Deathmark Prelate MTG Card

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	4
Rarity	Uncommon
Type	Creature — Human Cleric
Released	2003-02-03
Set symbol
Set name	Legions
Set code	LGN
Power	2
Toughness	3
Number	65
Frame	1997
Layout	Normal
Border	Black
Illustred by	Tony Szczudlo

Key Takeaways

Gain card advantage by exploiting Deathmarked enemies, ensuring a consistent hand size.
Mana acceleration through exploitation allows earlier high-cost spell casting and enhances tempo.
Instant speed usage adds strategic depth and surprise to your MTG matches.

Text of card

, , Sacrifice a Zombie: Destroy target non-Zombie creature. It can't be regenerated. Play this ability only any time you could play a sorcery.

Death is a secret he is willing to share.

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Deathmark Prelate ensures continuous access to your creatures by allowing you to exploit Deathmarked enemies. This capability keeps your hand replenished and empowers you to stay ahead in resources compared to your opponent.

Resource Acceleration: The act of exploiting an opponent’s creature catalyzes your mana growth, paving the way for casting higher-cost spells earlier in the game and delivering a significant tempo boost.

Instant Speed: Its ability to perform at instant speed grants you the agility to respond to threats or opportunities at the most opportune moment, maximizing the strategic depth and surprise element within your gameplay.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Deathmark Prelate demands a player to discard another card to trigger its crucial ability. This may thin down your hand, pressuring you to relinquish valuable cards too soon, and can be detrimental if you’re already behind on card advantage.

Specific Mana Cost: With a cost that demands both black and white mana, Deathmark Prelate can be challenging to cast on curve unless you’re committed to a multicolor deck, potentially limiting its versatility in decks that are color sensitive.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Priced at four mana, including two color-specific, Deathmark Prelate’s activation cost might be viewed as steep, considering its specialized function against graveyard strategies. Alternate cards may offer more immediate impacts for a similar investment.

Reasons to Include Deathmark Prelate in Your Collection

Versatility: Deathmark Prelate’s ability to operate as both a removal tool and a creature makes it a flexible addition to your arsenal. You can efficiently tackle your opponent’s threats while developing your board presence.

Combo Potential: With its ability to reanimate creatures from your graveyard whenever it kills an opponent’s creature, Deathmark Prelate potentially pairs well with various strategies that capitalize on creature death and recursion.

Meta-Relevance: Given the prevalence of creature-based strategies in many metas, having a reliable remover that doubles as a threat can significantly increase your deck’s competitiveness. Deathmark Prelate fulfills this role seamlessly, making it a card to watch for impacting play patterns.

How to beat

Deathmark Prelate emerges as a potent force in MTG, particularly within black-centric or graveyard-focused strategies. This creature card’s strength lies in its ability to reanimate creatures from the graveyard, continually applying pressure to your defense. To counter this, focusing on exile effects is essential. Once the Deathmark Prelate is in the graveyard, it becomes a prime target for its own ability, so removing it from the graveyard before it can trigger its effect is key.

Graveyard hate cards, like Tormod’s Crypt, can be exceptional tools to remove Deathmark Prelate along with any other creatures lurking in the graveyard ready to be reanimated. Control decks might consider countermagic to prevent Deathmark Prelate from hitting the battlefield in the first place. Moreover, timely removal spells that exile, such as Path to Exile or, in a pinch, instant-speed removal to disrupt the rhythm of your opponent’s play before they can use the Prelate’s triggered ability, can be extremely valuable.

Ultimately, keeping Deathmark Prelate and other troublesome creatures out of the game through preemptive or reactive disruption can help you maintain the upper hand and navigate to victory in your MTG matchups.

Cards like Deathmark Prelate

Deathmark Prelate is turning heads in the MTG community as a unique creature card that adds a strategic dynamic to gameplay. Its kinship with cards such as Gravewaker is evident, as both enable players to resurrect creatures from their graveyards. However, Deathmark Prelate steers into a more specialized niche by targeting specifically Cleric creatures, offering a narrower yet potentially more powerful effect for tailored decks.

Attachment to archetypes can also be seen in Custodi Lich, a card that manipulates both the board and the hand when combined with the monarch mechanic. While Deathmark Prelate doesn’t boast the political gameplay of introducing the monarch to the table, it shines with its repeatable resurrection ability that can be a game changer in long matches. Comparatively, Shirei, Shizo’s Caretaker shares the intrigue of recurring creatures, but with a constraint on creature power. Deathmark Prelate flexes versatility by not limiting the power of the Clerics it can bring back, hence providing more opportunities for impactful plays.

Through this lens, Deathmark Prelate distinctly carves its place amid similar cards. Its capacity to be a beacon for Cleric-centric strategies makes it a noteworthy option for players looking to exploit the grave as a resource in MTG, without the common restrictions tied to creature power or card types.

Shirei, Shizo's Caretaker - MTG Card versions

Cards similar to Deathmark Prelate by color, type and mana cost

Xiahou Dun, the One-Eyed - MTG Card versions

Demon of Catastrophes - MTG Card versions

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Deathmark Prelate MTG card by a specific set like Legions, 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 Deathmark Prelate and other MTG cards: