Essence of the Wild
~$0.47 low · ~$1.73 high
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Innistrad #178 · Illustrated by Terese Nielsen
Innistrad #178 · Illustrated by Terese NielsenWhat is Essence of the Wild worth?
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TCGplayer market prices in USD, updated October 14, 2026. Each price is for one printing and one finish.
Oracle text
Creatures you control enter as a copy of this creature.
6/6
Wander too far into the wild and it may take you for its own.
Format legality
The only printing of Essence of the Wild
| Printing | Rarity | Non-foil | Foil | Cardmarket (EUR) | My collection |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Innistrad isd #178· 2011mythic· Cardmarket €0.53 · €1.40 foil | mythic | $0.47 | $1.73 | €0.53€1.40 foil |
Prices are TCGplayer market prices in USD for each printing and finish, via Scryfall. They are a guide, not an appraisal.
Where to buy Essence of the Wild
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Card details
- First printed
- 2011
- Printings
- 1
- Mana value
- 6
- EDHREC rank
- #25,053 on EDHREC (Commander popularity)
- Artist
- Terese Nielsen
What the codes mean
The small print at the bottom of the Innistrad card (#178).
178
- 178Collector number: this card's place in the set list. Main-set cards print it over the set's card count.
Cards from 1998 to mid-2014 print the collector number over the set's card count (like 90/383) next to the copyright line. They have no rarity letter, set code or language code: the set symbol and its colour show the set and rarity.
How to read a Magic card: every part and code, on real cards.
Rulings (8)
September 22, 2011
Because creatures you control enter as copies of Essence of the Wild, any "enters" triggered abilities printed on such creatures won't trigger.
September 22, 2011
If a creature such as Cryptoplasm that's already on the battlefield copies Essence of the Wild and modifies its own copy effect, that modification is also copied by creatures entering under your control.
September 22, 2011
External abilities may still affect how a creature enters. For example, if your opponent controls Urabrask the Hidden, which reads, in part, "Creatures your opponents control enter tapped," a creature entering under your control will be a tapped Essence of the Wild.
September 22, 2011
If a creature such as Clone is entering under your control, there will be two copy effects to apply: the creature's own and Essence of the Wild's. No matter what order these effects are applied, the creature will be a copy of Essence of the Wild when it enters.
September 22, 2011
Other "enters" replacement abilities printed on the creature entering won't be applied because the creature will already be Essence of the Wild at that point (and therefore it won't have those abilities). For example, a creature that normally enters tapped will enter as an untapped Essence of the Wild, and a creature that would normally enter with counters on it will enter as an Essence of the Wild with no counters.
September 22, 2011
Replacement effects that modify how a creature enters are applied in the following order: first control-changing effects (such as Gather Specimens), then copy effects (such as the abilities of Essence of the Wild and Clone), then all other effects. This is a minor rules change to make Essence of the Wild and similar cards in the future work intuitively.
September 22, 2011
If you control more than one Essence of the Wild, creatures you control will enter as a copy of the one whose copy effect you apply last.
September 22, 2011
Creatures you control don't copy whether Essence of the Wild is tapped or untapped, whether it has any counters on it or any Auras and Equipment attached to it, or any non-copy effects that have changed its power, toughness, types, color, or so on.
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