Nyxborn Unicorn 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
Bestow(If you cast this card for its bestow cost, it's an Aura spell with enchant creature. It becomes a creature again if it's not attached.) Mentor (Whenever this creature attacks, put a +1/+1 counter on target attacking creature with lesser power.) Enchanted creature gets +2/+2 and has mentor.
Complete guide
Nyxborn Unicorn is a versatile enchantment creature that brings the tactical depth of the Mentor mechanic to your battlefield. Whether you play it as a standalone threat or use its Bestow ability to bolster another warrior, it ensures your army keeps growing through combat.
Understanding Bestow and Mentor
Nyxborn Unicorn has two primary modes. You can cast it as a 2/2 creature for {1}{W}, or pay its Bestow cost of {3}{W} to cast it as an Aura. If cast as an Aura, it grants the enchanted creature +2/+2 and the Mentor ability. Mentor triggers whenever the creature attacks, allowing you to place a +1/+1 counter on another attacking creature with lesser power. Crucially, if the creature Nyxborn Unicorn is enchanting leaves the battlefield, the Unicorn doesn't go to the graveyard; it simply becomes an enchantment creature on the battlefield.
Step-by-Step Resolution
When you attack with a creature that has Mentor, the ability triggers and you choose a target attacking creature with lower power. The game checks the power requirement twice: first when the ability is put on the stack, and again when it tries to resolve. If the target's power is no longer less than the Mentor creature's power during resolution, the ability does nothing. If Nyxborn Unicorn is being cast for its Bestow cost and its target becomes illegal before it resolves, it won't be countered like a normal Aura; instead, it enters the battlefield as a creature.
Common Pitfalls
A common mistake is trying to buff your Mentor creature after attackers are declared to target a larger creature. You must increase its power during the Beginning of Combat step at the latest. Additionally, remember that if a permanent with Bestow enters the battlefield without being cast (such as through a reanimation effect), it always enters as a creature, never an Aura. Finally, keep in mind that Auras do not tap when the enchanted creature taps, so when Nyxborn Unicorn becomes a creature after the host dies, it will usually be untapped.
When to Play Nyxborn Unicorn
Cast this card as a creature early in the game to start aggressive chains of +1/+1 counters. In the mid-to-late game, use the Bestow cost to create a 'must-answer' threat. Because it stays on the board after the enchanted creature dies, it provides excellent insurance against spot removal and helps maintain board presence during long matches.
Interaction examples
Esper SentinelWith Nyxborn Unicorn and Esper Sentinel on the battlefield, you attack with both. Nyxborn Unicorn (2 power) targets Esper Sentinel (1 power) with its Mentor trigger. The Sentinel receives a +1/+1 counter. Now, when an opponent casts their first noncreature spell, they must pay {2} instead of {1} to prevent you from drawing a card, as the Sentinel's power has increased.
Ornithopter of ParadiseYou cast Nyxborn Unicorn for its Bestow cost, targeting Ornithopter of Paradise. The Ornithopter is now a 2/4 flyer with Mentor. You attack with the Ornithopter; even if your opponent destroys the Ornithopter in response to the attack, the Mentor trigger will still check the Ornithopter's last known power (2) to see if the target was legal. After the Ornithopter dies, Nyxborn Unicorn remains on the battlefield as a 2/2 creature.
Guide written with AI from the official text and rulings. Official English text prevails.
How it works : Nyxborn Unicorn
Original English text — Wizards of the Coast / Scryfall
- #1· Wizards of the Coast
Mentor compares the power of the creature with mentor with that of the target creature at two different times: once as the triggered ability is put onto the stack, and once as the triggered ability resolves. If you wish to raise a creature's power so its mentor ability can target a bigger creature, the last chance you have to do so is during the beginning of combat step.
No other card is named in this ruling.
- #2· Wizards of the Coast
If the target creature's power is no longer less than the attacking creature's power as the ability resolves, mentor doesn't add a +1/+1 counter. For example, if two 3/3 creatures with mentor attack and both mentor triggers target the same 2/2 creature, the first to resolve puts a +1/+1 counter on it and the second does nothing.
No other card is named in this ruling.
- #3· Wizards of the Coast
If the creature with mentor leaves the battlefield with the mentor ability on the stack, use its power as that creature last existed on the battlefield to determine whether the target creature has lesser power.
No other card is named in this ruling.
- #4· Wizards of the Coast
On the stack, a spell with bestow is either a creature spell or an Aura spell. It's never both, although it's an enchantment spell in either case.
No other card is named in this ruling.
- #5· Wizards of the Coast
Unlike other Aura spells, an Aura spell with bestow isn't countered if its target is illegal as it begins to resolve. Rather, the effect making it an Aura spell ends, it loses enchant creature, it returns to being an enchantment creature spell, and it resolves and enters the battlefield as an enchantment creature.
No other card is named in this ruling.
- #6· Wizards of the Coast
Unlike other Auras, an Aura with bestow isn't put into its owner's graveyard if it becomes unattached. Rather, the effect making it an Aura ends, it loses enchant creature, and it remains on the battlefield as an enchantment creature. It can attack (and its
abilities can be activated, if it has any) on the turn it becomes unattached if it's been under your control continuously, even as an Aura, since your most recent turn began.No other card is named in this ruling.
- #7· Wizards of the Coast
If a permanent with bestow enters the battlefield by any method other than being cast, it will be an enchantment creature. You can't choose to pay the bestow cost and have it become an Aura.
No other card is named in this ruling.
- #8· Wizards of the Coast
Auras attached to a creature don't become tapped when the creature becomes tapped. Except in some rare cases, an Aura with bestow remains untapped when it becomes unattached and becomes a creature.
No other card is named in this ruling.
Legal formats
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