Scarwood Hag MTG Card

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	2
Rarity	Uncommon
Type	Creature — Hag
Released	1994-08-01
Set symbol
Set name	The Dark
Set code	DRK
Power	1
Toughness	1
Number	86
Frame	1993
Layout	Normal
Border	Black
Illustred by	Anson Maddocks

Key Takeaways

Scarwood Hag grants card and resource advantage by retrieving green cards and untapping forests.
Instant speed actions of the Hag offer flexibility and surprise elements in gameplay.
Despite its utility, Scarwood Hag’s discard requirement and specific mana cost can be limiting.

Text of card

o Go Go Go G, oc T: Target creature gains forestwalk until end of turn. oc T: Target creature loses forestwalk until end of turn.

Card Pros

Card Advantage: As a nod to the strategic layers that Scarwood Hag introduces, this card can potentially return green cards from your graveyard to your hand. This action recoups resources and sustains your hand’s options, keeping you a step ahead of the competition by ensuring you have access to your key cards when you need them.

Resource Acceleration: Resource management is essential in MTG, and Scarwood Hag excels here by providing a useful ability to untap two target forests. This can effectively accelerate your available mana, allowing for more elaborate plays or the capacity to respond hastily to your opponent’s threats within the same turn.

Instant Speed: Scarwood Hag’s ability to operate at instant speed is particularly advantageous. It affords you the flexibility to react to your opponent’s moves, make decisions based on their actions, and utilize your resources with precision timing. The option to untap your lands or retrieve a green card after your opponent has committed to their strategy can give you a significant edge in the unfolding game.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Scarwood Hag can potentially put you at a card disadvantage since it mandates that you discard another card to utilize its ability. In a game where each card you hold can be vital, losing one from your own hand can prove to be detrimental, especially when your options are already limited or you’re at a pivotal moment needing to maintain card advantage against your opponent.

Specific Mana Cost: Scarwood Hag requires a precise mana configuration to cast, demanding both green and black. This specific mana requirement reduces the flexibility of the card, making it less versatile when it comes to deck-building. Players may find it challenging to fit Scarwood Hag into their strategy unless they are committed to a deck that can reliably generate both types of mana.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With its cost of three mana including two specific types of mana needed to cast, Scarwood Hag may be considered inefficient relative to its impact on the game. When building a mana curve, players often look for impactful plays at every stage of the game and Scarwood Hag might not make the cut when there are other creatures or spells at similar costs that provide a more significant effect on the board state with less stringent requirements.

Reasons to Include Scarwood Hag in Your Collection

Versatility: Scarwood Hag offers unique utility in green-focused or multicolored decks. With the ability to grant forestwalk until end of turn, it can turn any creature into an unblockable threat against opponents with forests in play, making it a strategic asset in various play situations.

Combo Potential: While not a centerpiece in common combos, Scarwood Hag’s ability can synergize with cards that benefit from creatures dealing combat damage to a player, such as enabling triggered abilities or enacting specific effects tied to hitting an opponent.

Meta-Relevance: In a meta where green decks or land-based strategies are prevalent, Scarwood Hag could have significant value. Its potential to make key creatures unblockable against forest-heavy opponents can tip the scales in your favor, relevant in both casual and competitive play circles.

How to beat

Scarwood Hag is a classic creature from the world of Magic: The Gathering, offering players subtle control over forest lands. This card can turn any forest into an offensive tool by granting it the capability to tap for black mana in addition to the standard green. This transformation can bolster your mana flexibility, especially in multicolor decks that pivot around green and black mana.

When faced with the task of countering Scarwood Hag’s advantages, consider cards that prohibit mana abilities or use land destruction to eliminate the enhanced forests outright. Spot removals for creatures, such as Fatal Push or Path to Exile, can efficiently handle the Hag itself, severing the threat early on. It’s also effective to target the player’s mana base with cards like Blood Moon, which can neutralize the advantage gained from the Hag’s ability by restricting lands to produce only red mana. Artifacts and enchantments like Damping Sphere can also hinder their mana strategy without having to deal directly with the creature. By targeting the synergy that Scarwood Hag relies on, you can effectively diminish its impact on the game.

In a strategic game such as Magic: The Gathering, understanding how to dismantle an opponent’s strategy is as crucial as building your own. Scarwood Hag may offer a twist in mana manipulation, but with the right cards and timing, the threat it poses can be neutralized, keeping your path to victory clear.

Cards like Scarwood Hag

The Scarwood Hag stands as a unique component in the green-aligned decks of MTG. It offers a nuanced ability that transforms swamps into forests until the end of turn. This card can be likened to Quirion Druid, which possesses a comparable ability, but instead targets a single land with no mana cost, offering greater flexibility in mana-fixing.

Similarly, Nylea’s Presence is another enchantment that, while permanently alters the land type, has the added benefit of allowing the land to produce any color of mana, effectively broadening your deck’s mana capabilities. However, Scarwood Hag does not require the commitment of leaving an enchantment on the field and provides instant, albeit temporary, transformation.

Likewise, Lifegift presents a parallel function in enhancing lands, but this card bolsters life total rather than mana versatility. The Hag, thus, occupies a niche in controlling opponents’ resources during your turn. Despite the niche application of turning lands into forests, the instant-speed capability of Scarwood Hag can offer strategic advantages during gameplay.

Cards similar to Scarwood Hag by color, type and mana cost

Silverglade Pathfinder - MTG Card versions

Llanowar Loamspeaker - MTG Card versions

Jolrael, Mwonvuli Recluse - MTG Card versions

Mayor of Avabruck // Howlpack Alpha - MTG Card versions

Wren's Run Vanquisher - MTG Card versions

Oran-Rief Survivalist - MTG Card versions

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Scarwood Hag MTG card by a specific set like The Dark, 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 Scarwood Hag and other MTG cards: