Unwilling Recruit
Sorcery
Gain control of target creature until end of turn. Untap that creature. It gets +X/+0 and gains haste until end of turn.
- CMC
- 3
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- R
- Rarity
- uncommon
- Set
- Eventide
- Price
- $0.21
- EDHREC rank
- #22267
Unwilling Recruit steals the biggest threat on the table, gives it haste, and swings it at its owner's face — all for one mana if you've got the power advantage to pay for it. The X cost is the catch: without a meaningful power differential, you're spending five or six mana to borrow a medium creature for one attack.
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 Unwilling Recruit actually earns its slot — three opponents means there's almost always a high-power creature worth targeting, and a hasted steal that attacks a player directly is exactly the kind of political and lethal swing the format rewards. In Legacy and Vintage it's legal but purely theoretical; red has faster, more consistent threats and those formats don't want a sorcery-speed steal that requires a power differential to function. Oathbreaker could support it in aggressive red builds, but the format's lower life totals mean games often end before the setup is worth it.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.21 bulk tier
At $0.21, Unwilling Recruit is deep bulk — the kind of card you pick up in a trade binder without thinking about it. Bulk rares in niche aggressive niches rarely climb unless a commander breaks them wide open, so don't expect appreciation, but the entry cost is low enough that running it is essentially free.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.