Norwood Riders MTG Card

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	4
Rarity	Common
Type	Creature — Elf
Released	1998-06-24
Set symbol
Set name	Portal Second Age
Set code	P02
Power	3
Toughness	3
Number	139
Frame	1997
Layout	normal
Border	black
Illustred by	Rebecca Guay

Key Takeaways

Norwood Riders offers board presence without heavy card economy impact, challenging opponents early on.
Its low casting cost and potential for flash-play can disrupt opponents’ plans and pace.
Despite a specific mana cost, the card’s evade ability positions it as a consistent early threat.

Text of card

Norwood Riders can't be blocked by more than one creature.

"Trade my moose? Sure—when I find a *horse* that can spear ten goblins at a time!"

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Norwood Riders may not directly contribute to drawing cards but by presenting a recurring threat on the board, it compels opponents to deal with it, possibly depleting their hand and giving you the upper hand in card economy.

Resource Acceleration: While Norwood Riders doesn’t generate additional resources, its low casting cost makes it a compensatory element for early game presence, allowing you to pressure your opponent’s life total while you build up your mana base for more demanding threats.

Instant Speed: Norwood Riders is played at sorcery speed, but if combined with flash-enabling cards, it can be cast unexpectedly during your opponent’s turn, potentially disrupting their strategy and creating favorable blocks or attacks.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Norwood Riders doesn’t come with an actual discard requirement, providing a smooth gaming experience without the worry of depleting your hand too early in the game.

Specific Mana Cost: This card can only be cast with a specific mana combination, which might not always align with your deck’s color scheme, potentially limiting its versatility across various deck types.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: The investment for summoning Norwood Riders may be considered steep, particularly when there are other creatures in the same mana range that could bring immediate board presence or additional abilities to the table.

Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Norwood Riders may seamlessly slot into various green-based aggro or elf tribal decks, offering a reliable early creature that can push through for damage against unprepared opponents.

Combo Potential: With the inherent ability to avoid being blocked except by creatures with flying, this card pairs well with effects that buff its power or grant additional combat phases to capitalize on its evasion.

Meta-Relevance: In a meta where ground-based blockers are prevalent, Norwood Riders provides consistent pressure and can be a low-cost threat that must be answered, complementing strategies that aim to outpace control decks.

How to beat

Confronting Norwood Riders on the battlefield requires a tactical approach to overcome its trample ability, common in green creature decks. Within Magic: The Gathering, several strategies can prove effective. Primarily, consider using creatures with high toughness to absorb the damage. These should be able to weather the trample potential, minimizing the impact on your life total and keeping board control in check.

Another method involves direct removal spells, a sound choice for any deck going against creatures like Norwood Riders. Instant-speed removal such as Fatal Push or Path to Exile can dispatch Norwood Riders before it has the chance to exert its strength in combat. Cards with -1/-1 counters also serve as deterrents, slowly diminishing the Riders’ power and toughness, ultimately neutralizing the threat.

Ultimately, understanding the pace of your opponent’s deck is crucial. Quick responses with countermeasures prevent not only Norwood Riders but also other imposing creatures from taking over the game. With a strategy woven around control and resource management, players can navigate against Norwood Riders to maintain the upper hand.

Cards like Norwood Riders

Norwood Riders may not be the most famous creature card in Magic: The Gathering, but it taps into the rich vein of green creature spells. As a simple creature, Norwood Riders shares a thematic kinship with cards such as Llanowar Elves, providing presence in the early to mid-game. Unlike the Elves, which bring mana acceleration to the battlefield, Norwood Riders offers straightforward attacking potential with trample—a valuable asset for threatening opposing life totals early on.

Much like Tall As Beanstalk, the Norwood Riders fit into a deck that prioritizes a quick build-up of board presence. Both cards have their upsides, with Tall As Beanstalk offering a permanent boost to a creature and the potential for a larger, sustained threat. In contrast, Norwood Riders is all about immediate impact, giving green deck players an early aggressive option. Additionally, Seek the Wilds serves a different role but is comparable for its ability to sift through the deck and ensure you hit your creature drops, complementing strategies that include the Riders.

Ultimately, although the Norwood Riders might not stand out in a format filled with powerful options, it fills a specific niche within green creature strategies, offering trample and efficient damage per mana cost that is characteristic of green’s direct approach in Magic: The Gathering.

Llanowar Elves - Limited Edition Alpha (LEA)

Seek the Wilds - Battle for Zendikar (BFZ)

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Norwood Riders MTG card by a specific set like Portal Second Age, 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 Norwood Riders and other MTG cards: