Blood Scrivener MTG Card

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	2
Rarity	Rare
Type	Creature — Zombie Wizard
Released	2013-05-03
Set symbol
Set name	Dragon's Maze
Set code	DGM
Power	2
Toughness	1
Number	22
Frame	2003
Layout	Normal
Border	Black
Illustred by	Peter Mohrbacher

Key Takeaways

Blood Scrivener provides valuable card draws, particularly when you’re playing with an empty hand.
The card boosts your deck’s momentum by helping you reach critical spells swiftly and maintain pressure.
When out of options, its card-drawing mechanism can instantaneously tip the scales in your favor.

Text of card

If you would draw a card while you have no cards in hand, instead draw two cards and lose 1 life.

Make sure you bleed the fine print.

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Blood Scrivener shines in strategies where you’re rapidly depleting your hand. Once you’ve emptied your grip, the card ensures that you keep a steady flow of resources by allowing you to draw an additional card, with the bonus of losing just one life. This continuous draw engine is core for maintaining pressure and outpacing opponents in attrition battles.

Resource Acceleration: Although not directly accelerating mana resources, Blood Scrivener’s ability to increase your hand size indirectly speeds up your deck’s performance. In decks designed to operate with few cards in hand, it means reaching your critical spells faster, keeping the momentum in your favor.

Instant Speed: While Blood Scrivener’s ability does not work at instant speed, the card it allows you to draw comes into effect at the beginning of the draw step. This implies that the extra card can be a land, spell, or interaction piece right when you need it, potentially at the very start of a turn. The advantage gained can be immediate and game-altering, especially when running low on options.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Blood Scrivener activates its ability only when you’re out of cards in hand, which pressures players to deplete their hand to gain card advantage. This requirement can sometimes backfire by leaving you without options if your opponent can neutralize the Blood Scrivener before you could capitalize on its effect.

Specific Mana Cost: This card’s casting cost demands one black mana, which makes it less versatile for multi-color decks that might struggle with color consistency, potentially causing it to be a dead draw at inopportune moments.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Considering the conditional nature of its ability, a mana cost of two, including one black mana, can be high for strategic setups. In competitive play, where every mana counts, other card draw options might be preferred for their immediate and guaranteed impact on the game.

Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Blood Scrivener finds a place in decks that are geared towards aggressive strategies and capitalize on maintaining a low hand count. Its ability to generate card advantage when you’re out of options can be particularly crucial in maintaining pressure on the opponent.

Combo Potential: This card is adept at complementing strategies that involve discarding or utilizing the graveyard. It pairs well with mechanics like madness or reanimation, offering a steady stream of cards to support these synergies.

Meta-Relevance: Given the fast-paced nature of certain metagames, Blood Scrivener can be an important asset. It serves as a valuable component in decks that aim to deplete resources quickly and can benefit significantly from the additional card draw when they are most vulnerable.

How to beat

Blood Scrivener is a niche yet potent card for those adept at managing their hand size in Magic: The Gathering. Offering card advantage when you’re out of cards, this zombie wizard can be a double-edged sword. To counter Blood Scrivener effectively, consider maintaining card advantage. This ensures the card’s drawback for your opponent, a life loss on drawing, becomes a liability.

Tools such as instant-speed removal allow you to respond to your opponent’s plays without losing momentum. Also, sweepers can clear the board before the card yields significant advantage. If your strategy involves applying pressure, ensure to keep the opponent’s hand filled, negating Blood Scrivener’s ability, making it just a mere creature on the board.

Moreover, hand disruption is a valid tactic—forcing your opponent to draw through effects like Necrogen Mists while Blood Scrivener is on the field can exhaust their life points. Ultimately, recognizing the critical timing to disrupt your opponent’s play while managing your resources and threats will mitigate the benefits Blood Scrivener provides to your adversary.

Cards like Blood Scrivener

Blood Scrivener finds its niche among the unique draws in Magic: The Gathering, standing beside other “pain-for-gain” cards that allow players to draw at a cost. Notably, it stands out for its ability to draw an additional card during the draw step whenever its controller has no cards in hand. In this respect, it walks a path similar to that of Dark Confidant, with both cards providing continuous draw opportunities but at the risk of life loss.

Another card that echoes the sacrifice element for draw is Necropotence. While it skips the draw step entirely, Necropotence also provides card advantage, albeit at the steep price of immediate life payment per card. Despite the differences in approach, both cards share the theme of risk management for potential reward. In contrast, Phyrexian Arena allows for an extra draw each turn with a smaller, but guaranteed life loss, offering a steadier, more predictable option.

Ultimately, cards such as Blood Scrivener highlight the balance between advantage and disadvantage, enriching the strategic depth of Magic: The Gathering. Players seeking to maximize their draw potential while managing life as a resource will often consider cards like Blood Scrivener as part of their deck-building equation.

Cards similar to Blood Scrivener by color, type and mana cost

Order of the Ebon Hand - MTG Card versions

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Blood Scrivener MTG card by a specific set like Dragon's Maze, 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 Blood Scrivener and other MTG cards:

Continue exploring other sealed products in Amazon
See MTG Products

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Blood Scrivener has restrictions

Format	Legality
Commander	Legal
Legacy	Legal
Modern	Legal
Oathbreaker	Legal
Vintage	Legal
Duel	Legal
Pioneer	Legal
Penny	Legal

Rules and information

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

Date	Text
2013-04-15	Any time you are instructed to draw more than one card, you draw them one at a time. For example, if you control Blood Scrivener and have no cards in hand and you’re instructed to “draw two cards,” your first card draw is replaced by drawing two cards and losing 1 life, then you’ll draw the second card from the original instruction. In total, you’ll draw three cards and lose 1 life.
2013-04-15	Each additional Blood Scrivener you control will effectively add one card and 1 life lost. Say you control two Blood Scriveners and would draw a card while you have no cards in hand. The effect of one Blood Scrivener will replace the event “draw a card” with “draw two cards and lose 1 life.” The effect of the other Blood Scrivener will replace the drawing of the first of those two cards with “draw two cards and lose 1 life.” You’ll draw two cards and lose 1 life, then draw another card and lose another 1 life.