Coffin Queen MTG Card

Coffin Queen excels at using graveyards as resources for reanimation and tactical advantage. Her instant speed ability offers flexibility, but mana costs may hinder fast deck strategies. Valuable in multiple strategies, Coffin Queen can be countered with targeted removal or graveyard hate.

Tempest (TMP)
1997-10-14 - Number 114

Tempest Remastered (TPR)
2015-05-06 - Number 87

Card sets	Released in 2 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost	3
Rarity	Rare
Type	Creature — Zombie Wizard
Power	1
Toughness	1

Text of card

You may choose not to untap Coffin Queen during your untap phase. o B, oc T: Put target creature card from any graveyard into play under your control. Remove that creature from the game if Coffin Queen becomes untapped or if you lose control of Coffin Queen.

Cards like Coffin Queen

Within the realm of creature reanimation in Magic: The Gathering, Coffin Queen stands out with her unique ability to reanimate creatures from any graveyard. Much like the iconic Animate Dead, Coffin Queen offers the power to bring back creatures, but she adds a twist by giving them a “use it or lose it” clause, effectively disappearing if she becomes untapped. Animate Dead, conversely, lacks this limitation and provides a static enchantment-based reanimation.

Meanwhile, the famed reanimator, Reanimate, brings creatures back to the battlefield at the cost of life equal to their power. Unlike Coffin Queen, Reanimate is a one-time use of sorcery speed, lacking the repeatability Coffin Queen provides as long as she remains tapped. On the opposing side of the spectrum, we find cards like Necromancy – versatile due to its ability to be cast as an instant, yet more restrictive because it binds you to only your own graveyard.

When comparing Coffin Queen to her contemporaries, her mix of continuous effect and graveyard flexibility makes her a multifaceted tool for any player striving to harness the strengths of opponents’ graveyards in addition to their own. This grants Coffin Queen a unique positioning in strategies revolving around the use and misuse of graveyard resources.

Cards similar to Coffin Queen by color, type and mana cost

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Card Pros

Card Advantage: Coffin Queen provides an edge by potentially reanimating creatures from any graveyard. This not only can provide you with additional board presence but also disrupts your opponent’s strategies associated with their own graveyard resources.

Resource Acceleration: By effectively utilizing dead creatures as resources, Coffin Queen turns every creature card in all graveyards into a potential asset. This gives you the ability to accelerate your gameplay without expending cards from your hand, preserving your in-hand resources.

Instant Speed: Coffin Queen’s ability functions at instant speed, offering significant flexibility. You can end-step reanimate a creature to surprise an opponent during their turn or in response to their actions, making it a versatile tactical option during gameplay.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: One of the Coffin Queen’s limitations is the need to discard a card to activate its abilities. This can potentially deplete your hand, making it a risky play when your card availability is already dwindling.

Specific Mana Cost: Coffin Queen demands a precise mana alignment, requiring one black and two generic mana to cast. This specificity can make it less flexible in multicolored decks that may struggle with mana consistency.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a casting cost of three and an activation cost that also requires three mana, including one black, Coffin Queen can strain your mana resources. In faster-paced games, its activation cost might prove too steep compared to other options that offer similar graveyard interaction for less mana investment.

Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Coffin Queen fits seamlessly into a variety of deck archetypes, particularly those requiring graveyard manipulation or reanimation strategies. Its ability to reanimate creatures from any graveyard offers flexible responses in gameplay.

Combo Potential: This card opens up numerous combo possibilities, pairing well with sacrifice outlets or other cards that capitalize on death triggers. The ability to consistently resurrect creatures sets up recurring synergies that can dominate the board.

Meta-Relevance: Given the prominence of graveyard-based strategies in various metagames, Coffin Queen holds its ground as a tactical card. It provides an answer to opponents’ graveyard tactics while offering an untapped pool of resources to exploit.

How to beat

Coffin Queen is a unique and persistent threat in MTG that can reanimate creatures from any graveyard. To effectively counter this card, it’s important to have removal strategies ready. Graveyard hate cards such as Rest in Peace or Leyline of the Void can neutralize Coffin Queen’s reanimation ability by removing the graveyard as a resource entirely. Swift removal spells like Path to Exile or Assassin’s Trophy can deal with Coffin Queen directly before its controller gets the opportunity to use its ability.

It’s also viable to employ instant-speed interaction, giving you a window to respond when the Coffin Queen targets a creature in a graveyard. Counterspells such as Counterspell or Negate work well to ensure the Queen’s ability doesn’t resolve. Additionally, keeping in mind that Coffin Queen has summoning sickness, using sorcery-speed removal can preempt its ability activation if played the turn after it’s summoned.

Containing the Queen is key, and staying on top of graveyards with cards like Scavenging Ooze can limit the options available for reanimation. Applying constant pressure to your opponent will also force them to address your threats instead of leveraging Coffin Queen’s potential, tilting the odds in your favor.

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Coffin Queen MTG card by a specific set like Tempest and Tempest Remastered, there are several reliable options to consider. One of the primary sources is your local game store, where you can often find booster packs, individual cards, and preconstructed decks from current and some past sets. They often offer the added benefit of a community where you can trade with other players.

For a broader inventory, particularly of older sets, online marketplaces like TCGPlayer, Card Kingdom and Card Market offer extensive selections and allow you to search for cards from specific sets. Larger e-commerce platforms like eBay and Amazon also have listings from various sellers, which can be a good place to look for sealed product and rare finds.

Additionally, Magic’s official site often has a store locator and retailer lists for finding Wizards of the Coast licensed products. Remember to check for authenticity and the condition of the cards when purchasing, especially from individual sellers on larger marketplaces.

Below is a list of some store websites where you can buy the Coffin Queen and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Coffin Queen Magic the Gathering card was released in 2 different sets between 1997-10-14 and 2015-05-06. Illustrated by Kaja Foglio.

#	Released	Name	Code	Symbol	Number	Frame	Layout	Border	Artist
1	1997-10-14	Tempest	TMP		114	1997	Normal	Black	Kaja Foglio
2	2015-05-06	Tempest Remastered	TPR		87	2015	Normal	Black	Kaja Foglio

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Coffin Queen has restrictions

Format	Legality
Commander	Legal
Legacy	Legal
Oathbreaker	Legal
Premodern	Legal
Vintage	Legal
Duel	Legal
Predh	Legal

Rules and information

The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering Coffin Queen card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.

Date	Text
2004-10-04	If the creature put onto the battlefield leaves the battlefield, the tracking effect ends and the creature will no longer be exiled if something happens to the Coffin Queen.
2004-10-04	If the creature put onto the battlefield phases out, the tracking effect continues when it phases back in if the Coffin Queen is still on the battlefield. If the Queen left the battlefield while the creature was phased out, the creature phases in as normal.
2014-02-01	If Coffin Queen leaves the battlefield before its ability resolves, the delayed trigger condition can never be fulfilled, so the creature will not be exiled. If Coffin Queen is untapped when its ability resolves, the creature will not be exiled until the next time Coffin Queen becomes untapped.