The Cave of Two Lovers 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
(As this Saga enters and after your draw step, add a lore counter. Sacrifice after III.) I — Create two 1/1 white Ally creature tokens. II — Search your library for a Mountain or Cave card, reveal it, put it into your hand, then shuffle. III — Earthbend 3. (Target land you control becomes a 0/0 creature with haste that's still a land. Put three +1/+1 counters on it. When it dies or is exiled, return it to the battlefield tapped.)
Complete guide
The Cave of Two Lovers is a thematic Red Saga that captures the journey of allies finding their way through secret tunnels. It transitions from building a board state to securing resources and finally awakening the earth itself to fight for you.
A Journey in Three Chapters
As a Saga, this enchantment enters with one lore counter and gains another after your draw step each turn. The first chapter provides defensive or offensive tokens, the second secures a mana source, and the third utilizes the Earthbend keyword to transform a land into a resilient threat.
Understanding Earthbend
When the III chapter triggers, you target a land you control. It becomes a 0/0 creature with haste but remains a land. You then place three +1/+1 counters on it. Importantly, Earthbend creates a delayed triggered ability: if that land dies or is exiled, it returns to the battlefield tapped under your control as a normal land again.
Timing and Targeting
The Chapter III ability requires a legal target land you control to resolve. If the land is destroyed in response to the trigger, the ability fizzles. However, if the land is already a creature (perhaps from a previous effect), Earthbend will simply overwrite its base power and toughness to 0/0, add the counters, and grant it the 'return to battlefield' insurance.
Strategic Considerations
Since the land gains haste, you can use Earthbend on a land you played the same turn. Furthermore, because the land returns to the battlefield tapped if it dies or is exiled, it is a fantastic way to protect your mana base against removal while maintaining pressure on the opponent.
Interaction examples
Ally
Shared AnimosityWhen Chapter I resolves, you create two 1/1 white Ally creature tokens. If you have Shared Animosity on the battlefield and attack with both, they will see each other as creatures sharing the 'Ally' type. Each Ally will get +1/+0 for the other, effectively attacking as 2/1 creatures.
Aggravated AssaultAfter Chapter III resolves, your land is now a 3/3 creature with haste. If you have five mana available (including the land creature if it wasn't tapped), you can activate Aggravated Assault. This untaps all your creatures, including the newly animated land, allowing you to attack for a second time in an additional combat phase.
Guide written with AI from the official text and rulings. Official English text prevails.
How it works : The Cave of Two Lovers
Original English text — Wizards of the Coast / Scryfall
- #1· Wizards of the Coast
If the targeted land becomes an illegal target before the spell or ability that includes earthbend resolves, earthbend does nothing. If the spell or ability didn't have other targets, it won't resolve.
No other card is named in this ruling.
- #2· Wizards of the Coast
If a land was animated by earthbend and would go to any zone other than the graveyard or exile, it will not be returned to the battlefield by the delayed triggered ability created by earthbend.
No other card is named in this ruling.
- #3· Wizards of the Coast
Earthbend doesn't give the land you control a color. As most lands are colorless, in most cases the resulting land creature will also be colorless.
No other card is named in this ruling.
- #4· Wizards of the Coast
"Earthbend N" means "Target land you control becomes a 0/0 land creature with haste in addition to its other types. Put N +1/+1 counters on it. When it dies or is exiled, return it to the battlefield tapped under your control."
No other card is named in this ruling.
- #5· Wizards of the Coast
The land will retain any other types, subtypes, or supertypes it previously had. It will also retain any mana abilities it had as a result of those subtypes. For example, a Forest that's turned into a creature this way can still be tapped for
.No other card is named in this ruling.
- #6· Wizards of the Coast
You may target a land that is already a creature, perhaps because of a previous earthbend ability. The land will get the +1/+1 counters, gain haste, and have its base power and toughness set to 0/0.
No other card is named in this ruling.
Related cards and tokens
Legal formats
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Meta decks with The Cave of Two Lovers
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