Zodiark wants a deck that gives up its own cards on purpose to get something back. It also suits a deck that piles armor and magic onto one creature and attacks with it.
Mana cost
Black ()
Power / toughness5 / 5
RarityRare
Indestructible
When Zodiark enters, each player sacrifices half the non-God creatures they control of their choice, rounded down.
Whenever a player sacrifices another creature, put a +1/+1 counter on Zodiark.
Picked for what they do in Zodiark's deck. When two cards do the same job, the one with the lower comes first. All of them fit Zodiark'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 Zodiark 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 Coast6 Jun 2025
While resolving Zodiark's second ability, you choose half the non-God creatures you control (rounded down), then each other player in turn order does the same. Then each of the chosen creatures are sacrificed simultaneously.
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 glossaryBPlayers write colors as letters: B for black.SacrificeSacrifice 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 pageSacrifice PayoffRewards you whenever something is sacrificed, meaning put into the graveyard on purpose. The reward might be a +1/+1 counter, a card, or a drained opponent, and it is the reason a deck sacrifices its own creatures. Compare Sacrifice Outlet, the card that lets you sacrifice, and Death Trigger, which fires when a creature dies for any reason. Korvold, Fae-Cursed King, Mayhem Devil, Savra, Queen of the GolgariOpen the Sacrifice Payoff pageForced SacrificeMakes opponents sacrifice their own permanents. Because they choose what to lose, it gets around protection and hexproof that ordinary removal cannot touch. Braids, Arisen Nightmare, Living DeathOpen the Forced Sacrifice pageGame ChangerCards that warp the game disproportionately around themselves, requiring immediate answers.What the brackets meanCounter EngineAdds +1/+1 counters over and over rather than once. A counter here is a small permanent marker that raises a creature's power and toughness for good. It is not a counterspell, which is a different thing entirely. Something that adds them every turn makes your whole board bigger and keeps it that way. Hardened Scales, Corpsejack MenaceOpen the Counter Engine pageVoltronVoltron decks load one creature, usually the commander, with Equipment and Auras until it can win by attacking on its own. In Commander, a player dealt 21 or more combat damage by the same commander over the game loses, so one huge commander can knock a player out.Open the Voltron pageVoltron CommanderA legendary creature that can carry the whole game plan by itself. It protects itself, grows with what is attached to it, or rewards attacking alone. The deck piles Auras and Equipment onto it and wins with commander damage, since 21 or more combat damage from one commander knocks a player out. Named for the toy robot built from smaller pieces. Zurgo Helmsmasher, Uril, the Miststalker, Sigarda, Host of HeronsOpen the Voltron Commander page+1/+1 CountersPuts +1/+1 counters on creatures, permanently raising their power and toughness. Unlike a temporary boost that wears off at end of turn, these markers stay put and stack up over a long game. Hardened Scales, The Great HengeOpen the +1/+1 Counters pageProtectionA creature with protection from something, like a color, is safe from anything with that quality. It cannot be damaged, enchanted or equipped, blocked, or targeted by it, and players remember the four with the word DEBT. It does not stop effects that neither target nor damage, like a board wipe that destroys every creature. ProgenitusOpen the Protection pageAristocratsAristocrats 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 pageETB ValueDoes something useful the moment it arrives: an enter the battlefield ability, which players shorten to ETB. You keep that effect even if the card is removed straight afterwards, which is why these pair so well with flicker cards that make them enter again. Solemn Simulacrum, The One RingOpen the ETB Value pageGods / DevotionGods, and cards that count your devotion: the number of mana symbols of one color among the costs of your permanents. The Theros Gods cannot be destroyed, and only become creatures when your devotion to their color is high enough.Open the Gods / Devotion page
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