Underworld Charger MTG Card


Underworld Charger - Theros Beyond Death
Mana cost
Converted mana cost3
RarityCommon
TypeCreature — Nightmare Horse
Abilities Escape
Released2020-01-24
Set symbol
Set nameTheros Beyond Death
Set codeTHB
Power 3
Toughness 3
Number120
Frame2015
Layoutnormal
Borderblack
Illustred byJohann Bodin

Key Takeaways

  1. Underworld Charger provides strategic card advantage through reuse of graveyard resources.
  2. The card’s escape mechanism grants tactical flexibility despite a high cost.
  3. Its specific mana cost may limit deck-building flexibility and speed.

Text of card

Underworld Charger can't block. Escape—, Exile three other cards from your graveyard. (You may cast this card from your graveyard for its escape cost.) Underworld Charger escapes with two +1/+1 counters on it.


Card Pros

Card Advantage: The Underworld Charger, while not providing direct card draw, contributes to card advantage through its escape mechanic. By using cards in your graveyard as part of its cost, you essentially draw into additional power on the battlefield without reducing the number of cards in hand.

Resource Acceleration: Although the Underworld Charger doesn’t directly accelerate resource generation, it gives players a strategic advantage by efficiently reusing resources from the graveyard. This can lead to more impactful plays sooner as the creature makes repeated appearances in a match, especially in longer games where resources are stretched thin.

Instant Speed: While this card operates at sorcery speed, its escape mechanic offers tactical flexibility. Players can choose to forgo a normal turn play and bring the charger back at a potentially more opportune time when resources allow, similar to the flexibility that instant speed provides in managing gameplay flow.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Underworld Charger requires a significant sacrifice to unlock its full potential. To escape and return it from the graveyard to the battlefield, you not only need to pay the mana cost but also discard three other cards. For many players, this can be quite costly, especially if you’re not operating a strategy focused on graveyard mechanics or if you find yourself in a position where card advantage is crucial.

Specific Mana Cost: Boasting a mana cost that includes two black mana symbols, Underworld Charger may not be the best fit for multi-colored decks or those that have a tough time generating enough black mana consistently. This specific mana cost can hamper your deck’s flexibility and slow down your game plan if your mana base isn’t properly tuned to accommodate such requirements.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Even for a 3/3 creature that can’t be blocked by white creatures, Underworld Charger’s initial mana cost is on the higher side. As players look to optimize their deck’s performance, they might consider other options that provide more immediate value or exhibit lower mana costs for similar effects, making the Underworld Charger potentially less appealing in a competitive environment.


Reasons to Include Underworld Charger in Your Collection

Versatility: Underworld Charger’s capacity to be both an aggressive early creature and a late-game recurring threat makes it a flexible addition to a variety of decks. Its ability to consistently return from the graveyard ensures it’s a card that keeps on giving throughout the game.

Combo Potential: Thanks to its escape mechanic, this card works well in strategies that utilize graveyard resources. It can contribute to powerful synergies in decks that focus on self-mill or reanimation tactics, providing a recurring creature that can be a surprise factor against your opponent.

Meta-Relevance: In a game where managing resources and recurring threats are pivotal, Underworld Charger stands as a solid option. It thrives in a meta where long games are common and creature presence on the board is key to victory. It becomes even more relevant if the graveyard is a resource that is underutilized in your current play group.


How to beat

Underworld Charger is a sturdy presence in MTG, bringing a relentless energy to the battlefield. This formidable creature showcases its might through its escape mechanic, allowing it to return from the graveyard—a tactic that can seem daunting to tackle. Yet, there are effective methods to undermine its influence during play. Keeping graveyard interaction at bay is essential. Cards such as Scavenging Ooze can disrupt the escape strategy by exiling Underworld Charger before it makes a comeback. Enchantment control with removal spells like Banishing Light can also neutralize the threat without sending it to the graveyard. In this intricately designed game, strategy is key, and precision in response can turn the tides against the resilience of a creature like Underworld Charger. Control and foresight employed judiciously will ensure that you remain one step ahead, maintaining dominance over the battleground.


Cards like Underworld Charger

Underworld Charger stands out in the realm of aggressive creature cards in Magic the Gathering. It shares a kinship with cards like Nyxborn Brute in that both creatures bring considerable power to the battlefield. What makes Underworld Charger distinct is its escape mechanism, which allows it to rise from the graveyard and become even more potent. This self-recurrence trait is absent in Nyxborn Brute, which omits the possibility of a tactical afterlife return.

Comparing it further, we discover Gutterbones, another creature with a revival ability. Gutterbones can return to your hand, providing continued value similar to Underworld Charger. However, Gutterbones requires a damaged opponent for its return, while Underworld Charger relies on the escape mechanic, giving it a broader range of revival opportunities. Additionally, Underworld Charger brings more power to the board once it escapes, making it a more intimidating presence on the battlefield.

When evaluating creatures designed for relentless aggression and resilience, Underworld Charger holds its ground with a unique combination of power and the escape mechanic. Strategically, this allows savvy players to maintain pressure on their opponents and make the most out of each card, showcasing the effectiveness of recursive threats in MTG.

Nyxborn Brute - MTG Card versions
Gutterbones - MTG Card versions
Nyxborn Brute - Theros Beyond Death (THB)
Gutterbones - Ravnica Allegiance (RNA)

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Underworld Charger MTG card by a specific set like Theros Beyond Death, 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 Underworld Charger and other MTG cards:

Continue exploring other sealed products in Amazon
See Magic products

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Underworld Charger has restrictions

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

Rules and information

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

DateText
2020-01-24 After an escaped spell resolves, it returns to its owner’s graveyard if it’s not a permanent spell. If it is a permanent spell, it enters the battlefield and will return to its owner’s graveyard if it dies later. Perhaps it will escape again—good underworld security is so hard to come by these days.
2020-01-24 Escape’s permission doesn’t change when you may cast the spell from your graveyard.
2020-01-24 If a card has multiple abilities giving you permission to cast it, such as two escape abilities or an escape ability and a flashback ability, you choose which one to apply. The others have no effect.
2020-01-24 If a card with escape is put into your graveyard during your turn, you’ll be able to cast it right away if it’s legal to do so, before an opponent can take any actions.
2020-01-24 If you cast a spell with its escape permission, you can’t choose to apply any other alternative costs or to cast it without paying its mana cost. If it has any additional costs, you must pay those.
2020-01-24 Once you begin casting a spell with escape, it immediately moves to the stack. Players can’t take any other actions until you’re done casting the spell.
2020-01-24 To determine the total cost of a spell, start with the mana cost or alternative cost you’re paying (such as an escape cost), add any cost increases, then apply any cost reductions. The converted mana cost of the spell remains unchanged, no matter what the total cost to cast it was and no matter whether an alternative cost was paid.

Recent MTG decks

Continue exploring other format decks
More decks