Emeria Shepherd is one of those cards players keep asking about. Here is, in plain words, what its official text says, the rulings published by Wizards of the Coast, and the combos players actually run.
Official card text
Flying Landfall — Whenever a land you control enters, you may return target nonland permanent card from your graveyard to your hand. If that land is a Plains, you may return that nonland permanent card to the battlefield instead.
Complete guide
Emeria Shepherd is a powerful powerhouse for white-based decks, turning every land drop into a potential resurrection. With its flying keyword and the ability to cheat permanents back into play, it serves as a massive threat that rewards you for simply playing the game. This Angel ensures your graveyard is never the final resting place for your most important spells.
Mastering Landfall
The core of Emeria Shepherd is its Landfall ability, which triggers whenever a land enters the battlefield under your control. Whether you play a land for turn or use a spell to put one into play, the ability triggers. The effect checks the land's types upon resolution; if the land is a Plains (including non-basic lands with the Plains type), you can return the target nonland permanent card directly to the battlefield. If it is any other land type, the card returns to your hand.
Resolution Step-by-Step
First, a land enters the battlefield, putting the Landfall trigger on the stack. You must choose a legal target nonland permanent card in your graveyard at this time. Second, as the ability resolves, the game checks if the land that triggered it is still on the battlefield and if it is a Plains. Third, you choose whether to return the card. If you use a Plains, the card enters the battlefield immediately; if you use an Aura this way, you choose what it enchants as it enters without targeting.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
A common error is trying to target a land card in the graveyard; the Shepherd specifies 'nonland permanent card,' so lands are off-limits. Another mistake involves timing: if a permanent on the battlefield becomes a land due to an effect, this does not trigger Landfall. Finally, remember that the choice to return the card is optional ('you may'), but you must still choose a target when the ability is put on the stack if you wish to use it.
When to Play It
Emeria Shepherd is best played in the mid-to-late game when you have high-impact nonland cards in your graveyard and a hand full of lands. It is especially potent in decks featuring fetch lands or ramp spells, as these allow for multiple triggers in a single turn, potentially rebuilding your entire board presence after a sweep.
Interaction examples
Sun TitanIf you have Emeria Shepherd on the battlefield and play a Plains, you can target Sun Titan in your graveyard. Because the land is a Plains, Sun Titan enters the battlefield. Sun Titan's own ability then triggers, allowing you to return another permanent card with mana value 3 or less to the battlefield.
Avacyn, Angel of HopeIf your opponent managed to destroy Avacyn, Angel of Hope, playing a basic Plains while Emeria Shepherd is out allows you to return Avacyn directly to the battlefield. This immediately grants all your permanents, including the Shepherd, indestructible once more.
Guide written with AI from the official text and rulings. Official English text prevails.
How it works : Emeria Shepherd
Original English text — Wizards of the Coast / Scryfall
- #1· Wizards of the Coast
A landfall ability triggers whenever a land you control enters for any reason. It triggers whenever you play a land, as well as whenever a spell or ability puts a land onto the battlefield under your control.
No other card is named in this ruling.
- #2· Wizards of the Coast
A landfall ability doesn't trigger if a permanent already on the battlefield becomes a land.
No other card is named in this ruling.
- #3· Wizards of the Coast
Whenever a land you control enters, each landfall ability of the permanents you control will trigger. You can put them on the stack in any order. The last ability you put on the stack will be the first one to resolve (As a result, you can have those abilities resolve in the order of your choosing.).
No other card is named in this ruling.
- #4· Wizards of the Coast
A "nonland permanent card" is an artifact, creature, enchantment, or planeswalker card.
No other card is named in this ruling.
- #5· Wizards of the Coast
If you return an Aura to the battlefield this way, you choose what it will enchant as it enters the battlefield. This doesn't target any player or permanent, so you could attach an Aura to a permanent with hexproof controlled by an opponent, for example. If there's nothing the Aura can legally enchant, it stays in the graveyard.
No other card is named in this ruling.
Popular combos
Real combos played by the community, sorted by popularity.
Emeria Shepherd + Sakura-Tribe Elder
- 1Activate Sakura-Tribe Elder by sacrificing it, searching your library for a basic Plains and put it onto the battlefield tapped.
- 2The Plains enters the battlefield, triggering Emeria Shepherd, returning Sakura-Tribe Elder from your graveyard to the battlefield.
- 3Repeat.
Emeria Shepherd + Lumra, Bellow of the Woods + Sylvan Safekeeper
- 1Cast Lumra by paying
. - 2When Lumra enters, it triggers.
- 3Holding priority, activate Sylvan Safekeeper by sacrificing a land.
- 4Repeat step 3 until you control no lands.
- 5When you sacrifice the last land, Lumra will die as a state-based action due to having 0 toughness.
- 6Resolve the Lumra trigger from step 2, causing you to mill four cards and return all lands from your graveyard to the battlefield tapped.
- 7When the lands enter, Emeria Shepherd triggers that many times.
- 8Resolve an Emeria Shepherd trigger that was triggered by a Plains, returning Lumra from your graveyard to the battlefield.
Emeria Shepherd + Lumra, Bellow of the Woods + Zuran Orb
- 1Cast Lumra by paying .
- 2When Lumra enters, it triggers.
- 3Holding priority, activate Zuran Orb by sacrificing a land.
- 4Repeat step 3 until you control no lands.
- 5When you sacrifice the last land, Lumra will die as a state-based action due to having 0 toughness.
- 6Resolve the Lumra trigger from step 2, causing you to mill four cards and return all lands from your graveyard to the battlefield tapped.
- 7When the lands enter, Emeria Shepherd triggers that many times.
- 8Resolve an Emeria Shepherd trigger that was triggered by a Plains, returning Lumra from your graveyard to the battlefield.
Emeria Shepherd + Aftermath Analyst + Zuran Orb + Spelunking
- 1Activate any number of lands by tapping them, adding at least
. - 2Activate Zuran Orb by sacrificing a land.
- 3Repeat step 2 until you control no lands.
- 4Activate Aftermath Analyst by paying and sacrificing it, returning all lands from your graveyard to the battlefield untapped due to Spelunking.
- 5When the lands enter, Emeria Shepherd triggers that many times.
- 6Resolve an Emeria Shepherd trigger that was triggered by a Plains, returning Aftermath Analyst from your graveyard to the battlefield.
- 7Resolve all other Emeria Shepherd triggers, returning any number of nonland permanents from your graveyard to either your hand or the battlefield.
- 8Repeat.
Uro, Titan of Nature's Wrath + Dryad of the Ilysian Grove + Emeria Shepherd + Simic Growth Chamber
- 1Play Simic Growth Chamber.
- 2Return Simic Growth Chamber to your hand using its enter the battlefield trigger.
- 3Emeria Shepherd triggers, targeting Uro.
- 4Uro returns from your graveyard to the battlefield.
- 5Stack Uro triggers so Uro is sacrificed first, then draw a card and play Simic Growth Chamber.
- 6Repeat steps 2-5.
Emeria Shepherd + Aftermath Analyst + Zuran Orb + Amulet of Vigor
- 1Activate any number of lands by tapping them, adding at least .
- 2Activate Zuran Orb by sacrificing a land.
- 3Repeat step 2 until you control no lands.
- 4Activate Aftermath Analyst by paying and sacrificing it, returning all lands from your graveyard to the battlefield tapped.
- 5When the lands enter, Emeria Shepherd and Amulet of Vigor trigger that many times.
- 6Resolve all Amulet of Vigor triggers, untapping each land that entered.
- 7Resolve an Emeria Shepherd trigger that was triggered by a Plains, returning Aftermath Analyst from your graveyard to the battlefield.
- 8Resolve all other Emeria Shepherd triggers, returning any number of nonland permanents from your graveyard to either your hand or the battlefield.
Emeria Shepherd + Felidar Guardian + Ashnod's Altar
- 1Cast Felidar Guardian by paying
. - 2Felidar Guardian enters the battlefield, blinking Plains.
- 3Emeria Shepherd triggers.
- 4Holding priority, activate Ashnod's Altar by sacrificing Felidar Guardian, adding
. - 5Resolve the Emeria Shepherd trigger, returning Felidar Guardian from your graveyard to the battlefield.
- 6Repeat from step 2.
Emeria Shepherd + Lumra, Bellow of the Woods + Squandered Resources
- 1Cast Lumra by paying .
- 2When Lumra enters, it triggers.
- 3Holding priority, activate Squandered Resources by sacrificing a land.
- 4Repeat step 3 until you control no lands.
- 5When you sacrifice the last land, Lumra will die as a state-based action due to having 0 toughness.
- 6Resolve the Lumra trigger from step 2, causing you to mill four cards and return all lands from your graveyard to the battlefield tapped.
- 7When the lands enter, Emeria Shepherd triggers that many times.
- 8Resolve an Emeria Shepherd trigger that was triggered by a Plains, returning Lumra from your graveyard to the battlefield.
Legal formats
Commentaires
- Sois le premier à commenter cette carte.
Read next
Meta decks with Emeria Shepherd
No archived Top 8 deck with this card yet.