MTG Foundations’ most busted infinite combo was no accident

As a seasoned Magic: The Gathering player with over two decades of experience under my belt, I must say that the latest addition to the game, MTG Foundations, has truly outdone itself. The set’s balance between simplicity and complexity is a testament to the design team’s understanding of both newcomers and veterans alike.


In the realm of Magic: The Gathering Foundations, there’s a potential for an incredibly powerful loop or combination that could be the set’s most potent, as suggested by one of the game’s top designers. This intricate combo, it seems, is intentionally included in the design.

Currently, it’s an exceptional period for Magic: The Gathering enthusiasts, whether veteran Planeswalkers or newcomers to the hobby. The launch of MTG Foundations is just beginning, and this latest set is designed with both seasoned players and those making their initial exploration into the renowned Trading Card Game in mind.

One reason Foundations excels in finding a perfect balance is because of its streamlined mechanics, yet another crucial aspect lies in its selection of cards. Foundations includes reprints of timeless cards from various TCG’s 30-year history and introduces fresh cards designed to complement them effectively.

Using Bloodthirsty Conqueror and Marauding Blight-Priest together in this strategy has created the set’s most dreaded infinite combo. This deadly duo, being vampires, is both legal for standard play and poised to be a nightmare for MTG beginners and seasoned players alike.

MTG Foundations’ most busted infinite combo was no accident

In relation to some background, Marauding Blight-Priest debuted in the Magic: The Gathering’s Zendikar Rising collection during 2020 and subsequently appeared as a reprint in Foundations. On the other hand, Bloodthirsty Conqueror is a fresh card from the most recent release.

The powerful duo of these cards works together due to their complementary lifegain effects. Specifically, the Bloodthirsty Conqueror gains life whenever an opponent loses it, while the Marauding Blight-Priest causes opponents to lose life when the player gains it.

To swiftly secure a victory, simply play both cards simultaneously and discover a method to reduce your opponent’s life total. Once on the board, the abilities of these cards will continue to activate in a loop until your opponent is depleted of life, leaving you with an excess.

Carmen Klomparens, a senior designer at MTG, confirmed that the infinite combo in X was deliberately designed and purposefully added to the game. They provided an explanation for its inclusion as well.

There’s been a lot of discussion about this combination appearing in #MTGFDN, and it’s not entirely clear if it was deliberate or not. To provide some clarity, let me share the reasoning behind its existence, or how it came to be.

— Carmen Klomparens (@Em_TeeGee) November 11, 2024

As a dedicated gamer working on Foundations, I can tell you that our primary focus was to create the ultimate “Core Set” experience. In a nutshell, the objective of Foundations was to bridge the divide between a novice Magic player and an experienced one.

To avoid making the game overly simplistic for novice players, Klomparens explained that the team aimed to prevent the feeling of “treating newcomers like children”. Overpowered combinations are a significant aspect of Magic: The Gathering (MTG), and the designers at Wizards of the Coast intended to let new players with Foundations discover these powerful combinations for themselves, either by using them or experiencing their effects firsthand.

Klomparens went on to say, “Perhaps it’s a bit overly optimistic, but it seemed like the type of scenario that was a good gamble for introducing players to some amazing Magic experiences. I don’t mean to suggest that a new player after their 5th game wouldn’t question an infinite combo, but the chances that someone playing their 50th game would exclaim ‘Wow! That’s incredible!’ are in a region where we think the potential reward is worth the risk.

Regardless if you’re a newcomer to Magic: The Gathering Foundations or an experienced collector, you’d likely be interested in adding Bloodthirsty Conqueror and Marauding Blight-Priest to your collection. Luckily, the Marauding Blight-Priest can be obtained from the MTG Foundations Starter Collection. To get your hands on Bloodthirsty Conqueror, though, you’ll need to open booster packs.

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2024-11-12 06:18