Helm of the Ghastlord
Helm of the Ghastlord: Enchantment - Aura, Shadowmoor. Enchant creature. MTG card printings, market prices, rulings, and format legality on Mana Grove.
- Mana cost
- {3}{U/B}
- Mana value
- 4
- Type
- Enchantment - Aura
- Colour identity
- Blue and black (UB)
- Rarity
- Common
- Set
- Shadowmoor (SHM)
- Released
- 2008-05-02
- Collector number
- 166
- Artist
- Franz Vohwinkel
- Commander rank
- 5,383 (by how often it appears in Commander decks)
- Keywords
- Enchant
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About Helm of the Ghastlord
Helm of the Ghastlord is a Magic: The Gathering card, a common blue and black enchantment from Shadowmoor (SHM), an expansion set released in May 2008. It is collector number 166 in that set, with art by Franz Vohwinkel. It costs {3}{U/B} to cast, for a mana value of 4. Its colour identity is blue and black. It is legal in Modern, Legacy, Vintage, Pauper, Commander, Duel Commander, Oathbreaker, Pauper Commander and PreDH. It has been printed in 2 sets, from Shadowmoor (2008) to The List (2020). The latest aggregated market price for this printing is $6.60 (normal finish, as of 2026-11-03).
Card text
Enchant creature
As long as enchanted creature is blue, it gets +1/+1 and has "Whenever this creature deals damage to an opponent, draw a card."
As long as enchanted creature is black, it gets +1/+1 and has "Whenever this creature deals damage to an opponent, that player discards a card."
Market price
Latest aggregated market price for the normal finish of this printing: $6.60 (as of 2026-11-03).
The figure covers this printing only; other printings carry their own price on their own page.
Format legality
Legality of Helm of the Ghastlord by format. Formats in which it is not legal are not listed.
| Modern | Legal |
|---|---|
| Legacy | Legal |
| Vintage | Legal |
| Pauper | Legal |
| Commander | Legal |
| Duel Commander | Legal |
| Oathbreaker | Legal |
| Pauper Commander | Legal |
| PreDH | Legal |
Other printings of Helm of the Ghastlord
Helm of the Ghastlord has been printed in 2 sets. The other printings are listed newest first, with the rarity and release year of each.
| Printing | Rarity | Year |
|---|---|---|
| The List (PLST) #SHM-166 | Common | 2026 |
Official rulings
Three official rulings apply to Helm of the Ghastlord, newest first.
- The two abilities trigger when the enchanted creature deals damage to an opponent of the creature’s controller, not when it deals damage to an opponent of the Helm’s controller. They trigger from any damage, not just combat damage.
- If the enchanted creature is both of the listed colors, it will get both bonuses.
- With regards to the two triggered abilities that Helm of the Ghastlord grants to the enchanted creature, the point when damage is actually dealt is the only time it matters what color the creature is. If the creature is blue or black at that time, the appropriate ability or abilities will trigger. They’ll resolve even if the creature changes color or loses its Aura.
Similar cards
Other enchantment cards with a blue and black colour identity, ranked by how often they appear in Commander decks.