Insatiable Hemophage MTG Card


Card setsReleased in 3 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost4
RarityUncommon
TypeCreature — Nightmare
Abilities Deathtouch,Mutate
Power 3
Toughness 3

Key Takeaways

  1. The creature’s mutate ability translates into card advantage by draining an opponent’s life while boosting yours.
  2. Instant speed mutation provides tactical flexibility, disrupting opponents’ strategies during their turn.
  3. While mana restrictive and costly, Insatiable Hemophage’s abilities make strategic contributions to relevant deck builds.

Text of card

Mutate (If you cast this spell for its mutate cost, put it over or under target non-Human creature you own. They mutate into the creature on top plus all abilities from under it.) Deathtouch Whenever this creature mutates, each opponent loses X life and you gain X life, where X is the number of times this creature has mutated.


Card Pros

Card Advantage: Insatiable Hemophage stands out with its ability to turn creatures into card advantage. When mutated, it deals direct damage to an opponent and grants you life equal to the damage, essentially providing card advantage by reducing their life total while bolstering yours.

Resource Acceleration: This creature doesn’t directly provide resource acceleration in the traditional sense of adding mana, but it does help in sustaining your life total, which can be pivotal for strategies that need time to establish a board presence or reach a critical amount of resources.

Instant Speed: While not an instant itself, the creature can be mutated onto others at instant speed, giving you the flexibility to surprise an opponent with unexpected damage and life gain during their turn, or just to quickly adapt to the changing battlefield dynamics.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: The Insatiable Hemophage’s companion mechanic necessitates a certain deck configuration. This requirement can be a downside as it forces players to design a deck with only cards that have even converted mana costs, possibly excluding powerful odd-cost cards that could be beneficial.

Specific Mana Cost: This card demands a black mana cost, which may not seamlessly fit into every deck, especially in multi-colored deck scenarios. Players need to ensure they have sufficient black mana sources to avoid hindering their mana curve.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a cost of four mana, including two generic and two black, it can be expensive for the effect it provides. Other creatures or spells in the four-mana range could potentially offer greater impact or versatility on the battlefield. Players might find that they are behind on board presence when allocating resources to cast the Insatiable Hemophage.


Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Insatiable Hemophage serves as a multi-purpose card that can slide into various black deck strategies, particularly those harnessing the power of mutate mechanics or seeking to stabilize by gaining life.

Combo Potential: By combining the Hemophage with other creatures that have mutate or generate tokens, you can create a robust synergy that leverages both life drain and creature enhancement aspects.

Meta-Relevance: As gameplay fluctuates with the shifting meta, having creatures like Insatiable Hemophage with lifelink can solidify your position in matches where grinding out your opponent’s life total is key to victory.


How to Beat Insatiable Hemophage

Understanding your opponent’s strategy is crucial when facing the Insatiable Hemophage, a creature with the potential to disrupt your game in MTG. This creature utilizes the mutate mechanic, allowing it to stack abilities and grow stronger when cast over another non-Human creature you own. One key strategy against it is to limit targets for its mutate ability. Without a host creature, the Hemophage’s impact is significantly reduced.

Removal spells are your best bet to counteract the Insatiable Hemophage’s potential for repeated damage and life gain. Instant-speed removal like Path to Exile or Fatal Push can disrupt your opponent’s mutate sequence by removing the target or the Hemophage before its ability resolves. Additionally, board wipes such as Wrath of God can clear the mutated stack altogether, making sure its life-draining effect doesn’t compound over time.

Another angle is to prevent the life loss and damage through protection and counter spells. By utilizing effects that negate damage or life loss such as Leyline of Sanctity, the Hemophage’s effect is nullified upon resolution. Spells like Negate can also counter the creature spell as it tries to mutate, undercutting your opponent’s efforts. With the right timing and cards in hand, the Insatiable Hemophage can be kept at bay, ensuring your place in the game remains strong.


BurnMana Recommendations

Dive deeper into the realm of MTG and harness the potential of the Insatiable Hemophage in your gameplay. Consider the card’s utility in life-draining tactics and the mutate mechanic to edge out your opponents. Weigh its place within your deck, taking into account the pros and cons, to strike a balance in usage and impact. Look into combining it with similar cards for more intricate strategies, adapting as the meta shifts. And should you face this potent creature, remember our tips on how to beat it. For those intrigued by this card’s dynamic abilities and strategic value, we encourage you to join our community and continue your journey toward MTG expertise.


Cards like Insatiable Hemophage

Insatiable Hemophage offers an intriguing dynamic for players who appreciate the Mutate mechanic in Magic: The Gathering. Its ability to drain life from opponents parallels the function of certain extort cards such as Blood Artist and Zulaport Cutthroat. Yet, Insatiable Hemophage allows for a greater potential impact by combining multiple creatures’ powers through mutation. Blood Artist and Zulaport Cutthroat trigger upon death of creatures, while Insatiable Hemophage’s effect occurs whenever it mutates, providing a recurring benefit as long as more mutations can be performed.

Another comparison point for Insatiable Hemophage is Falkenrath Noble, which shares the theme of siphoning life. Though Falkenrath Noble’s ability is similar, as it revolves around creatures dying, its four-mana cost and lack of the mutate capability set it apart. Insatiable Hemophage, therefore, might better serve a strategically built mutate deck, providing consistent damage output and life gain with each successful mutation.

Examining these alternatives, it’s clear that Insatiable Hemophage can play a unique role, particularly in decks that seek to leverage the mutate mechanic to its fullest. Its ability to deal incremental damage and gain life, alongside the versatility mutation brings to the game, makes it a compelling choice for players crafting a strategy around this innovative MTG mechanic.

Blood Artist - MTG Card versions
Zulaport Cutthroat - MTG Card versions
Falkenrath Noble - MTG Card versions
Blood Artist - Avacyn Restored (AVR)
Zulaport Cutthroat - Battle for Zendikar (BFZ)
Falkenrath Noble - Innistrad (ISD)

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Insatiable Hemophage MTG card by a specific set like Magic Online Promos and Ikoria: Lair of Behemoths, 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 Insatiable Hemophage and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Insatiable Hemophage Magic the Gathering card was released in 2 different sets between 2020-04-24 and 2020-04-24. Illustrated by 2 different artists.

#ReleaseNameCodeSymbolNumberFrameLayoutBorderArtist
12002-06-24Magic Online PromosPRM 810072015mutateblackSteve Ellis
22020-04-24Ikoria: Lair of BehemothsIKO 932015mutateblackAntonio José Manzanedo
32020-04-24Ikoria: Lair of BehemothsIKO 2902015mutateblackSteve Ellis

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Insatiable Hemophage has restrictions

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

Rules and information

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

DateText
2020-04-17 In a Two-Headed Giant game, Insatiable Hemophage’s last ability causes the opposing team to lose life equal to twice the value of X and you to gain X life.

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