Zhang Liao, Hero of Hefei
Legendary Creature — Human Soldier
Whenever Zhang Liao deals damage to an opponent, that opponent discards a card.
- CMC
- 6
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- B
- Rarity
- rare
- Set
- Portal Three Kingdoms
- Price
- $60.99
- EDHREC rank
- #29137
Zhang Liao, Hero of Hefei turns every attack into a political weapon — opponents who block gift you card advantage, opponents who don't take the damage, and the whole table knows it. At under a dollar, the rate is absurd for any deck that wants to swing wide or pressure multiple players at once.
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 Zhang Liao, Hero of Hefei earns every slot — the three-player dynamic means the goad-adjacent pressure of forcing block-or-suffer decisions scales hard in multiplayer, and aggressive token or go-wide commanders love the free card draw stapled to combat. Legacy and Vintage are legal homes in theory, but Zhang Liao is a four-mana 3/3 with no immediate impact against interactive decks, and those formats will kill it before you untap. Stick to Commander and Oathbreaker, where the political dimension of its trigger actually matters.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Budget Alternatives
Cheaper options that do most of the same work
If you want the attack-trigger card draw without the goad pressure, Reconnaissance Mission and Coastal Piracy both slot into blue decks for under $2 and scale with creature count rather than individual combats. Zhang Liao, Hero of Hefei is the pick when you specifically want a body that changes how opponents make block decisions — the enchantments don't do that.
Price Context
Current price
$60.99 premium tier
At $60.99, Zhang Liao, Hero of Hefei sits in premium territory that is hard to justify given how few Commander decks actually need what it does at that price point. The card has no Legacy or Modern demand propping up the price, so this is a collector or serialized-print premium — if you want the effect, check reprint versions before paying flagship price.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.