Sorin, Lord of Innistrad
Legendary Planeswalker — Sorin
+1: Create a 1/1 black Vampire creature token with lifelink.
−2: You get an emblem with "Creatures you control get +1/+0."
−6: Destroy up to three target creatures and/or other planeswalkers. Return each card put into a graveyard this way to the battlefield under your control.
- CMC
- 4
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- BW
- Rarity
- mythic
- Set
- Dark Ascension
- Price
- $1.42
- EDHREC rank
- #4730
Sorin, Lord of Innistrad lands and immediately creates a 1/1 lifelink vampire token, then threatens an emblem that pumps every creature you control by +1/+0 permanently — all for four mana. The cost is real: four mana for a planeswalker that doesn't protect itself asks a lot, but in any dedicated vampire or token shell, the emblem alone closes games.
Best Commanders
Commanders with the highest synergy
Clavileño, First of the Blessed
Clavileño, First of the Blessed converts each of Sorin, Lord of Innistrad's lifelink tokens into a draw engine — whenever one of those vampires dies attacking, you draw a card and add another token, compounding Sorin's output every combat.
Elenda, the Dusk Rose
Elenda, the Dusk Rose grows every time one of Sorin, Lord of Innistrad's tokens dies, then explodes into a new wave of tokens when she goes — Sorin's steady token production feeds both halves of that loop.
Edgar Markov
Edgar Markov's eminence trigger means every vampire spell creates an additional token, so Sorin, Lord of Innistrad's emblem pumps a board that grows faster than opponents can answer it.
Carmen, Cruel Skymarcher
Carmen, Cruel Skymarcher puts +1/+1 counters on herself whenever any player sacrifices or loses permanents, so Sorin, Lord of Innistrad's tokens serve as both pressure and sacrifice fodder that accelerates Carmen's clock.
Sorin of House Markov
Sorin of House Markov leans on the vampire tribe for its transform condition, and Sorin, Lord of Innistrad supplies cheap lifelink bodies that keep life totals high while working toward that flip.
Format Analysis
Where it lives, where it can’t
| Format | Verdict |
|---|---|
| commander | legal |
| legacy | legal |
| modern | legal |
| pioneer | not legal |
| standard | not legal |
| vintage | legal |
| pauper | not legal |
| oathbreaker | legal |
Commander is where Sorin, Lord of Innistrad earns its keep — vampire tribal runs deep in black-white and the emblem is a genuine win condition in a format where games go long enough to reach it. In Legacy and Vintage it's legal but largely irrelevant; four mana at sorcery speed competes poorly with a format's worth of broken alternatives. Modern is the same story: Sorin is technically playable but never sees serious tournament play because the format moves faster than a four-mana do-nothing-on-defense planeswalker can manage. Oathbreaker is an interesting edge case, where the emblem as a signature spell could produce a workable engine, though Sorin himself is the more common pick as the oathbreaker.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$1.42 cheap tier
At $1.42, Sorin, Lord of Innistrad sits firmly in bulk-rare territory — cheap enough to slot into any vampire build without a second thought. That price is stable; it has reprints behind it and no spike-worthy competitive demand pushing it up.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.