Stompy decks in Magic: The Gathering have a new mechanic called Expend through the Bloomburrow Standard-legal set. Here’s how it works.
What is the MTG Expend mechanic in Bloomburrow?
Casting big spells in MTG matters through the Gruul color combo, with the new Expend mechanic from Bloomburrow providing additional value for those high-cost spells.
- Expend definition: Spend mana equal to or higher than the Expend number to gain a bonus. Expend is only accomplished by spending spell mana, not mana for activated abilities. You may only achieve the Expend mechanic once per turn. And you may hit it on your opponent’s turn.
For example, an Expend number of four requires you to spend four or more mana when casting permanents during that turn. You can spend the mana on one spell or multiple spells. When you’ve spent the four mana, the bonus activates.
Example of how MTG Expend works on Bloomburrow card
One of the best examples of the MTG Expend mechanic is through Muerra, Trash Tactician. The Rare Raccoon Warrior adds Red or Green mana for each Raccoon you control. Muerra also has the Bloomburrow mechanic with Expend four and Expend eight.
When you Expend four, you gain three life points. If you Expend eight, the top two cards of your library get exiled, and you can play them before the end of your next turn.
Much like Muerra, Wandertale Mentor can add Red or Green mana by tapping. The Expend mechanic scales the Raccoon in power and toughness every time you spend up to four mana during that turn.
Why is the MTG Expend mechanic important?
Gaining additional value for casting large spells will significantly impact the Commander format and possibly Standard Constructed. Muerra, Trash Tactician is the only Expend card from Bloomburrow we have seen at time of writing, so we don’t know what other color combinations the mechanic will appear in.
The bonuses from Expend will play a significant role within MTG formats, depending on how much mana they require and what colors feature the new Bloomburrow mechanic. Many Magic cards within Stompy builds have bonuses for playing large creatures. Expend can potentially provide multiple bonuses on top of those triggers, propelling Stompy decks back into the top of the Constructed MTG meta.
