Starved Rusalka
Creature — Spirit
, Sacrifice a creature: You gain 1 life.
- CMC
- 1
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- G
- Rarity
- uncommon
- Set
- Guildpact
- Price
- $0.18
- EDHREC rank
- #21809
Starved Rusalka turns every creature death into a life payment that can be routed into sacrifice synergies, and in a Yedora, Grave Gardener shell it becomes a repeatable engine that converts face-down Forest tokens straight into fodder. The cost is real — one green mana and one life per trigger is not free at scale — but any deck that wants a cheap, on-board sacrifice outlet gets exactly that.
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 |
In Commander, Starved Rusalka earns its slot as a one-mana sacrifice outlet in any green death-matters or aristocrats build — the life cost is negligible across 40 starting life, and the floor is simply a way to convert excess tokens into something. Legacy and Vintage have access to far more efficient free or near-free sacrifice outlets, so Starved Rusalka doesn't compete there. Modern also has better options at the one-drop slot, making it a fringe consideration at best outside of budget builds. It's not legal in Pioneer, Standard, or Pauper, so Commander and Oathbreaker are where this card actually lives.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Yedora, Grave GardenerTemur ChargerStarved Rusalka
Infinite death triggers; Infinite landfall triggers; Infinite lifegain; Infinite lifegain triggers; Infinite LTB; Infinite sacrifice triggers
View on Commander Spellbook ↗
Yedora, Grave GardenerProteus MachineStarved Rusalka
Infinite death triggers; Infinite landfall triggers; Infinite lifegain; Infinite lifegain triggers; Infinite LTB; Infinite sacrifice triggers
View on Commander Spellbook ↗
Yedora, Grave GardenerDragon's Eye SavantsStarved Rusalka
Infinite death triggers; Infinite landfall triggers; Infinite lifegain; Infinite lifegain triggers; Infinite LTB; Infinite sacrifice triggers
View on Commander Spellbook ↗Price Context
Current price
$0.18 bulk tier
At $0.18, Starved Rusalka is deep bulk — the kind of card you pick up as a throw-in or pull from a common box without thinking twice. Demand is narrow enough that the price is unlikely to move unless a high-profile Commander deck pushes the Yedora loop into the spotlight.
Explore
Sources
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.