Cleric MTG Card


Card setsReleased in 5 setsSee all
TypeToken Creature — Cleric
Power 1
Toughness 1
TokenTokens act as indicators during gameplay and are not included into building a deck.

Key Takeaways

  1. Clerics provide strategic depth through card advantage and instant-speed flexibility, enhancing player responses.
  2. Restricted mana and high costs can limit Cleric card utility in diverse or fast-paced MTG decks.
  3. Cleric synergies offer combo potential and adaptability, making them valuable in varied MTG metagames.

Text of card

, , Sacrifice this creature: Return a card named Deathpact Angel from your graveyard to the battlefield.


Card Pros

Card Advantage: Cleric cards in MTG often come equipped with abilities to draw cards upon certain conditions, like another creature entering the battlefield or when the Cleric itself or another creature dies. This creates a steady influx of new options and strengthens your hand, allowing you to respond effectively to your opponent’s moves.

Resource Acceleration: Many Cleric cards have synergies that empower your mana base or provide alternative resources. Some might tap for mana, while others could allow you to play additional lands or cheat creatures into play at a lesser cost, thus accelerating your game plan and enabling larger plays ahead of schedule.

Instant Speed: Several Cleric cards, particularly those with flash or offering instant-speed abilities like sacrifice to gain life or buff other creatures, can drastically shift the game in your favor. This flexibility to act during your opponent’s turn or in response to specific actions can give you a tactical edge, making Cleric cards a dynamic force on the battlefield.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Some Cleric cards in MTG require discarding as part of their casting or activating abilities. This cost can be detrimental in situations where card advantage is crucial, and you’re forced to lose precious hand resources to deploy or use these Clerics effectively.

Specific Mana Cost: Certain powerful Cleric cards come with a restrictive mana cost, often necessitating white mana. This can limit the card’s flexibility, making it challenging for players to incorporate them into multi-colored decks that may not always have the necessary mana types available when needed.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Cleric cards are known for their supportive abilities, but these often come at a high mana cost. When compared to other creature types with similar mana costs, Clerics commonly offer less offensive power, potentially putting players at a disadvantage when trying to maintain board presence against more aggressive decks.


Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: The adaptability of Cleric cards ensures they can be integrated into a variety of deck types, providing not just creature presence but also utility in life gain, control, and board stabilization.

Combo Potential: Clerics often work synergetically, enabling powerful interactions that can amplify their impact on the game, whether it’s through life-based triggers or enhancing each other’s abilities.

Meta-Relevance: Within the shifting landscape of game play, Clerics maintain their importance by countering many aggressive strategies, making them a consistent and reliable addition to your collection.


How to beat

Cleric cards in MTG harness a variety of supportive abilities that often center around healing and protection, making them a resilient force on the battlefield. To effectively counter this card type, it’s crucial to disrupt their synergies and prevent their life-gain strategies. Cards that impose penalties on healing, such as Tainted Remedy, can turn their strengths into vulnerabilities, while spot removals can unravel their defensive lines, particularly when targeting key Cleric creatures that empower the rest of the board.

Moreover, board wipes act as a clean slate, eradicating the Clerics’ amassed advantages and accumulated buffs. Graveyard hate cards can also hinder their frequent resurrection tactics, hence cards like Rest in Peace or Leyline of the Void are exceptionally useful tools against them. It’s essential to keep pressure and adapt your play style to be more aggressive; swift strikes and continuous threats can often overtake Clerics before their defensive measures become insurmountable. When facing a Cleric-heavy deck, buffing your strategy with such countermeasures can significantly increase your odds of victory.


Cards like Cleric

The Cleric archetype holds a sacred place in the pantheon of strategies within Magic: The Gathering. Cleric cards often provide diverse benefits such as life gain or protection making them a cornerstone in many decks. One can draw comparisons between Cleric cards and those like Soul Warden or Soul’s Attendant, which are also centered around life accumulation mechanics. While these are not Clerics by type, they share similar mechanisms that bolster a player’s life total whenever another creature enters the battlefield.

In discussions of Cleric cards, one cannot overlook the combination of life gain and creature benefits found in Ajani’s Pridemate. Although not a Cleric, this card thrives alongside Cleric decks that focus on life gain, growing in strength with each instance. Similarly, cards like Healer’s Hawk might not belong to the Cleric family, but their lifelink ability complements the life-centric strategy Clerics often employ.

To sum up, while not every card that synergizes with life gain or protection effects may classify as a Cleric, there’s no denying the harmony they find among Cleric cards. They create a web of interactions that exemplify the holistic nature of MTG, where every card has the potential to find its tribe or enhance an existing one.

Soul Warden - MTG Card versions
Soul's Attendant - MTG Card versions
Ajani's Pridemate - MTG Card versions
Healer's Hawk - MTG Card versions
Soul Warden - Exodus (EXO)
Soul's Attendant - Rise of the Eldrazi (ROE)
Ajani's Pridemate - Magic 2011 (M11)
Healer's Hawk - Guilds of Ravnica (GRN)

Where to buy

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

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Printings

The Cleric Magic the Gathering card was released in 5 different sets between 2013-02-01 and 2023-08-04. Illustrated by 3 different artists.

#ReleaseNameCodeSymbolNumberFrameLayoutBorderArtist
12013-02-01GatecrashGTC 42003tokenblackJason Chan
22013-09-27TherosTHS 12003tokenblackJohann Bodin
32018-04-27DominariaDOM 42015tokenblackSeb McKinnon
42019-02-15RNA Guild KitGK2 42015tokenblackJason Chan
52023-08-04Commander MastersCMM 622015tokenblackJohann Bodin

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