Molten Frame MTG Card

Offers card advantage by replacing itself, aiding in maintaining a strong hand. Instant speed enables strategic, reactionary plays that strengthen board control. Demands a careful balance of resource management due to discard requirements.

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	2
Rarity	Common
Type	Instant
Abilities	Cycling
Released	2009-02-06
Set symbol
Set name	Conflux
Set code	CON
Number	69
Frame	2003
Layout	Normal
Border	Black
Illustred by	Izzy

Text of card

Destroy target artifact creature. Cycling (, Discard this card: Draw a card.)

The metal filigree in his body glowed red-hot, and his flesh soon followed.

Cards like Molten Frame

Molten Frame is yet another intriguing piece in the fiery puzzle of red spells within Magic: The Gathering. Its closest comrades in the realm of artifact removal include the likes of Shatter, a simple yet effective tool in any red mage’s arsenal. Shatter offers a straightforward approach: pay two mana, destroy an artifact. Molten Frame, though, turns up the heat by adding the spice of ‘exile’ instead of just sending artifacts to the graveyard, potentially foiling graveyard retrieval strategies.

Smash to Smithereens is another card with a similar destructive purpose. Costing one red mana and another of any type, it not only dispatches artifacts but also zaps the opponent with a fiery blast of damage. It diverges from Molten Frame with its direct damage component, but lacks Molten Frame’s exiling capability, which could be crucial in matchups where artifacts continually threaten to come back from the graveyard.

By examining these spells side by side, it’s clear that Molten Frame carves out its niche with its exile effect, standing tall among red’s repertoire of artifact counters. This makes it a potent inclusion in decks aiming to disrupt artifact-heavy opponents with a permanent solution.

Smash to Smithereens - MTG Card versions

Cards similar to Molten Frame by color, type and mana cost

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Molten Frame is designed to help players maintain the upper hand by potentially removing an opponent’s threat while cycling into a new card from your deck. This ability to replace itself makes it a useful tool to sustain your resources and keep your hand filled with options.

Resource Acceleration: When you successfully control the board with Molten Frame’s ability, it indirectly assists in resource acceleration. By eliminating key threats with its targeted removal, you effectively set your opponent back, giving you the opportunity to capitalize on your mana and spells more effectively.

Instant Speed: The versatility of Molten Frame is markedly improved by its instant speed, enabling you to use it as a reactive measure. This timing flexibility allows for shrewd plays, aligning removal with your opponent’s actions during their turn and thus preserving the surprise element, which can be crucial for maintaining board control.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Molten Frame demands a card to be discarded as part of its casting cost. For players whose hands are already depleted, this can prove to be a taxing requirement, and they may not be able to leverage Molten Frame’s potential without sacrificing key pieces of their strategy.

Specific Mana Cost: With a mana cost that necessitates both generic and red mana, Molten Frame inserts itself predominantly in decks that can produce these types effortlessly. This specialization means that decks lacking a red mana base might find the card incompatible with their strategies.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Weighing the four mana needed to cast Molten Frame against other available options in the game, some players may find that the card’s impact on the battlefield doesn’t quite justify its cost. There is an array of spells and abilities in the realm of MTG that may accomplish similar outcomes at a lower mana expenditure.

Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Molten Frame offers flexibility as it can be slotted into numerous deck archetypes. It serves as both artifact removal and a damage dealer, making it a useful tool in any player’s arsenal.

Combo Potential: For those who love to tinker with synergies, Molten Frame can be a key component in artifact-based strategies or decks that leverage spells that can be cast from the graveyard, due to its ability to be played from the graveyard itself.

Meta-Relevance: With the fluctuating MTG meta, Molten Frame holds its ground, providing a response to prevalent artifact strategies. As long as artifacts remain a cornerstone of the game, this card will maintain its value and efficacy within the competitive scene.

How to beat

Molten Frame is a card that presents both an offensive threat and a defensive maneuver within the game. Its ability to deal damage to an opponent or creature and provide you with a Clue token can shift the board state in your favor. Still, every card has its Achilles’ heel. To undermine Molten Frame’s potency, consider using counterspells to prevent it from resolving. Cards like Negate or Dovin’s Veto are efficient choices in blue decks, as they specifically target noncreature spells, making them perfect to halt Molten Frame in its tracks.

In a broader tactic, running enchantment removal such as Disenchant or Thrashing Brontodon can mitigate the benefit of accumulating Clue tokens for the opponent. For those playing red or black, instant speed direct damage spells like Lightning Bolt or Fatal Push can remove the creatures targeted by Molten Frame before it can deal its damage, effectively fizzling the spell. Another strategy is to streamline your deck with efficient card draw, which can outpace the one-time Clue token advantage offered by Molten Frame, thus maintaining card advantage and keeping pressure on your opponent.

Ultimately, staying one step ahead of cards like Molten Frame involves anticipating your opponent’s moves, proper timing of your spells, and incorporating a well-rounded strategy to mitigate the card’s impact on the game.

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Molten Frame MTG card by a specific set like Conflux, 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 Molten Frame and other MTG cards:

BUY NOW
BurnMana is an official partner of TCGPlayer

Continue exploring other sealed products in Amazon
See MTG Products

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Molten Frame has restrictions

Format	Legality
Commander	Legal
Legacy	Legal
Paupercommander	Legal
Modern	Legal
Oathbreaker	Legal
Pauper	Legal
Vintage	Legal
Duel	Legal
Predh	Legal
Penny	Legal

Rules and information

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

Date	Text
2008-10-01	Cycling is an activated ability. Effects that interact with activated abilities (such as Stifle or Rings of Brighthearth) will interact with cycling. Effects that interact with spells (such as Remove Soul or Faerie Tauntings) will not.
2009-02-01	Any permanent that’s both an artifact and a creature is a legal target for Molten Frame.