Vehicles have always been tricky to evaluate in Magic. Most players missed Smuggler’s Copter during Kaaldesh preview season, of course, but they also missed Esika’s Chariot years later. This is despite having had time to grow accustomed to Vehicles. Some lessons are learned slowly, I suppose.
All of that said, I don’t think many players are going to have trouble evaluating the Vehicle we’re discussing today. Hedge Shredder has a very real chance to be the most broken MTG card in Duskmourn when all is said and done.
Hedge Shredder MTG
- Mana Value: 2GG
- Rarity: Rare
- Stats: 5/5 (Vehicle)
- Card Text: Whenever Hedge Shredder attacks, you may mill two cards. Whenever one or more land cards are put into your graveyard from your library, put them onto the battlefield tapped. Crew 1 (Tap any number of creatures you control with total power 1 or more: This Vehicle becomes an artifact creature until end of turn.)
I mean just look at the thing. Four mana for 5/5 in stats. Comically easy to animate thanks to a Crew cost of one. Two different abilities, which have internal synergy with one another. A common criticism of modern Magic design is that cards often serve as both enablers and payoffs in one. That’s definitely the case here, since Hedge Shredder both mills cards and rewards you for milling them. That reward is, naturally, the most powerful aspect of the card.
Whenever you mill a land with this Home Depot Frankenstein, you put it right into play tapped. It’s really hard to overstate just how powerful an effect that is. Put it this way: if the lands didn’t enter tapped, we’d probably have another Nadu situation on our hands. Self mill is typically so low-impact that it’s cheap and plentiful in most formats. Milling just a handful of cards will likely only cost you a couple of mana, and with Hedge Shredder out you’ll probably get a land or two out of the deal to boot.
In Standard alone, Hedge Shredder pairs very nicely indeed with the likes of Aftermath Analyst and Bristlebud Farmer. In current Analyst decks, it seems like a shoo-in, since it does such a great job of getting extra lands out of your graveyard. It has a very real shot in format top dog Golgari Midrange as well too. Having the option for your ramp engine to swing in as a 5/5 when needed is no joke, especially in long Control games where other threats have been swallowed by Sunfall. The fact that Shredder isn’t always a creature gives it the resilience needed to make full use of both sides.
The Lands Down Under
Of course, Standard is just the tip of the iceberg. An effect this powerful has the potential to propel Hedge Shredder to success in the upper echelons of MTG gameplay. I’m talking Commander for sure, and possibly even a bit of Modern and Legacy if things line up nicely.
If you thought Standard had a range of good self-mill options, that number only grows as you go further back in Magic. Dredge is probably the most notorious effect of this kind, letting you dump a ton of cards for no mana each turn. With Hedge Shredder out, you only need one or two good Dredge triggers to ramp yourself into gigantic threats. Cards like Stinkweed Imp in Modern and Golgari Grave-Troll in Legacy are your best bets here.
It’s worth noting that the card pairs fantastically with any kind of Landfall nonsense, too. In Modern Amulet Titan, or any deck built around Field of the Dead or Valakut, the Molten Pinnacle, Shredder can get you triggers aplenty. Just as quickly as all-stars like Splendid Reclamation, too, if your deck is capable of spending four mana and then milling a bunch of cards, rather than the other way round.
It almost goes without saying, but Hedge Shredder will also be incredible in Commander. Decks like Karador and Meren love to self-mill anyway, and tools like Mesmeric Orb and Altar of Dementia help them do so easily. Turning that mill into ramp allows Reanimator decks to play double duty, and actually cast some of their huge threats rather than just dig them up.
Basically, Hedge Shredder is a phenomenal Magic card. WotC didn’t have to go so hard on the cursed lawnmower design, but I’m sure glad they did.
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