Lake of the Dead
Land
If this land would enter, sacrifice a Swamp instead. If you do, put this land onto the battlefield. If you don't, put it into its owner's graveyard.
: Add 
., Sacrifice a Swamp: Add .
- CMC
- 0
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- B
- Rarity
- rare
- Set
- Magic Online Promos
- Price
- —
- EDHREC rank
- #5450
Lake of the Dead produces four black mana the turn it enters — that's not a ramp piece, that's an accelerant that can single-handedly push you from turn four to turn seven. The cost is real: you sacrifice a Swamp on entry, so it's a net land loss, and without untap effects like Stone-Seeder Hierophant the mana comes exactly once per turn; in decks like K'rrik, Son of Yawgmoth that can spend all four black pips in a single activation, that trade-off is trivially worthwhile.
Best Commanders
Commanders with the highest synergy
K'rrik, Son of Yawgmoth
K'rrik, Son of Yawgmoth converts black mana directly into life payment, so Lake of the Dead's four-mana burst translates into a massive life-to-spells conversion in a single turn — the kind of explosive window that wins games before opponents can stabilize.
Maralen of the Mornsong
Maralen of the Mornsong locks opponents out of their draw step but needs to win fast before the table removes her; Lake of the Dead provides the explosive mana to chain tutored threats in the same turn she resolves, compressing the kill window dramatically.
Varragoth, Bloodsky Sire
Varragoth, Bloodsky Sire tutors on attack, so the game plan hinges on having enough mana to cast whatever you find immediately; Lake of the Dead gives you the surplus to attack, tutor, and deploy the answer all in one turn.
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 Lake of the Dead belongs — singleton construction means you want every land to pull serious weight, and four black mana for the price of a Swamp is the kind of asymmetric payoff that warrants building around. In Legacy and Vintage it's legal but rarely played; those formats have access to fast mana that doesn't cost a land, so the net-land-loss drawback is harder to justify outside of dedicated mono-black shells. Oathbreaker is legal and the same logic as Commander applies at a smaller deck size, making the burst even more impactful relative to the total curve. Modern, Pioneer, Standard, and Pauper are all off the table.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Stone-Seeder HierophantLake of the DeadUrborg, Tomb of YawgmothDrownyard Temple
Infinite black mana; Infinite landfall triggers
View combo details →Price Context
Current price
unknown tier
Pricing data isn't available in the current feed for Lake of the Dead, so check Scryfall or TCGPlayer for a live number before buying. It has historically commanded a significant premium given its power ceiling and limited reprint history, so verify the current market before committing.
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Sources
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.