Aerial Formation
Instant
Strive — This spell costs 
more to cast for each target beyond the first.
Any number of target creatures each get +1/+1 and gain flying until end of turn.
- CMC
- 1
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- U
- Rarity
- common
- Set
- Journey into Nyx
- Price
- $0.09
- EDHREC rank
- #22154
Aerial Formation gives your whole team +1/+1 and flying until end of turn for one blue mana, with a built-in kicker that scales the buff for each additional mana you spend. The effect is real — especially on a wide board — but instants that require multiple attackers to justify their slot rarely survive Commander deckbuilding.
Format Analysis
Where it lives, where it can’t
| Format | Verdict |
|---|---|
| commander | legal |
| legacy | legal |
| modern | legal |
| pioneer | legal |
| standard | not legal |
| vintage | legal |
| pauper | legal |
| oathbreaker | legal |
In Commander, Aerial Formation is a fringe combat trick in token-heavy blue or Azorius flying-tribal decks — the kind of card that wins one unexpected combat and then sits in hand for three games. Pauper is its most defensible home, where cheap, scalable tricks carry more weight and evasion is a legitimate finisher in aggressive commons-only builds. In Modern, Pioneer, Legacy, and Vintage, it doesn't make the cut; those formats demand more from a single card than conditional flying on a board you have to already control. The card is legal everywhere worth mentioning, but legal isn't the same as playable.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.09 bulk tier
At $0.09, Aerial Formation sits firmly in bulk territory — the kind of card you pick out of a commons box without thinking twice. That price is a ceiling, not a floor; demand is too narrow to push it anywhere.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.