Carrion Ants MTG Card


Card setsReleased in 6 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost4
RarityRare
TypeCreature — Insect
Power 0
Toughness 1

Key Takeaways

  1. The Ants’ ability serves as a mana sink, enabling it to become a progressively larger threat on the board.
  2. Instant speed power adjustments with Carrion Ants allow for surprise and flexibility during combat.
  3. Despite a higher mana cost, the card is a formidable inclusion due to its versatility and combo potential.

Text of card

o1: +1/+1 until end of turn.

"'War is no picnic,' my father liked to say. But the Ants seemed to disagree." —*General Chanek Valteroth*


Card Pros

Card Advantage: Carrion Ants may not draw cards directly, but it has the potential to impact the board by gradually growing stronger. Investing mana into its ability can incrementally tip the balance in your favor, effectively making the Ants an ever-larger threat that must be dealt with.

Resource Acceleration: While not a direct accelerant, Carrion Ants can be a mana sink that optimizes your resource allocation. In the late game, unused mana can continuously bolster the Ants, ensuring that your resources are not going to waste and that every bit of mana could spell defeat for your opponent.

Instant Speed: Carrion Ants’ ability to boost its power at instant speed means reactive play is possible. During the combat phase or in response to spells or abilities, you can adjust the Ants’ power to surprise an opponent, save it from damage, or eliminate a threat when most opportune.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Playing Carrion Ants comes with no direct requirement to discard cards, but it implies a notable commitment of resources to maintain and utilize effectively on the battlefield.

Specific Mana Cost: Carrion Ants requires a specific mana combination to be cast, which may pose a challenge in multicolored or mana-tight decks. Its initial casting cost is entirely in black, demanding a solid black mana base to deploy consistently.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With an initial casting cost and an activated ability that both require a considerable amount of mana, Carrion Ants may strain your mana resources. In situations where mana efficiency is crucial, other creatures could be a more advantageous choice for your deck’s strategy and curve.


Reasons to Include Carrion Ants in Your Collection

Versatility: Carrion Ants offers a flexible solution for decks that require reliable board presence. Its ability to grow in power makes it a threat that can adapt to various game scenarios and opponents.

Combo Potential: With the right setup, this card’s incremental power-boosting can feed into strategies that synergize with creature size. Whether it’s enabling a lethal assault or activating abilities that key off creature stats, there’s potential for some interesting plays.

Meta-Relevance: Given its adaptability in the face of removal-heavy metas, Carrion Ants can remain a recurring problem for opponents. It’s particularly well-suited for matchups where the ability to invest mana into creature growth can tip the scales in your favor.


How to beat

Carrion Ants is an intriguing creature card in the realm of Magic: The Gathering. What makes it stand out from other creatures is its flexible power-boosting ability. By paying mana, you can temporarily increase its power, making it a versatile threat during combat. However, there are strategies to undermine its effectiveness on the battlefield.

Firstly, removal spells are your best friend. A simple Doom Blade or Path to Exile can handle the Ants before they become too large for manageability. If you prefer to avoid single-target removal, board wipes like Wrath of God do the trick with no regard for how much mana has been invested into the creature’s strength. Additionally, tapping into blue magic, bounce spells offer a temporary reprieve, forcing your opponent to waste mana re-playing the creature, while a card like Essence Scatter can counter it outright before it even hits the board.

Moreover, playing creatures with higher toughness values can also nullify Carrion Ants’ impact, as it costs significant mana to grow beyond the default 0/1 stat line, making it difficult to trade efficiently. Managing your resources wisely and maintaining a responsive hand are keys to ensuring the Carrion Ants’ potential threat is never fully realized.


Cards like Carrion Ants

Carrion Ants is an intriguing creature card that offers a unique flexibility within MTG’s vast array of creature cards. Its closest relatives in terms of ability to increase power include the likes of Vampire Hounds and Flowstone Sculpture. Both cards allow players to adjust the creature’s power at the expense of some resources. What makes Carrion Ants stand out is its unlimited use of the power-boosting ability as long as the player has sufficient mana.

Vampire Hounds, while similar with the sacrifice of a card to increase power, specifically requires discarding a creature card, which restricts its adaptability when compared to Carrion Ants. Flowstone Sculpture also offers a power boost, but at the cost of increasing its vulnerability with a decrease in toughness, a trade-off absent in Carrion Ants’ more straightforward ability. Additionally, Carrion Ants maintains its toughness, which allows it to be a more dependable defensive asset on the battlefield.

In essence, when evaluating the scope of on-demand power-boosting creature cards in the game, Carrion Ants is exceptional due to its simple mana-based ability. This card can become an unexpected threat, adapting fluidly to the state of the game without compromising its defenses, a notable ability in MTG.

Vampire Hounds - MTG Card versions
Flowstone Sculpture - MTG Card versions
Vampire Hounds - Exodus (EXO)
Flowstone Sculpture - Tempest (TMP)

Cards similar to Carrion Ants by color, type and mana cost

Hell's Caretaker - MTG Card versions
Rag Man - MTG Card versions
Phyrexian Debaser - MTG Card versions
Xiahou Dun, the One-Eyed - MTG Card versions
Slinking Skirge - MTG Card versions
Gravedigger - MTG Card versions
Scandalmonger - MTG Card versions
Urborg Shambler - MTG Card versions
Whispering Shade - MTG Card versions
Filth - MTG Card versions
Demon of Catastrophes - MTG Card versions
Bold Plagiarist - MTG Card versions
Dirge Bat - MTG Card versions
Toxin Sliver - MTG Card versions
Vampiric Spirit - MTG Card versions
Nim Shambler - MTG Card versions
Bad Ass - MTG Card versions
Scourge of Numai - MTG Card versions
Deathgazer - MTG Card versions
Dirty Wererat - MTG Card versions
Hell's Caretaker - Chronicles (CHR)
Rag Man - Seventh Edition (7ED)
Phyrexian Debaser - Urza's Legacy (ULG)
Xiahou Dun, the One-Eyed - Portal Three Kingdoms (PTK)
Slinking Skirge - Urza's Destiny (UDS)
Gravedigger - The List (PLST)
Scandalmonger - Mercadian Masques (MMQ)
Urborg Shambler - Invasion (INV)
Whispering Shade - Odyssey (ODY)
Filth - Judgment (JUD)
Demon of Catastrophes - Magic Online Promos (PRM)
Bold Plagiarist - Magic Online Promos (PRM)
Dirge Bat - Magic Online Promos (PRM)
Toxin Sliver - Legions (LGN)
Vampiric Spirit - Eighth Edition (8ED)
Nim Shambler - Mirrodin (MRD)
Bad Ass - Unhinged (UNH)
Scourge of Numai - Betrayers of Kamigawa (BOK)
Deathgazer - Ninth Edition (9ED)
Dirty Wererat - Hachette UK (PHUK)

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Carrion Ants MTG card by a specific set like Legends and Fourth Edition Foreign Black Border, 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 Carrion Ants and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Carrion Ants Magic the Gathering card was released in 6 different sets between 1994-06-01 and 2009-09-07. Illustrated by 2 different artists.

#ReleaseNameCodeSymbolNumberFrameLayoutBorderArtist
11994-06-01LegendsLEG 901993normalblackRichard Thomas
21995-04-01Fourth Edition Foreign Black Border4BB 1251993normalblackRichard Thomas
31995-04-01Fourth Edition4ED 1251993normalwhiteRichard Thomas
41995-08-01RenaissanceREN 511993normalblackRichard Thomas
51997-03-24Fifth Edition5ED 1501997normalwhiteJohn Coulthart
62009-09-07Masters Edition IIIME3 601997normalblackRichard Thomas

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Carrion Ants has restrictions

FormatLegality
OldschoolLegal
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
PaupercommanderRestricted
OathbreakerLegal
PremodernLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
PredhLegal
PennyLegal

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