Duel for Dominance MTG Card

Duel for Dominance - Innistrad: Midnight Hunt (MID)

Innistrad: Midnight Hunt (MID)
2021-09-24 - Number 184

Duel for Dominance - Innistrad: Double Feature (DBL)

Innistrad: Double Feature (DBL)
2022-01-28 - Number 184

Card sets	Released in 2 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost	2
Rarity	Common
Type	Instant
Abilities	Coven,Fight

Key Takeaways

Instant-speed allows tactical play, disrupting opponents’ moves and shifting combat favorably.
Requires a creature to use, potentially limiting it in creature-less scenarios or hands.
Great combo potential in creature-focused decks, enhancing strength and board control.

Text of card

Coven — Choose target creature you control and target creature you don't control. If you control three or more creatures with different powers, put a +1/+1 counter on the chosen creature you control. Then the chosen creatures fight each other. (They each deal damage equal to their power to the other.)

Card Pros

Card Advantage: When it comes to maintaining the upper hand in a match, every card counts. Duel for Dominance is essential for those clutch moments where you need to ensure your creatures come out on top without losing momentum in your hand.

Resource Acceleration: By potentially removing a blocker or a problematic creature your opponent controls, Duel for Dominance effectively accelerates your in-game resources. It clears the path for your creatures to attack, possibly leading to a swift victory.

Instant Speed: The flexibility of Duel for Dominance can’t be overstated. With its instant-speed capability, you can surprise an opponent during their turn, altering combat outcomes in your favor or interrupting pivotal plays. This tactical advantage ensures that you always have the potential for a game-changing move up your sleeve.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Duel for Dominance necessitates you have a creature to engage in combat. If you’re without a suitable creature or facing a creature-less opponent, this card may sit idly in your hand.

Specific Mana Cost: This spell’s requirement for both green mana and an additional generic mana means it’s tailored for green-centric decks, potentially limiting its versatility in multicolored deck strategies.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: The cost of Duel for Dominance can be seen as steep when compared to other removal or combat trick options available in the game, which could deter players from including it in their deck.

Reasons to Include Duel for Dominance in Your Collection

Versatility: Duel for Dominance is a versatile card, easily slotting into decks that capitalize on fighting mechanics or ones that bolster their creatures’ strength. As a removal and creature enhancer hybrid, it can serve multiple roles depending on your game situation.

Combo Potential: With its coven ability, this card can synergize with strategies that aim to control the board by leveraging a variety of creature types. Its potential to make creatures fight can be a combo enabler in decks that benefit from creature interactions or graveyard play.

Meta-Relevance: For game environments where creature-based strategies dominate, Duel for Dominance can be crucial. Engaging key enemy creatures in battle allows for strategic removal and can turn the tide in a tight match where board control is paramount.

How to beat

Duel for Dominance is a tactical green instant in Magic: The Gathering that enables a creature to fight or gain an advantage over another. If unrivaled, it can quickly tip the scales in a creature-heavy matchup. Countering this card effectively requires a good understanding of timing and board presence. To disrupt this duel, you can utilize instant-speed removal or bounce spells in response to it being cast, to either save your threatened creature or remove their attacker from the field.

Maintaining a diverse array of creatures with various abilities can be key. Those with hexproof or indestructible can negate Duel for Dominance’s impact, leaving your opponent’s spell without a valid target. Similarly, instant-speed creature buffs can turn the tables, making their intended prey into the predator. Spells like Giant Growth can boost your creature’s power and toughness, unexpectedly overcoming the opponent’s creature during the fight.

Effectively beating Duel for Dominance comes down to being one step ahead. Whether it’s through protective spells or well-timed creature boosts, ensuring your creatures survive the encounter can mean the difference between dominating the duel or being overpowered. In the diverse environment of Magic: The Gathering, strategic foresight and quick reactions can safeguard you against such targeted threats.

Cards like Duel for Dominance

Duel for Dominance is a notable combat trick in Magic: The Gathering, sharing similarities with a variety of green fight spells. It is akin to Prey Upon, a staple in green decks known for making two creatures duke it out. Unlike Prey Upon, Duel for Dominance comes with a potential upside — it grants a +1/+1 counter to the creature you control if you have the coven ability activated, which could turn the tide in combat.

Another parallel can be drawn with Rabid Bite, which is a one-sided fight effect dealing damage equal to your creature’s power without receiving damage in return. Duel for Dominance offers the traditional two-way fight but carries the additional benefit of power boosting with the coven mechanic. Savage Swipe also deserves mention as it specifically caters to creatures with power 2, providing both a power boost and fight effect at a very low cost, but lacks Duel for Dominance’s scaling potential with the coven ability.

While each fight spell offers a unique angle for creature interaction and board control, Duel for Dominance stands out among MTG cards for players who can reliably meet its coven condition, enhancing combat capabilities and creature value in a single move.

Cards similar to Duel for Dominance by color, type and mana cost

Might of the Nephilim - MTG Card versions

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Duel for Dominance MTG card by a specific set like Innistrad: Midnight Hunt and Innistrad: Double Feature, 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 Duel for Dominance and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Duel for Dominance Magic the Gathering card was released in 2 different sets between 2021-09-24 and 2022-01-28. Illustrated by Ryan Pancoast.

#	Released	Name	Code	Symbol	Number	Frame	Layout	Border	Artist
1	2021-09-24	Innistrad: Midnight Hunt	MID		184	2015	Normal	Black	Ryan Pancoast
2	2022-01-28	Innistrad: Double Feature	DBL		184	2015	Normal	Black	Ryan Pancoast

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Duel for Dominance has restrictions

Format	Legality
Standard	Legal
Historicbrawl	Legal
Historic	Legal
Legacy	Legal
Paupercommander	Legal
Oathbreaker	Legal
Gladiator	Legal
Pioneer	Legal
Commander	Legal
Modern	Legal
Pauper	Legal
Future	Legal
Vintage	Legal
Duel	Legal
Explorer	Legal
Brawl	Legal
Timeless	Legal

Rules and information

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

Date	Text
2021-09-24	"Flashback -ost]" means "You may cast this card from your graveyard by paying -ost] rather than paying its mana cost" and "If the flashback cost was paid, exile this card instead of putting it anywhere else any time it would leave the stack."
2021-09-24	A spell cast using flashback will always be exiled afterward, whether it resolves, is countered, or leaves the stack in some other way.
2021-09-24	If a card with flashback is put into your graveyard during your turn, you can cast it if it's legal to do so before any other player can take any actions.
2021-09-24	If you control three or more creatures with different powers and the target creature you control is still a legal target as Duel for Dominance resolves but the target creature you don't control isn't, you will still put a +1/+1 counter on the creature you control. It isn't much of a duel, but your creature is still dominant.
2021-09-24	Only the +1/+1 counter is contingent on having three or more creatures with different powers. The target creatures will still fight even if you don't have three or more creatures with different powers when Duel for Dominance resolves.
2021-09-24	To determine the total cost of a spell, start with the mana cost or alternative cost (such as a flashback cost) you're paying, add any cost increases, then apply any cost reductions. The mana value of the spell is determined only by its mana cost, no matter what the total cost to cast the spell was.
2021-09-24	You can cast a spell using flashback even if it was somehow put into your graveyard without having been cast.
2021-09-24	You must still follow any timing restrictions and permissions, including those based on the card's type. For instance, you can cast a sorcery using flashback only when you could normally cast a sorcery.