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Whitemane Lion

Creature — Cat

Flash
When this creature enters, return a creature you control to its owner's hand.

CMC
2
Mana cost
{1}{W}
Color identity
W
Rarity
common
Set
Eternal Masters
Price
$0.18
EDHREC rank
#3620
Buy on TCGplayer
Whitemane Lion card art
Whitemane Lion enters the battlefield, bounces itself for free on cast, and hands you a repeatable enter-the-battlefield trigger engine at instant speed — the cost is that every loop requires an open mana and a willing payoff. Without Aluren or a commander like God-Eternal Oketra generating immediate value on each cast, it's just a 2/2 that undoes its own deployment.

Best Commanders

Commanders with the highest synergy

01
God-Eternal Oketra

God-Eternal Oketra

76.6% of decks · synergy 0.74

God-Eternal Oketra turns every Whitemane Lion cast into a free 4/4 Zombie token, and since Whitemane Lion bounces itself, every additional white mana you float becomes another token — it's the cleanest go-wide engine in the deck.

02
Arahbo, the First Fang

Arahbo, the First Fang

58.9% of decks · synergy 0.56

Whitemane Lion is a Cat, and Arahbo, the First Fang triggers on each cast, so looping the Lion with bounce effects or Aluren turns Arahbo's eminence pump into a repeatable combat threat factory without needing additional creatures.

03
Ephara, God of the Polis

Ephara, God of the Polis

46.1% of decks · synergy 0.45

Ephara, God of the Polis draws a card at the beginning of each upkeep if a creature entered under your control last turn, and Whitemane Lion's self-bounce means you can guarantee that trigger on any turn you have two mana open.

04
Rin and Seri, Inseparable

Rin and Seri, Inseparable

46.1% of decks · synergy 0.43

Rin and Seri, Inseparable creates a Dog or Cat token whenever you cast a Cat or Dog spell, so Whitemane Lion's self-bounce turns a single copy into a token generator limited only by how much mana you can funnel into the loop each turn.

05
Chulane, Teller of Tales

Chulane, Teller of Tales

46.9% of decks · synergy 0.43

Chulane, Teller of Tales draws a card and returns a land to hand on each creature cast, so bouncing Whitemane Lion repeatedly draws through the deck and replays lands — a legitimate draw-and-ramp engine with a single $0.18 piece.

Format Analysis

Where it lives, where it can’t

FormatVerdict
commander legal
legacy legal
modern legal
pioneer not legal
standard not legal
vintage legal
pauper legal
oathbreaker legal

Commander is where Whitemane Lion actually lives — the format's reliance on commanders as payoffs transforms its self-bounce from a liability into a feature. In Pauper it sees fringe play as a flicker-adjacent piece in white skies and ETB decks, though the common card pool limits how explosive the loops get. Legacy and Vintage have access to Aluren, which makes Whitemane Lion part of an infinite-cast combo, but those formats have faster and more consistent combo infrastructure that largely obsoletes it. Modern has no compelling reason to run it — there are strictly better ETB creatures at the two-drop slot. Standard and Pioneer are off the table entirely.

Key Combos

Combo lines featuring this card

2,724 decks
Intruder AlarmWhitemane Lion

Intruder AlarmWhitemane Lion

Infinite ETB; Infinite LTB; Infinite mana creatures you control can produce; Infinite storm count; Infinite untap of creatures; Infinite untap of creatures you control

View on Commander Spellbook ↗

Price Context

Current price

$0.18 bulk tier

Whitemane Lion is deep bulk at $0.18 — no reprint pressure matters at this price floor, and it's not going anywhere meaningful in either direction. Pick up as many copies as your decks need without a second thought.

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Sources

Mentioned

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Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.