Safehold Elite is one of those cards players keep asking about. Here is, in plain words, what its official text says, the rulings published by Wizards of the Coast, and the combos players actually run.
Official card text
Persist (When this creature dies, if it had no -1/-1 counters on it, return it to the battlefield under its owner's control with a -1/-1 counter on it.)
How it works : Safehold Elite
Original English text — Wizards of the Coast / Scryfall
- #1· Wizards of the Coast
If a creature with persist stops being a creature, persist will still work.
No other card is named in this ruling.
- #2· Wizards of the Coast
The persist ability triggers when the permanent is put into a graveyard. Its last known information (that is, how the creature last existed on the battlefield) is used to determine whether it had a -1/-1 counter on it.
No other card is named in this ruling.
- #3· Wizards of the Coast
If a permanent has multiple instances of persist, they’ll each trigger separately, but the redundant instances will have no effect. If one instance returns the card to the battlefield, the next to resolve will do nothing.
No other card is named in this ruling.
- #4· Wizards of the Coast
If a token with no -1/-1 counters on it has persist, the ability will trigger when the token is put into the graveyard. However, the token will cease to exist and can’t return to the battlefield.
No other card is named in this ruling.
- #5· Wizards of the Coast
When a permanent with persist returns to the battlefield, it’s a new object with no memory of or connection to its previous existence.
No other card is named in this ruling.
- #6· Wizards of the Coast
If multiple creatures with persist are put into the graveyard at the same time (due to combat damage or a spell that destroys all creatures, for example), the active player (the player whose turn it is) puts all of their persist triggers on the stack in any order, then each other player in turn order does the same. The last trigger put on the stack is the first one that resolves. That means that in a two-player game, the nonactive player’s persist creatures will return to the battlefield first, then the active player’s persist creatures do the same. The creatures return to the battlefield one at a time.
No other card is named in this ruling.
- #7· Wizards of the Coast
If a creature with persist that has +1/+1 counters on it receives enough -1/-1 counters to cause it to be destroyed by lethal damage or put into its owner’s graveyard for having 0 or less toughness, persist won’t trigger and the card won’t return to the battlefield. That’s because persist checks the creature’s existence just before it leaves the battlefield, and it still has all those counters on it at that point.
No other card is named in this ruling.
Popular combos
Real combos played by the community, sorted by popularity.
Tayam, Luminous Enigma + Mortician Beetle + Ashnod's Altar + Safehold Elite
- 1Activate Ashnod's Altar by sacrificing Safehold Elite, adding
. - 2Safehold Elite's persist ability and Mortician Beetle trigger.
- 3Resolve the Safehold Elite trigger, returning it from your graveyard to the battlefield with a -1/-1 and a vigilance counter.
- 4Resolve the Mortician Beetle trigger, putting a +1/+1 counter on it.
- 5Activate Tayam by paying
, removing a +1/+1 counter from Mortician Beetle and removing both counters from Safehold Elite. - 6Holding priority, activate Ashnod's Altar by sacrificing Safehold Elite, adding .
- 7Safehold Elite's persist ability and Mortician Beetle trigger.
- 8Resolve the Safehold Elite trigger, returning it from your graveyard to the battlefield with a -1/-1 and a vigilance counter.
Tayam, Luminous Enigma + Necrosynthesis + Ashnod's Altar + Safehold Elite
- 1Activate Ashnod's Altar by sacrificing Safehold Elite, adding .
- 2Safehold Elite dies, triggering its persist ability and Necrosynthesis.
- 3Resolve the Safehold Elite trigger, returning it from your graveyard to the battlefield with a -1/-1 counter and a vigilance counter on it.
- 4Resolve the Necrosynthesis trigger, putting a +1/+1 counter on Tayam.
- 5Activate Tayam by paying , removing a +1/+1 counter from Tayam, and both counters from Safehold Elite.
- 6Holding priority, activate Ashnod's Altar by sacrificing Safehold Elite, adding .
- 7Repeat steps 2-4 one additional time.
- 8Activate Ashnod's Altar by sacrificing Safehold Elite, adding .
Tayam, Luminous Enigma + Cinderhaze Wretch + Ashnod's Altar + Safehold Elite
- 1Activate Cinderhaze Wretch's second ability by putting a -1/-1 counter on it, untapping it.
- 2Activate Ashnod's Altar by sacrificing Safehold Elite, adding .
- 3Safehold Elite dies, triggering its persist ability, returning it from your graveyard to the battlefield with a -1/-1 counter and a vigilance counter on it.
- 4Activate Tayam by paying , removing a -1/-1 counter from Cinderhaze Wretch, and both counters from Safehold Elite.
- 5Holding priority, activate Ashnod's Altar by sacrificing Safehold Elite, adding .
- 6Repeat steps 3-4 one additional time.
- 7Activate Ashnod's Altar by sacrificing Safehold Elite, adding .
- 8Resolve Tayam's ability from step 5, causing you to mill three cards and returning Safehold Elite from your graveyard to the battlefield.
Lazav, the Multifarious + Safehold Elite + Ashnod's Altar + Butcher Ghoul
- 1Activate Lazav by paying
, choosing to have it become a copy of Safehold Elite if it doesn't have a -1/-1 counter on it, or Butcher Ghoul otherwise. - 2Activate Ashnod's Altar by sacrificing Lazav, adding .
- 3When Lazav dies, if it was a copy of Safehold Elite, its persist ability triggers, returning it from your graveyard to the battlefield with a -1/-1 counter on it.
- 4Otherwise, Lazav's undying ability triggers, returning it from your graveyard to the battlefield with a +1/+1 counter on it.
- 5When Lazav enters the battlefield, it triggers, causing you to surveil 1.
- 6Repeat.
Lazav, the Multifarious + Safehold Elite + Ashnod's Altar + Strangleroot Geist
- 1Activate Lazav by paying , choosing to have it become a copy of Safehold Elite if it doesn't have a -1/-1 counter on it, or Strangleroot Geist otherwise.
- 2Activate Ashnod's Altar by sacrificing Lazav, adding .
- 3When Lazav dies, if it was a copy of Safehold Elite, its persist ability triggers, returning it from your graveyard to the battlefield with a -1/-1 counter on it.
- 4Otherwise, Lazav's undying ability triggers, returning it from your graveyard to the battlefield with a +1/+1 counter on it.
- 5When Lazav enters the battlefield, it triggers, causing you to surveil 1.
- 6Repeat.
Lazav, the Multifarious + Safehold Elite + Ashnod's Altar + Nardole, Resourceful Cyborg
- 1Activate Lazav by paying , choosing to have it become a copy of Safehold Elite if it doesn't have a -1/-1 counter on it, or Nardole otherwise.
- 2Activate Ashnod's Altar by sacrificing Lazav, adding .
- 3When Lazav dies, if it was a copy of Safehold Elite, its persist ability triggers, returning it from your graveyard to the battlefield with a -1/-1 counter on it.
- 4Otherwise, Lazav's undying ability triggers, returning it from your graveyard to the battlefield with a +1/+1 counter on it.
- 5When Lazav enters the battlefield, it triggers, causing you to surveil 1.
- 6Repeat.
Lazav, the Multifarious + Safehold Elite + Ashnod's Altar + Young Wolf
- 1Activate Lazav by paying , choosing to have it become a copy of Safehold Elite if it doesn't have a -1/-1 counter on it, or Young Wolf otherwise.
- 2Activate Ashnod's Altar by sacrificing Lazav, adding .
- 3When Lazav dies, if it was a copy of Safehold Elite, its persist ability triggers, returning it from your graveyard to the battlefield with a -1/-1 counter on it.
- 4Otherwise, Lazav's undying ability triggers, returning it from your graveyard to the battlefield with a +1/+1 counter on it.
- 5When Lazav enters the battlefield, it triggers, causing you to surveil 1.
- 6Repeat.
Tayam, Luminous Enigma + Sengir, the Dark Baron + Ashnod's Altar + Safehold Elite
- 1Activate Ashnod's Altar by sacrificing Safehold Elite, adding .
- 2Safehold Elite dies, triggering its persist ability and Sengir's first ability.
- 3Resolve the Safehold Elite trigger, returning it from your graveyard to the battlefield with a -1/-1 counter and a vigilance counter on it.
- 4Resolve the Sengir trigger, putting two +1/+1 counters on it.
- 5Activate Tayam by paying , removing a +1/+1 counter from Sengir, and both counters from Safehold Elite.
- 6Holding priority, activate Ashnod's Altar by sacrificing Safehold Elite, adding .
- 7Repeat steps 2-4 one additional time.
- 8Activate Ashnod's Altar by sacrificing Safehold Elite, adding .
Legal formats
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Meta decks with Safehold Elite
No archived Top 8 deck with this card yet.