Tenacious Dead MTG Card


Tenacious Dead enhances board stability, recovering well from removal and safeguarding card advantage. Instant-speed revival increases tactical flexibility, allowing for mana-efficient and disruptive plays. Usage constraints include a reliance on black mana and potential mana investment inefficiency.
Card setsReleased in 2 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost1
RarityUncommon
TypeCreature — Skeleton Warrior
Power 1
Toughness 1

Text of card

When Tenacious Dead dies, you may pay . If you do, return it to the battlefield tapped under its owner's control.

Raising the bones of Hekjek the Mad proved far easier than getting them to lie back down.


Cards like Tenacious Dead

Tenacious Dead serves as an intriguing example of resilient creatures in Magic: The Gathering. Its closest counterpart is Reassembling Skeleton, another creature known for its ability to return from the graveyard to the battlefield. However, what sets Tenacious Dead apart is its lower initial casting cost, demanding just one black mana. In contrast, Reassembling Skeleton has an initial casting cost of two mana, one of which must be black.

Another similar card is Bloodsoaked Champion, which can also return from the graveyard, but this requires an attack phase condition. Whereas Tenacious Dead only requires the spare mana to be available for its revival. Additionally, there’s Nether Traitor, offering a different route to recurrence through creature death-triggered abilities, yet it’s the flexibility of Tenacious Dead’s straight payment ability that appeals to some strategists.

Examining these comparable options, Tenacious Dead is a card that offers a reliable and economical way to keep a presence on the battlefield. Its straightforward and mana-efficient revival makes it a popular choice amongst players looking for persistent board control in Magic: The Gathering.

Reassembling Skeleton - MTG Card versions
Bloodsoaked Champion - MTG Card versions
Nether Traitor - MTG Card versions
Reassembling Skeleton - MTG Card versions
Bloodsoaked Champion - MTG Card versions
Nether Traitor - MTG Card versions

Cards similar to Tenacious Dead by color, type and mana cost

Stone-Throwing Devils - MTG Card versions
Will-o'-the-Wisp - MTG Card versions
Vampire Bats - MTG Card versions
Bog Rats - MTG Card versions
Sewer Rats - MTG Card versions
Muck Rats - MTG Card versions
Vebulid - MTG Card versions
Urborg Skeleton - MTG Card versions
Carrion Rats - MTG Card versions
Foulmire Knight // Profane Insight - MTG Card versions
Dark Supplicant - MTG Card versions
Bile Urchin - MTG Card versions
Rimebound Dead - MTG Card versions
Plague Beetle - MTG Card versions
Festering Goblin - MTG Card versions
Sleeper Agent - MTG Card versions
Knucklebone Witch - MTG Card versions
Nightshade Stinger - MTG Card versions
Smolder Initiate - MTG Card versions
Kjeldoran Dead - MTG Card versions
Stone-Throwing Devils - MTG Card versions
Will-o'-the-Wisp - MTG Card versions
Vampire Bats - MTG Card versions
Bog Rats - MTG Card versions
Sewer Rats - MTG Card versions
Muck Rats - MTG Card versions
Vebulid - MTG Card versions
Urborg Skeleton - MTG Card versions
Carrion Rats - MTG Card versions
Foulmire Knight // Profane Insight - MTG Card versions
Dark Supplicant - MTG Card versions
Bile Urchin - MTG Card versions
Rimebound Dead - MTG Card versions
Plague Beetle - MTG Card versions
Festering Goblin - MTG Card versions
Sleeper Agent - MTG Card versions
Knucklebone Witch - MTG Card versions
Nightshade Stinger - MTG Card versions
Smolder Initiate - MTG Card versions
Kjeldoran Dead - MTG Card versions

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Tenacious Dead offers an impressive form of resilience, ensuring that losing it to removal doesn’t equate to a loss of resources. Its ability to return from the graveyard to the battlefield ensures that your board presence is maintained, translating into sustained card advantage over the course of the game.

Resource Acceleration: While Tenacious Dead doesn’t directly ramp your mana, its reusable nature works as an effective form of resource acceleration. By requiring only a small investment to bring it back, it allows you to allocate your mana more liberally towards other spells and strategies, optimizing your resource allocation each turn.

Instant Speed: The ability to resurrect Tenacious Dead can be activated at instant speed, giving you the flexibility to wait until the end of your opponent’s turn to return it to play. This tactical advantage keeps your opponents guessing and allows you to most efficiently use your mana, timing your plays to disrupt your opponent’s plans or to save resources for spells in your hand.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: In order to trigger Tenacious Dead’s revival ability, you must have another mana available. If you’re playing a tight game where every mana counts, not having one available for its resurrection could be limiting, reducing its effectiveness on the battlefield.

Specific Mana Cost: Tenacious Dead requires black mana for both casting and activating its ability. This can be restrictive as it requires a commitment to black mana in your deck build, potentially limiting its inclusion in more versatile or multicolored decks.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: While one black mana might seem affordable for a 1/1 creature card, the real cost comes when you consider its regeneration ability. Having to hold back an additional black mana every time you want to utilize its recursive potential can add up, making it a costly investment for what might be achieved more efficiently with other cards.


Reasons to Include Tenacious Dead in Your Collection

Versatility: Tenacious Dead proves itself to be a flexible tool in various decks. Whether you’re managing a graveyard-centric strategy or simply need a resilient chump blocker, this card provides consistent board presence.

Combo Potential: Its ability to return from the graveyard presents numerous combo possibilities with sacrifice outlets or as a recurring element in an aristocrats-style deck that thrives on death triggers.

Meta-Relevance: Facing decks that rely on targeted removal? Tenacious Dead maintains relevance by continuously offering a creature on the battlefield, making it a persistent nuisance against opponent strategies that cannot exile it.


How to beat

Tenacious Dead is a resilient creature in the landscape of Magic the Gathering, capable of returning from the graveyard to the battlefield. Contending with this card requires strategy, as it can deter an opponent from committing removal resources. Similar challenges are posed by creatures like Reassembling Skeleton, which also boasts a return mechanic, although Tenacious Dead is less mana-intensive.

When facing creatures with recurring abilities, exile effects become invaluable. Cards such as Path to Exile or Swords to Plowshares offer definitive answers, removing Tenacious Dead from the game entirely. Efficient creature control spells like these shift the balance, rendering the undying nature of Tenacious Dead null.

Understanding the sequence of play is crucial in MTG. Dealing with Tenacious Dead, timing is everything. Disrupting your opponent’s mana during their turn can prevent the creature’s revival. Counterspells and instant-speed removal applied after Tenacious Dead’s self-revival trigger is placed onto the stack can permanently eliminate the creature without it returning. Thus, managing the nuances of gameplay is key to overcoming the stubborn undead warrior.


BurnMana Recommendations

Embarking on the journey of MTG gameplay is an art of continuous learning and adaptation. With cards like Tenacious Dead, you gain a resilient ally capable of bouncing back from the graveyard, fostering a robust presence on the battlefield. Strategic deck builders and avid collectors alike will find its persistent nature and synergy with other cards a unique asset to their arsenal. Understanding its strengths and potential drawbacks deepens your strategic play. If you’re ready to harness the power of tenacity and explore the synergies that Tenacious Dead offers, let’s take your game to the next level together. Discover more strategies and expand your collection with us.


Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Tenacious Dead MTG card by a specific set like Magic 2014 and Battlebond, 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 Tenacious Dead and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Tenacious Dead Magic the Gathering card was released in 2 different sets between 2013-07-19 and 2018-06-08. Illustrated by John Stanko.

#ReleasedNameCodeSymbolNumberFrameLayoutBorderArtist
12013-07-19Magic 2014M14 1182003NormalBlackJohn Stanko
22018-06-08BattlebondBBD 1632015NormalBlackJohn Stanko

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Tenacious Dead has restrictions

FormatLegality
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
PaupercommanderRestricted
ModernLegal
OathbreakerLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
PioneerLegal
PennyLegal

Rules and information

The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering Tenacious Dead card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.

Date Text
2013-07-01 If you control a Tenacious Dead owned by another player when it dies, you’ll control the triggered ability. However, if you choose to pay , it will be put onto the battlefield under its owner’s control.
2013-07-01 You decide whether to pay when the ability resolves. If you choose not to, you won’t get another chance later.