign combat damage at all.