Living Inferno MTG Card
| Mana cost | |
| Converted mana cost | 8 |
| Rarity | Rare |
| Type | Creature — Elemental |
| Released | 2006-02-03 |
| Set symbol | |
| Set name | Guildpact |
| Set code | GPT |
| Power | 8 |
| Toughness | 5 |
| Number | 69 |
| Frame | 2003 |
| Layout | Normal |
| Border | Black |
| Illustred by | John Avon |
Key Takeaways
- Instant speed ability of Living Inferno enables disruptive, strategic play during an opponent’s turn.
- The card’s high mana cost and specific color requirement may reduce its deck compatibility.
- Living Inferno can provide board control and has potential for card advantage creation.
Text of card
: Living Inferno deals damage equal to its power divided as you choose among any number of target creatures. Each of those creatures deals damage equal to its power to Living Inferno.
Card Pros
Card Advantage: When Living Inferno deals damage, it creates an opportunity for card advantage by potentially removing multiple creatures your opponents control. This can lead to a decisive shift in the board state, giving you an upper hand.
Resource Acceleration: Although Living Inferno itself doesn’t directly accelerate resources, it demands an immediate answer from your opponents. The threat it poses can pace the game in your favor, effectively slowing down your opponent’s development while you continue to build your presence on the board.
Instant Speed: Living Inferno’s activated ability can be used at instant speed, allowing you to make strategic decisions on the fly. You can wait until the most opportune moment during your opponent’s turn to assign its damage, disrupting their plans and potentially clearing the way for your next move.
Card Cons
Discard Requirement: While Living Inferno can deal damage equal to its power divided among any number of target creatures, it requires a notable discard from your hand to fulfill its activated ability. This can put you at a card disadvantage, especially if you’re already struggling to maintain a strong hand throughout the game.
Specific Mana Cost: As a card hailing from the Rakdos guild, Living Inferno requires both red and black mana to play. This specific mana cost means that it fits only into decks that can produce both types of mana consistently, potentially limiting its versatility across different deck builds.
Comparatively High Mana Cost: Living Inferno comes with a demanding mana cost of eight, which may pose a challenge in casting it early or efficiently within a game. By the time you amass sufficient resources to play it, faster decks might have already gained significant advantage or even clinched victory.
Reasons to Include Living Inferno in Your Collection
Versatility: Living Inferno offers a flexible role in decks that appreciate a big creature with reach. It can act as both a blocker against flying creatures and a damage dealer that can potentially clear multiple threats on the board.
Combo Potential: Its ability to deal damage divided as you choose among any number of target creatures can be leveraged in combinations with cards that trigger upon dealing damage or destroying creatures, amplifying your control over the battlefield.
Meta-Relevance: In a game where creature-based strategies dominate, Living Inferno’s capacity to pick off opposing threats makes it a compelling inclusion. It can shift the balance in games where stalled boards are common, providing reach to help finish opponents.
How to Beat
Living Inferno is a card that can pose a considerable challenge on the battlefield in the realm of Magic: The Gathering. As a formidable creature with the ability to deal damage to multiple targets equivalent to its power, overcoming Living Inferno requires strategic planning. It is vital for players facing down this fiery giant to have a reliable way to either neutralize it or prevent it from unleashing its full potential.
One effective method to handle Living Inferno is using removal spells that can bypass its high toughness, such as Path to Exile or Murder. Another tactic is deploying counterspells to prevent it from hitting the board in the first place. If Living Inferno does make it into play, enchantment-based pacifism effects or cards that limit its ability to deal damage, such as Meekstone, can significantly mitigate its threat level.
Employing creatures with protection from red or indestructibility can also be a safeguard against its distributed damage attack. By fielding such precautions and maintaining a deck with answers to robust threats, players can ensure they stand a fighting chance against the blazing wrath of Living Inferno.
Cards like Living Inferno
Living Inferno offers a unique gameplay experience within Magic: The Gathering as a fiery beatstick with a twist of tactic. It’s often compared to other red creatures like Inferno Elemental, which also carries a hefty power punch. While Inferno Elemental presents itself as a straightforward damage dealer without additional abilities, Living Inferno goes a step further. It divvies out its damage across multiple creatures based on its power, offering strategic board control.
In the echelons of red high-cost creatures, Flametongue Kavu emerges as a relative. The Kavu deals damage upon entry, giving immediate effect but limited to a one-time burst. Living Inferno, conversely, stands ready to unleash its wrath turn after turn, with the potential to shift the tides of battle continuously. Then there’s Fire Elemental, another classic creature that might seem alike on the surface with its simple damage delivery, yet lacks the dynamic control provided by Living Inferno’s distributive ability.
To sum up, Living Inferno not only forms a formidable threat by itself but also presents a recurring opportunity for tactical plays, setting it apart from creatures with more singular or one-off abilities.
Cards similar to Living Inferno by color, type and mana cost
Where to buy
If you're looking to purchase Living Inferno MTG card by a specific set like Guildpact, 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 Living Inferno and other MTG cards:
- eBay
- TCG Player
- 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
Legalities
Magic the Gathering formats where Living Inferno has restrictions
| Format | Legality |
|---|---|
| Commander | Legal |
| Legacy | Legal |
| Modern | Legal |
| Oathbreaker | Legal |
| Vintage | Legal |
| Duel | Legal |
| Predh | Legal |
| Penny | Legal |
Rules and information
The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering Living Inferno card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.
| Date | Text |
|---|---|
| 2006-02-01 | The amount of damage Living Inferno will deal is locked in as you activate its ability, since you’re dividing damage. If Living Inferno’s power changes after its ability is activated but before it resolves (via Giant Growth, for example), the amount of damage Living Inferno deals won’t change. The same is *not* true for the amount of damage dealt to Living Inferno by the other creatures, which is determined when the ability resolves. |
| 2006-02-01 | You divide the damage among the target creatures as you activate Living Inferno’s ability. Each target must be assigned at least 1 damage. |
