Lilting Refrain
Enchantment
At the beginning of your upkeep, you may put a verse counter on this enchantment.
Sacrifice this enchantment: Counter target spell unless its controller pays 
, where X is the number of verse counters on this enchantment.
- CMC
- 2
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- U
- Rarity
- uncommon
- Set
- World Championship Decks 2000
- Price
- $0.23
- EDHREC rank
- #21507
Lilting Refrain enters with a charge counter and accumulates one more on each of your upkeeps, letting you cash it in to counter a spell with converted mana cost equal to the number of counters on it — a counterspell that scales with patience. The payoff is real, but the setup cost is brutal: you're telegraphing the threat for multiple turns and surrendering the flexibility that makes counterspells worth running.
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 |
In Commander, Lilting Refrain occupies an awkward spot — blue decks that want counterspells almost always want them reactive and unconditional, and the multi-turn charge requirement runs directly against that. It sees occasional play in dedicated proliferate builds, where commanders like Atraxa, Praetors' Voice or Ezuri, Stalker of Spheres can accelerate the counter accumulation and make the threat credible ahead of schedule. In Legacy and Vintage, Lilting Refrain is strictly a curiosity; Force of Will and harder counters make it unplayable at any competitive level. Oathbreaker shares Commander's multiplayer dynamics, so the same proliferate-synergy niche applies there, though the faster pace makes the setup cost hurt even more.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.23 bulk tier
At $0.23, Lilting Refrain is deep bulk — the price reflects its narrow demand rather than any scarcity. It holds that floor reliably; there's no spike potential here unless a future proliferate commander breaks the format.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.