Rubblebelt Maaka

A 3/3 for four with no combat-relevant abilities is nothing to get excited about. Bloodrush may look like a combat abilitiy at first glance, but it only works when the Maaka is in your hand. When it's on the field, it's a vanilla 3/3 and is handily outclassed by just about anything an opponent will play. So it's the Bloodrush ability that's the real point of interest-- basically a Giant Growth that only works on the attack. Giant Growth doesn't see a lot of play in Constructed, but I've used it there to great effect myself and can testify that an aggro deck can definitely run it. When you've got Giant Growth and your opponent knows it, you can get away with some incredibly dodgy attacks just because your opponent doesn't want to lose his best creature to a surprise +3/+3, and players at low life will hold back more blockers than necessary out of fear.

What does that mean for the Maaka? It means it's not a creature spell with an upside, it's actually a pump spell that won't get stranded in your hand if your board is empty. It also means casting a Maaka, while an underwhelming play on its face, could be used as a psychological tactic. It tells your opponent that your creature may not be that impressive, but you may be able to give it, or any other creature, +3/+3 on the attack. Once your opponent sees the Maaka, he needs to play around it. And if you don't have another one, him playing around a card you don't have is just as bad as him not playing around a card you do have. This isn't reliable, but it can be fun-- best used in Limited, where more games revolve around combat anyway.

Constructed- 2
Casual- 3
Limited- 4
Multiplayer- 2.5

Welcome back readers todays card of the day is a solid limited card nothing more nothing less. In any competitive constructed format this creature is not worthy of including in decks and is relatively unexciting. In casual and multiplayer this creature is decent and bloodrush is a solid way for a creature to double as a combat trick adding some unpredictability and versatility to your deck and the cost and boost for this bloodrush is just right. The fact it is also a cat lends some appeal to this card. In limited this is a solid dude, playable and having multiple copies increases your options. Overall a strictly limited card that has some niche uses in casual.

Constructed: 1.0
Casual: 1.5
Limited: 2.5
Multiplayer: 1.5

Today's card of the day is Rubblebelt Maaka which is a four mana Red 3/3 with Bloodrush for one Red mana that gives target attacking creature
+3/+3 until end of turn.  This is a mediocre creature by itself as a
four mana 3/3 and the attacking only clause attached to a Giant Growth effect is more situational than similar plays. Having both on the same card does provide a versatile choice that is almost always useful to have in hand.  Overall it is the flexible nature of either a creature or a combat trick that make this a solid addition for an aggressive build and it is likely to see play in at least some mono-Red designs.
 
In Limited this is a very solid common that is worthwhile for either effect as it can be a surprise combat advantage or just an extra body in play.  The single Red in both costs allow this to be easily included in any deck using Red and it should be played in any Sealed where Red is at least splashed.  In Booster it is a strong on color pick after more efficient cards as the flexibility is a strong advantage.
 
Constructed: 3.5
Casual: 3.5
Limited: 4.0
Multiplayer: 3.5

Rubblebelt Maaka is a great draft card and can be useful in a Bloodrush deck. I’ve noticed that some people tend to call this creature the Rubberbelt Maaka and that is just funny!  To be honest with you, I have no idea what a Maaka is. It sounds like a fish or some sort of mountain cat. What I do know is that there are a lot of pump spells that mono-red can take advantage of in Standard. Rubblebelt Maaka can give a player options and that is a good thing when it comes to common cards. Most commons are not very versatile. Rubblebelt Maaka can be a simple chump blocker or in the right situation a finisher.
 
Constructed: 2
Casual: 3
Limited: 3.5
Multiplayer: 2