Mutagenic Growth MTG Card


Card setsReleased in 2 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost1
RarityCommon
TypeInstant

Key Takeaways

  1. Instant speed casting enables surprising buffs and strategic creature protection in critical gameplay moments.
  2. Phyrexian mana offers resource flexibility by allowing life payment, keeping options open during play.
  3. Integrates well into multiple deck types, adding to its versatility and metagame relevance for players.

Text of card

({PG} can be paid with either or 2 life.) Target creature gets +2/+2 until end of turn.

"Sympathy is for weaklings. Whoever survives, wins." —Benzir, archdruid of Temple Might


Card Pros

Card Advantage: Despite not directly drawing cards, Mutagenic Growth can effectively save a creature from removal or help win combat, indirectly retaining card advantage by preserving your board presence without spending mana.

Resource Acceleration: Mutagenic Growth excels in resource acceleration due to its Phyrexian mana cost. This unique cost allows you to cast the spell by paying 2 life instead of green mana, keeping your lands untapped to deploy other threats or hold up mana for different interactions.

Instant Speed: The ability to cast Mutagenic Growth at instant speed provides a strategic advantage, allowing you to respond to opponents’ actions by unexpectedly buffing creatures during combat or in response to removal, often leading to favorable trades or preserved threats.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Although Mutagenic Growth doesn’t require an upfront card discard, using its Phyrexian mana cost option effectively trades life points for card advantage, which can be a risky move, especially in tight games where every point of life is crucial.

Specific Mana Cost: Mutagenic Growth comes with a green mana cost, which could limit its integration in decks that are not based around green mana or lack the necessary fixing to comfortably accommodate the spell.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Despite its versatility, when not paying with life points, the single green mana might be better invested in advancing board state or saving for more impactful spells, especially given the array of options available for pump spells in the current metagame.


Reasons to Include Mutagenic Growth in Your Collection

Versatility: Mutagenic Growth offers a significant power boost at an incredibly low cost, and with its phyrexian mana cost, it can be slotted into virtually any deck. This makes it an excellent choice for increasing the potency of your creatures unexpectedly, which can be pivotal during combat.

Combo Potential: This card shines in strategies that synergize with pump effects or require a creature’s power to reach a certain threshold. The instant speed of Mutagenic Growth allows for surprise interactions and can be the key factor in executing successful combos.

Meta-Relevance: In a meta where quick and efficient answers are needed to deal with threats, Mutagenic Growth provides a low-cost solution. It finds its place in aggressive decks aiming to close games swiftly and can act as a protective measure against removal spells when your creatures are under fire.


How to Beat Mutagenic Growth

Mutagenic Growth is a versatile instant card that can give a creature an unexpected power and toughness boost during combat or in response to removal. To effectively counter this, ensure you have instant-speed interaction that can disrupt your opponent’s plans. Having a counter spell ready can negate Mutagenic Growth’s effect altogether. Additionally, removal spells that don’t target, such as board wipes, can be used to sidestep its power-boosting ability.

It’s also wise to be cautious during combat if your opponent has open mana or a known Mutagenic Growth in hand – this knowledge can inform your blocking and attacking decisions to prevent a devastating combat trick. Watch out for Phyrexian mana costs – Mutagenic Growth can be cast for ‘free’ at the cost of 2 life, so always consider it a threat even if your opponent seems tapped out. Playing around this surprise buff by holding back key creatures or waiting until your opponent is fully tapped out can keep you in control of the game tempo.

Balancing carefully considered attacks with strategic creature preservation is the key to mitigating the high impact surprise that Mutagenic Growth brings to the battlefield.


Cards like Mutagenic Growth

Mutagenic Growth is a standout combat trick within the green spell lineup of Magic: The Gathering, offering a significant power and toughness boost to creatures for either one green mana or at no cost with the Phyrexian mana payment of 2 life. When compared to Giant Growth, which gives a slightly higher boost for one green mana but lacks the flexibility of a free cast option, Mutagenic Growth offers a unique edge in fast-paced games and surprise defenses.

Gathering another parallel, we encounter Groundswell, which offers a conditional but greater boost provided a land was played that turn. While the increase is substantial under the right circumstances, it lacks the surprise factor and resource-free advantage of Mutagenic Growth. Vines of Vastwood is an additional card that seems to be in the same vein, providing not only a power increase but also the quintessential benefit of hexproof. Nevertheless, its need for green mana renders it less versatile in the heat of battle compared to the life-for-effect trade Mutagenic Growth provides.

Thus, weighing in the tactical benefits, Mutagenic Growth stands as a significant player among its peers, striking a fine balance between cost efficiency and combat surprise, a characteristic highly valued by strategic Magic: The Gathering players.

Giant Growth - MTG Card versions
Groundswell - MTG Card versions
Vines of Vastwood - MTG Card versions
Giant Growth - Limited Edition Alpha (LEA)
Groundswell - Worldwake (WWK)
Vines of Vastwood - Zendikar (ZEN)

Cards similar to Mutagenic Growth by color, type and mana cost

Fog - MTG Card versions
Natural Selection - MTG Card versions
Lifelace - MTG Card versions
Berserk - MTG Card versions
Giant Growth - MTG Card versions
Crumble - MTG Card versions
Crop Rotation - MTG Card versions
Sandstorm - MTG Card versions
Seedling Charm - MTG Card versions
Shrink - MTG Card versions
Choking Vines - MTG Card versions
Crossbow Ambush - MTG Card versions
Reclaim - MTG Card versions
Worldly Tutor - MTG Card versions
Gaea's Might - MTG Card versions
Serene Sunset - MTG Card versions
Sprout - MTG Card versions
Gather Courage - MTG Card versions
Nature's Claim - MTG Card versions
Prey's Vengeance - MTG Card versions
Fog - Magic 2012 (M12)
Natural Selection - 30th Anniversary Edition (30A)
Lifelace - Revised Edition (3ED)
Berserk - 30th Anniversary Edition (30A)
Giant Growth - The List (PLST)
Crumble - World Championship Decks 1997 (WC97)
Crop Rotation - The List (PLST)
Sandstorm - Battle Royale Box Set (BRB)
Seedling Charm - Mirage (MIR)
Shrink - Masters Edition II (ME2)
Choking Vines - Weatherlight (WTH)
Crossbow Ambush - Stronghold (STH)
Reclaim - Magic Origins (ORI)
Worldly Tutor - Dominaria Remastered (DMR)
Gaea's Might - Dominaria United (DMU)
Serene Sunset - Judgment (JUD)
Sprout - Salvat 2005 (PSAL)
Gather Courage - The List (PLST)
Nature's Claim - The List (PLST)
Prey's Vengeance - The List (PLST)

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Mutagenic Growth MTG card by a specific set like New Phyrexia and Modern Masters 2015, 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 Mutagenic Growth and other MTG cards:

Continue exploring other sealed products in Amazon
See Magic products

Printings

The Mutagenic Growth Magic the Gathering card was released in 2 different sets between 2011-05-13 and 2015-05-22. Illustrated by Dave Kendall.

#ReleaseNameCodeSymbolNumberFrameLayoutBorderArtist
12011-05-13New PhyrexiaNPH 1162003normalblackDave Kendall
22015-05-22Modern Masters 2015MM2 1492015normalblackDave Kendall

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Mutagenic Growth has restrictions

FormatLegality
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
PaupercommanderLegal
ModernLegal
OathbreakerLegal
PauperLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
PredhLegal

Rules and information

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

DateText
2011-06-01 A card with Phyrexian mana symbols in its mana cost is each color that appears in that mana cost, regardless of how that cost may have been paid.
2011-06-01 As you cast a spell or activate an activated ability with one or more Phyrexian mana symbols in its cost, you choose how to pay for each Phyrexian mana symbol at the same time you would choose modes or choose a value for X.
2011-06-01 If you’re at 1 life or less, you can’t pay 2 life.
2011-06-01 Phyrexian mana is not a new color. Players can’t add Phyrexian mana to their mana pools.
2011-06-01 To calculate the converted mana cost of a card with Phyrexian mana symbols in its cost, count each Phyrexian mana symbol as 1.

Recent MTG decks

Continue exploring other format decks
More decks