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Pojo's Magic The Gathering Card of the Day
Daily Since November 2001!

Obstinate Baloth
Image from Wizards.com

Obstinate Baloth
M11

Reviewed September 7, 2010

Constructed: 3.90
Casual: 4.00
Limited: 3.90
Multiplayer: 3.90

Ratings are based on a 1 to 5 scale
1 being the worst.  3 ... average.  
5 is the highest rating

Click here to see all of our 
Card of the Day Reviews 

BMoor

Obstinate Baloth

I can still remember when a 4/4 for 2GG was considered just about as good as you were going to get. Brooding Saurian was the closest we got to a "baseline" 4/4 for 2GG, but the ability on that is so narrow that it obviously didn't increase the cost of the card in any way. Obstinate Baloth says that for 2GG, a 4/4 isn't good enough unless it has extra abilities. This Baloth gives you 4 life when it hits play, to slow down burn and aggro decks. And if your opponent makes you discard it, you get it for free. You could argue that both those abilities are mainly to counter specific strategies an opponent may employ, but Obstinate Baloth is still surprisingly above the curve.

Constructed- 4
Casual-4
Limited- 4.25
Multiplayer- 4.25


David Fanany

Player since 1995

Obstinate Baloth

For a color known for its creatures, green gets surprisingly potent defensive abilities in recent sets. This particular Baloth goes one better than its ancestors, defending you against red and black's signature abilities equally easily. It's not like direct damage and forced discard appear in every set . . . oh, right.

Constructed: 4/5
Casual: 4/5
Limited: 4/5
Multiplayer: 3/5


Paul

Magic The Gathering Card of The Day: Obstinate Baloth

Welcome back readers today's card of the day is a certain beast an improved/upgraded Ravenous Baloth meant to hose Blighting players. In standard this card has seen a fair bit of action against Jund as a sideboard card. Its an efficient green creature that can gain life and be played for its mana cost if need be. In extended Jund variants may make a splash but discard as a whole has been weakened by Wizards making this an unnecessary card. In eternal powerful discard like Hymn To Tourach and other various nasty's mean this card could be used to combat it but unlikely. In casual and multiplayer newer players hate discard so this card should see some play, also beasts can be a successful tribal deck and this card then provides duel benefits. In limited its a solid creature even if you don't plan on going against discard worth drafting if your in green. Overall a card made to specifically to improve on Ravenous Baloth and hose Jund decks, an interesting card with a definite niche in Magic.

Constructed : 3.5
Casual: 4.0
Limited: 3.0
Multiplayer: 4.0

Michael "Maikeruu" Pierno

Maikeruu

Today's card of the day is Obstinate Baloth which is a four mana 4/4 that gives four life when it enters the battlefield and instead of hitting the graveyard by an opponent's discard effect is sent to the battlefield. There is nothing bad to say about this card, while is is lacking a Trample effect often seen on Green's larger creatures, the cost to benefit ratio is excellent and it is the last thing many Black mages want to see in an opponent's hand. The option of returning it to your hand for extra life gain exists, but keep in mind that the discard effect only works when it is an effect controlled by the opponent and not your own card. Even if not perfectly suited to your Green deck this can easily find a home as a sidedeck against cards that force you to discard as few options punish them like both a creature and life gain in one.

For Limited the double Green in the cost hinders this slightly and there are only three cards that can discard this all in Black. If the opponent is running Liliana Vess, Liliana's Specter, or Mind Rot and this happens to be in your hand this is a major bomb, otherwise is still an efficient 4/4 that gains your four life. A strong card that can be a risky first pick in Booster if several other players are also choosing Green as their primary color, but not the kind of card you should be passing either. With a primarily Green deck this is a great turn four play and can work just as well in Sealed depending on the pool.

Constructed: 4.0
Casual: 4.0
Limited: 4.0
Multiplayer: 4.0


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