Citanul Centaurs MTG Card


Citanul Centaurs - Urza's Saga
Mana cost
Converted mana cost4
RarityRare
TypeCreature — Centaur
Abilities Echo,Shroud
Released1998-10-12
Set symbol
Set nameUrza's Saga
Set codeUSG
Power 6
Toughness 3
Number243
Frame1997
Layoutnormal
Borderblack
Illustred byVal Mayerik

Key Takeaways

  1. Citanul Centaurs enhances decks by providing card advantage and becoming a significant threat on the battlefield.
  2. Despite its strengths, its discard requirement and specific mana cost can limit its versatility in gameplay.
  3. Incorporate Citanul Centaurs into green-centric decks for resilience and adaptability across various MTG formats.

Text of card

Echo (During your next upkeep after this permanent comes under your control, pay its casting cost or sacrifice it.) Citanul Centaurs cannot be the target of spells or abilities.


Card Pros

Card Advantage: Citanul Centaurs can be a crucial card for gaining card advantage. By presenting a substantial creature on the battlefield, you force your opponent to answer it, potentially expending more resources than you invested in playing it.

Resource Acceleration: Although Citanul Centaurs doesn’t directly accelerate resources, it’s a great addition to decks focused on ramping. Its ability to benefit from forests and untapped lands means players can deploy other threats or interact on the same turn they play it—effectively speeding up your game plan.

Instant Speed: While Citanul Centaurs doesn’t have an instant speed itself, it fits well in a deck strategy that revolves around instant-speed interactions. Having substantial creatures that benefit from keeping lands untapped allows you to pass the turn confidently, representing various instant-speed options or playing Citanul Centaurs post-combat, catching an opponent off-guard.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: The playability of Citanul Centaurs is hampered by the discard effect required as part of the casting cost. If your hand is already depleted or the cards in it are crucial for your strategy, casting Citanul Centaurs can sometimes do more harm than good to your game plan.

Specific Mana Cost: With a mana cost that requires two green mana, Citanul Centaurs calls for a strongly green-centric mana base. This can make the card difficult to incorporate into multi-color decks or those with a wider variety of spells demanding diverse mana resources.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: The four mana necessary to summon Citanul Centaurs can be quite demanding, especially since it doesn’t have an immediate impact on the board. Many players find that other creatures at the four-mana slot provide better value or more impactful abilities, making Citanul Centaurs a less attractive option in many scenarios.


Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Citanul Centaurs offer a valuable asset with their shroud ability, making them a resilient addition to green decks that value protection. Their adaptability extends to various formats where creature-based strategies are vital.

Combo Potential: As creatures that can evade targeted spells and abilities, the Centaurs can be a cornerstone in combos relying on creatures staying on the board, thus enhancing strategies focused on creature permanence and synergy.

Meta-Relevance: Given the right meta, having resilient creatures like Citanul Centaurs can swing matchups in your favor, especially against decks that rely heavily on targeted removal to maintain control.


How to Beat Citanul Centaurs

Understanding the strengths of the Citanul Centaurs card in MTG is key to developing counterstrategies. As a creature with the Shroud ability, it cannot be the target of spells or abilities, making it a challenging adversary on the battlefield. This protection from targeted removal spells and abilities grants the card a significant degree of resilience during play.

However, there are effective ways to handle Citanul Centaurs. Board wipes remain a reliable solution as they don’t target individual creatures, thus circumventing the Shroud protection. Cards like Wrath of God, Day of Judgment, or Doomskar can clear the board of creatures, including the elusive Centaurs. Additionally, forcing your opponent to sacrifice creatures is another pathway to eliminate them, as this approach does not rely on targeting either. Effects from cards like Diabolic Edict or Liliana of the Veil can compel a Citanul Centaurs player to make tough decisions and potentially lose their creature.

In essence, while Citanul Centaurs can be daunting due to its inherent protection, adapting your game plan to include non-targeted removal can neutralize this threat and maintain control of the game. Remember to stay flexible and strategically include such answers in your deck for these situations.


Cards like Citanul Centaurs

Citanul Centaurs joins the ranks of creature cards in MTG that entertain its players with uniqueness and strategy. A direct comparison can be drawn with Rimehorn Aurochs, which, like Citanul Centaurs, grows stronger when other creatures of its kind are on the battlefield. However, Citanul Centaurs stand out with their shroud ability, preventing them from becoming direct targets of spells or abilities, a trait Rimehorn Aurochs lacks.

Another similar beast with boosting capabilities is Wirewood Savage, which, although does not increase in power and toughness, offers a card draw advantage whenever another beast comes into play. This can be particularly advantageous over the shroud ability in games where card advantage is crucial. Stampeding Wildebeests also share a semblance, providing a return mechanic for other creatures to a player’s hand, ideal for reusing enter the battlefield effects, something the Citanul Centaurs does not enable.

Overall, while the Citanul Centaurs card might not offer card draw or enter the battlefield synergies, its impenetrability to direct removal spells often solidifies it as a resilient threat in MTG decks focusing on long-term board presence.

Rimehorn Aurochs - MTG Card versions
Wirewood Savage - MTG Card versions
Stampeding Wildebeests - MTG Card versions
Rimehorn Aurochs - Coldsnap (CSP)
Wirewood Savage - Onslaught (ONS)
Stampeding Wildebeests - Visions (VIS)

Cards similar to Citanul Centaurs by color, type and mana cost

Giant Spider - MTG Card versions
Marsh Viper - MTG Card versions
Scarwood Bandits - MTG Card versions
Carnivorous Plant - MTG Card versions
Erhnam Djinn - MTG Card versions
War Mammoth - MTG Card versions
Aurochs - MTG Card versions
Lhurgoyf - MTG Card versions
Jackalope Herd - MTG Card versions
Rootwater Alligator - MTG Card versions
Golden Bear - MTG Card versions
Argothian Swine - MTG Card versions
Elvish Piper - MTG Card versions
Erithizon - MTG Card versions
Saber Ants - MTG Card versions
Skyshroud Cutter - MTG Card versions
Ulvenwald Oddity // Ulvenwald Behemoth - MTG Card versions
Fungusaur - MTG Card versions
Viridian Lorebearers - MTG Card versions
Monkey Monkey Monkey - MTG Card versions
Giant Spider - Tenth Edition (10E)
Marsh Viper - The Dark (DRK)
Scarwood Bandits - The Dark (DRK)
Carnivorous Plant - Fourth Edition Foreign Black Border (4BB)
Erhnam Djinn - Pro Tour Collector Set (PTC)
War Mammoth - Introductory Two-Player Set (ITP)
Aurochs - Masters Edition II (ME2)
Lhurgoyf - World Championship Decks 1997 (WC97)
Jackalope Herd - Exodus (EXO)
Rootwater Alligator - Exodus (EXO)
Golden Bear - Portal Second Age (P02)
Argothian Swine - Urza's Saga (USG)
Elvish Piper - Ninth Edition (9ED)
Erithizon - Mercadian Masques (MMQ)
Saber Ants - Mercadian Masques (MMQ)
Skyshroud Cutter - Nemesis (NEM)
Ulvenwald Oddity // Ulvenwald Behemoth - Magic Online Promos (PRM)
Fungusaur - Eighth Edition (8ED)
Viridian Lorebearers - Fifth Dawn (5DN)
Monkey Monkey Monkey - Unhinged (UNH)

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Citanul Centaurs MTG card by a specific set like Urza's Saga, 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 Citanul Centaurs and other MTG cards:

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Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Citanul Centaurs has restrictions

FormatLegality
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
OathbreakerLegal
PremodernLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
PredhLegal
PennyLegal

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