Gwafa seems to be designed with the Johnny player archetype in mind and I sorta feel like a Timmy/Spike, so there really isn't a lot here for me personally. That aside I love the art and I think the design is neat, but usually not something that excites me in a card. In limited Gwafa seems pretty awful as well and while he can just be a Grey Ogre that sets around and only uses his ability as needed, that still feels very narrow and makes his ability completely reliant on circumstance.
EccOMyth
★★★☆☆ (3.4/5.0)(4 votes)
Gwafa is limited to a Control deck really, but in a control deck he is a very nice addition and with the right combo of cards he can be a nightmare for the other player. Even giving the other player a free draw can be a downside if played with the right cards. So in the end i give him a good rating, but thats only if he's in a control deck, don't be silly and try to use him in a Blue/White counter/life deck or some such sillyness. Makes sure your using things like Telemin Performance and Bribery and so on.
BrimandVormay
★☆☆☆☆ (1.6/5.0)(4 votes)
limited? he's pretty much unlimited! he's great in a bant deck, he's extremely usefull when your opponent plays a huge blocker or a giant attacker broodstar for example. he basically makes a bunch of monsters your opponent plays useless. i mean, it's not like most opponents have a way of removing bribery counters, cause this guy's the first to use them. i don't know what people's problem is with this guy, i use a bant deck and this guys one of my favorites.
BenKHS
★☆☆☆☆ (1.5/5.0)(5 votes)
people who complain about Gwafa simply do not know how to use him. against any deck, stop your opponents creatures dead. unless they have some crazy abilities, then play him with a mark of asylum. stopping an attacking onslaught is redic, and even works against indestructible creatures, I'm lookin at you spearbreaker behemoth! Plus if you can make your opponent draw few cards and make him discard a few.... you got a dimir deck goin!
Sene
★★★☆☆ (3.0/5.0)(4 votes)
Well, this guy is terrible. Just kill him and your creatures are free to brawl, so essentially a removal spell is an X+1-for-one, where X is the number of times he has used his ability.
BrutalJim
★★★★☆ (4.2/5.0)(4 votes)
He's decent, he's not that great considering all your opponents creatures are free to attack if he's removed. The key is not to overuse his ability, and only use it on threats that you don't have a way to deal with at the time.
Nuclearboy91
★★☆☆☆ (2.5/5.0)(5 votes)
A very nice ability if used carefully and if you protect him with counterspells or Robe of Mirrors. You just have to keep him in play as long as possible. Then he can paralyze a whole army. And since the bribery counters are counters, the opponent has almost no possibilities of removing them.
GrimGorgonBC
★☆☆☆☆ (1.0/5.0)(4 votes)
He should be 4 1/2. Hes good in bant and control. Very underrated. One of the best legends out of the block.
Eltervag
★★★☆☆ (3.8/5.0)(4 votes)
It is really too bad it's limited to creatures you don't control.
MightyMortox
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(1 vote)
I'm trying him out as a 3-of in my U/B/W mill deck (along with Wall of Denial) and it's actually not going too badly.
I have enough counters to protect him most of the time, the draw effect when I bribe a creature ties in with the Milling strategy, and it gives me a way to survive mid-game when I'm getting overrun with more creatures then I have PtE's and Doomblades for.
darkfury
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
while not in a category of cards i like to play, Gwafa does come in handy, expecially if you can untap him. one of the zendikar taps can actually be forced on an opponent with this if you use the ability right before their combat phase
EnV
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Furthermore Gwafa is useless without shroud he will be the large target on the board against any aggro decks/players out,Gwafa can get burned with damage and easily destroyed, Unless however you use Unsummon or another card returner to save him by putting the return on top of the stack. Robe of Mirrors will be sufficient enough as an alternative solution but your opponent may destroy Gwafa or burn him as the enchantment resolves therefore killing Gwafa. Counters can't always save you because when you play Gwafa on the third, fourth or possibly fifth if you don't run Counterspells you Gwafa dies. Meddling Mage is only limited to protect Gwafa unless you know an opponents deck inside and out, even so watch out for burns.
Donovan_Fabian
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Gwafa is just like playing a pacifism, so if you were going to put a few pacifism in your deck anyway why not use gwafa instead? 2 possible combos, gwafa and underworld dreams, and gwafa and notrious throng since he's a rogue.
Volcre
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Bolt Bait. His ability only works while he's on the Field so he's going to be a high priority removal target... and in the meanwhile he's feeding your enemies cards with which to answer him.
He'd be really good if his ability was permanent but that has flavour issues.
donjohnson
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Great card. Run 4 so when one is removed you have another to take its place and reactivate the counters. The best part about Gwafa is that he is a fantastic distraction that has a really good side effect. He slows the opponent down and then makes him waste removal cards so its safer to bring out the big guns. If your opponent isnt taking Gwafa out then he probably doesnt have anything in his hand to do it with. Every time Gwafa hits the table in our games I get to watch 2-5 players wetting themselves.
brunsbr103
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
EDH general, anyone?
Demonic_Angel13
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(1 vote)
This guy is essentaily Pacifism in a creature form. 2 mana and tap him to stop a blocker or attacker dead. He is great in my Bant/Naya deck.
GradiustheFox
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(4 votes)
This card wins just for introducing 'Bribery Counters'. It would be fun some day to see a list of every sort of counter that exists in the game, from the standard +/- 1/1 to the obscure little beauties like this. It would also be hiiiiilarious to see someone win a game by using this to deck their opponent, though that's pretty unlikely. 2 mana to stop a brute monster in its tracks, with a secondary 'cost' that can be made into a bad thing with a little ingenuity is an alright little effect though.
Elthan
★★★☆☆ (3.5/5.0)(4 votes)
Only problem with him is that the opponent gets to draw a card...
Ideatog
★★★☆☆ (3.0/5.0)(1 vote)
How about Underworld Dreams? They just printed a bunch of Blue/Black/White cards, didn't they?
Sir_Kaeru
★★★☆☆ (3.9/5.0)(4 votes)
lol, love the flavor of this card. i was wondering tho, is he from Bant or Esper?
coyotemoon722
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(3 votes)
this guy is so good when protected. It's almost laughable. Oh btw, the counters don't go away when he dies, so you throw another one out there to take over.
With Vines of Vastwood, and maybe some Dispels or Negates you should be fine. I like this guy a lot.
@Sene: Don't forget, if you play a second one after the removal, the bribery counters still work, so the calculation isn't that simple.
Not a bad card, but the "draws a card" part is very annoying.
DeathDark
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(1 vote)
Being one of Bolas's minions, Gwafa knows how to give you hell. A very Blue/White effect that I wish never existed. When someone's running this inside a Bant deck, they just pacify your big creatures, and run in with 1. This is made ever so easier with cards like Unbender Tine, for the same colors. No matter who you're playing, unless the creature has shroud or protection, you can take them down.
And an opponent drawing a card is a meager price to pay for keeping Emrakul, Ulamog, Kozilek, Darksteel Colossus, Phage, Nicol Bolas, Baneslayer Angel, or (your choice of creature here) at bay.
I hate this card, but Black has a solution to your problems. As always, Royal Assassin will get the job done.
Kryptnyt
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(8 votes)
@Sir_Kaeru; hes from Bant. And he's got behind-the-scenes deals with Nicol Bolas, which is damn cool.
Guest281600268
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
My buddy uses him as an EDH general. so badly screws my Thraximundar aggro deck.
Underworld Dreams, in a jace erasure deck, cards like wistful thinking, add cards into there hand for you to discard, I think it would be great for an esper control deck, I really want to make one (esper colors more than artifacts)
vsasntore
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
He's my EDH general. He's so good in the fact that in 2 turn, I can play him again, and once again lock down the board. GREAT with whispersilk cloak or lightning greaves or anything that gives him shroud. A great card all around
5/5
Faildini
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
I've been looking for a good general for an EDH deck, and I think I just found him! I love that once an opponent wastes a kill spell on it, they get one turn to attack, and then they're field is locked again. I love ***ing people off ;)
Oh yes, this guy is a Commander general for me. Every UW control combos I enjoyusing, all under the command of a guy who can fire Pacifisms left and right. All without a single counterspell in the deck. Imo, it doesn't get better than that.
Capo
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Consecrated Sphinx makes him a lot more fun. Little drawback for stopping your opponents creatures, if you can get the Sphinx out in time.
No Phyrexian, no Eldrazi, and no planeswalker can resist the appeal of money.
ExplodingZombieWeeds
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(1 vote)
Continuous Pacifisms? How do I not own this!?
Splizer
★★☆☆☆ (2.8/5.0)(2 votes)
Well, if you're going to draw a card..... hang on, let me consult my good friend Mr. Consecrated Sphinx on this one....
PolskiSuzeren
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(1 vote)
I'm surprised no one mentioned this.
Gwafa is not a control card.
He is a multiplayer politics card. I wouldn't run him as a general in EDH, but I'll definitely run him in any deck that abuses politics. Note that you can keep loading up one creature with counters. "Ok Jeff, I'm gonna immobilize this creature here, but so long as you play nice with me, I'll give you cards."
Politics are better than any card you could ever play in multiplayer, friends. I'd much rather consistently come in second than get blown out before anyone else. Plus, you get to use him to turn off people's attacking creatures, but they don't always necessarily come after you because you gave them a card for it.
blurrymadness
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(1 vote)
I just don't buy into this guy:
-Since he doesn't get rid of the creature he's useless against utility creatures -Since he doesn't get rid of them BUT gives your opponent card advantage they could easily draw removal and you've only helped them (by not only losing 5 mana, but getting essentially 2-for-1'd) -Since he's legendary he's terrible against swarm armies, and in colors that are also not very good against swarms most of the time -Since he's a 2/2 for 3 he's not very good on the attack and thus very poor against decks who aren't reliant on attacking creatures as their win-con
He's even SUPER weak to flicker effects, (as they can flicker him off, attack, and then when he comes back it's too late to help out) bounce cards, stifle/void slime, or effects that cause you to lose your abilities such as snakeform. You could say this about many creatures but many creatures aren't the Dam between a flood of damage and you. Literally almost any card that interacts with creatures screws this guy and thus the control player relying on him unless they've achieved a lockdown, at which this guy is already pointless as you've already succeeded with your wincon.
Yes, against a pure Zoo with no removal or similar he'll start locking down the enemy, but so do creatures like captivating vampire, royal assassin, etc, except they are leaps and bounds better, and not legendary to boot. 2.5/5.
NinjaJeff
★★☆☆☆ (2.5/5.0)(2 votes)
I played a Human Rogue in World of Warcraft and I play White/Blue in Magic. Naturally, this is my EDH General.
Khavrion
★★☆☆☆ (2.8/5.0)(4 votes)
This card is outstanding; he's basically a never-ending fountain of Pacifism.
To those naysayers, view the logic: If you play him & he's immediately removed, you lost your profiteer but they lost their removal. If you play him & he bribes once then is removed, you've frozen an enemy and they've lost their removal. If he bribes two guys before removal, you're ahead compared to Pacifism, since you got two bribes for one card. If you get to use the ability 3+ times, you're way ahead compared to a removal card. At this point, you have a large creature advantage.
In response to the card the enemy draws, consider two points. One, it might be a land; a good thing for a creature-lock deck. Two, even if it's a creature, he's gotta summon it. If nothing else, you have a mana advantage. Moreover, Gwafa can zap whatever they throw out. The only way the guy can get a creature advantage is if he summons 2 creatures per turn, and even then you can bribe the better one. Meanwhile, you spend the rest of your mana summoning your own creatures, who face a hamstrung opposition.
Others observed Gwafa's inability to handle swarm and non-creature decks (maybe burn decks? idk ask blurrymadness); this is true. He's also vulnerable to flicker effects, like unsummon. A Gwafa deck must have other cards to protect him where he's weak. But this is true of all cards; so we have to build decks which combo well with Gwafa's abilities.
What combos well with Gwafa? Creature-lock spells are an obvious start. In my experience, low-drop first strikers like Bant Sureblade handily deal with whatever doesn't get bribed. I like Piston Sledge and Wings of Hope too, since then you can get a creature +4/+4 and flying for a series of buffs which cost no more than 3 each. You may have other preferences.
At any rate, I think Gwafa Hazid is an outstanding card who makes a real solid win condition. He's one of my favorite cards of all time, and fully deserves the 5/5 I give him.
sonorhC
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
@Axelle, this would have a hard time buying off Elesh, since if she's in play, he's dead on arrival. And even if he did, it still wouldn't stop her most annoying abilities.
BastianQoU
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(2 votes)
Xenograft, Myr fueled untap, and you've got yourself an infinite mill combo.
Psychrates
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(2 votes)
5/5 for quoting The Million Dollar Man, Ted DiBiase.
Kelptic183
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(2 votes)
What makes the politics really interesting is when you have a Leech Bonder and some sort of tap engine(Paradise Mantle, Ocular Halo, or Hermetic Study). You can switch the Bribe counters around to maximize their use, like giving a temporary ally a bunch of free draws and then switching all of those counters to make another player wide open. And with Proliferate, it just gets stupid. Give one creature a counter, proliferate, move one of the counters to another monster, proliferate, move two more counters to two more creatures, proliferate, etc, etc...
I have to agree with Khavrion. Santa (the nickname for him in my group of friends) an awesome card for locking down the opponent, no matter what his drawbacks are.
You say he's too weak to be an attacker? HE'S NOT MEANT TO BE AN ATTACKER. His purpose is to lock down the opponent's creatures. And even if you do end up having to attack with him, what if you've managed to lock down every creature the other player has? In that case, Santa can just waltz up and slap them without any problems.
I run him with Isperia and Telepathy, so I can make sure they've got cards in hand and I know which cards to call when Isperia hits them.
DavidLopes
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(1 vote)
I'll suggest rolling this in a proliferation heavy deck for kicks and giggles.
if this guy had a pet i'm preaty shure it would be the Arachnus Spinner. here is the link to Arachnus Web to make you lives easy.
Arachnos
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Ebony Owl Netsuke, then drown the opponent in cards and pacifism counters.
Dubbios
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
2/5
Maybe only playable in EDH, and only in a few decks.
The CC is good, and also the P/T.
The ability is great, but the card drawing can be very risky, also when he is not in the table the creatures can attack and block.
There are two options to make hima 4/5 card, and a very good commander:
1- UW: Put a bribery counter on target creature you don't control. Creatures with bribery counters on them can't attack or block. OR 2- UW: Put a bribery counter on target creature you don't control. Its controller draws a card. Creatures with bribery counters on them can't attack or block. (This effect last as long the creature has a bribery counter on it).
@Dubbios: actually, Gwafa is an excellent general for a control deck in EDH, even though not many people use him. He's not hard to protect (Swiftfoot Boots, Cloak and Dagger, counterspells) and you can cast him a few times before he gets expensive. His creature types are also relatively useful. Rogue enables the aforementioned Cloak and prowl cards like Knowledge Exploitation, while Human enables Innistrad stuff like Angel of Glory's Rise and Angelic Overseer. The "bribe" ability requires some building around, but it allows you to Pacifism creatures at instant speed, which can be annoying as hell if you've got an Intruder Alarm or something to benefit from them drawing cards (Psychic Possession). Also, multiplayer politics. You might love Isperia (as I do), but you have to admit Gwafa is a great general (and maybe even a more reliable one than the sphinx).
Totema
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(1 vote)
Don't forget that this guy can take down Grizzly Bears all by himself. Badass.
HellkatOverlord
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(1 vote)
use on its self for protection from lust for war and curse of the wild hunt
DoragonShinzui
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
As ridiculous as it may seem, it's possible to proliferate Bribery counters.
I want to make a White/Blue deck out of ridiculous counters, with Gwafa and Azor's Elocutors at the helm.
Ferlord
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
As EDH generals go, Gwafa Hazid has Skullbriar completely under his thumb.
I don't think either were created that way, but it sure helps!
Drban
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
I plan on putting this guy in my Ruhan of the Fomori EDH deck which also has Total War .
TheWrathofShane
★☆☆☆☆ (1.5/5.0)(1 vote)
I really liked this card when I first saw it. But your probably just letting them draw into the removal, and then the creature can attack/block when this guys dealt with. So in the end, unless you got nice protection going on, he is doing more harm then good.
ParishInquisitor
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Gwafa is one of my favorite EDH generals, even if he isn't the absolute greatest {W}/{U} commander ever. He tends to get ignored until I've slapped Steel of the Godhead and Lightning Greaves on him, and by that point he's really hard to remove. Plus, his colors lean more towards a control-style play that can often protect him while he bribes your opponents' best creatures.
Also, this card looks great in foil.
Smoke_Stack
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Wish the ability cost 1 or 2 more and made the target creature's abilities not work either. As it stands, you give up card advantage to slow down your opponent's fatty. Great if you have a way of making your opponent discard
rike889
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(1 vote)
I like it when you call me "Big Gwafa."
Pillow fort EDH anyone?
Xineombine
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(1 vote)
Gwafa can make Emrakul, as cuddly as a teddy bear
Kefale
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Gwafa will get that card back once he gets in contact with Notion Thief. That's the power swindler team right there.
Comments (65)
I have enough counters to protect him most of the time, the draw effect when I bribe a creature ties in with the Milling strategy, and it gives me a way to survive mid-game when I'm getting overrun with more creatures then I have PtE's and Doomblades for.
one of the zendikar taps can actually be forced on an opponent with this if you use the ability right before their combat phase
He'd be really good if his ability was permanent but that has flavour issues.
Run 4 so when one is removed you have another to take its place and reactivate the counters.
The best part about Gwafa is that he is a fantastic distraction that has a really good side effect.
He slows the opponent down and then makes him waste removal cards so its safer to bring out the big guns.
If your opponent isnt taking Gwafa out then he probably doesnt have anything in his hand to do it with.
Every time Gwafa hits the table in our games I get to watch 2-5 players wetting themselves.
2 mana to stop a brute monster in its tracks, with a secondary 'cost' that can be made into a bad thing with a little ingenuity is an alright little effect though.
With Vines of Vastwood, and maybe some Dispels or Negates you should be fine. I like this guy a lot.
Not a bad card, but the "draws a card" part is very annoying.
And an opponent drawing a card is a meager price to pay for keeping Emrakul, Ulamog, Kozilek, Darksteel Colossus, Phage, Nicol Bolas, Baneslayer Angel, or (your choice of creature here) at bay.
I hate this card, but Black has a solution to your problems. As always, Royal Assassin will get the job done.
Me: THRAX GOOOOOOOO!!!!
Him: NO! (bribes thrax)
Me: *!$@#%!$@
5/5
Or Elesh Norn.
Or Nicol Bolas.
Or Gideon Jura.
No Phyrexian, no Eldrazi, and no planeswalker can resist the appeal of money.
Gwafa is not a control card.
He is a multiplayer politics card. I wouldn't run him as a general in EDH, but I'll definitely run him in any deck that abuses politics. Note that you can keep loading up one creature with counters. "Ok Jeff, I'm gonna immobilize this creature here, but so long as you play nice with me, I'll give you cards."
Politics are better than any card you could ever play in multiplayer, friends. I'd much rather consistently come in second than get blown out before anyone else. Plus, you get to use him to turn off people's attacking creatures, but they don't always necessarily come after you because you gave them a card for it.
-Since he doesn't get rid of the creature he's useless against utility creatures
-Since he doesn't get rid of them BUT gives your opponent card advantage they could easily draw removal and you've only helped them (by not only losing 5 mana, but getting essentially 2-for-1'd)
-Since he's legendary he's terrible against swarm armies, and in colors that are also not very good against swarms most of the time
-Since he's a 2/2 for 3 he's not very good on the attack and thus very poor against decks who aren't reliant on attacking creatures as their win-con
He's even SUPER weak to flicker effects, (as they can flicker him off, attack, and then when he comes back it's too late to help out) bounce cards, stifle/void slime, or effects that cause you to lose your abilities such as snakeform. You could say this about many creatures but many creatures aren't the Dam between a flood of damage and you. Literally almost any card that interacts with creatures screws this guy and thus the control player relying on him unless they've achieved a lockdown, at which this guy is already pointless as you've already succeeded with your wincon.
Yes, against a pure Zoo with no removal or similar he'll start locking down the enemy, but so do creatures like captivating vampire, royal assassin, etc, except they are leaps and bounds better, and not legendary to boot. 2.5/5.
To those naysayers, view the logic:
If you play him & he's immediately removed, you lost your profiteer but they lost their removal.
If you play him & he bribes once then is removed, you've frozen an enemy and they've lost their removal.
If he bribes two guys before removal, you're ahead compared to Pacifism, since you got two bribes for one card.
If you get to use the ability 3+ times, you're way ahead compared to a removal card. At this point, you have a large creature advantage.
In response to the card the enemy draws, consider two points. One, it might be a land; a good thing for a creature-lock deck. Two, even if it's a creature, he's gotta summon it. If nothing else, you have a mana advantage. Moreover, Gwafa can zap whatever they throw out. The only way the guy can get a creature advantage is if he summons 2 creatures per turn, and even then you can bribe the better one. Meanwhile, you spend the rest of your mana summoning your own creatures, who face a hamstrung opposition.
Others observed Gwafa's inability to handle swarm and non-creature decks (maybe burn decks? idk ask blurrymadness); this is true. He's also vulnerable to flicker effects, like unsummon. A Gwafa deck must have other cards to protect him where he's weak. But this is true of all cards; so we have to build decks which combo well with Gwafa's abilities.
What combos well with Gwafa? Creature-lock spells are an obvious start. In my experience, low-drop first strikers like Bant Sureblade handily deal with whatever doesn't get bribed. I like Piston Sledge and Wings of Hope too, since then you can get a creature +4/+4 and flying for a series of buffs which cost no more than 3 each. You may have other preferences.
At any rate, I think Gwafa Hazid is an outstanding card who makes a real solid win condition. He's one of my favorite cards of all time, and fully deserves the 5/5 I give him.
And of course Consecrated Sphinx is just dumb.
You say he's too weak to be an attacker? HE'S NOT MEANT TO BE AN ATTACKER. His purpose is to lock down the opponent's creatures. And even if you do end up having to attack with him, what if you've managed to lock down every creature the other player has? In that case, Santa can just waltz up and slap them without any problems.
I run him with Isperia and Telepathy, so I can make sure they've got cards in hand and I know which cards to call when Isperia hits them.
Edit: Wait...Duh. I feel silly now
Maybe only playable in EDH, and only in a few decks.
The CC is good, and also the P/T.
The ability is great, but the card drawing can be very risky, also when he is not in the table the creatures can attack and block.
There are two options to make hima 4/5 card, and a very good commander:
1- UW: Put a bribery counter on target creature you don't control. Creatures with bribery counters on them can't attack or block.
OR
2- UW: Put a bribery counter on target creature you don't control. Its controller draws a card.
Creatures with bribery counters on them can't attack or block. (This effect last as long the creature has a bribery counter on it).
If you are looking for a cheap U/W commander, Isperia The Inscrutable is a lot better.
He's not hard to protect (Swiftfoot Boots, Cloak and Dagger, counterspells) and you can cast him a few times before he gets expensive.
His creature types are also relatively useful. Rogue enables the aforementioned Cloak and prowl cards like Knowledge Exploitation, while Human enables Innistrad stuff like Angel of Glory's Rise and Angelic Overseer.
The "bribe" ability requires some building around, but it allows you to Pacifism creatures at instant speed, which can be annoying as hell if you've got an Intruder Alarm or something to benefit from them drawing cards (Psychic Possession). Also, multiplayer politics.
You might love Isperia (as I do), but you have to admit Gwafa is a great general (and maybe even a more reliable one than the sphinx).
I want to make a White/Blue deck out of ridiculous counters, with Gwafa and Azor's Elocutors at the helm.
I don't think either were created that way, but it sure helps!
But your probably just letting them draw into the removal, and then the creature can attack/block when this guys dealt with. So in the end, unless you got nice protection going on, he is doing more harm then good.
Plus, his colors lean more towards a control-style play that can often protect him while he bribes your opponents' best creatures.
Also, this card looks great in foil.
Pillow fort EDH anyone?