Sunbond MTG Card


Sunbond - Born of the Gods
Mana cost
Converted mana cost4
RarityUncommon
TypeEnchantment — Aura
Abilities Enchant
Released2014-02-07
Set symbol
Set nameBorn of the Gods
Set codeBNG
Number28
Frame2003
Layoutnormal
Borderblack
Illustred byNoah Bradley

Key Takeaways

  1. Sunbond excels in strategies focused on life gain, enhancing creatures’ strength and toughness exponentially.
  2. While offering potential benefits, Sunbond’s specific mana cost and setup requirements may limit its deck-building flexibility.
  3. Countering Sunbond relies on timely removal strategies to prevent opponents from exploiting its life-gain synergies.

Text of card

Enchant creature Enchanted creature has "Whenever you gain life, put that many +1/+1 counters on this creature."

"I was not chosen for my faith in the gods. Sometimes the gods must put their faith in us." —Elspeth


Card Pros

Card Advantage: Sunbond offers the potential for substantial life gain, which can translate into drawing more cards with the right synergies in play. By increasing your creature’s power exponentially, it can dominate the battlefield and press the advantage towards victory.

Resource Acceleration: Though not directly providing mana, Sunbond can serve as a form of resource acceleration. As your creature grows, it can deter opponents from attacking, essentially ‘accelerating’ your board presence and domination without expending additional resources.

Instant Speed: While Sunbond itself is an enchantment that is cast at sorcery speed, it pairs exceptionally well with creatures that have lifelink or spells that can be cast at instant speed to gain life. This means that you can surprise your opponent during combat, turning the tide in your favor unexpectedly as your creatures swell in size.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Sunbond does not directly require card discard, but its dependency on other cards for optimal use can indirectly lead to a diminished hand size. When trying to get the most out of Sunbond’s potential, you may find yourself playing additional cards to bolster its effect, which can rapidly deplete your hand.

Specific Mana Cost: With its white mana requirement, Sunbond naturally fits into lifegain or +1/+1 counter centric decks. However, this specific mana cost may not align well with multi-colored decks or strategies that don’t heavily focus on life total as a resource, which limits its versatility in deck construction.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: While Sunbond offers a potentially unlimited boost to a creature’s power and toughness, the initial investment of four mana—three generic and one white—can be costly. In essence, you’re paying four mana for an enchantment that has no immediate impact on the board and requires further setup to reap benefits, making it a risky play compared to other cards in the same mana range that can provide instant value or impact.


Reasons to Include Sunbond in Your Collection

Versatility: Sunbond offers dynamic utility across various deck builds, excelling in life-gain strategies. It becomes exceptionally powerful in environments where you can consistently gain life, turning even the most unassuming creatures into significant threats.

Combo Potential: This enchantment pairs perfectly with creatures that have lifelink or abilities that trigger upon gaining life. When combined with cards like Ajani’s Pridemate, the potential for exponential growth in both life and creature size is extraordinary, setting the stage for game-ending swings.

Meta-Relevance: In a meta where aggro decks are prevalent, a well-timed Sunbond can create an insurmountable advantage. As you stabilize your life total and grow a creature beyond the reach of typical removal, Sunbond equips you to turn the tide against aggressive strategies, securing your position in the game.


How to beat

Sunbond is an enchantment card that can turn creatures into major threats by granting them the capacity to amass an overwhelming number of +1/+1 counters. This ability synergizes exceptionally well with lifelink, as any amount of life gained grants an equal number of +1/+1 counters to the enchanted creature. However, like all cards in Magic: The Gathering, Sunbond has its weaknesses and can be mitigated.

To effectively neutralize Sunbond, consider employing removal spells that can target either the creature or the enchantment itself. Direct destruction spells, such as Doom Blade or Disenchant, can immediately dismantle the combo by removing the creature or the Sunbond respectively. Moreover, cards with the ability to exile, like Swords to Plowshares or Oblivion Ring, can prove invaluable. Exiling the enchanted creature ensures that even if the Sunbond were to return to the battlefield, it would no longer have a host.

Overall, when dealing with Sunbond, timing is essential. It is critical to disrupt the lifelink and counter accumulation combo before it can establish dominance on the battlefield. Swift removal and strategic use of counterspells are the key to outmaneuvering an opponent leveraging the power of Sunbond.


BurnMana Recommendations

If you’re keen on maximizing your gaming experience and taking advantage of every opportunity MTG offers, understanding the intricacies of cards like Sunbond is essential. A nuanced card, it shines in life-gain based decks, making it an asset for players who build around such synergies. When you play Sunbond properly, it transforms your creatures into formidable forces on the battlefield. It might require careful strategizing and a solid game plan, but the payoff can be huge. For players looking to exploit this enchantment’s full potential and explore various deck-building avenues, we’re here to guide you deeper into the tactics and combos that make Sunbond a worthy addition to your MTG arsenal. Dive into our resources for deeper insights and strategies to elevate your deck’s performance.


Cards like Sunbond

In the realm of Magic: The Gathering, Sunbond stands out for its unique ability to enhance creature power through life gain. A card that draws parallel to Sunbond is Cradle of Vitality which also capitalizes on life gain to bolster creature strength. However, while Sunbond places +1/+1 counters for each life gained on a single creature, Cradle of Vitality provides a more controlled usage, giving you the liberty to choose the amount of mana and life to invest for multiplying the +1/+1 counters.

Armament of Nyx is another card with similarities, offering a dual-purpose enchantment that can either power up your creature or neutralize an opponent’s threat. Unlike Sunbond, it does not directly benefit from life gain but provides versatility in combat strategies. Then comes Ajani’s Pridemate, a creature that also grows with each instance of life gain, albeit in a different manner. Ajani’s Pridemate automatically gains counters every time you gain life, which allows for consistent growth without requiring an additional card like Sunbond to do so.

Evaluating the pros and cons, Sunbond holds its ground in MTG decks focused on life gain strategies, especially when compared to these similar cards that offer varied synergies and deck-building dynamics.

Cradle of Vitality - MTG Card versions
Armament of Nyx - MTG Card versions
Ajani's Pridemate - MTG Card versions
Cradle of Vitality - Shards of Alara (ALA)
Armament of Nyx - Journey into Nyx (JOU)
Ajani's Pridemate - Magic 2011 (M11)

Cards similar to Sunbond by color, type and mana cost

Castle - MTG Card versions
Karma - MTG Card versions
Conversion - MTG Card versions
Angelic Voices - MTG Card versions
Seeker - MTG Card versions
Drought - MTG Card versions
Justice - MTG Card versions
Divine Transformation - MTG Card versions
Null Chamber - MTG Card versions
Field of Souls - MTG Card versions
Light of Day - MTG Card versions
Opal Titan - MTG Card versions
Ivory Mask - MTG Card versions
Parallax Wave - MTG Card versions
Worship - MTG Card versions
Diversionary Tactics - MTG Card versions
Moat - MTG Card versions
Teleportation Circle - MTG Card versions
Hallowed Haunting - MTG Card versions
Drawn Together - MTG Card versions
Castle - Seventh Edition (7ED)
Karma - Fifth Edition (5ED)
Conversion - 30th Anniversary Edition (30A)
Angelic Voices - Masters Edition IV (ME4)
Seeker - Fourth Edition (4ED)
Drought - Ice Age (ICE)
Justice - Ice Age (ICE)
Divine Transformation - Renaissance (REN)
Null Chamber - Mirage (MIR)
Field of Souls - Eternal Masters (EMA)
Light of Day - The List (PLST)
Opal Titan - Urza's Saga (USG)
Ivory Mask - Mercadian Masques (MMQ)
Parallax Wave - The List (PLST)
Worship - Magic Online Promos (PRM)
Diversionary Tactics - Apocalypse (APC)
Moat - Magic Online Promos (PRM)
Teleportation Circle - Adventures in the Forgotten Realms Promos (PAFR)
Hallowed Haunting - Innistrad: Crimson Vow (VOW)
Drawn Together - Unhinged (UNH)

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Sunbond MTG card by a specific set like Born of the Gods, 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 Sunbond and other MTG cards:

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Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Sunbond has restrictions

FormatLegality
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
ModernLegal
OathbreakerLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
PioneerLegal

Rules and information

The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering Sunbond card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.

DateText
2014-02-01 In a Two-Headed Giant game, life gained by your teammate won’t cause the ability to trigger, even though it causes your team’s life total to increase.
2014-02-01 In some unusual cases, you can gain life even though your life total actually decreases. For example, if you are being attacked by two 3/3 creatures and you block one with a 2/2 creature with lifelink, your life total will decrease by 1 even though you’ve gained 2 life. You’ll put two +1/+1 counters on the enchanted creature.

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