Orcish Librarian MTG Card


Orcish Librarian’s ability offers crucial deck setup, arranging draws for strategic gameplay advancements. Activating at instant speed, the Librarian enhances turn flexibility while maintaining mana for responses. Despite its potential, the card’s discard requirement and specific mana cost pose strategic risks.
Card setsReleased in 2 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost2
RarityRare
TypeCreature — Orc
Power 1
Toughness 1

Text of card

o R,oc T: Take the top eight cards of your library; remove four of them at random from the game. Put the remaining four on top of your library in any order.

Us hungry, need food . . . . Lots of books . . . . Hmm . . . .


Cards like Orcish Librarian

Orcish Librarian is a unique piece in the realm of library manipulation in Magic: The Gathering. When considering its counterparts, one can look at cards like Goblin Spy and Madblind Mountain. The librarian takes a distinctive approach by allowing players to look at the top eight cards of their library, delve into a bit of rearranging, but at the risk of losing precious cards. Unlike Goblin Spy, which only peeks at the top card or Madblind Mountain that shuffles the whole library, Orcish Librarian provides a controlled yet hazardous sift through your deck.

Cosmic Epiphany falls into a somewhat related category with its ability to peer into the upcoming cards but it does so by draw power instead of rearrangement. This makes the Librarian a riskier choice for players who dare to strategize several plays ahead. Lastly, we have the card Precognition Field, offering exile and play from the top of the library, which stands as a more versatile but costlier option compared to Orcish Librarian’s targeted library sculpting. Each presents advantages in different scenarios within gameplay.

All in all, Orcish Librarian offers a rare breed of deck control which, when deployed smartly, can be a game-changer despite its potential downfall. It’s a daring bet for those looking to harness the chaos of chance within Magic: The Gathering.

Goblin Spy - MTG Card versions
Madblind Mountain - MTG Card versions
Cosmic Epiphany - MTG Card versions
Precognition Field - MTG Card versions
Goblin Spy - MTG Card versions
Madblind Mountain - MTG Card versions
Cosmic Epiphany - MTG Card versions
Precognition Field - MTG Card versions

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Decks using this card

MTG decks using Orcish Librarian. Dig deeper into the strategy of decks, sideboard cards, list ideas and export to play in ARENA or MOL.

#NameFormatArchetypeEvent
DecklistDecklist Free formMiddle School World Championships

Card Pros

Card Advantage: The Orcish Librarian MTG card offers a unique way to sift through the top eight cards of your library, potentially setting up future draws for success. This maneuver lets you strategically arrange your upcoming turns by organizing your options and increases the likelihood of drawing the right card at the right time.

Resource Acceleration: While Orcish Librarian doesn’t directly produce additional mana, it efficiently churns through your deck to find the lands or ramp spells you need. This can indirectly accelerate your resources by increasing your chances of hitting land drops or drawing into cards that generate more mana.

Instant Speed: The ability of the Orcish Librarian to activate at instant speed grants flexibility in your gameplay. It allows you to wait until the end of your opponent’s turn to reorganize your library, preserving the element of surprise and keeping open mana for other spells or responses during your opponent’s turn.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: The Orcish Librarian card requires the player to shuffle and exile the top eight cards of their library as part of the effect. This mechanic could inadvertently exile crucial cards, impacting the player’s strategy.

Specific Mana Cost: This card has a precise mana cost that includes one red mana. Players running a multicolored deck might find this restrictive, especially if red mana sources are scarce during crucial gameplay moments.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a casting cost of one generic and one red mana, the Orcish Librarian’s ability may seem inefficient when considering the unpredictability of exiling the top eight cards. Alternative card selection or draw options that offer greater control and reliability could be more mana-efficient.


Reasons to Include Orcish Librarian in Your Collection

Versatility: Orcish Librarian offers an unusual but potentially powerful way to manipulate your library. This can be advantageous in decks that care about the order of cards or seek to sift through their library quickly for key pieces.

Combo Potential: As a library manipulator, Orcish Librarian can work well with cards that allow you to play the top card of your library or with shuffle effects to essentially reset the top eight cards you’ve looked at, if they’re not satisfactory.

Meta-Relevance: In a game where knowing what’s coming can be half the battle, Orcish Librarian provides insights other players may not expect. While it’s a niche card, in the right deck it could function as a sort of ‘pseudo-draw’ to ensure you’re hitting your land drops or curating the perfect draw.


How to beat

Orcish Librarian is an intriguing creature card that plays a unique role in the library manipulation strategy in Magic: The Gathering. In essence, it allows players to look at the top eight cards of their library, re-order them, or, if strategically advantageous, shuffle away unwanted cards. While this presents an interesting tool for setting up future draws, it can also be turned to your advantage.

To counteract the abilities of an active Orcish Librarian on your opponent’s battlefield, one can employ several techniques. Utilizing instant speed removal spells can ensure the Librarian never gets the chance to activate its abilities. Cards with the ability to exile such as Path to Exile or direct damage like Lightning Bolt can disrupt your opponent’s library setup before they have the opportunity to draw into a better hand.

Ensnaring the Librarian in a card like Pithing Needle, which prevents the activation of its abilities, can also neutralize its potential impact. Alternatively, effects that reshuffle your opponent’s library such as Field of Ruin can undo the careful planning facilitated by the Librarian. This allows you to maintain control over the randomness and potential threats your adversary is attempting to curate.

Thus, with the right strategy in place, the Orcish Librarian’s influence on the game can be effectively diminished, allowing you to maintain the upper hand over deck manipulation tactics in Magic: The Gathering.


Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Orcish Librarian MTG card by a specific set like Ice Age and Time Spiral Timeshifted, 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 Orcish Librarian and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Orcish Librarian Magic the Gathering card was released in 2 different sets between 1995-06-03 and 2006-10-06. Illustrated by Phil Foglio.

#ReleasedNameCodeSymbolNumberFrameLayoutBorderArtist
11995-06-03Ice AgeICE 2091993NormalBlackPhil Foglio
22006-10-06Time Spiral TimeshiftedTSB 661997NormalBlackPhil Foglio

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Orcish Librarian has restrictions

FormatLegality
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
ModernLegal
OathbreakerLegal
PremodernLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
PredhLegal
PennyLegal

Rules and information

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

Date Text
2004-10-04 You do get to look at the remaining 4 cards before deciding which order to put them back in.