Today's card of the day is Priest of the Blood
Rite which is a five mana Black 2/2 that puts a
5/5 Flying into play and has you lose two life
on your upkeep. Played in a mono-Black
sacrifice deck with cards like Fleshbag
Marauder, Merciless Executioner, or Bone
Splinters the Priest is easily removed after
bringing in the token. Another option in a
multicolor build is bouncing the Priest each
turn for repeatable tokens. Overall this
is a decent card that requires support to be
worthwhile and should see play in some of the
decks that already use those designs.
In Limited this is a risky play as getting rid
of the Priest is more difficult, though it
balances out if it is used to attack every turn
as an opponent can either block it or take the
two damage. Putting a clock on yourself
without life gain effects may not always work
out, so while it is strong enough to be a first
pick in Booster it requires a bit of caution or
luck with other draft choices. The double
Black in the cost benefits from the deck being
at least half Black and in Sealed it may produce
one of the strongest evasive choices available.
In either setting caution against White is
suggested as Suppression Bonds is a serious
problem for the Priest.
If anything ever wanted to be flickered, it's
this guy. Need some sac fodder that's got a nice
bonus? This guy right here. Best friends with
Alesha, who smiles at death, there's plenty of
stuff to do with this guy.
It's not mind blowing, but it's versatile in the
right decks.
To many people, this won't be one of the most
memorable cards from Origins, but I was
interested in it because it joins the group of
cards where the only rules text they have on a
continuous basis is a disadvantage. You don't
often see cards like that any more, but it's
pretty flavorful in this case: black probably
wouldn't do a straight-up Trostani's Summoner
style effect without a horrendous catch of some
kind. We know from history that a large flying
creature can be worth paying life each turn, and
the fact that you can get it without the life
payment if you combine with something else (eg.
black's myriad of sacrifice effects, white's
flickering effects, or a blue card like Cultural
Exchange to give someone the Priest and keep the
demon for yourself) makes this card worth
thinking about now and then.
