Diamond Lion MTG Card

Diamond Lion provides card advantage and resource acceleration, fueling strategic plays within your MTG deck. Its instant-speed activation enables surprise tactics but requires careful hand and resource management. While presenting combo potential, its high casting cost and discard requirement must be strategically considered.

Modern Horizons 2 (MH2)
2021-06-18 - Number 427

Modern Horizons 2 (MH2)
2021-06-18 - Number 225

Modern Horizons 2 (MH2)
2021-06-18 - Number 470

Diamond Lion - Modern Horizons 2 Promos (PMH2)

Modern Horizons 2 Promos (PMH2)
2021-06-19 - Number 225s

Diamond Lion - Magic Online Promos (PRM)

Magic Online Promos (PRM)
2002-06-24 - Number 91371

Card sets	Released in 5 setsSee all
Mana cost
Converted mana cost	2
Rarity	Rare
Type	Artifact Creature — Cat
Power	2
Toughness	2

Text of card

, Discard your hand, Sacrifice Diamond Lion: Add three mana of any one color. Activate only as an instant.

"The merchant asked for riches no one had ever dreamed of. The djinn, smiling, granted his wish." —Afari, *Tales*

Cards like Diamond Lion

Diamond Lion is a unique artifact card that Magic: The Gathering players can find quite useful in the right deck. Its functionality is similar to that of the renowned Lion’s Eye Diamond, as it forces a player to discard their hand in order to produce three mana of any one color. Yet, unlike Lion’s Eye Diamond, which is activated as a mana ability, Diamond Lion can be used only at any time you could cast a sorcery, which requires more strategic planning for its optimal use.

Chrome Mox is another card that comes to mind when considering mana acceleration. While Chrome Mox doesn’t demand a hand discard, it requires imprinting a non-artifact card from your hand to produce mana. This provides immediate ramp but at the cost of card advantage. Lotus Petal offers a similar one-time burst of mana without the need to discard, but it doesn’t give the recurring potential that Diamond Lion might provide in decks designed to utilize the graveyard.

Each of these cards offers a different approach to fast mana, showing that Diamond Lion has its space in the pantheon of MTG accelerants, particularly in strategies that can leverage the discard, such as reanimator or graveyard synergy decks.

Cards similar to Diamond Lion by color, type and mana cost

Water Gun Balloon Game - MTG Card versions

Decks using this card

MTG decks using Diamond Lion. Dig deeper into the strategy of decks, sideboard cards, list ideas and export to play in ARENA or MOL.

#	Name	Format	Archetype	Event
	Dimir Combo	Modern	Dimir Midrange	Pachanga Trial ACUP Domingo

Card Pros

Card Advantage: Diamond Lion generates immediate value by converting any number of cards in your hand into fresh ones from your deck. The benefit here is twofold: you churn through your deck to find key cards and you refuel your hand, potentially ditching less useful cards for new opportunities.

Resource Acceleration: When activated, Diamond Lion essentially acts as a mana source. By discarding your hand, this artifact can be sacrificed to add three mana of any one color to your mana pool. This acceleration can be pivotal, allowing you to deploy threats or answers ahead of schedule.

Instant Speed: The flexibility of Diamond Lion lies in its activation at instant speed. As such, you can adapt to the flow of the game, using the card’s ability at the end of your opponent’s turn or in response to actions that would otherwise leave you disadvantaged. This element of surprise often forces opponents to play more cautiously.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: When activating Diamond Lion’s ability, it necessitates that you discard your entire hand. This can be a significant downside when you’re holding key cards that are critical for your strategy, essentially forcing you to choose between a new hand or losing valuable resources.

Specific Mana Cost: The Diamond Lion requires colorless mana to cast, which could integrate well in most decks, but its activation cost is two generic and one colorless, making it less flexible for decks that heavily rely on colored mana for their game plan.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a casting cost of three mana, Diamond Lion might come off as an expensive investment for an effect you could potentially get from other two-mana cost cards. The activation also requires the card to be tapped, which means you won’t be able to use the Lion’s mana ability the turn it comes into play unless you have a way to give it haste, potentially slowing down your game tempo.

Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Diamond Lion offers a unique twist on mana generation and graveyard interaction. It can seamlessly integrate into various deck themes, acting as a mana filter that also sets up for powerful graveyard-based plays.

Combo Potential: This artifact creature is a combo enabler. With its ability to discard your hand, it can quickly fuel strategies tied to graveyard synergy or set up devastating reanimation tactics.

Meta-Relevance: Given that powerful combinations often shape the meta in various formats, Diamond Lion stands out as a key component in decks that aim to win through intricate spell interactions and graveyard manipulation.

How to beat

Diamond Lion brings a unique twist to Magic: The Gathering gameplay, allowing players to essentially cash in their hand to mimic the famed Black Lotus’s mana burst. The card, while powerful, isn’t without its weaknesses. One effective strategy to counter Diamond Lion is interaction during your opponent’s turn, such as utilizing instant speed removal or discard effects to disrupt the sequence before they can capitalize on the mana gain.

Hand disruption spells like Thoughtseize or Inquisition of Kozilek can preemptively remove Diamond Lion from your opponent’s grip before they get the chance to use it. Counterspells are also perfect to stop the Lion in its tracks. Moreover, graveyard hate cards such as Rest in Peace can nullify the advantage they might get from the discarded cards. The key is to either prevent the Lion from hitting the field or to mitigate the benefits your opponent receives from its activation, maintaining your tactical edge.

Remember, Magic: The Gathering is as much a game about resource management as it is about strategic timing. By denying your opponent the opportunity to effectively utilize Diamond Lion, you not only thwart their plans but potentially swing the momentum in your favor for the rest of the match.

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Diamond Lion MTG card by a specific set like Magic Online Promos and Modern Horizons 2, there are several reliable options to consider. One of the primary sources is your local game store, where you can often find booster packs, individual cards, and preconstructed decks from current and some past sets. They often offer the added benefit of a community where you can trade with other players.

For a broader inventory, particularly of older sets, online marketplaces like TCGPlayer, Card Kingdom and Card Market offer extensive selections and allow you to search for cards from specific sets. Larger e-commerce platforms like eBay and Amazon also have listings from various sellers, which can be a good place to look for sealed product and rare finds.

Additionally, Magic’s official site often has a store locator and retailer lists for finding Wizards of the Coast licensed products. Remember to check for authenticity and the condition of the cards when purchasing, especially from individual sellers on larger marketplaces.

Below is a list of some store websites where you can buy the Diamond Lion and other MTG cards:

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Printings

The Diamond Lion Magic the Gathering card was released in 3 different sets between 2021-06-18 and 2021-06-19. Illustrated by Howard Lyon.

#	Released	Name	Code	Number	Frame	Layout	Border	Artist
1	~~2002-06-24~~	Magic Online Promos	PRM	91371	2015	Normal	Black	Howard Lyon
2	2021-06-18	Modern Horizons 2	MH2	427	1997	Normal	Black	Howard Lyon
3	2021-06-18	Modern Horizons 2	MH2	225	2015	Normal	Black	Howard Lyon
4	2021-06-18	Modern Horizons 2	MH2	470	2015	Normal	Black	Howard Lyon
5	2021-06-19	Modern Horizons 2 Promos	PMH2	225s	2015	Normal	Black	Howard Lyon

Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Diamond Lion has restrictions

Format	Legality
Commander	Legal
Legacy	Legal
Modern	Legal
Oathbreaker	Legal
Vintage	Legal
Duel	Legal
Penny	Legal

Rules and information

The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering Diamond Lion card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.

Date	Text
2021-06-18	Even though you can only activate this as an instant, it is still a mana ability. It doesn't use the stack and cannot be responded to.
2021-06-18	You can't cast an instant (or activate an ability as an instant) while casting a spell. Therefore, much like Lion's Eye Diamond, you can't activate the ability intending to use the mana to cast a spell from your hand.