Knight of Cliffhaven MTG Card


Offers long-term board presence, evolving from an early defender to a potent flying vigilant threat. Diverse deck synergy with cards enhancing counters or utilizing flying creatures for combos. Efficient for control strategies, capable of adapting to various game stages and matchups.
Card setsReleased in 5 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost2
RarityCommon
TypeCreature — Kor Knight
Abilities Flying,Level Up, Vigilance
Power 2
Toughness 2

Text of card

Level up (: Put a level counter on this. Level up only as a sorcery.) LEVEL 1-3 2/3 Flying LEVEL 4+ 4/4 Flying, vigilance


Cards like Knight of Cliffhaven

Knight of Cliffhaven treads familiar ground in Magic: The Gathering as a modest but versatile creature card. When positioned against other two-mana creatures with flying, such as Welkin Tern, Knight of Cliffhaven stands out with its potential to level up. While Welkin Tern also has evasion with flying, it misses out on Knight of Cliffhaven’s growth option, which eventually grants vigilance alongside a stat boost.

Looking to other level-up creatures, Kargan Dragonlord presents a similar concept but with a significantly different payoff as it transforms into a powerful dragon. Compared to Knight of Cliffhaven, the Dragonlord requires an investment of red mana and boosts its power more dramatically. Still, Knight of Cliffhaven is noteworthy for its early defensive capabilities with the added advantage of becoming a flying, vigilant threat if the game progresses.

Putting these aspects into perspective, the Knight of Cliffhaven carves a niche for itself among level-up creatures in MTG. Its initial low cost and potential for late-game influence make it a suitable dual-purpose option for players building a deck that scales in power over time.

Welkin Tern - MTG Card versions
Kargan Dragonlord - MTG Card versions
Welkin Tern - MTG Card versions
Kargan Dragonlord - MTG Card versions

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Knight of Cliffhaven shines in decks that are geared towards utilizing its level up ability. As you invest mana into it, it slowly transforms into a more potent card, essentially transforming one card into a multi-stage threat that can impact the board in multiple ways as the game progresses.

Resource Acceleration: While not directly providing resource acceleration, the versatility of Knight of Cliffhaven lies in its flexible cost. Initially a low-cost creature, it allows for early board presence, whilst retaining the potential for resource investment over time, culminating in a more substantial board threat without the need to commit additional cards from your hand.

Instant Speed: Although Knight of Cliffhaven’s level up ability is activated only at sorcery speed, having the capability to invest mana into its ability at key moments before your turn starts allows savvy players to adapt to the state of the game while keeping mana open for other crucial instant speed interactions during opponents’ turns.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Knight of Cliffhaven doesn’t have an innate discard requirement, but in a deck that leverages discard mechanics, its usefulness may diminish if you’re forced to choose between valuable cards in hand.

Specific Mana Cost: Requiring both white and colorless mana, Knight of Cliffhaven may not fit seamlessly into multicolored decks that might not prioritize white mana or have a manabase optimized for other color combinations.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a casting cost and a level up mechanic that requires additional mana investments, Knight of Cliffhaven may compete for resources with other mana-intensive cards within the same curve, potentially delaying more impactful plays or board development.


Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Knight of Cliffhaven serves as a flexible addition to deck lineups, capable of being both an early defense as a 2/2 that can subsequently level up to offer aerial offense. Its scaling abilities allow it to adapt to the changing board state throughout a game.

Combo Potential: With its level up mechanic, Knight of Cliffhaven interacts well with cards that manipulate counters or benefit from the presence of a flying creature, such as proliferate effects or equipment that synergizes with vigilant attackers.

Meta-Relevance: In an environment where evasion and board presence are key, this card can hold strategic positions on the battlefield. Its final form, a 3/4 flyer with vigilance, competes favorably in skies cluttered with other flyers, carving out its niche in decks looking to control the aerial zone or consistently chip in for damage.


How to beat

The Knight of Cliffhaven is a versatile figure in the world of Magic: The Gathering, offering both early game presence and a scalable late-game threat. To counter this card, it’s crucial to neutralize it before it advances to its formidable final form. Removal spells like Fatal Push or Path to Exile work well since they can dispatch the Knight before it becomes too large a threat to handle. Board wipes such as Wrath of God are also effective in clearing it along with any other creatures your opponent has accumulated.

Alternatively, keeping the Knight in check through counter spells or by utilizing de-buffing enchantments such as Pacifism can hinder the card from achieving its full potential, ensuring it remains a non-issue. In faster-paced games, simply outpacing the opponent with aggressive creatures can pressure them to block with their Knight, effectively reducing its utility and threat level. In essence, when confronting the Knight of Cliffhaven, swift and decisive action is paramount in preventing this creature from reaching its soaring heights in your MTG matches.


Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Knight of Cliffhaven MTG card by a specific set like Rise of the Eldrazi and Duel Decks: Knights vs. Dragons, 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 Knight of Cliffhaven and other MTG cards:

TCGPlayerBUY NOW
BurnMana is an official partner of TCGPlayer
Continue exploring other sealed products in Amazon
See MTG Products

Printings

The Knight of Cliffhaven Magic the Gathering card was released in 5 different sets between 2010-04-23 and 2019-11-07. Illustrated by Matt Cavotta.

#ReleasedNameCodeSymbolNumberFrameLayoutBorderArtist
12010-04-23Rise of the EldraziROE 292003LevelerBlackMatt Cavotta
22011-04-01Duel Decks: Knights vs. DragonsDDG 42003LevelerBlackMatt Cavotta
32015-08-28Duel Decks: Zendikar vs. EldraziDDP 52015LevelerBlackMatt Cavotta
42019-11-07Mystery BoosterMB1 1452015LevelerBlackMatt Cavotta
52020-09-26The ListPLST DDP-52015LevelerBlackMatt Cavotta

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Knight of Cliffhaven has restrictions

FormatLegality
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
PaupercommanderLegal
ModernLegal
OathbreakerLegal
PauperLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
PredhLegal
PennyLegal

Rules and information

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

Date Text
2010-06-15 A creature’s level is based on how many level counters it has on it, not how many times its level up ability has been activated or has resolved. If a leveler gets level counters due to some other effect (such as Clockspinning) or loses level counters for some reason (such as Vampire Hexmage), its level is changed accordingly.
2010-06-15 Effects that modify a leveler’s power or toughness, such as the effects of Giant Growth or Glorious Anthem, will apply to it no matter when they started to take effect. The same is true for counters that change the creature’s power or toughness (such as +1/+1 counters) and effects that switch its power and toughness.
2010-06-15 Effects that set a leveler’s power or toughness to a specific value, including the effects from a level symbol’s ability, apply in timestamp order. The timestamp of each level symbol’s ability is the same as the timestamp of the leveler itself, regardless of when the most recent level counter was put on it.
2010-06-15 If another creature becomes a copy of a leveler, all of the leveler’s printed abilities — including those represented by level symbols — are copied. The current characteristics of the leveler, and the number of level counters on it, are not. The abilities, power, and toughness of the copy will be determined based on how many level counters are on the copy.
2010-06-15 The abilities a leveler grants to itself don’t overwrite any other abilities it may have. In particular, they don’t overwrite the creature’s level up ability; it always has that.
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.