Burglar Rat
Creature — Rat
When this creature enters, each opponent discards a card.
- CMC
- 2
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- B
- Rarity
- common
- Set
- Jumpstart
- Price
- $0.28
- EDHREC rank
- #2529
Burglar Rat enters the battlefield and immediately strips a card from every opponent's hand — at two mana, that's a discard trigger on a body. In Tinybones, Bauble Burglar decks specifically, it's not a support piece; it's a core engine card that fires the commander's ability the turn it enters.
Best Commanders
Commanders with the highest synergy
Tinybones, Bauble Burglar
Burglar Rat is an auto-include here — every opponent discarding on the same trigger is exactly what Tinybones, Bauble Burglar needs to draw cards and drain life, and the Rat's body sticks around for future attack steps.
Tinybones, Trinket Thief
Tinybones, Trinket Thief draws a card whenever an opponent discards, so Burglar Rat entering at two mana and hitting the whole table is one of the most efficient activations in the deck.
Aclazotz, Deepest Betrayal
Aclazotz, Deepest Betrayal rewards emptying opponents' hands with token generation and card advantage, and Burglar Rat advances that plan the moment it lands.
Tergrid, God of Fright
Tergrid, God of Fright turns discarded cards into permanents under your control, and Burglar Rat forcing a discard from every opponent at once is one of the cleanest ways to stock Tergrid's triggered ability.
Karumonix, the Rat King
Burglar Rat earns its slot in Karumonix, the Rat King lists on creature type alone, and the forced discard on entry aligns naturally with a strategy that wants to grind opponents' resources while going wide on Rats.
Format Analysis
Where it lives, where it can’t
| Format | Verdict |
|---|---|
| commander | legal |
| legacy | legal |
| modern | legal |
| pioneer | legal |
| standard | legal |
| vintage | legal |
| pauper | legal |
| oathbreaker | legal |
Burglar Rat is a Commander card — full stop. The discard effect hits every opponent simultaneously, which scales from negligible in a one-on-one game to a three-for-one in a four-player pod. In competitive 1v1 formats like Modern, Pioneer, and Legacy, a 1/1 for two that forces a single discard is outclassed by dedicated hand-attack spells that cost one mana and don't require a creature to resolve. Pauper is the one non-Commander context where Burglar Rat sees occasional use in discard-synergy shells, since the creature type and enter-the-battlefield trigger both have relevant payoffs at common. Outside of Commander and Pauper, leave it on the shelf.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.28 bulk tier
At $0.28, Burglar Rat is deep bulk — easy to pick up in any common binder or thrown into a cart as a throw-in. The price is stable because supply is high and demand is narrow, so there's no urgency, but also no reason to expect it to get cheaper.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
- Tinybones, Bauble Burglar
- Tinybones, Trinket Thief
- Aclazotz, Deepest Betrayal
- Tergrid, God of Fright
- Karumonix, the Rat King
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.