Liliana's Scrounger MTG Card


Liliana's Scrounger - Core Set 2021
Mana cost
Converted mana cost3
RarityUncommon
TypeCreature — Human Wizard
Released2020-07-03
Set symbol
Set nameCore Set 2021
Set codeM21
Power 3
Toughness 2
Number330
Frame2015
Layoutnormal
Borderblack
Illustred byMartina Fačková

Key Takeaways

  1. Liliana’s Scrounger excels in card filtering and resource acceleration, crucial for tactical advantage.
  2. Its demand for precise mana and discard can restrict deck flexibility and card availability.
  3. Inclusion in black-centric and combo decks is recommended for exploiting its full potential.

Text of card

At the beginning of each end step, if a creature died this turn, you may put a loyalty counter on a Liliana planeswalker you control.

"This arm's got plenty of use left in it. Who'd throw such a nice thing away?"


Card Pros

Card Advantage: Liliana’s Scrounger offers consistent card filtering by allowing you to explore whenever it attacks. This not only potentially draws you a card but also helps in setting up your next draws, ensuring you have the right answers when you need them.

Resource Acceleration: As it triggers upon attacking, Liliana’s Scrounger aids in resource acceleration by potentially placing additional lands onto the battlefield, thus ramping up your mana resources and giving you an edge in deploying your threats earlier.

Instant Speed: While it operates at sorcery speed, Liliana’s Scrounger compels instant-speed reactions from opponents. Its ability can manipulate the game’s state on each combat, forcing opponents to decide whether to use removal or hold back resources, which strategically benefits you.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Liliana’s Scrounger has an inherent downside, as it necessitates a card to be discarded. This might handcuff players who are already short on in-game assets or who need to maintain card advantage against their opponents.

Specific Mana Cost: Mana flexibility in deck building is crucial for many strategies, and Liliana’s Scrounger demands a precise mana arrangement, including black mana. This could potentially limit the inclusion to black-centric or two-color decks that can support its requirement.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: The competition is stiff when mana investment is on the line. Liliana’s Scrounger’s efficiency is questioned when compared to other options in its mana bracket. Players often look for more impact per mana spent, and depending on the game state, the Scrounger may not always deliver the best value for its cost.


Reasons to Include Liliana’s Scrounger in Your Collection

Versatility: Liliana’s Scrounger can be a dynamic addition to any black-centric deck. It thrives in environments that utilize graveyard mechanics, serving not just as an aggressive creature but also as a recurring threat that can be difficult for opponents to permanently remove.

Combo Potential: Its capability to recur from the graveyard makes it a key piece in combo decks that capitalize on death and resurrection mechanics. Its synergy with various sacrifice effects can lead to powerful plays and strategic advantages during the game.

Meta-Relevance: Considering the landscapes of competitive play, Liliana’s Scrounger aligns well with strategies that aim to outlast opponents through resilience. As metagames evolve, the value of persistent creatures like Liliana’s Scrounger often increases, making it a prudent choice for players looking to stay ahead of the curve.


How to beat

Liliana’s Scrounger has emerged as a formidable threat in Magic: The Gathering due to its ability to consistently reanimate creatures from the graveyard. This can become a recurring nightmare for those unprepared to face it on the battlefield. To effectively counter this persistent creature, key strategies need to be employed. It’s essential to manage the graveyard either by exiling key targets with cards like Rest in Peace or employing graveyard shuffling effects such as those from cards like Tormod’s Crypt.

Another approach is to utilize removal spells that don’t send creatures to the graveyard, thus nullifying the Scrounger’s reanimation capabilities. Spells such as Path to Exile or the more recent card, Irreverent Revelers, offer such an exile effect. Directly addressing Liliana’s Scrounger with exile effects can also be an effective tactic. Utilizing cards with the ability to sidestep traditional destruction mechanisms plays a vital role in curtailing the advantage that Liliana’s Scrounger intends to provide.

It’s also worth considering strategies that limit the number of creatures reaching the graveyard in the first place. Employing a control style that prohibits creature spells from resolving, using counterspells like Dovin’s Veto, can ensure that Liliana’s Scrounger has fewer resources to exploit. Through these methods, players can turn the tide against this resilient adversary and maintain control of the game.


Cards like Liliana's Scrounger

Liliana’s Scrounger has carved out its niche in the vast landscape of creature cards in MTG. This card can be likened to Gravecrawler in its ability to come back from the graveyard, provided a certain condition is met. Gravecrawler can return if you control a Zombie, while Liliana’s Scrounger requires a card to be drawn from your library during your turn before it can claw its way back to the battlefield.

Another card worth mentioning in this comparison is Bloodsoaked Champion, which also returns from the graveyard. However, it requires an attack phase to have occurred before resurrection, differentiating it from Liliana’s Scrounger that hinges on card draw. The Scrounger, unlike the Champion, offers flexibility by not needing the combat phase to be useful.

When considering recurvable creatures, Liliana’s Scrounger provides a unique advantage in decks focused on consistent card draw mechanisms, setting it apart from the aforementioned creatures. Its utility in strategies that rely on drawing multiple cards per turn makes it a potent asset in the right MTG deck build.

Gravecrawler - MTG Card versions
Bloodsoaked Champion - MTG Card versions
Gravecrawler - Dark Ascension Promos (PDKA)
Bloodsoaked Champion - Khans of Tarkir Promos (PKTK)

Cards similar to Liliana's Scrounger by color, type and mana cost

Nettling Imp - MTG Card versions
Royal Assassin - MTG Card versions
El-Hajjâj - MTG Card versions
Plague Rats - MTG Card versions
Frozen Shade - MTG Card versions
Scathe Zombies - MTG Card versions
Sorceress Queen - MTG Card versions
Wall of Bone - MTG Card versions
Lost Soul - MTG Card versions
Mindstab Thrull - MTG Card versions
Mischievous Poltergeist - MTG Card versions
Strongarm Thug - MTG Card versions
Razortooth Rats - MTG Card versions
Ghastly Remains - MTG Card versions
Lord of the Undead - MTG Card versions
Deepwood Ghoul - MTG Card versions
Dross Prowler - MTG Card versions
Nim Lasher - MTG Card versions
Nim Abomination - MTG Card versions
Nantuko Husk - MTG Card versions
Nettling Imp - Limited Edition Alpha (LEA)
Royal Assassin - 30th Anniversary Edition (30A)
El-Hajjâj - Fourth Edition Foreign Black Border (4BB)
Plague Rats - Foreign Black Border (FBB)
Frozen Shade - 30th Anniversary Edition (30A)
Scathe Zombies - Eighth Edition (8ED)
Sorceress Queen - Rivals Quick Start Set (RQS)
Wall of Bone - Rivals Quick Start Set (RQS)
Lost Soul - Introductory Two-Player Set (ITP)
Mindstab Thrull - Masters Edition (ME1)
Mischievous Poltergeist - Classic Sixth Edition (6ED)
Strongarm Thug - Mercadian Masques (MMQ)
Razortooth Rats - Seventh Edition (7ED)
Ghastly Remains - Legions (LGN)
Lord of the Undead - Eighth Edition (8ED)
Deepwood Ghoul - Eighth Edition (8ED)
Dross Prowler - Mirrodin (MRD)
Nim Lasher - Mirrodin (MRD)
Nim Abomination - Darksteel (DST)
Nantuko Husk - Ninth Edition (9ED)

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Liliana's Scrounger MTG card by a specific set like Core Set 2021, 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 Liliana's Scrounger and other MTG cards:

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Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Liliana's Scrounger has restrictions

FormatLegality
HistoricbrawlLegal
HistoricLegal
LegacyLegal
PaupercommanderRestricted
OathbreakerLegal
GladiatorLegal
PioneerLegal
CommanderLegal
ModernLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
ExplorerLegal
TimelessLegal

Rules and information

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

DateText
2020-06-23 If a creature didn't die before your end step begins, the ability of Liliana's Scrounger doesn't trigger at all. The creature may have died before Liliana's Scrounger entered the battlefield, however.
2020-06-23 If you control more than one Liliana planeswalker, you choose which one receives a loyalty counter as the ability of Liliana's Scrounger resolves.
2020-06-23 The triggered ability triggers just once, no matter how many creatures died this turn.

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