Smoldering Efreet MTG Card

Fate Reforged (FRF)
2015-01-23 - Number 115

Smoldering Efreet - Jumpstart 2022 (J22)

Jumpstart 2022 (J22)
2022-12-02 - Number 600

Card sets	Released in 2 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost	2
Rarity	Common
Type	Creature — Efreet Monk
Power	2
Toughness	2

Key Takeaways

Smoldering Efreet doesn’t provide direct card advantage but can alter the board state to your benefit.
The card’s red mana specificity limits its use, typically favoring mono-red or well-supported decks.
Deploying Smoldering Efreet early in the game can apply pressure and dictate the tempo.

Text of card

When Smoldering Efreet dies, it deals 2 damage to you.

The efreet are drawn to the Kaisham Wanderers, a loosely organized Jeskai school where trickery is employed to challenge the status quo and upend the belief systems of others.

Card Pros

Card Advantage: While Smoldering Efreet doesn’t directly allow you to draw more cards, its potential to impact the board can indirectly lead to a form of card advantage. If properly leveraged, it could cause an opponent to expend resources to deal with it.

Resource Acceleration: The Smoldering Efreet may not accelerate your resources in a traditional sense of providing additional mana or ramp capabilities, but it offers a cost-effective threat that can be deployed early in the game, keeping you ahead on the board while you develop your mana base and strategy.

Instant Speed: Although the Smoldering Efreet is not an instant, its synergy with instant speed spells can be valuable. As a creature that can be a surprise blocker or an aggressive early drop, it works well with instant speed removal or combat tricks that can be used to your advantage during the course of a game.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: One of the drawbacks of the Smoldering Efreet is that it carries a condition requiring the discarding of another card. This can be quite the strategic setback, especially when you’re grappling with a scant hand and can’t afford the additional cost without sacrificing vital gameplay options.

Specific Mana Cost: Smoldering Efreet demands a solid mana base in red. This specific mana cost narrows its utility, often relegating it to mono-red decks or those with a robust mana-fixing apparatus to capitalize on its potential. Decks not aligned with this color might find the Efreet’s inclusion more trouble than it’s worth.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: The mana investment to bring Smoldering Efreet into play might not always correlate with the advantage gained on the battlefield. With a myriad of lower-cost creatures or spells that can yield comparable or greater impact, strategic deck builders might bypass the Efreet for more efficient alternatives that synergize more seamlessly within their decks or strategies.

Reasons to Include Smoldering Efreet in Your Collection

Versatility: Smoldering Efreet offers a unique dimension to decks interested in aggressive play styles. Its role as an early game creature positions it to fit within both mono-red builds and multicolored decks that harness red’s early pressure.

Combo Potential: This fiery creature has the potential to be a cog in a larger machine, especially in strategies that capitalize on self-sacrifice for a greater payoff, allowing players to craft intricate and potentially game-ending synergies.

Meta-Relevance: For those metagames that skew towards creature-heavy board states or require decisive early turns, Smoldering Efreet can be a competent choice. Its presence can tilt the scales in the early game and provide momentum to seal victories before opponents can stabilize.

How to Beat Smoldering Efreet

Smoldering Efreet offers a unique challenge on the battlefield due to its ferocious self-sacrificial ability. This fiery card from the lore-rich game of Magic: The Gathering requires strategic planning to overcome. The key to outplaying this Efreet lies in understanding its inherent risk-reward mechanic that can turn the tide of a match.

Defeating this red creature effectively involves minimizing its impact when it dies. Having removal spells ready can carefully navigate around its last-stand effect. Spells like Shock or Lightning Bolt can dispatch it without triggering a detrimental outcome. Additionally, cards that exile creatures such as Path to Exile bypass the Efreet’s ability entirely. It’s all about timing your spells and abilities to reduce the adverse effects it can have on your own health total.

It is also advantageous to employ creatures with higher toughness to endure its potential onslaught. In a broader sense, control decks that pack ample countermeasures or life-gain strategies can offset the damage Smoldering Efreet threatens to deal. By keeping these tactics in mind, players can ensure that this character’s explosive nature doesn’t upend their path to victory.

Cards like Smoldering Efreet

Smoldering Efreet is a creature card that dips into the breadth of red elementals available in Magic the Gathering. With its simple yet potentially risky downside, it bears a resemblance to other creature cards with self-sacrifice mechanics. For example, Forge Devil also comes with a low casting cost and a self-damaging feature upon entering the battlefield. While Forge Devil deals damage to itself and another creature, Smoldering Efreet’s personal risk emerges only if it faces enchantment.

Another card to consider in the cohort is Akoum Warrior. Though it doesn’t share the self-sacrifice aspect, it fits the theme of flexible red creatures, thanks to its double-faced feature offering an option to be played as a land. This provides a contrast between the steady presence of Akoum Warrior versus the precarious position of Smoldering Efreet, which could end up being a liability if the right conditions are met.

In evaluating similar offerings within the red elemental tribe, Smoldering Efreet falls into a niche where instant impact and risk factors overlap. Its fiery nature and dynamic playstyle offer both a challenge and a reward for MTG players accustomed to high stakes and rapid payoff strategies.

Cards similar to Smoldering Efreet by color, type and mana cost

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Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Smoldering Efreet MTG card by a specific set like Fate Reforged and Jumpstart 2022, 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 Smoldering Efreet and other MTG cards: