Swamp Mosquito MTG Card
1996-06-10 - Number 63a
1996-06-10 - Number 63b
2006-10-06 - Number 49
| Card sets | Released in 3 setsSee all |
| Mana cost | |
| Converted mana cost | 2 |
| Rarity | Common |
| Type | Creature — Insect |
| Abilities | Flying |
| Power | 0 |
| Toughness | 1 |
Text of card
Flying If Swamp Mosquito attacks and is not blocked, defending player gets a poison counter. If a player has ten or more poison counters, he or she loses the game.
Cards like Swamp Mosquito
Swamp Mosquito finds its niche in Magic: The Gathering as a quirky yet efficient black flying creature. It’s akin to other low-cost flyers like Vampire Bats, which provide similar aerial assault capabilities for minimal mana investment. But Swamp Mosquito boasts a unique ability – it can inflict a poison counter on the opponent, affecting the game’s dynamics differently than Vampire Bats, as poison counters offer an alternate win condition.
Thinking through other parallels, we encounter the likes of Marsh Goblins. Though they share the same mana value and the ability to avoid blockers with Swampwalk, Marsh Goblins lack the flying advantage and the poison impact that Swamp Mosquito delivers. This gives the Mosquito a favorable edge in evasion-oriented strategies. Then, there’s the Blighted Agent, another infect agent that’s unblockable, ensuring its damage hits the mark. While it comes out at the same mana cost, it doesn’t fly and thus isn’t as flexible against an open board.
Ultimately, Swamp Mosquito stands out with its combination of flight and poison mechanics, establishing itself as a distinctive card that provides a potent mix of tactical options for players in Magic: The Gathering. Its ability to contribute to poison-based victories renders it a card worth considering for specific deck themes.
Cards similar to Swamp Mosquito by color, type and mana cost
Card Pros
Card Advantage: While the Swamp Mosquito doesn’t directly allow you to draw cards, its ability to potentially give an opponent a poison counter can be a form of indirect card advantage. By putting pressure on your opponent’s life total in an alternative way, you may force them to use resources to handle this threat, effectively giving you an advantage.
Resource Acceleration: This flying insect may not boost your mana reserves, but what it lacks in resource acceleration it makes up for in efficiency. At a low mana cost, it manages to be a relevant play early on, allowing you to allocate resources elsewhere while still developing a presence on the board.
Instant Speed: Swamp Mosquito itself is not an instant; however, its flying ability allows it to be a consistent threat each turn. This can indirectly benefit your instant-speed plays by keeping your opponent on their toes, wary of what you might do with your untapped mana as they deal with the recurring threat of poison counters.
Card Cons
Discard Requirement: Although Swamp Mosquito doesn’t ask for a card to be discarded, it’s important to synchronize its abilities with your strategy, as it doesn’t automatically deal damage upon attacking, unlike other creatures that you might be wanting to keep in hand.
Specific Mana Cost: Swamp Mosquito requires black mana, which means it fits specifically into black or multicolored decks. This can be restricting when you’re trying to optimize mana base for a swift gameplay, especially in formats that value color flexibility.
Comparatively High Mana Cost: Its casting cost and the need to connect with the opponent to deliver its poison counter can seem steep for a card that doesn’t always guarantee board impact. There are creatures at similar mana costs that potentially offer more immediate and substantial board presence.
Reasons to Include Swamp Mosquito in Your Collection
Versatility: Swamp Mosquito is a multifaceted card that can be slipped into various deck builds, especially those needing evasive creatures. With flying, it can often slip past ground defenses to chip away at an opponent’s life total.
Combo Potential: This card’s intrinsic ability to potentially give an opponent a poison counter opens up avenues for poison-based deck strategies. Integrating it with cards that amplify poison counters can create unexpected win conditions.
Meta-Relevance: As metagames ebb and flow with creature-based combat, having a flyer like Swamp Mosquito can provide an edge. With most players concentrating on more robust creatures or intricate combos, this seemingly innocuous card can fly under the radar, quite literally, and accrue incremental advantage.
How to beat
Swamp Mosquito is a sneaky little creature card that can catch many players off guard in Magic: The Gathering. With its flying ability, it can often bypass ground-based defenses and, thanks to its infect ability, it threatens to rack up poison counters quickly if left unchecked. If you’re facing down this elusive insect, prioritizing removal spells that can target airborne creatures is essential. Spells like Doom Blade or Go for the Throat can work wonders in plucking it from the skies before it deals any infectious damage.
Another efficient method to combat Swamp Mosquito is to have creatures with reach or flying to block it. By establishing a firm aerial defense, you can neutralize the threat it poses without dedicating specific spells to its removal. Additionally, because Swamp Mosquito has only 1 toughness, even a small amount of damage is enough to eliminate it, making cheap ping effects or even board-wide damage spells like Electrickery viable options.
Ultimately, incorporating a mix of creature removal, defensive fliers, and damage sources offers a solid strategy against Swamp Mosquito, limiting its ability to contribute poison counters and ensuring it remains a minimal threat throughout your matches in Magic: The Gathering.
Where to buy
If you're looking to purchase Swamp Mosquito MTG card by a specific set like Alliances and Alliances, 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 Swamp Mosquito and other MTG cards:
BUY NOW BurnMana is an official partner of TCGPlayer
- eBay
- 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
Printings
The Swamp Mosquito Magic the Gathering card was released in 2 different sets between 1996-06-10 and 2006-10-06. Illustrated by Nicola Leonard.
| # | Released | Name | Code | Symbol | Number | Frame | Layout | Border | Artist |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1996-06-10 | Alliances | ALL | 63a | 1993 | Normal | Black | Nicola Leonard | |
| 2 | 1996-06-10 | Alliances | ALL | 63b | 1993 | Normal | Black | Nicola Leonard | |
| 3 | 2006-10-06 | Time Spiral Timeshifted | TSB | 49 | 1997 | Normal | Black | Nicola Leonard |
Legalities
Magic the Gathering formats where Swamp Mosquito has restrictions
| Format | Legality |
|---|---|
| Commander | Legal |
| Legacy | Legal |
| Paupercommander | Legal |
| Modern | Legal |
| Oathbreaker | Legal |
| Pauper | Legal |
| Premodern | Legal |
| Vintage | Legal |
| Duel | Legal |
| Predh | Legal |
| Penny | Legal |
Rules and information
The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering Swamp Mosquito card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.
| Date | Text |
|---|---|
| 2004-10-04 | Triggers immediately after blocking is declared if at that time no blockers are assigned to it. |
| 2013-04-15 | An ability that triggers when something “attacks and isn’t blocked” triggers in the declare blockers step after blockers are declared if (1) that creature is attacking and (2) no creatures are declared to block it. It will trigger even if that creature was put onto the battlefield attacking rather than having been declared as an attacker in the declare attackers step. |