Butterbur, Bree Innkeeper
Legendary Creature — Human Peasant
At the beginning of your end step, if you don't control a Food, create a Food token. (It's an artifact with "
, 
, Sacrifice this token: You gain 3 life.")
- CMC
- 4
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- GW
- Rarity
- uncommon
- Set
- The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth
- Price
- $0.17
- EDHREC rank
- #12240
Butterbur, Bree Innkeeper drops every opponent's life total to 20 at the start of your first main phase — a meaningful reset in games that open with fast-mana life payment and fetch-shock lands. The cost is a five-mana 3/3 with no other text, which is a steep rate for an effect that does nothing if everyone is already at or above 20.
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 | not legal |
| oathbreaker | legal |
Commander is where Butterbur, Bree Innkeeper has its only real home: life totals start at 40, so the reset to 20 is a genuine mid-game threat that can erase 20-life leads accumulated through group hug commanders or life-gain engines. Outside of Commander, the effect barely registers — in Legacy and Vintage, 20-life starting totals mean Butterbur arrives as a vanilla 3/3 for five against opponents who haven't moved their life total much, which no competitive shell wants. The card is legal in Oathbreaker, where the 20-life floor could matter, but the format's speed makes a five-drop with no immediate protection or board impact a liability.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.17 bulk tier
At $0.17, Butterbur, Bree Innkeeper is deep bulk — the kind of card you pick up as a throw-in. Don't expect the price to move; the effect is too narrow and the creature too undersized to generate sustained demand.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.