Court of Bounty is one of those cards players keep asking about. Here is, in plain words, what its official text says, the rulings published by Wizards of the Coast, and the combos players actually run.
Official card text
When this enchantment enters, you become the monarch. At the beginning of your upkeep, you may put a land card from your hand onto the battlefield. If you're the monarch, instead you may put a creature or land card from your hand onto the battlefield.
Complete guide
Court of Bounty is a powerful green enchantment that allows you to seize control of the game by becoming the monarch. It provides consistent ramp and the potential to cheat massive creatures into play every single turn. Whether you are looking to outpace your opponents or overwhelm them with big threats, this card is a Commander staple.
What It Does
When Court of Bounty enters the battlefield, you immediately become the monarch, which means you will draw an extra card at the beginning of your end step. During each of your upkeeps, the enchantment triggers, offering you a choice. If you are not the monarch, you can put a land card from your hand onto the battlefield. If you have managed to remain the monarch, the ability is upgraded, allowing you to put either a creature OR a land card from your hand onto the battlefield for free.
How It Resolves Step by Step
First, the 'enters the battlefield' ability triggers and resolves, making you the monarch. At the beginning of your next upkeep, the second ability goes on the stack. As it resolves, the game checks if you are currently the monarch. If you are, you choose a creature or land card from your hand and put it directly onto the battlefield. If you lost the monarch title since your last turn, you can only choose a land card. Note that because this is an effect putting a card onto the battlefield, it does not count as your 'play a land' action for the turn.
Common Mistakes
A frequent error is assuming that losing the monarch title after the upkeep trigger goes on the stack but before it resolves prevents you from using the upgraded effect. The game checks your monarch status specifically as the ability resolves. Additionally, remember that putting a creature into play this way is not 'casting' it; therefore, it cannot be countered by spells like Negate, and 'when you cast' triggers will not fire.
When to Play It
This card is most effective in decks that can protect the monarch title with high-toughness blockers or pillow-fort effects. It is also excellent in 'Big Mana' decks where you have high-cost creatures that you want to put into play without paying their mana costs. Because it also provides a card draw engine via The Monarch, it is rarely a dead draw even if your hand is empty.
Interaction examples
Court of Bounty
The MonarchYou play Court of Bounty and immediately become The Monarch. At your end step, you draw a card. During your next upkeep, as long as no one has dealt combat damage to you, you are still the monarch and can put a massive creature from your hand onto the battlefield for free.
Garruk's UprisingWith Garruk's Uprising on the battlefield, if you use the Court of Bounty upkeep trigger to put a creature with power 4 or greater into play, you will immediately draw a card from the Uprising's trigger, in addition to the card you draw at your end step for being the monarch.
Doubling SeasonWhile Court of Bounty puts a creature directly onto the battlefield, Doubling Season does not affect this process unless the creature enters with counters or is a token. If the creature you put into play with Court of Bounty enters with +1/+1 counters, Doubling Season will cause it to enter with twice that many counters.
Guide written with AI from the official text and rulings. Official English text prevails.
How it works : Court of Bounty
Original English text — Wizards of the Coast / Scryfall
- #1· Wizards of the Coast
Court of Bounty's ability isn't the same as playing a land. You may still play a land for the turn if you put a land onto the battlefield with it.
No other card is named in this ruling.
- #2· Wizards of the Coast
The game starts with no monarch. Once an effect makes one player the monarch, the game will have exactly one monarch from that point forward. As a player becomes the monarch, the current monarch (if any) ceases being the monarch.
Card named in this ruling
- #3· Wizards of the Coast
There are two inherent triggered abilities associated with being the monarch. These triggered abilities have no source and are controlled by the player who was the monarch at the time the abilities triggered. The full texts of these abilities are "At the beginning of the monarch's end step, that player draws a card" and "Whenever a creature deals combat damage to the monarch, its controller becomes the monarch."
Card named in this ruling
- #4· Wizards of the Coast
If the triggered ability that causes the monarch to draw a card goes on the stack and a different player becomes the monarch before that ability resolves, the first player will still draw the card.
Card named in this ruling
- #5· Wizards of the Coast
If the monarch leaves the game during another player's turn, that player becomes the monarch. If the monarch leaves the game during their turn, the next player in turn order becomes the monarch.
Card named in this ruling
- #6· Wizards of the Coast
If combat damage dealt to the monarch causes that player to lose the game, the triggered ability that causes the controller of the attacking creature to become the monarch doesn't resolve. In most cases, the controller of the attacking creature will still become the monarch as it is likely their turn.
Card named in this ruling
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Meta decks with Court of Bounty
No archived Top 8 deck with this card yet.