If you can’t get enough of flying, mythical creatures, then Magic: the Gathering’s next set is sure to get you fired up. Tarkir: Dragonstorm will hit local game stores on April 11, and will feature a host of powerful new dragons and the return of fan favourite Ugin, the dragon Planeswalker. Geek Culture and Tap & Sac are honoured to be part of the dragon clans, presenting a special preview card – Coordinated Maneuver!

Coordinated Maneuver is a common, white Instant that costs 1 white and 1 generic mana. It offers two modes (always a good thing) to choose from: either deal damage equal to the number of creatures you control to a target creature or Planeswalker, or destroy an Enchantment. 

Coordinated Maneuver is a classic interaction spell (or trick) in white and has seen multiple variants and forms over the years. The first option of dealing damage to a creature or Planeswalker can be useful but is also contingent on the type of deck you are playing. White aggro is a classic archetype filled with many, many creatures – this is where Coordinated Maneuver would shine since you could easily deal 3-4 damage for just 2 mana. However, if you’re playing a blue-white control deck that is scarce on creatures, then Coordinated Maneuver will not be a smart inclusion. 

The second mode is a little more accessible in the sense that it can be applied to any white deck. Enchantments are strong permanent cards that derive a lot of value to players. In recent sets, there’s the Overlord cycle and Sheltered by Ghosts from Duskmourn which have infiltrated the meta because of their unprecedented value generation. You’ll find Coordinated Maneuver’s ability to destroy an Enchantment will come in handy more often than not. 

On the flipside, neither of these modes are the best in its class. White is filled with great direct removal spells for creatures or Planeswalkers. Get Lost is the prime example, and is also eligible in the Standard format, albeit it’s a rare card and will be pricier to obtain. Destroying Enchantments is also not an uncommon sight for white. In truth, white has strong blanket exile effects such as in Leyline Binding, Banishing Light and the new Perilous Snare. What if you needed to be rid of an Artifact instead of an Enchantment? There’s where you’ll find Coordinated Maneuver somewhat limiting.  

How Does Tarkir’s Coordinated Maneuver Compare to Recent White Removal Spells

Get Lost

Unfortunately this is a no contest. Get Lost costs the same as Coordinated Maneuver but can do so much more. It does give us the opponent two Map tokens, but this is a small price for the flexibility of destroying a major threat. There’s a reason why Get Lost has been slowly gaining value and is an auto-include in many Standard decks with white. 

Perilous Snare

Perilous Snare will immediately nullify a threat, but it’s also conditional, assuming the opponent doesn’t destroy it with their own Coordinated Maneuver. Perilous Snare does have an added benefit at Max Speed, but Maneuver is an Instant and can catch your opponent off guard if played at an opportune time. Because Coordinated Maneuver also costs 1 mana left, we’re inclined to give it the win here. 

Valorous Stance

The closest cousin to Coordinated Maneuver offers the flexibility to go offense or defense. With Valorous Stance, you can either protect one of your own creatures with Indestructible, or get rid of a beefy threat. It can’t target Planeswalkers nor deal with smaller creatures (with toughness less than 4) so it does feel more limited in that regard.

Stroke of Midnight

This is a weaker Get Lost but still a very effective removal spell because it can still target any non-land permanent. Giving the affected owner a 1/1 creature is not the worst, but also doesn’t help when you need the board clear of blockers. Overall, you’ll likely find Stroke of Midnight being included in more Commander decks than Coordinated Maneuver. By that measure, Stroke of Midnight wins. 

End Step

Coordinated Maneuver isn’t going to turn many heads but it doesn’t mean it’s a bad card. It is still highly playable in Draft or Prerelease where you’ll definitely be playing some creatures and a utility card like this should not be overlooked. Beyond those formats, its viability becomes much less, unfortunately.