Oathsworn Vampire MTG Card


Oathsworn Vampire’s recursion ability offers enduring value and strategic depth in resource-stretched matches. Its synergies with life gain and sacrifice strategies can significantly accelerate your board state. Instant-speed interactions enable surprise tactics, enhancing board presence and resource management.
Card setsReleased in 3 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost2
RarityUncommon
TypeCreature — Vampire Knight
Power 2
Toughness 2

Text of card

Oathsworn Vampire enters the battlefield tapped. You may cast Oathsworn Vampire from your graveyard if you gained life this turn.

"My conquistadors are never slain, merely laid to rest." —Queen Miralda the Pious


Cards like Oathsworn Vampire

Oathsworn Vampire is a unique creature card that has carved its own niche in MTG. Its closest competitors include cards such as Bloodghast and Gravecrawler, both of which also return from the graveyard to the battlefield. Bloodghast has the advantage of a landfall ability, allowing it to spring back without additional costs whenever a land enters under your control. Meanwhile, Gravecrawler can be cast from the graveyard provided you control a Zombie, making it versatile in undead-themed decks.

Comparatively, Oathsworn Vampire requires a successful life gain event to return—a condition that, while specific, integrates well in vampiric and lifelink-centric strategies. It has a sturdier body, which can be an asset in combat compared to Gravecrawler. On the other hand, Gifted Aetherborn, another vampire peer, doesn’t return from the graveyard but offers lifelink and deathtouch directly—a powerful combination for both offense and defense, aligning differently with deck strategies.

In looking at these similarities and differences, Oathsworn Vampire presents an interesting blend of resilience and synergy for decks exploiting life gain mechanics, marking its presence in the cluster of recursive black creature cards in Magic: The Gathering.

Bloodghast - MTG Card versions
Gravecrawler - MTG Card versions
Gifted Aetherborn - MTG Card versions
Bloodghast - MTG Card versions
Gravecrawler - MTG Card versions
Gifted Aetherborn - MTG Card versions

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Oathsworn Vampire’s ability to return from the graveyard to the battlefield can offer you multiple uses from a single card over the course of a game. This continuous reusability offers a strategic edge and endurance, especially in longer matches where resources can become stretched thin.

Resource Acceleration: When paired with cards that allow you to gain life, Oathsworn Vampire can be a keystone in an engine that accelerates your board state by consistently having a creature to play. This works well in strategies that revolve around sacrifice effects, essentially allowing you to exploit additional resources out of a single card.

Instant Speed: While Oathsworn Vampire itself isn’t an instant, it has synergies with instant speed interactions. For instance, you can return it to the battlefield at the end of your opponent’s turn after gaining life. This sequential play keeps your opponent guessing and maximizes the timing of your resources while enabling surprise blocks or other instant-speed tricks.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: One of the setbacks when casting Oathsworn Vampire from the graveyard is that it obligates you to have gained life this turn. This conditional requirement can disrupt your strategy, especially if your deck lacks consistent life gain mechanisms.

Specific Mana Cost: This vampire comes with a black mana cost that can challenge the flexibility of your mana base. If you’re running a multi-colored deck, ensuring the accessibility of black mana at all times can be a dilemma, potentially stalling your gameplay.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Considering Oathsworn Vampire’s abilities and 2/2 stats, the two mana cost, one of which is specifically black, may not hold up as favorably against other creatures in your deck. Other vampires or creatures offer more impact on the board for a similar or lower mana investment.


Reasons to Include Oathsworn Vampire in Your Collection

Versatility: Oathsworn Vampire’s ability to return from the graveyard to the battlefield makes it a resilient component in a variety of decks, particularly those capitalizing on self-milling and graveyard manipulation tactics.

Combo Potential: With the right setup, this vampire works exceedingly well in synergies that exploit the lifegain and loss triggers, dovetailing seamlessly with revival mechanics and sacrifice strategies for repeated use.

Meta-Relevance: In metas where attrition and endurance are key, the Oathsworn Vampire shines. Its strengths bolster midrange and control archetypes, as it fosters a persistent board presence that can withstand and outlast removal-heavy matches.


How to beat

Oathsworn Vampire is a notable card that can return from your graveyard to the battlefield, adding a layer of resilience to decks in Magic: The Gathering. Its strength lies in its capacity for recursion, making typical removal spells less effective. To effectively counter this card, graveyard interaction becomes key. Cards like Rest in Peace or Leyline of the Void can prevent the vampire’s return by removing its access to the graveyard. Graveyard hate, as players refer to it, is a strategic inclusion against decks that rely on leveraging their graveyard for such repeated utility.

Moreover, another strategy is to prevent the lifegain that enables Oathsworn Vampire’s comeback. With tools that restrict or reverse lifegain such as Tainted Remedy or Erebos, God of the Dead, players can halt the card’s engine. Addressing the mechanics this creature depends on rather than repeatedly destroying it ensures a more permanent resolution to the Oathsworn Vampire challenge. Focusing on negating the lifegain or removing the graveyard synergy it relies on can be crucial for maintaining control of the game.

Understanding and anticipating the persistent nature of Oathsworn Vampire can prepare players to construct their decks with specific answers, thereby effectively neutralizing the card’s advantages and maintaining the upper hand in the match.


BurnMana Recommendations

MTG enthusiasts always seek new strategies to strengthen their gameplay, and Oathsworn Vampire offers just that, with its powers of recursion and potential to fuel multiple deck themes. Don’t miss the opportunity to integrate this versatile card into your arsenal, especially if your deck thrives on life gain and graveyard dynamics. Keep in mind its peculiarities and how it could fit into your current deck configuration to enhance its performance. Interested in discovering more ways to optimize your deck or counteract steadfast opponents? Delve deeper into the strategy with us and gain insights to outplay the competition both in and beyond the graveyard.


Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Oathsworn Vampire MTG card by a specific set like Rivals of Ixalan and Jumpstart 2022, 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 Oathsworn Vampire and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Oathsworn Vampire Magic the Gathering card was released in 3 different sets between 2018-01-19 and 2023-11-17. Illustrated by 2 different artists.

#ReleasedNameCodeSymbolNumberFrameLayoutBorderArtist
12018-01-19Rivals of IxalanRIX 802015NormalBlackGreg Opalinski
22022-12-02Jumpstart 2022J22 702015NormalBlackBorder
32023-11-17The Lost Caverns of Ixalan CommanderLCC 2042015NormalBlackGreg Opalinski

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Oathsworn Vampire has restrictions

FormatLegality
HistoricbrawlLegal
HistoricLegal
LegacyLegal
PaupercommanderRestricted
OathbreakerLegal
GladiatorLegal
PioneerLegal
CommanderLegal
ModernLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
ExplorerLegal
PennyLegal
TimelessLegal

Rules and information

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

Date Text
2018-01-19 Casting Oathsworn Vampire from your graveyard follows the normal rules for casting that card. You must pay its costs, and you must follow all applicable timing rules.
2018-01-19 Oathsworn Vampire's last ability cares only whether you gained life in the turn, even if Oathsworn Vampire wasn't in your graveyard when that happened. It doesn't care how much you gained, whether you also lost life, or even whether you lost more life than you gained.