Borderland Explorer
Creature — Elf Scout
When this creature enters, each player may discard a card. Each player who discarded a card this way may search their library for a basic land card, reveal it, put it into their hand, then shuffle.
- CMC
- 2
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- G
- Rarity
- common
- Set
- Conspiracy: Take the Crown
- Price
- $0.14
- EDHREC rank
- #17173
Borderland Explorer is a 2/1 for two that draws a card and lets every opponent draw a card — a symmetrical effect that only pays off if you're built to exploit the card advantage more than your opponents are. In the wrong shell it's a liability; in landfall, land-synergy, or group-hug strategies, it's a cheap, efficient draw engine that pulls double duty as a blocker.
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 |
Borderland Explorer is a Commander card almost exclusively — symmetrical effects that trade card quality for raw card quantity are best where you're playing against three opponents who can dilute the downside for you. In Pauper it's legal but outclassed; the format is interactive enough that giving opponents free cards is genuinely punishing, and a 2/1 body doesn't offset that. Legacy and Vintage offer better cantrips at every slot, so Borderland Explorer never sees play there. Commander is the one format where the group-hug math can work in your favor: three opponents each digging for lands creates chaos you can exploit if your deck converts those draws into a faster win condition than theirs.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.14 bulk tier
At $0.14, Borderland Explorer is deep bulk — you'll find it in a common box before you'd bother ordering it. Bulk commons rarely move on price unless a breakout Constructed application emerges, and that's not happening here, so treat it as a free include if you already own one.
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Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.