Serene Steward
Creature — Human Cleric Ally
Whenever you gain life, you may pay 
. If you do, put a +1/+1 counter on target creature.
- CMC
- 2
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- W
- Rarity
- uncommon
- Set
- Battle for Zendikar
- Price
- $0.08
- EDHREC rank
- #18774
Serene Steward turns life gain triggers into a steady stream of 1/1 lifelink tokens, which compounds fast in the right shell. The cost is real: at two mana it's fine, but it demands a dedicated life gain deck to do anything meaningful.
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 |
Serene Steward is a Commander card through and through — the token production only snowballs across a long multiplayer game where life gain triggers stack up from multiple sources. In competitive formats like Modern or Legacy, two mana for a do-nothing-on-entry creature that requires a second condition is far too slow to matter. Pioneer offers slightly more forgiveness in life gain shells, but Serene Steward still lacks the raw power to justify a slot over more efficient payoffs. Stick to Commander, where the game length and token synergies actually let it deliver.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.08 bulk tier
At $0.08, Serene Steward is pure bulk — grab a copy without thinking twice if your life gain deck wants it. Bulk rares rarely appreciate, so treat this as a cheap role-player rather than anything to hoard.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.