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Battle-Rattle Shaman: Comparing Similar Keyword Abilities

Red has long been the color of bold strides, loud interrupts, and combat twists that swing the math just enough to topple an opponent’s plan. Battle-Rattle Shaman embodies that spirit without shouting from the rooftops. A 2/2 Goblin Shaman for {3}{R} in Foundations’ FoundationsCore re-release cadence, this uncommon from the Foundations set dances on the edge of tempo and punishments, offering a targeted, temporary boost at the start of combat on your turn. It’s not a keyword like haste or flying, but its effect reads like a compact lesson in combat math: give a creature +2/+0 until end of turn, at the exact moment the battle begins. That subtle timing matters as much as the number itself 🧙‍♂️🔥.

Card snapshot: what it does and why it matters

• Mana cost: {3}{R} — a reasonable price for a sturdy red beater with a built-in combat trick.
• Type: Creature — Goblin Shaman
• Stats: 2/2
• Oracle text: At the beginning of combat on your turn, you may have target creature get +2/+0 until end of turn.
• Rarity: Uncommon
• Set: Foundations (fdn) — a core-set reprint that nods to a classic era while fitting neatly into modern red archetypes.
• Flavor: The flavor text hints at the chaos the rattle induces, a sensory trap that stokes rage and redirectable urgency in the heat of the moment.

In practice, Battle-Rattle Shaman is a flexible tool for red decks that value blitz, pressure, and the occasional hard-to-block alpha strike. It doesn’t require you to pour mana into a big spell; instead, it offers a surgical pump that can change a combat outcome in a single exchange. That makes it especially potent when you’re trying to punch through a stalled board or force the last few points of damage to end the game before your opponent can stabilize. And because the buff targets a creature, you can save it for your most efficient threat, or you can suspensefully line up an attack with multiple creatures if you have a plan to push through lethal damage over two turns 🧨🎯.

Similar keyword abilities: how this stacks up against the broader toolbox

Though Battle-Rattle Shaman doesn’t introduce a new keyword, its effect slots into a familiar family of combat-enhancing abilities. Here’s how it compares to related mechanics you’ll see across sets:

• are global: they grant +1/+1 or +2/+2 to all your creatures. Those are powerful, splashy, and excellent in creature-heavy decks, but they can overdraw your plan if you’re trying to surprise an opponent with a single large attacker. Battle-Rattle Shaman slots into the middle ground—targeted, temporary, and situationally punishing to blockers or life totals that rely on blockers.
• Temporary pumps that last until end of turn are common in red—think instant-speed ways to push through extra power for a single combat swing. Shaman’s ability happens at the start of combat on your turn, which means the pump is “free” in terms of tempo if you’re already planning to attack, and you can still benefit from it even if your opponent answers later in combat.
• Targeted boosts—these are often true combat tricks that rely on picking the right creature. The Shaman’s aura-like boost is subtle, but when you choose the right target, you can convert a trade into a favorable exchange or an otherwise blocked attacker into a clean-through threat.