Magnivore MTG Card

Odyssey (ODY)
2001-10-01 - Number 204

Ninth Edition (9ED)
2005-07-29 - Number 202

Ninth Edition (9ED)
2005-07-29 - Number 202★

Card sets	Released in 3 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost	4
Rarity	Rare
Type	Creature — Lhurgoyf
Abilities	Haste
Power	*
Toughness	*

Key Takeaways

Magnivore gains strength from sorceries in graveyards, enhancing field presence without extra cards.
Resource pressure from Magnivore forces opponents into inefficient or premature plays.
Increase Magnivore’s power unexpectedly with instant-speed sorceries for strategic advantage.

Text of card

Haste Magnivore's power and toughness are each equal to the number of sorcery cards in all graveyards.

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Magnivore’s power and toughness hinge on the number of sorceries in all players’ graveyards. This provides a strategic advantage, as it grows with each sorcery played, potentially creating a sizable and intimidating presence without additional card investment – a key element in gaining card superiority on the battlefield.

Resource Acceleration: While Magnivore itself doesn’t directly accelerate resources, its looming presence can pressure opponents to deal with it quickly. This often forces them to use their resources inefficiently or prematurely, thus indirectly playing a role in resource acceleration by skewing the resource balance in your favor.

Instant Speed: Magnivore’s abilities make it an excellent beneficiary of instant-speed sorceries. Playing such spells during an opponent’s turn just before your upkeep can suddenly and unexpectedly increase Magnivore’s size. This allows for surprise alterations in board power and creates potential for unexpected lethal attacks or formidable defenses.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: To fully leverage Magnivore’s potential, players often must build a strategy around sorcery cards, which can lead to a discard-heavy gameplay that depletes valuable hand resources. This requirement can result in a disadvantage during drawn-out matches where maintaining card advantage is crucial.

Specific Mana Cost: With a mana cost that demands both red and generic mana, Magnivore’s inclusion can be restrictive. It can place constraints on deck-building, requiring a commitment to red mana sources or a well-rounded mana base that can consistently produce the specific colors needed, potentially limiting the card’s versatility across various deck archetypes.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Bearing a substantial mana cost, Magnivore can be less appealing when compared to other creatures that may hit the battlefield sooner. In fast-paced games, the high mana investment might not align with an aggressive strategy, making it a less optimal choice for decks that aim for early dominance.

Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Magnivore offers adaptability across various deck builds, capitalizing on spell-heavy strategies that turn its growing power into a formidable threat on the board.

Combo Potential: This creature thrives in a deck brimming with sorceries. As you cast more, Magnivore’s power and toughness swell, giving you a potent weapon that becomes increasingly difficult for opponents to manage.

Meta-Relevance: In a climate where players pack their decks with numerous sorceries, Magnivore finds its niche. It becomes not just a beater but a benchmark for spell-based deck strength, keeping it relevant in evolving gaming environments.

How to beat

Magnivore presents itself as one of those intriguing Magic: The Gathering cards that hinges its power on the number of sorcery cards in all graveyards. This core characteristic makes it a formidable creature in the late game, especially in a deck crafted around sorceries. It’s essential, therefore, to understand how to tactically weaken its influence on the battlefield.

Key strategies include maintaining graveyard control with cards that can exile or shuffle graveyards into libraries, thereby diminishing Magnivore’s size and threat level. It’s effective to use instant spells for removal, which also avoids bolstering Magnivore’s power. Consider incorporating graveyard hate cards such as Tormod’s Crypt or Relic of Progenitus. Both are efficient ways to clear graveyards without adding to the sorcery count, thus keeping Magnivore in check.

Ultimately, constructing a plan that includes graveyard disruption and quick removal will counter the growth of Magnivore effectively. By proactively managing graveyards and choosing the right spells, this seemingly unstoppable force can be transformed into a manageable challenge during your MTG sessions.

Cards like Magnivore

The Magnivore card joins a distinctive group of creatures in Magic: The Gathering, notably characterized by its power and toughness being determined by the number of sorceries in all graveyards. It shares this graveyard-powered mechanism with cards like Nighthowler, whose might also scales with the graveyard’s contents, but uses creatures instead of sorceries as the measure. While both thrive on past plays, Magnivore steps ahead in red mana decks where sorceries tend to pile up.

Spellheart Chimera treads a kindred path with a penchant for instants and sorceries, but swings from the skies with flying, offering an aerial threat which Magnivore lacks. However, where Spellheart Chimera sees continued use from both instants and sorceries, its toughness remains a static one, contrary to Magnivore’s potentially game-ending size. Enigma Drake, a near doppelganger to the Chimera, extends its defense to match the number of instants and sorceries, presenting a balanced alternative to the potentially more massive but one-dimensional Magnivore.

Evaluating the synergy and strategy of different decks can be crucial, and while Magnivore might not be the choice for every build, its potential for overwhelming force in sorcery-heavy setups can be a high-impact piece of a strategic puzzle.

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Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Magnivore MTG card by a specific set like Odyssey and Ninth Edition, 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 Magnivore and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Magnivore Magic the Gathering card was released in 2 different sets between 2001-10-01 and 2005-07-29. Illustrated by Carl Critchlow.

#	Released	Name	Code	Number	Frame	Layout	Border	Artist
1	2001-10-01	Odyssey	ODY	204	1997	Normal	Black	Carl Critchlow
2	2005-07-29	Ninth Edition	9ED	202	2003	Normal	White	Carl Critchlow
3	2005-07-29	Ninth Edition	9ED	202★	2003	Normal	Black	Carl Critchlow