Image courtesy of Scryfall.com
Hidden synergies with lesser-known cards you can pair
Green instant speed drama has always been a corner of MTG where a single card can flip the tempo of a game. Ornamental Courage, a humble common from Kaladesh, bears a deceptively simple line: "Untap target creature. It gets +1/+3 until end of turn." In isolation, that’s a small tempo spike, but in the right crowd of tricks, it becomes a surprisingly resilient engine. The charm here is not just the quick boost; it’s the way that untapping and buffing a creature interacts with other tricks in your deck. 🧙♂️🔥💎
Kaladesh brought a festival of artifacts, clever combat tricks, and the kind of nimble green play that rewards you for knowing when to press the button. Ornamental Courage sits comfortably in a tempo or midrange shell, especially when you lean into untap themes, poke through with a trusted beater, and fold in a few lesser-known enablers that historically fly under the radar. The result is a deck that can swing twice in a single turn, or push a single bruiser over the top while your opponent fumbles for an answer. ⚔️🎨
Untap-enabler thinking: reuse and pressure
One of the neat angles with Ornamental Courage is pairing it with effects that untap creatures on more than one trigger. The most famous route is to leverage cards that untap during other players’ turns, allowing your post-buff attacker to swing again soon after. When you untap a creature with Courage, you’re not just delivering +1/+3 for one swing—you’re creating a window for a second attack if you can untap again or prevent a removal spell from sticking. This is classic Kaladesh-era green tempo with a modern twist. 🧙♂️
- Untap synergies across colors: Look for effects that untap permanents you control on demand, or that give you additional untap windows. These are the kinds of interactions that turn a one-card buff into recurring pressure across a single combat phase.
- Repetition through clever timing: Casting Ornamental Courage on a sturdier creature with a reserve of power means you can threaten lethal damage on the very next swing if your board state supports it. It’s not flashy—just practical—like a well-tuned clock in a workshop full of glittering gears. 🔧💎
Buffing with a broader toolkit: going beyond a single spell
Ornamental Courage’s +1/+3 bonus is a nimble buff, but it shines brightest when it meets a broader arc of combat tricks. Cards that care about combat, tapping, or untapping open the door to bigger turns. Think of Courage as the spark plug in a little engine: it doesn’t carry the load alone, but it powers a chain of reactions that can overwhelm a slower opponent. In Kaladesh, where every card can feel like it’s powered by a little energy spark, Courage asks you to build a small, cohesive ecosystem around a handful of green beaters, buddying up with untaps, protection, and a few well-chosen can't-miss plays. 🔥⚔️
“A single untap can turn a weary combat into a renewed charge.”
Practical pairing ideas: lesser-known cards to consider
To keep the discussion grounded, here are ideas for pairing Ornamental Courage with other, less-obvious cards that solidify the synergy without leaning on clichés. I’m focusing on cards that you’re likely to see in casual tables or on niche lists, rather than the most famous names – because that’s where surprises live. 🧙♂️
- Untap-focused engines: Include cards that untap creatures or your board state on demand. These let Courage fire more often, turning one swift buff into multi-turn pressure.
- Creatures with resilience: Put Courage on a sturdy body that you don’t mind tapping and untapping repeatedly. The extra power on a consistent beater is what tilts a close game.
- Protection and protection-adjacent tools: A little protection in hand or on the board makes Courage’s tempo swing safer, especially when you’re pressing into the late game with green as your baseline color.
In the Kaladesh context, you’ll often find infusion of artifact-support and clever tempo plays. Ornamental Courage is a reminder that even a modest common can become a pivot card when the rest of your stack is tuned to support it. The elvish armor flavor text—“Inspired by the thorns and brambles of the untamed wilds, elvish armor is both beautiful and formidable”—reads like a pitch-perfect capsule for a deck built around resilience, beauty, and a little roughness in the edges. The art, by Anthony Palumbo, captures that fusion of elegance and thorny intent that makes green feel both soft and dangerous. 🎨🧙♂️
Looking beyond the obvious, the best hidden synergies come from a mix of clever timing, resilient bodies, and a few well-placed untaps. If you enjoy building around small, efficient interactions, Ornamental Courage is a delightful doorway into a broader conversation about green tempo that doesn’t require you to chase the loudest cards. It’s about making the most of what you have, and discovering how a single untap can ripple into a winning line—a sentiment that resonates with the entire Kaladesh era’s spirit of clever play and dashing design. ⚡💎
Closing thoughts: exploring the green tempo frontier
Green has always thrived on efficient plays and patient pressure. Ornamental Courage is a tiny but mighty reminder that sometimes the best tempo moves are the ones that invite you to consider all the little interactions in your deck. When you pair this instant with unassuming untap engines, you unlock a realm of unexpected combat steps and surprising finishes. And if you’re scouting for a way to sharpen your own playbench while you’re streaming or writing about your latest builds, a comfortable desk setup—say, a premium ergonomic wrist rest—can keep you in the groove during long sessions. The product below is an easy way to keep your focus sharp as you test these ideas in real games. 🧙♂️🔥
Kaladesh’s warmth, its emblematic brass-and-ivy vibe, and this little green spell all come together to remind us that magic is often in the margins—tiny plays that accumulate into something memorable. If you’re collecting or brewing with Ornamental Courage in mind, you’ll likely spot it as a faithful, dashy option in common slots—one that helps you squeeze a little extra value from your green beats and your untap dreams. And yes, you’ll probably smile when you untap that same creature again and again, knowing you’re threading a quiet, practical miracle through the game. 🎲🧙♂️