Sunspring Expedition MTG Card

Provides life gain and strategic depth, allowing for game state manipulation at instant speed. Demands a specific mana base and can be restrictive in diverse decks. Enhances combos, synergizes with landfall, and fits into various archetypes.

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	1
Rarity	Common
Type	Enchantment
Abilities	Landfall
Released	2009-10-02
Set symbol
Set name	Zendikar
Set code	ZEN
Number	37
Frame	2003
Layout	Normal
Border	Black
Illustred by	Chris J. Anderson

Text of card

Landfall — Whenever a land enters the battlefield under your control, you may put a quest counter on Sunspring Expedition. Remove three quest counters from Sunspring Expedition and sacrifice it: You gain 8 life.

Cards like Sunspring Expedition

Sunspring Expedition stands out in Magic: The Gathering as a unique life gain quest card. It’s akin to other low-cost enchantments like Healing Salve, which also offers a burst of life but without the need to wait for quest counters. Sunspring Expedition takes a different route, accumulating counters over turns that eventually rewards you with a substantial amount of life.

Comparable to Soul’s Attendant, another card that aids in life gain strategies, Sunspring Expedition doesn’t rely on creature’s presence to trigger the effect but instead uses land placements, marking its unique trigger mechanism. This allows it to fit seamlessly into landfall decks. Congregate is also part of this life gain group, delivering an instant massive life boost based on creature count, contrasting with the expedition’s gradual, assured increase.

Evaluating these cards side by side, Sunspring Expedition provides a strategic depth in the life gain theme. Its deferred but significant life gain potential makes it a potent piece in decks that can afford the wait or manipulate counters, setting it apart from its on-the-spot counterparts in the MTG life gain arsenal.

Cards similar to Sunspring Expedition by color, type and mana cost

Mask of Law and Grace - MTG Card versions

Decks using this card

MTG decks using Sunspring Expedition. Dig deeper into the strategy of decks, sideboard cards, list ideas and export to play in ARENA or MOL.

#	Name	Format	Archetype	Event
	Bant Control	Legacy	Jeskai Control	2023 NA Legacy Champs

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Sunspring Expedition offers a unique way to prepare for future turns by placing quest counters, and when completed, it grants you significant life gain. This can be particularly beneficial in formats where life total maintenance is crucial and can set you up for a more secure position as the game progresses.

Resource Acceleration: Despite being a slower form of resource acceleration, the life gained from Sunspring Expedition can indirectly enable strategies focused on life total as a resource. This synergy with cards that capitalize on higher life totals can effectively accelerate your game plan.

Instant Speed: The activation of Sunspring Expedition’s ability can be done at instant speed, which means you can choose the optimal moment to gain life, possibly thwarting an opponent’s strategy that relies on reducing your life total quickly. This flexibility allows for more strategic depth and can catch opponents off guard.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Sunspring Expedition requires discarding a card, posing a potential setback when you’re trying to maintain hand advantage against your opponent.

Specific Mana Cost: Needing both white and any other two mana colors, this card demands a dedicated mana base, which could be restricting in multicolored or mana-tight decks.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a cost of three mana, its landfall ability might compete with other land-based strategies that offer a more immediate impact on the game state.

Reasons to Include Sunsprint Expedition in Your Collection

Versatility: Sunsprint Expedition showcases flexibility in multiple deck archetypes. Its land searching capability is a boon for landfall strategies, ensuring you don’t miss vital land drops.

Combo Potential: For players who love clever interactions, Sunsprint Expedition can be a cornerstone. It supports combos with cards that trigger upon land entry, proliferate counters, or even benefit from enchantment synergies.

Meta-Relevance: In a meta where ramp is key, Sunsprint Expedition secures a place. It’s a low-cost investment that scales well into late-game advantages, helping to match the pace against ramp-heavy opposition.

How to beat

Sunspring Expedition is a unique card within MTG’s vast portfolio of strategies. Gaining life can be a central part of many game plans, and Sunspring Expedition does this efficiently once you fulfill its quest. Like other quest cards, it sits on the battlefield accumulating quest counters until it’s ready to activate for its powerful effect.

To counteract Sunspring Expedition, players should consider a direct approach, such as employing enchantment removal cards. Since this card relies on building and then removing quest counters, disruption is key. You could use cards like Naturalize or Disenchant to remove it before the quest is complete. Another tactic is to apply aggressive strategies that outpace the life gain provided by Sunspring Expedition. Fast-paced decks, like Red Deck Wins that focus on swiftly reducing an opponent’s life total, can render the incremental life gain from Sunspring Expedition less impactful.

Overall, while Sunspring Expedition can serve as a lifeline for many decks, a well-timed removal or an aggressive game plan can effectively neutralize this MTG card’s potential advantage.

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Sunspring Expedition MTG card by a specific set like Zendikar, 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 Sunspring Expedition and other MTG cards:

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Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Sunspring Expedition 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 Sunspring Expedition card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.

Date	Text
2009-10-01	The landfall ability triggers whenever a land enters the battlefield under your control for any reason. It triggers whenever you play a land, as well as whenever a spell or ability (such as Rampant Growth) causes you to put a land onto the battlefield under your control. It will even trigger when a spell or ability causes another player to put a land onto the battlefield under your control (as can happen with Yavimaya Dryad’s ability, for example).
2009-10-01	When a land enters the battlefield under your control, each landfall ability of the permanents you control will trigger. You can put them on the stack in any order. The last ability you put on the stack will be the first one that resolves.