Wretched Camel MTG Card

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	2
Rarity	Common
Type	Creature — Zombie Camel
Released	2017-07-14
Set symbol
Set name	Hour of Devastation
Set code	HOU
Power	2
Toughness	1
Number	82
Frame	2015
Layout	Normal
Border	Black
Illustred by	Dan Scott

Key Takeaways

Disrupts opponents by enabling discard upon death when paired with a Desert.
Serving as a deterrent, it can indirectly speed up gameplay by removing crucial cards.
Specific mana requirements and desert condition may limit its deck compatibility.

Text of card

When Wretched Camel dies, if you control a Desert or there is a Desert card in your graveyard, target player discards a card.

Perfectly adapted to cross the wastes in life, they bring the wastes with them in death.

Card Pros

Card Advantage: When Wretched Camel is put into a graveyard from the battlefield and you control a Desert or there is a Desert card in your graveyard, you can force your opponent to discard a card, potentially disrupting their strategy and gaining you card advantage.

Resource Acceleration: While Wretched Camel itself doesn’t directly accelerate resources, the discard effect can indirectly speed up your game by removing key pieces from your opponent’s hand, allowing for a smoother path to victory.

Instant Speed: Though Wretched Camel is a creature, the discard effect upon death can be seen as having an instant impact. If timed correctly, particularly when combined with your own removal spells or board wipes, it can lead to an unexpected shift in hand resources between players.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Wretched Camel’s ability necessitates the discard of a card upon death if you control a Desert or there is one in your graveyard, which could lead to the depletion of valuable hand options at critical moments.

Specific Mana Cost: The mana cost of Wretched Camel includes a requirement for one black mana, making it exclusively accessible to decks that are running Swamps or have a mana base that can produce black mana, potentially restricting its deck compatibility.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Considering its power and toughness, Wretched Camel may not provide the most efficient use of mana resources. There are creatures with similar or better stats that don’t impose additional conditions and come at a lower mana cost, offering more bang for your buck in a tightly curated deck.

Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Wretched Camel finds its place in desert-themed or graveyard-utilizing decks. As a creature, it can also be effective for strategies focusing on sacrifice or death triggers to gain advantage on the battlefield.

Combo Potential: Upon dying, if you control a Desert, or there is one in your graveyard, Wretched Camel lets you discard a card from an opponent’s hand. This synergizes well with strategies that aim to deplete an opponent’s resources and can unexpectedly disrupt their plans.

Meta-Relevance: In a meta where resource denial is key to victory, Wretched Camel serves as a valuable tool. It fits snugly into decks that punish the opponent for having fewer cards in hand and strengthens strategies revolving around attrition and control.

How to beat Wretched Camel

Wretched Camel presents an interesting challenge on the battlefield. This desert-dwelling creature from the Amonkhet set carries a unique ability that triggers upon its death, potentially forcing an opponent to discard a card if you control a Desert or there’s one in your graveyard. While it might seem daunting, there are straightforward strategies to handle this camel effectively.

One effective method is to remove it without triggering its ability, using removal spells that exile it directly from the battlefield or from the hand. Spells like Path to Exile or Thoughtseize bypass the death-triggered ability entirely, leaving your opponent without the chance to disturb your hand. Another strategy is to employ graveyard hate cards that can clean out deserts from the graveyard, negating Wretched Camel’s conditional effect. Graveyard removal spells like Relic of Progenitus or Leyline of the Void can ensure that the Camel’s departure is as uneventful as possible.

Finally, playing around the Camel’s ability by maintaining a robust hand size or utilizing cards with madness or other discard benefits can turn the tables on an opponent using Wretched Camel to their advantage. By leveraging these strategies, this creature’s impact can be minimized, ensuring a smoother path to victory.

Cards like Wretched Camel

Wretched Camel finds its place among the intriguing creatures in Magic: The Gathering that have built-in utility upon death. Comparable to cards such as Doomed Dissenter, which also generates a benefit when it dies, Wretched Camel requires a desert to be either in your graveyard or on the battlefield to force a discard effect on your opponent. Unlike Doomed Dissenter, which produces a 2/2 token, Wretched Camel offers a tactical advantage by disrupting oppenents’ hands.

Likewise, Sultai Emissary is another card that converges on the desire to gain value from a creature’s demise. It manifests a similar cost and provides a 2/2 Manifest token when it dies. Contrasting with Wretched Camel, Sultai Emissary doesn’t offer hand disruption but rather contributes to board presence.

Examining these choices presents MTG players with a chance to strategize based on the card interactions and desired game outcome. Whether aiming for hand disruption via Wretched Camel’s desert synergy or seeking to expand board presence amongst other utility creatures, each option offers a tailored approach for player’s deck strategies.

Cards similar to Wretched Camel by color, type and mana cost

Order of the Ebon Hand - MTG Card versions

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Wretched Camel MTG card by a specific set like Hour of Devastation, 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 Wretched Camel and other MTG cards:

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Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Wretched Camel has restrictions

Format	Legality
Commander	Legal
Legacy	Legal
Paupercommander	Legal
Modern	Legal
Oathbreaker	Legal
Pauper	Legal
Vintage	Legal
Duel	Legal
Pioneer	Legal
Penny	Legal

Rules and information

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

Date	Text
2017-07-14	For abilities that trigger only if you control a Desert or there is a Desert card in your graveyard, one condition must be true as the ability triggers and one must be true as the ability resolves. They don’t have to be the same condition, though. For example, you could sacrifice your only Desert after the ability triggers but before it has resolved.
2017-07-14	If an ability checks whether you control a Desert or there is a Desert card in your graveyard, having more than one doesn’t matter. Controlling one is the same as controlling five. There is also no extra bonus for both controlling one and having one in your graveyard.