Lazav, Familiar Stranger
OTJ · uncommon · Released 2024-04-19
Power
Tier shown as baseline → best-case (in its ideal shell).
Derived from the 7 atoms below.
above rate
minor value alone
wants support
can take over a game
multiple modes
broadly useful
easily answered
Commander Bracket
Archetypes
No active conflicts.
Roles
Risks
Mechanics
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Typal
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Structural
Rationale
Lazav is a 1/4 shapeshifter for {1}{U}{B} that grows on crimes and can copy a creature from any graveyard until end of turn, once per turn. It fits naturally in Dimir control/midrange shells that already commit crimes (targeting spells, discard, removal) and rewards opponents' graveyards being full (mill payoff). The copy effect is temporary (end of turn) and creature-card dependent, limiting its explosive ceiling, but the steady +1/+1 counter growth and flexible impersonation make it a solid threat in graveyard-aware Dimir builds.
Learnings (3)
Lazav's copy effect only triggers once per turn regardless of how many crimes are committed, making it better as a value-accumulation creature than a spell-chain payoff.
tagging · claude-sonnet-4-6
The crime trigger only copies a creature card from ANY graveyard — including opponents' — so mill and discard strategies actively fill targets for Lazav to copy, synergizing beyond just self-mill.
tagging · claude-sonnet-4-6
Because Lazav becomes a copy 'until end of turn,' it loses any ETB effects from the copied creature since it doesn't enter the battlefield; it only gains the copiable values of that card.
tagging · claude-sonnet-4-6
Popularity
- EDHREC rank: #12,355