Cultbrand Cinder MTG Card
| Mana cost | |
| Converted mana cost | 5 |
| Rarity | Common |
| Type | Creature — Elemental Shaman |
| Released | 2008-05-02 |
| Set symbol | |
| Set name | Shadowmoor |
| Set code | SHM |
| Power | 3 |
| Toughness | 3 |
| Number | 182 |
| Frame | 2003 |
| Layout | Normal |
| Border | Black |
| Illustred by | Christopher Moeller |
Key Takeaways
- Provides card advantage and deck digging through its triggered abilities, enhancing player strategies.
- Its potential mana ramp and instant speed interaction enhance tactical play in matches.
- Requires careful consideration of its discard cost and specific mana requirements in deck construction.
Text of card
When Cultbrand Cinder comes into play, put a -1/-1 counter on target creature.
"Your seared flesh will be the first step in your journey to dark enlightenment."
Card Pros
Card Advantage: Cultbrand Cinder can be a key factor to outnumbering your opponent in card resources. With each triggered ability, you’re drawing deeper into your deck, giving you a better chance to find the answers or threats you need.
Resource Acceleration: Efficiently designed, this creature can potentially ramp up your available mana. If its ability aligns with your strategy, it smooths out your mana curve and helps deploy your heavier spells sooner.
Instant Speed: The flexibility of instant speed interaction offered by Cultbrand Cinder adds a layer of strategy to your game. You can adapt to your opponent’s moves, disrupting their plans while keeping pace with the evolving battlefield.
Card Cons
Discard Requirement: Cultbrand Cinder demands a card to be discarded when it’s cast, potentially straining your hand when you’re trying to maintain card advantage.
Specific Mana Cost: With a casting cost that includes both black and red mana, it can be a challenging fit in decks not dedicated to those colors, reducing its overall flexibility.
Comparatively High Mana Cost: Sporting a four-mana cost might deter players when there are alternatives that could provide similar or greater impacts on the board at a lower cost.
Reasons to Include Cultbrand Cinder in Your Collection
Versatility: Cultbrand Cinder offers adaptability that any player can appreciate. Its unearth ability allows it to have an impact both as a recurring threat and as an unexpected blocker, making it a decent fit for numerous red or black decks that favor flexibility on the battlefield.
Combo Potential: The unearth mechanic of this card can be combined with sacrifice effects and graveyard synergies, unlocking potential in decks that exploit creatures coming in and out of play for strategic advantage or value generation.
Meta-Relevance: With a battlefield that’s often populated by multi-colored creatures, Cultbrand Cinder’s color hate ability can give you an edge. If the dominant decks lean towards using creatures with white or green, having Cultbrand Cinder in your arsenal could disrupt your opponent’s plans and keep them on the defensive.
How to beat
Cultbrand Cinder presents a unique challenge on the battlefield in MTG. This creature card can be a relentless force due to its untap ability when a player casts a red spell. To effectively counter Cultbrand Cinder, one strategy is to limit the number of red spells in play. Employing control tactics such as counter spells, removal spells, or even preventing spells from being cast through cards like Silence can disrupt the synergy and momentum that Cultbrand Cinder relies on.
Another approach is using enchantments that restrict abilities, such as Suppression Bonds or Pacifism, to nullify Cultbrand Cinder’s untap feature. It’s also wise to consider creatures with protection from red or those that can’t be targeted by abilities, giving you an edge on the board. Lastly, having a robust defense with high toughness creatures can serve as a barrier against Cultbrand Cinder’s attacks, ensuring your life total remains secure while you find a permanent solution to eliminate this fiery threat from the game.
Decisive action and smart deck building are key to overpowering Cultbrand Cinder. By anticipating this card and including appropriate counters in your arsenal, you can maintain control over the duel and emerge victorious.
Cards like Cultbrand Cinder
The Cultbrand Cinder card stands out in the Magic: The Gathering rogues’ gallery as a unique creature option. It shares some of its black mana characteristics with cards like Dread Wanderer and Gutterbones, creatures adept at returning from the graveyard to the battlefield under specific conditions. Cultbrand Cinder, however, offers its own twist with an ability that can affect the outcome of a match by causing each player to lose 1 life when a player casts a red spell.
Looking at cards with a comparable impact on player life totals, we might consider Thermo-Alchemist for its ability to untap and deal damage whenever you cast an instant or sorcery spell. Although Thermo-Alchemist requires setup and repeat spell casting to chip away at opponents, Cultbrand Cinder’s potential for immediate impact whenever a red spell is cast could tilt the scales in certain decks. Then you have Falkenrath Noble, another creature that influences life totals, but it requires creatures to die in order to trigger its effect, while Cultbrand Cinder simply necessitates the casting of red spells for a steady, less conditional effect.
Weighing the nuances of these cards, Cultbrand Cinder offers MTG players a significant strategic advantage in decks that frequently cast red spells, blending seamlessly with red’s aggressive playstyle and serving as a persistent threat to opponents’ life totals.
Cards similar to Cultbrand Cinder by color, type and mana cost
Where to buy
If you're looking to purchase Cultbrand Cinder MTG card by a specific set like Shadowmoor, 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 Cultbrand Cinder 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 Cultbrand Cinder 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 Cultbrand Cinder card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.
| Date | Text |
|---|---|
| 2008-05-01 | If there are no other creatures on the battlefield when Cultbrand Cinder enters the battlefield, it must target itself. |
