Morgue Theft MTG Card


Morgue Theft - Odyssey
Mana cost
Converted mana cost2
RarityCommon
TypeSorcery
Abilities Flashback
Released2001-10-01
Set symbol
Set nameOdyssey
Set codeODY
Number151
Frame1997
Layoutnormal
Borderblack
Illustred byJustin Sweet

Key Takeaways

  1. Morgue Theft offers card advantage by retrieving creatures, enhancing your game options.
  2. Its instant speed and flashback ability provide exceptional flexibility and utility.
  3. The card is a strategic asset in graveyard-centered decks due to its versatility.

Text of card

Return target creature card from your graveyard to your hand. Flashback o4o B (You may play this card from your graveyard for its flashback cost. Then remove it from the game.)


Card Pros

Card Advantage: Morgue Theft delivers value by returning a creature card from your graveyard to your hand. This reuse ability ensures you won’t be at a loss for options, strengthening your position in the game.

Resource Acceleration: While Morgue Theft itself doesn’t directly produce additional resources, it effectively saves mana by making previously spent resources on creatures retrievable, allowing for a more efficient use of your mana pool.

Instant Speed: The ability to cast Morgue Theft at instant speed means stellar flexibility during gameplay. It allows players to react dynamically to the state of the game, reviving key creatures on an opponent’s turn or after a surprise board clear, keeping opponents guessing.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Morgue Theft demands that you discard another card to harness its flashback ability. This can place you at a considerable disadvantage, especially when your hand is already depleting, or you’re in dire need of the cards you currently possess.

Specific Mana Cost: The spell’s casting calls for one black mana. This specific mana requirement may restrict the card’s integration, confining it to black-centric or two-color decks that include black, potentially excluding it from various other deck builds that can’t accommodate the color restriction.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With its initial mana cost and additional flashback cost, Morgue Theft’s total expenditure can be seen as relatively steep. This cost may eclipse the intrinsic value you gain from returning a single creature from your graveyard to your hand, especially when scrutinizing the card alongside other options in the format that could return creatures at a lower cost or with additional benefits.


Reasons to Include Morgue Theft in Your Collection

Versatility: Morgue Theft goes beyond mere creature retrieval; it can be a crucial tactical play in graveyard-themed decks or ones that thrive on recycling value from the graveyard.

Combo Potential: With its ability to bring creatures back into play or into your hand, Morgue Theft can set up powerful combo chains, especially in decks that capitalize on enter-the-battlefield effects or sacrificial mechanics.

Meta-Relevance: As the metagame often shifts to include graveyard strategies, Morgue Theft can provide an efficient response or enabler on a budget, keeping your deck competitive without breaking the bank.


How to beat

Morgue Theft is a quirky spell that can tip the balance by retrieving creatures from the graveyard in Magic: The Gathering. Its advantage lies in its flexibility, being able to act as both a proactive and reactive tool in your deck. Notably, it can return a creature from your graveyard to your hand, but can also thwart opponents’ strategies if exiled with its flashback and then applied defensively.

To effectively counter Morgue Theft, graveyard hate cards become particularly useful. By using spells like Tormod’s Crypt or Leyline of the Void, you can ensure that once creatures hit the graveyard, they stay out of play, effectively neutralizing Morgue Theft’s potential. Interruption of this graveyard recycling loop is key. Moreover, strategic spell timing and such disruption tools can safeguard against surprises and keep the battlefield in your favor, maintaining control over the flow of creatures—and the game at large.

In essence, overcoming the challenges posed by Morgue Theft involves thinking ahead and using the right graveyard management tactics. By doing so, you can limit its impact, keeping your opponent from gaining the upper hand through unexpected comebacks from the graveyard.


Cards like Morgue Theft

Morgue Theft slots into the roster of black spells in MTG that reclaim creatures from the graveyard. Not unlike the prevalent Disentomb, Morgue Theft offers players a chance to retrieve a fallen creature to hand. While Disentomb comes at a lower cost, it can’t compete with Morgue Theft’s flashback feature, which allows a second use from the graveyard – a critical tactical advantage in long games.

Compared to the slightly more costly Raise Dead, which has a similar effect, Morgue Theft again boasts the upper hand with its flashback ability, providing additional strategic depth. Another parallel can be drawn with Ghoulcaller’s Chant, which has the potential to return two creatures if they share a type. Even with this specific advantage, Morgue Theft’s ability to be played twice is a game-changer, offering sustained value throughout the duel.

Evaluating these options, Morgue Theft is a strong contender in the arsenal of black spell cards focused on creature recovery. Its utility is amplified by flashback, distinguishing it as a versatile choice for graveyard-centered strategies in MTG.

Disentomb - MTG Card versions
Raise Dead - MTG Card versions
Ghoulcaller's Chant - MTG Card versions
Disentomb - Magic 2010 (M10)
Raise Dead - Limited Edition Alpha (LEA)
Ghoulcaller's Chant - Innistrad (ISD)

Cards similar to Morgue Theft by color, type and mana cost

Drain Life - MTG Card versions
Demonic Tutor - MTG Card versions
Sinkhole - MTG Card versions
Word of Binding - MTG Card versions
Soul Exchange - MTG Card versions
Dry Spell - MTG Card versions
Hymn to Tourach - MTG Card versions
Mind Knives - MTG Card versions
Shattered Crypt - MTG Card versions
Disturbed Burial - MTG Card versions
Death Stroke - MTG Card versions
Exhume - MTG Card versions
Imperial Edict - MTG Card versions
Decompose - MTG Card versions
Chainer's Edict - MTG Card versions
Walk the Plank - MTG Card versions
Predators' Hour - MTG Card versions
Nausea - MTG Card versions
Distress - MTG Card versions
Cruel Edict - MTG Card versions
Drain Life - Summer Magic / Edgar (SUM)
Demonic Tutor - Commander Masters (CMM)
Sinkhole - 30th Anniversary Edition (30A)
Word of Binding - Renaissance (REN)
Soul Exchange - Masters Edition II (ME2)
Dry Spell - Homelands (HML)
Hymn to Tourach - Vintage Masters (VMA)
Mind Knives - Portal (POR)
Shattered Crypt - Weatherlight (WTH)
Disturbed Burial - Tempest (TMP)
Death Stroke - Stronghold (STH)
Exhume - Jumpstart (JMP)
Imperial Edict - Portal Three Kingdoms (PTK)
Decompose - Odyssey (ODY)
Chainer's Edict - Ultimate Masters (UMA)
Walk the Plank - The List (PLST)
Predators' Hour - Magic Online Promos (PRM)
Nausea - Eighth Edition (8ED)
Distress - Champions of Kamigawa (CHK)
Cruel Edict - Ninth Edition (9ED)

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Morgue Theft MTG card by a specific set like Odyssey, 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 Morgue Theft and other MTG cards:

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Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Morgue Theft has restrictions

FormatLegality
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
PaupercommanderLegal
OathbreakerLegal
PauperLegal
PremodernLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
PredhLegal
PennyLegal

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