Best cards against Thragtusk?
Standard forum
Posted on Feb. 6, 2013, 1:36 a.m. by NobodyEpic
What are some of the best cards, in standard, that would go well against Thragtusk ?
I know there's Mutilate and counter spells, but what can a red or white deck do about it?
Also, off topic, if I take a creature, with something like Zealous Conscripts , and Cloudshift it, would it still go back to it's owner's control at the end of the turn?
RW has Boros Reckoner and Skullcrack that are good against it.
February 6, 2013 1:45 a.m.
Nevermore is really the best card to take out specific problem cards. If you are running B/R Slaughter Games is a perfect card against things like Thragtusk . I always prefer taking those kinds of problems out before they ever hit the field. Your chances of coming out ahead drop dramatically once Thragtusk hits the field
February 6, 2013 2:01 a.m.
Sweet-Nightmare says... #5
I swear on Nevermore , seriously, it's such a great card. Arrest or Pacifism do wonders for taking away its teeth.
February 6, 2013 2:23 a.m.
AlexOAwesome says... #6
Skullcrack , Skullcrack , and oh so much Skullcrack
February 6, 2013 2:42 a.m.
I would say Desecration Demon --It beats both sides of it
February 6, 2013 6:12 a.m.
aloehart199 says... #8
Can't believe noone has mentioned the hilariously good Rakdos Keyrune or any 3 power firststriker for that matter. Stops the creature and its token dead leaving it a 5 mana "gain 5 life" spell
February 6, 2013 7:46 a.m.
AlexOAwesome - Skullcrack does damage to players only. It's really not that good.
You want Searing Spear . Even throwing 2 at it would still cost you 4 to kill a 5 drop.
Silverblade Paladin with any 3/3
February 6, 2013 9:13 a.m.
Epochalyptik says... #11
Moved to Standard.
@ChiefBell: While Skullcrack does only hit players, that's still major. It cancels the lifegain and hits them for 3 at the same time.
February 6, 2013 10:19 a.m.
AlexOAwesome says... #12
I might be wrong, but I'm pretty sure, that's one of the reasons why, or the reason why, WOTC made Skullcrack . It prevents the 5 life gain, which is one of the best parts about Thragtusk , and simultaneously deals a good amount of damage to them. Thragtusk helps you recover from a game, by gaining 1/4 of your original life total, and getting two bodies. But if you can prevent the 5 life gain, whilst dealing 3 damage to them, all you have to deal with are a couple of 3 toughness creatures.
February 6, 2013 11:50 a.m.
It's the best part against an aggro deck yes but against most decks its that fact that it's a bloody 5/3 that produces another mini one when it dies. I think the problem with thragtusk isn't the life gain (not based on the kind of deck that I play) but the fact that it just doesn't die.
February 6, 2013 12:06 p.m.
evil_monkey says... #14
I would have to disagree. I think the main problem with Thragtusk is most definitely the life gain. Well the life gain in conjunction with an annoying body. And with only one G in its cost, it is so easily splash-able in any deck. But really the creature itself isn't hard to deal with. I have much more trouble getting rid of large creatures like Giant Adephage in my RW. But the life gain is the real problem as it stalls so many strategies and makes it harder to finish them off before your opponent stabilizes.
February 6, 2013 12:14 p.m.
I tend to play control so life gain doesn't bother me - it's that fact that o-ringing or murdering produces another creature. Because I play slow decks the life gain doesn't matter - what does matter is that it wastes two of my spells unless I can Dissipate or Arrest . Given that you're playing RW then I'm guessing your playing some sort of Boros / human aggro thing? That would probably make sense why the life gain irritates you so much. Although I may be wrong!
February 6, 2013 12:17 p.m.
evil_monkey says... #16
Lol, you hit it right on the head. Life gain gives me all sorts of problems without good ol' Skullcrack . I guess I see your predicament though. I use to play control in the Mirrodin standard, and if people life gained on me, I could just be like, hey Timely Reinforcements . Then later drop a Wurmcoil Engine and watch them squirm until they died. I don't believe there was a creature quite like Thrags back then, but I imagine it would be annoying having to two for one something more often than not.
February 6, 2013 12:21 p.m.
I tried running Skullcrack and imo it was just too responsive and slow. In my RDW, I'm using all my mana each turn to kill them fast, and I don't have room to save 2 mana for Skullcrack for IF the have a Thragtusk in hand. Hell, I can kill most decks before they get to 5 mana.
February 6, 2013 2:26 p.m.
evil_monkey says... #18
Well, Skullcrack should definetely be a sideboard card. I can see how it would seem responsive and slow when you have it in hand against an unknown deck, but if you did run into Thrags and sideboard it in, you can strategically burn and hit for most effective gameplay against a deck that employs life gain.
February 6, 2013 2:44 p.m.
Rootkit9208 says... #20
I personally like any 3/x first striker for the job. if you're playing blue, it should be one if your prime targets for counterspells. If you don't have a counter, you really just need to dedicate the resources to it to chump block it to death. Unsummon works great on the token.
February 6, 2013 3:03 p.m.
Rootkit9208 says... #21
Cool note, mono-blue is incredibly noncompetitive due to the presence of Thragtusk in particular.definitely recommend splashing another color with it to help survive.even an uncommon like Viashino Shanktail can really boost your odds of surviving against one.
February 6, 2013 3:07 p.m.
Sweet-Nightmare says... #22
I like skullcrack because it stops turbofog too. No preventing damage for you! Btw, here's some more damage.
February 6, 2013 3:48 p.m.
When it comes down to it, the only good answers are Ultimate Price , Mizzium Mortars , and Searing Spear .
The big problem with Thragtusk is that a whole lot of people that play with that card are also playing with Restoration Angel . This means that a) you'll probably want to direct your Nevermore to something other than Thragtusk , b) your opponent can laugh at your auras as he deposits them in your graveyard, and c) first-strikers aren't optimal because they can't kill the Thrag until after your opponent untaps (meaning he has Resto Angel mana). The only good way to deal with the beast out of a deck with white in it is to kill it before he can bounce it.
Obviously, if you're lucky enough to be playing against Jund, any of the cards mentioned should do nicely. So it depends.
And then there's one more card to mention: Skullcrack . This is an incredible card against the Thrag because it basically is a 2-mana spell that does 8 damage to your opponent. I don't care how reactive that is, it's awesome. The problem is that it leaves the Thragtusk behind, meaning you still have to deal with it in one of the other ways.
February 7, 2013 11:01 a.m.
There is also Essence Scatter , Cancel , Dissipate . One of the best ways to counter Thragtusk is to counter Thragtusk.......
February 7, 2013 11:03 a.m.
ChiefBell indeed dealing with the Tusk before he ever comes into play is the best defence. Barandis I agree with you that Mizzium Mortars , Searing Spear etc. are the best cards to use... if you are playing a fast deck like RDW. If you are playing a reactive deck Skullcrack is a good choice though he just buys time, and if they have the Resto Angel or card:Conjurer's Closet the fact that you prevented the life gain once really isn't going to matter when they are gaining 5 each turn.
February 7, 2013 11:12 a.m.
AlexOAwesome says... #26
Personally i think Skullcrack is a card that should be mainboarded in most decks. card:Sphinx's Revelation and Thragtusk are going around a lot to make it worth it.
February 7, 2013 11:21 a.m.
lol yeah I agree AlexOAwesome alot of people are going to be angry when they get skullcracked trying to use a sphinx lol. If only it prevented the card draw as well.
February 7, 2013 11:23 a.m.
NobodyEpic says... #28
Does Mutilate apply to creatures that enter the battlefield after it resolves?
February 8, 2013 2:14 a.m.
Weston Ayarza says... #30
Appetite for Brains is pretty much a meta-devouring hand removal.
Anything that's a threat in standard is pretty much hittable by this nasty monster.
Worth noting you want to play it on like turn 3-4 depending on the enemy's ramping technique. farseek turn two, means if they have a tusky in hand or an angel, or huntmaster, and it may come out a turn early, you just appetite earlier. Turn 1 appetite isn't always advised unless you have multiples in hand.
February 8, 2013 2:02 p.m.
Crippling Blight because then you can just race them and they don't get a 3/3 beast. The problem with nuking the card itself is you'll end up having to play around the token, creating card disadvantage. Counterspelling it is also hard since Cavern of Souls means people can just ignore your counter.
As has been said, Appetite for Brains , Silverblade Paladin , or any large creature are the best ways to deal with Thragtusk . Doing a one-for-one trade via Ultimate Price still means they gained 5 life and got a beast token out.
SwiftDeath says... #2
if you cloudshift it would return under your control and from there you would control it permanently.
February 6, 2013 1:40 a.m.