Certain Death MTG Card


Card setsReleased in 6 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost6
RarityCommon
TypeSorcery

Key Takeaways

  1. Certain Death provides both a creature removal and life advantage, important for maintaining board control.
  2. High mana cost and color specificity limit its flexibility compared to other removal spells.
  3. Versatile in control decks, it can turn late-game situations to the player’s favor.

Text of card

Destroy target creature. Its controller loses 2 life and you gain 2 life.

Some spirits cling to one person, feasting on the growing fear until a final moment of all-consuming terror.


Card Pros

Card Advantage: Certain Death ensures a direct pathway to disturbing your opponent’s board state while also granting you a Scry 1, subtly nudging your strategy forward by setting up your next draw.

Resource Acceleration: This card perfectly embodies the strategic dismantling of your adversary’s forces, providing an essential tempo swing by eliminating a key creature and smoothing out your future plays.

Instant Speed: Albeit a sorcery, the power of Certain Death lies in its ability to dramatically shift the board in your favor during your turn, establishing a strong position before passing the baton to your opponent.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Although Certain Death doesn’t require an actual discard from your hand to play, being a single-use removal spell means you are essentially discarding a card from your deck to handle a threat. This trade-off becomes particularly noticeable if the opponent uses smaller, less significant creatures or if they have means to recover their creature from the graveyard.

Specific Mana Cost: Certain Death demands both black mana and a relatively high total mana cost for its effect. Requiring two black mana restricts its playability mainly to black-focused or dual-colored decks, potentially leaving out a variety of mono or multi-color decks that can’t afford the stringent mana requirements.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: At six mana, Certain Death competes with other removal spells that may be more cost-effective. Many options in a player’s toolkit might remove creatures for less mana and possibly offer additional benefits, impacting the strategic reason to choose Certain Death in a deck when alternatives are considered.


Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Certain Death adds value to decks that capitalize on controlling the battlefield. Its ability to eliminate threats and alter life totals makes it a flexible choice for multiple deck archetypes.

Combo Potential: This card can work well in synergy with strategies that benefit from targeted removal to pave the way for game-ending combos, or in decks that trigger effects whenever a creature dies.

Meta-Relevance: In a meta weighted towards creature-heavy decks, Certain Death serves as an efficient tool to manage the board and maintain late-game dominance by clearing the path for your win conditions.


How to beat

Certain Death is an intriguing removal card in Magic: The Gathering and operates as a solid late-game option to dismantle your opponent’s creature threats. This removal spell not only destroys an opposing creature but also gives you a slight life advantage. The six-mana cost does make it a more expensive option compared to other removal spells, but there are still effective strategies to counter it.

To effectively circumvent Certain Death, it’s essential to maintain a versatile and dynamic board presence. Using creatures with the ability to regenerate or with indestructible attributes can frustrate attempts at removal. Countermeasures like Negate or Cancel can intercept removal spells, basically negating their effects before they take hold. Moreover, low-cost, high-impact alternatives like Doom Blade or Murder can provide similar elimination capabilities at a fraction of the resource commitment. By considering mana efficiency and having a resilient lineup of creatures or protective spells, you can safeguard your board and ensure your creatures survive beyond their potential Certain Death.

By keeping these strategies in mind, players can maintain control of the battlefield and possibly exploit the six-mana investment their opponent makes in casting Certain Death, thereby swinging the momentum in their favor.


Cards like Certain Death

Certain Death has its place in the spectrum of removal options available to Magic: The Gathering players. It, akin to Murder, allows you to destroy a creature, regardless of its size or abilities. Where it shifts from the norm is its bonus effect; Certain Death not only gets rid of the threat but also drains life from your opponent, enhancing its utility beyond mere removal.

In comparison, there’s Walk the Plank, another targeted removal, yet it is restricted to non-Merfolk creatures and costs less mana. Certain Death doesn’t have such limitations but is more mana-intensive. Then, look at Languish: it offers a sweep of the board affecting all creatures, which can be a double-edged sword unlike the precision strike of Certain Death.

Certain Death’s stand-out feature is direct life loss coupled with its unconditional kill, which ensures it occupies a niche of its own. While it may not be the first option for fast-paced decks, in slower, control-oriented strategies it does double duty, making it a valuable inclusion in late-game scenarios.

Murder - MTG Card versions
Walk the Plank - MTG Card versions
Languish - MTG Card versions
Murder - Magic 2013 (M13)
Walk the Plank - Ixalan (XLN)
Languish - Magic Origins Promos (PORI)

Cards similar to Certain Death by color, type and mana cost

Kiss of Death - MTG Card versions
Dark Offering - MTG Card versions
Rain of Daggers - MTG Card versions
Corrupt - MTG Card versions
Poison Arrow - MTG Card versions
Morbid Hunger - MTG Card versions
Haunting Voyage - MTG Card versions
Zombie Apocalypse - MTG Card versions
Choice of Damnations - MTG Card versions
Beseech the Queen - MTG Card versions
Nightmare Incursion - MTG Card versions
Stolen Grain - MTG Card versions
Blood Tribute - MTG Card versions
Essence Feed - MTG Card versions
Hex - MTG Card versions
Grave Exchange - MTG Card versions
Assassin's Strike - MTG Card versions
Undercity Plague - MTG Card versions
Sip of Hemlock - MTG Card versions
Spiteful Blow - MTG Card versions
Kiss of Death - Portal Second Age (P02)
Dark Offering - Starter 1999 (S99)
Rain of Daggers - The List (PLST)
Corrupt - The Brothers' War (BRO)
Poison Arrow - Portal Three Kingdoms (PTK)
Morbid Hunger - Odyssey (ODY)
Haunting Voyage - Kaldheim Promos (PKHM)
Zombie Apocalypse - Starter Commander Decks (SCD)
Choice of Damnations - Saviors of Kamigawa (SOK)
Beseech the Queen - The List (PLST)
Nightmare Incursion - Eventide (EVE)
Stolen Grain - Masters Edition III (ME3)
Blood Tribute - Commander 2017 (C17)
Essence Feed - Rise of the Eldrazi (ROE)
Hex - Commander Legends: Battle for Baldur's Gate (CLB)
Grave Exchange - Avacyn Restored (AVR)
Assassin's Strike - Jumpstart (JMP)
Undercity Plague - Gatecrash (GTC)
Sip of Hemlock - Theros (THS)
Spiteful Blow - Journey into Nyx (JOU)

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Certain Death MTG card by a specific set like Eldritch Moon and Welcome Deck 2017, 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 Certain Death and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Certain Death Magic the Gathering card was released in 6 different sets between 2016-07-22 and 2023-03-21. Illustrated by Kev Walker.

#ReleaseNameCodeSymbolNumberFrameLayoutBorderArtist
12016-07-22Eldritch MoonEMN 842015normalblackKev Walker
22017-04-15Welcome Deck 2017W17 162015normalblackKev Walker
32019-11-07Mystery BoosterMB1 5972015normalblackKev Walker
42020-09-26The ListPLST EMN-842015normalblackKev Walker
52022-12-02Jumpstart 2022J22 3862015normalblackKev Walker
62023-03-21Shadows over Innistrad RemasteredSIR 1022015normalblackKev Walker

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Certain Death has restrictions

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

Rules and information

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

DateText
2016-07-13 If the creature becomes an illegal target for Certain Death, no player gains or loses life. If it’s a legal target but isn’t destroyed, most likely due to having indestructible, its controller still loses 2 life and you gain 2 life.
2016-07-13 The targeted creature will have already left the battlefield before its controller loses 2 life and you gain 2 life. If it has any abilities that care about gaining or losing life, they won’t apply.

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