Felhide Petrifier MTG Card


Felhide Petrifier - Journey into Nyx
Mana cost
Converted mana cost3
RarityUncommon
TypeCreature — Minotaur Warrior
Abilities Deathtouch
Released2014-05-02
Set symbol
Set nameJourney into Nyx
Set codeJOU
Power 2
Toughness 3
Number70
Frame2003
Layoutnormal
Borderblack
Illustred byJames Ryman

Key Takeaways

  1. Turns Minotaurs into deathtouch threats, offering card advantage via favorable trades.
  2. Boosts board impact without extra resources, enhancing tribal deck efficiency.
  3. Leverages battlefield unpredictability, indirectly simulating instant-speed interaction.

Text of card

Deathtouch Other Minotaur creatures you control have deathtouch.

It's common practice among minotaurs to collect the heads of their victims as trophies. Sometimes the trophies prove more than ornamental.


Card Pros

Card Advantage: The Felhide Petrifier offers a strategic edge as it can turn each creature you control with the Minotaur subtype into a deathtouch threat. This not only dissuades opponents from blocking but also provides a potential card advantage as it can lead to favorable trades on the battlefield, securing you a position of power while thinning the opponent’s board presence.

Resource Acceleration: While the Felhide Petrifier itself does not directly provide resource acceleration, its deathtouch ability accelerates your Minotaur tribe’s board impact. By empowering your creatures to take down much larger threats, you effectively reduce the need for additional resources to manage your opponent’s creatures, allowing you to commit more to your board and press your advantage.

Instant Speed: Though the Felhide Petrifier’s ability is not an instant-speed interaction, it creates an environment where opponents must carefully consider instant-speed removals or combat tricks, as any blocks or attacks into your deathtouch creatures come with high risk. This unpredictability can be leveraged to disrupt your opponent’s tempo and force suboptimal plays, aligning with instant-speed advantages despite the Petrifier being a creature itself.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: In strategic scenarios where hand size is crucial, the Felhide Petrifier’s ability to require a minotaur discard may lead to a drop in resource advantage. This condition can negatively impact your game if you’re already at a card disadvantage or if you’re forced to discard a key part of your strategy.

Specific Mana Cost: Felhide Petrifier demands a color-specific mana (black), which may complicate deck construction. If your deck leans towards a multicolor mix, consistently having the necessary black mana can be a hindrance, potentially affecting the card’s playability and flexibility within your deck.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a casting cost of three mana, including one black, Felhide Petrifier’s impact may not be as immediate or impactful as some other cards at the same cost. When deckbuilding, players might deliberate whether its ability justifies the slot over other competitive three-mana creatures that can offer more immediate board presence or abilities.


Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Felhide Petrifier’s ability to grant deathtouch to other Minotaurs makes it a flexible addition to tribal decks. Its inclusion can turn an entire board of creatures into formidable blockers or aggressive threats, influencing how opponents play against you.

Combo Potential: This card synergizes well with effects that allow creatures to deal damage outside of combat, or with cards that capitalize on creature deaths. Players can build around Felhide Petrifier to create devastating board states that are challenging for opponents to overcome.

Meta-Relevance: Considering its unique effect within the Minotaur tribe and its usefulness in controlling the board, Felhide Petrifier remains a relevant choice for players who are engaging in formats where tribal strategies are prevalent and the tide of a game can be turned with strategic creature placement and attrition warfare.


How to beat

Felhide Petrifier presents a unique challenge on the battlefield, bringing both deathtouch and a tribal buff to the table. One might consider the widespread impact of such a card within the realm of Minotaur decks, where it turns the entire creature base into a lethal force. Navigating this enhancement requires strategic planning and a keen sense of timing.

Countering this card starts with understanding its Achilles’ heel. Since Felhide Petrifier itself does not have inherent protection, it’s susceptible to removal spells. Swift action with spells like Shock, Fatal Push, or even broader sweepers such as Wrath of God can prevent the Minotaur synergy from ever taking root. Additionally, leveraging enchantments that prevent creatures from dealing damage, like Pacifism, can effectively neutralize the threat without having to remove each creature individually.

Another powerful strategy is to bypass the Petrifier’s influence by using flying creatures that evade the deathtouch army below or employing creatures with indestructibility to weather the blows. When facing Felhide Petrifier, players must prioritize threat removal and efficient board management to ensure their creatures aren’t overrun by a suddenly empowered Minotaur legion.


Cards like Felhide Petrifier

Felhide Petrifier stands out in the world of creature enhancements within Magic: The Gathering, sharing similarities with other cards that boost the might of your creatures. Notably akin to Felhide Petrifier is Rageblood Shaman, a card that also empowers a specific creature type, in this case, Minotaurs. Like our Petrifier, it strengthens fellow Minotaur creatures not only with a boost to their power but with an additional boon of trample, expanding the ways in which your creatures can deal damage to your opponent.

Another card sharing its bloodline is Deathbellow War Cry, a powerful sorcery that digs deep into your library to summon Minotaurs directly onto the battlefield, bypassing the need for mana costs to cast those creature spells. While it doesn’t directly echo Felhide Petrifier’s ability to grant deathtouch, it creates a critical mass of creatures that can swing games.

In the end, Felhide Petrifier’s unique ability to provide deathtouch to Minotaur creatures elevates it within MTG creature support options. This ability can turn the tide of battle by ensuring that any amount of damage dealt by your Minotaurs is lethal, making Felhide Petrifier a tactical asset in any Minotaur-themed deck.

Rageblood Shaman - MTG Card versions
Deathbellow War Cry - MTG Card versions
Rageblood Shaman - Theros (THS)
Deathbellow War Cry - Theros Beyond Death (THB)

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Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Felhide Petrifier MTG card by a specific set like Journey into Nyx, 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 Felhide Petrifier and other MTG cards:

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Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Felhide Petrifier has restrictions

FormatLegality
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
PaupercommanderRestricted
ModernLegal
OathbreakerLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
PioneerLegal
PennyLegal

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