Servant of Tymaret MTG Card


Servant of Tymaret - Born of the Gods
Mana cost
Converted mana cost3
RarityCommon
TypeCreature — Zombie
Abilities Inspired
Released2014-02-07
Set symbol
Set nameBorn of the Gods
Set codeBNG
Power 1
Toughness 3
Number82
Frame2003
Layoutnormal
Borderblack
Illustred byKarl Kopinski

Key Takeaways

  1. Doubles as a recurring life-drainer and a robust defender with regeneration, enhancing its utility on the field.
  2. Its inspired mechanic may limit offensive plays but ensures steady life-total advantage in prolonged games.
  3. Despite certain mana constraints, its potential in combos and defensive prowess makes it a worthy collection addition.

Text of card

Inspired — Whenever Servant of Tymaret becomes untapped, each opponent loses 1 life. You gain life equal to the life lost this way. : Regenerate Servant of Tymaret.

Life is most precious to those who have already lost it.


Card Pros

Card Advantage: Servant of Tymaret’s inspired ability lets players drain life from opponents every time it becomes untapped. This provides a steady way of tipping the life total balance in your favor without requiring additional card investment and can cause a gradual shift in the game state as the match progresses.

Resource Acceleration: While this card doesn’t directly accelerate resources in the traditional sense of ramping mana, its ability to consistently deal damage allows for a resource advantage in terms of life totals, which can be a deciding factor in many games. Additionally, it can dissuade opponents from attacking, effectively preserving your life total and thus maintaining your strategic resources.

Instant Speed: Servant of Tymaret offers subtle strategic plays at instant speed due to its regeneration ability. You can leave mana open to regenerate it in response to combat damage or removal, which makes your opponent’s decision-making process more complex. This reactive potential allows you to navigate the battlefield with more resilience, sustaining board presence and complicating your adversary’s removal strategies.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Engaging the inspired effect of the Servant of Tymaret requires tapping the creature, meaning you may often need to forego valuable attack opportunities or hold off on defense to trigger its abilities, thereby creating vulnerability on the battlefield.

Specific Mana Cost: Casting this creature demands a specific mana alignment, requiring both black and generic mana. This constraint can make it less flexible, potentially disrupting the mana curve in decks not heavily invested in black mana sources.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a casting and upkeep cost that may not match its output, the Servant of Tymaret can be less mana-efficient when compared to other three-drop creatures in your deck, especially since its power and toughness are lower in relation to similarly priced creatures.


Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Servant of Tymaret is flexible enough to be included in a variety of decks, particularly those that can capitalize on its tap ability to drain life from opponents, granting incremental advantage in long games.

Combo Potential: This card, with its inspired mechanic, can be a linchpin in combos involving untapping creatures. It can partner effectively with cards that enable untapping to create a loop, offering sustained life loss for your opponents or life gain for you.

Meta-Relevance: In a meta with an abundance of aggressive creature-based strategies, Servant of Tymaret’s deathtouch is highly valuable, serving as a deterrent against opponents’ attacks, making it a solid defensive addition to your lineup.


How to Beat Servant of Tymaret

Servant of Tymaret stands out in MTG with its interesting life-drain ability and built-in regeneration. While not an overwhelming force on its own, the card can become troublesome, especially when combined with other inspire or control elements. To effectively counter this pesky creature, consider utilizing instant-speed removal spells that can bypass its regeneration. Cards like Path to Exile provide a solution, exiling it with no chance for regeneration.

Another strategy is to use enchantment-based removal such as Pacifism, which neutralizes the Servant without needing to destroy it—a useful tactic to avoid triggering any death-related abilities. Additionally, countering it outright with spells like Cancel can prevent it from hitting the battlefield altogether. For decks that rely on combat, having creatures with first strike or deathtouch can eliminate the Servant without giving it the opportunity to regenerate.

It’s important to maintain board control and keep the pressure on decks that utilize Servant of Tymaret. By being proactive and keeping removal options at hand, one can ensure the Servant’s abilities are kept in check, ultimately maintaining an advantage over opponents who might rely on it as a key piece in their strategy.


Cards like Servant of Tymaret

In the realm of Magic: The Gathering, Servant of Tymaret stands out as a versatile creature card with a regenerative ability that allows it to persist in the face of adversity. In comparison to other creatures, such as Butcher Ghoul, which also has the undying mechanic, Servant of Tymaret offers the added benefit of draining life from your opponent whenever it untaps. This ability not only helps stabilize your life total but can also chip away at your opponent’s health over time, making it a formidable option in a long game.

Much like the Servant of Tymaret, Qarsi Sadist provides a life-drain aspect upon entering the battlefield, enabling you to gain life while your opponent loses some. Though this effect is a one-time trigger, it does not depend on the creature untapping to be effective. Additionally, creatures like Bloodhunter Bat serve a similar purpose, giving you a life swing upon arrival. However, this bat lacks the resilience provided by Servant of Tymaret’s regeneration ability.

Overall, while there are various creatures in Magic: The Gathering that can impact life totals, Servant of Tymaret holds a unique position with its blend of sustainability, life-drain, and potential for repeated use in a game, making it a distinctive choice for decks focusing on attrition and incremental advantage.

Butcher Ghoul - MTG Card versions
Qarsi Sadist - MTG Card versions
Bloodhunter Bat - MTG Card versions
Butcher Ghoul - Avacyn Restored (AVR)
Qarsi Sadist - Dragons of Tarkir (DTK)
Bloodhunter Bat - Magic 2013 (M13)

Cards similar to Servant of Tymaret 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
Vesper Ghoul - 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 - Fifth Edition (5ED)
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)
Vesper Ghoul - Salvat 2005 (PSAL)

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Servant of Tymaret MTG card by a specific set like Born of the Gods, 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 Servant of Tymaret and other MTG cards:

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Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Servant of Tymaret has restrictions

FormatLegality
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
PaupercommanderLegal
ModernLegal
OathbreakerLegal
PauperLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
PioneerLegal
PennyLegal

Rules and information

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

DateText
2014-02-01 A creature taps when its regeneration shield is used, not when the shield is created. Notably, you won’t be able to use Servant of Tymaret’s last ability to tap it so that its inspired ability will trigger unless Servant of Tymaret would be destroyed.
2014-02-01 If an inspired ability triggers during your untap step, the ability will be put on the stack at the beginning of your upkeep. If the ability creates one or more token creatures, those creatures won’t be able to attack that turn (unless they gain haste).
2014-02-01 If the inspired ability includes an optional cost, you decide whether to pay that cost as the ability resolves. You can do this even if the creature leaves the battlefield in response to the ability.
2014-02-01 Inspired abilities don’t trigger when the creature enters the battlefield.
2014-02-01 Inspired abilities trigger no matter how the creature becomes untapped: by the turn-based action at the beginning of the untap step or by a spell or ability.

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