Kami of Empty Graves MTG Card

Kami of Empty Graves - Saviors of Kamigawa

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	4
Rarity	Common
Type	Creature — Spirit
Abilities	Soulshift
Released	2005-06-03
Set symbol
Set name	Saviors of Kamigawa
Set code	SOK
Power	4
Toughness	1
Number	75
Frame	2003
Layout	Normal
Border	Black
Illustred by	Greg Hildebrandt

Key Takeaways

Kami of Empty Graves offers card advantage through graveyard resource recursion and hand size maintenance.
While not a mana ramp, it enables strategic plays leading to earlier high-cost card drops.
Instant speed strategies are enhanced by the Kami, providing adaptability and tactical board impacts.

Text of card

Soulshift 3 (When this is put into a graveyard from play, you may return target Spirit card with converted mana cost 3 or less from your graveyard to your hand.)

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Kami of Empty Graves has the ability to bring card advantage to the battlefield. This spirit creature can potentially create recursion scenarios depending on the deck’s build, allowing players to re-utilize their graveyard resources and maintain a healthy hand size, crucial for sustaining pressure on the opponent and controlling the pace of the game.

Resource Acceleration: While not directly a resource accelerator, Kami of Empty Graves has synergies that could indirectly lead to ramp benefits. Its presence in a well-structured deck can lead to earlier plays of high-cost cards, especially when combined with graveyard-to-play mechanics, enhancing your mana resources through strategic play.

Instant Speed: Although the Kami of Empty Graves itself is not an instant, its spirit nature often synergizes with decks that operate at instant speed. This opens up strategies that keep opponents guessing and allows for tactical responses to threats, maintaining the adaptability and reaction potential necessary for key in-game turns. Furthermore, playing this card judiciously can instantaneously affect board state, making it a formidable presence against unprepared adversaries.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Playing Kami of Empty Graves requires you to discard a card, putting you at a potential card disadvantage especially if your hand is already dwindling.

Specific Mana Cost: This spirit demands both black and generic mana, necessitating a firm commitment to black mana sources in your deck which could affect deck building flexibility.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Its casting cost is significant and while it delivers a resilient creature, there are alternatives that might fit more seamlessly into faster or more mana-efficient strategies.

Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Kami of Empty Graves can adapt to various deck themes, particularly those that revolve around graveyard interactions or spirit synergies. Its ability to be a threat in the late game while facilitating graveyard mechanics makes it a flexible inclusion.

Combo Potential: This card opens up numerous combo possibilities, thanks to its ability to bring back spirits from the graveyard. It can seamlessly fit into decks that exploit enter-the-battlefield or death triggers for strategic advantages.

Meta-Relevance: In game environments where graveyard strategies are prevalent or where board states are often stalled, Kami of Empty Graves offers a strategic edge by recurring key creatures and maintaining board presence.

How to Beat Kami of Empty Graves

The Kami of Empty Graves stands out as an intriguing creature card. It’s those kind of cards that, if left unchecked, can dramatically affect the board by providing a consistent creature recursion. Understanding how to manage this persistent threat is crucial for any player looking to maintain an edge over their opponent.

A direct approach is using exile effects to get rid of the Kami permanently. Cards like Path to Exile or Scavenging Ooze not only remove the creature but also prevent it from triggering its ability to return to the battlefield. Another strategy is to employ graveyard hate; artifacts like Relic of Progenitus or spells like Tormod’s Crypt can remove the necessary cards from your opponent’s graveyard and disrupt their plans.

Keep in mind that disrupting the opponent’s graveyard is a preemptive move against Kami of Empty Graves. Dedicated removals can save you from getting overwhelmed by an ever-returning creature and eventually tilt the match in your favor. Stay adaptive, focus on resource denial, and the Kami’s influence will wane, giving you the upper hand in your Magic: The Gathering matchups.

Cards like Kami of Empty Graves

The Kami of Empty Graves is an intriguing option for creature cards in Magic: The Gathering. Its spirit synergy is reminiscent of other creature cards, such as Tallowisp, which also interacts well with spirits by tutoring for auras whenever you cast a spirit spell. The Kami of Empty Graves distinctively requires something to have died during the turn to trigger its ability, creating a creature token in return. This differs from Tallowisp’s more passive ability based solely on your spellcasting.

Another comparable card is Myr Sire, which also leaves behind a creature token after it dies. However, Myr Sire’s token is of generally lower value, providing just a simple 1/1 Myr artifact creature token, lacking the synergistic potential with spirit-based strategies. Additionally, the cost efficiency and potential token generation of Reassembling Skeleton should not be overlooked. Unlike the Kami, this skeleton operates on the premise of self-recursion for a mana cost, as opposed to depending on other creatures’ demise, offering a reliable, albeit mana-intensive, board presence.

Evaluating the unique advantages these creatures offer, Kami of Empty Graves holds a solid position amongst cards that create supplemental board states after their triggering conditions are met, especially in decks dedicated to leveraging creature deaths.

Reassembling Skeleton - MTG Card versions

Cards similar to Kami of Empty Graves by color, type and mana cost

Xiahou Dun, the One-Eyed - MTG Card versions

Demon of Catastrophes - MTG Card versions

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Kami of Empty Graves MTG card by a specific set like Saviors of Kamigawa, 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 Kami of Empty Graves and other MTG cards: