Excavating Anurid MTG Card


In graveyard-centric decks, Excavating Anurid’s dredge ability significantly enhances card access and retrieval. The Anurid supports land plays from the graveyard, subtly boosting your mana resources and game tempo. Its synergy with instant speed spells offers flexibility, adapting to the game’s dynamics while pressuring opponents.
Card setsReleased in 3 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost5
RarityCommon
TypeCreature — Frog Beast
Abilities Threshold
Power 4
Toughness 4

Text of card

When Excavating Anurid enters the battlefield, you may sacrifice a land. If you do, draw a card. Threshold — As long as seven or more cards are in your graveyard, Excavating Anurid gets +1/+1 and has vigilance.

Turg's spawn ruled long after he croaked.


Cards like Excavating Anurid

Excavating Anurid stands out within the pantheon of Magic: The Gathering green creatures due to its appealing combo of size and card cycling abilities. Peering at comparable cards, we find that Baloth Gorger, like Excavating Anurid, also brings a significant creature body to the battlefield but lacks the card cycling feature. However, it does provide flexibility with a kicker cost that creates an even larger threat if you have sufficient mana.

In terms of self-mill creatures, Satyr Wayfinder is a card that shares a semblance of functionality, introducing the concept of graveyard play by fetching lands from the top few cards of your library and feeding the graveyard. Although Satyr Wayfinder doesn’t provide the same level of raw power as Excavating Anurid, it’s instrumental for setting up future plays.

Another creature to consider is Nyx Weaver. While it constantly fills your graveyard over time, which supports strategies entwined with Excavating Anurid, it also offers the utility to return a key card from your graveyard to your hand, something Excavating Anurid does not. Ultimately, each of these creatures fulfill unique roles, but Excavating Anurid’s niche lies in its raw power and immediate card cycling capability intertwined with graveyard synergy.

Baloth Gorger - MTG Card versions
Satyr Wayfinder - MTG Card versions
Nyx Weaver - MTG Card versions
Baloth Gorger - MTG Card versions
Satyr Wayfinder - MTG Card versions
Nyx Weaver - MTG Card versions

Cards similar to Excavating Anurid by color, type and mana cost

Thicket Basilisk - MTG Card versions
Cockatrice - MTG Card versions
Ironroot Treefolk - MTG Card versions
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Kavu Chameleon - MTG Card versions
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Consuming Blob - MTG Card versions
Ashaya, Soul of the Wild - MTG Card versions
Primeval Force - MTG Card versions
Thicket Basilisk - MTG Card versions
Cockatrice - MTG Card versions
Ironroot Treefolk - MTG Card versions
Elvish Bard - MTG Card versions
Durkwood Boars - MTG Card versions
Elven Riders - MTG Card versions
Panther Warriors - MTG Card versions
Redwood Treefolk - MTG Card versions
Spined Wurm - MTG Card versions
Rabid Wolverines - MTG Card versions
Deadly Insect - MTG Card versions
Vintara Elephant - MTG Card versions
Crashing Boars - MTG Card versions
Kavu Climber - MTG Card versions
Kavu Chameleon - MTG Card versions
Spring-Leaf Avenger - MTG Card versions
Okina Nightwatch - MTG Card versions
Consuming Blob - MTG Card versions
Ashaya, Soul of the Wild - MTG Card versions
Primeval Force - MTG Card versions

Card Pros

Card Advantage: The aptly named Excavating Anurid can favorably affect your hand by allowing you to dredge and potentially retrieve it multiple times, granting you access to more cards over the course of the game. This can be pivotal in decks designed to capitalize on graveyard strategies.

Resource Acceleration: Excavating Anurid provides a slight form of resource acceleration by allowing a land play from the graveyard once it hits the battlefield. This subtle advantage nudges you ahead by maximizing your land drops and turning an otherwise empty graveyard play into a resource.

Instant Speed: Although Excavating Anurid itself doesn’t operate at instant speed, its dredge ability pairs well with instant speed spells. It provides flexibility in decision-making during your draw step, ensuring that you can adapt to the fluid dynamics of the game while maintaining the pressure on your opponents.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Excavating Anurid necessitates the discarding of a card when it enters the battlefield. This can be counterproductive, particularly when you’re trying to maintain card advantage or have no disposable cards in hand.

Specific Mana Cost: Requiring both green and generic mana, Excavating Anurid’s cost demands a commitment to green mana sources. This could potentially restrict it to green-centric or two-colored decks, possibly limiting its versatility in a broader range of deck archetypes.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: For five mana, Excavating Anurid may be a costly investment, especially when taking into account the rapid pace of play and the availability of other creatures that provide more immediate board presence or value without the additional cost of discarding a card.


Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Excavating Anurid offers a flexible role in green-focused decks, easily slotting into strategies that value graveyard interaction or require sturdy blockers.

Combo Potential: This card can synergize with landfall mechanics or strategies that capitalize on sacrificing creatures, making it a powerful tool in certain combo builds.

Meta-Relevance: In game environments where resource advantage is key, Excavating Anurid’s ability to self-mill while providing a solid body can be extremely beneficial, particularly in decks designed to exploit the graveyard.


How to beat Excavating Anurid

Excavating Anurid presents an interesting challenge for Magic the Gathering enthusiasts. To overcome this creature, players must understand its strengths and weaknesses. Excavating Anurid flourishes in graveyard-centric decks due to its ability to self-mill, thereby fueling its 5/4 body. This feature, coupled with the potential to draw a card when it enters the battlefield, makes it a valuable asset for any graveyard strategy.

However, this card’s self-milling effect can be a double-edged sword, allowing opponents to target key strategies. Graveyard hate cards, such as Rest in Peace or Leyline of the Void, can significantly hinder the utility of Excavating Anurid by exiling cards before they prove useful. Moreover, since Excavating Anurid necessitates a player to return two lands to their hand, it can disrupt one’s mana curve. Utilizing land destruction or denying land recovery can thus be instrumental in mitigating the Anurid’s impact on the game. Board control spells and targeted removals like Swords to Plowshares also offer a straightforward solution to this potential threat. Understanding and exploiting these weaknesses is key to mastering the game and effectively countering Excavating Anurid.


Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Excavating Anurid // Excavating Anurid MTG card by a specific set like Modern Horizons Art Series and Modern Horizons, 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 Excavating Anurid // Excavating Anurid and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Excavating Anurid // Excavating Anurid Magic the Gathering card was released in 3 different sets between 2019-06-14 and 2021-08-26. Illustrated by Joe Slucher.

#ReleasedNameCodeSymbolNumberFrameLayoutBorderArtist
12019-06-05Modern Horizons Art SeriesAMH1 432015Art seriesBorderlessJoe Slucher
22019-06-14Modern HorizonsMH1 1632015NormalBlackJoe Slucher
32021-08-26Jumpstart: Historic HorizonsJ21 5682015NormalBlackJoe Slucher

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Excavating Anurid has restrictions

FormatLegality
HistoricbrawlLegal
HistoricLegal
LegacyLegal
PaupercommanderLegal
OathbreakerLegal
GladiatorLegal
CommanderLegal
ModernLegal
PauperLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
PennyLegal
TimelessLegal

Rules and information

The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering Excavating Anurid card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.

Date Text
2019-06-14 While resolving Excavating Anurid’s triggered ability, you can’t sacrifice multiple lands to draw multiple cards.
Vigilance card art

Guide to Vigilance card ability

In the strategic universe of Magic: The Gathering (MTG), the vigilance ability stands out as a powerful tool for players. This potent keyword allows creatures to attack without tapping, keeping them ready and alert to defend against incoming threats. It represents a perfect balance between aggression and defense, offering a dynamic approach to gameplay. Lets dive deeper into how vigilance shapes the battlefield.