What it does
Reinforce is an activated ability found on certain creature cards that lets you discard the card from your hand to put +1/+1 counters on a target creature. It's written as "Reinforce N—[cost]," where N is the number of counters and the cost is what you pay. You activate it from your hand, not the battlefield—the creature card never actually enters play.
The most common mistake is treating it like casting the creature. It's not a spell; it's an activated ability, so it uses the stack but can't be countered by "counter target spell" effects, and it doesn't trigger cast-related abilities. The counters are permanent and stay even if the creature changes zones and returns as a new object (they just don't follow it).
In Commander, Reinforce gives flexibility: a creature you don't need can instead pump a commander or evasive threat, turning a dead card into reach or a lethal swing.
Iconic cards with Reinforce
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