The allure of Pirates is easy to understand - a life of freedom, roaming the high seas, waylaying passing merchant ships and avoiding the law. It’s a life full of adventure and daring escapades, so it makes sense that long-running CCG Magic: The Gathering would eventually include some rapacious Pirates in its roster.
It’s not as simple as just throwing together all the cards that have “Pirate” on them, however. You’ll need to find cards that work well together and can be used to pull off some dastardly combos. Here are 10 cards for your Pirate deck - along with some pointers on how to use them.
10 Protean Raider
For the first creature on our list, how about any creature you like? When Protean Raider enters the battlefield, if you attacked with a creature that turn, it enters as a copy of any other creature on the battlefield.
This ability definitely comes in useful since Protean Raider on its own is just a bit of a disappointing creature, with two power and two toughness. However, given that Pirates generally like to attack, it shouldn’t be that difficult to activate Protean Raider’s ability, which lets you duplicate any creature you want.
9 Hostage Taker
What would a list about Pirates look like without some good old-fashioned thievery? Hostage Taker is a blue and black four mana Pirate with two power and three toughness that lets you exile an artifact or creature when it enters the battlefield.
The real boon Hostage Taker provides, however, is Magic’s version of Stockholm syndrome as you can cast the exiled card as long as it remains exiled, and you can spend mana as if it were any color to cast it. This lets you take your opponents’ cards for your own, further deepening the theme of theft and, well, piracy.
8 Fathom Fleet Captain
Fathom Fleet Captain is a black Pirate costing two mana with two power and one toughness. This may make it seem weak, but it also has Menace, which prevents it from being blocked by less than two creatures, helping it attack safely.
Whenever Fathom Fleet Captain attacks, if you control another Pirate, you may pay two mana to create a two power, two toughness Pirate token that also has menace. This can help you flood your board with Pirates for all the other cards that care about you having Pirates.
7 Dire Fleet Poisoner
Dire Fleet Poisoner is a fan of attacking with Pirates. Specifically, this black two mana creature has Flash, meaning that it can be cast at any time, and gives another attacking Pirate Deathtouch when it enters the battlefield, an ability that lets a creature destroy any other creature that they deal damage to.
This ability lets you surprise an opponent, perhaps even destroying a creature that they blocked your Pirate with, not anticipating the surprise Deathtouch. The Poisoner also has Deathtouch, making it useful for defending against your opponents’ threats during their attack phases.
6 Dire Fleet Neckbreaker
In case you hadn’t noticed yet, Pirates like to attack. That’s why our next pick is Dire Fleet Neckbreaker, a creature focused solely on the attack phase of your turn. On his own, he’s just a red and black creature costing four mana with three power and two toughness - not all that impressive.
However, whenever your Pirates attack, the Neckbreaker gives all of them (himself included) two additional power, turning a board of Pirates into a threat in an instant. This can help you destroy other creatures through combat, deal fatal damage to your opponents, and it all goes a long way to helping you win the game.
5 Forerunner Of The Coalition
The Forerunner of the Coalition is a tutor-type card, which means it lets you search your deck for other cards you want to use. In this instance, the Forerunner lets you take a Pirate card and put it on top of your deck.
The Forerunner also deals one damage to each opponent whenever a Pirate enters the battlefield under your control, which is nice, but not exactly the biggest draw of the card. The ability to consistently draw the cards you want is vital in Magic, and this Pirate definitely helps out in that regard.
4 Dire Fleet Captain
The Dire Fleet Captain is a red and black Pirate costing two mana with two power and two toughness. Where it really shines, though, is when attacking, where its power and toughness get boosted by the number of other attacking Pirates.
This combo nicely with other cards that generate Pirate tokens or just cheap Pirates that you can play early on. If you’ve got four or five other Pirates, the Dire Fleet Captain becomes a powerhouse, easily capable of killing your opponent’s creatures or just dealing a massive blow to their life total.
3 Captain Lannery Storm
Captain Lannery Storm is a legendary Pirate that works to help you ramp up to casting more of your cards - and gets stronger along the way. On her own, she’s a red creature costing three mana with just two power and two toughness who also has Haste, letting her attack as soon as she comes down.
Whenever she attacks, you get a Treasure artifact, which can be sacrificed to add a mana of any color. Additionally, Lannery Storm’s power is boosted by one whenever you sacrifice a Treasure. She can be combined with other Treasure generating cards to grow her power, or she can just be used to ramp up your mana and cast your powerful cards.
2 Dire Fleet Daredevil
Another card that captures the spirit of theft and piracy is the Dire Fleet Daredevil, a simple two mana Pirate with two power and one toughness. She also has First Strike, letting her deal her damage before other creatures, but that’s not really the point of the card.
When played, the Daredevil exiles an instant or sorcery from an opponent’s graveyard and then lets you play it that turn, spending mana as if it were any color to do so. Given that there are some truly powerful instants and sorceries in Magic, this card is absolutely a good Pirate to include in your deck.
1 Admiral Beckett Brass
Finally, our pick for the top Pirate is the illustrious Admiral Beckett Brass. This red, black, and blue creature costs four mana, has three power and three toughness, and boosts the power and toughness of all your other Pirates by one.
On top of that, Beckett Brass has the ability to steal your opponent’s things. During the end of your turn, if an opponent was dealt damage by three or more Pirates, you can gain control of one of their nonland permanents. Given the variety of ways that Magic gives you to send attackers in while helping them avoid blockers, this makes Admiral Beckett Brass a truly powerful Pirate to include in your deck.
NEXT: Magic The Gathering: The 10 Worst Sorcery Cards, Ranked
