Ghost Council of Orzhova wants a deck that sacrifices its own creatures to drain opponents' life. It also suits a deck that gains life over and over and gets rewarded for it.
Mana cost
White, Black ()
Power / toughness4 / 4
RarityRare
When Ghost Council of Orzhova enters, target opponent loses 1 life and you gain 1 life.
, Sacrifice a creature: Exile Ghost Council of Orzhova. Return it to the battlefield under its owner's control at the beginning of the next end step.
Picked for what they do in Ghost Council of Orzhova's deck. When two cards do the same job, the one with the lower comes first. All of them fit Ghost Council of Orzhova's color identity.Mana ValueThe total amount of mana a card costs, all added up. A card costing two generic and one green has a mana value of three. Wizards renamed this from "converted mana cost" in 2021, so older cards and articles may still use the old name.Open the full glossary
explain how Ghost Council of Orzhova works in tricky situations. They come from Wizards of the Coast, the company that makes Magic.RulingThe official answer to how a card works in a tricky situation. Most rulings are written by Wizards of the Coast, the company that makes Magic, and a few are notes from Scryfall, the card database Magic players use. A ruling explains a card. It does not change what the card says.Open the full glossary
Wizards of the Coast1 Feb 2006
Normally, Ghost Council of Orzhova will return to the battlefield at the end of the same turn it's exiled. But if it's exiled during the End step, it's too late to return it this turn. It has to wait to return to the battlefield until the next End step.
Wizards of the Coast1 Feb 2006
Sacrificing Ghost Council of Orzhova to its own ability means it will wind up in the graveyard, not exiled.
Wizards of the Coast1 Feb 2006
When Ghost Council of Orzhova is exiled, any Auras or Equipment on it fall off and any counters on it are removed. When it returns to the battlefield, it comes back untapped and is treated as a new version of the card.
Color identityEvery color of mana symbol on a card, in its cost and in its rules text. Your commander's color identity sets the limit for your whole deck: every other card has to fit inside it. A deck led by a green and white commander cannot play a card with any blue in its color identity.Open the full glossaryWBPlayers write colors as letters: W for white, B for black.AristocratsAristocrats decks sacrifice their own creatures on purpose and profit every time one dies, often by draining life from each opponent. A sacrifice outlet, a card that lets you sacrifice whenever you like, decides when that happens.Open the Aristocrats pageLife DrainAn opponent loses life and you gain that life from the same effect. Blood Artist, Zulaport Cutthroat. It lets Aristocrats decks win without ever attacking. Every drain card is also tagged Life Gain; this tag is the part where the life comes out of somebody.Open the Life Drain pageSacrifice OutletA permanent that lets you sacrifice your own creatures or artifacts whenever you want, usually for free. Every Aristocrats deck needs one, because cards that reward a creature dying only help if you choose when it dies. Ashnod's Altar, Viscera SeerOpen the Sacrifice Outlet pageMana SinkGives you somewhere useful to spend spare mana, usually through an ability you can activate again and again. Rogue's Passage, Mind StoneOpen the Mana Sink pageLifegainLifegain decks gain life over and over and use cards that reward each gain with extra cards, creatures or damage to opponents. Everyone starts at 40 life in Commander, so the extra life also keeps you safe while you set up.Open the Lifegain pageLife GainGains you life, once or over and over. Soul Warden, The Great Henge. In Commander life is something to spend, not just a cushion, and many of these cards also set off others that reward gaining life.Open the Life Gain pageSacrificeSacrifice decks give up their own creatures, Treasures and other cards on purpose and get something back each time. A sacrifice outlet, a card that lets you sacrifice whenever you want, is the heart of the deck.Open the Sacrifice pageGame ChangerCards that warp the game disproportionately around themselves, requiring immediate answers.What the brackets mean
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, Sacrifice a creature: Exile Ghost Council of Orzhova. Return it to the battlefield under its owner's control at the beginning of the next end step.
Open the full glossary
