Burden of Greed
Instant
Target player loses 1 life for each tapped artifact they control.
- CMC
- 4
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- B
- Rarity
- common
- Set
- Darksteel
- Price
- $0.13
- EDHREC rank
- #27644
Burden of Greed makes an opponent discard a card and you draw a card for four mana — net card advantage stapled to disruption. It's a fine role-player in black decks that reward opponent discard or need cheap card draw, but four mana for a one-for-one effect means it only earns its slot in dedicated discard strategies.
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 | legal |
| oathbreaker | legal |
In Commander, Burden of Greed is serviceable in discard-matters builds where forcing an opponent to pitch a card triggers payoffs like Waste Not or Nekusar, the Mindrazer — outside that context, four mana is too steep for a single-target effect in a four-player game. Pauper is where it's most competitive: the format's slower clock and card-draw scarcity make the cantrip-plus-disruption trade meaningful. In Legacy and Vintage, it's essentially unplayable — those formats have access to Thoughtseize and Force of Will, and Burden of Greed doesn't come close to that power band. Modern similarly ignores it; Grief and Inquisition of Kozilek do the job faster and cheaper.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.13 bulk tier
At $0.13, Burden of Greed is pure bulk — grab a copy without thinking twice if it fits your build. Don't expect the price to move; narrow role-players at this cost tier stay flat indefinitely.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.