Plague Engineer MTG Card


Card setsReleased in 5 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost3
RarityRare
TypeCreature — Phyrexian Carrier
Abilities Deathtouch
Power 2
Toughness 2

Key Takeaways

  1. Plague Engineer’s creature type choice can swing card advantage favorably by weakening swarms or strategic creatures.
  2. While not instant speed, its Deathtouch effect can simulate instant-like strategic advantages in combat.
  3. Designed with a specific mana cost and lack of recovery options, hand management becomes essential.

Text of card

Deathtouch As Plague Engineer enters the battlefield, choose a creature type. Creatures of the chosen type your opponents control get -1/-1.

"The lasting effects are invariably fatal." —Phyrexian progress notes


Card Pros

Card Advantage: Plague Engineer’s unique ability to choose a creature type and give it -1/-1 can decimate swarms of token creatures or deter key creatures from entering the battlefield, subtly shifting the card advantage to your favor without needing to draw extra cards.

Resource Acceleration: While not directly impacting mana resources, the Plague Engineer can function as a form of acceleration. By potentially weakening or removing your opponent’s creatures, it conserves your resources that would otherwise be spent on dealing with threats, allowing you to allocate them elsewhere more efficiently.

Instant Speed: Although Plague Engineer is a creature card and doesn’t operate at instant speed, its Deathtouch ability and the instant speed interaction it forces from your opponent can give you a strategic advantage during the combat phase, similar to the benefits given by instant speed spells.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Playing Plague Engineer in your deck means you’ll need to consider its impact on hand resources. With no built-in mechanic to recover discarded cards, for players, managing their hand becomes crucial to not be at a disadvantage.

Specific Mana Cost: Plague Engineer comes with a mana cost that includes both black and generic mana, necessitating a dedication to black mana sources within a player’s mana base and potentially restricting deck-building flexibility.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: While Plague Engineer offers utility, its three mana cost can be steep in fast-paced games where efficiency is key. Its value against single-creature based strategies can sometimes be overshadowed by lower-costed alternatives that affect the board immediately upon arrival.


Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Plague Engineer can be adapted to a variety of deck strategies due mainly to its creature type changing ability. It can fit snugly into tribal decks or those requiring specific creature types for synergistic effects.

Combo Potential: When Plague Engineer is on the battlefield, it brings immediate impact by potentially weakening certain creature types, which can be strategically combined with other cards to clear out opponents’ creatures or enhance board control.

Meta-Relevance: With its capability to assign a -1/-1 counter to a chosen creature type, Plague Engineer remains relevant, especially in formats where certain creature types are prevalent or when facing token-heavy strategies.


How to beat

Plague Engineer poses a unique challenge on the battlefield. This creature, known for its ability to disrupt tribal decks, can often seem daunting to go against in Magic: The Gathering. Commanding Deathtouch, it can easily take down larger creatures, but its real power lies in choosing a creature type and giving them all -1/-1. This can decimate token strategies and smaller creatures that rely on swarming strategies. The key to overcoming Plague Engineer is versatility in your creature base.

Consider adding creatures with higher toughness to your deck to withstand the -1/-1 effect. You can also incorporate instant-speed removal or board wipes to deal with the Engineer before it has a profound impact on your board state. Cards such as Fatal Push or Wrath of God can be efficient answers. Flexibility in your deck construction and having a range of responses is crucial. This way, Plague Engineer becomes less of a threat and more of a minor hurdle on your path to victory.

In short, while Plague Engineer can significantly impact certain strategies, a well-rounded deck with answers to a variety of threats can ensure that this card doesn’t dictate the outcome of the game.


Cards like Plague Engineer

Plague Engineer, a card revered for its utility in MTG, shares a strategic niche with other cards designed to deal with multiple creatures at once. A notable counterpart is Engineered Plague, which offers a static debuff to creatures of a chosen type. While Engineered Plague doesn’t bring a body to the battlefield, it’s persistent in suppressing enemy forces across all turns. However, Plague Engineer carries this concept further by arriving as a creature that can engage in combat, complementing its continuous effect that weakens adversaries.

Another similar card is the Massacre Wurm. It delivers a punishing blow to opponents for each creature they lose, providing a far greater impact in certain scenarios. Yet, unlike Plague Engineer, which can be nuanced in its role thanks to deathtouch, Massacre Wurm’s higher mana cost makes it less flexible in the early to mid-game. In sheer potency and potential for sweeping enemy boards, Massacre Wurm stands out, but Plague Engineer shines in ongoing control and its surgical ability to target specific creature types on entry and in combat.

Ultimately, Plague Engineer earns its place in MTG not only by its unique role of combining creature removal with tactical creature type suppression but also by offering a creature that can change the tides in creature-heavy matchups, making it a valuable tool for players seeking strategic depth and board control.

Engineered Plague - MTG Card versions
Massacre Wurm - MTG Card versions
Engineered Plague - Urza's Legacy (ULG)
Massacre Wurm - Mirrodin Besieged (MBS)

Cards similar to Plague Engineer by color, type and mana cost

Nettling Imp - MTG Card versions
Royal Assassin - MTG Card versions
El-Hajjâj - MTG Card versions
Plague Rats - MTG Card versions
Frozen Shade - MTG Card versions
Scathe Zombies - MTG Card versions
Sorceress Queen - MTG Card versions
Wall of Bone - MTG Card versions
Lost Soul - MTG Card versions
Mindstab Thrull - MTG Card versions
Mischievous Poltergeist - MTG Card versions
Strongarm Thug - MTG Card versions
Razortooth Rats - MTG Card versions
Ghastly Remains - MTG Card versions
Lord of the Undead - MTG Card versions
Deepwood Ghoul - MTG Card versions
Dross Prowler - MTG Card versions
Nim Lasher - MTG Card versions
Nim Abomination - MTG Card versions
Nantuko Husk - MTG Card versions
Nettling Imp - Limited Edition Alpha (LEA)
Royal Assassin - 30th Anniversary Edition (30A)
El-Hajjâj - Fourth Edition Foreign Black Border (4BB)
Plague Rats - Foreign Black Border (FBB)
Frozen Shade - 30th Anniversary Edition (30A)
Scathe Zombies - Eighth Edition (8ED)
Sorceress Queen - Rivals Quick Start Set (RQS)
Wall of Bone - Rivals Quick Start Set (RQS)
Lost Soul - Introductory Two-Player Set (ITP)
Mindstab Thrull - Masters Edition (ME1)
Mischievous Poltergeist - Classic Sixth Edition (6ED)
Strongarm Thug - Mercadian Masques (MMQ)
Razortooth Rats - Seventh Edition (7ED)
Ghastly Remains - Legions (LGN)
Lord of the Undead - Eighth Edition (8ED)
Deepwood Ghoul - Eighth Edition (8ED)
Dross Prowler - Mirrodin (MRD)
Nim Lasher - Mirrodin (MRD)
Nim Abomination - Darksteel (DST)
Nantuko Husk - Ninth Edition (9ED)

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Plague Engineer MTG card by a specific set like Magic Online Promos and Modern Horizons Art Series, 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 Plague Engineer and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Plague Engineer Magic the Gathering card was released in 5 different sets between 2019-06-14 and 2021-06-18. Illustrated by 2 different artists.

#ReleaseNameCodeSymbolNumberFrameLayoutBorderArtist
12002-06-24Magic Online PromosPRM 912571997normalblackNicholas Gregory
22019-06-05Modern Horizons Art SeriesAMH1 452015art_seriesborderlessNicholas Gregory
32019-06-14Modern HorizonsMH1 1002015normalblackNicholas Gregory
42019-12-02Secret Lair DropSLD 12152015normalborderlessAnato Finnstark
52021-06-18Modern Horizons 1 TimeshiftsH1R 141997normalblackNicholas Gregory

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Plague Engineer has restrictions

FormatLegality
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
ModernLegal
OathbreakerLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal

Rules and information

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

DateText
2019-06-14 The choice of creature type is made as Plague Engineer enters the battlefield. Players can’t respond to this choice. The -1/-1 effect starts applying immediately.
2019-06-14 You must choose an existing creature type, such as Sliver or Warrior. Card types such as artifact, and supertypes such as legendary or snow, can’t be chosen.

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