Gruesome Encore MTG Card

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	3
Rarity	Uncommon
Type	Sorcery
Released	2011-02-04
Set symbol
Set name	Mirrodin Besieged
Set code	MBS
Number	44
Frame	2003
Layout	normal
Border	black
Illustred by	Adrian Smith

Key Takeaways

Gruesome Encore provides board control through temporary use of opponent’s creatures, impacting the game state.
Mana specific and potentially ineffectual without targets, its utility varies based on deck matchup dynamics.
Despite constraints, its unique interaction with graveyards can offer surprising tactical advantages in gameplay.

Text of card

Put target creature card from an opponent's graveyard onto the battlefield under your control. It gains haste. Exile it at the beginning of the next end step. If that creature would leave the battlefield, exile it instead of putting it anywhere else.

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Gruesome Encore allows you to take control of a creature from an opponent’s graveyard. This not only depletes their resources but adds to your side of the battlefield, effectively swinging the board state in your favor.

Resource Acceleration: By reanimating an opponent’s creature, you’re utilizing their graveyard as an extension of your own resources. This form of indirect acceleration can be particularly effective if the creature has abilities that grant additional value or synergize with your strategy.

Instant Speed: Despite Gruesome Encore being a sorcery, its effect is substantial at setting up surprise plays during your turn. It can disrupt your adversaries’ plans by unexpectedly bringing back creatures with enter-the-battlefield effects or those that require an immediate answer from your opponents.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Gruesome Encore asks players to have a creature card in an opponent’s graveyard to utilize its effect. Without the presence of a valid target, holding onto this card could be cumbersome, reducing its utility in certain matches where opponents may not rely heavily on creature-based strategies or in the early game when graveyards may still be empty.

Specific Mana Cost: Gruesome Encore’s casting cost requires both black mana and colorless mana, constraining its seamless integration into multicolor decks. Players must ensure mana sources are aligned to fulfill the color-intensive requirement, potentially complicating mana base strategies and limiting deck-building flexibility.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: At three mana for a one-time effect that allows for a single attack before the targeted creature gets exiled, there are alternatives that might offer a more permanent solution or additional versatility at a similar or lower cost. The mana invested in Gruesome Encore might not always correlate with a high payoff, especially when competing with other versatile removal or reanimation spells in the same mana range.

Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Gruesome Encore allows players to turn their opponent’s creatures against them, offering a creative tactical advantage. This can be effectively included in Black Control decks or any strategy focusing on manipulating the graveyard.

Combo Potential: This card synergizes well with various graveyard mechanics, such as reanimation or sacrifice effects, potentially setting up powerful plays by utilizing both your and your opponent’s resources.

Meta-Relevance: With the recurring presence of creature-based strategies in the meta, Gruesome Encore could serve as a strategic counter, disrupting your opponents’ plans while bolstering your own assault.

How to beat

Gruesome Encore is a unique card that allows players to take control of their opponent’s creatures for a turn after they’ve hit the graveyard. This black spell, native to the realm of Magic: The Gathering, can shift the tide of the game temporarily and can be especially disruptive if your opponent has formidable creatures. To properly navigate against this card, proactive graveyard management is key.

Utilizing cards that exile creatures from the graveyard or those that shuffle the graveyard back into the library can diminish the impact of Gruesome Encore. Delve into cards like Scavenging Ooze or Relic of Progenitus, which can consistently keep graveyards clean. Additionally, consider utilizing counterspells or discard strategies to remove Gruesome Encore from an opponent’s hand before it can be cast. By anticipating this play and keeping graveyards in check, you can effectively neutralize the advantage Gruesome Encore tries to offer.

Paying attention to these strategies can keep your valuable creatures from being used against you, and assure that Gruesome Encore doesn’t turn into a recurring nightmare on the battlefield.

Cards like Gruesome Encore

Gruesome Encore finds its place in the realm of reanimation spells within Magic: The Gathering. It shares common ground with other cards like Zombify, which also allows players to bring creatures back from the graveyard to the battlefield. The difference lies in Gruesome Encore giving you control of the creature only until end of turn, whereas Zombify’s reanimation is permanent.

Unearth is another card with similar functionality, offering an even more cost-efficient reanimation, but with restrictions on the creature’s converted mana cost. Like Gruesome Encore, Unearth grants a brief return which ends in exile. Comparatively, Rise from the Grave not only brings back creatures permanently, but it also turns them into Zombies, adding a strategic layer for deck themes that benefit from the undead.

Evaluating these choices, Gruesome Encore stands out for being able to target opponents’ graveyards, granting a surprise tactic and the potential to disrupt or benefit from opponents’ creature strategies—provided the creature is used wisely before it’s exiled at the end of turn.

Cards similar to Gruesome Encore by color, type and mana cost

Demonic Attorney - Summer Magic / Edgar (SUM)

Choking Sands - World Championship Decks 1997 (WC97)

Infernal Contract - Seventh Edition (7ED)

Flaying Tendrils - Friday Night Magic 2016 (F16)

Pain's Reward - Saviors of Kamigawa (SOK)

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Gruesome Encore MTG card by a specific set like Mirrodin Besieged, 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 Gruesome Encore and other MTG cards: