Death's Shadow MTG Card
2010-02-05 - Number 57
2017-03-17 - Number 64
2020-08-07 - Number 82
2019-12-02 - Number 474
| Card sets | Released in 4 setsSee all |
| Mana cost | |
| Converted mana cost | 1 |
| Rarity | Rare |
| Type | Creature — Avatar |
| Power | 13 |
| Toughness | 13 |
Text of card
Death's Shadow gets -X/-X, where X is your life total.
The shadow of the candle looms tall even as its light grows dim.
Cards like Death's Shadow
Death’s Shadow is a unique powerhouse in the MTG metagame, thriving on a player’s low life total. Just like Tarmogoyf, it’s a creature card that can become massive for a minimal mana investment. Where Tarmogoyf’s power and toughness depend on the variety of card types in all graveyards, Death’s Shadow grows stronger as your life diminishes. This distinct contrast creates dynamic deck building choices, particularly in strategies centered on life total manipulation.
Shadowborn Apostle presents another parallel, as it too revolves around a build-around-me design, allowing for a deck to contain any number of them. While the Apostle synergizes with a swarm strategy and sacrifices for a singular powerful Demon creature, Death’s Shadow is often the star player around which the entire deck pivots, becoming formidable as health wanes.
Considering the card’s unique interaction with player life totals, Growth Spiral provides an interesting contrast. While not a creature, it serves as a role-player by ramping and drawing a card. Unlike Death’s Shadow, it doesn’t require a dangerous dip in life but doesn’t present the same level of threat or board presence. In essence, Death’s Shadow remains unparalleled in its role, rewarding bold strategies that teeter on the brink of defeat for a formidable presence on the board.
Cards similar to Death's Shadow by color, type and mana cost
Decks using this card
MTG decks using Death's Shadow. Dig deeper into the strategy of decks, sideboard cards, list ideas and export to play in ARENA or MOL.
| # | Name | Format | Archetype | Event |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Sultai Death's Shadow | Modern | Death's Shadow | Modern Challenge 64 2024-04-14 |
 | Jund Death's Shadow | Modern | Death's Shadow | Modern Challenge 32 2024-04-19 |
 | Death's Shadow | Legacy | Death's Shadow | Legacy Challenge 32 2024-04-14 |
| U/B Stalker Shadow | Legacy | Death's Shadow | Not Quite Pro Tour Not Quite Seattle - Legacy $1K |
 | Grixis Death's Shadow | Modern | Death's Shadow | Modern League 2024-04-14 |
 | Dimir Death's Shadow | Legacy | Death's Shadow | Circuito Legacy Catarinense | Temporada 2024 | Etapa 4 |
 | Rakdos Death's Shadow | Modern | Death's Shadow | Modern Challenge 64 2024-04-20 |
| Dimir Midrange | Legacy | Death's Shadow | $1K - Legacy - SCG CON Atlanta - Sunday - 9:30 am |
Card Pros
Card Advantage: Death’s Shadow thrives in a strategy where life totals can be manipulated deliberately and efficiently. While not directly allowing the drawing of cards, it indirectly supports card advantage by incentivizing a player to utilize their life as a resource, which can synergize with cards that draw for life payment or set up graveyard strategies.
Resource Acceleration: Death’s Shadow doesn’t directly accelerate resources in the conventional sense of providing mana or ramp. However, its low casting cost transforms life loss into a board presence accelerant, enabling players to cast a potentially massive creature for just one black mana, effectively turning a disadvantage into a substantial threat on the board.
Instant Speed: Though Death’s Shadow itself is not an instant, it benefits significantly from instant speed interaction. Since life totals often fluctuate during the opponent’s turn through the use of instant-speed spells or abilities, Death’s Shadow can grow unexpectedly large, posing a sudden and lethal threat that opponents must be wary of at all times.
Card Cons
Discard Requirement: As a powerful creature card in MTG, Death’s Shadow requires a strategic approach to life total management. Keeping your life total low to maximize its potency can be a double-edged sword, presenting a risk against fast-paced or direct-damage decks.
Specific Mana Cost: Death’s Shadow demands a single black mana, restricting its playability to decks that can consistently generate black mana or accommodate a black-centered mana base.
Comparatively High Mana Cost: While its mana cost might seem low, getting the full value of Death’s Shadow’s strength relative to your life total often involves additional investment in card synergy and life-lowering mechanics. This can be a costly endeavor, diminishing its efficiency compared to other creatures that can exert pressure without such contingencies.
Reasons to Include Death’s Shadow in Your Collection
Versatility: Death’s Shadow thrives in various deck archetypes, particularly those that play around life total manipulation. It gives players the ability to control their own life to make Death’s Shadow a low-cost, high-power creature.
Combo Potential: This card opens up robust combinations with cards designed to lower your life quickly, boosting its power. Synergies with ‘fetch-and-shock’ lands, or spells like Thoughtseize, which provides strategic advantage while empowering Death’s Shadow, are quintessential.
Meta-Relevance: In a metagame full of aggro and tempo decks, Death’s Shadow can be a game-changer. It can become a formidable asset that adapts as the game progresses, maintaining pressure on the opponent and often serving as a key element of finishing strategies.
How to beat
Death’s Shadow is a powerhouse in Modern and even appears in Legacy formats of Magic: The Gathering. The card thrives in a strategy where life totals are leveraged for advantage. Therefore, it becomes imperative to prevent it from becoming a dominant threat on the board. One effective strategy is to limit damage to oneself, thereby restraining the growth of Death’s Shadow. Lifegain cards can be key in this endeavor as they keep your life total high, making the card less formidable.
Additionally, removal spells that don’t deal damage but rather exile or force the player to sacrifice creatures are highly effective against Death’s Shadow. These include cards like Path to Exile or Fatal Push, which can dispatch Death’s Shadow without regard to its power. Counter strategies that work around not lowering your life total, such as avoiding fetch lands and shock lands when unnecessary, also help contain its power.
Overall, the trick lies in manipulating life totals wisely and having the right removal spells at your disposal. By doing so, you can render Death’s Shadow much less of a threat and take control of the game.
Where to buy
If you're looking to purchase Death's Shadow MTG card by a specific set like Worldwake and Modern Masters 2017, 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 Death's Shadow and other MTG cards:
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- eBay
- Card Kingdom
- Card Market
- Star City Games
- CoolStuffInc
- MTG Mint Card
- Hareruya
- Troll and Toad
- ABU Games
- Card Hoarder Magic Online
- MTGO Traders Magic Online
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Printings
The Death's Shadow Magic the Gathering card was released in 4 different sets between 2010-02-05 and 2020-08-07. Illustrated by 2 different artists.
| # | Released | Name | Code | Symbol | Number | Frame | Layout | Border | Artist |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2010-02-05 | Worldwake | WWK | 57 | 2003 | Normal | Black | Howard Lyon | |
| 2 | 2017-03-17 | Modern Masters 2017 | MM3 | 64 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Howard Lyon | |
| 3 | Secret Lair Drop | SLD | 474 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Magali Villeneuve | ||
| 4 | 2020-08-07 | Double Masters | 2XM | 82 | 2015 | Normal | Black | Howard Lyon |
Legalities
Magic the Gathering formats where Death's Shadow has restrictions
| Format | Legality |
|---|---|
| Historicbrawl | Legal |
| Commander | Legal |
| Historic | Legal |
| Legacy | Legal |
| Modern | Legal |
| Oathbreaker | Legal |
| Vintage | Legal |
| Duel | Legal |
| Predh | Legal |
| Gladiator | Legal |
| Timeless | Legal |
Rules and information
The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering Death's Shadow card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.
| Date | Text |
|---|---|
| 2020-08-07 | Death's Shadow's ability applies only while Death's Shadow is on the battlefield. In all other zones, its power and toughness are 13. |
| 2020-08-07 | If your life total is negative, X is considered to be 0. |
| 2020-08-07 | In a Two-Headed Giant game, your life total is your team's life total. |
| 2020-08-07 | The value of X changes as you gain and lose life. It's not locked in as Death's Shadow enters the battlefield. |