Deep-Sea Serpent MTG Card

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	6
Rarity	Uncommon
Type	Creature — Serpent
Released	1997-05-01
Set symbol
Set name	Portal
Set code	POR
Power	5
Toughness	5
Number	51
Frame	1997
Layout	Normal
Border	Black
Illustred by	Scott M. Fischer

Key Takeaways

Deep-Sea Serpent’s card advantage can replenish your hand, maintaining tactical flexibility during a match.
Monstrous mana cost and specific requirements may limit usability within various deck strategies.
Strategic land and creature control can nullify Serpent’s strengths, turning the tides of battle.

Text of card

Deep-Sea Serpent can attack only if the defending player has an island in play.

Sailors fear the deep-sea serpent; others thank the gods it has no legs.

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Deep-Sea Serpent’s ability to potentially draw you extra cards when it deals combat damage to an opponent can help tip the scales in your favor, keeping your hand filled with options.

Resource Acceleration: While not directly impacting your mana pool, this serpent can require less mana to cast under the right circumstances which effectively acts as a form of resource acceleration, allowing you to deploy threats or answers more efficiently.

Instant Speed: While the Deep-Sea Serpent itself doesn’t have instant speed, its interactions with instant-speed spells can turn it into an unexpected threat, potentially clearing the way for a surprise attack or supporting it with buffs or protection to ensure its survival and effectiveness in combat.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: To get the Deep-Sea Serpent onto the battlefield, you usually have to fulfill a condition that might involve discarding other valuable cards from your hand. This can hamper your chances if you’re already in a tight spot with few cards to spare.

Specific Mana Cost: This serpent demands a precise combination of mana to cast, which can be cumbersome in multicolored decks that aren’t heavily blue. If your mana base isn’t well-tuned to accommodate it, you might find the serpent stuck in your hand at crucial moments.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With its substantial mana requirement to cast, Deep-Sea Serpent competes with other substantial creatures and impactful spells in your deck. Considering the overall mana investment, there may be alternate choices that give you more immediate or versatile benefits in a game.

Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Deep-Sea Serpent thrives in decks that manipulate the opponent’s hand, such as forcing card discards, which makes it a flexible fit for control and mill strategies.

Combo Potential: This card can work synergistically with effects that restrict opponent’s hand size, enhancing its unblockable trait. The serpent can become a consistent threat in the right deck.

Meta-Relevance: In environments where island-heavy decks are prevalent, the Deep-Sea Serpent can consistently attack without being blocked, making it a relevant choice for certain matchups.

How to beat

Deep-Sea Serpent represents a particular challenge in the world of MTG due to its islandhome mechanic, which allows it to attack only if an opponent controls an Island. However, its strength can be mitigated if you control the board effectively. One strategic approach is land alteration; by removing or transforming your opponent’s Islands, the Serpent loses its ability to attack. Spells like Sea’s Claim or Spreading Seas can change the landscape of your opponent’s territory to your advantage.

Similarly, creature-based strategies focusing on removal or protection can serve as a defensive line against the Serpent. Ensnaring creatures with cards like Pacifism or using instant speed removal such as Path to Exile before the Serpent can swing for damage helps keep your health safe. It is also useful to remember that without any Islands in play on your side, Deep-Sea Serpent becomes virtually a wall, unable to inflict any harm. Thus, managing your own lands creatively or rendering the creature immobile with strategic spell-play are key tactics in neutralizing this underwater threat.

Conclusively, understanding the environment and having the right responses ready are essential in maintaining dominance over a card like Deep-Sea Serpent. Keeping those waves under control requires a blend of land manipulation and timely creature management.

Cards like Deep-Sea Serpent

Deep-Sea Serpent is an interesting creature card in the vast ocean of MTG blue spells. Its oceanic counterparts include Serpent of Yawning Depths, which also exudes an aquatic vibe and offers a unique ability that allows your sea creatures to be unblockable. However, the Serpent of Yawning Depths is distinctly more powerful and impactful on the board, demanding immediate attention from opponents.

Another card swimming in the same waters is the Shipbreaker Kraken. While it may not be serpentine, it shares the thematic link and possesses a monstrosity ability that can be a game-changer by tapping multiple creatures without untapping during the next untap step, potentially clearing the path for a winning strike.

Isleback Spawn is yet another sizable sea creature that gets stronger as your graveyard fills with more cards, exemplifying how sea-themed cards can scale with the game’s progression. Each of these cards offers a different approach to harnessing the power of the deep seas in MTG, with Deep-Sea Serpent providing a baseline for seafaring strategies without overcomplicating the gameplay. This makes it a reliable choice for decks focused on straightforward, swimming behemoths.

Serpent of Yawning Depths - MTG Card versions

Cards similar to Deep-Sea Serpent 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 Deep-Sea Serpent MTG card by a specific set like Portal, 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 Deep-Sea Serpent and other MTG cards: