Ogre Battledriver
Creature — Ogre Warrior
Whenever another creature you control enters, that creature gets +2/+0 and gains haste until end of turn. (It can attack and 
this turn.)
- CMC
- 4
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- R
- Rarity
- rare
- Set
- Magic 2014
- Price
- $0.52
- EDHREC rank
- #3212
Ogre Battledriver turns every creature you play into an immediate threat — +2/+0 and haste on entry means your board pressures opponents the same turn it lands, not the next. At four mana in red, that on-board dividend is strong enough that Gornog, the Red Reaper runs it in over 68% of decks.
Best Commanders
Commanders with the highest synergy
Gornog, the Red Reaper
Gornog, the Red Reaper triggers off creatures dealing combat damage, so Ogre Battledriver's guaranteed haste grant means every new creature threatens a trigger the moment it enters — the two cards form a direct engine.
Zurgo Stormrender
Zurgo Stormrender goes wide with tokens and wants them swinging immediately; Ogre Battledriver converts each token wave into a same-turn alpha strike rather than a telegraphed one.
Zilortha, Strength Incarnate
Zilortha, Strength Incarnate cares about power for combat damage, and Ogre Battledriver stacks +2/+0 on top of already-oversized creatures, making lethal hits easier to land through blockers.
Nikya of the Old Ways
Nikya of the Old Ways floods the board with big creatures but can't run noncreature spells freely, so Ogre Battledriver fills the haste-enabler slot as a creature itself — exactly the constraint Nikya demands.
Neriv, Heart of the Storm
Neriv, Heart of the Storm generates tokens and values speed; Ogre Battledriver ensures those tokens attack the turn they arrive, squeezing maximum value out of each storm trigger before opponents can stabilize.
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 |
Ogre Battledriver is a Commander card — full stop. In 60-card competitive formats like Modern and Pioneer, four mana for a 3/3 that grants haste to future creatures is too slow and too conditional against interactive opposition. Legacy and Vintage move faster still, so it sees essentially no play there either. Commander is where the math flips: a longer game, larger creatures, and go-wide strategies mean the haste grant applies repeatedly across multiple turns, and the +2/+0 stacks up to meaningful extra damage in combat-focused builds.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.52 bulk tier
At $0.52, Ogre Battledriver sits firmly in bulk rare territory, making it an easy include for any budget red creature deck. That price is stable — it sees enough Commander demand to stay in print awareness without ever spiking, so pick it up whenever.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.