Live Play Data

Beast Within

· Instant · Marvel Super Heroes Commander (MSC)

31%

Live Inclusion

Buy on TCGplayer

Times Brought

4800

Decks Running

2402

Median Cast Turn

Drawn → Played

64%

Format

Multiplayer 1v1

Beast Within appears in 31% of tracked Commander decks and resolves 64% of the time it's drawn, with a median first-cast turn of 7.

Beast Within is one of green's most versatile removal spells, and the Playgroup Live data reflects that. Across 3931 tracked multiplayer games, it sits in 2402 of 7796 distinct decks, a 31% inclusion rate that places it well ahead of most green non-ramp staples.

When a copy reaches a player's hand, 64% of those copies are cast before the game ends. Median first cast lands on turn 7, a touch later than the card's 3-mana cost would imply. That gap is expected for reactive removal: players tend to hold interaction until it has a meaningful target, rather than casting it at the first legal opportunity. The 27% same-turn cast rate confirms that most drawn copies are held at least briefly before being deployed.

The data comes from 1533 distinct players, and the single heaviest contributor accounts for just 1% of all tracked instances. That spread gives the directional signals here real breadth. Beast Within is a green staple across color identities, and the commander distribution reflects exactly that: the top commanders span Golgari, Gruul, Simic, Selesnya, and even mono-green shells.

At a glance

31% of tracked Commander decks include Beast Within
24% draw rate across tracked games
64% of drawn copies are cast before the game ends
T7 median first-cast turn, reflecting deliberate timing as removal
27% of casts happen the same turn the card is drawn
1533 distinct players have contributed data, indicating broad cross-meta coverage

First-cast turn

n=745

14%

57%

T6-9

16%

T10+

Median 7 P25 5 · P75 9 · max 19

On curve 5% (27 / 745 cast on T3) Cast same turn as drawn 27%

The "good card" funnel

4808 brought · 1533 players

Brought to game

4808

Ever drawn

1171

Reached battlefield

745

Still on board at game end

64%

Of 4808 Beast Within copies brought to tracked games, 1171 were drawn, and 745 of those were cast, a funnel that reflects deliberate reactive play rather than missed opportunities.

≥ -0.4pp

Players who cast this card win 27% of the time (n=704) , vs 24% when it never left the library (n=3130).

When players drew this card but left it in hand, they won 30% (n=392) — about the same as leaving it in the library. Those players survived long enough to draw it, so the gap above is about the card resolving, not just about surviving.

Observed gap +2.9pp; 95% confidence interval -0.4pp to +6.2pp. Correlational, not causal: powerful payoffs also get cast more often in games you are already winning.

Final zone distribution

1303 instances

2.8%

Library

2.5%

Battlefield

58.5%

Graveyard

7.5%

Exile

The vast majority of Beast Within copies end the game in the graveyard after resolving, with only a small fraction finishing in hand or exile. As an instant that immediately resolves, the graveyard is exactly where it belongs.

Commanders that played this card

in tracked games

No single commander dominates the Beast Within distribution. The top commanders span five or more distinct color identities and archetypes, which signals that this card earns its slot across the full breadth of green-inclusive shells rather than as a build-around.

Card text

Beast Within

Instant

Destroy target permanent. Its controller creates a 3/3 green Beast creature token.

Marvel Super Heroes Commander (MSC) · Uncommon · Illustrated by Thomas Chamberlain-Keen

Frequently Asked

How often is Beast Within drawn in a Commander game?

In 3931 tracked multiplayer Commander games, Beast Within was drawn 24% of the time when it was in a deck. That's broadly consistent with a singleton in a 100-card deck. Of 1171 copies that reached a hand, 64% were cast before the game concluded. The remainder were mostly held in hand at game end or never found a moment to be cast.

What turn does Beast Within usually get cast?

Median first-cast turn is 7, with the 25th percentile at turn 5 and the 75th percentile at turn 9. The distribution is heavily weighted toward turns 4 through 9, which reflects the card's role as reactive interaction rather than a card you develop your board with on curve. Players wait for the right target.

Does casting Beast Within correlate with winning?

Win rate in games where Beast Within was cast is 27%, compared to 24% in games where it stayed in the library the entire time. That's a +2.9 percentage-point difference across 704 cast observations and 3130 library observations. The confidence interval on this delta is narrow enough to call it directional but not conclusive. Removal that answers threats likely correlates with stronger board states, but causality is difficult to establish from play data alone.

Why does Beast Within only have a 5% on-curve cast rate?

Beast Within costs 3 mana, so the on-curve window is turn 3. Only 5% of casts land on that turn. This is not players choosing to hold it early. It's structural: a 3-mana instant held for reactive use will almost always be cast after turn 3. The 27% same-turn cast rate reinforces that most players hold it at least a turn or two before pulling the trigger, waiting for a high-value target.

Is Beast Within legal in Commander?

Yes. Beast Within is legal in Commander, Legacy, Modern, Vintage, Historic, Timeless, Duel Commander, and several other formats. It is not legal in Standard, Pioneer, Pauper, or Pauper Commander. It has no format bans on record and is unrestricted in Commander.

Which commanders most commonly run Beast Within?

Across Playgroup Live's tracked games, Hearthhull the Worldseed, T'Challa the Black Panther, Bello Bard of the Brambles, and Zimone Infinite Analyst lead the count of decks including Beast Within. The spread is wide across Gruul, Simic, Selesnya, and multi-color green shells, consistent with a card that fits any green deck that wants instant-speed, unconditional permanent removal.