In today’s meta the Fire Civilization is renowned for its mass creature destruction, and justifiably so.  There’s nothing like watching your opponent’s expression after you decimate the battle zone.  However, what people consistently forget is the fact that the Fire Civilization also packs some intense mana destruction.  Let’s revisit a card that’s been forgotten.

 

Cataclysmic Eruption  

Cost: 8

Civilization: Fire
Type: Spell
Rules Text:

• For each nature creature you have in the battle zone, you may choose a card in your opponent's mana zone and put it into his graveyard.
   

The cool thing about this card is that there are no special tricks.  You essentially get to destroy 1 of your opponent’s mana for each of your nature creatures in the battle zone.  In other words, if you have 4 nature creatures in the battle zone then your opponent loses 4 mana.  This kind of effect can definitely yield some devastating results.  However the most common complaint that people always have is the mana cost.  Yes, 8 mana is a pain to waste on one card, but let’s not forget that we have nature on our side.  Let’s say we’re able to summon at least 2 Essence Elves…  This will reduce the cost down to 6 mana.  To make things even easier, let’s say you summoned an Essence Elf on turn 2 and then on turns 3 and 4 you summoned Essence Elves and/or Bronze Arm Tribe (the order doesn’t matter).  You’ll be able to cast this spell by turn 5 and easily retard your opponent’s progress by destroying 3 mana.  Of course this is under the assumption that your opponent isn’t rushing you, so don’t forget to pack extra firepower to hold back the aggressive players.

 

The best thing about this card is that a deck would basically build itself.  Your creatures will mostly be nature and your spells will most likely be fire.  This is a superb combination because fire spells are perfect for eliminating threats and nature creatures make the spells that much easier to use.  Just put together some Essence Elves, Bronze Arm Tribes, Engineer Kippo, fire destruction spells, and a couple other goodies and you’ll pretty much have a killer deck. 

 

The Good:  Unlabored, multiple mana destruction.

 

The Bad:  High cost.  This can be resolved with nature’s mana acceleration.

 

The Ugly:  Having zero nature creatures in the battle zone means no effect.

 

Constructed Rating: 3.5/5 – Cataclysmic Eruption is an outstanding asset to Fire/Nature decks.  After the first time you cast it your opponent will be stuck in catch-up mode.  The only problem is that your creatures will be weak and you will have no blockers so make sure you pack plenty of mass destruction.  Apocalypse vise will mesh well with this type of deck.

 

Limited Rating: 1.5/5 – Yes it’ll be cool to destroy your opponent’s mana but it will be difficult trying to reach 8 mana.  Anyway, with fire and nature on your side you’re more likely to overrun your opponent with weenies instead of waiting to cast this crazy spell.

 

Want to get more Duel Masters support in your area?  Come and check out our Duel Masters petition.