Combo card with grindstone and Circu, Dimir Lobotomist.
Mode
★★★★☆ (4.2/5.0)(3 votes)
Grindstone, as mentioned before is likely the best card for this, yet there are still a lot of other fun combos with this card. It can make many Sideboard-choices to Mainboard-awesomesauce. Take Seedtime for inststance. Green Time Walk four times in an Extended or Legacy deck? Sounds like fun!
godmetal101
★★★★☆ (4.2/5.0)(3 votes)
Personally, I think mill is rather boring, predictable, and WAY overestimated. There are so many other good uses for this card. It's a shame that this is rotating out of standard, really, but at least it's still in extended and will definitely be in vintage. A couple of good uses for this bad boy:
Those are just a few of the many possibilities you can use this card for. So take the time and explore all of the fun decks you can come up with for this guy.
Yeah Painter's Servant and Grindstone are pretty much an instant defeat for an opponent. But that combo is incredibly cheap, almost as cheap as an infinite-mana + unpreventable damage spell combo.
Fictionarious
★★★☆☆ (3.0/5.0)(4 votes)
Uh, how about deathgrip and lifeforce? Holy Shit. I'll take four of him, please.
Gaussgoat
★★☆☆☆ (2.0/5.0)(3 votes)
Endless possibilities with this guy. The combo potential alone nets him a 5/5, and the low casting cost and decent toughness of 3 secure that rating.
Ok, wizard, we had blind seer, he was legendary, he was urza travelling with the weatherlight, he even was useful with colation victory, wich had sense, since he was fighting yawgmoth, and he was interesting, until you printed this. Overpowered, overrrated, and horrible, even the art is boring.
SleetFox
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(6 votes)
This is quite possibly the single card with the most potential combos. Just look at these comments; they're dripping with auto-card links. I use four of these with Flickering Ward, Eight-and-a-Half-Tails, Angel's Feather, Rune of Protection: White (usually situational cards popular with newbies getting solid, reliable results!), Pentarch Paladin (cheap, repeatable Vindicate), Kithkin Rabble (gets powered up by lands in addition to permanent spells) and Iona, Shield of Emeria. Even without an ability, it's still a playable creature. 1/3 for 2 is pretty much par for the course.
thefonztheman
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
I have a question. I have an Enchantment card that gives me 4 life everytime an opponent plays a multi-color card. So I played painters servant.. than when he played a spell i was going to gain 4 life. He made the argument that once he puts a card onto the battlefield its now in play and it loses its added color before I can gain health. How does this scenario resolve?
klaff
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
@thefonz: You're right. He casted a spell, the spell had more than one colour, your enchantment triggers. Even if the permanent/spell changes colours afterward the ability still goes.
spectermonger
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
I'm not even going to bother mentioning the combos with this guy..there are just too many.
iantewks
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
without it's power, it's still a 1/3 artifact for 2!! artwork rocks.
AngelxLegna
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
This card is the devil.......really
LordCeviche
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
So does the painters effect stay even when it leaves the field? If its destroyed do things still stay the same color. The cards doesnt say.
But it still rocks. love this card.
heenaheena
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
10 out of 5, stoopid broken, i almost wish it was banned from legacy because although some of the combos it can be involved in are cool and interesting, the iona combo and the grindstone combo are quite rude. At least Iona costs 9 but it does not seem fun to mill or have your opponent mill your deck for a grand total of six colorless mana, broken up into payments of 1, 2, and 3 (meaning you can get it going as you play other things and it can be done third turn just by playing lands so it doesn't require mana accel, thus leaving room in the deck for all sorts of other excellent cards). I guess this is why there are cards like thoughtseize, sadistic sacrament and extirpate.
this card is amazing!!!!!! I want 4 of them lol...
UltimaCenturion
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Maybe if it just made all permanents in play the chosen color, or something that got rid of the absolute terrible, boring mill and "you can't play spells" combos, and yet keep all the other ones. And maybe it wouldn't have gotten banned in EDH! They do need more cards that can make lots of things the colors of your choice, but not one so broken you aren't allowed to use it in the best game format ever.
theis999
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Shifting Sky and Swirl the mist does almost the same thing. but they can't combo with Grindstone... so they are not as populary.
How powerful is this scarecrow, I mean the power Nine are all about mana and drawing cards (don't take me wrong they are the best at it, and are incredibly powerful), but none of them effect each card as much as this does, in fact i do not know of any card that effects cards as much as this does.
TheSwarm
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
dream halls? PLay him declare red, who cares, turn five drop dream halls and then discard any card in your hand for iona, shield of emeria calling red locking down your opponents entire deck
achilleselbow
★★☆☆☆ (2.8/5.0)(2 votes)
It is really really really really really stupid to print cards like this, and Lorwyn seems to be the biggest offender with things like Prismatic Omen and Enchanted Evening. No card should have such a far reaching effect that alters every single thing in the game for two mana and creates broken interactions with cards from any given set. It's lazy card design and lazy balancing that makes for lazy deckbuilding. Why even bother trying to build an interesting deck when there are about a hundred two-card combos with this guy that instantly win or lock down the whole game? Did Wizards forget about all the cards in the early sets like Deathgrip that pretty much read "destroy target monocolored deck"? I'm sick this guy being mentioned in the comments for every other card I look up. At least Baneslayer is just a stupidly overpowered creature that doesn't screw with the basic fabric of the game. Ugh.
The other reason this is dumb is because Wizards paints (no pun intended) themselves into a corner by making cards like this. I mean where can you really go from here? Any card that is printed from now on that affects or changes colors will be useless compared to this.
CrazyLou
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
I want to make a blue/green deck involving this guy and Drowner Initiate. With the Servant, all spells are blue, so I'll use green's mana-ramping to be able to mill every time someone plays a spell.
And of course, since the deck's purpose is mill, I'll include Grindstone. Because why not.
DjDym
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
I like this card, even outside the normal brokenness. I would like to use it in a few decks just because I think it would just make things that much more interesting. In a scarecrow deck it'd be great for the obvious giving your scarecrows abilities, in an Eldrazi deck, 2 of these and a Dragon Arch = 2 mana Eldrazi, combined with Urza Land you can possibly get a turn 3 Eldrazi. Yes the grindstone combo is the most apparent, but other such funs as the avatar aura's from shadowmoor block, and a number of other cards from Ravnica and Alara makes it a good card for someone who really likes the abilities from those blocks. I play a g/w deck almost completely from Lorwyn/Shadowmoor, Shards of Alara, and Ravnica and I am really thinking about using this card just for some of the fun little special abilities of my creatures, including convoke and the Naya Hushblade's abilities. Nothing too big, but just all the more of a fun little flavor quickener. Though I am going to tell my roommate that he needs to put one of these and a Grindstone in his b/u Mill deck, he won't but I think it would be cool just to give him an I win combo.
DespisedIcon
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
2 mana for all that shizzle?? Completely undercosted.
Daikoru
★★★☆☆ (3.5/5.0)(3 votes)
I love playing him along with Llawan, Cephalid Empress and Spellbane Centaur. Once Painter and Spellbane are in play, no one can target any of my creatures. Then, when Llawan joins the fun, the opponent can't play creatures anymore. The only option left to do is to hard-cast creatures or use spells that does not target, but those, I can just use a Red Elemental Blast. I like my deck around it.
I also love how, in a certain game, playing Painter's Servant instantly boosted Faerie Swarm from 1/1 to 10/10.
As an additionnal note, I'd like to choose Brown (Avatar of Me) or Pink (Water Gun Balloon Game). Serves no real purpose, except for a laugh. Are those legal choices outside Un-sets format?
Sixty3Zero
★☆☆☆☆ (1.6/5.0)(4 votes)
Making everything orange or purple has got to be the most fun ever.
Stuffyodd
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
How can you ask for the official ruling on this card when it clashes with the card Ghostfire ? The bigger question for me: What happens to my Ghostflame Sliver ?
XTwistedsoulX
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
For the love of god! How bout a little fire scarecrow?!? Kill on sight. Theres no reason you should ever let this live if you have a way to kill it.
MasterOfEtherium
★☆☆☆☆ (1.2/5.0)(7 votes)
ScareCrow ScareCrow Whats That You Poppin, A Powerful Pill They Call Oxycotton
Richard_Hawk
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Green Sun Zenith for some fun!
StampedingRhino
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Requires Imperial Recruiter to be consistent. I like liquimetal coating better since it isn't as ridiculous. Playing ridiculous cards makes MTG not so fun.
Color changing effect apply in layer 5 Ability removal from Humility apply in layer 6
So are colors changed when both cards are out in the field? I've heard it both ways from Judges.
Phantakwing
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(1 vote)
Another way to completely mess up the game is Painter's Servant + Gloom + Enchanted Evening. It will make it so everyone would have to pay to tap stuff for mana. I lol'd when i realized that.
BegleOne
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
I can't believe they printed this card. They KNEW it was going to be crazy comboriffic. It puzzles me that they made it SO powerful. If it just turned critters something, it'd be good. But it turns ALL permanents into a color, one of the few ways to give lands color; then it gives all SPELLS a color, which is otherwise really hard to do before they actually cast the spell, and then it's the only thing to give all cards NOT IN PLAY a color.
It's like they said, "you know, we've tried to make color hate a viable strategy forever and it's never been done... Screw it, we're going nuclear."
Kryptnyt
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(1 vote)
Great sneaky play against equipment like Sword of Fire and Ice that give protection from a color. Name that color and the equipment falls off when equipped.
iandustrial
★★★★☆ (4.8/5.0)(25 votes)
I see a red deck and I want it painted black.
infernox10
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
One of the few cards that's mentioned more for combos than Doubling Season.
LiekUhScrub
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
@ Daikoru According the rules: "105.4. If a player is asked to choose a color, he or she must choose one of the five colors." So no, you could not choose Brown or Pink, but since the Un cards are all well, Un cards, if you are playing with them then it would be up to your opponents?
Combo's with kicked rite of replication and colation victory
GlassJoetheChamp
★★★☆☆ (3.0/5.0)(2 votes)
Wizards, don't get me wrong, I love when you make Johnny cards with lots of combo opportunities.
But why would you make this card cost a measly 2 colorless mana? As a 1/3, it's already on the curve, if not above it. Mycosynth Lattice is 6. March of the Machines is 3U. Conspiracy is 3BB. Enchanted Evening is 3UU/3WW.
You know you have a problem when a card could cost twice as much and everyone would still play it.
KokoshoForPresident
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(2 votes)
So, if this is just the servant, imagine for a moment what the actual painter would do...
Trygon_Predator
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
A 100% Johnny card. Like Doubling Season for tokens/counters and Mycosynth Lattice for artifacts, this little scarecrow is so easy to combo with it's ridiculous. If colors are involved, then Painter's Servant can combo. So instead of all the degenerate combos mentioned here, how about something simpler: a scarecrow deck with this and Lurebound Scarecrow?
AlphaWolfs
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
I am kind of sad that this card is illegal in commander... Seriously, I'm building a Scarecrow King Commander deck, and I have several cards that rely on color, and several cards that can give them those abilities until end of turn (this makes a permanent "I have THIS ability while THIS card in on the field".) Is it really THAT broken to have "All my scarecrows that need blue permanents have Flying" or "All my scarecrows that need Black permanents have Persist"? //Sarcasm//
I know that this card combo's with several commanders to the point that it's just flat out broken. But still, I'm trying to convince my friends into letting me use a card that wouldn't be broken in my Scarecrow deck, and their literally saying "okay, only if we use banned cards to!" and end up choosing the most broken banned card for their deck, it's not fun when the card that I NEED to activate abilities is banned...
Oh well, I guessI can't complain with the cards I have. Fore those who are also looking to build a Scarecrow King commander deck, these are cards that will replace this card, somewhat, for activating abilities of the "Color Scarecrows" like Wingrattle Scarecrow.
Reaper King for all color activation AND destruction for Scarecrow's. Combo's well with several Scarecrow
Grand Architect for the ability to chance permanents into Blue for Blue Reliant Scarecrow's + Colorless Mana Ramp. Combines with Pili-Pala for indinite Mana.
Scuttlemutt - Given that you can only use him once every untap, you can give you're Color Reliant scarecrow's their abilities until the end of your turn. Also useful for that one last color for Reaper King.
Arachibutyrophobia
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
pretty brutal with Teysa
"I exile all of your creatures. Problem?"
DCAnderson
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
My God, it's full of degenerate combos.
Emperorerror
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.8/5.0)(2 votes)
Actually goes well with the Kraken's Eye/Wurm's Tooth/etc cards of all things. Lands are permanents, so they now have that color. You gain a life every time you play a land, and every time you play something else. Not fantastic, but certainly useful, and it builds up.
...if thats the most useful combo you can think of with this card, you're playing magic wrong.
WUMba_KLIK
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Im using this in an artifact deck. CAN I CHOOSE ARTIFACT AS A COLOR? now that colorless permanents are a reality, it kind a contradicts that artifact is not a color.. help plz!
RadMan323
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
I love how many applications this thing has! @ WUMba_KLIK No you cannot name artifact as a color, it's a card type, nor can you name "colorless" as that is not a color From the Rules: 105.4. If a player is asked to choose a color, he or she must choose one of the five colors. "Multicolored" is not a color. Neither is "colorless."
BongRipper420
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
So... most combolicious drop in the entire game?
demidracolich
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
@Arachibutyrophobia: More like "I sac my creatures to my nantuko husk 5 million times while having a blood artist on the field, problem?"
I'm having issues understanding this card, mostly because I find the oracle text confusing compared to the rules. The oracle text (which I presume is the one most up to date) says that Painter's Servant affects cards that are not on the battlefield, but the rules says it affects cards in all zones? Can someone please enlighten me here?
Kontrah
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
This has spawned a ton of broken, unstoppable kitchen-table decks. It even has a relevant body with the 3 toughness at 2cmc.
MisterAction
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Its master must not be very versatile, only ever using one color. That's less of a "painter" and more of a "person who dumps paint everywhere."
Apart from the millstone combo, I don't really see why it's banned in edh. Oona, maybe? I miss it as a two-drop in my Reaper King...
Goatllama
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Mythic.
TheWrathofShane
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(1 vote)
If you have x1 Emrakul, the Aeons Torn in your deck, it would hose the painter//grindstone combo. Unless they can Surgical Extraction Emrakul when he hits the yard.
Also could include these guys in your sideboard, so your doom blade can hit black creatures.
The next person who comments on a card and says "run with Painter's Servant" needs to be slapped profusely. It's like saying "run with Black Lotus".
I'm tired of seeing people telling us to "run" cards like Stromgald Cabal or Bad Moon with Painter's Servant. When you're talking about a card that's spectacularly overpowered, mundane combinations don't count as combos. Just in the same way that Black Lotus + Hypnotic Specter doesn't count as a combo, but Black Lotus + Channel + Fireball does. Painter's Servant + Grindstone is worth mentioning, Painter's Servant + Sea Troll is not.
Get it, guys? 'Cause if not, the palm of my hand has your name written on it... @ Kodanshi - 5 stars for you!
Because people have too many things, including you.
Nice one R & D.
Belgarath123
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
@thewrathofshane
Actually, the black creature will remain black, so doomblade won't work.
Moaz
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Johnny's Servant
HamsterSales
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
I'm fairly blown away having read through 9 pages of comments. Many of them vaguely allude to "so many combos" or how broken this card is.
The only real combo that's been mentioned is the Grindstone one, and that's actually fairly tame and easily disrupted by Legacy standards. Iona, Shield of Emeria gets better, but then again you've already managed to cast/reanimate Iona which would be amazing even without servant. It's a good card for some of the other marginal synergies people have been mentioning and the mill combo, but otherwise it's not so great and has seen little competitive play as a result.
Comments (92)
It can make many Sideboard-choices to Mainboard-awesomesauce.
Take Seedtime for inststance. Green Time Walk four times in an Extended or Legacy deck? Sounds like fun!
~Your typical Scarecrow deck for Shadowmoor/Eventide
~The Invasion cycle of legendary dragons (esp. Rith, the Awakener and Treva, the Renewer.)
~Vampire Nocturnus
~Akroma, Angel of Wrath or Akroma, Angel of Fury, or just about any card with protection from a color (not counting cards like Progenitus.)
~Cards that have Radiance (from the Ravnica block)
~Deathmark or any other cards that destroy or exile cards of a particular color(s).
Those are just a few of the many possibilities you can use this card for. So take the time and explore all of the fun decks you can come up with for this guy.
How about Iona, Shield of Emeria ?
Holy Shit. I'll take four of him, please.
Gloom would be fun with black.
Also, I like to run this with Squee for infinite discard and Jaya Ballard.
Which is saying something, as that is roughly 5x the total number of cards that have been printed.
5/5 any day of the week.
Oh, pre-release story for this guy: my opponent had him alongside Kithkin Rabble...unfortunately, I had an Oona, Queen of the Fae...the kithkin never connected :/
artwork rocks.
But it still rocks. love this card.
They do need more cards that can make lots of things the colors of your choice, but not one so broken you aren't allowed to use it in the best game format ever.
The other reason this is dumb is because Wizards paints (no pun intended) themselves into a corner by making cards like this. I mean where can you really go from here? Any card that is printed from now on that affects or changes colors will be useless compared to this.
And of course, since the deck's purpose is mill, I'll include Grindstone. Because why not.
I also love how, in a certain game, playing Painter's Servant instantly boosted Faerie Swarm from 1/1 to 10/10.
As an additionnal note, I'd like to choose Brown (Avatar of Me) or Pink (Water Gun Balloon Game). Serves no real purpose, except for a laugh. Are those legal choices outside Un-sets format?
Ability removal from Humility apply in layer 6
So are colors changed when both cards are out in the field?
I've heard it both ways from Judges.
It will make it so everyone would have to pay
It's like they said, "you know, we've tried to make color hate a viable strategy forever and it's never been done... Screw it, we're going nuclear."
According the rules: "105.4. If a player is asked to choose a color, he or she must choose one of the five colors."
So no, you could not choose Brown or Pink, but since the Un cards are all well, Un cards, if you are playing with them then it would be up to your opponents?
But why would you make this card cost a measly 2 colorless mana? As a 1/3, it's already on the curve, if not above it. Mycosynth Lattice is 6. March of the Machines is 3U. Conspiracy is 3BB. Enchanted Evening is 3UU/3WW.
You know you have a problem when a card could cost twice as much and everyone would still play it.
So instead of all the degenerate combos mentioned here, how about something simpler: a scarecrow deck with this and Lurebound Scarecrow?
I know that this card combo's with several commanders to the point that it's just flat out broken. But still, I'm trying to convince my friends into letting me use a card that wouldn't be broken in my Scarecrow deck, and their literally saying "okay, only if we use banned cards to!" and end up choosing the most broken banned card for their deck, it's not fun when the card that I NEED to activate abilities is banned...
Oh well, I guessI can't complain with the cards I have. Fore those who are also looking to build a Scarecrow King commander deck, these are cards that will replace this card, somewhat, for activating abilities of the "Color Scarecrows" like Wingrattle Scarecrow.
Reaper King for all color activation AND destruction for Scarecrow's. Combo's well with several Scarecrow
Grand Architect for the ability to chance permanents into Blue for Blue Reliant Scarecrow's + Colorless Mana Ramp. Combines with Pili-Pala for indinite Mana.
Scuttlemutt - Given that you can only use him once every untap, you can give you're Color Reliant scarecrow's their abilities until the end of your turn. Also useful for that one last color for Reaper King.
"I exile all of your creatures. Problem?"
...if thats the most useful combo you can think of with this card, you're playing magic wrong.
@ WUMba_KLIK
No you cannot name artifact as a color, it's a card type, nor can you name "colorless" as that is not a color
From the Rules:
105.4. If a player is asked to choose a color, he or she must choose one of the five colors. "Multicolored" is not a color. Neither is "colorless."
Wow.
BANNED IN EDH!
Oona, maybe?
I miss it as a two-drop in my Reaper King...
Also could include these guys in your sideboard, so your doom blade can hit black creatures.
I'm tired of seeing people telling us to "run" cards like Stromgald Cabal or Bad Moon with Painter's Servant. When you're talking about a card that's spectacularly overpowered, mundane combinations don't count as combos. Just in the same way that Black Lotus + Hypnotic Specter doesn't count as a combo, but Black Lotus + Channel + Fireball does. Painter's Servant + Grindstone is worth mentioning, Painter's Servant + Sea Troll is not.
Get it, guys? 'Cause if not, the palm of my hand has your name written on it...
@ Kodanshi - 5 stars for you!
Wheel of Sun and Moon stops Grindstone. In case they're self-milling into Laboratory Maniac, it stops that, too.
Get this little bugger and Iona, Shield of Emeria into your graveyard with a Buried Alive. Reverberate a Reanimate.
Doable on turn two with the right mana accel.
Because people have too many things, including you.
Nice one R & D.
Actually, the black creature will remain black, so doomblade won't work.
The only real combo that's been mentioned is the Grindstone one, and that's actually fairly tame and easily disrupted by Legacy standards. Iona, Shield of Emeria gets better, but then again you've already managed to cast/reanimate Iona which would be amazing even without servant. It's a good card for some of the other marginal synergies people have been mentioning and the mill combo, but otherwise it's not so great and has seen little competitive play as a result.
Painter's Servant: huehuehuehuehue