Price$14.53 – $83.72
Buy on TCGplayerDiabolic Intent
Sorcery
LegalRank #264
As an additional cost to cast this spell, sacrifice a creature.
Search your library for a card, put that card into your hand, then shuffle.
Why is this card good?
Diabolic Intent is one of the best tutors in Commander, full stop. For just , you get any card in your library to hand — the same payoff as Demonic Tutor at the same mana value. The "downside" of sacrificing a creature is often an upside.
In any deck running tokens, aristocrats, or recursive creatures, the sac cost is trivial — feed it a 1/1 token, a creature with a death trigger, or something you'll reanimate later. Decks built around sacrifice (Meren, Teysa, Korvold, etc.) actively want to throw a body away here.
Want it in: any black deck that reliably has expendable creatures — token swarms, aristocrats, reanimator, and most combo decks needing a specific piece.
Skip it in: spellslinger or low-creature control builds where you might cast it with only your one important blocker on board. If you can't guarantee a sacrifice, you've got a dead card; lean on Demonic Tutor or Diabolic Tutor instead.
, you get any card in your library to hand — the same payoff as Demonic Tutor at the same mana value. The "downside" of sacrificing a creature is often an upside.
In any deck running tokens, aristocrats, or recursive creatures, the sac cost is trivial — feed it a 1/1 token, a creature with a death trigger, or something you'll reanimate later. Decks built around sacrifice (Meren, Teysa, Korvold, etc.) actively want to throw a body away here.
Want it in: any black deck that reliably has expendable creatures — token swarms, aristocrats, reanimator, and most combo decks needing a specific piece.
Skip it in: spellslinger or low-creature control builds where you might cast it with only your one important blocker on board. If you can't guarantee a sacrifice, you've got a dead card; lean on Demonic Tutor or Diabolic Tutor instead.Related cards
Demonic Tutor
Premier 2-mana unconditional tutor without sacrifice cost.
Vampiric Tutor
Cheap instant tutor to top of library, classic black tutor.
Grim Tutor
3-mana black tutor straight to hand at life cost.
Imperial Seal
Sorcery version of Vampiric Tutor, tutors to top.
Diabolic Tutor
Budget 4-mana unconditional tutor to hand.
Beseech the Mirror
Versatile black tutor that can cast the found card.
Wishclaw Talisman
Cheap repeatable tutor to hand artifact.
Final Parting
Tutors one card to hand, one to graveyard for reanimation synergy.
Printings (9)
Show all 9 printingsShow fewer
Rulings (5)
- 2022-10-14
You must sacrifice exactly one creature to cast this spell; you cannot cast it without sacrificing a creature, and you cannot sacrifice additional creatures.
- 2022-10-14
Players can only respond once this spell has been cast and all its costs have been paid. No one can try to destroy the creature you sacrificed to prevent you from casting this spell.
- 2013-04-15
You must sacrifice exactly one creature to cast this spell; you cannot cast it without sacrificing a creature, and you cannot sacrifice additional creatures.
- 2013-04-15
Players can only respond once this spell has been cast and all its costs have been paid. No one can try to destroy the creature you sacrificed to prevent you from casting this spell.
- 2004-10-04
You must choose a card if there are any in your library.