Beast of Burden
Artifact Creature — Golem
Beast of Burden's power and toughness are each equal to the number of creatures on the battlefield.
- CMC
- 6
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- C
- Rarity
- rare
- Set
- Salvat 2005
- Price
- —
- EDHREC rank
- #17360
Beast of Burden scales its power and toughness to the total number of artifacts on the battlefield — every player's artifacts, not just yours — which means in a multiplayer game stuffed with mana rocks and equipment it arrives as a legitimately enormous threat. Six mana for a vanilla creature is a real cost, and the moment opponents answer their own artifacts, it shrinks.
Format Analysis
Where it lives, where it can’t
| Format | Verdict |
|---|---|
| commander | legal |
| legacy | legal |
| modern | legal |
| pioneer | not legal |
| standard | not legal |
| vintage | legal |
| pauper | not legal |
| oathbreaker | legal |
Commander is where Beast of Burden does its best work: four players running Sol Ring, Arcane Signet, and assorted equipment means the artifact count routinely hits double digits before Beast of Burden even resolves, and you get all of that for your stat line. In Legacy and Vintage it's a legal curiosity with no competitive home — artifact counts are high in those formats but so is the density of instant-speed removal, and six mana is a prohibitive ask when faster threats exist. Modern is technically legal but the card sees no play there for the same reasons.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
unknown tier
Price data isn't available for Beast of Burden at the moment — check Scryfall or TCGPlayer for current listings. Given its narrow application and age, it tends to be an inexpensive pickup when copies surface.
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Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.