Dakmor Lancer MTG Card

Starter 1999 (S99)
1999-07-01 - Number 71

Seventh Edition (7ED)
2001-04-11 - Number 126

Seventh Edition (7ED)
2001-04-11 - Number 126★

Card sets	Released in 3 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost	6
Rarity	Rare
Type	Creature — Human Knight
Power	3
Toughness	3

Key Takeaways

Dakmor Lancer offers strategic grave retrieval, bolstering your hand by reviving key creatures.
Its ability to return high-impact creatures to your hand bypasses the need for draw spells.
While not an instant, Dakmor Lancer complements instant-speed reanimation for tactical surprises.

Text of card

When Dakmor Lancer comes into play, destroy target nonblack creature.

The darkness of his shield reflects the inky blackness of his soul.

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Dakmor Lancer offers a unique benefit to players seeking graveyard synergy. Upon entering the battlefield, this card allows you to retrieve a crucial creature card from your graveyard, giving you the upper hand by effectively increasing your hand with strategic resources.

Resource Acceleration: While Dakmor Lancer doesn’t produce mana or tokens directly, its retrieval capability can be a significant form of acceleration. By returning a high-impact creature to your hand, you bypass the need for draw spells or additional turns to access that card again, thus saving valuable time and turns in a match.

Instant Speed: Integrating with decks that have a reanimation theme, the Lancer’s role complements actions that can take place at instant speed. Even though the Lancer itself doesn’t operate at instant speed, it can swiftly influence board states post-reanimation spells or effects that are at instant speed, making it a critical surprise element for your strategic plays.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: The Dakmor Lancer’s ability obliges players to discard a card, which could be counterproductive during a game where card advantage is crucial.

Specific Mana Cost: Requiring two black mana to cast, Dakmor Lancer can be a stringent demand in multicolored decks, potentially restricting its inclusion only to mono-black or heavy black-influenced deck builds.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: At a total of six mana, four of which are generic and two black, Dakmor Lancer is considered expensive for its provided battlefield impact, especially when compared to other options in its mana range that could offer more immediate or versatile effects.

Reasons to Include Dakmor Lancer in Your Collection

Versatility: Dakmor Lancer serves as a robust inclusion in black decks, particularly those needing creature removal or graveyard synergy. Its straightforward destruction ability when it enters the battlefield makes it a versatile choice for disrupting opponents’ strategies.

Combo Potential: This creature shines in decks that capitalize on death triggers and graveyard recursion. Utilizing Dakmor Lancer’s capabilities can set off a chain of events that can be potentially game-ending when paired with other cards that interact with the graveyard.

Meta-Relevance: In a game environment where indestructible or regenerating creatures are prevalent, removing them can be a challenge. Dakmor Lancer bypasses these abilities with its simple yet effective ‘destroy target creature’ effect, making it a relevant card to have on hand.

How to beat Dakmor Lancer

Dakmor Lancer serves as a restoration force on the battlefield, providing utility in the realm of creature removal when it joins the fray. As a card that can potentially tilt the board in your favor, identifying key strategies to overcome this persistent knight is crucial. Understanding that Dakmor Lancer’s strength lies in its enter the battlefield (ETB) effect, where it destroys a nonblack creature, lays the foundation for devising counter measures.

Players might consider having instant-speed removal or counter spells ready to dispatch or negate Dakmor Lancer before its effect triggers. Leverage graveyard disruption cards like Relic of Progenitus to prevent the Lancer from being a recurring threat via graveyard retrieval mechanics. Including more black creatures in your deck also neutralizes the Lancer’s destructive arrival, as its ability does not affect them. Lastly, employing indestructible or regenerative creatures can withstand the Lancer’s onslaught, leaving your board state unaffected by its targeted removal.

Adeptly navigating these strategies can shift the momentum in your favor against Dakmor Lancer, transforming a potential setback into an advantage during your gameplay.

Cards like Dakmor Lancer

Dakmor Lancer stands as a unique role player in Magic: The Gathering decks that focus on utilitarian creature cards. When it comes to creature removal rooted in black color’s reanimation strategies, Dakmor Lancer comes to mind. Its nearest counterparts include Nekrataal and Shriekmaw. Both these creatures offer removal on entering the battlefield much like Dakmor Lancer.

Nekrataal, for instance, targets nonartifact, nonblack creatures with its enter the battlefield effect, providing a degree of precision akin to our Lancer. Shriekmaw, however, brings additional flexibility to the field. Not only does it dispose of nonblack creatures, but it also carries the evoke ability, allowing players to use it for its removal effect at a lower cost – something Dakmor Lancer lacks.

Nevertheless, Dakmor Lancer’s unique selling point lies in its synergy with graveyard-centric strategies. The card can be particularly powerful in a deck that exploits cards from the graveyard as its ability can be reused under the right conditions. While Nekrataal and Shriekmaw hold their own merits, the reusable aspect of Dakmor Lancer might just give it an edge within specific deck types seeking to leverage such synergies.

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Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Dakmor Lancer MTG card by a specific set like Starter 1999 and Seventh Edition, 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 Dakmor Lancer and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Dakmor Lancer Magic the Gathering card was released in 2 different sets between 1999-07-01 and 2001-04-11. Illustrated by 2 different artists.

#	Released	Name	Code	Number	Frame	Layout	Border	Artist
1	1999-07-01	Starter 1999	S99	71	1997	Normal	White	Chippy
2	2001-04-11	Seventh Edition	7ED	126	1997	Normal	White	Luca Zontini
3	2001-04-11	Seventh Edition	7ED	126★	1997	Normal	Black	Luca Zontini