Black Scarab
Enchantment — Aura
Enchant creature
Enchanted creature can't be blocked by black creatures.
Enchanted creature gets +2/+2 as long as an opponent controls a black permanent.
- CMC
- 1
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- W
- Rarity
- uncommon
- Set
- Ice Age
- Price
- $0.20
- EDHREC rank
- #23869
Black Scarab is a one-mana enchantment that gives a creature +2/+2 and protection from black as long as any opponent controls a black permanent — free upside in most metas, with the baseline buff applying unconditionally. It's a sideboard card wearing a main-deck costume: effective when it's good, embarrassingly narrow when it's not.
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 | not legal |
| oathbreaker | legal |
In Commander, Black Scarab is a long shot — four opponents means black permanents are almost always on the board somewhere, so the protection clause fires reliably, but a one-mana aura that does nothing without a creature and dies to any enchantment removal is just too fragile for a 100-card singleton format. Legacy is the only competitive format where it's legal and remotely relevant, and even there it's pure sideboard material against black-heavy shells. Vintage has the same story: legal, occasionally useful in sideboard slots targeting mono-black or heavy-black strategies, but never a main-deck consideration. Black Scarab simply doesn't have a home where its narrow condition aligns with enough consistency to justify a slot.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.20 bulk tier
At $0.20, Black Scarab sits firmly in bulk territory, and that price is about right for what it does. Niche sideboard cards with format restrictions this tight don't appreciate — buy it if you need it, but don't expect the market to move.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.