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Fishing Gear in Aggro Decks: Hidden Tempo and Surprising Spoils
In the fast-paced world of aggressive MTG play, you want tools that accelerate pressure while quietly bending the flow of a match to your will. Fishing Gear arrives as a colorless artifact — a nimble relic that fits snugly into almost any build. For a mere three mana, you get an Equipment that can swing the tempo in your favor on multiple fronts: immediate pump via Equip 2, and a damage-triggered effect that reshapes the opponent’s battlefield with the flick of a few combat steps 🧙🔥⚔️. It’s the kind of card you might overlook at first glance, only to discover it’s a sneaky engine for turning edge-case draws into real threats later in the game. And yes, in the realm of EDH chaos, a single well-timed exile can swing a three-player table in your direction with a shimmer of inevitability 💎🎲.
Stats at a glance
- Mana cost: 3 (colorless)
- Type: Artifact — Equipment
- Equip cost: 2
- Text: Whenever equipped creature deals combat damage to a player, exile the top card of that player's library. If it's a permanent card, you may put it onto the battlefield under your control. If you don't, create a 1/1 blue Fish creature token.
- Rarity: Rare
- Set: Final Fantasy Commander (fic); Artist: Winona Nelson
How it plays out on the battlefield
The core thrill of Fishing Gear is its two-pronged payoff. First, it rewards you for aggression with raw, tempo-driven upside. When your equipped creature lands combat damage, you exile the top card of the opponent’s library. If that card happens to be a permanent — a blocker, a flyer, a key artifact — you may claim it for your side and promptly integrate it onto your board. In a best-case scenario, you steal a critical defender or a powerful answer that slows your own foes down, all while continuing to push damage each combat step 🧙🔥💥.
If the revealed card isn’t a permanent, don’t feel bad—the second half of the effect grants you a 1/1 blue Fish token. It’s not a game-breaker, but it adds board presence, chump-block utility, and a touch of late-game inevitability when paired with token- or tempo-oriented synergies. The upshot: even when the top card isn’t perfect, you still walk away with a tangible incremental advantage, and you keep the pressure sustained in the early to mid-game window ⚔️🎨.
Why this fits aggressive or tempo-heavy builds
In an aggro shell, you want to maximize damage output while preserving options for the next threat. Fishing Gear lets you tilt the battlefield toward you in two ways:
- Direct tempo swing: By punching through damage, you trigger the exile-and-possibly-steal clause sooner, accelerating your access to the opponent’s threats or their stronger non-permanent plays.
- Board-state diversification: The resulting Fish token provides a brood of additional bodies that can threaten, crew gears, or be used as incidental chump blockers—handy when you’re trying to squeeze out the last point of damage you need 🔥💎.
- Colorless flexibility: As a colorless artifact, it slots into virtually any color identity you’re piloting, from red aggressive builds that love haste to white-leaning tempo lists that prize card advantage without sacrificing speed.
Deckbuilding tips for maximum impact
- Early bodies, late impact: Pair the Gear with a reliable early attacker. A 3-mana artifact that equips for 2 gives you a steady lane to deploy threats and begin triggering the exile clause as soon as possible.
- Play the odds: In Commander formats, you’ll often face multi-player tables where the clock runs faster. If you’re likely to deal combat damage to multiple players, the Gear’s ability can trigger repeatedly, compounding value over the course of a game.
- Target-ready permanents: While you can steal their permanents, think about what types of permanents would tilt the game in your favor—land ramps, removal, or your own duplicate threats wind up being potent steals or board-swinging tokens when you exfiltrate them.
- Support the token with blue synergy: If you’re leveraging the Fish token, consider adding inexpensive blue creatures or spells that benefit from extra bodies, or enchantments that create additional value when creatures enter or attack.
- Artifact synergy: Don’t shy away from other artifacts that amplify aggression. Card draw, ramp, or low-cost answers can turn Fishing Gear into a reliable engine rather than a one-off play.
Flavor, design, and the Final Fantasy Commander twist
Winona Nelson’s illustration gives this artifact a whimsical practicality—an inventive gadget ready to tilt the odds in battlefield chess. The Final Fantasy Commander set blends a beloved IP with classic MTG mechanics, and Fishing Gear embodies that playful fusion: a simple equip cost that unlocks a surprising array of outcomes. It’s a rare that rewards bold decisions in an aggro plan, rather than sitting back and hoping for perfect draws. The card’s spirit is all about turning aggression into opportunity, even when the top card of your foe’s library isn’t what you hoped for. It’s a tiny gamble with a friendly payoff, and in a crowded EDH table, that kind of swing is exactly the sort of spark that keeps games lively 🧙🔥🎲.
Collector value and playability notes
As a Rare artifact equipment with foil and nonfoil versions, Fishing Gear sits comfortably in many trade-bait conversations. Its ability scales with table dynamics—more players, more triggers, more chances to grab a permanent you can use against the table. The card’s equipment-based design is evergreen for players who love to push tempo and board-state control at every opportunity. And for collectors, the Final Fantasy Commander line offers a distinctive frame and artistry from the set’s era, adding a little extra shine to a deck’s shell and a smile to a table at prereleases or casual nights.
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