General Leo CristopheHow it works & interactions with other cards

Recruitment and Reinforcement

General Leo Cristophe features a single triggered ability that triggers when he enters the battlefield. This ability allows you to target a creature card in your graveyard with a mana value of 3 or less. Once the ability resolves, that creature returns to play, and the General counts your current creature total to determine how many +1/+1 counters he gains.

Resolving the Trigger Step-by-Step

First, place the ability on the stack and choose up to one target creature in your graveyard. If the target is still legal when the ability resolves, the creature enters the battlefield. Importantly, General Leo Cristophe counts the number of creatures you control after the reanimated creature has entered. This count includes the General himself and the newly returned creature, ensuring his power reflects your immediate board presence.

A Crucial Targeting Rule

A common mistake involves choosing a target and then losing that target before the ability resolves. If you chose a target creature card and it is removed from the graveyard in response, the entire ability fails to resolve. In this scenario, General Leo Cristophe will not receive any +1/+1 counters at all. If you want to ensure the counters even if your graveyard is empty, you can choose not to target a card.

When to Deploy the General

Because the number of counters depends on your total creature count, General Leo Cristophe is most effective when you already have a established board or tokens. Since he counts himself, he will always receive at least one counter if the ability resolves successfully. If you use him to return a creature that provides even more bodies, his power will soar accordingly.

Interaction examples

Maximizing the Count

Solemn Simulacrum

If you have Solemn Simulacrum in your graveyard, General Leo Cristophe cannot target it because its mana value is 4. However, if Solemn Simulacrum is already on the battlefield when the General enters, it will be counted toward the total number of creatures, providing the General with an additional +1/+1 counter during resolution.

Doubling the Recruitment

Roaming Throne

If you control Roaming Throne with 'Human' or 'Soldier' chosen, General Leo Cristophe's ability triggers twice. The first trigger resolves, returning a small creature and granting the General counters. Then the second trigger resolves, potentially returning another creature and granting even more counters. Since the General now has more creatures under his command from the first trigger, the second batch of counters will be even larger.