Flame-Wreathed Phoenix MTG Card

Phoenix’s tribute gives advantage by returning to play or as a large flyer. Paying tribute can hinder opponents’ resources and affect their game pace. Non-tribute creates pseudo-instant threats, surprising unprepared adversaries.

Flame-Wreathed Phoenix - Born of the Gods

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	4
Rarity	Mythic
Type	Creature — Phoenix
Abilities	Flying,Tribute
Released	2014-02-07
Set symbol
Set name	Born of the Gods
Set code	BNG
Power	3
Toughness	3
Number	97
Frame	2003
Layout	Normal
Border	Black
Illustred by	James Ryman

Text of card

Flying Tribute 2 (As this creature enters the battlefield, an opponent of your choice may place two +1/+1 counters on it.) When Flame-Wreathed Phoenix enters the battlefield, if tribute wasn't paid, it gains haste and "When this creature dies, return it to its owner's hand."

Cards like Flame-Wreathed Phoenix

Flame-Wreathed Phoenix stands out amongst the myriad of creatures in the MTG universe. It bears a resemblance to cards like Chandra’s Phoenix, which also offers flying and haste, ensuring immediate impact on the battlefield. However, Flame-Wreathed Phoenix brings a unique twist with its tribute mechanic. When entering the battlefield, if the tribute isn’t paid by an opponent, the phoenix gains additional abilities, contrasting Chandra’s Phoenix that focuses on straightforward recursion by returning to hand when a player casts a red spell.

Comparably, Spellpyre Phoenix brings its rebirth from the graveyard to the hand linked to the number of instant and sorcery cards you cast. Unlike Flame-Wreathed Phoenix, it doesn’t offer the tribute choice to opponents, but it provides a reliable form of card advantage over time. Ashcloud Phoenix also shares a rebirth ability but requires a mana payment to return to the battlefield transformed after death, adding a layer of complexity that Flame-Wreathed Phoenix circumvents with its simpler mechanic.

Evaluating these creatures side by side, Flame-Wreathed Phoenix provides a unique strategic depth in the game, challenging opponents with crucial in-game decisions that can swing the match in favor of the cunning player.

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Card Pros

Card Advantage: Flame-Wreathed Phoenix provides a significant boost to your board presence by potentially giving you a recurring creature if your opponent doesn’t pay the tribute. This ability ensures that you’re poised to maintain card advantage, as the phoenix can return to your hand and be cast again.

Resource Acceleration: Although Flame-Wreathed Phoenix doesn’t directly accelerate resources, its Tribute mechanic can put your opponent in a tough position. If they choose not to pay the tribute, you get a 5/5 flying creature for four mana, which is a rate that can outpace your opponent’s resource development.

Instant Speed: While the Flame-Wreathed Phoenix itself isn’t an instant, its automatic return to the battlefield if killed while the tribute wasn’t paid can provide a pseudo-instant speed threat. This ability to come back during your upkeep can catch an unprepared opponent off guard, much like the advantages instant-speed plays offer.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Flame-Wreathed Phoenix comes with a tribute mechanic that, if not paid, forces you to let your opponent reap the benefit. This can often result in a resource disadvantage, especially if your hand is already running thin.

Specific Mana Cost: Requiring a combination of one red and three other mana, this phoenix’s casting cost is color-intensive which can be restrictive in multicolored decks and may not always align seamlessly with your mana base.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: The phoenix’s base cost of four mana can be steep when considering its 3/3 stats. Other creatures at this mana cost point come with guaranteed abilities without the potential downside of giving your opponent a choice, which could lead to a suboptimal board state.

Reasons to Include Flame-Wreathed Phoenix in Your Collection

Versatility: Flame-Wreathed Phoenix showcases flexibility by offering an evasive threat with flying that can safely land hits while navigating around many ground-based defenses. Its recursive ability through Tribute also ensures it remains a persistent nuisance for opponents, often demanding an immediate answer.

Combo Potential: With its Tribute mechanic, Flame-Wreathed Phoenix can easily be incorporated into strategies focused on manipulating counters or triggers, setting up conditions that are beneficial regardless of your opponent’s choice. It thrives in enchantment-based decks that benefit from creatures entering and leaving the battlefield.

Meta-Relevance: In an environment where aerial combatants are king, this phoenix can hold its own. Particularly against decks that lack sufficient flying blockers, Flame-Wreathed Phoenix shines and can quickly tilt the game’s momentum in your favor. Its resilience against board wipes further solidifies its place in dynamic strategies that aim to maintain presence on the board.

How to beat

Confronting Flame-Wreathed Phoenix in a game of Magic: The Gathering presents a unique challenge. This creature card boasts the Tribute mechanic, leaving opponents with a tactical choice that can turn the tide of the match. Denying the Tribute leads to the Phoenix gaining haste and the ability to return to the battlefield, whereas paying the Tribute makes it a beefier threat.

The key to overpowering this fiery adversary lies in instant speed removals. By using spells like Path to Exile or Rapid Hybridization, you can eliminate the Phoenix before it becomes an ongoing problem, irrespective of the Tribute decision. Enchantment-based removals like Banishing Light also offer a more permanent solution, ensuring the Phoenix doesn’t rise from the ashes. In addition, countering the Phoenix with spells like Cancel when it’s first cast ensures it never takes flight. It’s a strategic interplay of timing and resource management that renders this mythical bird less daunting.

Ultimately, the Phoenix is a test of one’s ability to navigate its dual threat and to effectively mitigate the consequences of each Tribute choice. With the proper countermeasures ready at your disposal, ensuring the Phoenix’s flames don’t engulf your game plan becomes a manageable feat.

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Flame-Wreathed Phoenix 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 Flame-Wreathed Phoenix and other MTG cards:

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Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Flame-Wreathed Phoenix 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 Flame-Wreathed Phoenix card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.

Date	Text
2014-02-01	If the opponent pays tribute, the creature will enter the battlefield with the specified number of +1/+1 counters on it. It won’t enter the battlefield and then have the +1/+1 counters placed on it.
2014-02-01	If the triggered ability has a target, that target will not be known while the creature spell with tribute is on the stack.
2014-02-01	Players can’t respond to the tribute decision before the creature enters the battlefield. That is, if the opponent doesn’t pay tribute, the triggered ability will trigger before any player has a chance to remove the creature.
2014-02-01	The choice of whether to pay tribute is made as the creature with tribute is entering the battlefield. At that point, it’s too late to respond to the creature spell. For example, in a multiplayer game, opponents won’t know whether tribute will be paid or which opponent will be chosen to pay tribute or not when deciding whether to counter the creature spell.
2014-02-01	The triggered ability will resolve even if the creature with tribute isn’t on the battlefield at that time.
2017-04-18	For effects that check which player put counters on the entering creature, the player chosen to pay tribute puts those counters on it, not the creature’s controller.