Image courtesy of Scryfall.com
Top Combos Involving The Egotistical Velociraptor
There’s something irresistibly cheeky about The Egotistical Velociraptor—a legendary Dinosaur Boxer sporting a bold color identity of white, blue, and black and a mana cost of {2}{W}{U}{B}. Released in the playful Unknown Event set on 2024-06-29, this 6/6 rare creature wants to mix competition with theatrical flair. Its Grumpy Co-play ability doesn’t just win you tempo or card advantage; it leans into the social art of Magic: the politics and banter that make a casual multiplayer game memorable. When you cast it, you may invite another Magic player who isn’t currently in a game to take over yours until the end of your next turn. If they say yes, you shuffle your hand into your library, draw four cards, and gain 4 life. It’s a reset with a wink, wrapped in a strategic toolkit 🧙♂️🔥💎.
That blend of drama and draw sets the stage for some uniquely entertaining, and surprisingly practical, combinations. Below are a few ways players have turned this brash raptor into a cerebral centerpiece for multiplayer games. Each path respects the card’s flavor while offering a route to real game value in casual, social environments 🎲🎨.
Combo 1: The Recursion Refresh (recast, re-aim, re-draw)
- Idea: Use graveyard recursion to repeatedly re-enter The Egotistical Velociraptor and squeeze out multiple Grumpy Co-play triggers, each time refreshing your hand with four new cards and four life to cushion any swings.
- Key pieces: Reanimate-style effects (e.g., Reanimate, Necromancy, Dance of the Dead) to bring Velociraptor back from the graveyard; a reliable discard-to-grave engine can help you set up the recurring ETB even if your opening hand is dumped by the first Co-play moment.
- Basic lines (casual-friendly): 1) Cast Velociraptor from your hand (paying {2}{W}{U}{B}). 2) When it ETBs, offer a co-play to a willing opponent; they accept. 3) Your effect resolves: you shuffle your hand into your library, draw four, gain four life. 4) In a later turn, recast Velociraptor from the graveyard using your chosen recursion spell. Repeat as your table allows.
- Strategic twist: Pair this with a broad card-draw strategy (think wheels or draw engines) so that every recast doesn’t just refresh your hand, it advances you toward your actual win condition. The social reset buys you a moment to redraw into your plan while keeping the mood light and competitive — a true test of table politics 🧙♂️⚔️.
Why it works: the power here isn’t raw mana advantage alone; it’s the artwork of drawing a fresh slate at predictable cadence and using the pause in the game’s tempo to set up your next move. It’s elegance with a side of mischief, ideal for multi-player tables where a friendly nudge can tilt the room’s dynamics as much as a big creature slam can tilt the board 🔥💎.
Combo 2: The Social Engine (politics with payoff)
- Idea: Leverage the social mechanics of Grumpy Co-play to create a short-lived but meaningful shift in the game’s momentum, then capitalize on the four fresh cards you draw to build a strong endgame plan before control returns to you.
- Setup tips: Have a few “control” or “threat” cards in your deck that you’re happy to deploy once you regain control. Cards that reward you for drawing or for temporary control of other players work nicely here (think of card draw engines and flexible removal, all family-friendly and within your table’s norms).
- Execution: Cast Velociraptor on your turn; announce the Grumpy Co-play offer to a cooperative player. If they accept, you get four new cards and four life, while they navigate a momentary stewardship role. Your next steps can include topdecking toward a threat or setting up a political finish. It’s a dance of gamesmanship and cunning, with the Velociraptor as your confident commentator 🧙♂️🎲.
- Why it shines: multiplayer formats love politics-as-a-gameplay vector. This combo doesn’t win on a single burst—it's about efficient, creative leverage of social contracts and timely threats. The result is memorable play that friends will still talk about next week 👀💎.
Combo 3: Recurring Reanimate Splash (deck-building flavor)
- Idea: Build a small, reliable reanimation suite so Velociraptor can re-enter multiple times across the game, with each re-entry triggering another round of co-play offers that can steer the table toward favorable exchanges or hand-size parity at key moments.
- Suggested engines: classic black-based reanimation suite (Necromancy, Reanimate, Dance of the Dead), plus a couple of cheap, graveyard-friendly enablers. A light infusion of white and blue can help with protection or bounce to keep Velociraptor relevant between recasts.
- Play pattern: cast Velociraptor, enjoy the four-card refresh, and then rely on your recursion spell to bring it back for another ETB. Rinse and repeat as long as you manage the table’s pace and your resources. On the table’s terms, this becomes a brilliant demonstration of both memory and mood management ✨⚔️.
- Trade-offs: In practice, this route demands careful timing and a table-friendly approach: don’t over-stay the “shared control” moment, and keep the game’s tone playful so your fellow players aren’t caught off guard by repeated draws and life changes 🚀.
Beyond the mechanics, it’s also fun to remember the lore and flavor of this brash dinosaur. The Unknown Event’s Unknown Set name hints at a meta where players embrace the chaos of novelty—something this Velociraptor embodies with its witty, self-assured posture and a banter-ready ability. The card is a conversation piece as much as a deck-building tool, reminding us that MTG’s joy often lives in the small, social moments as much as the big board states 🧙♂️🎨.
If you’re chasing a practical edge while keeping the game light, consider pairing these ideas with a few high-utility, color-balanced spells that smooth out interactions and protect you during the multi-player swing. And on sleeved nights or casual Fridays, the Velociraptor shines as a talking point that keeps everyone engaged, laughing, and nodding along as you announce, “Grumpy Co-play: accepted.”
While the Unknown Event set doesn’t have the same official tournament footprint as more established blocks, it’s a goldmine for casual deckbuilding and social play, exactly where a card like this belongs. The triple-color identity invites a broader range of support spells, ramps, and removal, while its Enter-the-Battlefield twist invites a social experiment with each casting. It’s MTG as theater—and every play is a little performance you and your friends share together 🧙♂️🔥💎.
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