Ballista Squad

Ballista Squad was originally released in the Ninth Edition core set of Magic: The Gathering in 2005. As a core set card, it was designed to provide functional, accessible gameplay, fitting into the white color identity by allowing players to pay mana to deal damage to attacking or blocking creatures. This mechanical identity draws upon earlier white cards that utilized temporary tap effects to manage combat states.

The artwork for this piece was created by artist Greg Staples, who contributed several illustrations to the set during this period. Staples employed a gritty, realistic aesthetic to convey the mechanical nature of the squad, moving away from the more stylized illustrations seen in earlier iterations of the game. Upon release, the card was received as a solid, utility-focused common, frequently appearing in limited formats where its repeatable damage ability served as a useful answer to smaller threats.