Beetleback Chief
Creature — Goblin Warrior
When this creature enters, create two 1/1 red Goblin creature tokens.
- CMC
- 4
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- R
- Rarity
- common
- Set
- Vintage Masters
- Price
- —
- EDHREC rank
- #3491
Beetleback Chief enters the battlefield and immediately puts three power across three bodies — that's the whole pitch, and it's a strong one for any deck that converts creatures entering or dying into damage or mana. The four-mana cost is real, but Ashnod's Altar turns those three Goblin tokens into six colorless the same turn, and Purphoros, God of the Forge pings each opponent for four damage just on the triggers.
Best Commanders
Commanders with the highest synergy
Purphoros, God of the Forge
Beetleback Chief alone is four damage to each opponent under Purphoros, God of the Forge — one card, zero additional setup. That rate is why it shows up in over half of all Purphoros lists.
Muxus, Goblin Grandee
Muxus, Goblin Grandee flips Beetleback Chief off the top and immediately adds two more Goblins to the pile that triggers the rest of the chain — it's a high-ceiling hit that also leaves three bodies behind when Muxus swings.
General Kreat, the Boltbringer
General Kreat, the Boltbringer cares about creatures with haste and about hitting opponents, so the three 1/1 Goblins from Beetleback Chief serve as immediate attackers or sacrifice fodder to keep Kreat's damage train moving.
Zada, Hedron Grinder
Beetleback Chief gives Zada, Hedron Grinder two extra targets beyond Zada herself, tripling the value of any pump or cantrip spell aimed at the table — three bodies from one card is exactly what that engine wants.
Grenzo, Dungeon Warden
Grenzo, Dungeon Warden flips Beetleback Chief off the bottom of the library and lands a card that generates three tokens mid-combo, giving Grenzo both more fodder and more enters-the-battlefield triggers to chain through.
Format Analysis
Where it lives, where it can’t
| Format | Verdict |
|---|---|
| commander | legal |
| legacy | legal |
| modern | not legal |
| pioneer | not legal |
| standard | not legal |
| vintage | legal |
| pauper | legal |
| oathbreaker | legal |
Commander is where Beetleback Chief does its best work — token counts and enters-the-battlefield triggers scale well against three opponents, and the Goblin tribe has deep support in red. In Pauper, the Chief is a legitimate common threat in Goblin tribal lists where swarming the board at common rarity is the whole game plan. Legacy and Vintage are both technically legal, but four mana for a creature with no immediate protection is too slow against those formats' threat density — you won't see it there. Modern, Pioneer, and Standard are off the table entirely.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Ashnod's AltarNim DeathmantleBeetleback Chief
Infinite colorless mana; Infinite creature tokens; Infinite death triggers; Infinite ETB; Infinite LTB; Infinite sacrifice triggers
View on Commander Spellbook ↗
Slimefoot and SqueePhyrexian AltarBeetleback Chief
Infinite death triggers; Infinite ETB; Infinite LTB; Infinite sacrifice triggers
View on Commander Spellbook ↗Price Context
Current price
unknown tier
Pricing data isn't currently available for Beetleback Chief, so check Scryfall or your preferred retailer for a live number. Historically it's been a bulk-rare-range card, so if you need it for a Goblin or sacrifice list, it's unlikely to cost you much.
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Sources
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.