Karma
Enchantment
At the beginning of each player's upkeep, this enchantment deals damage to that player equal to the number of Swamps they control.
- CMC
- 4
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- W
- Rarity
- uncommon
- Set
- Fifth Edition
- Price
- $0.21
- EDHREC rank
- #18606
Karma drains each opponent who controls Swamps for damage every upkeep — the more Swamps, the faster the clock. At four mana with no immediate effect, it needs a Swamp-heavy table or a way to force Swamps into play to justify the slot, but against mono-black or heavy-black builds it ends games by itself. Darien, King of Kjeldor decks that self-damage love it as a secondary engine that also punishes greedy black opponents.
Best Commanders
Commanders with the highest synergy
Darien, King of Kjeldor
Darien, King of Kjeldor actively wants damage on the table, and Karma delivers it each upkeep — triggering Darien's soldier-generation while simultaneously bleeding any black player at the table, turning a defensive commander into a two-front threat.
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 |
In Commander, Karma is a role-player rather than a staple — it ranges from unplayable against three green decks to near-game-winning against a mono-black or heavy-Swamp opponent, which makes it a meta call rather than a default inclusion. Legacy and Vintage have access to it but the formats move too fast for a four-mana enchantment with no immediate board impact to see real play. Modern is technically legal but the same speed problem applies — Karma simply doesn't match the tempo of those formats. It's a Commander-only card in practice, and even there it belongs in targeted Swamp-hate builds rather than as generic white removal.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.21 bulk tier
At $0.21, Karma is deep bulk — you'll find copies in any dollar bin without looking hard. The price reflects its narrow application; it's not a card that quietly outperforms its cost tier, so grab it if the meta call is right and don't think twice about it otherwise.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.