Umbilicus MTG Card

Urza's Saga (USG)
1998-10-12 - Number 312

Dominaria Remastered (DMR)
2023-01-13 - Number 237

Dominaria Remastered (DMR)
2023-01-13 - Number 390

Card sets	Released in 3 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost	4
Rarity	Rare
Type	Artifact

Key Takeaways

Umbilicus grants card advantage by taxing opponents, potentially forcing inefficient resource use.
It accelerates resources by repeatedly utilizing enter-the-battlefield effects, enhancing strategies.
Facilitates instant-speed plays by constraining opponents’ mana, giving you strategic leverage.

Text of card

During each player's upkeep, that player pays 2 life or returns a permanent he or she controls to owner's hand.

It was the explorers' only tether to reality.

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Umbilicus opens a unique path to sustained card advantage by pressuring opponents to continuously utilize resources to avoid its taxing effect. This can lead to them making suboptimal plays just to keep up, setting you ahead in the long game.

Resource Acceleration: In decks tailored around bouncing and replaying their own permanents, Umbilicus can serve as a form of resource acceleration. By optimizing the returns of permanents with enter-the-battlefield effects, you essentially get more use out of your cards, enhancing your strategic plays each turn.

Instant Speed: While Umbilicus itself does not operate at instant speed, the strategy it supports allows for instant-speed interactions. It forces opponents to keep mana untapped to respond to its trigger, potentially giving you an upper hand to cast spells at opportune moments when they’re tapped out.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: With Umbilicus, each player’s turn comes with a taxing decision – either pay two mana or return a permanent to hand. This can be especially detrimental if your strategy relies on keeping a full board presence, turning a potential advantage into a recurring cost.

Specific Mana Cost: Sporting a generic cost of four mana makes it a bit more flexible; however, in decks that heavily depend on colored mana for efficiency, allocating the necessary resources for Umbilicus can disrupt your curve and slow down your tempo.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Although Umbilicus provides a unique effect, its baseline cost is hefty. In the fast-paced environment where each turn counts, investing four mana into a card that doesn’t immediately impact the board can set you behind your opponents who may use their mana for more impactful plays.

Reasons to Include Umbilicus in Your Collection

Versatility: Umbilicus offers a unique effect that can be utilized in various decks. It’s especially potent in strategies that aim to exploit the symmetrical nature of its ability, forcing opponents into difficult decisions every turn while you manage your resources more efficiently.

Combo Potential: With this card, savvy players can build around its bounce mechanic to redeploy creatures with enter-the-battlefield effects. This opens up possibilities for numerous combos and synergies, transforming seemingly benign plays into game-ending sequences.

Meta-Relevance: In game environments where players tend to overextend on the board, Umbilicus can shine by taxing their resources and disrupting their tempo. It also excels in metas full of decks that can’t recover as easily from repeated bouncing of key permanents, giving you a distinct upper hand.

How to beat

The Umbilicus card presents a unique set of challenges on the battlefield. It introduces a persistent mechanism that can rapidly turn the tides of a game by forcing players to effectively manage their resources or face incremental life loss. In contrast to other cards that provide one-time effects or that players can anticipate and counter in a singular turn, Umbilicus requires ongoing attention and strategy.

To outmaneuver an opponent utilizing Umbilicus, consider running low-cost creatures or artifacts that you can return to your hand without significant detriment. Alternatively, incorporating cards like Naturalize or Disenchant can directly handle this persistent threat by removing it from the field entirely. It’s critical to have answers to artifacts in your deck to ensure that Umbilicus doesn’t disrupt your tempo. Lastly, adaptability is king; be ready to shift your tactics should Umbilicus make an appearance, prioritizing the control of your board state to mitigate the life loss and resource demands it imposes.

Mastering your response to Umbilicus comes down to fine-tuning your deck’s balance of creature spells, removal options, and counter strategies to ensure you’re never caught without a way to handle this taxing artifact.

Cards like Umbilicus

In the realm of Magic: The Gathering, Umbilicus provides a unique gameplay experience with its ability to reset the board state each turn. Its closest analog is the card Blood Clock, which shares the same functionality in making players return a permanent to their hand or pay two life during their upkeep. While this cycle effect is mirrored in both cards, Blood Clock allows for more strategic plays due to its lower casting cost.

Another card reminiscent to Umbilicus is Psychogenic Probe, which deals damage to players whenever a permanent is returned to their hand, intensifying the strategy around using bounce effects. Though not identical in operation, it pairs synergistically with Umbilicus, amplifying its impact on your opponents’ playstyle. Then we have Gilded Drake, a creature card that upon entering the battlefield, exchanges control with an opponent’s creature, essentially a ‘bounce’ effect but with the upside of gaining you a creature, adding another layer of complexity and tactical advantage.

Umbilicus stands out for its passive yet pervasive influence on the game, offering a persistent challenge to opponents and a potential engine for your own bounce strategies within Magic: The Gathering. Its unique pressure on the game’s pacing and resource management ensures Umbilicus remains a noteworthy card in decks that can harness its distinctive power.

Cards similar to Umbilicus by color, type and mana cost

Krark-Clan Ironworks - MTG Card versions

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Umbilicus MTG card by a specific set like Urza's Saga and Dominaria Remastered, 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 Umbilicus and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Umbilicus Magic the Gathering card was released in 2 different sets between 1998-10-12 and 2023-01-13. Illustrated by Dermot Power.

#	Released	Name	Code	Number	Frame	Layout	Border	Artist
1	1998-10-12	Urza's Saga	USG	312	1997	Normal	Black	Dermot Power
2	2023-01-13	Dominaria Remastered	DMR	237	2015	Normal	Black	Dermot Power
3	2023-01-13	Dominaria Remastered	DMR	390	1997	Normal	Black	Dermot Power

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Umbilicus has restrictions

Format	Legality
Commander	Legal
Legacy	Legal
Oathbreaker	Legal
Premodern	Legal
Vintage	Legal
Duel	Legal
Predh	Legal
Penny	Legal

Rules and information

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

Date	Text
2022-12-08	The player makes all choices as the triggered ability resolves. They permanent they choose to return to its owner’s hand, if any, isn’t targeted by the ability.