Skyshroud Sentinel MTG Card

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	3
Rarity	Common
Type	Creature — Elf
Released	2000-02-14
Set symbol
Set name	Nemesis
Set code	NEM
Power	1
Toughness	1
Number	121
Frame	1997
Layout	Normal
Border	Black
Illustred by	Randy Gallegos

Key Takeaways

The Skyshroud Sentinel offers card advantage and deck filtering, boosting your hand with creature cards.
It can lead to resource acceleration but requires a creature card discard, which can be strategic limiting.
Although a baseline 1/1, it holds potential in elf strategies and metagames with a creature focus.

Text of card

When Skyshroud Sentinel comes into play, you may search your library for up to three Skyshroud Sentinel cards, reveal them, and put them into your hand. If you do, shuffle your library.

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Depending on which stage of the game you’re at, the Skyshroud Sentinel can work to filter your deck by revealing cards and placing a creature card into your hand. This ability helps you gain card advantage by increasing your options for future turns.

Resource Acceleration: Although the Skyshroud Sentinel does not directly produce mana or tokens, its ability to place another creature in your hand can lead to potential resource acceleration. By ensuring that you maintain creature flow onto the battlefield, you lay the groundwork for overwhelming your opponent.

Instant Speed: The Skyshroud Sentinel’s special ability doesn’t use instant speed itself, but by fetching a creature card from your deck, you have the potential to set up a turn where you can cast that creature at instant speed, if it has flash. This gives you strategic flexibility to surprise your opponent or respond swiftly to their actions during their turn.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: The Skyshroud Sentinel requires players to discard another creature card to take advantage of its ability. This can be a substantial setback, especially if your hand is already depleted or the creatures in hand are pivotal to your strategy.

Specific Mana Cost: To cast this card, you need one green mana in addition to two colorless mana. This specificity can restrict deck-building flexibility and may not fit seamlessly into multi-colored decks that run tight mana bases.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a casting cost of three mana for a 1/1 creature, the Skyshroud Sentinel may not provide an adequate board presence or value compared to other cards at a similar mana slot. Considering its stats and the competitive nature of the modern game, it often falls short against more cost-effective creatures or cards with immediate impact.

Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Skyshroud Sentinel’s ability to search for additional copies of itself provides deck thinning, thereby increasing the chance of drawing into more impactful cards during the heat of a game.

Combo Potential: Its elf subtype allows it to synergize with elf-related strategies, from tribal buffs to utilizing elf-centric benefits that propel combo plays or accelerate your board state.

Meta-Relevance: As metagames shift towards creature-centric decks, having a card like Skyshroud Sentinel can give you a seamless edge, fitting neatly into green strategies that prioritize creature deployment and battlefield presence.

How to Beat

Skyshroud Sentinel is an intriguing card from the vast repository of creatures in Magic the Gathering. Known primarily for its echo ability and the potential to fetch up to two other copies of itself from the deck after coming into play with a kicker cost, this card can pose a threat by amassing a sudden board presence.

To neutralize the advantage Skyshroud Sentinel offers, interrupt the creature’s search ability. This can be achieved by using instant speed removal before the kicker cost is paid, ensuring the search ability doesn’t trigger. Counterspells are also effective here, preventing the creature from ever entering the battlefield. Another tactic is utilizing board wipes after the Sentinels hit the field, which clears multiple creatures at once, assuming you can withstand the initial swarm.

Maintaining control over the game state is key. If you can handle the initial Sentinel or disrupt the kicker synergy, you’ll mitigate the card’s impact significantly. By staying ahead of your opponent’s curve and keeping their board clear, Skyshroud Sentinel won’t be able to overwhelm you with numbers or generate value through its search ability.

Cards like Skyshroud Sentinel

The Skyshroud Sentinel is an intriguing creature enzyme within the ecosystem of Magic the Gathering green cards. Its kinship to other three-mana creatures like Elvish Visionary is noticeable, as both cards have the capacity to affect the board when played. While Elvish Visionary allows for an immediate card draw, Skyshroud Sentinel offers a wider range of choice, letting you delve deeper into your deck to look for another copy of itself, albeit with an additional mana cost for its echo ability.

Together with another comparison, Yavimaya Elder takes the stage as an alternative. It goes further not only in card advantage but also in land utility. Unlike Skyshroud Sentinel which requires you to fetch a specific card, the elder is flexible, granting land retrieval alongside the potential to draw a card upon departure from the battlefield. However, Skyshroud Sentinel stands robust for those deck strategies centered around creature types, particularly elves.

While each card holds its unique boat in the vast river of MTG strategies, Skyshroud Sentinel finds its niche among those aiming to magnify creature presence and seeking the ripple effect of repeatedly calling its brethren from the deck’s depths.

Cards similar to Skyshroud Sentinel by color, type and mana cost

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Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Skyshroud Sentinel MTG card by a specific set like Nemesis, 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 Skyshroud Sentinel and other MTG cards: