Aeolipile
Artifact
, 
, Sacrifice this artifact: It deals 2 damage to any target.
- CMC
- 2
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- C
- Rarity
- rare
- Set
- Pro Tour Collector Set
- Price
- $1.22
- EDHREC rank
- #26940
Aeolipile trades itself to deal 2 damage to any target — the effect is real, but paying 1 to cast it and then sacrificing it means you're spending two resources to kill a mana dork or ping a planeswalker. Functional, unexciting, and almost always outclassed by removal that doesn't require two steps to resolve.
Format Analysis
Where it lives, where it can’t
| Format | Verdict |
|---|---|
| commander | legal |
| legacy | legal |
| modern | not legal |
| pioneer | not legal |
| standard | not legal |
| vintage | legal |
| pauper | legal |
| oathbreaker | legal |
In Commander, Aeolipile is fringe-playable in artifact-synergy decks that specifically want sacrifice fodder or low-cost artifacts entering the battlefield — outside that context, 2 damage isn't enough to matter at a 40-life table. Pauper is its most competitive home, where cheap, flexible interaction is genuinely scarce and hitting any target keeps it relevant against aggressive creature strategies. Legacy and Vintage have access to far more efficient removal, so Aeolipile doesn't see play there. The card occupies a narrow band: fine when the deck wants what it is specifically, skippable everywhere else.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$1.22 cheap tier
At $1.22, Aeolipile sits at the cheap tier but is overpriced relative to its power — most Commander players can find strictly better removal for less. It's a stable low-dollar card with no trajectory to speak of.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.