Hish of the Snake Cult: Exploring Serpent Culture on Its Plane

Hish of the Snake Cult: Exploring Serpent Culture on Its Plane

In TCG ·

Hish of the Snake Cult card art

Image courtesy of Scryfall.com

Serpents, Nagas, and a Plane’s Cult of Knowledge and Venom

On a world where Nagas and serpents speak with the silvery hiss of old rulers, culture is a living braid of power, ritual, and calculated risk. Hish of the Snake Cult arrives as a royal envoy—not with trumpets, but with a signet ring that binds tribes together through a single, resonant truth: if you want to command snakes, you must understand what makes them dangerous as citizens, allies, and weapons. This legendary creature, a rare from Mystery Booster 2, is a tri-color beacon in black, green, and blue (mana cost {2}{B}{G}{U}), a sign that the plane’s power centers build alliances across ambition, nature, and intellect. 🧙‍♂️🔥

In terms of design, Hish is a six-mana statement piece: a 2/5 legendary Snake that doesn’t just demand attention on the battlefield but reshapes the very deckbuilding logic around it. The line “Nagas and Serpents you control are Snakes” might sound like a tidy taxonomy note, but it’s a cultural summons. It reframes the entire ecosystem: every Nagas and Serpents you bring to the board ceases to be merely another creature type and becomes part of a broader Snake covenant. The card sets a theme: cultivate a growing chorus of Snakes, and watch a whole tribe ascend into a unified, menacing force. This is tribal design at its best—clear identity, clear payoff, and a surprising amount of flexibility for a five-mana package. 🧪🎲

“Nagas and Serpents you control are Snakes.” It’s not just taxonomy—it’s a political statement. When you lay Hish, you’re signaling a serpent civilization where every scale, shadow, and silent whisper counts toward a grand, venomous chorus.

The truly transformative line, however, is the Waxen Crown of personality behind the buff: Snakes you control have daunt, deathtouch, and poisonous 2. In practical terms, that means your snakes become fearsome tormentors: daunt makes them hard to block by small creatures, deathtouch ensures even a low power threat can threaten a larger foe, and poisonous 2 spreads poison counters with every successful strike. In a plane where cunning and venom govern relationships—from court intrigue to skirmishes in jungle-catacomb arenas—these traits mirror the culture’s ethos: aggression masked by elegance, and strategy weaponized as soon as a serpent is on the field. If you lean into a Snake-centric board, Hish acts like a cultural patron, extending its venomous prestige to every scaly ally you bring along. ⚔️💎

From a gameplay perspective, Hish invites a thoughtful, midrange to control tempo. You’re not racing to slam one explosive finisher; you’re weaving a network of Snakes that thresh enemies with precision. The three-color identity invites a broad spectrum of support—card draw, counterspells, removal, and resilience—that can sustain a board presence while you sculpt your serpentine population. The daunt effect interacts beautifully with tempo and evasive playstyles: big Snakes become hard to engage with, while the deathtouch ensures even modest threats can topple bigger foes on favorable trades. Poison counters add a long-game tension that nudges opponents toward decisive action before the battlefield becomes an unavoidable hazard. In short, the plane’s culture of risk, ritual, and venom translates into a gameplay arc that rewards patient buildup and calculated escalation. 🧙‍♂️🔥

Artwork and lore align here as well. Marco Dotti’s illustration for Hish captures a ceremonial gravity—scale-sheened textures, a crown-like ornamentation, and eyes that glint with tri-fold intellect. The frame and rarity (rare) reflect Mystery Booster 2’s vibe: a curated, unexpected fusion of cards that invites casual and collector players alike to rethink what a single creature can unlock. The flavor is unmistakable: a serpent cult that isn’t just surviving but orchestrating a grand, poisonous symphony of power. If you’ve ever felt that MTG’s multiverse runs on the quiet, calculating energy of hidden cabals, Hish offers a tangible connection to that mood. 🎨🧩

Beyond the table, the card speaks to collectors and players who enjoy the storytelling of a well-woven plane. The three-color identity implies broad compatibility with other B/G/U staples—think of nagas and serpents that synergize with tribal themes, or artifacts and enchantments that bend the board toward a serpentine tempo. Its rarity and print status as a non-foil Mystery Booster reprint makes it a thoughtful addition for a player who values theme as much as raw power. You’ll find that price tracking on Scryfall hints at modest, accessible value, a sweet spot for fans who want a meaningful, flavorful pick without turning MTG into a pure financial chase. 💎

As an object lesson in MTG worldbuilding, Hish is a reminder that a card can be more than a line of text on a card stock. It’s a doorway into a culture—the Nagas and Serpents of a mythic plane—where power is ceremonial, betrayal is common, and a single creature can bend an entire ecosystem toward a single, venomous purpose. If you savor the cross-pollination of lore, design, and play, Hish is a reminder that Magic’s best moments arrive when flavor and function walk hand in hand. 🧙‍♂️🎲

Want a small, practical keepsake to celebrate those serpentine vibes while you play? Check out this handy accessory that fits neatly into any mobile setup:

Phone Grip Click-On Mobile Holder Kickstand

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Hish of the Snake Cult

Hish of the Snake Cult

{2}{B}{G}{U}
Legendary Creature — Snake

Nagas and Serpents you control are Snakes. (We'll errata this to be true.)

Snakes you control have daunt, deathtouch, and poisonous 2. (A creature with daunt can't be blocked by creatures with power 2 or less. Whenever a creature with poisonous 2 deals combat damage to a player, that player gets two poison counters.)

ID: 2bbaddee-5d3d-4b86-b3cc-fefb8e0ecd76

Oracle ID: 0f15dd1b-3d32-4d58-ba46-957f108ae677

Multiverse IDs: 677651

TCGPlayer ID: 564047

Colors: B, G, U

Color Identity: B, G, U

Keywords:

Rarity: Rare

Released: 2024-08-02

Artist: Marco Dotti

Frame: 2015

Border: black

Set: Mystery Booster 2 (mb2)

Collector #: 595

Legalities

  • Standard — not_legal
  • Future — not_legal
  • Historic — not_legal
  • Timeless — not_legal
  • Gladiator — not_legal
  • Pioneer — not_legal
  • Modern — not_legal
  • Legacy — not_legal
  • Pauper — not_legal
  • Vintage — not_legal
  • Penny — not_legal
  • Commander — not_legal
  • Oathbreaker — not_legal
  • Standardbrawl — not_legal
  • Brawl — not_legal
  • Alchemy — not_legal
  • Paupercommander — not_legal
  • Duel — not_legal
  • Oldschool — not_legal
  • Premodern — not_legal
  • Predh — not_legal

Prices

  • USD: 0.31
Last updated: 2025-11-15