Custodi Lich MTG Card


Card setsReleased in 3 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost5
RarityRare
TypeCreature — Zombie Cleric
Power 4
Toughness 2

Key Takeaways

  1. Becoming the monarch with Custodi Lich creates card advantage and accelerates resource access by drawing extra cards.
  2. It demands adaptability; opponents must strategize to overcome the monarch mechanic’s influence in play.
  3. Combines control and political play, making Custodi Lich a versatile and meta-relevant addition to any deck.

Text of card

When Custodi Lich enters the battlefield, you become the monarch. Whenever you become the monarch, target player sacrifices a creature.

"Keeping order is a task too important to relinquish in death." —Abrado, Custodi priest


Card Pros

Card Advantage: Upon entering the battlefield, Custodi Lich ensures immediate impact by allowing its controller to become the monarch. This unique ability can lead to drawing an additional card at the end of your turn, thereby providing a steady flow of new options and maintaining or increasing card advantage.

Resource Acceleration: While Custodi Lich itself does not directly provide mana, it indirectly accelerates your resources. As the monarch, the additional cards you draw can lead to more land plays or access to spells earlier than usual. Additionally, if an opponent takes the crown, the political aspect of Custodi Lich forces them to lose a valuable creature, potentially disrupting their own plays and accelerating your board state advantage.

Instant Speed: Custodi Lich operates at sorcery speed, but the ability to become the monarch can have an instantaneous effect on the game’s pace. The threat of extra card draw applies pressure on opponents to act quickly, often resulting in hasty and less optimal decisions. Moreover, with the monarch mechanic in play, every spell you cast afterward can potentially offer an immediate return through the end-of-turn draw, akin to the benefits of instant-speed interactions.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: While Custodi Lich ensures a monarch shift in your favor, it mandates that each opponent discards a card whenever you become the monarch, which can backfire if opponents manipulate this to their advantage or if you face a deck designed to benefit from discarding.

Specific Mana Cost: With its strict casting cost requiring both black and white mana, it can be a challenge to slot into decks that aren’t specifically designed to cater to these colors, reducing its flexibility and increasing the likelihood of it being a dead card in hand.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Costing five mana may hinder its playability in faster-paced games where lower-cost creatures can offer similar or greater immediate board presence and impact. Additionally, in the five mana slot, there may be other options that provide more immediately tangible benefits without the reliance on the monarch mechanic.


Reasons to Include Custodi Lich in Your Collection

Versatility: Custodi Lich presents a unique advantage as it easily slots into Commander and Cube Draft formats. Its ability to become the monarch upon entering the battlefield can reshape the game’s dynamics, offering a consistent card draw for a player who can maintain the crown.

Combo Potential: The lich offers synergy with sacrifice strategies and cards that capitalize on opponent’s sacrifices, making it a power-play in decks that exploit those mechanisms. Also, it furthers strategies that revolve around the monarch mechanic, allowing for intricate combo developments in your gameplay.

Meta-Relevance: In gaming circles where the monarch mechanic is underutilized or not properly countered, Custodi Lich can give you an advantage by providing card advantage and forcing opponents to alter their plans to regain the monarchy, potentially leading to unfavorable trades on their part.


How to beat

Custodi Lich presents a unique challenge in Magic: The Gathering, offering a powerful combination of abilities that can shift the monarchy in your favor while forcing opponents to make difficult choices. The key to overcoming this card lies in avoiding the monarch mechanic from becoming too advantageous for the opponent. Creature control spells, such as Murder or Doom Blade, can swiftly take out Custodi Lich before its influence grows. Alternatively, countering it upon casting with spells like Counterspell or Mana Leak prevents it from affecting the board at all.

Enchantment-based removals, like Banishing Light or Oblivion Ring, offer another effective solution, sidelining Custodi Lich without triggering death-related effects. Board wipes, such as Wrath of God or Damnation, can also reset the playing field, but it’s imperative to remove the monarchy to prevent the Lich’s controller from drawing extra cards. Lastly, cards that protect your creatures or yourself from being targeted, like Swiftfoot Boots or Leyline of Sanctity, can nullify Custodi Lich’s secondary ability, helping you maintain a strong board presence despite the power struggle for the crown.

Approaching battles with Custodi Lich requires a mix of preemptive control and reactive tactics. With strategic planning and the right spells, you can dismantle the advantages it brings and maintain the upper hand in your matches.


BurnMana Recommendations

Grasping the subtle intricacies of Custodi Lich in MTG is akin to mastering a tactical chess move. As you navigate the shifting landscape of monarchy within the game, the advantages of card draw and opponent disruption this card offers can be game-changing. For those looking to enrich their collection with versatility and strategic depth, Custodi Lich stands as a worthwhile addition. To truly capitalize on its potential, weaving this card into strategies that bolster your deck’s power while keeping the monarch in your grasp is key. Elevate your gameplay by leveraging the insights we’ve shared and discover how Custodi Lich can turn your matches into a kingdom where you rule supreme. Continue your journey with us to unearth more hidden gems and strategies that will define your path to victory.


Cards like Custodi Lich

Custodi Lich manifests as an intriguing piece on the MTG board with its unique blend of abilities. Comparable to cards like Graveshifter, both share the creature resurrection trait but Custodi Lich introduces monarch mechanics into play, offering card advantage and strategic depth. Unlike Graveshifter, the Lich doesn’t return a creature to your hand directly but its monarch ability ensures a steady stream of card draw if you maintain your crown.

Moreover, the Lich echoes the impact of Dark Confidant in the sense that it offers ongoing card advantage. However, Dark Confidant’s ability is rooted in its own risk and reward, with a life cost attached to the cards drawn, while Custodi Lich offers potential political sway in multiplayer games by shifting the monarch status among players. Finally, Court of Grace shares the theme of monarchy that Custodi Lich carries, but it leans towards a passive approach of creating creature tokens for maintaining the crown, with Custodi Lich having a more aggressive board presence and interaction.

In essence, Custodi Lich stands out amongst its peers by combining aspects of control with the political play of being or deciding the monarch, an angle that can be both beneficial and challenging in the complex dynamics of MTG gameplay.

Graveshifter - MTG Card versions
Dark Confidant - MTG Card versions
Court of Grace - MTG Card versions
Graveshifter - Modern Horizons (MH1)
Dark Confidant - Ravnica: City of Guilds (RAV)
Court of Grace - Commander Legends (CMR)

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Custodi Lich MTG card by a specific set like Conspiracy: Take the Crown and Treasure Chest, 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 Custodi Lich and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Custodi Lich Magic the Gathering card was released in 3 different sets between 2016-08-26 and 2022-04-29. Illustrated by Bastien L. Deharme.

#ReleaseNameCodeSymbolNumberFrameLayoutBorderArtist
12016-08-26Conspiracy: Take the CrownCN2 412015normalblackBastien L. Deharme
22016-11-16Treasure ChestPZ2 222015normalblackBastien L. Deharme
32022-04-29New Capenna CommanderNCC 2442015normalblackBastien L. Deharme

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Custodi Lich has restrictions

FormatLegality
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
OathbreakerLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal

Rules and information

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

DateText
2016-08-23 Abilities that trigger whenever you “become the monarch” trigger only if you aren't already the monarch. For example, if you are already the monarch as Custodi Lich enters the battlefield, its last ability won't trigger.
2016-08-23 Being the monarch carries two inherent triggered abilities. “At the beginning of the monarch's end step, that player draws a card” and “Whenever a creature deals combat damage to the monarch, its controller becomes the monarch.”
2016-08-23 If the triggered ability that causes the monarch to draw a card goes on the stack, and a different player becomes the monarch before that ability resolves, the first player will still draw the card.
2016-08-23 The game starts with no monarch. Once an effect makes one player the monarch, the game will have exactly one monarch from that point forward.

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