Foul Presence MTG Card

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	3
Rarity	Uncommon
Type	Enchantment — Aura
Abilities	Enchant
Released	2001-06-04
Set symbol
Set name	Apocalypse
Set code	APC
Number	39
Frame	1997
Layout	Normal
Border	Black
Illustred by	Ray Lago

Key Takeaways

Offers card advantage by compelling opponents to sacrifice creatures or let you draw cards.
Indirect resource acceleration by reducing opponent’s creatures, paving your victory path.
Synergizes well with instant speed interactions, increasing strategic gameplay impact.

Text of card

Enchanted creature gets -1/-1 and has "oc T: Target creature gets -1/-1 until end of turn."

The Phyrexians have one word that means both "evolution" and "pain."

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Foul Presence provides a steady stream of card advantage by forcing your opponent to choose between sacrificing a creature or giving you the opportunity to draw a card. This can help tilt the balance of the game in your favor by depleting your opponent’s resources while enriching your own hand.

Resource Acceleration: By pressuring your opponent into sacrificing creatures, Foul Presence indirectly acts as resource acceleration. Each creature sacrificed is one less blocker or attacker for your opponent and streamlines your path to victory. In games of attrition, this can be a decisive factor.

Instant Speed: While Foul Presence itself may not be an instant, it lends itself to strategies that include instant speed interaction. This synergy allows you to hold up mana for immediate responses or end-of-turn plays, then follow up with Foul Presence in your turn for maximum impact.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Engaging with Foul Presence requires the player to discard another card, a move that might deplete valuable hand resources. This drawback can be particularly taxing when a player’s hand is already running low, possibly hindering strategic flexibility.

Specific Mana Cost: Foul Presence’s casting cost necessitates one black mana, which aligns it strictly with black decks or those that can accommodate the mana fixing required to cast multicolored cards. This could restrict the card’s inclusion in a variety of deck types.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Demanding three mana overall, two of which are generic, Foul Presence’s total casting cost can impact the game tempo unfavorably. This investment can be particularly steep in situations where players must balance the urgency of board presence against the benefits that Foul Presence delivers.

Reasons to Include Foul Presence in Your Collection

Versatility: Foul Presence is an enchantment that allows for repeated negative effects on opponents’ creatures, making it a flexible tool in decks focused on control and attrition strategies.

Combo Potential: This card synergizes well with creature sacrifice and death-trigger mechanics, opening the door for numerous combo plays and board control tactics.

Meta-Relevance: With many decks relying on creature-based strategies, Foul Presence can become a recurring nuisance for your opponents, disrupting their plans and giving you the upper hand in creature matchups.

How to beat

Foul Presence is an intriguing card in the MTG arena, enhancing a player’s ability to exert influence over the board by granting ongoing damage and control capabilities. Ascending from the enchant creature lineage, Foul Presence stands unique with its consistent and dependable ping of damage, slowly but surely eroding an opponent’s life total. Its ability to render any creature a persistent threat mirrors the functionality of cards like Underworld Dreams, where the strategy revolves around incremental damage to whittle down the opposition.

To outmaneuver Foul Presence, one must consider enchantment removal spells like Disenchant or Naturalize, which are quick and efficient ways to eliminate the threat it poses. Timing is critical; removing Foul Presence before its controller can reap the full benefits ensures your creatures remain free from its grasp. Additionally, leverage cards that can protect your own creatures from being targeted, such as hexproof providers, which help inoculate your side of the battlefield against such incursions. Tactical decision-making plays a crucial role in thwarting Foul Presence’s subtle but steady pressure on the game.

In essence, Foul Presence demands respect on the battlefield. However, with the right strategies, creature protections, and enchantment removal tactics, its impact can be mitigated, allowing players to stay on the front foot in the multifaceted world of MTG.

Cards like Foul Presence

Foul Presence is an intriguing black enchantment card that brings a unique dynamic to the table in terms of board control. Its closest relatives in terms of functionality are those that offer both creature weakening and incremental life loss to opponents. For instance, Contaminated Bond is similar as it chips away at an opponent’s life total whenever the enchanted creature attacks, which nudges players towards a more defensive strategy.

Comparably, Stab Wound serves as another parallel, not only decreasing a creature’s power but also siphoning off life from the creature’s controller each turn. However, Foul Presence allows for a more direct and immediate effect upon the resolution, making it an opportunistic choice for disrupting opponents. Finally, Unholy Indenture delivers a different yet relevant comparison. Although it doesn’t drain life or influence a creature’s power, its control over creature destiny by reanimating the enchanted creature under your control upon death can swing the game’s momentum significantly.

Assessing its place within the broad spectrum of similar enchantments, Foul Presence offers a potent combination of immediate creature debuff and steady, inevitable life loss, positioning it as a compelling option for control-centric MTG strategies.

Cards similar to Foul Presence by color, type and mana cost

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Foul Presence MTG card by a specific set like Apocalypse, 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 Foul Presence and other MTG cards: