Crimson Honor Guard
Creature — Vampire Knight
Trample
At the beginning of each player's end step, this creature deals 4 damage to that player unless they control a commander.
- CMC
- 5
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- R
- Rarity
- rare
- Set
- Treasure Chest
- Price
- —
- EDHREC rank
- #16326
Crimson Honor Guard taxes every opponent who doesn't control a commander by dealing them 3 damage at each end step — in a four-player pod, that pressure adds up fast. The cost is a 4/4 body for five mana that does nothing in a vacuum if everyone has their commander in play.
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 |
Commander is the only format where Crimson Honor Guard is worth serious consideration — the trigger condition literally references commanders, so it's purpose-built for the 100-card singleton table. In a four-player game, opponents who recast a commander and miss a beat take consistent end-step hits that compound over a long game. Legacy and Vintage are legal but irrelevant; a five-mana 4/4 with conditional drain has no competitive footing in those formats. Oathbreaker is legal and the trigger fires the same way, making it a reasonable include in drain-oriented Oathbreaker builds.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
unknown tier
Pricing data isn't available for Crimson Honor Guard at the moment — check Scryfall or TCGPlayer for current market values. Given its narrow commander-specific trigger and mid-to-low inclusion rates, it typically sits in bulk-rare territory and is easy to pick up cheaply if you want it for a drain build.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.