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Esper Sentinel
Price$56.55 – $60.34
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Esper Sentinel

{W}

Artifact Creature — Human Soldier

Legal Salt 1.67Card DrawEDHREC #76

Whenever an opponent casts their first noncreature spell each turn, draw a card unless that player pays {X}, where X is this creature's power.

1/1

Why is this card good?

Esper Sentinel is one of the best white cards printed in years, and it singlehandedly closes some of the color's biggest gaps in Commander: card advantage and reach. For a single white mana, it taxes every opponent's first noncreature spell each turn — and in a four-player game, that's potentially three free cards per turn cycle, more if it sticks around. The "tax or draw" design is brutal. Opponents either pay your tax (slowing their development) or hand you cards. Either outcome benefits you, and the power scaling means anthems, equipment, or +1/+1 counters make it even nastier — pump it once and the tax becomes prohibitive. Play it in any white deck, full stop. It's especially strong in stax, hatebears, voltron, and aggressive white-based lists where you have ways to grow its power. The only knock: it's a 1/1 that dies to a stiff breeze, so expect it to eat early removal — which is fine, it's a great lightning rod. Run it whenever white is in your colors.

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Printings (5)

h2rModern Horizons 2 Timeshifts · #2R$57.09Buy
plstThe List · #MH2-12R$60.34Buy
mh2Modern Horizons 2 · #328R$56.55Buy
mh2Modern Horizons 2 · #12R$57.66Buy
pmh2Modern Horizons 2 Promos · #12sR$88.62Buy

Rulings (3)

  • 2021-06-18

    If a noncreature spell was already cast by an opponent the turn Esper Sentinel enters the battlefield, that opponent already cast their first noncreature spell this turn, and Esper Sentinel's ability won't trigger for that opponent that turn.

  • 2021-06-18

    This ability checks Esper Sentinel's power when it resolves, not when the ability goes on the stack. If Esper Sentinel is no longer on the battlefield when it resolves, use the power it had the last time it was on the battlefield.

  • 2021-06-18

    If Esper Sentinel's has negative power when this ability resolves, then {X} is {0}. The opponent may still choose not to pay the cost if they want you to draw a card.

Discussion (0)