Foreboding Ruins MTG Card
2016-04-08 - Number 272s
2016-04-08 - Number 272
2021-07-23 - Number 238
2021-11-19 - Number 174
2022-04-29 - Number 403
2022-09-09 - Number 211
2022-10-07 - Number 279★
2022-10-07 - Number 279
2023-03-21 - Number 265
2023-06-23 - Number 310
2023-10-13 - Number 1087
2023-10-13 - Number 870
2023-10-13 - Number 496
2023-10-13 - Number 279
2023-11-17 - Number 330
| Card sets | Released in 15 setsSee all |
| Rarity | Rare |
| Type | Land |
Text of card
As Foreboding Ruins enters the battlefield, you may reveal a Swamp or Mountain card from your hand. If you don't, Foreboding Ruins enters the battlefield tapped. : Add or .
Sent to find Sorin, Jace ventured to the vampire's ancestral home, only to find evidence of a deeper mystery.
Cards like Foreboding Ruins
Foreboding Ruins, much like its counterparts in other color combinations, offers a dual land’s instant versatility to MTG players’ decks. It can be likened to cards such as Spirebluff Canal, which also comes into play untapped under certain conditions. Foreboding Ruins stands out by allowing players to reveal a Swamp or Mountain from their hand, circumventing the common tapped penalty that similar lands can impose. However, it doesn’t provide the color fixing in later stages of the game as effectively as Spirebluff Canal since it’s tapped if you control two or more lands.
Darkslick Shores is another suitable comparison, particularly for players looking for early-game speed. While it ensures untapped mana in the first three turns, it falls slightly behind Foreboding Ruins in longer games where a greater number of lands are present. Foreboding Ruins offers flexibility and can be strategically revealed to avoid coming into play tapped if the player’s hand cooperates. Lastly, Dragonskull Summit is often paralleled with Foreboding Ruins due to the similar condition for it to enter untapped. However, it depends on the presence of a Swamp or Mountain on the field rather than in the hand, providing a different strategic approach to mana fixing.
Evaluating these alternatives underscores the strategic adaptability that Foreboding Ruins provides, especially in decks that prioritize a strong opening and where hand management forms a core component of the strategy.
Cards similar to Foreboding Ruins by color, type and mana cost
Decks using this card
MTG decks using Foreboding Ruins. Dig deeper into the strategy of decks, sideboard cards, list ideas and export to play in ARENA or MOL.
| # | Name | Format | Archetype | Event |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Sword Point Red | Free form | Set Roulette Spring 2024 | |
 | Decklist | Free form | Holiday Night Magic | |
 | Rakdos Midrange | Gladiator | Sword and Sandals Showdown: EMEA Week 44 | |
 | Rakdos Combo | Legacy | MO82#CS | |
| Rakdos Vampires | Pioneer | Rakdos Vampires | Peasant Pioneer Showdown - A Josh and Pat's MTG Bazaar Sponsored Event |
 | Jund Midrange | Gladiator | Gladiator Team Unified League |
Card Pros
Card Advantage: Foreboding Ruins increases the consistency of your deck by ensuring you have access to the right colors of mana when you need them. This leads to smoother plays and keeps your hand functional without being bottlenecked by color requirements.
Resource Acceleration: This dual land aids in resource acceleration by coming into play untapped if you reveal a Mountain or a Swamp from your hand. This grants you immediate access to two different mana resources, which is crucial for playing more impactful cards ahead of your opponent’s curve.
Instant Speed: While Foreboding Ruins itself is not an instant, it enables the use of instant-speed spells by providing a diverse mana base. The speed at which you can deploy your threats and responses, owing to consistent land drops like Foreboding Ruins, can greatly affect the tempo and control of the game.
Card Cons
Discard Requirement: The Foreboding Ruins require you to reveal a Mountain or Swamp card from your hand to enter the battlefield untapped. Without one, it enters tapped, which can slow your tempo if you’re not holding the right land.
Specific Mana Cost: This card can only produce red or black mana. It’s excellent for Rakdos decks yet restrictive if your deck strategy involves multiple colors outside of these.
Comparatively High Mana Cost: While not directly related to mana cost, its condition for coming into play untapped means you must have the right land types early on, potentially making your opening hands less flexible compared to lands with no such requirements.
Reasons to Include in Your Collection
Versatility: Foreboding Ruins has the flexibility to seamlessly integrate into any red or black deck build. Its ability to come into play untapped if it’s among the first lands you play makes it perfect for fast-paced games where tempo is critical.
Combo Potential: This land pairs wonderfully with check lands and other dual lands, enabling multi-color combo decks that require specific mana combinations without slowing them down. It’s a key component in setting up the battlefield for game-changing plays.
Meta-Relevance: With a meta that continually shifts, having a land like Foreboding Ruins that supports swift mana fixing is essential. It upholds relevance in various deck archetypes that thrive in the current competitive landscape, proving to be a consistently useful asset in many strategies.
How to beat
Foreboding Ruins is a dynamic land card that often finds a place in two-colored, particularly red and black, MTG decks. Its key strength lies in its capacity to provide mana of either color without entering the battlefield tapped, assuming you reveal a corresponding land card from your hand or control another mountain or swamp. This makes early-game plays more agile and mana development smoother.
To effectively counteract the advantage that Foreboding Ruins provides, the disruption of your opponent’s mana base becomes essential. Employing land destruction spells or cards that force a player to sacrifice lands can inhibit the card’s usefulness, but often at a significant resource cost. Cards like Ghost Quarter and Field of Ruin can specifically target Foreboding Ruins, removing it from play directly.
An alternative strategy is to minimize the card’s relevance by maintaining a fast-paced game. By putting consistent pressure on your opponent, you can potentially reduce the overall impact of their mana fixing, making Foreboding Ruins less significant to the outcome. In the realm of competitive play, understanding and countering key land cards like Foreboding Ruins can be pivotal to securing victory in MTG.
Where to buy
If you're looking to purchase Foreboding Ruins MTG card by a specific set like Shadows over Innistrad Promos and Shadows over Innistrad, 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 Foreboding Ruins and other MTG cards:
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- eBay
- 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
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Printings
The Foreboding Ruins Magic the Gathering card was released in 11 different sets between 2016-04-08 and 2023-11-17. Illustrated by 4 different artists.
| # | Released | Name | Code | Symbol | Number | Frame | Layout | Border | Artist |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2016-04-08 | Shadows over Innistrad Promos | PSOI | 272s | 2015 | Normal | Black | Adam Paquette | |
| 2 | 2016-04-08 | Shadows over Innistrad | SOI | 272 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Adam Paquette | |
| 3 | 2021-07-23 | Forgotten Realms Commander | AFC | 238 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Adam Paquette | |
| 4 | 2021-11-19 | Crimson Vow Commander | VOC | 174 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Adam Paquette | |
| 5 | 2022-04-29 | New Capenna Commander | NCC | 403 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Adam Paquette | |
| 6 | 2022-09-09 | Dominaria United Commander | DMC | 211 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Adam Paquette | |
| 7 | 2022-10-07 | Warhammer 40,000 Commander | 40K | 279★ | 2015 | Normal | Black | Josu Solano | |
| 8 | 2022-10-07 | Warhammer 40,000 Commander | 40K | 279 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Josu Solano | |
| 9 | 2023-03-21 | Shadows over Innistrad Remastered | SIR | 265 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Adam Paquette | |
| 10 | 2023-06-23 | Tales of Middle-earth Commander | LTC | 310 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Nino Is | |
| 11 | 2023-10-13 | Doctor Who | WHO | 1087 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Stephen Stark | |
| 12 | 2023-10-13 | Doctor Who | WHO | 870 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Stephen Stark | |
| 13 | 2023-10-13 | Doctor Who | WHO | 496 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Stephen Stark | |
| 14 | 2023-10-13 | Doctor Who | WHO | 279 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Stephen Stark | |
| 15 | 2023-11-17 | The Lost Caverns of Ixalan Commander | LCC | 330 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Adam Paquette |
Legalities
Magic the Gathering formats where Foreboding Ruins has restrictions
| Format | Legality |
|---|---|
| Historicbrawl | Legal |
| Commander | Legal |
| Historic | Legal |
| Legacy | Legal |
| Modern | Legal |
| Oathbreaker | Legal |
| Vintage | Legal |
| Duel | Legal |
| Explorer | Legal |
| Gladiator | Legal |
| Pioneer | Legal |
| Timeless | Legal |