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Plague Belcher

Creature — Zombie Beast

Menace
When this creature enters, put two -1/-1 counters on target creature you control.
Whenever another Zombie you control dies, each opponent loses 1 life.

CMC
3
Mana cost
{2}{B}
Color identity
B
Rarity
rare
Set
Amonkhet Promos
Price
—
EDHREC rank
#3570
Buy on TCGplayer
Plague Belcher card art
Plague Belcher enters as a 5/4 menace for three mana and immediately distributes -1/-1 counters to a zombie you control, turning a token or expendable body into a death trigger that poisons an opponent for two on the way out. That cost is trivial in zombie builds — Wilhelt, the Rotcleaver generates disposable decayed tokens purpose-built for the job, and Mikaeus, the Unhallowed makes the whole transaction recursive. Run it.

Best Commanders

Commanders with the highest synergy

01
Wilhelt, the Rotcleaver

Wilhelt, the Rotcleaver

56.1% of decks · synergy 0.51

Wilhelt, the Rotcleaver hands Plague Belcher a steady stream of decayed zombie tokens to absorb the -1/-1 counter — each token dies on attack anyway, so the life-loss trigger is essentially free value stapled onto a 5/4 menace.

02
Temmet, Naktamun's Will

Temmet, Naktamun's Will

50.2% of decks · synergy 0.47

Temmet, Naktamun's Will cares about tokens entering and leaving play, and Plague Belcher's counter placement kills a token on demand, feeding sacrifice synergies and aristocrats payoffs that run throughout the deck.

03
Mikaeus, the Unhallowed

Mikaeus, the Unhallowed

43.8% of decks · synergy 0.42

Mikaeus, the Unhallowed gives Plague Belcher undying, meaning it comes back with a +1/+1 counter that cancels the -1/-1 it needs to place — in practice this means Belcher recurs itself while still triggering the entering ability each loop, which is the backbone of infinite combo lines.

04
Ghoulcaller Gisa

Ghoulcaller Gisa

42.7% of decks · synergy 0.41

Ghoulcaller Gisa sacrifices zombies to make more zombies, and Plague Belcher turns those fresh tokens into ticking damage sources the moment they hit play — the two cards form a self-sustaining loop of bodies, sacrifices, and life loss.

05
Zul Ashur, Lich Lord

Zul Ashur, Lich Lord

43.5% of decks · synergy 0.41

Zul Ashur, Lich Lord rewards stacking zombies into play and punishes opponents for their death, making Plague Belcher's repeated life-loss trigger land especially hard in a deck that already wants opponents' life totals low.

Format Analysis

Where it lives, where it can’t

FormatVerdict
commander legal
legacy legal
modern legal
pioneer legal
standard not legal
vintage legal
pauper not legal
oathbreaker legal

Commander is where Plague Belcher actually earns its slot — the zombie tribal infrastructure needed to neutralize the -1/-1 downside and exploit the life-loss trigger simply doesn't exist in most non-Commander contexts. In Modern and Legacy it's a three-mana 5/4 menace that demands a sacrifice, which is a tough sell when those formats offer more efficient threats at that cost. Pioneer is legal but the same problem applies: the payoff is parasitic enough that it rarely breaks into competitive lists outside dedicated zombie shells. Vintage allows it but has no reason to run it over cheaper, less conditional threats. Plague Belcher is a Commander card first and everything else a distant second.

Key Combos

Combo lines featuring this card

Price Context

Current price

unknown tier

Current price data for Plague Belcher isn't available in this context, so check Scryfall or TCGPlayer for the latest. Given its narrow tribal application and the depth of the zombie card pool, it has historically been an affordable pickup — expect a budget-friendly price point unless a breakout deck pushes demand.

Explore

Sources

Mentioned

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Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.