Forge of Heroes MTG Card

Treasure Chest (PZ2)
2016-11-16 - Number 70679

Commander 2018 (C18)
2018-08-09 - Number 58

Forge of Heroes - Commander Masters (CMM)

Commander Masters (CMM)
2023-08-04 - Number 995

Card sets	Released in 3 setsSee all
Rarity	Common
Type	Land

Key Takeaways

Forge of Heroes boosts commanders, potentially swinging the game in your favor through strategic power enhancement.
Instantaneous commander upgrades without mana offer resource efficiency and surprise tactical shifts against opponents.
Requires careful hand management and specific mana, constraining its use to certain decks and strategies.

Text of card

: Add . : Choose target commander that entered the battlefield this turn. Put a +1/+1 counter on it if it's a creature and a loyalty counter on it if it's a planeswalker.

History is not delicately woven. It is hammered with fire.

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Forge of Heroes is a valuable addition to any commander deck, promising to put you ahead as soon as your commander enters the battlefield. Unlike cards that only benefit you during the casting, Forge of Heroes continues to deliver advantages by enhancing your commander’s power, forging a path to victory through incremental gains.

Resource Acceleration: The land slot in a deck is often reserved for mana production, but Forge of Heroes offers a unique type of resource acceleration by increasing your commander’s might without additional mana expenditure. This sets the stage for amplified abilities and increased damage output, effectively saving the precious resources usually invested in buffs and equipment for other strategic moves.

Instant Speed: While Forge of Heroes itself doesn’t operate at instant speed, its instantaneous impact when a commander is played can be game-changing. This mirrors the surprise and flexibility of an instant, allowing you to upgrade your commander the moment it hits the battlefield and pivot your tactics accordingly against unsuspecting opponents.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Playing Forge of Heroes demands a certain card be discarded from your hand. This stipulation can hinder your game plan if you’re already grappling with a sparse hand.

Specific Mana Cost: Being colorless helps in versatility, but the necessity for a particular type of mana to harness its full potential limits its integration across various deck archetypes that may not generate that specific mana as readily.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Although offering a unique advantage by boosting the power of a commander or planeswalker, the cost to activate Forge of Heroes can be seen as steep, especially when stacked up against other options that may offer a greater impact on the board for a similar investment.

Reasons to Include Forge of Heroes in Your Collection

Versatility: Forge of Heroes is a utility land that can seamlessly slot into any Commander deck, offering an extra boost to your commander the moment it enters the battlefield. Its ability to put a +1/+1 counter or a loyalty counter on your commander can be the difference between victory and defeat, making it a valuable asset in a variety of situations.

Combo Potential: This card opens up synergies with numerous strategies that accentuate counters, such as proliferate mechanics or those that benefit from modifying the power and toughness of creatures. Its potential to turn the tide by enhancing your commander’s impact right from the start sets the stage for powerful combinations.

Meta-Relevance: In environments where Commander games hinge on incremental advantages, Forge of Heroes can be a key factor. It aligns well with the meta shift towards the popularity of Planeswalker commanders and creatures that evolve through +1/+1 counters, ensuring that it maintains its significance in a shifting landscape.

How to beat

Forge of Heroes is a unique land card in MTG that’s particularly known for its ability to place a +1/+1 counter on a commander as it enters the battlefield. This can seem daunting, especially when facing commanders that already boast formidable strengths. To effectively navigate around this ability, focusing on control strategies that limit the use of commanders is key. Cards like Nevermore prevent specific commanders from being cast, while board wipes like Wrath of God ensure that the impact of that +1/+1 counter is minimized.

Another approach is using land destruction cards such as Ghost Quarter to target Forge of Heroes directly, thus denying your opponent the use of its ability. Direct removal spells like Swords to Plowshares can assist in quickly dealing with enhanced commanders before their additional power and toughness become a threat. Additionally, applying pressure with your own aggressive strategies can divert your opponent’s resources, leaving less room for them to utilize Forge of Heroes to its full potential.

Understanding the dynamics of Forge of Heroes enables players to craft a game plan to mitigate its effects. With precise timing and the right mix of control and aggression, this card’s advantage can be significantly reduced, leveling the playing field once again.

Cards like Forge of Heroes

Forge of Heroes is a unique land card in Magic: The Gathering that shines in the realm of commander games. It shares similarities with cards like Opal Palace, which also provides a boost to a commander’s power and toughness when it enters the battlefield. However, Forge of Heroes offers an additional option, allowing you to choose between putting a +1/+1 counter on a commander or adding a loyalty counter to a planeswalker.

Comparably, there’s Command Tower, a steadfast choice in any commander deck for its mana-fixing ability. While it doesn’t enhance creatures or planeswalkers, its consistency in mana production is unrivaled. Similarly, Path of Ancestry gives both mana-fixing and the opportunity to scry when casting a creature of your commander’s tribe, though it doesn’t interact with counters directly like Forge of Heroes.

Ultimately, evaluating these options, Forge of Heroes offers a tactical advantage by empowering your commander or planeswalker directly, making it a worthwhile inclusion for strategies that capitalize on counters and incremental advantages provided by these key figures in a player’s arsenal.

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Forge of Heroes MTG card by a specific set like Treasure Chest and Commander 2018, 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 Forge of Heroes and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Forge of Heroes Magic the Gathering card was released in 3 different sets between 2016-11-16 and 2023-08-04. Illustrated by Titus Lunter.

#	Released	Name	Code	Number	Frame	Layout	Border	Artist
1	2016-11-16	Treasure Chest	PZ2	70679	2015	Normal	Black	Titus Lunter
2	2018-08-09	Commander 2018	C18	58	2015	Normal	Black	Titus Lunter
3	2023-08-04	Commander Masters	CMM	995	2015	Normal	Black	Titus Lunter

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Forge of Heroes has restrictions

Format	Legality
Commander	Legal
Legacy	Legal
Paupercommander	Legal
Oathbreaker	Legal
Pauper	Legal
Vintage	Legal
Duel	Legal

Rules and information

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

Date	Text
2018-07-13	If the target commander is somehow a creature and a planeswalker, most likely because it’s Gideon, it receives both kinds of counters.
2018-07-13	If the target commander is somehow neither a creature nor a planeswalker (such as Arixmethes, Slumbering Isle may be), it receives no counters.