1. Gurmag Angler
| Recommended Formats: | Pauper, Legacy, Modern, Pioneer, Vintage |
Pros
Cons
| High Stats |
| Delve |
| High Initial Casting Cost |
Gurmag Angler dominated Pro Tour 25th, being used in the top 8 decks in the Legacy format and the Modern format’s winning deck.
It saw success at the later Pro Tour Rivals of Ixalan too. The secret to this unremarkable common’s performance is its delve ability. By exiling cards from your graveyard, you can cast this 5/5 Zombie for as little as one black mana!
Even if you’re not playing it in Zombie Tribal, Gurmag Angler is so powerful because of its low cost. Any deck that fills up the graveyard can add a few copies of this Zombie Fish.
After all, which deck doesn’t want a giant, cheap beat stick?
2. Mikaeus, the Unhallowed
| Recommended Formats: | Commander, Modern |
Pros
Cons
| Punishes Human Tribal |
| Gives Creatures Undying |
| High Casting Cost |
A Commander staple, Mikaeus, the Unhallowed is a powerful Zombie that gives all creatures you control +1/+1 and undying.
As well as being an incredible anthem effect and providing your board protection from removal, Mikaeus is also a valuable combo piece.
Even black Commander decks with another legendary creature at the helm often run a copy of Mikaeus for the card’s sheer power and versatility.
Not only that, but this Zombie has seen success in Modern too. It was used in the deck that came second in Grand Prix Lincoln 2012.
3. Dreadhorde Arcanist
| Recommended Formats: | Vintage, Pioneer, Modern, Historic |
Pros
Cons
| Flashback Instants And Sorceries |
| No Zombie Tribal Synergy |
A card so powerful it was banned in Legacy, Dreadhorde Arcanist might not have Zombie synergy, but it dominates regardless.
Whenever it attacks, you can cast an instant or sorcery card from your graveyard for free, as long it has a mana value lower than Dreadhorde Arcanist’s power.
And even though Dreadhorde Arcanist has only one power, there are many great one mana value spells out there.
Giving your hand attacks, card draw, and discard outlets flashback every turn can warp entire formats.
4. Gray Merchant of Asphodel
| Recommended Formats: | Pauper, Modern, Pioneer, Historic |
Pros
Cons
| Can be Game-Winning |
| Slow – High Mana Value |
Gary is one of the best commons of all time and one of the best Zombies.
The win condition of Theros Standard’s dominant Mono-Black Devotion deck, Gray Merchant of Asphodel, still dominates the Pauper format. Not only that, but even Modern decks use Gary in Zombie Tribal, Mono-Black, and Orzhov strategies today.
What makes Gary so powerful is his ETB ability. Each opponent loses life equal to your devotion to black whenever Gary enters the battlefield.
You gain that much life. Although this ability is incredible, it relies on having high devotion. You can’t expect Gary to win games in multicolor decks or faster-paced formats.
5. Nekusar, the Mindrazer
| Recommended Formats: | Commander |
Pros
Cons
| Punishes Opponents Drawing Cards |
| Draws Opponents Cards |
| No Zombie Tribal Synergy |
Nekusar, the Mindrazer, is one of the most oppressive commanders, used in over 3400 decks on EDHREC.
Whenever your opponent draws a card, Nekusar pings them for one damage. And they have to draw an additional at the beginning of their end step.
Force your opponent to draw cards, and Nekusar can ping them for easily half their life total. Give Nekusar infect, and it can close out a game in a single turn.
Nekusar is such an infamously broken Zombie card that many playgroups outright ban it. Because with it, you punish players for playing the game.
6. Gravecrawler
| Recommended Formats: | Modern, Legacy, Commander |
Pros
Cons
| Recursive |
| Cheap – One Mana To Cast |
| Can’t Block |
Few Zombies are better than Gravecrawler.
This fantastic card costs only one mana, comes in as a 2/1, and doesn’t go away either. If you control another Zombie, you can cast Gravecrawler from your graveyard.
It was unsurprising then that it was used in a top 8 deck in Pro Tour 25th and by many other Grand Prix finalists.
Gravecrawler even has utility in Commander decks. Past being a good one-drop, its ability to be cast from the graveyard also makes it a vital combo in many instant kill builds.
Its unique combination of abilities makes it perfect fodder for any sac outlet, as well as a fast clock.
7. Prized Amalgam
| Recommended Formats: | Legacy, Vintage, Modern, Pioneer |
Pros
Cons
| Can Cast From Graveyard |
| No Zombie Tribal Synergy |
Prized Amalgam is the ideal card for any graveyard-focused deck, a mainstay of Dredge decks.
Whenever you cast a creature from your graveyard or one enters the battlefield from there, you can return Prized Amalgam from your graveyard to the battlefield at the beginning of the next end step.
Since you’ll already be recurring creatures from your graveyard when playing Dredge, Prized Amalgam is the perfect fit.
It has seen consistent play in Pro Tours and the Grand Prix ever since its release and was used by the top three teams of the World Magic Cup (Unified Modern).
8. God-Eternal Oketra
| Recommended Formats: | Commander, Pioneer, Modern, Historic |
Pros
Cons
| Creates Zombie Tokens |
| Recursive |
| Slow – High Casting Cost |
God-Eternal Oketra is a giant Zombie in white, a color that usually doesn’t get any.
Nevertheless, if you’re willing to go Esper for your Zombie Tribal Commander deck, Oketra is a fantastic inclusion. Even on its own, it’s a great commander or end-game threat.
Oketra is powerful because it gives you a 4/4 Zombie token every time you cast a creature spell, which Zombie Tribal and Mono-white decks both want to do.
Oketra’s great stats and recursive abilities are a bonus too.
8. Cryptbreaker
| Recommended Formats: | Modern, Historic, Pioneer, Commander |
Pros
Cons
| Card Draw |
| Token Generator |
| Sacrifice Outlet |
| Discard Outlet |
| Costs Life |
| Requires You To Discard |
Cryptbreaker is an excellent Zombie one-drop that saw play in the deck that won Pro Tour Amonkhet.
Not only can it stock your graveyard and create 2/2 Zombie tokens, but it has excellent late-game utility too. At any time, you can tap three untapped Zombies you control to draw you a card.
These abilities synergize, too, turning Cryptbreaker into a significant threat over a few turns on its own. It’s for this reason that Cryptbreaker is such a powerful card.
It was a vital component of Eldritch Moon Standard Zombie decks, and it still can be seen to appear in Modern decks.
10. Undead Warchief
| Recommended Formats: | Commander, Modern |
Pros
Cons
| Zombie Lord |
| Reduces Zombie Mana Cost |
| High Casting Cost For Lord |
Although it costs more to cast than average, Undead Warchief is everything you want in a Zombie lord, and it quickly pays back its four mana value.
Undead Warchief makes all your other Zombie spells cost one less mana to cast.
Not only that, but Undead Warchief boosts their stats too! It gives each Zombie creature you control, including itself, an extra +2/+1.
This ability transforms it from a tiny 1/1 into a solid 3/2, making it and the rest of your board a severe problem for your opponent.
No wonder it was used in Pro Tour Geneva 2007’s winning deck!