Harbinger of Spring MTG Card


Harbinger of Spring - Betrayers of Kamigawa
Mana cost
Converted mana cost5
RarityCommon
TypeCreature — Spirit
Abilities Protection,Soulshift
Released2005-02-04
Set symbol
Set nameBetrayers of Kamigawa
Set codeBOK
Power 2
Toughness 1
Number128
Frame2003
Layoutnormal
Borderblack
Illustred byCara Mitten

Key Takeaways

  1. Harbinger of Spring provides a double-edged sword of card advantage and resource efficiency but requires careful hand management.
  2. The card’s dedication to specific mana can be restrictive, making it less flexible for diverse decks and strategies.
  3. Despite a higher mana cost, its unmatched protection and combo potential make it a compelling pick for creature-centric tactics.

Text of card

Protection from non-Spirit creatures Soulshift 4 (When this is put into a graveyard from play, you may return target Spirit card with converted mana cost 4 or less from your graveyard to your hand.)


Card Pros

Card Advantage: A key feature of Harbinger of Spring is its potential to provide card advantage by enabling you to sneak a creature from your deck into play. This bypasses the need to draw and play that creature normally, effectively granting you an additional card’s worth of value.

Resource Acceleration: The Harbinger of Spring can act as a form of resource acceleration. By putting a creature into play directly from your library, it circumvents the usual mana cost associated with casting a creature, allowing you to utilize your resources with greater efficiency in the following turns.

Instant Speed: Although Harbinger of Spring does not operate at instant speed itself, the creatures it helps put into play can have instant speed abilities. This synergistic potential is especially powerful when timed right, allowing you to surprise your opponent with unexpected plays outside the normal flow of your turn.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Engaging with Harbinger of Spring might be more taxing than it initially appears due to the necessity of discarding a card to fuel its potential. This act of letting go of valuable hand assets could leave you at a disadvantage, especially when your hand size dwindles during crucial moments of the game.

Specific Mana Cost: Harbinger of Spring demands a strict color allegiance with its mana cost, which can often be a deck-building challenge. Decks that operate on a diverse mana base might find it taxing to meet the card’s cost, thereby hindering its seamless inclusion in multi-colored deck strategies.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: The mana investment to get Harbinger of Spring into play is noteworthy, and when stacked up against other options available in the vast card pool, it may fall short. Aggressive strategies and faster-paced decks may opt for lower-cost alternatives that provide similar or more immediate benefits to the battlefield.


Reasons to Include Harbinger of Spring in Your Collection

Versatility: Harbinger of Spring complements a variety of deck archetypes which thrive on early game creature spells. As a sprit, it has a useful protection from non-Spirit creatures, making it a strategic choice in creature-heavy environments.

Combo Potential: This card’s ability to be unblockable by a vast majority of creatures ensures its value in decks that capitalize on dealing combat damage. This enables it to synergize with numerous equipment or aura spells that trigger upon dealing damage to players.

Meta-Relevance: Due to its unique protection, Harbinger of Spring can be a viable choice in metas infested with aggressive creature decks. This attribute enables it to stay on the board longer, increasing the likelihood of leveraging its full potential in sustained interactions.


How to Beat Harbinger of Spring

Harbinger of Spring may at first glance seem like a mere speed bump on the path to victory in Magic: The Gathering. With protection from non-spirit creatures, this card can evade many blockers and potential removals, making it a surprisingly resilient combatant. To effectively counteract this spirit’s ability to interfere with your game plan, focus on using spells that don’t specifically target it or that don’t rely on creature types to function.

Board wipes like Wrath of God or Damnation prove to be effective solutions, as they sweep the battlefield clean without targeting individual creatures. Direct damage spells or those enabling you to force opponents to sacrifice creatures can deftly circumvent the protection Harbinger of Spring offers. Cards such as Pyroclasm or Liliana’s Triumph provide avenues to handle this persistent threat. Strategic planning and maintaining a versatile deck with a mixture of removal options will ensure that the Harbinger of Spring doesn’t herald a loss for you.


Cards like Harbinger of Spring

Harbinger of Spring stands out in the realm of creature cards within Magic: The Gathering for its unique Protean ability, allowing it to add colorless mana or one mana of any color to your mana pool. This attribute can be likened to the versatility found in Birds of Paradise, a card that also allows mana generation of any color. However, Harbinger of Spring distinguishes itself with the ability to be unblockable under specific conditions, giving it a tactical advantage in certain game situations.

Another card that echoes the flexibility of Harbinger of Spring is Sylvan Caryatid. While it provides the same mana-fixing utility, the Caryatid offers hexproof, thus offering it stay-power on the board. Harbinger’s strength lies in its ethereal presence, making it a potential ghostly attacker in contrast to the Caryatid’s defensive stability. Moreover, Llanowar Elves, while being a fundamental choice for mana acceleration, lacks the flexible color generation and evasive qualities, but excels in simplicity and low-cost efficiency.

Ultimately, evaluating Harbinger of Spring in the ecosystem of MTG, we notice its place in decks needing mana diversity and subtle board presence. It carves its niche with the dual attributes of being a mana conduit and a strategic combat piece.

Birds of Paradise - MTG Card versions
Sylvan Caryatid - MTG Card versions
Llanowar Elves - MTG Card versions
Birds of Paradise - Limited Edition Alpha (LEA)
Sylvan Caryatid - Theros Promos (PTHS)
Llanowar Elves - Limited Edition Alpha (LEA)

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Vintara Elephant - Prophecy (PCY)
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Primeval Force - Eighth Edition (8ED)
Spitting Spider - Eighth Edition (8ED)
Copperhoof Vorrac - Mirrodin (MRD)
Tel-Jilad Lifebreather - Fifth Dawn (5DN)
Llanowar Behemoth - Ninth Edition (9ED)
Bramble Elemental - Salvat 2005 (PSAL)
Indrik Stomphowler - Commander 2015 (C15)

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Harbinger of Spring MTG card by a specific set like Betrayers of Kamigawa, 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 Harbinger of Spring and other MTG cards:

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Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Harbinger of Spring has restrictions

FormatLegality
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
PaupercommanderLegal
ModernLegal
OathbreakerLegal
PauperLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
PredhLegal

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