Starke of Rath
Legendary Creature — Human Rogue
: Destroy target artifact or creature. That permanent's controller gains control of Starke. (This effect lasts indefinitely.)
- CMC
- 3
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- R
- Rarity
- rare
- Set
- Tempest
- Price
- $0.69
- EDHREC rank
- #17794
Starke of Rath destroys any creature or land, which is an absurdly wide target range — the catch is that an opponent gains control of Starke at end of turn unless you sacrifice it first. Run it in decks that can sacrifice it on demand; elsewhere, you're just borrowing a removal spell.
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 Starke of Rath has its best case, specifically in sacrifice-matters decks that treat the drawback as a non-issue — sac Starke in response to the end-of-turn trigger and you've paid nothing but the 2R to cast it. In Legacy and Vintage it's simply outclassed: unconditional removal exists at lower cost without the liability, so Starke doesn't see play there. Oathbreaker is the same story as Commander at a smaller table.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.69 bulk tier
At $0.69, Starke of Rath sits firmly in bulk territory — cheap enough to slot in without hesitation if the deck wants it. Bulk rares with narrow conditions rarely climb, so don't expect this to move.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.