Swell of Growth MTG Card

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	2
Rarity	Common
Type	Instant
Released	2015-10-02
Set symbol
Set name	Battle for Zendikar
Set code	BFZ
Number	191
Frame	2015
Layout	Normal
Border	Black
Illustred by	Magali Villeneuve

Key Takeaways

Swell of Growth offers dual benefits: creature bolstering and an additional land play for ramping.
Extra mana can lead to game-changing plays, enabling larger or multiple spell casts.
Casting Swell of Growth at instant speed allows players to retain tactical surprise and flexibility.

Text of card

Target creature gets +2/+2 until end of turn. You may put a land card from your hand onto the battlefield.

"Nissa is not the only one with a deep connection to Zendikar's primal elements." —Kiora

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Swell of Growth not only increases a creature’s power but also lets you put a land card from your hand onto the battlefield, potentially ramping up your resources and giving you an edge in deploying heavier spells or abilities later.

Resource Acceleration: The additional land drop facilitated by Swell of Growth can significantly boost your mana accessibility, allowing for larger plays or multiple spells to be cast in a single turn, thus speeding up your overall gameplay.

Instant Speed: The ability to cast Swell of Growth at instant speed provides a versatile advantage, giving you the opportunity to surprise your opponent during combat or at the end of their turn, keeping them guessing and maintaining tactical flexibility.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Swell of Growth does not have this particular drawback, which is advantageous when conserving hand resources.

Specific Mana Cost: With a casting cost that includes Green mana, this card is tailored for decks that have Green mana readily available, limiting its versatility in multicolored or non-Green decks.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Although only costing two mana, one might argue that there are alternatives available that provide a permanent boost or more comprehensive effects for a similar or slightly higher mana investment.

Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Swell of Growth can seamlessly adapt to various deck archetypes, particularly those that rely on landfall triggers or need a sudden boost in creature strength during combat.

Combo Potential: This card can enable explosive plays, pairing well with strategies that capitalize on putting additional lands into play, thereby creating opportunities for both immediate impact and setting the stage for powerful turns.

Meta-Relevance: As the game evolves, having a card that can act as both a combat trick and a ramp tool means Swell of Growth maintains relevance, offering utility in a shifting landscape of competitive play.

How to beat

Swell of Growth is an intriguing instant in Magic: The Gathering, providing a temporary boost to a creature’s power and toughness, while also enabling the land ramping strategy. To successfully outmaneuver this card, one must focus on timing and resource management. Since it’s an instant, be meticulous about when you choose to engage or remove creatures. Counterspells work wonders against it, as they can nullify the spell before its effects come into play, ensuring your opponent loses both the creature buff and the land advantage.

Another method is to maintain board control, applying removal or pressure in anticipation of such tricks. Being proactive in keeping the board clear or applying pressure can limit the effectiveness of combat tricks like Swell of Growth. Moreover, graveyard interaction through cards that disrupt your opponent’s graveyard strategy can be a crucial tactic since recurring Swell of Growth from the graveyard would be less of an option.

To sum up, outsmarting Swell of Growth involves predicting your opponent’s moves and utilizing proper timing with counterspells and board control strategies. By limiting the situations where Swell of Growth can be productively used, you can diminish the card’s impact and maintain the upper hand in the game.

Cards like Swell of Growth

Swell of Growth stands out in the ecosystem of pump spells within Magic: The Gathering. Much like its cousin Giant Growth, which provides a decent stats boost, Swell of Growth amplifies a creature’s power and toughness significantly. Where this card takes the edge is in its land play ability, giving the player the leverage to play an additional land this turn, a move not facilitated by Giant Growth.

Parallel to this is Invigorate, another card that gives a free power boost under the right conditions, although it comes with the cost of giving the opponent life — an exchange not required by Swell of Growth. Vines of Vastwood, which also boosts a creature’s size, offers hexproof to dodge targeted spells, but lacks the ramp potential that Swell of Growth offers through its unique land interaction.

In sum, while there are various options in the realm of creature buffs, Swell of Growth provides a unique blend of immediate combat advantage and potential mana acceleration. Its dual utility can set it apart in strategic deck-building for players looking to capitalize on both creature strength and land optimization.

Cards similar to Swell of Growth by color, type and mana cost

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Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Swell of Growth MTG card by a specific set like Battle for Zendikar, 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 Swell of Growth and other MTG cards:

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Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Swell of Growth has restrictions

Format	Legality
Commander	Legal
Legacy	Legal
Paupercommander	Legal
Modern	Legal
Oathbreaker	Legal
Pauper	Legal
Vintage	Legal
Duel	Legal
Pioneer	Legal
Penny	Legal

Rules and information

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

Date	Text
2015-08-25	Putting a land onto the battlefield this way is not the same as playing a land. Swell of Growth doesn’t affect how many lands you can play from your hand during your turn.