Gravedigger

Creature — Zombie

When Gravedigger enters the battlefield, you may return target creature card from your graveyard to your hand.

Discussion (50)

R492 on Zombies in your mocha star

3 weeks ago

Hey, I'm here from my warrior deck as you've requested. Since I'm unsure of the format I'll presume this to be a casual build, if this is more of a competitive modern or other format of deck then my knowledge is definitely too limited to be of assistance here. As it is I used to have a lot of fun with casual zombies when I first got into MTG and Diregraf Captain was one of my favourite cards. I think zombies have always been at their best in either mono B or Dimir so my first suggestion would be to remove white from the build. Wayward Servant is a neat idea but I just don't see enough recursion here to fully utilize it unless the plan is getting 2 relentless dead and using them to recur each other on death but that seems a bit risky without some tutors. I really liked Gravedigger myself, he's a simple creature but that's kinda what zombies are, and getting a chain of gravediggers fishing each other out of the yard continuously while offering protection to anything else on your board that might be targeted is surprisingly powerful.

Likewise Time to Reflect is thematically cool but slightly narrow in scope for removal, and Mortify has been upgraded even in standard. Murderous Rider is not only great removal but also a zombie after, which means it also absorbs the bonuses you have littered throughout this deck to become a massive healing machine, and if you specifically want removal that can target enchantments Feed the Swarm does it for cheaper while even having a name that loosely matches the deck!

Next I'm noticing an Evolving Wilds in the mana base when Fabled Passage exists as a direct upgrade to it. Then again leaving white behind would mean you probably don't need either of them, which means there may be better options to streamline your mana base. I also notice a lot of colourless mana, which is perfectly good so long as you aren't hurting for your black and blue sources. I would tend to run a couple more swamps and islands myself just to make sure a T1 Choked Estuary has a target and perhaps replacing the white sources and Rogue's Passage with some more basics could work. Rogue's passage is nice moreso if you have large creatures that can get through for significant damage, generally as a zombie player you'll want to just have enough board advantage to simply swing in and spending 4 mana to sneak a single one of them through winds up being too expensive.

Here are a few other cards for your consideration:
- Endless Ranks of the Dead
- Field of the Dead
- Open the Graves
- From Under the Floorboards to synergise with Cryptbreaker
- Dreadhorde Invasion

Hopefully this gives you some ideas, make sure to mark down what format you're playing in and give your deck tags to help people find it easier! Good luck, I'll be around if you need and if you're on the Discord server feel free to @ me with anything else that comes to mind

acht_deck_manager on Mmmmmm Brains

3 months ago

Out: Blood Scrivener , Gravedigger , God-Eternal Bontu , Altar of the Brood , Semblance Anvil , Firemind Vessel , Thran Dynamo , Dreadhorde Invasion , Force of Despair , Read the Bones , Sign in Blood

In: Cyclonic Rift , Mystic Confluence , Court of Cunning , Search for Azcanta  ^Flip, Sphinx of the Second Sun , Frantic Search , Lightning Greaves , Eligeth, Crossroads Augur , Cryptic Command , Liliana's Standard Bearer , Monastery Siege

Lanzo493 on Black & Blue Graveyard Mill

6 months ago

Since you're new, I'll give some more general feedback first.

Mill was one of the first decks I ever made myself, as well. Your deck, however, appears to be going in too many different directions. Cards like Consuming Aberration and Mind Funeral care about milling the opponent to death, whereas cards like Gravepurge, Gravedigger, and Grimoire of the Dead care about self-milling. The most effective decks always capitalize on one main strategy. Your deck, however, is trying to do 2 very different things at once: milling the opponent and milling yourself. It's hard enough to mill an opponent's library out completely in the first place, so unless your entire deck focuses on just doing that, you may be killed before you get the job done. By doing multiple things at once, you'll do none of them well.

So my feedback at this point is to decide what direction your deck wants to go. Then it can be improved and fine tuned. At the very least, no matter what you decide to do with your deck, Ghoulcaller's Bell and Elixir of Immortality are just not that good.

RinceRaven on Kaalia

6 months ago

suggestions right now are to get out all the low-impact 4-5 costed 'big' creatures that sit in your hand as a 1/turn spell even when you have 8 mana available and replace them with stuff that either has an actual impact or that helps big stuff come out faster and better.

in: Angel of Serenity, Kaalia of the Vast, Rakshasa Debaser, Dragon Tempest, Lightning Greaves, Rakdos, Lord of Riots, Angel of Condemnation, Worn Powerstone, Thran Dynamo, Herald of War, literally any land.

out: Bloodgift Demon, Demanding Dragon, Desecration Demon, Taurean Mauler, Nesting Dragon, Hoarding Dragon, Ambition's Cost, Conjurer's Closet, Idyllic Tutor, Memorial to Folly.

Also update the list so it has Graveshifter and not Gravedigger.

griffstick on Mono Black PDH

9 months ago

Cards you could add for added devotion in place of those cards.

• Seal of Doom
• Soul Stair Expedition
• Vessel of Malignity
• Audacious Thief
• Vulturous Aven
• Wall of Distortion
• Undertaker
• Silumgar Butcher
• Predatory Nightstalker
• Mesmeric Fiend
• Gravedigger
• Faceless Butcher
• Disciple of Phenax
• Cat Burglar
• Cadaver Imp
• Blind Zealot
• Augur of Skulls

multimedia on Rakdos stuff

9 months ago

Hey, very good budget version of Meren.

For the manabase my advice is play an equal amount of Forests and Swamps because you have one drop green mana dorks who you want to be able to consistently play turn one which a Forest is the best land option for the manabase to do that. Having double the amount of Swamps than Forests is problematic when playing one drop mana dorks.

Some budget cards to consider adding:

• Buried Alive
• Jarad's Orders
• Final Parting
• Elves of Deep Shadow
• Talisman of Resilience
• Solemn Simulacrum
• Midnight Reaper
• Deathreap Ritual
• Butcher of Malakir
• Demon's Disciple
• Primal Growth
• Harrow
• Dread Return
• High Market

Buried Alive is excellent to tutor for any three creatures and put them into your graveyard, one of the best cards with Meren. Jarad's Orders and Final Parting are nice budget tutors with Meren. Tutoring for two cards, one goes into your hand and the other being a creature into your graveyard to reanimate/recur with Meren. Elves of Deep Shadow and Talisman of Resilience are low CMC budget ramp upgrades.

Midnight Reaper and Deathreap Ritual are more repeatable draw sources when creatures you control die. Deathreap can draw a lot of cards in multiplayer Commander since morbid can trigger on any players turn as long as any creature died during the turn. Butcher of Malakir is a upgrade for a budget big creature to reanimate with Meren since it's a repeatable source of opponents having to sac a creature they control when any creature you control dies. Demon's Disciple is an upgrade for Merciless Executioner since if an opponent doesn't have a creature, but has a Planeswalker they have to sac a Planeswalker.

---

Some cards to consider cutting:

• Vivid Marsh
• Vivid Grove
• Merciless Resolve
• Gravedigger
• Hedron Archive
• Hogaak, Arisen Necropolis
• Kodama's Reach
• Cultivate
• Blood for Bones
• Mind Stone
• Commander's Sphere
• Farseek
• Merciless Executioner
• Deathbringer Regent

The Vivid lands are not good lands and even on a budget there's better options. They aren't reliable enough to warrant ETB tapped and even if you have a way to put more counters on them with proliferate I still think they're not worth playing even over more basic lands. Hogaak, Arisen Necropolis is not worth the trouble of casting it or reanimating it. It's just a beater, but you want more than that with high CMC creatures in Commander.

Good luck with your deck.

DasButch on They Eat... ZoMbIE BrAiNs?!?

1 year ago

Hey wallisface! Thx for the advice!

Grave Pact was too slow, and I removed it a while back. Didn't realize that I hadn't updated here! Just found a faster way to export/update decks today.

With the removal of Grave Pact I also added several spells for removal. Tragic Slip easily satisfied for -13/-13 through sac outlets. Fatal Push can hit its 4cmc level just by cracking a land.

Darkblast really to just help bury Bloodghast and Gravedigger

Fallen Ideal serves as an additional sac outlet, plus flying. This deck can't run w/o a sac outlet, hence the redundancy there. During playing, 4 did prove to be a bit much.

fmastrome2008 on Yarok, the Descrated

1 year ago

1. Shriekmaw is a great utility spell for this deck. It also triggers Risen Reef.

2. Sire of Stagnation is straight gas. It draws 8 cards off 1 opposing fetchland.

3. Prime Speaker Vannifar and Birthing Pod are great for creature toolbox decks like this. It's important to find what you need when you need it. I'd also recommend more tutors like Sidisi, Undead Vizier, Demonic Tutor, Rune-Scarred Demon, Finale of Devastation, etc...

4. Wall of Blossoms, Elvish Visionary, Ice-Fang Coatl, Baleful Strix are great for restocking your hand, getting through your deck early. Bouncing them with Thassa is great value later on.

5. Your mana acceleration costs too much. Birds of Paradise, Deathrite Shaman, Llanowar Elves are great because they come down T1, speed up your deck, etc.. Shaman also is early graveyard interaction and is a great toolbox card.

6. Since most casual groups outlaw mass land destruction, artifacts are easier to destroy, and other landfall triggers, I recommend cards like Farseek, Nature's Lore, Cultivate, Kodama's Reach, etc... Every green deck wants these.

7. As another way to further your mana, cards like Farhaven Elf and Wood Elves fetch 2 lands from your deck. I'd much rather draw Farhaven Elf than Gyre Engineer.

8. You'll want multiple ways to reset the board if something happens. Consider Damnation, Toxic Deluge, Pernicious Deed, Crypt Rats etc...

9. Eternal Witness is a better version of Gravedigger. That's assuming budget isn't an issue. Also, lower CMC.