No. Just no. I will not tolerate another two years of Caw-Blade. This with Divine Reckoning is just gonna suck. It's almost like they WANT more Caw-Blade
Whenever you see this, you'll know a sword isn't far behind.
Tommy9898
★★☆☆☆ (2.8/5.0)(4 votes)
Incredible how I can... See right through you.
Lord_of_Tresserhorn
★★☆☆☆ (2.5/5.0)(6 votes)
I'm the invisible man! I'm the invisible man! It's brutal who you can put Swords on me!
Erm, those should be Queen in brackets... Ruin my joke, will you?
pektusman
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(1 vote)
To all who are afraid of the swords... just shatter them damn things.
Vedalken_Arbiter
★★★☆☆ (3.7/5.0)(7 votes)
If I was invisible Then I could just watch you in your room If I was invisible I'd make you mine tonight If I was invisible Oh wait...I already am
(That bits from a song btw. I always found the lyrics kind of creepy so the fact that this guy is an invisible STALKER made it seem appropriate.)
Asmodi0000
★★★☆☆ (3.4/5.0)(7 votes)
What's so impressive about a floating hat and coat?
Tanaka348
★★★☆☆ (3.9/5.0)(4 votes)
Funny how he's going to be swording the hell out of people when, judging by the art, the swords would be as visible as the clothes.
Paladin85
★★★☆☆ (3.5/5.0)(2 votes)
Good thing he has clothes on, otherwise he be an Invisible Flasher
The last thing you want to see on him is a Butcher's Cleaver swinging from his invisible hands to your face
Laguz
★★☆☆☆ (2.8/5.0)(3 votes)
Oooooh, I love this. Love that it's blue. Play this, drop a few swords, hold a few counters for non-targeted removal and win. Oh, and you might as well play angelic overseer while you're at it.
roguepariah
★★★★☆ (4.3/5.0)(17 votes)
Now if he had Flash... I would probably die laughing.
Trepanation blade and this are a horribly good combo, as well as putting curiosity on it. the only this guy is dying is global effects or edicts, neither of which are exactly a dime a dozen. give him infect for a more protected blighted agent, or give him some equipment to have some fun with
A minor pet peeve i have with this card is that he can be invisible while carrying a giant flaming torch, pitchfork, or cobbled wings. If they were going for flavor they did very well, but should have gone a bit more in-depth by making visible when he is equipped. maybe make him lose the unblockability or something. it would probably ruin the intended function of the card (which is why they probably didn't do it) but being a flavor nut this just bugs me
/rant
SeiberTross
★★★★☆ (4.0/5.0)(2 votes)
At pre-release this guy hit the table 4 times. He went 4-0, and really didn't need much help from the deck. Curiosity, Butcher's Cleaver were in my deck. What win condition will you be drafting him with?
Expect this to be a first pick in every match. Just makes so many cards in this set absurdly good, and just ends games on second turn. Amazing card, amazingly powerful in any format, and I can tell you run it for the human tribe in limited, absolute 5/5.
marwinshieldscale
★★☆☆☆ (2.3/5.0)(3 votes)
broken, the caw blade now "stealth blade" runs these in place of hawks, NOOOOOOOOOO. beast in limited though. when I first saw this card I thought it was cool and didn't think much of it, but after I saw it in play and what people were going to do this just sucks. badly
So can the stalker out stalk the hawk or will Mindshrieker take over as the caw in Cawblade?
Eternal_Blue
★☆☆☆☆ (1.8/5.0)(4 votes)
clearly this card is worthy of a 5/5 rating, but because of how incredibly overpowered and how much it's going to ruin the meta, i have to give it a 0.5/5. this card should never have been printed and will define standard.
a invisible stalker... just like me! minus the invisible.
LupinXXXIV
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(1 vote)
Powerways, this guy is pretty good but not disgusting. He's essentially the perfect equipment or aura platform, but is only useful to soften your opponent up for your big win condition or force them to blow a field wipe otherwise.
Flavorways? Dude's pretty much perfect. Hexproof+Unblockable=Invisible is profoundly elegant in its simplicity. Plus, oh lawdy dat hat.
Pimpgenitus
★★★☆☆ (3.7/5.0)(7 votes)
...Can't resist any longer:
"He's too s*xy for his coat, too s*xy for his coat What do you think about this blade at your throat"
MyrBattlecube
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(3 votes)
So how long until everyone realizes that this is not an adequate replacement for Squadron Hawk and that this whole "InvisiBlade" nonsense isn't going to get anywhere? I'll guess by the end of October.
Zetan
★★★★☆ (4.4/5.0)(23 votes)
This card really bothers me. Like a lot. Let me lay it out for you.
Games dominated by this card (which happen in limited, at least... not sure yet about constructed) are not fun. They're not fun for the person playing against it, and they're usually not even that fun for the person playing it. Only you enjoy winning easily with very little mental challenge (in which case you're playing the wrong game) is this card fun to win with.
When you're staring across the table at this guy, especially in Innistrad limited where there are basically no ways to kill it (Tribute to Hunger is pretty-much it, and only works if he's the worst creature on your opponent's field) you don't have many options. All you can do is desperately try to draw into the right cards to win before Invisible Stalker kills you. You might be able to get your opponent to save him as a blocker if you can get enough of a fighting force out, but it's unlikely.
I've seen this guy out on turn 2, with turn 3 bringing Spectral Flight and Furor of the Bitten to create a 5/5 unblockable hexproof creature ready to hit me in the face. This was in sealed. I now had three turns to come up with a way to win the game. Spoiler alert: I didn't. And by the time it killed me, this thing was even bigger. Not that it mattered.
By contrast, look at the werewolf mechanic. Werewolves are very strong, but they're fun to play both with and against. The way you need to think, in terms of which spells to cast and when, is very interesting. Even when I'm losing to werewolves, I'm having lots of fun.
Putting hexproof and unblockable together on a card was an iffy decision. Putting it on a 2-drop uncommon is disastrous. If this card is half as good in constructed as it is in limited, I smell a ban coming on. But maybe that's just wishful thinking.
Singe
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Demonmail Hauberk to give him +4/+2 and Inquisitor's Flail to have him swing for 10. Next turn, finish for game. If using Red/Blue, Assault Strobe then swing for 20. Clearly with the dangers of Mad Scientists, Spirits, Werewolves. Vampires, and Zombies about; a perverted hands on invisible man was the least of their worries.
Ohcomeon
★★★☆☆ (3.9/5.0)(7 votes)
In my opinion he would have been more balanced as a 0/1
Arachnos
★★★★☆ (4.7/5.0)(15 votes)
If he were an Unhinged card, there would have been nothing on the art but that wall and the rain XD
SgtSwaggr
★★★☆☆ (3.9/5.0)(4 votes)
Caw-Blade will now become Invisa-Blade.
MasterOfBearLore
★★★☆☆ (3.5/5.0)(3 votes)
Cards like this are the main reason I hate Hexproof.
Just imagine this card if it were Shroud, instead. It would still be good, a little less obviously so, but there are plenty of cards that you could slap together to make it shine. This card requires approximately .02 seconds of thought before Sword Of Feast And Famine comes to mind.
I always liked Shroud, because it was a double-edged sword, like Mana Barbs. Hexproof is like if they made Mana Barbs only affect your opponents and cost 1 less to play. There's no reason you would ever play something with Shroud when you could play something with Hexproof. I guess that either the Magic-playing community has gotten too anxious about playing cards if they might have a drawback, or the designers have made a horrifying error.
DustStorm
★★★★☆ (4.8/5.0)(16 votes)
Lets just take a moment to have a look at the removal available in innistrad to get rid of this card
Yep that is the only one that will realistically kill it in limited (If it is too big to kill with it you have already lost)
Not so good removal: Rolling Temblor (probably the best and most reliable after blasphemous act if you can use it the turn after its played and only early game since most of the time stalker won't stay small for long) Ashmouth Hound (what you are not going to block) Balefire Dragon (By the time you can attack most of the time it will already be boosted and they can just block it with another flyer) Curse of Death's Hold (oh you have a bonds of faith on your invisible stalker already) Divine Reckoning(what you do not want to let your stalker die) Liliana of the Veil(They can choose to get rid of another creature plus a mythic isn't really viable removal for an uncommon) Tribute to Hunger(as long as you can play this when it is the only thing they have on the board your ok and if they have basically anything else not so good) Creepy Doll(if they choose to block it instead of taking the one damage you still have a 50% to kill it)
Almost Impossible removal: Evil Twin + Sever the Bloodline (copy stalker with the evil twin then target the evil twin (which is the stalker) with sever the bloodline. If you can pull this off congratulation you just wasted two rares ,8 mana and most likely 2 turns taking care of a 2 mana uncommon)
You can still counter and force an opponent to discard it but the only counter you could realisticly use would be Dissipate.
In limited you are looking at only 1 solid way of killing it and about 2 not so reliable ways of getting rid of it.
blindthrall
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Not cool, Wizards. This thing is going to kill me so many times.
Compare this to Silhana Ledgewalker. Now which one is the so called creature color? Looks like Blue is.
Power creep in action!
dberry02
★★★★☆ (4.1/5.0)(12 votes)
Why did they make this a Rogue!?
Really!?
When making decisions for my U/B Rogue deck, I had a tough time deciding what I should play on turn two. Should I play Inkfathom Infiltrator or Looter il-Kor? Perhaps suspending Infiltrator il-Kor would be better?
But this... This just makes it too easy. And I thought Blighted Agent was crazy, but at least that can be targeted...
This is one of those few times where rating this a 5/5 gives a bad taste in your mouth.
lordgergon1888
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
I used this recently with Inquisitor's Flail and other enchantments to up his power. In four or five turns you can get him to deal around ten damage if all goes well. War and peace is a great equipment for him though. Helps out a lot.
Mirran_Savior
★★★☆☆ (3.7/5.0)(3 votes)
"Players bitchin' 'bout Caw-blade?Lets make a BETTER card for the sake of F**kin' them over!" -Wizards of The Coast
I couldnt agree more- it seems as though it would fit mechanically and flavor-wise as a 0/1, forcing the playing to "pump it" adding strategy and creativity to the mix.
After all, isnt that what magic is all about?...
A bit much, but all in all an interesting Card. 4/5
raptorman333
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Strictly better than Metathran Soldier... unless you want to Misdirect a spell...
Grimble_Gromble
★★☆☆☆ (2.5/5.0)(1 vote)
Have a deck that puts Wreath of Geists on him... Its sicks.
hansede
★★☆☆☆ (2.8/5.0)(2 votes)
I drafted a wickedly fast U/W deck today that had my opponent on 1 life after 5 turns. It didn't matter though because he had one Invisible Stalker alone on the field with a couple equipment that killed me faster than my 5 dudes could kill him. So lame to play against in limited where your only option is to race him. Even if he was a -3/1, he would still be first-pickable in a draft. What were they thinking?
Shadoflaam
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
He's climbin in yo windows, snatchin yo people up...
packmaster
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Morningtides Prowl effect likes attacking with rogues. This is VERY good rogue for that.
Villainous1
★★★★☆ (4.6/5.0)(30 votes)
Turns invisible. Still wears tricorn hat.
Innistrad ftw.
Knick_Knack
★★★★☆ (4.1/5.0)(5 votes)
I dislike this card. It's not fun to play against at all, and as I play Magic FOR FUN with my friends, I don't believe he'll ever see play in one of my games. Since I first saw it, I've been of the opinion that it should have had shroud instead of hexproof. It still would have been good, but not as stupidly hard to get rid of.
Tiemuuu
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(1 vote)
I agree that that the card is a bit dull and maybe overpowered... But please understand me, for I am a poor college student, when I'm saying this. I have opened less than twenty Innistrad boosters altogether, and among the last five ones I've managed to get this fella. Twice. yes, I'm a happy man. It really fits my equipment deck, and besides, having only Etched Champions was a bit dull.
Kingreaper
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
The most irritating thing about this card is the fact the flavour text suggests an obvious weakness "unblockable except by vampires" (or vampires and werewolves) would make a lot of sense.
UberSoso
★★☆☆☆ (2.6/5.0)(4 votes)
What's the point of being a flasher if no one can see your wang?
In Limited, always fun and a good insurance policy to equip this pest with a Butcher's Cleaver.
Hackworthy
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(2 votes)
Naysayers can whine all they want, wonderful card.
RoyalAl
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(1 vote)
LOL Hexproof, fun mechanic. Even better when you get that casual guy running invisible stalker, lumberknot and gladecover scout
MrFluffyThing
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Absolutely mean with Curiosity. By turn 3 you're swinging for an extra draw and 1 damage EVERY TURN.
Henrietta
★★★★☆ (4.0/5.0)(7 votes)
Hexproof is an awful, awful ability from a game design standpoint. You play this card and it's either completely useless or a guaranteed win, depending on if you draw the equipment you need to go along with it. Especially in Limited, where you'll rarely have something that can get around Hexproof. An ability that makes a card swing from the extreme of uselessness to the extreme of insanely good, but never anywhere inbetween, is just dumb, and generally unfun.
Now, yes, equipment and auras can be removed, but the platform for those spells remains to be exploited again. Also, artifact and enchantment removal is rather limited in Innistrad ( Ancient Grudge, Naturalize, and Urgent Exorcism are your options, unless you really want to consider Bramblecrush or Paraselene. )
Really, this guy should have been Shroud, not Hexproof. Can anyone imagine what a Hexproof Blastoderm would have been like?
SIlverSkyz
★★★★☆ (4.9/5.0)(6 votes)
Once cost four?
(Devin) 3U Creature –Spirit 2/1 Shroud CARDNAME is unblockable.
Too many limited games are won once you equip a Butcher's Cleaver to this guy. People have said it already: between Spectral Flight, any of the REALLY nice equipments they have, and whatever colour you splash with blue for more enchantments or other buffs, This card wins far too many games, but I wouldn't rate it low for being so good.
Mentis_Materiei
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
While I don't think he heralds the return of Caw-Blade, he can get pretty bonkers with the right equipment. The Swords have already been mentioned, but my favorite so far has actually been Quietus Spike. Nothing like hitting for half + 1 every time!
Myrderous
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Really dislike this card mostly due to the lack of interaction it has with the other player, the difference between hexproof and shroud is massive here especially in limited where he can be buffed with Curiosity Butchers Cleaver and a bunch of other enchantments taking the blocking element of magic almost entirely out of the game for the opponent
casey8720
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
This dude is the pants monster. Like most monsters, he's pretty bad without pants. BUT!! If you can put a pair of Levi's on him that make him a 4/1 with lifelink, youz biotches better check yourself before you wreck yourself
Extended is going to eat this. Unblockable trollshroud + forced discard. Fantastic!
This is going to become the card advantage powerhouse I had hoped Surrakar Spellblade would be.
richardshort
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(1 vote)
So, THAT'S where he went.
shotoku64
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(1 vote)
We will see a reprint, I guarantee it. He's just that good, without being over the edge. Nice card.
sarroth
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Really, really should have shroud. But R&D decided to leave shroud alone for a little while and focus on hexproof, like not having +1/+1 and -1/-1 counters in the same set. Well, that decision, while understandable, led to this guy. Who's ridiculous. Players of course complain about the poor flavor, something which Mark Rosewater himself wishes had been addressed before it saw print, e.g. if the card was "As long as CARDNAME isn't enchanted or equipped, it has hexproof," which still doesn't explain why when you target it with, say, Giant Growth the opposing player wouldn't be able to see where your spell ended up and target him then. But trying to adjust for that would make for a very wordy card.
Paleopaladin
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(1 vote)
There was a D&D spell named this back in the day. Therefore, I love it!
Also, since this is transparently supposed to be "the Invisible Man" I should warn him to steer clear of this guy based upon what the latter did to him in a certain Alan Moore comic book...
DoragonShinzui
★★★★☆ (4.2/5.0)(7 votes)
Oh yes, because the last thing we needed was an unblockable, unkillable god damned platform for every shenanigan in the books. *Sighs* *** Wizards...
ZeoStar
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
He's good when paired with an artifact. However, if you have artifact destroying cards in your hand and maybe a few Redirects and/or Mana Leaks to stop any spell that can pump him, then he's reduced to an annoying pinger. Which can be dealt with by anything that does 1 or more damage to anything across the board.
MisterAction
★★★★☆ (4.8/5.0)(23 votes)
So... limited just got broken by a guy who isn't wearing anything under his trench coat. Look's like we've got a case of...
*PUTS ON SUNGLASSES*
Power creep.
(YYYYEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!)
Diachronos
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
I have a feeling he's going to get ridiculous again with the revival of Exalted in M13...
Have an invisable zombie stalker that would be unable to block or something, it would been cool. But love this card anyway, give him Trusty Machete and I just imagine a floating machete hitting your opponents face.
4.5/5
K0rbl
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
This still gets removed from spells like: Day of Judgement, Devastation Tide & Terminus and/or any card that forces an opponent to sacrifice a creature: Killing Wave. I like the free 1 dmg a turn and of course you can pump him to ensure 1, 2-4 dmg a turn. You might even been able to use Bruna, Light of Alabaster other than table top goodness.
Annoyilator
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
I would rate this 5, but I can't figure out how to get the star bar to work. Anyway...
I'm quite proud of myself for coming up with this one on my own without searching for strategies online.
I haven't managed to actually get the combo together in a game (just built the deck on Thursday last week), but I figure once you've got it in and hit once, you can ding them 1 each turn eliminating all their land (and everything else) each turn until they croak. Unless they've got some spell that costs 1 mana to destroy or unequip the Worldslayer or unequip the Darksteel Plate or force me to sacrifice a creature with the one land they'll be able to play each turn before having it destroyed, they're doomed to a slow death by 1 point increments every turn. He's hexproof, unblockable, indestructible, wipes their board out every turn, and hits them for 1 (or more if I manage to get +1/+1 counters on him first since they wouldn't be destroyed by Worldslayer) each turn. My biggest problem has been with those Black cards that force you to sacrifice a creature (and I often only have the Invisible Stalker with everything else dying playing defense).
If I can't get that combo together, I've got (as a backup) Invisible Stalker + Quietus Spike. Also Invisible Stalker + Butcher's Cleaver provides for a solid +4 health and 4 damage to opponent each turn - which isn't always easy to get in a mono blue deck.
Eddie_Antilles
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
How can you NOT like the Invisible Flasher? Well, unless you are playing against it...
A definite auto-include in current aggressive Blue decks IMHO. Only dies to sweepers, and Blue can prevent those with counters.
It's not funny a single 2 cmc card asks for a board wipe against a color full of counterspells.
Well, atleast it reminds everybody about the importance of artifact and enchantment removal...
JoeyWalker
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
This card is just plain ridiculous.
psychichobo
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
I hate this guy. A friend of mine is still convinced he was a rare that got pushed down for some reason.
jakecshn
★★★★☆ (4.9/5.0)(6 votes)
I love cards that almost completely prevent me from interacting with them.
xenohedron
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
I hate this card, it's too strong and non-interactive. Hexproof in general is an awful mechanic because there's nothing you can do facing it short of a Day of Judgement or similar boardwipe. Should cost , because I do like the flavor.
MechaKraken
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(5 votes)
This guy is going to dominate in Cipher decks. Encode him with anything, then enjoy your free spell(s) every turn!!!
Glaring Spotlights apparently make him put his clothes back on so he's visible.
NanakoAC
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(1 vote)
I don't get why people are hating on the hexproof. It's honestly just necessary. Any kind of card like this is a big neon-lit bait for a myriad of damage and removal spells. Most of the time, when it matters, i find my unblockable creatures rarely live long enough to get an attack in without hexproof.
the hexproof at least deflects most of the aggro coming his way. he's certainly not invincible though, there are a great many ways to deal with a hexproof creature. Notably including forced sacrifices (millions of ways to do that, Death Pact plus tokenspam comes to mind) and area-effect spells (stuff that doesn't say target)
Hunter06
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(1 vote)
This guy need to go out in just his hat, "Ermahgerd, its a floating hat" :O 4.5/5 Stars
Steinhauser
★★★★☆ (4.8/5.0)(6 votes)
Waaaaait a minute.
It's clearly raining in the art.
Wouldn't the rain running over his body render him VISIBLE?
But he doesn't even list it as a thing that concerns him.
I can't believe it took over a year for this to dawn on me.
DarthParallax
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(2 votes)
See my AEtherling comment. This card is not inherently bad, it's actually close to being a fantastic card, because it's fairly pleasing to Vorthos. It's a bit too pleasing to Vorthos, and after Vorthos decided it was pretty, Melvin and Johnny were not given cracks at it to see if they could Design and Develop some good balances into it.
Conditional Hexproof to be lost when Equipped? Conditional Shroud to be lost when Equipped? Something more similar to Shroud than Hexproof? Lose the Unblockability when Equipped or Enchanted?
It's really good, but it's not the perfect version of what it could be. Because it is sharing Standard with Return to Ravnica block, they were NOT able to 'fix' it in Dimir which is quite a shame, since I think the very best execution of Invisible Stalker should cost {U}{B}. (The Invisible Man in the books was, actually, a Villain. And the whole concept is overall more Dimir-Aligned than any other colors, even pure Blue. It's a rather shady, nefarious use of Magic to be honest.) This would be FANTASTIC Fun to Cipher if I wasn't concerned he'd be way too easy to Bust the Crap out of because IN ADDITION to being "Cipher-Enchanted" (which we call encoded), he can ALSO suit up a freaking Darksteel Plate or Sword of Rooster and Bull. (seriously? you censored ***-a-doodle-doo?) :(or AND a Sword. x.x Does nobody see a problem with that? -_- He threatens to be the PC of an RPG called "Blue: the Gathering".
The point is, R&D is embracing Hexproof a little bit too much, making things either be "Troll-Shroud or naked, you don't get a choice" which is really really bad for Development and somewhat bad for Design. It's especially bad when Development has it's hands tied UNABLE to make a "Cooler Invisible Stalker in Dimir" because it would just way too much OP in Standard.
I LIKE Troll-Shroud. Troll-Shroud is GOOD. It's Fun and Flavorful. It needs to be used more wisely, and needs to remember it's Green Roots. Part of the reason Hexproof somewhat sucks in Blue and White is that Blue and White aren't Green-- it was a lot more justifiable to give Green Creatures a strong mechanic when Green needed this kind of help, but White and Blue are the All-Time Sky Aces, and most Flying (or Unblockable) creatures do not need unconditional Hexproof. White and Blue are also way too good at Aura, Artifact, Enchantment, and Equipment, on top of being Fliers, for Hexproof to be Safe.
Hexproof is best suited to Green and Black, and is also ok on Gold or Conditionally on Blue. I probably wouldn't let most White creatures have it. Sigarda's fine, but Traft and Invisible Stalker should pretty clearly be Shroud, not Hexproof, from where I'm standing.
johnnyinabucket
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(1 vote)
I wish I could have about 20 of this in my deck, Mix in a few Cipher spells maybe some Aura's
possibly my favorite card. I get all excited when i'm up against a mono black control deck with an aggressive player that cast removal on the 1st thing he can. he loads his deck up with uber removal and would Murder my Doomed Traveler if it was his only play on turn 3. You can tell how ticked he is when he has 5 open lands 5 cards in hand and hasn't played anything in 2 turns. Then the "This is almost cheating" and " why don't you just play a normal creature" chants come out. What so you can immediately murder it. Then he realizes he only has one card in deck to deal with the stalker, and he already used it on the 1st one.
This is my favorite win condition in my Killing Gentleman deck.
Arcesious
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
This card loves being exalted. Works great in a blue/white deck backed up by Aven Squire and Knight of Glory.
Sweater
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Counter it. Counter it now!
TheWrathofShane
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
In constructed its okay, but in limited they needed Pyroclasm or something to keep it in check. Not a very well thought out card.
Tamerlein
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
This guy is just silly when he swings in with a Runechanter's Pike or ay other powerful equipment.
Along with Geist of Saint Traft he is the reason that Bant Hexproof is so popular in the current meta game.
5/5
Lifegainwithbite
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
This is just not a good card for the game... Geist of Saint Traft is a worse example of it but this isn't healthy either. People shouldn't be able to have creatures that are almost impossible to deal with at this sort of mana cost. Invisible Stalker doesn't interact with any other card on the board - it just sits there and hits you over and over and it's extremely difficult to stop it.
Vishlord
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(1 vote)
True he isn't good the game. But hexproof in general is, I understand it messes with people's timed honed strategies, but it brings more card types back into play - enchantments, equipment, and their removals, also board wipers. You can't attack the Stalker but keep him stripped down and he's just and 1/1. Shroud just incentivised more flat out aggro.
feedbacker
★★★★☆ (4.2/5.0)(2 votes)
Agreed that this card is zero fun to play against, Almost worst than infinite combo decks.
However if this thing had Shroud rather than Hexproof, it would be a lot better
Continue
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
See also: True-Name Nemesis. Somehow they made this card even more infuriating to play against.
Drewskithelegend
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Little Girl beware of the unstoppable paedophile. The flavor of playing him and Mikaeus the Lunarch but I digress... As far as power level I have to say, he is severely undercosted. Should have cost at least 4 or had shroud and unblockable for 2. That being said, great flavor and artwork and a cool card that will see play in modern for quite some time.
Comments (113)
4.5/5 (grudgingly)
I'm the invisible man!
I'm the invisible man!
It's brutal who you can
put Swords on me!
Erm, those should be Queen in brackets... Ruin my joke, will you?
Then I could just watch you in your room
If I was invisible
I'd make you mine tonight
If I was invisible
Oh wait...I already am
(That bits from a song btw. I always found the lyrics kind of creepy so the fact that this guy is an invisible STALKER made it seem appropriate.)
The last thing you want to see on him is a Butcher's Cleaver swinging from his invisible hands to your face
I would probably die laughing.
Geth's Verdict
Liliana of the Veil
but yeah, not easy to deal with.
of course you could also remove whatever is making him awesome... swords, batterskull, curiosity, dark favor...
A minor pet peeve i have with this card is that he can be invisible while carrying a giant flaming torch, pitchfork, or cobbled wings. If they were going for flavor they did very well, but should have gone a bit more in-depth by making visible when he is equipped. maybe make him lose the unblockability or something. it would probably ruin the intended function of the card (which is why they probably didn't do it) but being a flavor nut this just bugs me
/rant
Expect this to be a first pick in every match. Just makes so many cards in this set absurdly good, and just ends games on second turn. Amazing card, amazingly powerful in any format, and I can tell you run it for the human tribe in limited, absolute 5/5.
Flavorways? Dude's pretty much perfect. Hexproof+Unblockable=Invisible is profoundly elegant in its simplicity. Plus, oh lawdy dat hat.
"He's too s*xy for his coat, too s*xy for his coat
What do you think about this blade at your throat"
Games dominated by this card (which happen in limited, at least... not sure yet about constructed) are not fun. They're not fun for the person playing against it, and they're usually not even that fun for the person playing it. Only you enjoy winning easily with very little mental challenge (in which case you're playing the wrong game) is this card fun to win with.
When you're staring across the table at this guy, especially in Innistrad limited where there are basically no ways to kill it (Tribute to Hunger is pretty-much it, and only works if he's the worst creature on your opponent's field) you don't have many options. All you can do is desperately try to draw into the right cards to win before Invisible Stalker kills you. You might be able to get your opponent to save him as a blocker if you can get enough of a fighting force out, but it's unlikely.
I've seen this guy out on turn 2, with turn 3 bringing Spectral Flight and Furor of the Bitten to create a 5/5 unblockable hexproof creature ready to hit me in the face. This was in sealed. I now had three turns to come up with a way to win the game. Spoiler alert: I didn't. And by the time it killed me, this thing was even bigger. Not that it mattered.
By contrast, look at the werewolf mechanic. Werewolves are very strong, but they're fun to play both with and against. The way you need to think, in terms of which spells to cast and when, is very interesting. Even when I'm losing to werewolves, I'm having lots of fun.
Putting hexproof and unblockable together on a card was an iffy decision. Putting it on a 2-drop uncommon is disastrous. If this card is half as good in constructed as it is in limited, I smell a ban coming on. But maybe that's just wishful thinking.
Clearly with the dangers of Mad Scientists, Spirits, Werewolves. Vampires, and Zombies about; a perverted hands on invisible man was the least of their worries.
Just imagine this card if it were Shroud, instead. It would still be good, a little less obviously so, but there are plenty of cards that you could slap together to make it shine. This card requires approximately .02 seconds of thought before Sword Of Feast And Famine comes to mind.
I always liked Shroud, because it was a double-edged sword, like Mana Barbs. Hexproof is like if they made Mana Barbs only affect your opponents and cost 1 less to play. There's no reason you would ever play something with Shroud when you could play something with Hexproof. I guess that either the Magic-playing community has gotten too anxious about playing cards if they might have a drawback, or the designers have made a horrifying error.
Good 100% of the time removal:
Blasphemous Act
Yep that is the only one that will realistically kill it in limited (If it is too big to kill with it you have already lost)
Not so good removal:
Rolling Temblor (probably the best and most reliable after blasphemous act if you can use it the turn after its played and only early game since most of the time stalker won't stay small for long)
Ashmouth Hound (what you are not going to block)
Balefire Dragon (By the time you can attack most of the time it will already be boosted and they can just block it with another flyer)
Curse of Death's Hold (oh you have a bonds of faith on your invisible stalker already)
Divine Reckoning(what you do not want to let your stalker die)
Liliana of the Veil(They can choose to get rid of another creature plus a mythic isn't really viable removal for an uncommon)
Tribute to Hunger(as long as you can play this when it is the only thing they have on the board your ok and if they have basically anything else not so good)
Creepy Doll(if they choose to block it instead of taking the one damage you still have a 50% to kill it)
Almost Impossible removal:
Evil Twin + Sever the Bloodline (copy stalker with the evil twin then target the evil twin (which is the stalker) with sever the bloodline. If you can pull this off congratulation you just wasted two rares ,8 mana and most likely 2 turns taking care of a 2 mana uncommon)
You can still counter and force an opponent to discard it but the only counter you could realisticly use would be Dissipate.
In limited you are looking at only 1 solid way of killing it and about 2 not so reliable ways of getting rid of it.
Power creep in action!
Really!?
When making decisions for my U/B Rogue deck, I had a tough time deciding what I should play on turn two. Should I play Inkfathom Infiltrator or Looter il-Kor? Perhaps suspending Infiltrator il-Kor would be better?
But this... This just makes it too easy. And I thought Blighted Agent was crazy, but at least that can be targeted...
This is one of those few times where rating this a 5/5 gives a bad taste in your mouth.
-Wizards of The Coast
The cruelest combo ever to hit the field.
I couldnt agree more- it seems as though it would fit mechanically and flavor-wise as a 0/1, forcing the playing to "pump it" adding strategy and creativity to the mix.
After all, isnt that what magic is all about?...
A bit much, but all in all an interesting Card. 4/5
Innistrad ftw.
Since I first saw it, I've been of the opinion that it should have had shroud instead of hexproof. It still would have been good, but not as stupidly hard to get rid of.
Now, yes, equipment and auras can be removed, but the platform for those spells remains to be exploited again. Also, artifact and enchantment removal is rather limited in Innistrad ( Ancient Grudge, Naturalize, and Urgent Exorcism are your options, unless you really want to consider Bramblecrush or Paraselene. )
Really, this guy should have been Shroud, not Hexproof. Can anyone imagine what a Hexproof Blastoderm would have been like?
(Devin)
3U
Creature –Spirit
2/1
Shroud
CARDNAME is unblockable.
(source: http://www.wizards.com/magic/magazine/article.aspx?x=mtg/daily/mm/47 )
People have said it already: between Spectral Flight, any of the REALLY nice equipments they have, and whatever colour you splash with blue for more enchantments or other buffs,
This card wins far too many games, but I wouldn't rate it low for being so good.
Extended is going to eat this. Unblockable trollshroud + forced discard. Fantastic!
This is going to become the card advantage powerhouse I had hoped Surrakar Spellblade would be.
Also, since this is transparently supposed to be "the Invisible Man" I should warn him to steer clear of this guy based upon what the latter did to him in a certain Alan Moore comic book...
*Sighs* *** Wizards...
*PUTS ON SUNGLASSES*
Power creep.
(YYYYEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!)
Have an invisable zombie stalker that would be unable to block or something, it would been cool.
But love this card anyway, give him Trusty Machete and I just imagine a floating machete hitting your opponents face.
4.5/5
I'm quite proud of myself for coming up with this one on my own without searching for strategies online.
Invisible Stalker + Darksteel Plate + Worldslayer.
I haven't managed to actually get the combo together in a game (just built the deck on Thursday last week), but I figure once you've got it in and hit once, you can ding them 1 each turn eliminating all their land (and everything else) each turn until they croak. Unless they've got some spell that costs 1 mana to destroy or unequip the Worldslayer or unequip the Darksteel Plate or force me to sacrifice a creature with the one land they'll be able to play each turn before having it destroyed, they're doomed to a slow death by 1 point increments every turn. He's hexproof, unblockable, indestructible, wipes their board out every turn, and hits them for 1 (or more if I manage to get +1/+1 counters on him first since they wouldn't be destroyed by Worldslayer) each turn. My biggest problem has been with those Black cards that force you to sacrifice a creature (and I often only have the Invisible Stalker with everything else dying playing defense).
If I can't get that combo together, I've got (as a backup) Invisible Stalker + Quietus Spike. Also Invisible Stalker + Butcher's Cleaver provides for a solid +4 health and 4 damage to opponent each turn - which isn't always easy to get in a mono blue deck.
A definite auto-include in current aggressive Blue decks IMHO. Only dies to sweepers, and Blue can prevent those with counters.
4.5/5
Well, atleast it reminds everybody about the importance of artifact and enchantment removal...
That is all.
the hexproof at least deflects most of the aggro coming his way. he's certainly not invincible though, there are a great many ways to deal with a hexproof creature. Notably including forced sacrifices (millions of ways to do that, Death Pact plus tokenspam comes to mind) and area-effect spells (stuff that doesn't say target)
4.5/5 Stars
It's clearly raining in the art.
Wouldn't the rain running over his body render him VISIBLE?
But he doesn't even list it as a thing that concerns him.
I can't believe it took over a year for this to dawn on me.
Conditional Hexproof to be lost when Equipped?
Conditional Shroud to be lost when Equipped?
Something more similar to Shroud than Hexproof?
Lose the Unblockability when Equipped or Enchanted?
It's really good, but it's not the perfect version of what it could be. Because it is sharing Standard with Return to Ravnica block, they were NOT able to 'fix' it in Dimir which is quite a shame, since I think the very best execution of Invisible Stalker should cost {U}{B}. (The Invisible Man in the books was, actually, a Villain. And the whole concept is overall more Dimir-Aligned than any other colors, even pure Blue. It's a rather shady, nefarious use of Magic to be honest.) This would be FANTASTIC Fun to Cipher if I wasn't concerned he'd be way too easy to Bust the Crap out of because IN ADDITION to being "Cipher-Enchanted" (which we call encoded), he can ALSO suit up a freaking Darksteel Plate or Sword of Rooster and Bull. (seriously? you censored ***-a-doodle-doo?) :(or AND a Sword. x.x Does nobody see a problem with that? -_- He threatens to be the PC of an RPG called "Blue: the Gathering".
The point is, R&D is embracing Hexproof a little bit too much, making things either be "Troll-Shroud or naked, you don't get a choice" which is really really bad for Development and somewhat bad for Design. It's especially bad when Development has it's hands tied UNABLE to make a "Cooler Invisible Stalker in Dimir" because it would just way too much OP in Standard.
I LIKE Troll-Shroud. Troll-Shroud is GOOD. It's Fun and Flavorful. It needs to be used more wisely, and needs to remember it's Green Roots. Part of the reason Hexproof somewhat sucks in Blue and White is that Blue and White aren't Green-- it was a lot more justifiable to give Green Creatures a strong mechanic when Green needed this kind of help, but White and Blue are the All-Time Sky Aces, and most Flying (or Unblockable) creatures do not need unconditional Hexproof. White and Blue are also way too good at Aura, Artifact, Enchantment, and Equipment, on top of being Fliers, for Hexproof to be Safe.
Hexproof is best suited to Green and Black, and is also ok on Gold or Conditionally on Blue. I probably wouldn't let most White creatures have it. Sigarda's fine, but Traft and Invisible Stalker should pretty clearly be Shroud, not Hexproof, from where I'm standing.
possibly my favorite card. I get all excited when i'm up against a mono black control deck with an aggressive player that cast removal on the 1st thing he can. he loads his deck up with uber removal and would Murder my Doomed Traveler if it was his only play on turn 3.
You can tell how ticked he is when he has 5 open lands 5 cards in hand and hasn't played anything in 2 turns.
Then the "This is almost cheating" and " why don't you just play a normal creature" chants come out. What so you can immediately murder it. Then he realizes he only has one card in deck to deal with the stalker, and he already used it on the 1st one.
Along with Geist of Saint Traft he is the reason that Bant Hexproof is so popular in the current meta game.
5/5
However if this thing had Shroud rather than Hexproof, it would be a lot better
As far as power level I have to say, he is severely undercosted. Should have cost at least 4 or had shroud and unblockable for 2. That being said, great flavor and artwork and a cool card that will see play in modern for quite some time.