Hobgoblin Bandit Lord
Creature — Goblin Rogue
Other Goblins you control get +1/+1.
, 
: This creature deals damage equal to the number of Goblins that entered the battlefield under your control this turn to any target.
- CMC
- 3
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- R
- Rarity
- rare
- Set
- Adventures in the Forgotten Realms Promos
- Price
- —
- EDHREC rank
- #3526
Hobgoblin Bandit Lord hits the board as a lord that also bolts — every Goblin you cast deals damage equal to its power directly to any target, which means a wide board turns your spell-casting into a burn engine. The catch is the three-mana activation to grant haste, which is real value on a Muxus, Goblin Grandee dump but costs you tempo if you're leaning on it every turn.
Best Commanders
Commanders with the highest synergy
Muxus, Goblin Grandee
Muxus, Goblin Grandee dumps a wave of Goblins onto the battlefield simultaneously, and Hobgoblin Bandit Lord's triggered ability fires for each one — turning a single Muxus activation into a lethal storm of bolts across the table.
Krenko, Mob Boss
Krenko, Mob Boss generates so many tokens so fast that Hobgoblin Bandit Lord's passive trigger becomes a reliable damage multiplier; every Goblin cast to support the engine is also a free ping.
Wort, Boggart Auntie
Wort, Boggart Auntie runs a tight Goblin suite that wants every creature to pull double duty, and Hobgoblin Bandit Lord delivers exactly that — lord buff plus a damage trigger that punishes opponents for letting the board develop.
General Kreat, the Boltbringer
General Kreat, the Boltbringer is built around dealing damage in small increments to trigger its own abilities, and Hobgoblin Bandit Lord adds a consistent damage source stapled to every Goblin cast — the two stack into a redundant burn package.
Grub, Storied Matriarch
Grub, Storied Matriarch wants wide boards and creatures that reward going tall on power, so Hobgoblin Bandit Lord's combination of a power boost and a cast trigger fits the shell's gameplan without needing any additional setup.
Format Analysis
Where it lives, where it can’t
| Format | Verdict |
|---|---|
| commander | legal |
| legacy | legal |
| modern | legal |
| pioneer | legal |
| standard | not legal |
| vintage | legal |
| pauper | not legal |
| oathbreaker | legal |
Hobgoblin Bandit Lord is squarely a Commander card — the triggered damage ability scales with board size in a way that only a multiplayer game can fully exploit. In Modern and Pioneer, three mana for a lord with a conditional upside is too slow for the format's pace, and tribal Goblin lists there already have stronger payoffs at that slot. Legacy has access to powerful enough Goblin engines that Hobgoblin Bandit Lord could theoretically appear, but it doesn't see competitive play there either. Commander is where the card earns its slot: any Goblin deck that casts multiple creatures per turn treats the trigger as free reach, and the haste activation is a legitimate closer on a wide board.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
unknown tier
Current pricing data for Hobgoblin Bandit Lord isn't available here, so check Scryfall or TCGPlayer for a live number. Given its high inclusion rate in Muxus and Krenko lists, it's worth picking up sooner rather than later if the price is still in casual-staple range.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
- Muxus, Goblin Grandee
- Krenko, Mob Boss
- Wort, Boggart Auntie
- General Kreat, the Boltbringer
- Grub, Storied Matriarch
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.