Moment of Craving MTG Card

Moment of Craving - Rivals of Ixalan (RIX)

Rivals of Ixalan (RIX)
2018-01-19 - Number 79

Moment of Craving - Mystery Booster (MB1)

Mystery Booster (MB1)
2019-11-07 - Number 716

Moment of Craving - Jumpstart 2022 (J22)

Jumpstart 2022 (J22)
2022-12-02 - Number 444

The List (PLST)
2020-09-26 - Number RIX-79

Card sets	Released in 4 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost	2
Rarity	Common
Type	Instant

Key Takeaways

The card offsets threats and implicitly increases card advantage without sacrificing your own resources.
Moment of Craving’s instant speed allows for strategic flexibility and real-time threat response.
Despite being mana specific, its utility in various scenarios makes it a worthy collection addition.

Text of card

Target creature gets -2/-2 until end of turn. You gain 2 life.

"The time of condemnation is at hand. Dusk washes over the world, and I consign you to eternal darkness!"

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Though the primary effect of Moment of Craving is not to draw cards, it provides an implicit card advantage by dealing with small threats efficiently. By removing a creature, you negate a part of your opponent’s resources without losing a card yourself.

Resource Acceleration: Moment of Craving may not directly accelerate your mana resources, but the 2 life gained can contribute to your staying power in a game, effectively giving you more time to deploy your resources and control the pace of the matchup.

Instant Speed: The ability to cast Moment of Craving at instant speed gives players the flexibility to respond to threats in real-time. Whether it’s during the opponent’s attack phase or at the end of their turn, the timing aspect can be crucial for maintaining board stability or disrupting the enemy’s plans.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Moment of Craving does not demand its caster to discard, offering a straightforward usage with no additional resource penalty.

Specific Mana Cost: Requiring both black and generic mana, its casting cost can be restrictive in multicolored decks not focused on black mana sources, limiting its compatibility.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: While two mana does not seem steep, in a fast-paced game, dedicating this amount specifically for a minor life gain and a slight reduction in a creature’s power might not be the most mana-efficient play.

Reasons to Include Moment of Craving in Your Collection

Versatility: Moment of Craving is a useful tool in many decks, particularly those aiming to stabilize against aggressive starts. Its ability to provide instant-speed removal and life gain makes it a flexible response to early threats.

Combo Potential: This card synergizes well with strategies that capitalize on life gain or require spell casting triggers. Its low mana cost also allows for inclusion in decks that run on a tight curve.

Meta-Relevance: In a meta filled with fast aggro decks, Moment of Craving shines by disrupting the opponent’s momentum and giving you a crucial life cushion. This makes it a smart addition for players needing to fortify their defenses.

How to Beat Moment of Craving

Moment of Craving is an instant black spell that can be a pesky hurdle in MTG due to its dual nature. It not only gives a target creature -2/-2 until end of turn, but it also provides a small life cushion by granting two life to its caster. This card finds its niche in weakening an attacker or defender while simultaneously bolstering its owner’s life total, making it a utility that can tilt skirmishes in their favor during a crucial turn.

Though Moment of Craving may seem daunting, it’s manageable. Incorporating creatures with instant-speed buffs can nullify the -2/-2 effect, allowing them to survive what would otherwise be a lethal interaction. Additionally, cards with indestructible or hexproof shield your creatures from the spell’s impact, ensuring your board presence remains steadfast. By having a mix of these protective measures at your disposal, you’ll navigate around the effects of Moment of Craving, maintain your offensive strategy, and potentially turn the tide to secure victory.

Strategically speaking, Moment of Craving shines in the early to mid-game but loses some of its luster as larger, more robust creatures enter the battlefield. By pacing the game towards later stages and bringing in creatures that outsize its -2/-2 limitation, the threat posed by Moment of Craving significantly diminishes.

Cards like Moment of Craving

Moment of Craving is a spot removal spell that shines by offering life gain alongside creature destruction. A close parallel can be found in Grasp of Darkness, which provides a greater power and toughness reduction but lacks the 2 life boost that Moment of Craving grants. This particular gain can be crucial for players looking to stabilize their health in a pinch.

Comparing it to other removal spells, such as Cast Down, Moment of Craving’s impact seems more conservative due to Cast Down’s broader targeting range, disregarding the life gain. Conversely, Moment of Craving is more accessible with its lower mana cost, making it a more flexible early-game play.

Final Judgment, Essence Extraction stands as another similar card, offering the same life gain and ability to remove a creature, albeit at a higher mana cost. The delicate balance of life point management and creature removal positions Moment of Craving firmly within a niche of instant-speed reactionary spells catered to players valuing incremental health gains while dealing with threats.

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Moment of Craving MTG card by a specific set like Rivals of Ixalan and Mystery Booster, 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 Moment of Craving and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Moment of Craving Magic the Gathering card was released in 4 different sets between 2018-01-19 and 2022-12-02. Illustrated by Steven Belledin.

#	Released	Name	Code	Number	Frame	Layout	Border	Artist
1	2018-01-19	Rivals of Ixalan	RIX	79	2015	Normal	Black	Steven Belledin
2	2019-11-07	Mystery Booster	MB1	716	2015	Normal	Black	Steven Belledin
3	~~2020-09-26~~	The List	PLST	RIX-79	2015	Normal	Black	Steven Belledin
4	2022-12-02	Jumpstart 2022	J22	444	2015	Normal	Black	Steven Belledin

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Moment of Craving has restrictions

Format	Legality
Historicbrawl	Legal
Historic	Legal
Legacy	Legal
Paupercommander	Legal
Oathbreaker	Legal
Gladiator	Legal
Pioneer	Legal
Commander	Legal
Modern	Legal
Pauper	Legal
Vintage	Legal
Duel	Legal
Explorer	Legal
Penny	Legal
Timeless	Legal

Rules and information

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

Date	Text
2018-01-19	If the target creature is an illegal target by the time Moment of Craving tries to resolve, the spell doesn’t resolve. You won’t gain 2 life.
2018-01-19	The target creature will still be on the battlefield when you gain life, even if its toughness has been reduced to 0 or less. Any abilities it has that interact with gaining life do so as appropriate. If any abilities trigger on you gaining life, the creature will be put into its owner’s graveyard after that ability triggers but before it resolves.