Widespread Brutality MTG Card

Widespread Brutality - War of the Spark (WAR)

War of the Spark (WAR)
2019-05-03 - Number 226

Widespread Brutality - War of the Spark Promos (PWAR)

War of the Spark Promos (PWAR)
2019-05-04 - Number 226p

War of the Spark Promos (PWAR)
2019-05-04 - Number 226s

Card sets	Released in 3 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost	4
Rarity	Rare
Type	Sorcery
Abilities	Amass

Key Takeaways

Creates card advantage by potentially wiping multiple opponent creatures with one cast.
Accelerates your resources by boosting Army tokens, enhancing battlefield presence.
Challenges include specific mana cost and limited effectiveness without prior amassing.

Text of card

Amass Zombies 2, then the Army you amassed deals damage equal to its power to each non-Army creature. (To amass Zombies 2, put two +1/+1 counters on an Army you control. It's also a Zombie. If you don't control an Army, create a 0/0 black Zombie Army creature token first.)

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Widespread Brutality provides a unique benefit as it can act as a board wipe, potentially clearing multiple creatures your opponents control. This ability turns into card advantage as it may result in a two-for-one or better scenario, where you use one card to eliminate several of your opponent’s resources.

Resource Acceleration: This card synergizes with decks that utilize the Amass mechanic, by quickly increasing the size of your Army token. This effectively speeds up your resource development, providing you with a formidable creature in a shorter period and giving you an advantage on the battlefield.

Instant Speed: While Widespread Brutality is a sorcery, its impact on the game can be as significant as an instant speed spell due to its sweeping effect. It allows you to set up your plays knowing that you can reshuffle the board’s dynamics on your turn, keeping the tempo in your favor and preemptively disrupting your opponent’s strategy.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: One notable downside of Widespread Brutality is its necessity for you to amass before it can be fully effective. If you are unable to meet this prerequisite due to a lack of the required tokens or effects in play, this card’s potential diminishes, making it less desirable when you’re trying to establish board presence.

Specific Mana Cost: Widespread Brutality comes with a strict mana requirement of one black, one red, and two generic mana. This specific cost can pose a challenge in multicolored decks that might struggle with mana base consistency, potentially affecting the card’s playability across various deck archetypes.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a casting cost of four mana, Widespread Brutality can be considered quite steep, especially when compared to other sweepers or removal spells in the game that may have lower mana costs or more immediate board impact. This can sometimes lead to it sitting in your hand as a dead card in faster-paced games where mana efficiency is key.

Reasons to Include Widespread Brutality in Your Collection

Versatility: Widespread Brutality offers a unique mix for decks that thrive off of both creature-based tactics and spell prowess. It serves as a potent sweeper in games, potentially turning the tide when you’re behind on the board.

Combo Potential: This card can be a game-changer when combined with creatures that have the Amass ability or those that benefit from non-token creatures dying, leading to a range of powerful synergies in a deck.

Meta-Relevance: Given its ability to clear multiple creatures at once, Widespread Brutality is particularly useful in a meta dense with creature-heavy aggro decks, ensuring that your collection remains competitive.

How to beat

Widespread Brutality is a potent card that can shift the dynamics of a Magic: The Gathering match with its ability to clear multiple creatures off the board. To effectively counteract its impact, players should consider strategies that minimize the presence of creatures that could be vulnerable to its effect. Cards with indestructible or hexproof characteristics, for instance, can withstand the damage dealt by Widespread Brutality and thus remain a solid presence on the battlefield.

Maintaining a diverse range of instant-speed removals or counterspells in your hand can give you the upper edge as well. Cards like Negate or Dovin’s Veto can directly counter Widespread Brutality, preventing its activation entirely. Furthermore, playing creatures with enter-the-battlefield effects can ensure you maintain card advantage, even in the wake of removal spells. By building a strategy that limits the impact of such sweepers, you can sustain your board presence and continue to press the advantage against opponents relying on Widespread Brutality to level the playing field.

In essence, adapting your deck to anticipate and navigate around mass removal spells like Widespread Brutality can be crucial. Through strategic card selection and timely play, you can effectively neutralize this card’s potentially game-changing effects.

Cards like Widespread Brutality

Exploring the depths of control in MTG, Widespread Brutality emerges as a potent force, bearing comparison with cards like Anger of the Gods and Sweltering Suns. Each of these sweep the board clean of smaller creatures, but Widespread Brutality offers a twist with its amass ability. While Anger of the Gods exiles those it destroys, preventing resurrection strategies, it doesn’t contribute a creature to your side of the board.

Sweltering Suns shares the same mana cost but grants the flexibility of cycling when the sweeper isn’t needed. However, Widespread Brutality edges out with the upside of strengthening your army, an attribute absent in Sweltering Suns. Another relative worth mentioning is Flame Sweep, which is more mana-efficient and doesn’t harm your creature army, yet it falls short in damage output compared to Widespread Brutality, making it less effective against sturdier foes.

Each card offers varying angles of approach to creature management. While you weigh their mana costs against their sweeping ability and additional benefits, Widespread Brutality shows its unique appeal by tipping the scales in your favor with immediate board impact and a growing threat presence.

Cards similar to Widespread Brutality by color, type and mana cost

In Thrall to the Pit - MTG Card versions

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Widespread Brutality MTG card by a specific set like War of the Spark and War of the Spark Promos, 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 Widespread Brutality and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Widespread Brutality Magic the Gathering card was released in 2 different sets between 2019-05-03 and 2019-05-04. Illustrated by Victor Adame Minguez.

#	Released	Name	Code	Number	Frame	Layout	Border	Artist
1	2019-05-03	War of the Spark	WAR	226	2015	Normal	Black	Victor Adame Minguez
2	2019-05-04	War of the Spark Promos	PWAR	226p	2015	Normal	Black	Victor Adame Minguez
3	2019-05-04	War of the Spark Promos	PWAR	226s	2015	Normal	Black	Victor Adame Minguez

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Widespread Brutality has restrictions

Format	Legality
Historicbrawl	Legal
Historic	Legal
Legacy	Legal
Oathbreaker	Legal
Gladiator	Legal
Pioneer	Legal
Commander	Legal
Modern	Legal
Vintage	Legal
Duel	Legal
Explorer	Legal
Penny	Legal
Timeless	Legal

Rules and information

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

Date	Text
2019-05-03	Army is a new creature type. It’s possible to control a nontoken Army (perhaps a creature with the changeling ability) and, through combinations of other cards, it’s possible to control multiple Army tokens. When instructed to amass, you may put +1/+1 counters on any of your Army creatures, and you may choose a different one each time.
2019-05-03	If you don’t control an Army, the Zombie Army token that you create enters the battlefield as a 0/0 creature. Any abilities that trigger when a creature with a certain power enters the battlefield, such as that of Mentor of the Meek, will see the token enter as a 0/0 creature before it gets +1/+1 counters.