Xavier Sal, Infested Captain MTG Card

Xavier Sal, Infested Captain excels in creating card and mana resource advantages during play. The card’s instant-speed activation offers players tactical flexibility in matches. Despite its merits, the card’s specific mana requirement may limit its deck compatibility.
Card setsReleased in 2 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost3
RarityRare
TypeLegendary Creature — Human Fungus Pirate
Abilities Populate,Proliferate
Power 3
Toughness 3

Text of card

, Remove a counter from another permanent you control: Populate. Activate only as a sorcery. , Sacrifice another creature: Proliferate. Activate only as a sorcery.

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Xavier Sal, Infested Captain gives players a strategic edge by offering repeated card advantage. Each turn presents an opportunity to draw an additional card, ensuring a steady flow of options and maintaining pressure on the opponent.

Resource Acceleration: This formidable captain isn’t just about drawing extra cards – he’s also a catalyst for resource acceleration. By creating a token creature that can be sacrificed, you set the stage for ramping up your mana resources, potentially catapulting your board state ahead of the curve.

Instant Speed: With the ability to activate at instant speed, Xavier Sal, Infested Captain adds a layer of tactical depth to any game. This allows for a flexible response to your opponent’s actions, enabling you to optimize your strategy and adapt to the ever-changing battlefield swiftly.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Playing Xavier Sal, Infested Captain requires disgorging a valuable card from your hand, which might put you at a material disadvantage, especially if you’re already hard-pressed for resources or playing a strategy reliant on maintaining a full grip.

Specific Mana Cost: Being a card that needs both blue and black mana to cast, Xavier Sal, Infested Captain demands a deck tailored around those colors, potentially restricting its adaptability and reducing its appeal to a wider array of deck builds.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Weighing in at three mana, with one of each color required, Xavier Sal, Infested Captain is a significant early to mid-game investment. This cost might compete with other pivotal plays you need to make, leaving it benched in scenarios where tempo or curve considerations take precedence.

Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Xavier Sal, Infested Captain, is a highly adaptable card, capable of enhancing a variety of strategies. Its ability to generate and empower tokens makes it a solid addition for anyone looking to strengthen their creature-based plays.

Combo Potential: This card naturally lends itself to combo-rich environments. With its capacity to proliferate Insect tokens, it seamlessly integrates with synergistic mechanics, opening a world of possibilities for combo aficionados.

Meta-Relevance: Given its strength in token generation and potential for board control, Xavier Sal, Infested Captain, holds its own in a meta that favors swarm strategies and incremental advantages. Its presence on the battlefield can swiftly tip the scales in your favor.

How to beat

Xavier Sal, Infested Captain is a card that can quickly sway the tides if left unchecked in an MTG matchup. With the ability to decay non-Human creatures, this card elevates strategies around sacrifice and recursion setups. To counteract Xavier’s potential, target removals such as Fatal Push or Path to Exile prove to be reliable tools. It’s crucial to dispatch him before your opponent can capitalize on his powerful synergy and board presence.

To dismantle the menacing side of Xavier Sal, board wipes like Wrath of God can reset the playing field against numerous decayed tokens. It’s also worth noting the potential shift in game strategy by incorporating graveyard hate cards like Rest in Peace, which will stifle Xavier’s recursion abilities. Consider employing instant-speed interaction—keeping mana open to disrupt Xavier’s key plays or in response to his trigger, where suitable, ensuring your reactive measures align with the pace of your opponent’s intended plays.

Overall, defeating Xavier Sal, Infested Captain demands a blend of timing and the right choices in removal, making adaptability a cornerstone of your strategy against such an MTG card.

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Xavier Sal, Infested Captain MTG card by a specific set like The Lost Caverns of Ixalan Commander and The Lost Caverns of Ixalan Commander, 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 Xavier Sal, Infested Captain and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Xavier Sal, Infested Captain Magic the Gathering card was released in 1 different sets between 2023-11-17 and 2023-11-17. Illustrated by Bryan Sola.

#ReleasedNameCodeSymbolNumberFrameLayoutBorderArtist
12023-11-17The Lost Caverns of Ixalan CommanderLCC 332015NormalBlackBryan Sola
22023-11-17The Lost Caverns of Ixalan CommanderLCC 142015NormalBlackBryan Sola

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Xavier Sal, Infested Captain has restrictions

FormatLegality
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
OathbreakerLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal

Rules and information

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

Date Text
2023-11-10 An ability that triggers "Whenever you proliferate" triggers even if you chose no permanents or players while doing so.
2023-11-10 Any "as
-his creature] enters the battlefield" or "
-his creature] enters the battlefield with" abilities of the new token will work.
2023-11-10 If a player or permanent has more than one kind of counter on it, and you choose for it to get additional counters, it must get one of each kind of counter it already has. You can't have it get just one kind of counter it already has and not the others.
2023-11-10 If you control no creature tokens when you populate, nothing will happen.
2023-11-10 Players can respond to a spell or ability whose effect includes proliferating. Once that spell or ability starts to resolve, however, and its controller chooses which permanents and players will get new counters, it's too late for anyone to respond.
2023-11-10 The new creature token copies the characteristics of the original token as stated by the effect that created the original token.
2023-11-10 The new token doesn't copy whether the original token is tapped or untapped, whether it has any counters on it or Auras and Equipment attached to it, or any non-copy effects that have changed its power, toughness, color, and so on.
2023-11-10 To proliferate, you can choose any permanent that has a counter, including ones controlled by opponents. You can choose any player who has a counter, including opponents. You can't choose cards in any zone other than the battlefield, even if they have counters on them.
2023-11-10 You don't have to choose every permanent or player that has a counter, only the ones you want to add another counter to. Since "any number" includes zero, you don't have to choose any permanents at all, and you don't have to choose any players at all.