Alright, folks. Let's go over this carefully. Sneaking any creature in for G on turn 5, or sooner with some manaramp, is good. The drawback is that her 1 toughness puts Elvish Piper at risk from ANY burn spell. Any serious opponent will have something ready for a 1/1 that has to die as much as a Piper does. Conversely, any deck that makes such an investment should be prepared to protect it, either by granting shroud or countering. The cheap activation cost means that you should have at least 3 mana open in case an opponent tries to respond to her ability, and there are no shortage of 1 and 2cc counters which any deck relying on this should be running. If you REALLY wanted to get clever about it, you could Gitaxian Probe at the end of your upkeep before playing the Piper to check for removal or counter before making your move. Basically, for every way you have to kill something, there's also a way to protect it, or even to preempt the threat altogether. "loldies2removal" isn't as convincing an argument as some people seem to think. Unless you're playing a draft format, you have to assume that your opponent has thought things through. If you build your deck with any care at all, Elvish Piper can be a great asset.

  -- By John Baber from california on June 28, 2011

This is a fun card in causual play. Personally I like to use it with survival of the fittest and squee. But its big problem is that its a target for every removal spell in the game. If someone sees a piper hit the field it dies or dies shortly there after and its usually at least turn 4 before you can activate its ability even with some kind of mana ramp. A fast deck will have you almost dead by this time and control decks wil have there contol or at least a counter by the time you play him... Lots of fun thats why I give it 4 stars

  -- By Jason Osher from Peebles Ohio on March 14, 2011

D*mn near ANYTHING can get doom bladed (save, obviously, for black creatures) path to exiled, etc. etc. etc. That's the point of creature removal. To remove creatures. So, while you're at it, go ahead through the rest of the good creatures that can get removed, and go ahead and rate them a one star, while bitching about the ones that almost CAN'T get removed for having too high of a mana cost. Go ahead. Also - whispersilk cloak. Sure, it can be destroyed, but unless your opponent(s) is/are on top of their game, you can at least get one badbuns creature out there.

  -- By Zladko Vladcik from Chernobyl on February 22, 2011

Elvish Piper dies very easily to cards like Lightning Bolt, and any other burn spell. If I saw you play an Elvish Piper, I guarantee you that I will burn it right away and not let you get a big creature with it.

  -- By Heli Nguyen from CT, USA on December 27, 2010

There are tons of instant removal cards that can handle this thing. Any blue counter, Doom Blade, Lightning Bolt (x2, because I would have a Giant Growth for safety), etc. Just don't let yourself be caught off guard this card. If so, that's your own fault.

  -- By Anonymous from Newton on October 15, 2010

one of my favorite cards by far! the only 2 drawbacks are that it's a 1/1 for 4, and being that it's a 1/1 it can get burned easily (and i cant find them anywhere but here and don't want to pay $3 or more for it). seriously helps make my mono green eldrazi deck pretty amazing. the only drawback there is if you use it's ability on Ulamog, Emrakul, or Kozilek (or others) you cannot get their casting ability, but who cares. now you have EMRAKUL, THE AEONS TORN on the field for one green mana and you're livin' la vida crazy. and to all you who complain about how cheap or OP it is, i'm sure you have a card or cards that are just as cheap in your own decks. buy one or leave it alone. i know i sound like a jerk but yeah, that's how it is. get canopy cover or whispersilk cloak so it's protected too :D ~Andy

  -- By andy bungert from Lakeville, MN on July 07, 2010

This is an amazing card if you have one of those Forest decks with big beasts that always take forever to get out (Enourmous Baloth, Molimo, etc.). A 1/1 is not good, especially for 4 mana, but with Piper's extraordinary bonus this is a must have for big green decks.

  -- By Henry M. from New York City, NY USA on June 20, 2010

to bad it gets doom bladed bolted canceled counter bored path to exiled flame slashed burst lightninged or any real removal for that mater yes you can cheat out massive monsters but 4 mana for a 1/1 even with its effect is asking to get slaughtered and besides why not just mana ramp elves cmon sure this can put a 15 cost monster for one forest but seriously do you think your opponent wont kill this card when it hits the field. simply put for its mana cost its just another thing to get removed by your opponent dont waste deck space in an elf deck for this card dont waste deck space with it period

  -- By Anonymous from norway on June 13, 2010

Why yes, i would like a turn five progenutus...

  -- By Anonymous from narnia on February 22, 2010

I don't get the hate. This card is excellent. In addition to simply making your creatures cheap as heck you can play them at INSTANT SPEED. That alone makes it one of the greatest abilities in the history of green creatures. Combo this with Summoner's Pact to play any creature at any time, it's pretty damn great. What's that you say? An infinity damage burn spell coming my way? Well excuse me, let me just fetch my Platinum Angel and ruin your master combo.

  -- By Peitsa Rautio from Theorycraft Central on December 01, 2009

Pretty good card. Great for bringing out big creatures. Still in an elf deck I prefer to run Skyshroud Poacher.

  -- By Jonathon Miller from Pennsylvania on November 01, 2009

Great card for any deck that sports green, but I'd rather run Skyshroud Poachers in an elf deck.

  -- By Jonathon Miller from Pennsylvania on October 28, 2009

I used this Card once to get out Progentius. =D 5 stars.. I won also..

  -- By Anonymous from Cleveland, OH USA on September 27, 2009

Wonderful

  -- By Qwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnmqwert from U.S.A on August 09, 2009

can you say Progenitus.

  -- By Anonymous from KS, USA on July 21, 2009

I believe anyone rating this card anything less than 5 has made a foolish error. This card is a game altering card that MUST be countered or otherwise dealt with the turn it enters play. For those that state that it is too easy to get rid of has obviously never played against someone with any real skill. It is absurdly easy to protect your creature when it makes play. There are dozens of ways to do it and I'll give you one right now. Eladamri, Lord of Leaves. To answer anyone that starts talking about actually drawing these to cards; think about any of the legal Tutors and green acceleration and you are beginning to think about a powerful deck for pretty cheap.

  -- By Xarr from CO on June 14, 2009

I'm going to give this a three out of five. why you ask? why would I give such a low score to such an awesome badass and artsy(I do love the art and flavour text) card? simple. 1) it is VERY vulnerable. unless you find a way to give it shroud or protect it with countermagic, it kinda sucks in the format because of all the good removal running around. and I won,t even speak of the awesome burn spell WOTC has printed in the recent sets. no matter how good its effects are, it,s still a 1/1. 2) Every Timmy out there will put this in his or her green deck. that's the point isn,t it? turn 4 krosan cloudscraper is nothing to scoff at. however, what most people will do is that they will stuff their deck full of godawesome, but costy, creatures. this is a mistake. why would you run 4 krosan cloudscrapers? you,re never going to hardcast it. elvish piper needs other support, like other elves, or other easily hardcast and hard to deal with creatures. Troll ascetic comes to mind. this gets a three and not a two or a one because it's very versatile, can possibly win you the game and is just downright fun to play. that, and because you put the creature into play directly, it doesn't go on the stack. meaning you don't have to worry about counterspells ruining your day. pack some mana accel in case your piper doesn,t come out and some tutoring to fetch the piper(elvish harbinger comes to mind) giant growth can also be used as means of offense and defense to protwect the piper frm burn. happy deckbuilding! -Hyuga

  -- By hyuga from Montreal, QC CAN on March 20, 2009

crrrazy good...i dont know if its restricted yet; if so, that's okay. that's what elvish harbingers are for! turn one birds of paradise, turn two harbinger, turn 3 this, turn 4 diabolic tutor for a phyrexian colossus and put it into play. from there you can play an angel off despair or whatnot, or just leave mana open for counterspells (like cancel: bops and the harbinger can give you the 2 blue, or 2 black for the tutor), OR keep on tutoring for whatever fatty you like (i'm thinking akroma, angel of wrath) or drop in a second winds (idk what it's called...that blue enchantment from future sight that untaps the creatures it's enchanting for the cost of tapping the enchantment) for TWO huuge fatties per turn...wow. i'm gonna start working on a deck based upon the broken-ness of this card. cripes indeed.

  -- By greg from here on January 17, 2009

unfortuenately this card is only a 1/1 so if by chance lightning occurs(lightning bolt) the lightning can't help but hit it this card has a giant target on its forhead and needs the protection of like a whispering cload or a slagwurn armor this card is crappy by itself and i love when i zap them to pieces needless to say they make a pleasing popping sound

  -- By purple piper popper from pitiful prarie place on January 01, 2009

Has no one tought of this+ beast of burden? And by the way, all you people who didnt give this 5 stars, the reason its so good is becuase you DONT need to put it in an elf deck. FIVE POWER! FIVE POWER! FIVE POWER! FIVE POWER!

  -- By Joseph the magical man from London, England on October 12, 2008

i have 2 disagree with u, Billy Wilson, cause its 4mana castin, easly burned or killed by spells or effects, u have 2 wait another turn, so it makes it ur 5th turn if u get this card that quick, and begin to feel ur opponents deck delivering a huge beating, when instead u could have priest of titania or llanowar elves, because i thought green was supposed to be about bringin vast amounts of medium creatures into play. its 4 mana for a 1/1, how rediculus. i dont know if any of u kind gentlemen realize but green elf decks dont have massive creatures, only 6 at maximum, creatures that are also elves, and try to have those card with forest cycle. n wen u verse a mage deck, they wont counter this card because time u bring out this massive creature with trample, they will steal it and use it against u, because u shouldnt have alot of powerful creatures (6 max) because of the casting cost, and if u do manage somthing 2 stop ur powerful stolen creature, they have a counterspell or somthin ready 4 it. Red burn decks will just ping this creature. so y not replace this crap with somthin useful, eg. rancor, that will be a nuesence to a mage deck and complete devestation 2 a red burn or a black destroy.

  -- By Steve from Melbz on October 06, 2008

You could play the creature card whenever you can play an ability. This makes Elvish Piper so sneaky. If i attack you with 3/3 i could summon a 13/13 into play and kill the monster. With Black lotus, you can have a big creature at turn 2

  -- By gabe chan from USA, Earth on September 25, 2008

hahha hh put a Darksteel Colossus into play that will be funny

  -- By Vince4rock from USA on August 23, 2008

This card is DEFINITELY overrated. Why? Because A. Elf decks have MASSIVE mana accelleration (Let me think... Birds of Paradise, Llanowar Elves, Gaea's Cradle, Rofellos, Llanowar Emissary, and Priest of Titania, just to name a few), and nearly all creatures in elf decks are really cheap. Sure, piper can play more powerful green cards (or any cards, if your running multiple colours), but there is no point at all. Why? Well, with all of the extra mana floating around, you could basically dry cast anything, and there'd be no point in piping it. Also, instead of relying on powerful creatures, rely on small creatures and pumping of said creatures. Such as with Elvish Champion, Coat of Arms, etc, which all work in an elf deck. Also, there are some great enchantments and equipment for elf decks (Blanchwood Armour, Umizawas Jitte), powering them further. Combine these factors with the fact that you can pump them even more white 1-turn instants (Giant Growth, Might of Oaks, Berserk (If you've got the cash)), to make them stronger. I'd think doing all of this makes more sense then getting 1 or 2 massive creatures into play, don't you? Or, you can just forget this and make an generic "elfball" finisher, where you use your 20+ mana (think about it. Gaea's Cradle gives you 1 green mana for every creature under your control, Rofellos gives you 1 green mana for every forest you control, and Priest of Titania gives you 1 green mana for every elf in your control. Combine this with the several forests, and the Llanowar Elves and Birds you have floating around. Suddenly the 20-30+ mana seems plausible now, doesn't it?) on a fireball. Instant death. What do you think of your little elvish piper now? Well, maybe I'm being hard on the Piper. It is a pretty good card (For example, as early as your 3rd or 4th turn, you can get a Serra Avatar into play (with the right accelleration, and an Elvish Piper), when your still at high life), but is much overpowered by generic tribal elves.

  -- By Vashon Omeasoo from Burnaby on May 13, 2008

It looks flashy, but it will be killed at once by any decent deck. The fact that it can put out anything means it will be targeted with almost anything the opponent has, and a 1/1 is not really that hard to kill. Practically any black or red card can kill it, and it can be stolen just as easily.

  -- By Geckle from RI on March 20, 2008

use with freed from the real, and badda-boom! several huge creatures at once with enough forests and islands

  -- By AMK from Adavan, IL on October 15, 2007

What I like about it, is the fact you can lay the creature at ANY moment, for ONE mana, and the creature CAN NOT BE COUNTERED!

  -- By LEF from Saukville, WI on January 31, 2007

one of the best cards perriod.

  -- By Anonymous from somewhere, CA USA on April 22, 2006

What can be said more of this card? Everything ! With 4 of these in your deck, summoning anything just got easier. To name a few noteworthy cards (Greenish and Artifacts mind you) : Darksteel Colossus, Thorn Elemental, Plated Slagwurm, Autochthon Wurm, Myojin of Life’s Web, Krosan Colossus, Bringer of the Green Dawn, Body of Jukai, Chorus of the Conclave, Verdant Force, Symbiotic Wurm, and Sekki, Seasons’ Guide. All of the above are cards that take 8 mana or more (with a few exceptions) that can be summoned immediatly into play, meaning they can't be countered, with a tap and one green mana. You can't beat it !

  -- By Dennis Swanson from Las Vegas, Nevada on December 01, 2005

Talk about a fast army? Your beast and elf deck would love this card.

  -- By Anonymous from Dover, Ohio on September 19, 2005

this works really good with krosan cloud scrapper u should have 4 in any beast deck.

  -- By nate sutton from ma on September 19, 2005

4 of these..aw man....skills!

  -- By piperocks from yeayea that way on September 15, 2005

the new tooth and nail. best card for green ive seen in a while

  -- By mazk from the seventh hell on August 07, 2005

Too much fun! Try this one out with the new Kamigawa block.... Im thinking Moijins! 3rd round iname as one, and then grab the black moijin for free!-----discard your hands please...--------and for a good boost to the deck, try wierd harvest, works great with black moijin!

  -- By Anonymous from Chicago on June 13, 2005

Not to bad but kinda weak. if you can pump him up with enchantments to like a 4/4 and make him black then that deck would be sweet but it would be very easy to take out as a 1/1 green creature.

  -- By Adam from Harper Woods, Michigan on November 08, 2004

this card is the best card out there to have! i mean, no matter what the mana cost, you have this and another G mana, you are as good as gold! With AANNYY Creature!

  -- By Anonymous from Jericho, VT USA on October 25, 2004

REALLY GOOD FOR BIG CREATURE DECK!

  -- By Blake Xavier from California on June 11, 2004

SwEEt card in a dragon deck just wouldn't advise playing against black or burn

  -- By Anonymous from on May 09, 2004

Three and half, so that a bunch of people don't go rambling on about what an idiot I am for giving this card a three. This card is excellent, but it is slightly unfair. Put it in a R/G deck with Fires of Yavimaya and bring out your 8/8 Plated Slagwurm (my favorite card I might add) for one G, then sac Fires and it is a 10/10 haste, can't be target of spells or abilities, and the game is basically over for the other player. Then, I you want to adda little more humiliation, use a Seeker of Skybreak to untap Piper and bring in Silvos and you have an 8/5 trample, regen, haste and a 10/10 that can't be burned, ad then you win the game. All because of a 1/1 Elf. Ur opponent will hate u forever and they will never play w/you again. Sorry if u spend both toady and tomorrow reading this. Peace out.

  -- By Anonymous from Chigago, IL USA on December 21, 2003

i think this card is a tremendous card only to be used in a huge creature deck only because the point of this card is to bring out your huge creatures. I fyou are playing a green deck with big creatures i suggest playing this card.

  -- By Anonymous from california on November 14, 2003

two people gave this great card one star......

  -- By Anonymous from Ca-Caw! on June 14, 2003

(G,Tap: Put a creature from your hand out into play.) Great in a big creature mono green deck. Get this out and you can play Krosan Cloudscraper(13/13 for 7GGG) out on your 2nd or 3rd turn with mana giving creatures too. Love this card man.

  -- By rps from Riverside,CA USA on April 05, 2003

I depise this card solely because my friend uses it EVERY GAME to get out huge creatures such as silvos or kahmal etc. It is cheap!

  -- By Anonymous from NJ on November 29, 2002

This is a really good card. Is it banned yet?

  -- By Suiko from Pittsburgh PA on November 07, 2002

This card rocks!Just think about it, any creature in your hand...FREE!

  -- By Solon from Los Angeles,California on November 06, 2002

Ok, everyone has already lavished praise on it. but i love this card. (I am being seen by a psychiatrist, yes.) One really tasty trick with the piper is using it for 'splash' creatures. Want a Hypnox in your green deck? want a BFM (unglued, i know, but the fun, the fun...)? then just piper them. cards like eladamri's call (

  -- By Purple Switch from UK on June 07, 2002

The piper is one of the best, if not THE best elf in magic. Being able to put out any creature for one mana is excellent. Being able to put out a big creature early in the game makes winning a lot easier. Also the guy who gave the piper a one rating is a piece of ----.

  -- By treefolk 1 from South Dakota on March 03, 2002

this card is the worst card, i mean the piper is not even scottish for cripe sake

  -- By Anonymous from typing town on January 19, 2002

Never underestimate the power of the elves! I f you don't like mixing colors that aren't friendly to each other, you still might want to try this (for friendly play): A green/black deck with sixty cards, twenty of them lands, combine elves for green and huge creatures for black. Add this card and some Demonic Tutors, so you have a bigger chance of getting it. Maybe add some Regrowths so you can pick up the Tutors again. A very great deck! Won plenty. PS: You can add cards like Colossus of Sardia without paying the untap cost with throwing in a few Instill Energy.

  -- By Max Petersen from Yelm, WA USA on October 07, 2001

I think that this is one of the best green cards because u can play any card with it no matter what the casting cost of the card is and as long as u have 1 mana! If u were to put this card and a Planer Portal in a deck u could get and play all your best cards for 7 mana! What could be sweeter?

  -- By Anonymous from Gainesville, FL USA on September 07, 2001

This can be a really useful card in a deck. You can put out any creature for the low cost of one green mana. Who wants a huge trampling creature for just 1 mana?

  -- By Billy Wilson from Glendora, CA USA on June 28, 2001