Last updated on October 15, 2026
Seize the Spoils | Illustration by Brian Valeza
Sometimes the best thing you can do with a card is to throw it away. Extra lands, expensive creatures you want to reanimate, and spells with madness all give you good reasons to discard… and doubly so when you get to draw something afterward!
That’s where rummagers come in. Some simply trade unwanted cards for fresh ones; others throw mana, creatures, or a dozen extra effects into the mix.
Let’s rummage through the best options!
What Are Rummagers in MTG?
Rummaging Goblin | Illustration by Karl Kopinski
Rummaging is Magic slang for effects that make you discard cards, then draw. The order matters quite a bit here: There’s a similar effect nicknamed looting in which you draw first, then discard cards from your hand.
Looting is mainly found in blue cards; red, which tends to be a lot more impulsive and less brainy than blue, gets rummage instead.
Rummage is not an official keyword, though, so the borders get a little fuzzy. For this ranking, we’ll go with abilities that ask you to discard a couple of cards, and then let you draw a similar (although not always identical) number of cards.
Honorable Mention: Wheel Effects
Wheel effects, nicknamed that way thanks to Wheel of Fortune, are broadly similar to rummagers: Many of these have you discard cards then draw a new hand. There are huge differences, though: Wheel effects tend to affect the whole table (not just you), they tend to involve your whole hand (not a specific number of cards), and they have you discard as part of their effect (rather than their cost). Most rummagers involve just a couple of cards, affect only you, and very often ask you to discard as part of the cost.
Honorable Mention: Blood Tokens
Several cards create Blood tokens, and those tokens are a textbook case of rummagers: You discard a card as part of the cost, and you draw a card as part of the effect. I’m leaving these aside since many of the best Blood token cards create them as part of much broader effects. For example, you probably play Strefan, Maurer Progenitor for its ability to cheat vampires into play, rather than use Blood tokens for rummaging.
#30. Tormenting Voice
Tormenting Voice, originally from Khans of Tarkir, is the vanilla version against which you can compare a lot of other rummage spells: 2 mana, discard a card as an additional cost, draw two.
It gets the job done, but over the years WotC has printed enough upgrades that being a sorcery hurts quite a bit. Unless you want a lot of redundancy, several cards do the job better.
#29. Cathartic Pyre
Cathartic Pyre gives you two very different options: 3 damage to a creature or planeswalker, or discarding up to two cards and drawing that many. Neither mode is particularly impressive in Commander, but having both available on a 2-mana instant gives it some useful flexibility.
#28. Sazacap’s Brew
Speaking of upgrades to Tormenting Voice, Sazacap's Brew also costs , but it’s an instant that also allows you to let another player draw for a bit of political leverage. It can even buff one of your creatures a little.
#27. Neheb, Dreadhorde Champion
Connecting with Neheb, Dreadhorde Champion lets you discard as many cards as you want, replace all of them, and generate that much red mana for the rest of your turn. It’s a pretty interesting deal, but if you’re mostly interested in the rummage effect it may take a while until you get it going.
#26. Avishkar Raceway
Land slots are valuable real estate, which gives Avishkar Raceway an interesting advantage: You can get your rummaging effect without spending an actual spell slot.
Like Neheb, Dreadhorde Champion, it’s a tad slow if you’re looking for a rummager that you can get going ASAP. But in the late game, when you have more than enough mana and lands are basically dead cards in your hand, Avishkar Raceway‘s effect isn’t too far away from just “draw a card.”
#25. The Spear of Leonidas
The Spear of Leonidas offers three modes whenever its equipped creature attacks: double strike, a 3/2 token, or rummaging two cards.
Like Cathartic Pyre and a handful of other cards, this deal’s main appeal is its flexibility, especially for equipment commanders like Alexios, Deimos of Kosmos that want to attack anyway. But 3 mana to cast, 2 to equip, and an attack trigger is quite a bit of setup if rummaging is what you’re mainly after.
#24. Joshua, Phoenix’s Dominant / Phoenix, Warden of Fire
Final Fantasy‘s Joshua, Phoenix's Dominant lets you rummage two cards immediately when it enters. And if you’re playing Joshua, either in the command zone or in the 99, you’re probably going for some reanimation strategy, so the discard part of rummaging is a benefit rather than a cost.
#23. Abandon Attachments
In Commander, Abandon Attachments is pretty simple: For 2 mana at instant speed, you may discard a card to draw two. Its hybrid mana also means either blue or red can cast it, although its Izzet () color identity is more restrictive when it comes to deckbuilding.
In formats like Pauper and Pioneer, where Abandon Attachments sees a lot of competitive play, being a lesson is also pretty important since you can pair it with the learn ability and bring it into the game from your sideboard. But being a lesson isn’t what gives Abandon Attachments its rummage effect; the spell does that directly.
#22. Charming Scoundrel
Another modal card, Charming Scoundrel can rummage when it enters, but it can instead make a Treasure or put a Wicked role on one of your creatures.
And a subtle but important detail: The discard is an effect, not a cost. You can play Charming Scoundrel as the last card in your hand, discard nothing (because you have nothing left!), and then draw a card. Most rummagers ask you to discard as a cost, so you can’t play them as your last card since you won’t be able to pay said cost. Big difference!
#21. Bitter Reunion
Bitter Reunion gives you the discard-one, draw-two deal when it enters, but leaves an enchantment behind. You can later sacrifice it for 1 mana to give your creatures haste for the turn.
That’s an especially sweet deal for reanimator decks. The first ability helps put your expensive creature into the graveyard, while the second can let whatever you bring back start swinging immediately.
#20. Laughing Mad + Electric Revelation
Three mana makes Laughing Mad and the identical Electric Revelation look pretty mediocre at first glance, but flashback changes the equation. Once the first copy has been used, you can cast one again from the graveyard for 4 mana, which makes them some of the rare rummage spells that can put you ahead on cards (if you cast one twice, you end up spending the spell plus two discarded cards, and draw four in total, leaving you up one card overall).
Cherry on top, you can discard these to some other effect and still have flashback available.
#19. Daretti, Scrap Savant
Daretti, Scrap Savant‘s first activated ability can discard up to two cards and draw that many; repeatable rummaging already makes this red planeswalker more interesting than most one-shot rummagers.
And you probably play Daretti in artifact decks, to reanimate them from your graveyard to the battlefield… and Daretti’s first effect helps you fill said graveyard to begin with. Cards that are both enablers and payoffs always deserve extra consideration!
#18. Hazoret’s Monument
Hazoret's Monument is a great rummager for creature-heavy red decks (although the rummaging ability triggers for creatures of any color, not just red). It sees quite a bit of play with mono-red commanders like Tannuk, Steadfast Second that are interested in the same type of cards.
If you’re casting creatures turn after turn, Hazoret's Monument can provide you with a lot of card filtering without any extra cost.
#17. Pirate’s Pillage
Pirate's Pillage asks you to discard a card, then gives you two cards and two Treasures. That’s an excellent deal for one spell, above all for red treasure commanders like The Hobbit‘s Smaug the Magnificent that can put Treasures to other good uses besides as mana sources.
Pirate's Pillage‘s main problem is its sorcery speed, which makes it strictly worse than some other contenders higher up on this list.
#16. Jaxis, the Troublemaker
Jaxis, the Troublemaker stretches our definition of rummaging a little bit… but, all things considered, you do discard a card and then draw a card. And the extra hoop is usually the actual reason most decks want Jaxis: a blitzed token copy of your best creature!
#15. Kefka, Court Mage / Kefka, Ruler of Ruin
Kefka, Court Mage‘s rummage forces everybody to discard, then only you get to draw. And if you flip Kefka, it goes “Your pain, my gain” mode. It’s great in the 99, and one of the most popular Grixis commanders (), so if you’re specifically interested in a rummaging commander, Kefka may be your wizard.
#14. Brass’s Tunnel-Grinder / Tecutlan, the Searing Rift
Brass's Tunnel-Grinder is one of the rare rummagers that lets you discard any number of cards (including zero!). It’s a one-time effect, but any deck interested in a lot of discarding should be able to flip it into Tecutlan, the Searing Rift a couple of turns later.
#13. Ashling, Flame Dancer
Ashling, Flame Dancer rummages every time you cast or copy an instant or sorcery, with bonus damage and mana if that happens two or three times per turn. Four mana is more expensive than most cards here, but a spellslinger deck can get an enormous amount of filtering, damage, and mana out of this one creature.
#12. Fear of Missing Out
Fear of Missing Out rummages when entering, and on a 2-mana 2/3 body. That’s already a respectable rate, especially since throwing a card into the graveyard helps turn on its own delirium ability, which is the main reason to fear FOMO.
And this is a multi-format star: It’s quite popular in Commander and very powerful in Standard, and it sees quite a bit of competitive play in Pioneer and Modern.
#11. Key to the City
Key to the City sees a lot of play with commanders that actively want to both discard and punch face, like Terra, Herald of Hope or Captain Howler, Sea Scourge. The rummaging effect comes a bit late in this case, and costs an extra , but all in all Key to the City‘s a great rummager in the right deck.
#10. Fable of the Mirror-Breaker / Reflection of Kiki-Jiki
If this ranking were based purely on competitive pedigree, Fable of the Mirror-Breaker would have a strong argument for being #1. It had to be banned from Standard, sees top-tier competitive play in Pioneer and Modern, and is even competitive in Legacy.
It doesn’t have the same punch in Commander, though, even if it does make the cut in cEDH decks from time to time. And the rummaging effect is just a small part of why Fable of the Mirror-Breaker sees so much play.
#9. Grab the Prize
Grab the Prize is a strictly better Tormenting Voice: You get the exact same rummage effect, but you burn the whole table for 2 if you don’t ditch a land. Two damage isn’t going to decide most Commander games, but everything adds up!
#8. Seize the Spoils
Seize the Spoils costs 1 more mana than Tormenting Voice, but gives you a Treasure to refund part of the mana right away, or to keep as an artifact to exploit later. Three mana and sorcery speed keep this away from the very top of the rummagers pile, but it’s an excellent middle ground between the cheap 2-mana rummagers and 4-mana Treasure spells.
#7. Glint-Horn Buccaneer
Glint-Horn Buccaneer both rummages and gives you a small extra payoff for discarding, pinging the whole table. It’s a pretty good deal by itself, and amazing alongside Malcolm, Keen-Eyed Navigator: With both creatures in play, the Buccaneer attacking, a card in hand, at least two opponents, and enough mana for the first activation, the Buccaneer’s damage makes Malcolm generate enough Treasures to keep activating it. Unless someone stops it, you’ll usually deal enough damage to win the game on the spot.
#6. Cathartic Reunion
Tormenting Voice, but bigger! For the same cost (and also sorcery speed), Cathartic Reunion lets you discard two instead of one, and draw three instead of two.
If your only goal is card selection, this may be a tad too risky: Since the discard is an additional cost, if Cathartic Reunion gets countered then you’re down three cards before you’ve drawn anything. But if you actively want cards in your graveyard, like in a dredge or madness build, it’s all good anyway!
#5. Artist’s Talent
Artist's Talent provides rummaging for every noncreature spell you cast. And unlike Ashling, Flame Dancer (which provides a similar effect for instants or sorceries), Artist's Talent‘s rummage is optional. You don’t have to discard a card if you don’t want to.
And that’s just this red enchantment‘s base skill; it gets even better if you level it up!
#4. Thrill of Possibility
“Power creep!” wails Tormenting Voice… and, yeah, this is exactly what power creep looks like: Thrill of Possibility is the exact same effect, cost, and even rarity, but it’s an instant instead of a sorcery.
This is one of the most widely played rummagers in Commander, and one of the easiest to slot in your deck… though even Thrill has strictly better upgrades at this point.
#3. Unexpected Windfall
Compared with Thrill of Possibility, 4 mana looks expensive for Unexpected Windfall. But you’re getting quite a lot back: two cards and two Treasure tokens, all at instant speed. Those Treasures can accelerate a big follow-up play, feed artifact synergies, or simply recoup you some mana after rummaging.
#2. Demand Answers + Vision of Love
Power-creeping the power-creeper, Demand Answers is even better than Thrill of Possibility: Same cost, speed, and rummaging effect, but with the option of sacrificing an artifact rather than ditching a card.
Some decks actually want to discard a card; but whenever you don’t want to, your Treasure, Clue, Food, Blood, and other disposable artifacts can turn into two fresh cards without costing you anything from your hand. Vision of Love works very similarly, though sacrificing/discarding is an effect of the card, not a cost.
#1. Big Score
And our best rummager is exactly what the name promises: a really Big Score!
Big Score is the same deal as Unexpected Windfall (discard one card, draw two, and create two Treasures), but Big Score costs instead of . Which may seem like a small difference, but it makes it a lot easier to cast in 3-, 4-, and 5-color Commander decks.
There are other rummagers that are perhaps stronger as a whole. But if you want the easiest one to throw into almost any red Commander deck and expect it to do useful work, Big Score takes the crown.
Best Rummaging Payoffs
The easiest way to make rummaging better is to stop treating the discarded card as a cost. Flashback, reanimator, and other graveyard strategies all let you get extra value from cards you’ve thrown away. In decks that actively want cards in the graveyard, something like Cathartic Reunion is all value.
There are also cards that explicitly reward the act of discarding. Monument to Endurance, Brallin, Skyshark Rider, Inti, Seneschal of the Sun, or a madness commander like Anje Falkenrath all give you additional reasons to build around discard effects. In other words: Rummaging gets much better when your graveyard is a second hand rather than a trash can.
The other obvious payoff for rummaging comes from card draw payoffs. Drawing cards is great all by itself, of course… but The Locust God or Niv-Mizzet, Parun can make all that red rummaging feel a lot better!
Where Does “Rummage” Get Its Name From?
The rummaging nickname is closely associated with Rummaging Goblin, which puts the discard-then-draw effect right in its name.
The effect is much older than Rummaging Goblin, though. Cards like Drowned Rusalka were rummaging years before the Goblin showed up in Magic 2013.
Looting has a similar naming history. That nickname comes from Merfolk Looter, which helped establish the draw-a-card, discard-a-card template.
Rummaging vs. Looting
All else being equal, looting is generally better because you see the new card before you choose what to discard. With looting, if you draw a reanimation spell, for example, you can then pitch the creature you want to bring back. Rummaging asks you to discard before knowing what you’ll find, which is riskier.
You have to take the card as a whole, though. A rummager that creates Treasures may be more useful than a plain looter, or an instant rummager is probably better than a looting sorcery. And both mechanics support graveyard and discard synergies.
But it’s always better to have as much information and options as possible; in that regard, looting is certainly better than rummaging.
Another consideration is when the discard happens. Several rummage spells, including Thrill of Possibility, Cathartic Reunion, and Big Score, discard as an additional cost, so if the spell gets countered, it hurts you a lot. Looters don’t generally have this problem, since discarding is part of their effect; if your opponent counters the looting spell, you don’t draw but you also don’t discard anything.
Wrap Up
Unexpected Windfall | Illustration by Alayna Danner
Rummaging started as red’s “We have looting at home”, but years of power creep increasingly efficient designs have turned it into a pretty useful ability.
It often shows up as part of a much larger menu: Artist's Talent can turn it into an engine; Glint-Horn Buccaneer can turn it into a combo; and Fable of the Mirror-Breaker crammed it into a card that was already doing 10 other things.
Are there any great rummagers I’ve missed? Or any good commanders that may want this effect? Let me know in the comments below or over on the Draftsim Discord, and don’t forget to subscribe to our newsletter, The Daily Upkeep.
I hope you’ve enjoyed this deep dive into Magic’s best rummagers, and good luck out there!
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