Bull's Strength MTG Card
| Mana cost | |
| Converted mana cost | 2 |
| Rarity | Common |
| Type | Instant |
| Released | 2021-07-23 |
| Set symbol | |
| Set name | Adventures in the Forgotten Realms |
| Set code | AFR |
| Number | 174 |
| Frame | 2015 |
| Layout | Normal |
| Border | Black |
| Illustred by | Gabor Szikszai |
Key Takeaways
- Enhances combat outcomes and creature survival, key for maintaining board control.
- Its low cost optimizes mana use, potentially enabling quicker, more powerful plays.
- Instant speed offers strategic flexibility, pivotal for turning the tide mid-battle.
Text of card
Target creature gets +2/+2 and gains trample until end of turn. Untap it.
As the iron bars of the portcullis parted like reeds, the defenders of the keep suddenly felt much less secure.
Card Pros
Card Advantage: Bull’s Strength is a multi-faceted card that, while not drawing cards directly, can ensure the survival of a key creature during combat, leading to maintained board presence. Additionally, it can turn a seemingly unfavorable block into a surprise advantage, potentially removing an opposing creature and retaining your own.
Resource Acceleration: While Bull’s Strength itself doesn’t generate mana, its low cost and effect can lead to a better utilization of mana resources. By bolstering a creature, it may facilitate a successful attack that leads to effects that do offer resource acceleration through connected card abilities or bonuses for dealing combat damage.
Instant Speed: The versatility of Bull’s Strength being an instant cannot be overstated. This allows for dynamic interaction during the combat phase, or even in response to an opponent’s spells or abilities. The ability to surprise an opponent by boosting a creature’s power and toughness at a crucial moment can be a game-changer, making this card a strategic tool in many situations.
Card Cons
Discard Requirement: Bull’s Strength mandates that you discard another card to unleash its full potential. This trade-off can be taxing during tight gameplay sequences where every card in hand is vital for your strategy.
Specific Mana Cost: While pumping a creature, Bull’s Strength requires specific green mana. This can restrict its playability exclusively to decks that run green or have a reliable mana base for multicolored decks.
Comparatively High Mana Cost: Charging three mana – two generic and one green – might seem steep when you contemplate simpler buff spells available. Other options could provide a more cost-effective way to enhance your creatures without compromising your mana pool as much.
Reasons to Include Bull’s Strength in Your Collection
Versatility: Bull’s Strength is a flexible option for many decks, providing a timely boost to creatures. Whether enabling a creature to survive combat or pushing through extra damage, this card offers a wide array of strategic applications.
Combo Potential: This card shines in synergistic setups, particularly with strategies that reward you for buffing creatures. It can be the difference-maker in creature-centric decks, triggering prowess-like abilities or supporting go-wide aggro strategies.
Meta-Relevance: In an environment crowded with creature-based aggro or midrange decks, Bull’s Strength can serve as a simple yet effective trump card. Its ability to tilt combat in your favor may prove crucial in dominating on the battlefield.
How to beat
Bull’s Strength is a spell that serves a dual role in MTG: it can act as a game-changer during combat and as a protective measure to thwart removal effects. In the landscape of MTG, spells that bolster a creature’s power and toughness, such as Bull’s Strength, add a layer of complexity and surprise, especially when they’re cast mid-combat to swing the tide in a player’s favor.
To effectively counteract Bull’s Strength, strategic planning is paramount. One recommended approach involves keeping mana open for instant-speed removal spells or abilities that can neutralize the buffed creature before damage is dealt. Another effective method is to limit the targets available for such spells through careful control of the battlefield. Utilize cards that prevent your opponent from casting spells during combat or cards that nullify abilities to diminish Bull’s Strength’s impact.
Overall, the key to defeating Bull’s Strength lies in anticipation and disruption. By denying your opponent the opportunity to fully take advantage of the card’s potential, you maintain control over the combat phase and your path to victory.
Cards like Bull's Strength
Bull’s Strength is an interesting combat trick in the realm of Magic: The Gathering, providing a temporary boost to creatures. Its closest relatives include Giant Growth, which is iconic for giving creatures a solid +3/+3 until end of turn. Both cards are designed to surprise opponents during combat, but while Giant Growth offers a larger boost, Bull’s Strength has the added benefit of granting Trample, potentially turning a blocked attack into substantial damage.
Titanic Growth is another card that vies for a spot in a player’s deck alongside Bull’s Strength. It offers an even greater power and toughness increase with +4/+4, albeit without the extra effect of Trample. This can naturally lead to deliberations about whether the additional combat damage or the ability to push through blockers is more critical for a particular strategy.
Ultimately, Bull’s Strength finds its niche for those looking to not only enhance their creatures’ size but also to potentially overcome chump blockers and push for more damage. The flexibility it provides secures its role in decks that want to capitalize on both creature enhancement and damage consistency.
Cards similar to Bull's Strength by color, type and mana cost
Where to buy
If you're looking to purchase Bull's Strength MTG card by a specific set like Adventures in the Forgotten Realms, there are several reliable options to consider. One of the primary sources is your local game store, where you can often find booster packs, individual cards, and preconstructed decks from current and some past sets. They often offer the added benefit of a community where you can trade with other players.
For a broader inventory, particularly of older sets, online marketplaces like TCGPlayer, Card Kingdom and Card Market offer extensive selections and allow you to search for cards from specific sets. Larger e-commerce platforms like eBay and Amazon also have listings from various sellers, which can be a good place to look for sealed product and rare finds.
Additionally, Magic’s official site often has a store locator and retailer lists for finding Wizards of the Coast licensed products. Remember to check for authenticity and the condition of the cards when purchasing, especially from individual sellers on larger marketplaces.
Below is a list of some store websites where you can buy the Bull's Strength and other MTG cards:
- eBay
- TCG Player
- Card Kingdom
- Card Market
- Star City Games
- CoolStuffInc
- MTG Mint Card
- Hareruya
- Troll and Toad
- ABU Games
- Card Hoarder Magic Online
- MTGO Traders Magic Online
See MTG Products
Legalities
Magic the Gathering formats where Bull's Strength has restrictions
| Format | Legality |
|---|---|
| Historicbrawl | Legal |
| Historic | Legal |
| Legacy | Legal |
| Paupercommander | Legal |
| Oathbreaker | Legal |
| Gladiator | Legal |
| Pioneer | Legal |
| Commander | Legal |
| Modern | Legal |
| Pauper | Legal |
| Vintage | Legal |
| Duel | Legal |
| Explorer | Legal |
| Timeless | Legal |
