Liliana of the Veil and a handful of other top-tier Liliana printings carry real price tags, which can make building a Liliana-themed deck feel expensive before you've bought a single supporting card. The good news is that several of the 13 Liliana planeswalkers are genuinely affordable, and a budget build can still capture the character's discard-and-sacrifice identity without chasing the most expensive printings first.
Because every Liliana planeswalker is mono-Black, a budget build also benefits from the same simplicity any single-color Commander deck enjoys - no expensive dual lands or fixing pieces needed, just Swamps and a handful of affordable utility lands. That alone trims a meaningful amount off the total deck cost compared to a multicolor build.
This guide focuses on which Liliana printings offer the best value for a budget deck, which supporting cards deliver the discard and sacrifice themes cheaply, and how to plan an upgrade path for later once you're ready to spend more.
None of this means settling for a weak deck - several budget-friendly Lilianas are perfectly playable, just without the premium price tag of the format-defining printings.
Liliana, Untouched by Death, Liliana, Waker of the Dead, and Liliana Vess are typically far more affordable than top-tier printings like Liliana of the Veil or Liliana, Dreadhorde General, while still delivering real value in a graveyard or discard-themed deck. These are the printings worth prioritizing for an initial budget build.
Liliana, Heretical Healer is another solid budget pick, offering both a creature body and a planeswalker transformation in a single affordable card slot.
Black has a deep pool of inexpensive discard spells, sacrifice outlets, and graveyard recursion effects that have never carried a premium price tag the way top-tier planeswalkers do. Leaning on these commons and uncommons keeps your supporting cast cheap while still reinforcing the deck's core themes.
Zombie tribal cards in particular tend to be budget-friendly and synergize naturally with the recursion themes several Liliana printings reward, and many of the best support pieces in this category have stayed cheap for years despite remaining genuinely useful.
Rather than chasing an expensive legendary creature as your commander, look for an affordable mono-Black legendary that still supports discard or sacrifice themes - there are several inexpensive options that do the job just as well as pricier alternatives. The commander slot doesn't need to be your most expensive card.
Prioritize spending your budget on the Liliana planeswalkers themselves and genuinely impactful removal spells over an expensive commander choice.
A mono-Black mana base is already one of the cheapest in Commander, since basic Swamps cost nothing and you don't need pricey dual or fetch lands to fix your colors. A handful of budget utility lands rounds out the mana base without breaking the bank.
Save any mana-base spending for lands with genuine upside, like graveyard recursion or card draw, rather than lands that only exist to fix colors you don't actually need to fix in a mono-color deck.
Once your budget build is running well, the most impactful upgrades are usually swapping in a top-tier Liliana planeswalker like Liliana of the Veil or Liliana, Dreadhorde General, since those cards deliver outsized value relative to almost anything else you could add. Upgrade the planeswalker slots before upgrading your lands or removal.
Tracking secondary market prices over time can also help you catch a top-tier printing at a lower price point, rather than buying during a demand spike.
Proxy-adjacent budget alternatives and lower-rarity removal spells can fill gaps in your deck's early builds without meaningfully hurting its performance, especially at a casual Commander table where raw power level matters less than at a competitive one. Save real spending for cards that genuinely define your deck's game plan.
Avoid over-investing in flashy but replaceable cards early - a cheap, functional removal spell does the same job as an expensive one in most casual games. Track which substitutions you've made so you remember exactly what to prioritize once more budget opens up.
Liliana, Untouched by Death, Liliana, Waker of the Dead, and Liliana Vess are typically more affordable than top-tier printings.
Yes, since basic Swamps cost nothing and no dual lands are needed.
Swap in a top-tier Liliana planeswalker before upgrading lands or removal.
Yes, especially against other casual decks where raw power level matters less.
Build your budget-friendly Liliana deck without overspending, and protect every card along the way with sleeves and a deck box from EVORETRO's Magic the Gathering Collection.
!
