Legendary Synergies with Into the Maw of Hell's Ability

Legendary Synergies with Into the Maw of Hell's Ability

In TCG ·

Into the Maw of Hell card art by Raymond Swanland from Innistrad

Image courtesy of Scryfall.com

Legends and the Maw: Synergies Behind Into the Maw of Hell

There’s a certain theater to red in Magic: The Gathering—a theatre of chaos, fast starts, and spectacular finishers. Into the Maw of Hell embodies that drama in a single, combustible package: destroy a land and blast a chosen creature for an impressive 13 damage. Turn four becomes a memory, turn five becomes a threat you can’t ignore, and a single spell can peel away an opponent’s mana base while forcing a dilemma on the battlefield. 🧙‍♂️🔥💎

The Innistrad frame and the art by Raymond Swanland pull you into a world where horrors lurk just beyond the cracked earth. The flavor text—Few entrances lead to where demons and devils lurk. Unfortunately, they occasionally open new ones.—is a wink to the hellish lore that fuels red’s “boom, then boom again” ethos. It’s not just about raw power; it’s about the legend that red weaves with every catastrophic decision. This spell asks you to live by the consequences of a hellish pact: sacrifice a land, punish a foe’s board, and watch the table adjust to the shockwave. 🧙‍♂️🎲

Few entrances lead to where demons and devils lurk. Unfortunately, they occasionally open new ones.

And legends—the great, mythic figures that populate Magic’s storytelling—are a natural frame for Into the Maw of Hell’s savage elegance. In red lore, demon lords and devilish captains rise when the world grows unstable, and land becomes a currency as precious as the life of a creature in a crowded arena. This synergy isn’t about one grand champion; it’s about the kinds of legendary archetypes that red has always loved: the fearless, the reckless, and the unstoppable. Legends connect to the spell’s ability because they embody the same appetite for risk and ruin that the Maw embodies on the battlefield. 🧙‍♂️⚔️

Legendary synergies you might explore in a red-led shell

In terms of lore and theme, you can pair Into the Maw of Hell with legendary red figures who symbolize the hellscape’s reach and the chaos of unbound power. Consider demon and devil lords such as Rakdos, Lord of Riots, and Ob Nixilis, among others who evoke a sense of infernal command. A deck built around these figures can lean into a “hellgate” narrative: you open a rift with Maw, your legends surge through, and the table contends with the cascading effects. The Maw’s two-part effect—land destruction plus direct damage—gives you two paths to influence the game: curb opponents’ mana bases and answer their threats in a single swing. It’s the kind of design that invites bold plays and dramatic comebacks, exactly the rhythm many red-deck fans crave. 🔥🎨

From a gameplay perspective, Maw shines in Commander and other formats that reward aggressive disruption and tempo. If you’re piloting a demon- or hell-themed list, this spell can “prime the battlefield” for big finishers. Destruction of an opponent’s land can stall their plan, while forcing a creature to answer for a hefty amount of damage keeps pressure on the board. It’s not a one-trick pony—while it’s tempting to go for the biggest threat on the table, you can also leverage Maw as a kill line against anything that stands between you and a dramatic victory. The mana cost of {4}{R}{R} means you’re committed to red’s robust midgame, and the payoff is a satisfying turn where the table reels from both the removal and the direct damage. 🧙‍♂️⚔️

Artwork, story, and strategy come together in Innistrad’s signature way here. The illustration communicates the maw as a living conduit between the Material Plane and a furnace-filled underworld, and the flavor text doubles down on the idea that gateways to hell are rarely guarded by caution. For collectors and players who savor a strong, evocative moment in a game, Into the Maw of Hell offers a memorable narrative beat along with reliable, impactful play. The rarity—uncommon—belies the spell’s potential to shift a board state when you deliver the right combination of destruction and damage, turning the turn you pay for into the turn that defines the game. 💎🧙‍♂️

For lovers of art, lore, and the way a well-timed spell can flash-fire a gaming moment, this card is a favorite notch in Innistrad’s ever-tightening belt. The card’s practical flexibility is balanced by its outright theatrics: you’re not just removing a land; you’re (literally) setting the stage for a dramatic confrontation with a creature that might have loomed too large to handle in any other way. The Maw invites you to think in broad strokes—how do you shape the battlefield’s geography to suit your legends? And how do you keep your opponents from re-sculpting it first? 🧙‍♂️🔥⚔️

As collectible goods go, Into the Maw of Hell sits comfortably in the mid-to-low budget tier for foil or non-foil copies, with recent market values reflecting the card’s enduring charm and playable versatility. A well-timed cast can feel as cinematic as a cameo from a favorite legendary demon lord, and that sense of shared story is what makes old-school red such a joy to revisit. If you’re chasing a blend of nostalgic flavor and real-game impact, Maw is a spell you’ll remember long after you shuffle up again. 🎲

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Into the Maw of Hell

Into the Maw of Hell

{4}{R}{R}
Sorcery

Destroy target land. Into the Maw of Hell deals 13 damage to target creature.

Few entrances lead to where demons and devils lurk. Unfortunately, they occasionally open new ones.

ID: 5d188d9b-7a12-4eaf-855b-af4f0204dc5a

Oracle ID: 5f0e8fd5-9db9-4507-a42f-cb99080b89e2

Multiverse IDs: 220035

TCGPlayer ID: 52213

Cardmarket ID: 250581

Colors: R

Color Identity: R

Keywords:

Rarity: Uncommon

Released: 2011-09-30

Artist: Raymond Swanland

Frame: 2003

Border: black

EDHRec Rank: 17006

Penny Rank: 11727

Set: Innistrad (isd)

Collector #: 150

Legalities

  • Standard — not_legal
  • Future — not_legal
  • Historic — not_legal
  • Timeless — not_legal
  • Gladiator — not_legal
  • Pioneer — not_legal
  • Modern — legal
  • Legacy — legal
  • Pauper — not_legal
  • Vintage — legal
  • Penny — legal
  • Commander — legal
  • Oathbreaker — legal
  • Standardbrawl — not_legal
  • Brawl — not_legal
  • Alchemy — not_legal
  • Paupercommander — not_legal
  • Duel — legal
  • Oldschool — not_legal
  • Premodern — not_legal
  • Predh — not_legal

Prices

  • USD: 0.16
  • USD_FOIL: 1.39
  • EUR: 0.10
  • EUR_FOIL: 0.36
  • TIX: 0.03
Last updated: 2025-11-19