Field of the Dead MTG Card

Transforms land plays into board presence, netting zombies without extra card costs. Ramps up land count swiftly, adding value and accelerating resources effortlessly. Crafts instant defensive or offensive surprises, altering game dynamics adeptly.
Card setsReleased in 3 setsSee all
RarityRare
TypeLand

Text of card

Field of the Dead enters the battlefield tapped. : Add . Whenever Field of the Dead or another land enters the battlefield under your control, if you control seven or more lands with different names, create a 2/2 black Zombie creature token.

Cards like Field of the Dead

Field of the Dead has become a pivotal card in ramp decks for Magic: The Gathering players seeking a strategic advantage. This card finds its peers in lands like Valakut, the Molten Pinnacle, which also triggers upon landfall but deals damage rather than creating creature tokens. While Valakut requires mountains to activate, Field of the Dead’s condition is met by having a variety of lands.

Another relative in this space is Westvale Abbey, which provides a transformative ability to become a formidable creature. However, Field of the Dead is unique in that it doesn’t require any sacrifice of assets, making its benefit easier to attain for a progressing board state. Additionally, the zombies it creates can be used defensively as well as offensively, hence its widespread popularity.

Examining these comparisons, it’s clear Field of the Dead holds a solid place within Magic: The Gathering. It bolsters strategic play without significant downside, making it a notable card among land-based, deck-enhancing options. Its ease of integration and versatility in producing creatures simply by playing lands puts it in an esteemed position for building an overwhelming board presence.

Valakut, the Molten Pinnacle - MTG Card versions
Valakut, the Molten Pinnacle - MTG Card versions

Decks using this card

MTG decks using Field of the Dead. Dig deeper into the strategy of decks, sideboard cards, list ideas and export to play in ARENA or MOL.

#NameFormatArchetypeEvent
LandsLands LegacyLandsLegacy Challenge 64 2024-03-31
Mono-Green DepthsMono-Green Depths LegacyMono-Green DepthsLegacy League 2024-04-06
Beanstalk ControlBeanstalk Control LegacyBeanstalk ControlLegacy Challenge 32 2024-04-17
Sultai LandsSultai Lands Legacy4c DepthsCharlotte Legacy League Season 1 Week 12
Naya LandsNaya Lands LegacyLandsCircuito Legacy Catarinense | Temporada 2024 | Etapa 4
Nic FitNic Fit LegacyNic FitLegacy Challenge 32 2024-04-14
Titanic DryadTitanic Dryad LegacyNic Fit104 / The 104th Legacy at Home
Gruul LandsGruul Lands Legacy105 / The 105th Legacy at Home
Domain ZooDomain Zoo LegacyBeanstalk ControlCharlotte Legacy League Season 2 Week 2
ColorlessColorless LegacyLegacy Preliminary 2024-04-01

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Field of the Dead revolutionizes board presence by creating zombie tokens whenever you play a land with a different name—effectively turning every land drop into potential added threat without expending additional cards from your hand.

Resource Acceleration: This land synergizes with strategies designed to ramp up your land count quickly, adding substantial value by amping up your resource count without costing you extra mana resources.

Instant Speed: While Field of the Dead itself isn’t an instant, the zombies arrive whenever a land enters the battlefield, even on your opponent’s turn, allowing for sudden blockers or surprise end-of-turn pressure to swing the game in your favor.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Despite not needing discarding as a play cost, having Field of the Dead on the battlefield necessitates a strategic hand and graveyard management to fully utilize its potential, which can be challenging if you cannot afford to lose graveyard resources.

Specific Mana Cost: Although Field of the Dead is a colorless land card, assembling the seven different lands required to activate its ability can be restrictive, especially in decks with a focused mana base or those that run fewer land types.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: The activation cost, in terms of land diversity, is steep relative to other land cards, and getting seven different named lands into play is a high threshold that might slow down your strategy if not correctly accounted for in the deck construction.

Reasons to Include Field of the Dead in Your Collection

Versatility: Field of the Dead is an exceptional land card capable of blending into various deck strategies. It shines in ramp decks and any format that permits multiple lands to be played, providing you with an ever-growing army of Zombie tokens as you meet its conditions.

Combo Potential: This card offers robust synergy with land-centric combos. When paired with cards that allow for multiple land drops or fetch numerous lands from your library, Field of the Dead can quickly overwhelm opponents with its token generation ability.

Meta-Relevance: In a game where land-based strategies are prevalent, Field of the Dead provides consistent value. As a reliable token generator, it sustains board presence and provides fodder for sacrifice, blockers, or an attacking force, adapting to the ever-changing competitive environment.

How to beat

Field of the Dead is a land card that has shaped many game metas in Magic: The Gathering, rewarding player strategies based on land variety. The card itself can be a tough nut to crack due to its ability to create a 2/2 Zombie token each time a land enters the battlefield under your control, provided you have seven or more lands with different names. Tackling this card hinges on a proactive approach and requires a well-thought-out strategy to inhibit its zombie-generating engine.

Key tactics include land destruction, employing cards such as Ghost Quarter or Field of Ruin that can directly target and eliminate Field of the Dead. Graveyard disruption can also be effective, with cards like Ashiok, Dream Render stopping decks that rely on looping Field of the Dead from their graveyards. Additionally, using enchantments like Rest in Peace or Leyline of the Void can preemptively address the zombie swarm by shutting down the graveyard pathway. Implementing these methods can cripple the advantage Field of the Dead provides, forcing opponents to find alternative routes to victory.

Effectively countering Field of the Dead requires a mixture of timely land destruction, graveyard manipulation, and strategic control of the battlefield, demonstrating MTG’s deep strategic dimension and the importance of adaptive playstyles.

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Field of the Dead MTG card by a specific set like Core Set 2020 and Secret Lair Drop, 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 Field of the Dead and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Field of the Dead Magic the Gathering card was released in 3 different sets between 2019-07-12 and 2023-11-17. Illustrated by 3 different artists.

#ReleasedNameCodeSymbolNumberFrameLayoutBorderArtist
12019-07-12Core Set 2020M20 2472015NormalBlackKev Walker
22019-12-02Secret Lair DropSLD 13562015NormalBorderlessWarren Mahy
32023-11-17Special GuestsSPG 282015NormalBorderlessRalph Horsley

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Field of the Dead has restrictions

FormatLegality
HistoricbrawlBanned
CommanderLegal
HistoricBanned
LegacyLegal
ModernBanned
OathbreakerLegal
VintageLegal
DuelBanned
ExplorerBanned
GladiatorBanned
PioneerBanned
TimelessLegal

Rules and information

The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering Field of 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
2019-07-12 Field of the Dead’s last ability counts itself and the land entering the battlefield in addition to whichever other lands you control.
2019-07-12 If multiple lands enter the battlefield simultaneously, possibly including Field of the Dead itself, all of those lands are counted. For example, if you sacrifice eight lands while resolving Scapeshift and search your library for five different basic land cards, two Field of the Dead cards, and one other land card with a different name, you’ll create sixteen Zombie tokens.
2019-07-12 If you control multiple lands with the same name, only one of those lands will count toward the seven or more required to create a Zombie. For example, if you control four lands named Plains, two named Island, and one named Field of the Dead, you control three lands with different names.