Aethersnipe
Creature — Elemental
When this creature enters, return target nonland permanent to its owner's hand.
Evoke 
(You may cast this spell for its evoke cost. If you do, it's sacrificed when it enters.)
- CMC
- 6
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- U
- Rarity
- common
- Set
- Lorwyn
- Price
- $0.15
- EDHREC rank
- #11662
Aethersnipe enters the battlefield and bounces any nonland permanent — unconditional, no questions asked — but six mana is a real cost that limits where it can compete. In combo shells like Imoti, Celebrant of Bounty, the cascade trigger turns that six-mana body into an engine piece that loops with Intruder Alarm, making the cost irrelevant.
Best Commanders
Commanders with the highest synergy
Imoti, Celebrant of Bounty
Imoti, Celebrant of Bounty cascades off any six-mana spell, and Aethersnipe hits that threshold exactly — making it a repeatable bounce engine once Intruder Alarm is on board and you have a way to reduce its cost or recur it.
Format Analysis
Where it lives, where it can’t
| Format | Verdict |
|---|---|
| commander | legal |
| legacy | legal |
| modern | legal |
| pioneer | not legal |
| standard | not legal |
| vintage | legal |
| pauper | legal |
| oathbreaker | legal |
Aethersnipe is a bulk common in every non-rotating format — legal in Commander, Legacy, Modern, Pauper, Vintage, and Oathbreaker — but it only earns a slot in Pauper and Commander. In Pauper, six mana is too expensive for most tempo strategies, but it occasionally surfaces in blink or bounce shells that can abuse enters-the-battlefield effects at common rarity. Commander is where Aethersnipe actually matters: the combo ceiling with Intruder Alarm and cascade commanders makes it a legitimate engine piece rather than a fair bounce spell. In Legacy, Modern, and Vintage, it's simply outclassed by cheaper interaction.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Intruder AlarmAethersnipe
Infinite ETB; Infinite LTB; Infinite mana creatures you control can produce; Infinite storm count; Infinite untap of creatures; Infinite untap of creatures you control
View on Commander Spellbook ↗
AethersnipeGwenna, Eyes of GaeaThryx, the Sudden Storm
Infinite LTB; Infinite ETB; Infinite storm count; Infinite +1/+1 counters on a creature
View on Commander Spellbook ↗
AethersnipeGwenna, Eyes of GaeaNylea, Keen-Eyed
Infinite +1/+1 counters on a creature; Infinite ETB; Infinite LTB; Infinite storm count
View on Commander Spellbook ↗
AethersnipeGwenna, Eyes of GaeaUrza's Incubator
Infinite LTB; Infinite ETB; Infinite storm count; Infinite +1/+1 counters on a creature
View on Commander Spellbook ↗
AethersnipeGwenna, Eyes of GaeaSemblance Anvil
Infinite LTB; Infinite ETB; Infinite storm count; Infinite +1/+1 counters on a creature
View on Commander Spellbook ↗Price Context
Current price
$0.15 bulk tier
At $0.15, Aethersnipe is deep bulk — a card you pick up without thinking twice. That price is stable; it's a common with a narrow niche, and no reprint pressure or spike is coming to move it.
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Sources
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.