[mtgnexus] Random Card of the Day - Golgari Thug

[Guardman]

*Checks price* . If only it was 50% cheaper

I know the feeling. I got mine for something like $14 or $15 (which is technically 50% cheaper than now) and even then I thought should I wait for it to eventually drop. I only bit the bullet because I was like its a card that I will always play since I love Treasure and I love Dragons.

I will say that the fact you can play it on your turn and then have mana to protect it as well makes it a surprisingly sticky threat and can transform a board with a few treasures from have enough mana to play somethings to I Torment of Hailfire for the win.

[Hawk]

I'm hoping this will drop post-rotation. Seems great in any deck that cares about Treasure, Dragons, Artifacts, cheap Sacrifice fodder, or doing Heroic-y targeted things. Given that that is a significant number of the top R/x commanders in the format these days though (Feather, the Redeemed, Prosper, Tome-Bound, Korvold, Fae-Cursed King, Breya, Etherium Shaper, The Ur-Dragon, etc.) I'm not optimistic it will ever go down in price.

[PrimevalCommander]

Goldspan Dragon : Overpriced for what it is. At $10 I'm interested, but not $30. But I don't currently play a deck that falls into this cards strengths. I've paid more money for less objectively powerful cards, but this dragon just doesn't spark any interest in me. My brother plays Korvold and has a treasure subtheme, but even so I don't think it really warrants the price tag for that deck. Probably ignorance for never having played with the card.

Now Old Gnawbone, there is a treasure dragon I can get behind. super busted, but just looks like a good time to cast on a full board. I'd slam that in Korvold all day

[Mookie]

Goldspan Dragon is a good card that is currently expensive due to Standard - I assume it will drop sharply after rotation. I guess it might still be relevant in Pioneer, but the competition for the '5 mana hasty dragon' slot is steep.

As for the card itself... in some ways, it only costs 3 mana due the immediate treasure production, which is its primary strength. It also makes more treasure if targeted with removal or by other miscellaneous spells. I would play a three mana 4/4 hasty flyer in most decks, but if I had a deck that cared about treasure / sacrifice, or had a deck that was playing a bunch of pump spells... in that case, it would be a strong inclusion. I suppose you could probably even do some sort of janky storm combo stuff if you had enough cantrips to target it with, given that each would generate a treasure. Alternatively, just do normal treasure stuff and stock up for a big haymaker.

....I guess all the treasure synergies running around mean that Goldspan Dragon has a lot of casual appeal / EDH applicability, so the price will probably still stay somewhat elevated even after rotation. May need an actual reprint before it drops for good.

[Igzex]

A haste dragon that provides me with counterspell mana when it does something or when someone tries to do something about it? Sounds good to me! Also with this treasure theme these dragons have been pushing lately, I'm starting to wonder if winning with Hellkite Tyrant is actually possible.


I agree that it costs too much to actually own and I hope it doesn't keep its price like Terror of the peaks.

[Crazy Monkey]

Goldspan Dragon is one of the best mana producing engines in decks that spam spells (cantips) on their creatures repeatedly. The trigger being on becoming a target instead of the spell cast made it unique pre-magecraft for Zada, Hedron Grinder effects. Zada, Feather, the Redeemed, Krark, the Thumbless, and other spellslinging commanders like Kalamax, the Stormsire can really benefit from the consistent mana generated.

The doubled effectiveness of treasure makes absurd amounts of mana.

[TheAmericanSpirit]

*Checks price* . If only it was 50% cheaper

It was as low as 16 when the market flooded out with Kalheim and the hype had died down. Prosper's release sent it to the moon.

4/5 flying haste for essentially 3 is good and all, but I think its impact is overstated in EDH. For 3 mana I can cast necropotence, at 5 there's mana geyser and with 2 I can cast dockside. This thing just doesn't go big enough imo, even with double treasures.

[PrimevalCommander]

Goldspan Dragon is one of the best mana producing engines in decks that spam spells (cantips) on their creatures repeatedly. .... and other spellslinging commanders like Kalamax, the Stormsire can really benefit from the consistent mana generated.

The doubled effectiveness of treasure makes absurd amounts of mana.

This made me think about my own Kalamax deck. I do play a small toolbox of combat tricks that cantrip. I had to go back and remember how many spells I actually play and I don't think it's enough to justify this card. I think I only have 4-5 cards that target my own stuff for value. But thank you for mentioning Kalamax as I overlooked him for this card. Maybe if I lean harder into the combat tricks I'll give it a try, after rotation.

If I copy a Fists of Flame and target Goldspan Dragon with both the original and the copy, do I make 2 treasures? That would make a good amount of mana.

[BeneTleilax]

Goldspan is absolutely the kind of chase mythic that will get reprinted in a precon soonish.

[Crazy Monkey]

Goldspan Dragon is one of the best mana producing engines in decks that spam spells (cantips) on their creatures repeatedly. .... and other spellslinging commanders like Kalamax, the Stormsire can really benefit from the consistent mana generated.

The doubled effectiveness of treasure makes absurd amounts of mana.

This made me think about my own Kalamax deck. I do play a small toolbox of combat tricks that cantrip. I had to go back and remember how many spells I actually play and I don't think it's enough to justify this card. I think I only have 4-5 cards that target my own stuff for value. But thank you for mentioning Kalamax as I overlooked him for this card. Maybe if I lean harder into the combat tricks I'll give it a try, after rotation.

If I copy a Fists of Flame and target Goldspan Dragon with both the original and the copy, do I make 2 treasures? That would make a good amount of mana.

Yep, sending copies to target the dragon results in multiple triggers. It's absolutely absurd with stuff like Heat Shimmer on Zada or Mirrorwing Dragon.

[3drinks]

I only use goldspan in zenith seeker and Kari Zev because mono r. It always over performs though, and players very commonly under assess it's power, letting it stick for 2, 3 turns, sometimes the rest of the game as they go after other cards. It should be catching more removal than that. But then again I seem to be the only player with more than one targeted removal in any game and I just don't get that.

[RowanKeltizar]

Hmm, Goldspan Dragon is a card I picked up pretty cheap because I was hyped about it, but I really think it fits best in a deck that's "treasure tribal" i.e. Korvold, Fae-Cursed King or Prosper, Tome-Bound. Failing that, I can see it for decks that get multiple attack phases or multile attack triggers >.>

[3drinks]

Friday, February 4th, 2022; Wilhelt, the Rotcleaver

[folding_music]

looks tough to use... anyone got any idea about which sort of deck this might go in?

[Serenade]

Just another tribe that does not get enough support.

[Melua]

Just another tribe that does not get enough support.

Zombies have gotten a lot of support over the years, they just need one commander to push them over the edge. I tend to stick with The Scarab God as it allows for more flexibility, but Wilhelt is a fine part of the 99.

[vandertroll]

So many ways to draw in UB zombies put this one quite low in the pecking order

[Outcryqq]

Just another tribe that does not get enough support.

Zombies have gotten a lot of support over the years -snip-

/whoosh

[BeneTleilax]

Aristo Zombies really took off with IIInnistrad.

[toctheyounger]

I run it in Varina. Hes been quite good thus far just in terms of ensuring board presence. The draw is an added extra thats often convenient, and there's now enough aristocrat effects in the tribe to make him fit very well. For a tribe thats dead in the water if it doesn't have bodies in play he does exactly what he needs to.

[hyalopterouslemur]

Zombie Aristocrats loves things like this. Oh, and it works with Nim Deathmantle combo.

[AjaniVengeant]

I feel like this card would actually really good in just about any zombie token shell. Since decayed is such a new mechanic many zombie token creators don't have decayed, this seems like a good bounce back card from board wipes.

[3drinks]

Saturday, February 5th, 2022; Sublime Epiphany

Well say nothing of it's flexibility. It can certainly do anything you need it to do.

[Serenade]

Do people play it in Standard/Modern? Not sure why it is not a dollar rare.

[Sinis]

Saturday, February 5th, 2022; Sublime Epiphany

Well say nothing of it's flexibility. It can certainly do anything you need it to do.

To my enduring surprise, I see this played at my tables. The mana cost is monstrous, but, I guess... it gets some things done?