Shambling Vent MTG Card
2015-10-02 - Number 244
2015-10-02 - Number 244s
2022-06-10 - Number 914
| Card sets | Released in 3 setsSee all |
| Rarity | Rare |
| Type | Land |
Key Takeaways
- Shambling Vent offers board presence while conserving hand resources, balancing card advantage effectively.
- Instant speed transformation provides strategic flexibility in both offense and defense scenarios.
- Multicolored decks gain a robust tool for mana fixing without sacrificing board impact.
Text of card
Shambling Vent enters the battlefield tapped.: Add or to your mana pool.: Shambling Vent becomes a 2/3 white and black Elemental creature with lifelink until end of turn. It's still a land.
Card Pros
Card Advantage: While Shambling Vent doesn’t directly allow you to draw cards, its unique ability to become a creature ensures that you maintain board presence without expending additional cards from your hand. This land-creature duality makes it a valuable asset in maintaining card parity while affecting the board state.
Resource Acceleration: Shambling Vent has the added benefit of tapping for both white and black mana, which can be crucial for mana fixing in multicolored decks. Its ability to contribute to your color requirements without coming into play tapped makes it a seamless addition to your mana base.
Instant Speed: Transforming Shambling Vent into a creature can be done at instant speed, meaning you can activate it at the end of your opponent’s turn to keep mana open for other spells or surprise block an attacking creature. This flexibility in timing makes it a versatile card to navigate around your opponent’s moves.
Card Cons
Discard Requirement: Although Shambling Vent doesn’t specifically require card discard, players often need to evaluate their hand carefully before deciding to activate its ability, as it may lead to a weaker hand if not timed right.
Specific Mana Cost: Shambling Vent requires both white and black mana to activate its ability. This can be limiting for players running multi-colored decks which may not always have the necessary mana available.
Comparatively High Mana Cost: To tap for a creature, Shambling Vent costs three mana plus it needs to be untapped. This is a significant investment, particularly in fast-paced games where mana efficiency is crucial.
Reasons to Include Shambling Vent in Your Collection
Versatility: Shambling Vent offers the unique ability to become a creature with lifelink, making it a flexible choice for decks focused on both mana fixing and life gain. It can sneak in as a land but transform into a creature when most needed.
Combo Potential: The lifelink ability on Shambling Vent enables synergy with cards that benefit from life gain or require activated abilities. This can form the basis of powerful combos in both aggressive and defensive strategies.
Meta-Relevance: In a game where board states can quickly change, Shambling Vent adapts to various situations. Useful in a meta with aggressive red decks, its lifelink helps stabilize your life total while offering an unassuming threat on the board.
How to beat
Shambling Vent is a versatile utility land found within the realm of Magic the Gathering. A land that can turn into a creature, it brings both mana and life-gain abilities to the battlefield, which can pose a challenge. But like every card, it has weaknesses that can be exploited.
To effectively counter Shambling Vent, one must disrupt its activation or neutralize it once animated. Land destruction spells or effects ensure that the Vent never gets a chance to become a creature. With cards such as Ghost Quarter or Field of Ruin, one can remove Shambling Vent from the game before it becomes a threat. Alternatively, one could use instant-speed removal to target the Vent once it becomes a creature, with cards like Path to Exile offering a swift end to this resilient land.
Control decks that can manage resources and dictate the pace of play stand a stronger chance against the Shambling Vent. The key lies in preventing it from becoming an instrumental part of the opponent’s strategy and rendering this utility land a non-factor in the course of the match.
Cards like Shambling Vent
Shambling Vent holds a unique place among land cards in Magic: The Gathering. Its capability to transform into a creature sets it apart, drawing a parallel to cards like Mutavault. Both can become creatures, but Shambling Vent brings the added benefit of lifelink, offering a way to regain health during combat. Conversely, Mutavault offers versatility, being all creature types at once.
Moving to another related card, Lavaclaw Reaches also shares the transformative creature ability. While it doesn’t offer lifelink, it compensates with the potential for increased power and toughness. It’s a trade-off between immediate health gain and the prospect of dealing more damage. Lastly, there’s Celestial Colonnade, boasting a more formidable presence as a flying creature, making it a potent offensive and defensive option, albeit at a higher activation cost.
Evaluating these options highlights Shambling Vent’s dual role in both stabilizing life totals and serving as a tactical combatant. Its balance between cost, utility, and added lifelink advantage positions it distinctively among transformative lands in Magic: The Gathering, honing in on both strategic depth and resilience.
Cards similar to Shambling Vent by color, type and mana cost
Where to buy
If you're looking to purchase Shambling Vent MTG card by a specific set like Battle for Zendikar and Battle for Zendikar Promos, 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 Shambling Vent 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
Printings
The Shambling Vent Magic the Gathering card was released in 3 different sets between 2015-10-02 and 2022-06-10. Illustrated by Jung Park.
| # | Released | Name | Code | Symbol | Number | Frame | Layout | Border | Artist |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2015-10-02 | Battle for Zendikar | BFZ | 244 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Jung Park | |
| 2 | 2015-10-02 | Battle for Zendikar Promos | PBFZ | 244s | 2015 | Normal | Black | Jung Park | |
| 3 | 2022-06-10 | Commander Legends: Battle for Baldur's Gate | CLB | 914 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Jung Park |
Legalities
Magic the Gathering formats where Shambling Vent has restrictions
| Format | Legality |
|---|---|
| Commander | Legal |
| Legacy | Legal |
| Modern | Legal |
| Oathbreaker | Legal |
| Vintage | Legal |
| Duel | Legal |
| Pioneer | Legal |
| Penny | Legal |
Rules and information
The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering Shambling Vent card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.
| Date | Text |
|---|---|
| 2015-08-25 | A land that becomes a creature may be affected by “summoning sickness.” You can't attack with it or use any of its abilities (including its mana abilities) unless it began your most recent turn on the battlefield under your control. Note that summoning sickness cares about when that permanent came under your control, not when it became a creature nor when it entered the battlefield. |
| 2015-08-25 | An ability that turns a land into a creature also sets that creature's power and toughness. If the land was already a creature (for example, if it was the target of a spell with awaken), this will overwrite the previous effect that set its power and toughness. Effects that modify its power or toughness will continue to apply no matter when they started to take effect. The same is true for counters that change its power or toughness (such as +1/+1 counters) and effects that switch its power and toughness. For example, if Shambling Vent has been made a 0/0 creature with three +1/+1 counters on it, activating its last ability will turn it into a 5/6 creature that's still a land. |
| 2015-08-25 | This land is colorless until the last ability gives it colors. |
| 2015-08-25 | When a land becomes a creature, that doesn't count as having a creature enter the battlefield. The permanent was already on the battlefield; it only changed its types. Abilities that trigger whenever a creature enters the battlefield won't trigger. |
| 2015-08-25 | multiple instances of lifelink on the same creature are redundant. Activating the last ability more than once won't cause you to gain additional life if Shambling Vent deals damage. |
