Top Strategies for Maximizing Card Advantage with Dauthi Warlord in MTG

Top Strategies for Maximizing Card Advantage with Dauthi Warlord in MTG

In TCG ·

Dauthi Warlord by Kev Walker from Tempest Remastered

Image courtesy of Scryfall.com

Channel Your Shadow: Mastering Card Advantage with Dauthi Warlord

Two mana for a 1/1 with Shadow seems humble until you remember the core truth of Dauthi Warlord: its power scales with the number of creatures on the battlefield that have shadow. That makes this uncommon black creature a fascinating engine for card advantage when you lean into the old-school, subversive vibe of shadow mechanics. In a metagame obsessed with tempo and value, Dauthi Warlord teaches you to think of your board as a ledger, where every shadow creature on either side adds to your power—and your long-term resources. 🧙‍♂️🔥

Understanding the draw of shadow in a modern lens

Shadow means this creature can block or be blocked only by other shadow creatures. Dauthi Warlord’s power equals the number of shadow-creature bodies on the battlefield.

That dancing dynamic invites a playstyle where you’re not simply counting stats; you’re balancing lines of interaction. When you have several shadow creatures on the table, Warlord can swing with surprising heft, turning your incremental card advantage into a genuine board advantage. The trick is to cultivate a stable shadow ecosystem—enough to power up Dauthi Warlord, but not so many that you tip your hand to adversaries who out-resource you. The thrill is in the dicey math: every additional shadow creature on the field bumps Warlord’s power, nudging you toward lethal turns that feel as if you pulled a secret lever in a dark room. 🎲

Strategies to maximize card advantage with Dauthi Warlord

  • Build around the shadow theme: prioritize shadow creatures or effects that grant, enable, or maintain shadow. The more shadow bodies you can tolerate on the battlefield, the higher Warlord’s stature becomes. This isn’t about brute force; it’s about a disciplined shadow economy that trades resources for tempo and inevitability. ⚔️
  • Plan for card draw and filtering: your arsenal should include draw spells or effects that help you keep a full hand while you sculpt a board rich with shadow creatures. Each draw is a potential pump for Warlord and a fresh answer to threats—your long game hinges on staying ahead on cards. 💎
  • Control the combat math: because Warlord’s power is a reflection of shadows, any plan should consider what your opponent is contributing to that count. Use removal or disruption to prevent lethal big swings from your foes while you steadily grow your own shadow web. The goal isn’t to race out of nowhere; it’s to accumulate consistent card advantage while the numbers tip in your favor. 🧙‍♂️
  • Protect the asset: a 1-toughness 2-drop is often fragile. Pair Warlord with defensive plays or protective spells that deter mass removal and keep your shadow counts intact. The more you protect the engine, the more reliable your access to card advantage becomes. 🔒
  • Leverage inevitability with recursers: black decks thrive on inevitability—reusing sacrifice outlets, tutors, or recursion effects to re-enable shadow creatures helps you reset the board while still pushing Warlord’s power up the ladder. Each loop is a small victory that compounds into a looming card advantage advantage. ♟️

Practical deckcraft notes

In the Tempest Remastered era, the shadow mechanic invites a throwback vibe: you lean into games that feel like chess in a dimly lit alley. Dauthi Warlord shines when your deck is built to accelerate shadow presence without overexposing itself to removal. Consider pairing Warlord with resilient shadow creatures, board-wipes that you offset with recurrences, and draw suites that keep you afloat in longer games. While this strategy embraces risk—since your opponent can also grow their own shadow count—the payoff is a late-game Warlord that can threaten with mounting power, often outclassing incremental value in a single swing. 🧙‍♂️⚔️

Flavor and lore spark

The Dauthi—enigmatic shadow-dwellers who cloak themselves in the cover of night—embody the clever, ruthless elegance of black magic. Warlords among the Dauthi aren’t merely combatants; they are weather vanes that bend the battlefield’s gravity toward advantage. The card’s art, by Kev Walker, captures that hush-before-the-storm energy: a silhouette-sculpted commander whose presence is less about noise and more about the math of every shadow creature in play. It’s a reminder that in MTG, sometimes the quietest presence holds the top hand. 🎨

As you pilot Dauthi Warlord, remember that card advantage in this space isn’t just about drawing more cards than your opponent. It’s about ensuring every card you draw compounds your position: a creature that grows stronger with shadows, a removal spell that buys you another turn, and a plan that leverages the ebb and flow of the battlefield. That’s the essence of maximizing value with a card that wears its power on the shadowed sleeve. 💎

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Dauthi Warlord

Dauthi Warlord

{1}{B}
Creature — Dauthi Soldier

Shadow (This creature can block or be blocked by only creatures with shadow.)

Dauthi Warlord's power is equal to the number of creatures on the battlefield with shadow.

ID: d7679a92-52a1-4b8f-99e6-564ac14b0cce

Oracle ID: 42bb6537-fa54-43b7-84f2-dea41adc35fd

Multiverse IDs: 397508

Colors: B

Color Identity: B

Keywords: Shadow

Rarity: Uncommon

Released: 2015-05-06

Artist: Kev Walker

Frame: 2015

Border: black

EDHRec Rank: 15816

Penny Rank: 10500

Set: Tempest Remastered (tpr)

Collector #: 98

Legalities

  • Standard — not_legal
  • Future — not_legal
  • Historic — not_legal
  • Timeless — not_legal
  • Gladiator — not_legal
  • Pioneer — not_legal
  • Modern — not_legal
  • Legacy — legal
  • Pauper — not_legal
  • Vintage — legal
  • Penny — not_legal
  • Commander — legal
  • Oathbreaker — legal
  • Standardbrawl — not_legal
  • Brawl — not_legal
  • Alchemy — not_legal
  • Paupercommander — not_legal
  • Duel — legal
  • Oldschool — not_legal
  • Premodern — legal
  • Predh — legal

Prices

  • TIX: 0.04
Last updated: 2025-11-16