Night Shift of the Living Dead MTG Card
Text of card
After you roll a die, you may pay 1 life. If you do, increase or decrease the result by 1. Do this only once each turn. Whenever you roll a 6, create a 2/2 black Zombie Employee creature token.
At the Astrotorium, even the dead make a living wage.
Cards like Night Shift of the Living Dead
Night Shift of the Living Dead emerges as a unique element within the zombie archetype in Magic: The Gathering. When juxtaposed with cards like Diregraf Colossus, which also centers around zombie tokens, Night Shift of the Living Dead offers a distinct advantage by allowing instant transformation into a horde of undead creatures without the need for a previous board presence. Conversely, Diregraf Colossus requires a pre-existing assembly of zombies to fully exploit its potential.
Looking at Cemetery Reaper, another analogous card, it boosts existing zombies and exiles cards from opponent’s graveyard to create new zombies. However, it doesn’t provide the sudden swarm that Night Shift of the Living Dead can muster. Ghoulcaller Gisa is a noteworthy mention too; while this card can produce a substantial amount of zombies by sacrificing a creature, it lacks the element of surprise and defensive utility that Night Shift of the Living Dead inherently possesses.
Overall, Night Shift of the Living Dead’s capacity for unexpected defensive maneuvers and offense makes it a formidable asset. Its comparative edge lies in its ability to alter the game’s dynamics on the fly, signifying its unique position in the realm of zombie-centric cards in the gameplay of Magic: The Gathering.
Cards similar to Night Shift of the Living Dead by color, type and mana cost
Card Pros
Card Advantage: Night Shift of the Living Dead provides a significant edge by refilling your hand, granting you access to more options and enabling the construction of complex strategies.
Resource Acceleration: This card serves as a catalyst for your mana base, helping you to deploy threats or answers ahead of your normal curve, giving you a crucial tempo boost.
Instant Speed: The agility offered by resolving this effect at instant speed means you can adapt to the battlefield on the fly, maximizing your tactical flexibility and surprising opponents when they least expect it.
Card Cons
Discard Requirement: Engaging with Night Shift of the Living Dead requires parting with another card from your hand, which can challenge your game plan by decreasing your potential plays, especially when your hand is already depleting.
Specific Mana Cost: The card stipulates an exacting mana cost composition that necessitates both black and green sources, thereby restricting its seamless inclusion solely to decks that can accommodate such a blend.
Comparatively High Mana Cost: Requiring a considerable amount of mana, Night Shift of the Living Dead may lag behind in efficiency when weighed against other options available within the realm of MTG that provide similar or greater value for less resource investment.
Reasons to Include Night Shift of the Living Dead in Your Collection
Versatility: Night Shift of the Living Dead offers a unique twist on graveyard mechanics, making it a flexible addition to decks that capitalize on reanimating creatures or utilizing the graveyard as a resource.
Combo Potential: This card pairs well with strategies that benefit from sacrificing creatures or harvesting value from death triggers, allowing for synergistic plays and powerful interactions in the right build.
Meta-Relevance: Due to its ability to disrupt opponent graveyard strategies while bolstering your own, Night Shift of the Living Dead finds its place in a metagame that favors recursion and graveyard-based tactics.
How to Beat Night Shift of the Living Dead
Overcoming Night Shift of the Living Dead in your MTG matchups requires precision and strategy. This card stands unique with its ability to reanimate creature cards from the graveyard during each of your turns. Given this persistent resurrection, directly countering the card or preparing graveyard hate mechanics are effective methods. Consider cards like Rest in Peace or Leyline of the Void that can exile cards from the graveyard, thereby nullifying Night Shift’s capability to bring creatures back into play.
Alternatively, cards with exile effects upon creatures, such as Path to Exile or Swords to Plowshares, ensure that creatures do not go to the graveyard in the first place. Dealing with this card also means focusing on your own pace and game plan – aggressive plays that overwhelm or control strategies that mitigate your opponent’s resources can overshadow the steady advantage that Night Shift offers. Be wary not to overextend into a board wipe that could turn the tables in their favor. Keep pressure, manage the graveyard, and make sharp exchanges to tip the scales against Night Shift of the Living Dead.
Where to buy
If you're looking to purchase Night Shift of the Living Dead MTG card by a specific set like Unfinity and Unfinity, 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 Night Shift of the Living Dead and other MTG cards:
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- eBay
- Card Kingdom
- Card Market
- Star City Games
- CoolStuffInc
- MTG Mint Card
- Hareruya
- Troll and Toad
- ABU Games
- Card Hoarder Magic Online
- MTGO Traders Magic Online
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Printings
The Night Shift of the Living Dead Magic the Gathering card was released in 1 different sets between 2022-10-07 and 2022-10-07. Illustrated by Sebastian Giacobino.
Legalities
Magic the Gathering formats where Night Shift of the Living 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 Night Shift of the Living Dead card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.
| Date | Text |
|---|---|
| 2022-10-07 | If you roll the planar die in a Planechase game, you can pay 1 life, but you can’t alter the result of the roll. This would still “use up” the ability for the turn. |
| 2022-10-07 | The first ability can affect only one die, even if you roll multiple dice at the same time. However, you do get to see all the results before deciding whether to use it, and if so, which result to shift. |