Infectious Bloodlust MTG Card
| Mana cost | |
| Converted mana cost | 2 |
| Rarity | Common |
| Type | Enchantment — Aura |
| Abilities | Enchant |
| Released | 2015-07-17 |
| Set symbol | |
| Set name | Magic Origins |
| Set code | ORI |
| Number | 152 |
| Frame | 2015 |
| Layout | Normal |
| Border | Black |
| Illustred by | Zoltan Boros |
Key Takeaways
- Enables continuous pressure by replacing itself from the deck when the enchanted creature dies.
- Efficient resource management by saving mana and maintaining hand advantage over time.
- Flexibility in strategy by posing an immediate threat and potential for swift battlefield adaptation.
Text of card
Enchant creature Enchanted creature gets +2/+1, has haste, and attacks each turn if able. When enchanted creature dies, you may search your library for a card named Infectious Bloodlust, reveal it, put it into your hand, then shuffle your library.
Card Pros
Card Advantage: Infectious Bloodlust adds a layer of sustained card advantage to your play by allowing you to search for another copy of itself from the deck when the enchanted creature dies. This continuous searching mechanic ensures that even if your opponent deals with the immediate threat, you have the ability to gear up another creature and maintain pressure on the board.
Resource Acceleration: While not directly impacting your mana pool, Infectious Bloodlust reduces resource expenditure by effectively replacing itself in your hand. This helps you save mana in the long run, allowing you to allocate more resources towards deploying additional threats or interacting with the opponent’s game plan.
Instant Speed: Infectious Bloodlust may not be an instant-speed spell, but its effect generates an alternate avenue for strategy akin to instant-speed plays. Since you can fetch a new copy when the enchanted creature dies, it provides a sense of readiness, enabling you to swiftly rebuild and adapt your battlefield presence. This dynamic can force your opponent to second-guess their removal spells, making the card a strategic tool in creature-focused strategies.
Card Cons
Discard Requirement: Playing Infectious Bloodlust requires you to sacrifice the enchanted creature or another creature you control if it’s destroyed, which can deplete your board presence and synergies.
Specific Mana Cost: The card’s need for red mana means it fits primarily within a certain archetype—a red deck or one that can reliably provide red mana, potentially restricting its widespread inclusion.
Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a casting cost of two mana and an additional red mana to activate its ability, there are other enchantments or creatures that may provide a similar or better aggressive advantage at a lower cost to your deck’s mana curve.
Reasons to Include in Your Collection
Versatility: Infectious Bloodlust offers an aggressive edge to red-based decks, allowing creatures to become more threatening with each attack. This card is not just a single-use enchantment; it keeps your opponents on their toes by potentially enhancing multiple creatures throughout the game.
Combo Potential: This card is capable of creating a significant impact when combined with haste-enablers or additional cards that benefit from creature damage. As Infectious Bloodlust searches for another copy upon the enchanted creature’s death, it seamlessly works with sacrifice or death-triggered strategies.
Meta-Relevance: Against decks that are slower to build their board presence, Infectious Bloodlust can turn up the pressure and force defensive moves early on. With its ability to push through additional damage and maintain card advantage, it remains a relevant choice in several aggressive strategies.
How to beat
Infectious Bloodlust is a card that can turn creatures into significant threats in a short span of time in MTG. The haste-enabling aura not only makes your creatures faster but also search for another copy when the enchanted creature dies, potentially creating a cycle of unending aggression. However, controlling such a card requires a specific approach.
One effective strategy against Infectious Bloodlust is to minimize the number of creatures it can enchant. Removal spells that can take out creatures at instant speed, before the Bloodlust attaches, are incredibly useful. Enchantment removal like Naturalize or Return to Nature also works well by directly targeting Infectious Bloodlust, ensuring the search ability cannot trigger. Counterspells are equally efficient in preventing the card from ever hitting the field, disrupting the accumulating threat altogether.
Board wipes also serve as a powerful reset button, dealing with multiple Bloodlust-enchanted creatures in one fell swoop, and players should be prepared to rebuild their board presence more effectively than their opponent post wipe. Ultimately, the key to beating Infectious Bloodlust lies in strategic removal, well-timed responses, and controlling the pace of the game.
Cards like Infectious Bloodlust
Infectious Bloodlust is an intriguing Aura in Magic the Gathering, offering players an aggressive strategy to enhance their creatures. This card can be likened to Madcap Skills, both Auras that provide a power boost and an additional effect that compels an opponent’s reaction. While Infectious Bloodlust grants haste and the capability to search for another copy upon the enchanted creature’s death, Madcap Skills gives a significant +3/+0 increase and makes the creature harder to block by necessitating two or more blockers.
Another comparable spell is Fiery Mantle. Like Infectious Bloodlust, it can return to the owner’s hand from the graveyard, ensuring a persistent threat; however, Fiery Mantle emphasizes protection over aggression by providing a means to save a creature from harm. On the note of fostering a creature’s offensive abilities, Rush of Adrenaline endows not only a power boost but also grants trample, albeit as an instant and lacking Infectious Bloodlust’s recursive aspect.
Examining the aspects of these cards points to Infectious Bloodlust being an asset for MTG players who enjoy relentless, creature-focused strategies, offering both an immediate advantage with haste and a long-term benefit with its tutor-like ability.
Cards similar to Infectious Bloodlust by color, type and mana cost
Where to buy
If you're looking to purchase Infectious Bloodlust MTG card by a specific set like Magic Origins, 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 Infectious Bloodlust and other MTG cards:
- eBay
- TCG Player
- Card Kingdom
- Card Market
- Star City Games
- CoolStuffInc
- MTG Mint Card
- Hareruya
- Troll and Toad
- ABU Games
- Card Hoarder Magic Online
- MTGO Traders Magic Online
See MTG Products
Legalities
Magic the Gathering formats where Infectious Bloodlust 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 Infectious Bloodlust card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.
| Date | Text |
|---|---|
| 2015-06-22 | If, during its controller’s declare attackers step, the enchanted creature is tapped or is affected by a spell or ability that says it can’t attack, then that creature doesn’t attack. If there’s a cost associated with having that creature attack, its controller isn’t forced to pay that cost. If they don’t, the creature doesn’t have to attack. |
