Kros, Defense Contractor
Legendary Creature — Cat Advisor
At the beginning of your upkeep, put a shield counter on target creature an opponent controls.
Whenever you put one or more counters on a creature you don't control, tap that creature and goad it. It gains trample until your next turn. (Until your next turn, that creature attacks each combat if able and attacks a player other than you if able.)
- CMC
- 4
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- GUW
- Rarity
- mythic
- Set
- New Capenna Commander
- Price
- $0.98
- EDHREC rank
- #11071
Kros, Defense Contractor turns goad into a resource engine — every creature you goad puts a +1/+1 counter on Kros, and every combat step against your opponents is a combat step not aimed at you. The political ceiling is real, but the effect requires opponents to have creatures worth goading, so it underperforms in creature-light pods.
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 where Kros, Defense Contractor actually lives — the multiplayer table makes goad meaningful, there are enough creatures in any given game to keep the engine running, and the Simic color identity opens up counter synergies and draw engines to back the strategy. Legacy and Vintage are legal on paper, but a three-mana 2/4 whose payoff requires multiple opponents and combat steps has no competitive footing in either format. Oathbreaker is the one other format worth mentioning: the faster clock means goad's tap-and-redirect effect can matter in a compressed game, though the singleton restriction limits consistency.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.98 bulk tier
At $0.98, Kros, Defense Contractor sits firmly in bulk territory — easy to pick up, easy to throw in a goad or counter-synergy build without a second thought. Bulk rares with niche commander appeal tend to stay flat unless a synergistic reprint or breakout deck pushes visibility, so don't expect movement.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.