Exuberant Wolfbear MTG Card

Exuberant Wolfbear transforms humans into powerful attackers, enhancing your board without extra cards. Its mana cost and discard requirement may limit versatility in diverse decks. In creature-centered metas, it elevates human tribal strategies effectively.
Card setsReleased in 2 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost4
RarityUncommon
TypeCreature — Wolf Bear
Power 4
Toughness 4

Text of card

Whenever Exuberant Wolfbear attacks, you may change the base power and toughness of target Human you control to Exuberant Wolfbear's power and toughness until end of turn.

Sometimes the *eludha* is a sacred harmony of souls. Sometimes the bonder grabs some fur and holds on tight.

Cards like Exuberant Wolfbear

Exuberant Wolfbear holds an interesting niche within Magic: The Gathering’s creature line-up, drawing similarities to cards that also offer unique interactions with the land you control. One such card is the Nightpack Ambusher, which offers an ability that creates Wolf tokens, but lacks the direct land-creature synergy. Instead, it rewards players for not casting spells during their turn, putting emphasis on reactive gameplay.

Moving to cards with a stronger land-interaction theme, we have the likes of Stone-Seeder Hierophant. While not a combat creature like Exuberant Wolfbear, it resonates with land-based playstyles by untapping lands whenever another land enters the battlefield. This can serve to accelerate your mana availability but doesn’t add to your board presence in the same way.

Lastly, the illustrative reference of Radha, Heart of Keld epitomizes the land-creature dynamic, granting power benefits based on the number of lands you control. Although it doesn’t convert lands into offensive creatures, it naturally becomes a formidable force as you play more lands.

In essence, while there are a variety of creatures that can synergize with the lands a player controls, Exuberant Wolfbear brings a unique flavor to the game by actively turning lands into potent attackers, making it a distinctive choice for players leveraging land-centric decks.

Nightpack Ambusher - MTG Card versions
Stone-Seeder Hierophant - MTG Card versions
Radha, Heart of Keld - MTG Card versions
Nightpack Ambusher - MTG Card versions
Stone-Seeder Hierophant - MTG Card versions
Radha, Heart of Keld - MTG Card versions

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Exuberant Wolfbear comes with the ability to leap beyond ordinary play by potentially turning one of your human creatures into a significant threat every combat, thus multiplying your board presence without the need for additional cards.

Resource Acceleration: The transformative effect of this card on your human creatures can effectively accelerate your resource utilization, as it not only empowers your smaller creatures but also maximizes the potential damage each turn without extra mana investment.

Instant Speed: While Exuberant Wolfbear itself may not operate at instant speed, its static ability can create combat tricks and sudden power boosts during the attack phase, catching opponents off-guard and optimizing the timing of your creature plays to the fullest extent.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: With many creatures in MTG, having an additional cost can turn the tides unfavorably. Exuberant Wolfbear requires a player to discard another card upon certain actions which could compromise the hand advantage, especially critical in the mid to late game.

Specific Mana Cost: The mana cost to play Exuberant Wolfbear includes both green and white mana. This specialized requirement can hamper play in more color-diverse or non-aligned decks, potentially making it a less versatile choice compared to colorless or single-colored options.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Playing Exuberant Wolfbear involves a somewhat hefty investment of mana. For the same cost, players could summon creatures with more immediate board impact or those that provide additional resources or abilities, leading some to evaluate its cost-effectiveness within the current meta.

Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Exuberant Wolfbear offers a unique adaptability to various deck builds, particularly those focusing on creature-based strategies. Its ability to transform any human you control into a power player during attacks can seamlessly integrate into numerous deck archetypes.

Combo Potential: This card connects well with strategies that capitalize on counters and human synergies. It allows players to maximize the potential of their human creatures and can easily become a cornerstone in human tribal decks.

Meta-Relevance: In a game state that heavily features creature-combat, Exuberant Wolfbear stands out as a valuable addition. Its power to turn even the smallest of creatures into significant threats during combat phases makes it a relevant choice in many game setups.

How to beat

Exuberant Wolfbear commands attention as a unique creature in Magic: The Gathering, melding the world of humans and beasts with its capacity to empower other human creatures during attacks. Its strengths lie in the synergy it creates within a human-centric deck, transforming into an attacking powerhouse. To outplay this card, focusing on removal spells is key. Spot removals like Doom Blade or Path to Exile, which target creatures directly, can efficiently neutralize the threat before it escalates, stripping away the formidable boost it provides to other human creatures.

Control strategies can also stifle the advantages that Exuberant Wolfbear offers. Counterspells, denying the Wolfbear from entering play, or board wipes like Wrath of God, which clear the playing field of all creatures, prove devastating to an opponent relying on Exuberant Wolfbear’s attack boost. Hand disruption tactics that force your opponent to discard the Wolfbear before it’s cast can also be instrumental. Remember, promptly addressing this card can be the difference between victory and defeat when facing a deck that leverages Exuberant Wolfbear’s unique abilities.

While Exuberant Wolfbear is a force to be reckoned with, a well-tuned strategy that anticipates creature-based synergies will maintain the upper hand, ensuring your path to victory remains unobstructed.

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Exuberant Wolfbear MTG card by a specific set like Ikoria: Lair of Behemoths and The List, 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 Exuberant Wolfbear and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Exuberant Wolfbear Magic the Gathering card was released in 2 different sets between 2020-04-24 and 2020-04-24. Illustrated by Jesper Ejsing.

#ReleasedNameCodeSymbolNumberFrameLayoutBorderArtist
12020-04-24Ikoria: Lair of BehemothsIKO 1512015NormalBlackJesper Ejsing
22020-09-26The ListPLST IKO-1512015NormalBlackJesper Ejsing

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Exuberant Wolfbear has restrictions

FormatLegality
HistoricbrawlLegal
HistoricLegal
LegacyLegal
PaupercommanderRestricted
OathbreakerLegal
GladiatorLegal
PioneerLegal
CommanderLegal
ModernLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
ExplorerLegal
TimelessLegal

Rules and information

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

Date Text
2020-04-17 Any effects that modify the Human’s power and/or toughness without setting them to a specific number or value will apply after its base power and toughness are set, regardless of the order in which those effects were created. The same is true of counters that modify its power and toughness.
2020-04-17 Exuberant Wolfbear’s power and toughness are unaffected when the target Human takes on those values.
2020-04-17 If Exuberant Wolfbear leaves the battlefield while its triggered ability is on the stack, use its power and toughness as it last existed on the battlefield to determine the Human’s new base power and toughness.
2020-04-17 The Human’s new base power and toughness are set to Exuberant Wolfbear’s actual power and toughness, not just its base power and toughness. If Exuberant Wolfbear’s power or toughness changes later in the turn, the Human isn’t affected.
2020-04-17 You choose whether the Human’s base power and toughness change as the ability resolves, not as the ability is put onto the stack.