Entreat the Dead MTG Card

Offers huge advantage by reviving various creatures from your graveyard for one cast. Instant speed coupled with Miracle allows strategic and unexpected gameplay twists. Flexible inclusion in decks utilizing graveyard strategies for dynamic play.

Treasure Chest (PZ2)
2016-11-16 - Number 70743

Commander 2018 (C18)
2018-08-09 - Number 15

The List (PLST)
2020-09-26 - Number C18-15

Card sets	Released in 3 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost	3
Rarity	Rare
Type	Sorcery
Abilities	Miracle

Text of card

Return X target creature cards from your graveyard to the battlefield. Miracle (You may cast this card for its miracle cost when you draw it if it's the first card you drew this turn.)

Cards like Entreat the Dead

Entreat the Dead is a unique revival spell within the vast library of Magic: The Gathering cards. This card notably stands out with its miracle cost, allowing a surprising comeback when least expected. Cards like Rise from the Grave share the theme of bringing creatures back from the graveyard, but lack the flexibility of Entreat the Dead’s alternative cost.

Another relative in this category is Zombify, which returns a single creature to the battlefield. Entreat the Dead, however, potentially brings back multiple creatures for a dynamic shift in board control. While Zombify sticks to a fixed cost and outcome, Entreat the Dead’s scalability can turn the tide of a game more dramatically if set up correctly. Lastly, Unburial Rites is a spell with a similar effect that also offers a secondary chance through flashback, yet it too is constrained to a single creature and doesn’t offer the explosive potential where Entreat the Dead thrives.

Considering the variables of timing, cost, and impact on the game, Entreat the Dead can be a game-changer for players who strategically manipulate their top deck and capitalize on its miracle cost. It’s a card that invites careful planning and surprise, offering a uniquely powerful option for graveyard-focused decks in Magic: The Gathering.

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Entreat the Dead offers a substantial benefit by potentially returning multiple creature cards from your graveyard to the battlefield. This means for a single cast, you’re not just getting one card’s worth of value, but potentially several, depending on the state of your graveyard.

Resource Acceleration: While not directly providing mana acceleration, the reanimation of creatures can lead to an immediate presence on the board, essentially giving you “free” creatures without the need to pay their mana costs. This could also lead to quickly rebuilding your board after a wipe or removal, keeping the pressure on your opponent.

Instant Speed: Although Entreat the Dead is a sorcery, its synergy with the Miracle mechanic means that under the right circumstances, it can be cast for its Miracle cost at instant speed during your draw step. This surprise element allows you to adapt to the game’s flow and reanimate creatures at a potentially unexpected moment, possibly during a crucial turn in the game.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: To fully utilize Entreat the Dead, a player often needs to populate their graveyard. This necessitates discarding or milling other possibly valuable cards, which could deplete a player’s hand or library too quickly, potentially harming their long-term strategy.

Specific Mana Cost: Entreat the Dead demands a strict black mana cost, which could be challenging in a multicolored deck that might not always have black mana readily available. This can limit the card’s flexibility and prevent its play at a crucial moment.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With an initial casting cost plus X, where X can be significant to achieve a strong effect, Entreat the Dead requires a major mana investment. This can be cumbersome compared to lower-cost cards that reanimate creatures, leaving less mana available for other spells or abilities in a turn.

Reasons to Include Entreat the Dead in Your Collection

Versatility: Entreat the Dead offers flexibility across various deck builds and strategies. This card shines in formats where graveyard manipulation is prevalent, allowing players to return multiple creatures from the graveyard to the battlefield at once. Its scalable effect means it can be useful at any stage of the game.

Combo Potential: This card opens up numerous combo possibilities, particularly in decks that naturally fill the graveyard with creatures. When paired with cards that allow you to manipulate the top of your deck, Entreat the Dead becomes a powerhouse, potentially reversing a losing position in a single turn.

Meta-Relevance: Entreat the Dead has a place in metas where control decks are common. In a slower game, setting up the perfect moment to cast it for its miracle cost can decisively swing the game in your favor, making it both a reactive and proactive play based on the state of the match.

How to Beat Entreat the Dead

Entreat the Dead stands out in Magic: The Gathering as a potent card capable of turning the tide of the game by bringing multiple creatures back from the graveyard. To effectively counter this card, players must adopt a preemptive strategy. Graveyard hate cards, such as Rest in Peace or Leyline of the Void, can prevent Entreat the Dead from ever becoming a threat by exiling creatures before they can be revived.

Another reliable method is to employ counter spells. Since Entreat the Dead can be cast for its miracle cost at a significantly reduced price, having a counter ready, like Counterspell or Dovin’s Veto, can prove crucial. Additionally, hand disruption techniques can strip this card from your opponents grip before they have the chance to use it. Cards like Thoughtseize or Inquisition of Kozilek offer early game plays to ensure Entreat the Dead doesn’t become an endgame problem.

Overall, the key to besting Entreat the Dead lies in a proactive approach by managing the graveyard, preparing countermeasures, and disrupting the opponent’s hand, thereby diminishing the impact of this commanding spell.

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Entreat the Dead MTG card by a specific set like Treasure Chest and Commander 2018, 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 Entreat the Dead and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Entreat the Dead Magic the Gathering card was released in 3 different sets between 2016-11-16 and 2018-08-09. Illustrated by Deruchenko Alexander.

#	Released	Name	Code	Number	Frame	Layout	Border	Artist
1	2016-11-16	Treasure Chest	PZ2	70743	2015	Normal	Black	Deruchenko Alexander
2	2018-08-09	Commander 2018	C18	15	2015	Normal	Black	Deruchenko Alexander
3	~~2020-09-26~~	The List	PLST	C18-15	2015	Normal	Black	Deruchenko Alexander

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Entreat the Dead has restrictions

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

Rules and information

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

Date	Text
2018-07-13	If an effect puts a card into your hand without using the word “draw,” the card wasn’t drawn.
2018-07-13	If the card with miracle leaves your hand before the triggered ability resolves, you won’t be able to cast it using its miracle ability.
2018-07-13	It’s important to reveal a card with miracle before it is mixed with the other cards in your hand.
2018-07-13	Miracle is an alternative cost to cast the spell with miracle. It can’t be combined with other alternative costs, such as casting a spell “without paying its mana cost.”
2018-07-13	Multiple card draws are always treated as a sequence of individual card draws. For example, if you haven’t drawn any cards yet during a turn and cast a spell that instructs you to draw three cards, you’ll draw them one at a time. Only the first card drawn this way may be revealed and cast using its miracle ability.
2018-07-13	To determine the total cost of a spell, start with the mana cost or alternative cost (such as a miracle cost) you’re paying, add any cost increases, then apply any cost reductions. The converted mana cost of the spell remains unchanged, no matter what the total cost to cast it was.
2018-07-13	You can cast a card for its miracle cost only as the miracle triggered ability resolves. If you don’t want to cast it at that time (or you can’t cast it, perhaps because there are no legal targets available), you won’t be able to cast it later for the miracle cost.
2018-07-13	You can reveal and cast a card with miracle on any turn, not just your own, if it’s the first card you’ve drawn that turn.
2018-07-13	You cast the card with miracle during the resolution of the triggered ability. Ignore any timing rules based on the card’s type.
2018-07-13	You don’t have to reveal a drawn card with miracle if you don’t wish to cast it at that time.
2018-07-13	You still draw the card, whether you use the miracle ability or not. Any ability that triggers whenever you draw a card, for example, will trigger. If you don’t cast the card using its miracle ability, it will remain in your hand.