Underrated $0.44 Combo-Enabling Two-Drop Quietly Appears in Multiple MTG Formats

It’s now been over two weeks since Reality Fracture’s official release, and it’s clear just how impactful the set has been on Constructed and Commander. Even still, there are some powerhouses that continue to fly under the radar despite their high power level. Carnivorous Cultivator certainly fits the bill, emerging as a multi-format threat yet still remaining quite cheap.

MTG Carnivorous Cultivator

As a 2/3 with Deathtouch for two mana, Carnivorous Cultivator Carnivorous Cultivator Deathtouch
This creature enters prepared.
Whenever this creature deals combat damage to a player, return target land card from your graveyard to your hand. is pushed on rate alone. While this statline makes this creature a great blocker, it also makes it hard for the opponent to block down profitably. It even outsizes some typical burn spells like Burst Lightning Burst Lightning Kicker {4} (You may pay an additional {4} as you cast this spell.)
Burst Lightning deals 2 damage to any target. If this spell was kicked, it deals 4 damage instead. , further improving its chances of survival.

These factors give you a strong chance to connect in combat, and while resurrecting a land may not seem super high-value, it’s more valuable than you might expect. In Standard Landfall shells, repeatedly drawing Fabled Passage Fabled Passage {T}, Sacrifice this land: Search your library for a basic land card, put it onto the battlefield tapped, then shuffle. Then if you control four or more lands, untap that land. and Elven Passage Elven Passage {T}, Pay 1 life, Sacrifice this land: Search your library for a basic land card, put it onto the battlefield tapped, then shuffle. You may behold an Elf. If you do, untap that land. (To behold an Elf, choose an Elf you control or reveal an Elf card from your hand.) makes Earthbender Ascension Earthbender Ascension When this enchantment enters, earthbend 2. Then search your library for a basic land card, put it onto the battlefield tapped, then shuffle.
Landfall — Whenever a land you control enters, put a quest counter on this enchantment. When you do, if it has four or more quest counters on it, put a +1/+1 counter on target creature you control. It gains trample until end of turn. and Sapling Nursery Sapling Nursery Affinity for Forests (This spell costs {1} less to cast for each Forest you control.)
Landfall — Whenever a land you control enters, create a 3/4 green Treefolk creature token with reach.
{1}{G}, Exile this enchantment: Treefolk and Forests you control gain indestructible until end of turn. more consistent. You can even use the Enroot spell to search for utility lands like Ba Sing Se Ba Sing Se This land enters tapped unless you control a basic land.
{T}: Add {G}.
{2}{G}, {T}: Earthbend 2. Activate only as a sorcery. (Target land you control becomes a 0/0 creature with haste that's still a land. Put two +1/+1 counters on it. When it dies or is exiled, return it to the battlefield tapped.) to bring back.

Similarly, in Pioneer Golgari Midrange decks, regrowing Boseiju, Who Endures Boseiju, Who Endures {T}: Add {G}.
Channel — {1}{G}, Discard this card: Destroy target artifact, enchantment, or nonbasic land an opponent controls. That player may search their library for a land card with a basic land type, put it onto the battlefield, then shuffle. This ability costs {1} less to activate for each legendary creature you control. or Takenuma, Abandoned Mire Takenuma, Abandoned Mire {T}: Add {B}.
Channel — {3}{B}, Discard this card: Mill three cards, then return a creature or planeswalker card from your graveyard to your hand. This ability costs {1} less to activate for each legendary creature you control. gives you a late-game engine. Of course, simply being able to hit your land drops every turn is also a big deal for a deck that relies on beefy win conditions like Unholy Annex/Ritual Chamber Unholy Annex/Ritual Chamber At the beginning of your end step, draw a card. If you control a Demon, each opponent loses 2 life and you gain 2 life. Otherwise, you lose 2 life.
(You may cast either half. That door unlocks on the battlefield. As a sorcery, you may pay the mana cost of a locked door to unlock it.) .

Interestingly, the Enroot spell only gets more important as you move to older formats. In Legacy Bant Depths, tutoring for either Dark Depths Dark Depths Dark Depths enters with ten ice counters on it.
{3}: Remove an ice counter from Dark Depths.
When Dark Depths has no ice counters on it, sacrifice it. If you do, create Marit Lage, a legendary 20/20 black Avatar creature token with flying and indestructible. or Thespian’s Stage Thespian’s Stage {T}: Add {C}.
{2}, {T}: This land becomes a copy of target land, except it has this ability. , whichever is missing, is quite powerful. Then, even if Carnivorous Cultivator dies before you can turn it sideways, you can still rebuy the land with Icetill Explorer Icetill Explorer You may play an additional land on each of your turns.
You may play lands from your graveyard.
Landfall — Whenever a land you control enters, mill a card. later. If your Cultivator can survive the early turns in legacy, you can even loop Wasteland Wasteland {T}: Add {C}.
{T}, Sacrifice this land: Destroy target nonbasic land. , potentially locking your opponent out of nonbasic lands.

If that wasn’t enough, Carnivorous Cultivator even shockingly appears in Vintage, Magic’s oldest and most powerful format. Vintage Sultai Midrange decklists sometimes incorporate Cultivator to loop Strip Mine Strip Mine {T}: Add {C}.
{T}, Sacrifice this land: Destroy target land. or Wasteland, destroying important lands like Mishra’s Workshop Mishra’s Workshop {T}: Add {C}{C}{C}. Spend this mana only to cast artifact spells. . It’s incredible how much utility is packed into this small creature, and we’ve just gotten started.

Going Deeper in Commander

As impactful as Carnivorous Cultivator is in Constructed, it has even more uses in Commander because of how many powerful lands it can tutor from your deck. In a cEDH setting, for example, this creature can reliably grab Gaea’s Cradle Gaea’s Cradle {T}: Add {G} for each creature you control. in Thrasios, Triton Hero decks.

Even in a bracket-four Commander setting, grabbing lands like Glacial Chasm Glacial Chasm Cumulative upkeep—Pay 2 life. (At the beginning of your upkeep, put an age counter on this permanent, then sacrifice it unless you pay its upkeep cost for each age counter on it.)
When this land enters, sacrifice a land.
Creatures you control can't attack.
Prevent all damage that would be dealt to you. to buy time or Field of the Dead Field of the Dead This land enters tapped.
{T}: Add {C}.
Whenever this land or another land you control enters, if you control seven or more lands with different names, create a 2/2 black Zombie creature token. to take over games is highly beneficial. Plus, many Lands Commanders, including Lord Windgrace Lord Windgrace +2: Discard a card, then draw a card. If a land card is discarded this way, draw an additional card.
−3: Return up to two target land cards from your graveyard to the battlefield.
−11: Destroy up to six target nonland permanents, then create six 2/2 green Cat Warrior creature tokens with forestwalk.
Lord Windgrace can be your commander. and Teval, the Balanced Scale Teval, the Balanced Scale Flying
Whenever Teval attacks, mill three cards. Then you may return a land card from your graveyard to the battlefield tapped.
Whenever one or more cards leave your graveyard, create a 2/2 black Zombie Druid creature token. , feature built-in ways to get lands back. As a result, you just need to fire off the Enroot spell the turn Cultivator comes down, and you’ll get your value guaranteed.

Moving past its Lands appeal, this Deathtouch body is a common addition to Fynn, the Fangbearer Fynn, the Fangbearer Deathtouch (Any amount of damage this deals to a creature is enough to destroy it.)
Whenever a creature you control with deathtouch deals combat damage to a player, that player gets two poison counters. (A player with ten or more poison counters loses the game.) and The Serpent Society The Serpent Society Deathtouch
Ward—Get five poison counters. (A player with ten or more poison counters loses the game.)
Whenever another creature you control with deathtouch dies, each opponent sacrifices a nontoken creature of their choice. decks, where Cultivator is both a synergistic body and a great way to hit land drops. Carnivorous Cultivator also has Elf Typal synergy with Thranduil, Sindarin Liege Thranduil, Sindarin Liege Other Elves you control get +1/+1.
Landfall — Whenever a land you control enters, create a 1/1 green Elf creature token. , while fueling its Landfall ability.

There’s truly no shortage of decks that make great use of this two-drop. With copies only $0.44, this card could be a steal. If Lands decks are your thing, consider giving this card a shot.

Stick with us here at mtgrocks.com: the best site for Magic: The Gathering coverage. Be sure to check out our deckbuilder for your next big brew, and our brand new MTG Rocks Podcast!