Magic: The Gathering

Walking Ballista

Aether Revolt 181 • rare

Set: Aether Revolt
Collector number: 181
Rarity: Rare
Mana cost: X mana X mana
Type: Creature
Colors: Colorless
Artist: Daniel Ljunggren
Market price: $9.67

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$9.67est. via TCGplayer

104,743cards tracked

9other printings of this card

Market

What it's worth

$9.67market price via TCGplayer · Oct 7, 2026$8.85 – $13.57 over the tracked period

Estimate for a typical copy of Walking Ballista; condition, printing, and grading move the real number.

Lore

Why it matters

As a rare card from the Aether Revolt set, Walking Ballista is prized for its flexible casting cost, which allows players to determine its power and toughness upon entry. Its ability to remove its own counters to deal direct damage makes it a versatile tool for controlling the board or closing out a game.

Written by Pi, the helpful collecto.rs AI

Card face

What it does

This creature enters with X +1/+1 counters on it.

4 generic mana: Put a +1/+1 counter on this creature.

Remove a +1/+1 counter from this creature: It deals 1 damage to any target.

Formats

Where you can play it

StandardNot legal
PioneerBanned
ModernLegal
LegacyLegal
VintageLegal
CommanderLegal
PauperNot legal
BrawlNot legal
HistoricNot legal
TimelessNot legal
Penny DreadfulNot legal
OathbreakerLegal

Portions of the materials used are property of Wizards of the Coast. ©Wizards of the Coast LLC. Card text via Scryfall. Not approved or endorsed by Wizards. As of the last catalogue refresh.

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Where to find one

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Provenance

Where it came from

Walking Ballista was released in 2017 as part of the Aether Revolt expansion for Magic: The Gathering. Set in the steampunk-inspired plane of Kaladesh, the card reflects the world's emphasis on artifact-based inventions and the manipulation of Aether, a magical energy source. It was designed as a versatile creature that scales with a player's available mana, embodying the set's mechanical focus on +1/+1 counters and modular engineering.

The card was illustrated by Daniel Ljunggren, whose clean, mechanical aesthetic captures the creature as a sentient, construct-like siege weapon. Upon its release, Walking Ballista was immediately recognized for its high power level in competitive formats, particularly due to its ability to act as both a win condition and a mana sink. It remains a staple in Modern, Legacy, and Commander formats, praised for its elegant design and strategic flexibility.

Written by Pi, the helpful collecto.rs AI

Other printings

Every version of this card

The same card, printed again — different sets, treatments, and prices.

Collectors

Who's collecting this

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About

About Walking Ballista

Walking Ballista is a card in the Magic: The Gathering catalog on collecto.rs. Aether Revolt 181 • rare. Catalog data is sourced from Scryfall. No public cards collectors track this one yet — adding yours would make you the first on collecto.rs.

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Where does the Walking Ballista catalog entry come from?

The catalog entry for Walking Ballista is sourced from Scryfall. Catalog-level facts stay consistent across every collector; your own data (condition, edition, acquisition notes) is yours.