Back in the hazy days of 2010-era Magic: The Gathering, Vampire Nighthawk was an absolute fan favorite. Three keywords and reasonable stats for just three mana? How could it not be a Midrange staple? Times have changed, however, and Nighthawk’s star has well and truly faded from the sky. Part of that is down to the speed of modern games, and part of that is Wizards’ willingness to print cards that just completely outclass it. Qarsi Revenant from Tarkir: Dragonstorm is the latest, and greatest, example of this MTG phenomenon in action.
This wasn’t a card that generated much buzz during previews, looking instead like a solid Limited workhorse. It turns out, however, that adding one extra power and an efficient Renew ability really pushes Vampire Nighthawk over the edge. Revenant is currently seeing play in a wide range of Standard decks, and Commander lists to boot. Maybe the days of efficient keyword piles dominating games aren’t over just yet.
Qarsi Revenant MTG
- Mana Value: 1BB
- Rarity: Rare
- Type: Creature – Vampire
- Stats: 3/3
- Card Text: Flying, Deathtouch, Lifelink.
Renew – 2B, Exile this card from your graveyard: Put a Flying counter, a Deathtouch counter, and a Lifelink counter on target creature. Activate only as a sorcery.
Qarsi Revenant is a simple MTG card, but don’t let that fool you. It’s also incredibly powerful, as its recent results have proven. In terms of pure stats and abilities, it’s a strictly-better Vampire Nighthawk. It lacks the Shaman type, true, but outside of Thornbite Staff shenanigans that really doesn’t matter. One extra power is a big deal on a Flying/Lifelink creature, so that alone is a major upside.
This is to say nothing of Revenant’s Renew ability, which is really the main attraction here. For three mana, you can exile it from your ‘yard to redistribute its abilities as counters on another creature. First of all, the cost here is very reasonable. Second, it’s hard to overstate how impactful stacking this many useful abilities on a single creature can be.
Even a humble 1/1 becomes a defensive powerhouse after receiving Revenant’s blessing. Vampire Nighthawk was always best when blocking, and any creature can fill the same role with this ability. On the other end of the spectrum, using the ability on a creature with any kind of significant power creates a terrifying offensive threat. Flying and Lifelink is a brutal combination, making race situations pretty much impossible for your opponent.
When played fairly, this essentially gives you two incredibly annoying creatures for just one card invested. In grindy Midrange games, that’s a great rate. It’s worth noting that you can also skip the creature part and just go straight for the Renew, if Revenant ends up in your graveyard via self-mill or discard. These kinds of effects always play a bit better than they look, and Revenant’s are no exception.
A New Midrange Monster
All of the good stuff above has led to Qarsi Revenant showing up in a number of different MTG decks in Standard. MTG Goldfish data shows the card has been used in well over 300 competitive Standard lists since launch, largely in the Midrange archetype.
While Midrange decks don’t have the same hold over the format they did back in 2024, a number are still viable options. Dimir Midrange leads the pack in terms of win rate, but Golgari Midrange and Mono-Black Midrange have presences of their own, too. Across all three of these decks, Qarsi Revenant is putting in some serious work.
In Dimir Midrange, the card is an excellent enabler for all of your cards that require unblocked attacks to function. Kaito’s Ninjutsu, Enduring Curiosity’s card draw, etc. Putting Flying on a Preacher of the Schism or Floodpits Drowner is a big deal, and smooths out everything the deck is already trying to do. Revenant being an evasive creature itself is also great.
Over in Mono-Black Midrange, Revenant’s Lifelink is much more relevant than its Flying. The deck is full of chunky creatures, from Archfiend of the Dross to The Speed Demon. Giving any of these Lifelink can create huge swings every single turn. The Speed Demon is a particularly good target, since the lifegain can balance out the life loss from its draw ability.
Golgari Midrange makes the least use of Revenant by far out of Standard’s Midrange options. That said, a lot of the Demon package from Mono-Black is present here too, and the synergy is just as good. On top of that, the ability to slap three extra keywords on Thrun, Breaker of Silence is a big deal. That card is obnoxious enough as-is, never mind with Flying and Lifelink thrown into the mix.
Counters In Commander
Standard isn’t the only MTG format where Qarsi Revenant is plying its wicked trade. The card is seeing plenty of play in Commander, too. According to EDHRec over 8,000 decks are running this spicy new Vampire at present, which is good going for a card that most doubted would even be Standard playable.
The range of decks Revenant excels in is surprisingly large. Naturally, it’s a shoo-in for lists that care about counter distribution and manipulation. Skullbriar is the number one example in this category, and the second-most popular home for Revenant overall. Getting those three excellent keyword counters permanently is a great deal, it turns out. Revenant is also showing up in the likes of Indominus Rex and Kathril, as an efficient creature that can represent multiple keywords in the ‘yard.
It’s also a great option for Voltron lists. Flying and Lifelink are keywords that get much better on a single huge creature, so the fit here is fairly obvious. Kotis, the Fangkeeper is making great use of the card so far, and so is Gollum, Obsessed Stalker. Both really appreciate the evasion Revenant offers, and the extra lifegain to boot.
Finally, the card is seeing use in good ol’ fashioned Vampire Typal. Edgar Markov is the most popular deck for the card by a huge margin, with more than double the number of decks as Skullbriar by EDHRec’s reckoning. It’s also seeing healthy play in Clavileño, Strefan, and Vito. There’s no big mystery here: Revenant is simply a very efficient Vampire, and one that can easily enable the lifegain shenanigans the type loves so much. If you love any of these archetypes, you may want to grab the card now before it starts to climb in price.