The only real disadvantage here is that it can't block the first time out. Not even if you control a vampire.
Leonin_Kha_Cameron
★★★★☆ (4.3/5.0)(3 votes)
So it is a 2/2 for one who can't block Raging Goblin... this guy is awesome.
HuntingDrake
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(8 votes)
Seems . . . ridiculously strong. Is a creature's potential to chump off the top of your deck really worth so much? Barring haste-granting effects, this is way better than Spineless Thug. I'm not seeing how Innistrad's Zombie decks are going to be slow.
TherealphatMatt
★★★★☆ (4.1/5.0)(5 votes)
2/2 one-drops are crazy. Remember how much play Vampire Lacerator saw? Imagine how much this guy will see. I don't even care if you're not playing zombies. Its only drawback isn't even that huge of a drawback.
Hayw00d0909
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(7 votes)
Zombie tribal has been needing this. This will be an instantaneous 4 of in any legit zombie deck.
ThisisSakon
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(8 votes)
Considering there are no more 1 CMC's with haste in standard...
Wow...
ICEFANG13
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(5 votes)
Wow I can't believe they made this card, it just feels like something that was promised to never happen, but its very good.
Gabriel422
★★★★☆ (4.4/5.0)(7 votes)
I guess now that white has one mana -5/-5s, black should get a 2/2 for one without much drawback too!
Kryptnyt
★★☆☆☆ (2.0/5.0)(1 vote)
its a 2/2 for one mana, but I'm not feeling it. Probably because the art does not impress.
A0602
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(2 votes)
Oh yeah. It's about time the zombies got there share of awesome.
ZEvilMustache
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(3 votes)
The enters tapped thing doesn't seem like enough of a drawback.
Another card that vastly exceeded my expectations. Even in today's world of powercreep, a 2/2 for 1 is still amazing. Dropping this on the play is just really, really good. Had three of them in my prerelease deck and it was an absolute all-star.
Also, incredible art is incredible.
Eternal_Blue
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(3 votes)
this is the first and only card in innistrad that i've rated 5/5. and i do NOT rate cards highly ever. but this card deserves it. definitely. you may not think it deserves to be sharing the same spot as a mox but i do. it's just that good. (too good, to be honest)
WhiteWizard42
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(2 votes)
ThisIsSakon: "Considering there are no more 1 CMC's with haste in standard..."
Suddenly I have a one-drop. This beautiful undead babe that packs more of a punch than I could ask for. My two-drop, Dregscape Zombie finds itself replaced with a Walking Corpse. My three drop of course is Cemetery Reaper. Then turn four, we've got a crossroads. Endless Ranks of the Dead, or Abattoir Ghoul.
Now here's where we've got to make a choice. Play Abattoir Ghoul so that when we drop Endless Ranks of the Dead onto the field, we'll be making a 2-token investment. OR, play Endless Ranks of the Dead so we can get that enchantment working early. That way next turn, we get a zombie AND Abattoir. Besides, if we play Abattoir first, and then drop Endless Ranks, they'll probably respond with killing a creature anyhow, in this case your lord.
Either way, this card really get's you going with an otherwise painfully slow tribal type. With Endless Ranks continuing to stack our zombies, we can overwhelm quickly in numbers much like zombies are supposed to. I'm glad wizards did zombies right in Innistrad. Looking forward to brain-nomming in the coming months.
Anubisisking
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(7 votes)
Drawback? What drawback?
Paladin85
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(1 vote)
The drawback is hardly one considering zombies decks are aggressive, and wouldn't care for blocking when their opponents should be worried about that instead
A very good zombie in any zombie or aggro deck
Tanaka348
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Definitely looking for the game day promo version, here. Looks way better than Ms. Afro Housewife zombie here.
Appleseed000
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
I'd come into play tapped too if I had a sword going through me. This is the zombie I've been waiting for. Thank you Wizards!!
blurrymadness
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(1 vote)
Quite good. If you ask me, it's right on or below the powercurve at this point. Between the Allies from Zendikar, the Humans in Innistrad, Bloodhall ooze, and various other one-drops that remain potent all game until hit by removal; this guy can't chump as easily, can't activate many abilities, and ceases to be effective if dropped turn 3 or later; maybe even turn 2.
The thing that makes a 1-drop 2/2 powerful isn't all about the offense but the fact that it's card advantage if one of you decides to block.
That said; it's still a very good card, in a sense it's "too" powerful. But again, I'd say there have been many one drops that beat it out. As an aside, it's also nearly un-comboable.
For example, look at the BEST 2/2 for 1 ever printed: Nettle Sentinel. It practically has vigilance, doesn't come in tapped, and is ridiculously comboable.
Now, again, this is a great card, but people are going a bit crazy over something essentially worse than we've seen before.
3.5/5
OmegaSerris
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
One CMC 2 power creature? What's the draw back? A single missed blocking opportunity? Ok, those 2/2s are getting better. It's ?! And a very viable creature type?!
Yeah, mana efficient creatures seem misplaced in , especially with such a negligible drawback. I'm not complaining, I love , through and through. Just did not expect this. They should have given it haste though, just for laughs.
@blurrymadness You are missing the point. It's BLACK and a zombie. Sure Nettle was good, so was Goblin Guide for . The Naya spectrum all have their weenie varients (Goblins, Elves, and Soldiers). Black historically did not have that. Sure there was Vamps in Zen, but more often than not, you had to splash . And Faerie/Rogues in Lorwyn needed . But lately, both and have been getting some early aggro love (Phantasmal Bear). That's why people are talking about this card.
gregisclassy
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
The full art of this is gorgeous
thewalkingdead
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(1 vote)
freaking sweet! carnophage you suck... love me some 1 drop zombies. still am waiting on a 1 drop 1/1 with first strike. would be sweet:)
A great one drop for all zombie kind, very comparable to Festering Goblin , with a very slight drawback. A perfect addition in any aggro tribal zombie deck.
4.5 / 5
LordRandomness
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
This is a great one-drop, obviously. The main problem is that it's an even worse late game draw than other one-drops...mind you, one-drops are almost always terrible late-game draws, so who cares?
Kragash
★★★★☆ (4.3/5.0)(3 votes)
There's no way this hot babe wouldn't get tapped as soon as she entered the battlefield. Hubba hubba.
Justice1337
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(1 vote)
Why are powerful one drops like this so much better in Black, and in Zombie? Oh, let me count the ways.
You topdeck it late, and no problem. You just pitch it to a Liliana of the Veil, sac it to something, then use it to play a Skaab Ruinator. Black rarely runs out of ways to make creatures useful when in other colors they would've outlived that usefulness.
Black aggro, here we come.
Lord_of_Tresserhorn
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
First turn this, next turn Furor of the Bitten, and your opponent is in for some trouble.
Love it.
nunyaJs
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
someone just said "carnophage you suck"... ?!? wth! ima running 4 each ghoul, gravecrawler, SARCOMANCY, *AND* carnophage! "carnophage sucks"... oughta be slapped!
solid four stars!
ps: so is carnophage
Specter_Fanatic13
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(2 votes)
I can almost see the conversation for this card's birth:
"You know, I think we did a good job with Vampire Lacerator. It's like a Carnophage that rewards you for dealing damage. But I feel bad for zombies lately, they aren't getting much love."
"Oh I think I know how we could fix that..."
rogelio
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(1 vote)
This card's drawback is nearly nonexistent, especially in Innistrad. It's a powerful and cheap early game threat, and if you get it late game, then you've got some nice fodder for a sac, say for Grimgrin, Altar Reap or Demonlord.
Not just one of the best zombie one-drops ever, one of the best zombies ever, period. This and Gravecrawler are your turn 1 beatsticks. Well alright, Hunted Ghoul gets some love too.
yyukichigai
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(1 vote)
Another challenger appears for the title of "Best Black One-Drop in Magic"! Will it be able to beat Will-o'-the-Wisp?
...well, no, but it can take up a comfy second or third place seat near Rimebound Dead.
4.5/5 on stats and abilities alone, but the Zombie tribal puts it over the top. This'll be in Legacy/Vintage Zombie decks for years.
TheZombifier
★★★☆☆ (3.5/5.0)(1 vote)
My first Zombie card. It started me to want great Zombie deck. I will never take it away from my deck. :')
RetroGamer3
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Lots of people have mentioned zombie decks but what about modern aggro with Bad Moon. Hey look now she's a 3/3 for one black cool.
Hancocky
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(1 vote)
Why is this rated so low?! After all, most of you are rating cards higher if the cards are getting more powerfull, even when they are a little bit over the curve. Cause I think most people rate so, I don't get it. It should have a equal or higher rating as Isamaru which has a rating of 4.672. In the early game, Diregraf Ghoul's drawback isn't that much drawback, and even later not very to screeching. Basically, his drawback is only slightly worse than that of Isamaru (for being a legendary) and instead of the dog, he has a more relevant creature type! For me, it's a little bit too strong, a 2/1 would have been fine. But I have to say, in the last time, for me more and more cards per set becomes more and more too powerful...I hold on the previous times where power creep wasn't too nasty for me :S
Lifegainwithbite
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
@Thisissakon: Well I know it's been over a year but Legion Loyalist is around now.
Sweet design, and coming into play tapped suits the flavour perfectly. That sword through the torso would probably slow her down a bit...
At the time of viewing this was rated about 3.6. In the context of Magic as a whole, I suppose that's fair.. but in zombie tribal, this thing is at least a 4.0, especially if you go first. It can beat down early, chump block, or serve as sacrifice fodder.
Too bad I could only find three.
demonknight18
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Great in suicide black!
pudginamancer
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
"hold on guys I gotta pull this sword outta my sternum before I can help out"
CityofAs
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
creature power creep? what creature power creep?
jldm777
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
a 2/2 for 1 that pretty much doest have a downside and has great typing?? Why is this rated so low?
docjarvisd09
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Why is this card rated lower than Carnophage? It can't block the turn you play it. That's the drawback. It can block next turn. Sure, when you're in top-deck mode this isn't the card you want to see, but if that's the reason to rate a card low...
Comments (51)
Is a creature's potential to chump off the top of your deck really worth so much? Barring haste-granting effects, this is way better than Spineless Thug. I'm not seeing how Innistrad's Zombie decks are going to be slow.
Wow...
Also, incredible art is incredible.
Chancellor of the Forge disagrees. Sort of.
But now... Holy mother of all Zombies.
Suddenly I have a one-drop. This beautiful undead babe that packs more of a punch than I could ask for.
My two-drop, Dregscape Zombie finds itself replaced with a Walking Corpse.
My three drop of course is Cemetery Reaper.
Then turn four, we've got a crossroads. Endless Ranks of the Dead, or Abattoir Ghoul.
Now here's where we've got to make a choice. Play Abattoir Ghoul so that when we drop Endless Ranks of the Dead onto the field, we'll be making a 2-token investment. OR, play Endless Ranks of the Dead so we can get that enchantment working early. That way next turn, we get a zombie AND Abattoir. Besides, if we play Abattoir first, and then drop Endless Ranks, they'll probably respond with killing a creature anyhow, in this case your lord.
Either way, this card really get's you going with an otherwise painfully slow tribal type. With Endless Ranks continuing to stack our zombies, we can overwhelm quickly in numbers much like zombies are supposed to. I'm glad wizards did zombies right in Innistrad. Looking forward to brain-nomming in the coming months.
A very good zombie in any zombie or aggro deck
The thing that makes a 1-drop 2/2 powerful isn't all about the offense but the fact that it's card advantage if one of you decides to block.
That said; it's still a very good card, in a sense it's "too" powerful. But again, I'd say there have been many one drops that beat it out. As an aside, it's also nearly un-comboable.
For example, look at the BEST 2/2 for 1 ever printed: Nettle Sentinel. It practically has vigilance, doesn't come in tapped, and is ridiculously comboable.
Now, again, this is a great card, but people are going a bit crazy over something essentially worse than we've seen before.
3.5/5
Yeah, mana efficient creatures seem misplaced in
@blurrymadness
You are missing the point. It's BLACK and a zombie. Sure Nettle was good, so was Goblin Guide for
works for me :)
4.5 / 5
You topdeck it late, and no problem. You just pitch it to a Liliana of the Veil, sac it to something, then use it to play a Skaab Ruinator. Black rarely runs out of ways to make creatures useful when in other colors they would've outlived that usefulness.
Black aggro, here we come.
Love it.
solid four stars!
ps: so is carnophage
"You know, I think we did a good job with Vampire Lacerator. It's like a Carnophage that rewards you for dealing damage. But I feel bad for zombies lately, they aren't getting much love."
"Oh I think I know how we could fix that..."
...well, no, but it can take up a comfy second or third place seat near Rimebound Dead.
4.5/5 on stats and abilities alone, but the Zombie tribal puts it over the top. This'll be in Legacy/Vintage Zombie decks for years.
Hey look now she's a 3/3 for one black cool.
For me, it's a little bit too strong, a 2/1 would have been fine. But I have to say, in the last time, for me more and more cards per set becomes more and more too powerful...I hold on the previous times where power creep wasn't too nasty for me :S
At the time of viewing this was rated about 3.6. In the context of Magic as a whole, I suppose that's fair.. but in zombie tribal, this thing is at least a 4.0, especially if you go first. It can beat down early, chump block, or serve as sacrifice fodder.
Too bad I could only find three.