by Elton Gahr

Created on: November 06, 2009

There is an effect in magic the gathering that can sometimes be overlooked. I like to call in the howling mine effect because the card howling mine is the best example. This effect comes with cards that have a beneficial effect during each players turn and is important because when you use these cards the opponent gets the benefit first. For example if you play a howling mine your opponent is going to draw an extra card before you have, meaning that until the beginning of your next card all you have really done is given your opponent a free card. On the other hand, if that effect is negative then even if it strikes you as hard as the opponent you are still going to remain a half a turn ahead thanks to the howling mine effect and that half a turn may be enough to win close games.

Magus of the Abyss is a rare human wizard from the future sight expansion set of magic the gathering. It cost one black and three colorless to put into play and is a 4/3 creature with an ability that reads "At the beginning of each player's upkeep, destroy target nonartifact creature that player controls of his or her choice. It can't be regenerated."

There are two advantage that this card gives you. The first of these is that your opponent is going to be struck by this card meaning that until the beginning of your next turn this creature has hurt your opponent but done nothing to you. This may seem minor but it the opponent is always going to be one creature behind so long as this card remains in play making it far more difficult for him to attack.

The second advantage is that you can build your deck knowing that you have magus of the abyss in it. This allows you to create a deck that has cards that you either do not mine sacrificing or better yet those who you want in the graveyard. There are a number of ways this can work, from dredge abilities to goes into graveyard effects.

The final value of this card is one that is easy to overlook. If you choose to attack with this card there is a very high chance that the opponent will want to kill it. This means that on occasion you can use this to draw the blocking creatures off something else that you want to get through more. This is most useful when you have already decided to get ride of the magus but can be useful at other times as well.

Learn more about this author, Elton Gahr.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.