Frost Bite MTG Card
2021-02-05 - Number 138
2021-02-05 - Number 404
| Card sets | Released in 2 setsSee all |
| Mana cost | |
| Converted mana cost | 1 |
| Rarity | Common |
| Type | Snow Instant |
Text of card
Frost Bite deals 2 damage to target creature or planeswalker. If you control three or more snow permanents, it deals 3 damage instead.
"Don't wander far—it's a bit nippy out there!" —Leidurr, expedition leader
Cards like Frost Bite
Frost Bite has secured its place as a go-to spell for Magic: The Gathering players looking to deal damage quickly. It’s often compared to cards like Shock, which also deals 2 damage, but at a consistent rate regardless of the number of snow permanents you control.
Another card that enters the fray is Fire Prophecy. This spell not only deals 3 damage for the same cost as Frost Bite but has an additional upside of allowing you to put an unwanted card from your hand on the bottom of your deck and then draw a card. While Fire Prophecy doesn’t require snow permanents, its condition of targeting only creatures can be a limitation compared to Frost Bite’s ability to target planeswalkers as well.
Skred is another interesting comparison – it scales its damage based on the number of snow permanents you have, similar to Frost Bite. However, Skred’s potential damage isn’t capped, allowing for larger amounts of damage in the late game. What Frost Bite offers that Skred doesn’t is the immediate gratification of damage at instant speed without needing a build-up of snow permanents.
When evaluating the strategic applications of Frost Bite alongside its counterparts, one can appreciate the nuances that make it a nuanced choice for standard deck constructions.
Cards similar to Frost Bite by color, type and mana cost
Decks using this card
MTG decks using Frost Bite. Dig deeper into the strategy of decks, sideboard cards, list ideas and export to play in ARENA or MOL.
| # | Name | Format | Archetype | Event |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | R | Pioneer | Pioneer Challenge 64 2024-02-16 | |
 | Izzet Tempo | Gladiator | Gladiator Proving Grounds: Week 13 2024 | |
 | Mono-Red Aggro | Gladiator | Gladiator Team Unified League | |
| Decklist | Free form | 79#CS | |
 | Boros Control | Gladiator | Gladiator Games: We're Back | |
| Mono-Red Midrange | Gladiator | Gladiator Team Unified League | |
 | Izzet Midrange | Gladiator | Gladiator Games: We're Back |
Card Pros
Card Advantage: Frost Bite is renowned for its capability to deal damage while efficiently managing resources, often removing a key threat without losing a card from your hand.
Resource Acceleration: By potentially eliminating blockers or threats without expending a significant amount of mana, Frost Bite can expedite your board state development, keeping your mana open for developing your own battlefield.
Instant Speed: The flexibility of being an instant allows you to optimize your choices during the game, determining the most opportune moment to cast it, whether it’s during your opponent’s end step or in the midst of combat to disrupt their strategy.
Card Cons
Discard Requirement: While Frost Bite does not have a discard requirement, this can often be a downside to many situational spells where maintaining card advantage is crucial for gameplay.
Specific Mana Cost: Frost Bite requires one red mana, which can restrict its inclusion to decks that can reliably produce red mana, potentially leaving out decks that cannot support red or those operating on a tight mana base.
Comparatively High Mana Cost: Frost Bite’s mana cost is relatively low. However, in a game where efficiency is king, even the slightest mana discrepancy can be significant. With other spells in the format that may remove creatures for the same or less mana investment, players should consider their options carefully.
Reasons to Include Frost Bite in Your Collection
Versatility: Frost Bite offers flexibility as it can be seamlessly incorporated into various red-based decks. Its ability to deal damage directly to creatures ensures it’s a useful tool for controlling the board.
Combo Potential: This card shines in decks that capitalize on spell synergies or snow mechanics, enabling devastating combinations or empowering strategies that involve dealing damage without needing to attack.
Meta-Relevance: Givenits capacity to quickly remove early threats, Frost Bite is particularly potent in a meta dominated by aggressive decks with small creatures. It keeps pace with rapid playstyles, allowing for efficient tempo plays.
How to beat
Frost Bite is a deceptively simple yet powerful spell that can catch many players off guard in Magic: The Gathering. Its ability to deal damage to a creature or planeswalker is conditional upon having three or more snow permanents in play, which can turn it into a potent single-mana removal tool. When facing Frost Bite, the key is to manage your board presence effectively.
One strategy is to avoid overcommitting smaller creatures to the board if you know your opponent has access to snow lands and potentially this spell. Alternatively, playing creatures with toughness greater than three can make Frost Bite less of a threat to your board. Additionally, utilizing instant-speed spells that can buff your creatures’ toughness in response can save them from being eliminated by Frost Bite. Lastly, keeping pressure on snow permanents themselves, thus reducing the opponent’s ability to meet the three-snow-permanent threshold, can significantly weaken Frost Bite’s impact.
Stay mindful of the spells in your opponent’s arsenal and adapt your play to mitigate their potential effects. In doing so, you’ll ensure that your creatures and planeswalkers stand a better chance of surviving an encounter with Frost Bite.
Where to buy
If you're looking to purchase Frost Bite MTG card by a specific set like Kaldheim and Kaldheim, 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 Frost Bite and other MTG cards:
BUY NOW BurnMana is an official partner of TCGPlayer
- 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
See MTG Products
Printings
The Frost Bite Magic the Gathering card was released in 1 different sets between 2021-02-05 and 2021-02-05. Illustrated by Caio Monteiro.
Legalities
Magic the Gathering formats where Frost Bite has restrictions
| Format | Legality |
|---|---|
| Historic | Legal |
| Legacy | Legal |
| Paupercommander | Legal |
| Oathbreaker | Legal |
| Gladiator | Legal |
| Pioneer | Legal |
| Commander | Legal |
| Modern | Legal |
| Pauper | Legal |
| Vintage | Legal |
| Duel | Legal |
| Explorer | Legal |
| Brawl | Legal |
| Timeless | Legal |
Rules and information
The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering Frost Bite card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.
| Date | Text |
|---|---|
| 2021-02-05 | Snow is a supertype, not a card type. It has no rules meaning or function by itself, but spells and abilities may refer to it. |
| 2021-02-05 | Snow isn’t a type of mana. If an effect says you may spend mana as though it were any type, you can’t pay for {S} using mana that wasn’t produced by a snow source. |
| 2021-02-05 | Some cards have additional effects for each {S} spent to cast them. You can cast these spells even if you don’t spend any snow mana to cast them; their additional effects simply won’t do anything. |
| 2021-02-05 | The Kaldheim set doesn’t have any cards with mana costs that include {S}, but some previous sets do. If an effect says such a spell costs less to cast, that reduction doesn’t apply to any {S} costs. This is also true for activated abilities that include {S} in their activation costs and effects that reduce those costs. |
| 2021-02-05 | The {S} symbol is a generic mana symbol. It represents a cost that can be paid by one mana that was produced by a snow source. That mana can be any color or colorless. |
| 2021-02-05 | Whether or not you control three or more snow permanents is checked as Frost Bite is resolving. |