Riot Spikes

Riot Spikes was released in 2006 as part of the Dissension expansion, the final set in the Ravnica: City of Guilds block for the Magic: The Gathering trading card game. This set introduced the remaining three guilds of Ravnica—the Rakdos, the Simic, and the Azorius—with Riot Spikes appearing as a common green spell card associated with the Simic Combine, a guild defined by its focus on biological experimentation and evolutionary adaptation.

The card’s illustration was crafted by artist Christopher Rush, a legendary figure in the early history of the game. His design for Riot Spikes emphasizes the organic, mutation-based aesthetic that characterized the Simic guild, utilizing a visual language of sharp, visceral growths that mirror the card's function of granting a creature a power boost at the expense of its long-term viability. Upon its release, it was regarded as a standard combat trick within the limited environment, valued by players for its efficiency and thematic cohesion with the set's mechanics.