Pouncing Wurm is one of those cards players keep asking about. Here is, in plain words, what its official text says, the rulings published by Wizards of the Coast, and the combos players actually run.
Official card text
Kicker(You may pay an additional
Complete guide
Pouncing Wurm is a versatile green creature that offers players a choice between a mid-game threat and a late-game powerhouse. By utilizing the Kicker mechanic, you can decide whether you need a simple blocker or a massive attacker with Haste to finish off your opponent. This flexibility makes it a classic example of how green spells scale as the game progresses.
What it Does
Pouncing Wurm is a 3/3 creature for four mana. However, it features an optional additional cost called Kicker for {2}{G}. If you choose to pay this extra mana when casting the spell, the Wurm transforms into a 6/6 creature that enters the battlefield with Haste. It is important to note that the Haste granted by the kicker effect is permanent; it does not disappear at the end of the turn.
How it Resolves Step by Step
First, as you cast Pouncing Wurm, you declare whether you are paying the Kicker cost. The total cost becomes {5}{GG}. Once the spell resolves and enters the battlefield, the game checks if it was kicked. If it was, the Wurm enters with three +1/+1 counters already on it. Because the counters and Haste are part of the entry effect, there is no separate trigger that can be responded to once the creature is on the battlefield.
Common Mistakes
A frequent error involves putting Pouncing Wurm onto the battlefield using effects that don't involve casting, such as reanimation. If you do not cast the spell, you cannot pay the Kicker cost, and the Wurm will always be a 3/3 without Haste. Additionally, if you use a copy effect like a Clone, the new permanent is not considered 'kicked' even if the original Pouncing Wurm was, because the copy was not cast by paying that specific cost.
When to Play It
In the early to mid-game, you might play Pouncing Wurm for its base cost of {3}{G} if you desperately need a 3/3 body to stabilize the board. However, it is almost always better to wait until you have seven mana. A 6/6 with Haste can surprise an opponent who has tapped out, allowing you to deal significant damage immediately before they can prepare their defenses.
Interaction examples
Solemn SimulacrumIf you play Solemn Simulacrum on turn four to fetch a basic land, you will have the necessary mana to cast a kicked Pouncing Wurm on turn five or six. The land acceleration provided by the Golem ensures you can afford the {5}{GG} total cost much faster than normal, allowing you to deploy a 6/6 Haste threat while your opponent is still setting up.
Eternal WitnessIf your Pouncing Wurm is destroyed, you can use Eternal Witness to return it from your graveyard to your hand. Because the Kicker choice is made during the casting process, you can choose to cast it for its base cost earlier in the game, and then later use Eternal Witness to bring it back and cast it again with the Kicker cost paid for maximum impact.
Guide written with AI from the official text and rulings. Official English text prevails.
How it works : Pouncing Wurm
Original English text — Wizards of the Coast / Scryfall
- #1· Wizards of the Coast
If you put a permanent with a kicker ability onto the battlefield without casting it, you can't kick it.
No other card is named in this ruling.
- #2· Wizards of the Coast
If a spell's kicker cost was paid, the spell is "kicked."
No other card is named in this ruling.
- #3· Wizards of the Coast
The kicker ability doesn't let you pay a kicker cost more than once.
No other card is named in this ruling.
- #4· Wizards of the Coast
To determine a spell's total cost, start with the mana cost (or an alternative cost if another card's effect allows you to pay one instead), add any cost increases (such as kicker), then apply any cost reductions. The spell's mana value remains unchanged, no matter what the total cost to cast it was.
No other card is named in this ruling.
- #5· Wizards of the Coast
If you copy a kicked spell on the stack, the copy is also kicked. If the copied spell is a permanent spell, the token the copy of that spell becomes when it enters is also kicked.
No other card is named in this ruling.
- #6· Wizards of the Coast
If a card or token enters as a copy of a permanent, the new permanent isn't kicked, even if the original was.
No other card is named in this ruling.
- #7· Wizards of the Coast
If the Pouncing Wurm is kicked, Pouncing Wurm has haste permanently.
No other card is named in this ruling.
Legal formats
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Meta decks with Pouncing Wurm
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