Vren, the RelentlessHow it works & interactions with other cards

Exile Instead of Death

Vren, the Relentless features a powerful replacement effect. If a creature an opponent controls would die, it is exiled instead. Because the creature never hits the graveyard, 'dies' triggers will never activate. This is a continuous effect that even applies if Vren leaves the battlefield at the exact same time as your opponent's creatures, such as during a board wipe.

Growing the Swarm

At the beginning of each end step, Vren checks how many creatures your opponents controlled were exiled that turn. It doesn't matter if they were exiled by Vren's replacement effect or another spell; you create a 1/1 black Rat token for each one. These tokens are not ordinary Rats; they possess a static ability that grants them +1/+1 for every other Rat you control, allowing your army to grow exponentially with every casualty.

Common Mistakes

A common misconception is that Vren exiles everything your opponent loses. Vren only exiles creatures that would die (moving from the battlefield to the graveyard). It does not exile cards that are discarded, milled from the library, or exiled from the hand. Additionally, remember that Vren's Rat-making ability triggers during every end step, including your opponents' turns, provided their creatures were exiled during that turn.

When to Play It

Deploy Vren when you have removal spells ready or when the board is stalled with small creatures. Since Vren has Ward {2}, he is difficult for opponents to remove efficiently early in the game. Use him to shut down graveyard-looping decks while simultaneously creating a win condition that rewards you for simply playing the game and interacting with your opponent's board.

Interaction examples

Preventing Death Triggers

Vren, the RelentlessSolemn Simulacrum

If your opponent controls Solemn Simulacrum and it is destroyed while you control Vren, the Relentless, the Simulacrum is exiled instead of being put into the graveyard. Because it never 'died,' its second ability to draw a card will not trigger.

Doubling the Horde

Vren, the RelentlessRoaming Throne

With Roaming Throne on the battlefield naming 'Rat', Vren's end step triggered ability will trigger an additional time. If three creatures were exiled this turn, the first trigger creates three Rat tokens, and the second trigger creates another three, giving you a total of six powerful Rats.

Scaling Token Power

Vren, the RelentlessRat

Suppose you have Vren, the Relentless and create two Rat tokens during your end step. Each Rat token checks how many other Rats you control. In this case, each token sees Vren (who is a Rat Rogue) and one other Rat token. Thus, each token gets +2/+2, making them 3/3 creatures.