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Cleaving Skyrider: Forgotten MTG Novel References

In the vast tapestry of Magic: The Gathering, some cards carry more than just numbers and symbols — they carry echoes of stories long tucked away in forgotten tomes. For fans who love both the thrill of a well-timed tempo play and the lure of lore, Cleaving Skyrider feels like a bridge between Dominaria United’s modern frame and the hazy, beloved corners of MTG novels that never got their grand ending. 🧙‍♂️🔥 This is a creature that doesn’t just fly; it hints at sky-borne chapters where riders and shock troops carved routes through storm-lit skies, leaving readers with the sense that every battlefield has a novel waiting to be finished. And if you listen closely while it swoops in, you might hear a whisper of narratives from eras past where air-borne exploits shaped the war-torn memory of Dominaria. ⚔️

Under the hood: how the card plays with history and tempo

Dominaria United gave this uncommon Human Warrior a pocket-sized thunderclap. With a mana cost of {2}{W} and a color identity of R/W (due to the kicker), Cleaving Skyrider is a flash creature with wings that aren’t just for show. Its flying ability keeps it above ground-level firefights, letting it slip past ground-chokers and surprise blockers alike. The kicker ability — pay 2{R} in addition to the base cost — adds a second life to its entrance, transforming an ordinary evasive body into something with the potential to etch a dramatic moment on the board. 🧙‍♂️💎

When Cleaving Skyrider enters the battlefield, if it was kicked, it deals X damage to any target, where X is the number of attacking creatures. That line of text is a compact punch: the more attackers you field, the bigger the surprise blink of flame or a decisive burn to a key opposing plan. It’s a mechanic that rewards players who commit to a swarm or a calculated switch to a heavy-air approach. The synergy is elegant: you can deploy a flurry of small creatures to maximize X, then cash in with a flying threat that doubles as a finish or answer to problematic blockers. In board states where both players push fatigue through incremental damage, this is the card that rewards spacing and timing, not just raw power. ⚔️🔥

The art by Joshua Raphael matches the card’s dual nature—clean white discipline with a spark of red aggression when kicked. The piece captures a rider breaking through a veil of clouds, suggesting both duty and impulse: the sky as a battlefield, and a rider who knows when to hold back and when to unleash. The design language, with its kicker mechanic and a flier that could swing into a game-turning blow, mirrors the classic MTG balance of control and aggression that lore-loving players often chase in their favorite stories. 🎨

Strategic angles: building around a forgotten flame

• Kicker timing: You’ll want to hold back a portion of your mana to ensure you can kick when you have a critical number of attackers. The payoff is not just bigger damage; it can be a dramatic swing that clears the way for a lethal attack or a decisive removal exchange. 🧭
• Attacker density: Cleaving Skyrider shines in decks that produce many creatures—tokens, go-wide strategies, or pages of evasive threats. When the number of attackers climbs, so does your X-powered burn potential; you get a built-in reach that can finish off stalled games. 🎲
• Tempo and bluffing: Flash lets you tempt your opponent into a wasteful block or an ill-advised removal spell, only to reveal the kick and deal a chunk of damage to a secondary target. It’s a tempting trick in older formats as well as more modern, where knowledge of an opponent’s decklist can guide your flash timing. 🪄
• Budget reality: With a price tag hovering in the low-cents range on the market, Cleaving Skyrider is as practical as it is flavorful. A little bit of shine on the table goes a long way when you’re weaving lore-friendly moments into your plays. 💎

For lore-bound players, Cleaving Skyrider isn't only a card; it's a prompt to revisit the margins of MTG's vast library. Forgotten novels, out-of-print side texts, and scattered flavor lines sometimes hint atarched paths of Dominaria's skyward contingents and the fates of riders who rode the storm’s edge. The card acts as a tiny gateway, inviting you to imagine a longer, richer set of conflicts that extend beyond what’s printed on the battlefield. If you’re the kind of player who keeps a shelf of old novels next to your deck box, Cleaving Skyrider rewards your habit with a momentary echo of those stories. 🧙‍♂️🔥

“A small creature with a big punch can reshape a narrative in a single combat step, much like a forgotten chapter can alter a reader’s memory of a saga.”

Flavor, art, and the collector’s eye

The Dominaria United set pairings align with a broader MTG tradition: design that respects both the mechanical future and the story-laden past. Cleaving Skyrider’s combination of white and red mana, its flying presence, and its kick-driven shock action captures a storytelling mood: a herald of quick tempo plays who can pivot to a pyrotechnic finisher. The rarity—uncommon—positions it as a puzzle piece for players who enjoy midrange tempo with occasional explosive outcomes. The card’s foil version, while a bit pricier, orients collectors toward a contrast between formulaic play and the artistry of limited-edition finishes. ⚔️🧩

As a practical note for players chasing value, consider the card’s current market snapshot: modest nonfoil pricing with a tiny foil premium; it’s a solid pick for casual Modern or Historic decks that lean into efficient aerial pressure and multi-attack board states. The flavor and the play pattern pair nicely with decks that emphasize surprise reach and plan A/B tempo, making Cleaving Skyrider a sleeper in the year’s spice rack. 💎

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