Fallen Cleric MTG Card

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	5
Rarity	Common
Type	Creature — Zombie Cleric
Abilities	Morph,Protection
Released	2002-10-07
Set symbol
Set name	Onslaught
Set code	ONS
Power	4
Toughness	2
Number	145
Frame	1997
Layout	Normal
Border	Black
Illustred by	Dave Dorman

Key Takeaways

The card offers card advantage and resource acceleration, enhancing strategic options and gameplay speed.
Instant speed playability elevates Fallen Cleric’s strategic impact, allowing for surprise maneuvers.
The card requires careful handling of its discard condition and mana cost to maximize efficiency.

Text of card

Protection from Clerics Morph o4o B (You may play this face down as a 2/2 creature for o3. Turn it face up any time for its morph cost.)

The most terrifying zombies are those with just a hint of their old selves left.

Card Pros

Card Advantage: The Fallen Cleric card excels in the realm of card advantage. It has the potential to significantly increase your hand, thereby providing you with more options and strategies as the game progresses. This can be especially beneficial in drawn-out battles where maintaining a robust collection of possibilities is key to outmaneuvering your opponent.

Resource Acceleration: In terms of resource acceleration, this card could potentially provide you with supplementary mana sources. It might manifest through alternative cost payments or mana generation abilities, hence accelerating your game plan and allowing for swifter deployment of powerful spells and creatures that can turn the tide of a match.

Instant Speed: If Fallen Cleric can be played at instant speed, then it gains intrinsic strategic value. The ability to respond to an opponent’s actions during their turn, or at the end of their turn, creates opportunities for favorable interactions and surprise plays. This quality of flexibility and unpredictability can disrupt an opponent’s rhythm and give you the upper hand.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: One drawback of the Fallen Cleric lies in its condition that obligates you to discard a card, potentially straining your hand when you’re already managing limited resources. This can result in a disadvantageous trade-off, particularly in game stages where maintaining card advantage is critical.

Specific Mana Cost: The mana cost of the Fallen Cleric can be restrictive as it necessitates specific mana types for casting. This can pose a challenge, especially in multicolored decks that may struggle with mana-fixing, thereby limiting the card’s overall flexibility and utility in various strategies.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Additionally, when evaluated against other cards with similar abilities, the Fallen Cleric comes at a higher mana value. This increased cost may deter players from including it in their decks when there are comparable options that can provide a similar impact on the game without the hefty mana expenditure.

Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Fallen Cleric is a flexible card, finding its niche in decks that require a deft mix of offense and defense. Its ability to shift roles depending on the game’s requirements makes it a reliable pick for various playstyles.

Combo Potential: This particular cleric synergizes well with life-gain and sacrifice mechanics, enabling dynamic combos that can swing the momentum of the game in your favor swiftly and unexpectedly.

Meta-Relevance: Given its adaptability and capacity for interaction, Fallen Cleric holds its ground in an ever-evolving competitive landscape. In an environment where board presence and smart trades are crucial, this card brings consistent value to your collection.

How to beat

The Fallen Cleric card poses a unique challenge in MTG gameplay, compelling players to adopt strategic measures for overcoming its effects. This card, known for its disruptive abilities, can become a formidable foe if not addressed promptly. Players can mitigate its influence by using spot removal cards, which can efficiently remove a single creature from the game, such as Swords to Plowshares or Path to Exile.

Another effective strategy involves employing counter spells when the card is on the stack, preventing it from ever entering the battlefield. Moreover, creature-based control decks can outmaneuver Fallen Cleric with card advantages and superior board states. The key is to maintain enough removal or control elements in one’s deck to counteract the Fallen Cleric’s ability to sway the course of play.

Ensuring a robust sideboard plan can also be crucial in matchups against decks featuring the Fallen Cleric, highlighting the importance of preparing for a wide range of scenarios in MTG. Understanding and anticipating the various ways this card can influence the game helps in devising effective counter-strategies to neutralize its impact and maintain an edge over the opponent.

Cards like Fallen Cleric

The Fallen Cleric card presents a unique twist in the realm of creature cards within Magic: The Gathering. It shares certain similarities with other clerics, but stands out due to its distinctive abilities. When you consider a card such as Rotlung Reanimator, you’ll discover that both are focused on providing strategic death triggers. Rotlung Reanimator yields a 2/2 Zombie creature token upon death when another cleric you control dies, which echoes Fallen Cleric’s tendency to manipulate the board state upon creature deaths.

Another card we could draw parallels with is the Edgewalker, which, similar to Fallen Cleric, benefits cleric-type creatures but in a different fashion. Edgewalker reduces the mana cost for cleric spells, subtly shifting mana dynamics in your favor. It doesn’t have an impact on the board when it leaves the battlefield, which sets it apart from the Fallen Cleric’s interactive playstyle. In terms of impact, Dark Supplicant is also a cleric with a unique ability to harness the power of cleric synergy, but it’s more of a combo card – quite the opposite of Fallen Cleric’s role within a deck.

Analyzing the strengths and strategic uses of Fallen Cleric, it becomes clear that while it has comparable traits to other cleric cards, its individual quirks position it uniquely for players seeking to exploit death-triggered abilities in MTG.

Cards similar to Fallen Cleric by color, type and mana cost

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Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Fallen Cleric MTG card by a specific set like Onslaught, 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 Fallen Cleric and other MTG cards:

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Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Fallen Cleric has restrictions

Format	Legality
Commander	Legal
Legacy	Legal
Paupercommander	Legal
Oathbreaker	Legal
Pauper	Legal
Premodern	Legal
Vintage	Legal
Duel	Legal
Predh	Legal

Rules and information

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

Date	Text
2004-10-04	Protection from clerics prevents damage from cleric sources, can't have any clerics assigned to block it, and can't be targeted by the abilities of clerics.