Instill Energy MTG Card


Card setsReleased in 14 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost1
RarityUncommon
TypeEnchantment — Aura
Abilities Enchant

Key Takeaways

  1. Instill Energy excels in card utility by offering multiple actions from a single mana investment.
  2. It gives creatures haste, enabling immediate combat or ability use, disrupting typical play pace.
  3. Resource acceleration through Instill Energy helps players to leverage creatures for various strategies.

Text of card

You may untap target creature both during your untap phase and one additional time during your turn. Target creature may attack the turn it comes into play.


Card Pros

Card Advantage: Instill Energy offers multiple uses for just a single investment of mana. It doesn’t directly allow you to draw more cards, but the untapping ability can help you utilize your creatures to their fullest, essentially creating more potential actions per turn. Coupled with creatures that have tap abilities, it effectively increases your card utility, giving you an indirect advantage.

Resource Acceleration: The power of this card lies in the acceleration it brings to the battlefield. By granting your creature the ability to untap every turn, Instill Energy acts as a resource acceleration tool, letting you engage your creatures for multiple purposes, be it attacking for a swift offense or for activating tap abilities that might require additional mana or resources otherwise unavailable without the enchantment.

Instant Speed: While Instill Energy is an enchantment, it also has hastening properties that inject a burst of speed into your gameplay. This can catch opponents off guard, as it allows a newly summoned creature to bypass summoning sickness, providing immediate impact on the game and opening up swift tactical plays. This immediate action can be akin to instant-speed advantages, disrupting the usual pace and planning of your adversaries.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Though Instill Energy does not require discarding directly, it’s important for players to acknowledge that using it means one less card in hand, potentially reducing strategic options.

Specific Mana Cost: Instill Energy requires a single green mana, which might not seamlessly fit into multi-colored or colorless decks that could benefit from the untapping ability.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: While Instill Energy costs a single green mana, it is usually compared with other cards that offer untapping abilities or haste at a similar or lesser cost, which may provide a more immediate or versatile advantage.


Reasons to Include Instill Energy in Your Collection

Versatility: Instill Energy is particularly adaptable across various decks given its ability to untap a creature, lending itself to multiple strategies. This adds significant flexibility in gameplay, allowing for repeated use of creature abilities or additional combat phases.

Combo Potential: This card can become a cornerstone in intricate combos. It pairs excellently with creatures that have tap abilities, providing an avenue to multiply their effects each turn. This can lead to powerful and even game-ending interactions.

Meta-Relevance: In a meta where summoning sickness can slow down the pace, Instill Energy accelerates your gameplay. As games become more fast-paced and revolve around quickly amassing board presence, having the ability to negate summoning sickness and untap creatures can be crucial to maintaining tempo and competitive edge.


How to beat

Instill Energy is a unique enchantment in Magic: The Gathering that grants a creature the ability to untap once during each of your turns. This increased flexibility can be a persistent thorn in an opponent’s side, offering recurrent activation potentials or combat surprises. To effectively counteract Instill Energy’s advantages, control strategies become paramount. Removal spells that can target either the creature or the enchantment are essential. A well-timed Disenchant or Naturalize, for example, eliminates the threat by dealing directly with the enchantment.

Additionally, counterplay can involve the use of abilities that restrict a player’s capacity to untap their creatures, such as those found on cards like Tangle Wire or Stasis. By managing your resources carefully and keeping instant-speed interaction at the ready, you can mitigate the advantages provided by Instill Energy, keeping you one step ahead of the game’s natural pace. Ultimately, acknowledging the card’s potential and preparing your deck with various answers can ensure you maintain control of the battlefield.


BurnMana Recommendations

Understanding the strengths and weaknesses of Instill Energy improves both your deck building and in-game strategy. Whether you’re accelerating your resources or seeking that perfect combo, including Instill Energy in your collection can be a game-changer for green-focused decks. Paired with creatures that can tap for powerful effects, this card elevates every turn’s potential. Keep in mind, strategies to counteract it should involve timely removal or restricting untap capabilities. For those looking to refine their approach or add an edge to their gameplay, consider the depth of your MTG knowledge and how Instill Energy can enhance it. Dive deeper with us and embrace the full potential of your MTG deck.


Cards like Instill Energy

Instill Energy is a noteworthy card within the realm of Magic: The Gathering, particularly for its unique and versatile abilities. It’s often compared to other cards that provide creatures with pseudo-haste, like Concordant Crossroads, which grants all creatures haste but at the potential cost of benefiting your opponent. Instill Energy, in contrast, selects a single target not only to give it the ability to attack without summoning sickness but also to untap once during your turn, allowing for multiple uses of tap abilities.

Looking at more modern offerings, cards such as Lightning Greaves and Swiftfoot Boots provide similar haste enabling but come with added advantages like hexproof or shroud, protecting your creatures from targeted spells. However, they lack the untap feature of Instill Energy.

In an analysis of enchant creature spells, Instill Energy stands out by offering a hybrid of offensive and utility enhancement. It’s a card that might be less protective compared to its equipment counterparts but compensates with its unique ability to untap, which can be repeatedly leveraged each turn. This makes Instill Energy a card that, while older, still holds a strategic niche in Magic: The Gathering deckbuilding.

Concordant Crossroads - MTG Card versions
Lightning Greaves - MTG Card versions
Swiftfoot Boots - MTG Card versions
Concordant Crossroads - Legends (LEG)
Lightning Greaves - Mirrodin (MRD)
Swiftfoot Boots - Magic 2012 (M12)

Cards similar to Instill Energy by color, type and mana cost

Web - MTG Card versions
Living Artifact - MTG Card versions
Fastbond - MTG Card versions
Wild Growth - MTG Card versions
Cocoon - MTG Card versions
Concordant Crossroads - MTG Card versions
Elven Fortress - MTG Card versions
Earthlore - MTG Card versions
Revelation - MTG Card versions
Carapace - MTG Card versions
Gift of the Woods - MTG Card versions
Mortal Wound - MTG Card versions
Spider Climb - MTG Card versions
Elephant Grass - MTG Card versions
Briar Shield - MTG Card versions
Storm Front - MTG Card versions
Mirri's Guile - MTG Card versions
Root Maze - MTG Card versions
Bequeathal - MTG Card versions
Elven Palisade - MTG Card versions
Web - 30th Anniversary Edition (30A)
Living Artifact - 30th Anniversary Edition (30A)
Fastbond - 30th Anniversary Edition (30A)
Wild Growth - Fallout (PIP)
Cocoon - Legends (LEG)
Concordant Crossroads - Double Masters 2022 (2X2)
Elven Fortress - Fallen Empires (FEM)
Earthlore - Ice Age (ICE)
Revelation - Chronicles (CHR)
Carapace - Homelands (HML)
Gift of the Woods - Alliances (ALL)
Mortal Wound - Visions (VIS)
Spider Climb - Visions (VIS)
Elephant Grass - Visions (VIS)
Briar Shield - Weatherlight (WTH)
Storm Front - Tempest (TMP)
Mirri's Guile - Tempest (TMP)
Root Maze - Tenth Edition (10E)
Bequeathal - Exodus (EXO)
Elven Palisade - Exodus (EXO)

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Instill Energy MTG card by a specific set like Limited Edition Alpha and Limited Edition Beta, 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 Instill Energy and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Instill Energy Magic the Gathering card was released in 13 different sets between 1993-08-05 and 2022-11-28. Illustrated by 2 different artists.

#ReleaseNameCodeSymbolNumberFrameLayoutBorderArtist
11993-08-05Limited Edition AlphaLEA 2021993normalblackDameon Willich
21993-10-04Limited Edition BetaLEB 2031993normalblackDameon Willich
31993-12-01Unlimited Edition2ED 2031993normalwhiteDameon Willich
41993-12-10Intl. Collectors' EditionCEI 2031993normalblackDameon Willich
51993-12-10Collectors' EditionCED 2031993normalblackDameon Willich
61994-04-01Foreign Black BorderFBB 2031993normalblackDameon Willich
71994-04-01Revised Edition3ED 2031993normalwhiteDameon Willich
81994-06-21Summer Magic / EdgarSUM 2031993normalwhiteDameon Willich
91995-04-01Fourth Edition Foreign Black Border4BB 2521993normalblackDameon Willich
101995-04-01Fourth Edition4ED 2521993normalwhiteDameon Willich
111997-03-24Fifth Edition5ED 3041997normalwhiteRon Spencer
122011-01-10Masters Edition IVME4 1571997normalblackDameon Willich
132022-11-2830th Anniversary Edition30A 4951997normalblackDameon Willich
142022-11-2830th Anniversary Edition30A 1982015normalblackDameon Willich

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Instill Energy has restrictions

FormatLegality
OldschoolLegal
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
OathbreakerLegal
PremodernLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
PredhLegal

Rules and information

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

DateText
2004-10-04 If attached to an opponent’s creature, you can untap their creature during your turn.
2004-10-04 Instill Energy’s untap ability will not untap the creature until it resolves. This means other spells and abilities can be used before it actually becomes untapped.
2005-08-01 Any Auras (or other effects) which are on the creature that would cause it to not be untapped (or have a cost to be untapped) during untap step do not in any way hinder or imply a cost to use this card’s ability to untap once during the turn.

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