Pooling Venom MTG Card


Pooling Venom - Future Sight
Mana cost
Converted mana cost2
RarityUncommon
TypeEnchantment — Aura
Abilities Enchant
Released2007-05-04
Set symbol
Set nameFuture Sight
Set codeFUT
Number74
Frame2003
Layoutnormal
Borderblack
Illustred byRon Spears

Key Takeaways

  1. Pooling Venom transforms lands into double-edged resources, deterring opponents from tapping them.
  2. The card’s instant-speed ability can strategically impede the opponent’s resource acceleration.
  3. Despite its drawbacks, it offers unique strategic depth to black-based control decks.

Text of card

Enchant land Whenever enchanted land becomes tapped, its controller loses 2 life. : Destroy enchanted land.

The land can only hold so much poison before it begins to bite back.


Card Pros

Card Advantage: Pooling Venom provides a subtle form of card advantage. It discourages opponents from using the enchanted land, effectively rendering one of their resources less desirable to use. If they do tap the land, you get a benefit which can indirectly lead to more cards in your hand or more damage to your opponent.

Resource Acceleration: Although Pooling Venom doesn’t directly accelerate your resources, it can slow down your opponents’. By making one of their lands a risky choice to tap, you strategically accelerate your own position in the game relative to theirs.

Instant Speed: Pooling Venom itself is an enchantment played at sorcery speed, yet its ability triggers at any time the land is tapped. This surprise factor can serve as a deterrent, often at critical moments, aligning with the strength of instant speed plays by creating a reactionary obstacle for your opponent.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: To activate Pooling Venom’s ability, players need to sacrifice another resource. This could lead to a loss of card advantage, especially detrimental in formats where each card in hand is critical.

Specific Mana Cost: Pooling Venom demands a specific mana alignment for its casting and activation. Because it requires black mana, it may not seamlessly fit into multicolored decks or those that don’t have a heavy black mana base.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With its current mana cost, Pooling Venom can be seen as a steep investment for its effects. In a game where tempo and efficiency are key, there are alternative enchantments or removals that may provide a more immediate and cost-effective impact on the board state.


Reasons to Include Pooling Venom in Your Collection

Versatility: Pooling Venom is a unique enchantment that can be an unexpected strategic addition to any black-based control deck. It can be applied to any land, making it a flexible way to deter opponents from using their most valuable mana sources or punishing them if they do.

Combo Potential: This card shines when combined with land-targeting abilities or spells. Use Pooling Venom to complement tactics that force your opponent to tap lands, or combine it with cards that encourage land activation to maximize damage output.

Meta-Relevance: In a meta with greedy mana bases or decks that rely heavily on specific lands for their strategy, Pooling Venom can be a cost-efficient tool. It can potentially disrupt your opponent’s plays or even act as a win condition when the game extends into the late stages.


How to beat

When facing the unique challenges of Pooling Venom, understanding its mechanics is crucial. This enchantment turns an innocuous land into a lurking threat, dealing damage to its controller whenever it’s tapped. Savvy players will recognize the importance of land management when this card is in play. To mitigate the damage from Pooling Venom, avoid tapping the enchanted land whenever possible. Utilize strategies that allow you to bypass land tapping or can untap your lands, keeping the venom at bay.

Employing cards that can remove enchantments or specifically target non-creature permanents can effectively neutralize Pooling Venom. Moreover, strategic use of land destruction effects can eliminate the immediate threat, although at a significant resource cost. Decks carrying counter spells also stand a better chance, preventing the enchantment from ever taking hold. Lastly, it’s wise to include versatile answers in your deck that can handle a variety of threats, ensuring you’re not blindsided by cards like Pooling Venom. A careful and adaptive strategy will see you overcoming the venomous trap set by your opponent.


Cards like Pooling Venom

Pooling Venom holds its unique place in the array of enchant land cards in Magic: The Gathering. A counterpart to this could be Contaminated Ground, which, while it also adds a discomforting effect to the enchanted land, it forces the controller to lose 2 life whenever the land is tapped, rather than Pooling Venom’s damage trigger upon the land’s destruction. The inherent strategy around Pooling Venom lies in the timing of the land’s demise, offering a more tactical edge.

Another enchantment reflecting the same design space is Psychic Venom. It chips away at an opponent’s life total by dealing 2 damage each time the affected land is tapped. Unlike Pooling Venom, which requires the added step of the land being destroyed for the payoff, Psychic Venom delivers consistent pressure throughout the game. The choice between sustained damage versus a potentially larger one-time burst of life loss is a tactical consideration for players weighing their options.

Deciding between Pooling Venom and its similar counterparts demands a careful evaluation of the match-up, the deck’s strategy, and the overall tempo of the game. Pooling Venom’s potential for a significant amount of damage can be a game-changer in the right circumstances, distinguishing it within its category.

Contaminated Ground - MTG Card versions
Psychic Venom - MTG Card versions
Contaminated Ground - Rise of the Eldrazi (ROE)
Psychic Venom - Limited Edition Alpha (LEA)

Cards similar to Pooling Venom by color, type and mana cost

Bad Moon - MTG Card versions
Fear - MTG Card versions
Warp Artifact - MTG Card versions
Deathgrip - MTG Card versions
Blight - MTG Card versions
Animate Dead - MTG Card versions
Seizures - MTG Card versions
Leshrac's Sigil - MTG Card versions
Lim-Dûl's Hex - MTG Card versions
Dance of the Dead - MTG Card versions
Enfeeblement - MTG Card versions
Oath of Ghouls - MTG Card versions
Despondency - MTG Card versions
Chains of Mephistopheles - MTG Card versions
Tribute to Horobi // Echo of Death's Wail - MTG Card versions
Brain Maggot - MTG Card versions
Aphemia, the Cacophony - MTG Card versions
Oversold Cemetery - MTG Card versions
Lingering Death - MTG Card versions
Cover of Darkness - MTG Card versions
Bad Moon - 30th Anniversary Edition (30A)
Fear - Eighth Edition (8ED)
Warp Artifact - Masters Edition IV (ME4)
Deathgrip - 30th Anniversary Edition (30A)
Blight - Classic Sixth Edition (6ED)
Animate Dead - Magic Online Theme Decks (TD0)
Seizures - Ice Age (ICE)
Leshrac's Sigil - Ice Age (ICE)
Lim-Dûl's Hex - Ice Age (ICE)
Dance of the Dead - Masters Edition II (ME2)
Enfeeblement - Classic Sixth Edition (6ED)
Oath of Ghouls - Exodus (EXO)
Despondency - Urza's Saga (USG)
Chains of Mephistopheles - Magic Online Promos (PRM)
Tribute to Horobi // Echo of Death's Wail - Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty (NEO)
Brain Maggot - Historic Anthology 2 (HA2)
Aphemia, the Cacophony - Magic Online Promos (PRM)
Oversold Cemetery - Dominaria Remastered (DMR)
Lingering Death - Scourge (SCG)
Cover of Darkness - Assassin's Creed (ACR)

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Pooling Venom MTG card by a specific set like Future Sight, 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 Pooling Venom and other MTG cards:

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Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Pooling Venom has restrictions

FormatLegality
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
ModernLegal
OathbreakerLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
PredhLegal
PennyLegal

Rules and information

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

DateText
2007-05-01 Only Pooling Venom’s controller can activate the activated ability.
2007-05-01 The triggered ability triggers whenever the enchanted land becomes tapped, not just when it’s tapped for mana.

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