Zhuge Jin, Wu Strategist MTG Card
| Mana cost | |
| Converted mana cost | 3 |
| Rarity | Rare |
| Type | Legendary Creature — Human Advisor |
| Released | 1999-05-01 |
| Set symbol | |
| Set name | Portal Three Kingdoms |
| Set code | PTK |
| Power | 1 |
| Toughness | 1 |
| Number | 66 |
| Frame | 1997 |
| Layout | normal |
| Border | white |
| Illustred by | Song Shikai |
Key Takeaways
- Card drawing via historic spells maximizes resources and gameplay strategies, making Zhuge Jin a valuable inclusion.
- Instant speed card draws with Zhuge Jin ensure flexibility and unpredictability during every phase of the game.
- Zhuge Jin’s drawback of discarding may require smart hand management to mitigate potential strategic losses.
Text of card
On your turn, before you attack, you may tap Zhuge Jin to make any one creature unblockable this turn.
When Zhuge Jin proposed the marriage of Guan Yu's daugher and Sun Quan's heir, Guan Yu's arrogant refusal led to disaster.
Card Pros
Card Advantage: Zhuge Jin, Wu Strategist excels in providing continuous card advantage. Each time you play a historic spell—that is, an artifact, saga or legendary spell—Zhuge Jin permits you to draw a card, which can quickly outpace your opponent in resources.
Resource Acceleration: By drawing additional cards on a consistent basis with Zhuge Jin, you’re not only getting more options to play but also increasing the likelihood of hitting land drops and key spells. This accelerates your resource development to outmaneuver opponents.
Instant Speed: With the ability to potentially draw cards during each player’s turn, Zhuge Jin ensures you’re maximizing the potential of your deck at instant speed. This keeps opponents guessing, as you can adapt and react with a fuller hand at any point in the game.
Card Cons
Discard Requirement: Zhuge Jin, Wu Strategist, necessitates discarding another card which might deprive you of valuable hand resources, especially in high-stakes situations where every card counts.
Specific Mana Cost: Requiring both blue and white mana, this card demands a commitment to a specific color pair, making it less flexible for decks that might benefit from its strategic abilities but can’t meet the color requirements.
Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a casting cost that includes three specific manas plus one of any color, Zhuge Jin can be challenging to summon early in the game. This factor potentially slows down your momentum when competing against decks that optimize for speed and efficiency.
Reasons to Include in Your Collection
Versatility: Zhuge Jin, Wu Strategist offers a dynamic addition to blue-centric commander decks, bringing utility and diplomatic leverage to the table. Its ability to untap important permanents can seamlessly integrate into control and combo decks alike, offering multifaceted gameplay options.
Combo Potential: With the right setup, Zhuge Jin’s ability to untap an artifact, creature, or land can be a cornerstone in creating infinite combos. It pairs well with cards that tap for more than one mana or have tap-triggered abilities, adding a new level of depth to your combos.
Meta-Relevance: In a gaming environment that highly values the control of board states and pacing, Zhuge Jin slots in as a powerful tool. It can disrupt opponents’ strategies by saving key pieces from removal or unexpectedly enabling them for reuse during the game, ensuring its relevance in various metagames.
How to beat
Zhuge Jin, Wu Strategist, has carved a niche as a commander in player decks, particularly noted for its diplomatic power in multiplayer formats. This blue human advisor allows you to draw cards while playing politics, giving an instant advantage to you and a selected opponent. However, the key to undermining Zhuge Jin lies in limiting the benefits it provides and controlling the board state. Strategies such as using removal spells to consistently target Zhuge Jin can be effective, preventing the opponent from exploiting its ability to manipulate the game.
Furthermore, incorporating cards that restrict opponents from drawing additional cards, such as Narset, Parter of Veils or Notion Thief, can be especially disruptive against Zhuge Jin’s strategy. These cards can negate the benefit Zhuge Jin provides by allowing only the controller to gain from the additional card draw. In addition, implementing graveyard hate mechanics to interfere with recursion tactics prevents your opponent from continually replaying Zhuge Jin from the graveyard. Rest in Peace and Grafdigger’s Cage are solid inclusions to stymie such strategies.
Overall, when strategizing against Zhuge Jin, Wu Strategist, prioritize control elements and limit the card advantages it offers. A deck adept in these tactics will have a significant edge over the Wu Strategist’s diplomatic maneuvers.
Cards like Zhuge Jin, Wu Strategist
Zhuge Jin, Wu Strategist offers unique tactical advantages in the strategy-heavy world of Magic the Gathering. Its abilities can be closely paralleled to cards like Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir. Both are exceptional at dictating the pace of play; Teferi by allowing you to cast creatures as though they have flash, and Zhuge Jin with the benefit of providing unblockable status to other creatures. While Teferi brings a broader controlling effect to the table, Zhuge Jin targets enemy weaknesses more directly.
Another similar card is Mother of Runes, which grants protection to your creatures. While Zhuge Jin doesn’t provide protection from colors or spells, the tactical edge to bypass blockers makes it a formidable card. A more direct comparison could be Ghostly Prison, restricting combat options for your opponents much like Zhuge Jin does, although through entirely different mechanisms. All these cards excel in carving out an advantageous position, but they each shine in particular contexts and deck builds.
Choosing Zhuge Jin, Wu Strategist offers a distinctive blend of offensive manipulation and defensive deterrence, making it a worthy addition to decks that capitalize on tactical creature interactions and combat tricks.
Cards similar to Zhuge Jin, Wu Strategist by color, type and mana cost
Where to buy
If you're looking to purchase Zhuge Jin, Wu Strategist MTG card by a specific set like Portal Three Kingdoms, 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 Zhuge Jin, Wu Strategist and other MTG cards:
- eBay
- TCG Player
- Card Kingdom
- Card Market
- Star City Games
- CoolStuffInc
- MTG Mint Card
- Hareruya
- Troll and Toad
- ABU Games
- Card Hoarder Magic Online
- MTGO Traders Magic Online
See Magic products
Legalities
Magic the Gathering formats where Zhuge Jin, Wu Strategist has restrictions
| Format | Legality |
|---|---|
| Predh | Legal |
| Commander | Legal |
| Legacy | Legal |
| Oathbreaker | Legal |
| Vintage | Legal |
| Duel | Legal |
Rules and information
The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering Zhuge Jin, Wu Strategist card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.
| Date | Text |
|---|---|
| 2013-09-20 | If a turn has multiple combat phases, the ability can only be activated before the beginning of the declare attackers step of the first combat phase in that turn. |
