Spirit of the NightHow it works & interactions with other cards

A Toolbox of Keywords

Spirit of the Night possesses an impressive array of abilities: flying for evasion, trample for punching through blockers, and haste to attack the turn it arrives. Most notably, it has protection from black, meaning it cannot be targeted, enchanted, dealt damage, or blocked by anything black. Furthermore, it gains first strike specifically when it is attacking, making it nearly impossible to trade with in combat.

How Protection and First Strike Interact

When Spirit of the Night attacks, it becomes a first-strike attacker. If a non-black creature blocks it, Spirit of the Night deals its damage first. If that damage is enough to destroy the blocker, the blocker won't even get to deal damage back. Because it has trample, any damage beyond the blocker's toughness is dealt to the defending player. If a black creature attempts to block it, the block is illegal due to protection from black.

Common Pitfalls

A common mistake is forgetting that Spirit of the Night only has first strike while attacking. If it is forced to block, it does not have first strike and will trade damage simultaneously with the attacker. Additionally, while protection from black prevents it from being targeted by black spells, it can still be destroyed by non-targeting black effects like 'sacrifice a creature' or 'destroy all creatures' spells.

When to Unleash the Spirit

At nine mana, casting this card fairly is a challenge. It is best used in decks that can cheat it onto the battlefield, either through reanimation or by using the specific sacrifice ability of Urborg Panther. Once it hits the board, its haste and protection from black make it a resilient finisher against many control and mid-range strategies.

Interaction examples

The Nightstalker Ritual

Urborg PantherBreathstealerFeral Shadow

If you control Urborg Panther, Breathstealer, and Feral Shadow, you can activate the ability of Urborg Panther. You sacrifice all three creatures as a cost. Then, you search your library for Spirit of the Night and put it directly onto the battlefield. Because Spirit of the Night has haste, it can attack immediately during that same turn.

Ignoring Black Defenders

Archon of Cruelty

If your opponent controls Archon of Cruelty, they cannot choose to block Spirit of the Night with it. Protection from black makes Spirit of the Night unblockable by black creatures. Note that if the Archon attacks you, Spirit of the Night can block it because it only has protection from black, not 'protection from Archons'; however, since it is blocking and not attacking, it will not have first strike.

Trampling Through Large Blockers

Kozilek, Butcher of Truth

When Spirit of the Night attacks and is blocked by Kozilek, Butcher of Truth, Spirit of the Night gains first strike. It deals 6 damage first. Since 6 damage is not enough to kill Kozilek (who has 12 toughness), Kozilek survives and deals 12 damage back to the Spirit during the regular combat damage step, destroying it. Trample would only apply if the Spirit's power exceeded the blocker's toughness.