Cunning Nightbonder MTG Card


Cunning Nightbonder - Ikoria: Lair of Behemoths
Mana cost
Converted mana cost2
RarityUncommon
TypeCreature — Human Rogue
Abilities Flash
Released2020-04-24
Set symbol
Set nameIkoria: Lair of Behemoths
Set codeIKO
Power 2
Toughness 2
Number219
Frame2015
Layoutnormal
Borderblack
Illustred byEkaterina Burmak

Key Takeaways

  1. Enables card advantage and optimal spell timing by supporting flash spells in MTG decks.
  2. Mana cost reduction for flash spells accelerates resource utilization, improving mana curve efficiency.
  3. Instant casting flexibility adapts tactics on the fly, fitting into blue and black deck strategies.
Flash card art

Guide to Flash card ability

Explore the dynamic Flash ability in Magic: The Gathering (MTG), a feature that allows you to cast spells at lightning speed, often leaving your opponents reeling and your strategy several steps ahead. This versatile ability can turn the tide of a game, providing the element of surprise and tactical advantage. It places a premium on timing and foresight, transforming an ordinary deck into a formidable arsenal of instant threats and responses.

Text of card

Flash Spells with flash you cast cost less to cast and can't be countered.

"We are each other's shadow, fleeting yet always present."


Card Pros

Card Advantage: Cunning Nightbonder is designed with synergy in mind. As it supports spells with flash, it inherently boosts the potential for card advantage by enabling you to optimize the timing of your spellcasting and maintain resources.

Resource Acceleration: By making spells with flash cost one less to cast, Cunning Nightbonder helps in resource acceleration. This can lead to a more efficient mana curve, allowing you to deploy multiple threats or answers in a shorter timeframe.

Instant Speed: Given that Cunning Nightbonder itself can be cast at instant speed, it complements strategies that thrive on surprise and flexibility. This ability ensures that you can adapt to the board state on the fly without having to commit to a play prematurely.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Cunning Nightbonder doesn’t come with a discard requirement, but this factor is a general setback for players looking to maintain hand advantage. Should you encounter synergy that requires discarding, consider the potential loss of valuable cards.

Specific Mana Cost: Cunning Nightbonder requires both blue and black mana which means it’s specifically suited for Dimir or multicolored decks. This mana specificity can restrict its inclusion in decks that operate outside of these color combinations.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Sitting at an overall cost of two mana might seem economical, but in an early game scenario, dedicating two specific mana can slow down your pace. Additionally, as game play progresses, there might emerge more mana-flexible or impactful creatures or spells that could be a better fit for your strategy with the same mana investment.


Reasons to Include Cunning Nightbonder in Your Collection

Versatility: Cunning Nightbonder’s utility isn’t limited to a single archetype, as this creature slides effortlessly into blue and black decks, particularly those capitalizing on the flash mechanic. The reduction in cost for spells with flash heightens your ability to play a responsive and adaptable game.

Combo Potential: This creature’s spell cost reduction can act as a springboard for various combo plays, enabling you to cast multiple spells in quick succession, a tactic that can overwhelm opponents and bring a swift victory by efficiently utilizing your mana pool.

Meta-Relevance: With constantly shifting MTG metagames, Cunning Nightbonder can give flash-based decks an edge against slower, more controlling strategies, allowing you to establish board presence and apply pressure with spells during your opponent’s turn.


How to Beat Cunning Nightbonder

Cunning Nightbonder, a notable card from Magic: The Gathering, serves as a key piece in decks focusing on flash strategies. This creature not only makes your flash spells uncounterable but also cheaper to cast, providing a solid advantage against opponents. To effectively counter this card, you’ll need to adjust your strategy, since direct counterspells won’t work.

Removal spells that don’t rely on the stack are your strongest tool here. Supreme Verdict, a powerful board clear that can’t be countered, would sweep Cunning Nightbonder away regardless of its protective ability. Additionally, utilizing removal spells at times when your opponent is least expecting them—such as during their upkeep or end step—can help avoid the window where Cunning Nightbonder provides the most benefit.

Moreover, having direct creature interaction in your deck, such as board wipes or spot removals that can deal with creatures once they’ve landed, greatly dims the Nightbonder’s shine. Prioritizing these kinds of spells ensures that Cunning Nightbonder’s time on the battlefield, along with any creatures benefitting from its cost reduction, is short-lived.


BurnMana Recommendations

Diving into the mechanics of Cunning Nightbonder showcases its integral role in flash-based MTG strategies. Enhancing deck efficiency and challenging traditional playstyles, this card unlocks a new realm of possibilities. It’s an exciting time to adapt and explore novel approaches to outmaneuver opponents creatively. We are keen to share insights and provide intriguing ways to optimize your deck around such versatile cards. If the thrill of an adaptive and resourceful gameplay excites you, embark on this journey with us. Understand deeper strategies and intricacies that can give you the upper hand. Expand your collection and knowledge—discover how Cunning Nightbonder can be a game-changer for you.


Cards like Cunning Nightbonder

Cunning Nightbonder stands out in MTG as a unique asset for players who favor utilizing flash spells and rogues. This card offers a specialized benefit, reducing the mana cost of spells with flash that you cast. It shares a kinship with cards such as Slitherwisp, which also favors flash play by drawing you a card whenever you cast one with flash. However, Slitherwisp doesn’t reduce mana costs, focusing more on card advantage.

Looking at another related card, Spectral Sailor injects speed into your game by allowing you to draw cards at instant speed, but it demands a larger mana investment to do so. Cunning Nightbonder, by contrast, is specifically aimed at players looking for a mana-efficient way to play spells quickly and unexpectedly.

Gadwick, the Wizened emerges as another comparator in terms of instant spell synergy. While Gadwick does not directly decrease mana costs, it rewards you with drawing cards whenever you cast a blue spell, becoming more potent in a long game. Compared to Cunning Nightbonder, its role is to generate card advantage over time rather than providing an immediate reduction in casting costs.

In summary, Cunning Nightbonder has its niche within MTG decks that exploit flash spells. By easing mana restrictions, it allows for a more fluid and reactive gameplay, distinguishing itself as a valuable addition to flash-focused strategies.

Slitherwisp - MTG Card versions
Spectral Sailor - MTG Card versions
Gadwick, the Wizened - MTG Card versions
Slitherwisp - Ikoria: Lair of Behemoths (IKO)
Spectral Sailor - Core Set 2020 (M20)
Gadwick, the Wizened - Throne of Eldraine Promos (PELD)

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Cunning Nightbonder MTG card by a specific set like Ikoria: Lair of Behemoths, 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 Cunning Nightbonder and other MTG cards:

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Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Cunning Nightbonder has restrictions

FormatLegality
HistoricbrawlLegal
HistoricLegal
LegacyLegal
PaupercommanderRestricted
OathbreakerLegal
GladiatorLegal
PioneerLegal
CommanderLegal
ModernLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
ExplorerLegal
TimelessLegal

Rules and information

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

DateText
2020-04-17 A spell or ability that counters spells can still target spells with flash you cast. When that spell or ability resolves, your spell won’t be countered, but any additional effects of the countering spell or ability will still happen.
2020-04-17 Cunning Nightbonder’s cost reduction applies only to generic mana in a spell’s cost. It can’t reduce a spell’s colored mana requirements. For example, your first Cunning Nightbonder won’t normally reduce the cost of your second since it has no generic mana in its cost.
2020-04-17 Cunning Nightbonder’s last ability doesn’t apply to itself while it’s a spell.
2020-04-17 If Cunning Nightbonder enters the battlefield while a spell with flash that you cast is on the stack, that spell can’t be countered, even though you don’t get the discount.
2020-04-17 Players can’t attempt to remove Cunning Nightbonder to raise the cost of a spell you wish to cast, but they can remove it to allow their spells and abilities to counter your spells.
2020-04-17 Spells with flash that you control but didn’t cast (perhaps because they’re copies of a spell or because you took control of them from another player) can be countered.
2020-04-17 To determine the total cost of a spell, start with the mana cost or alternative cost you’re paying, add any cost increases, then apply any cost reductions (such as that of Cunning Nightbonder). The converted mana cost of the spell remains unchanged, no matter what the total cost to cast it was.

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