Arcum's Whistle
Artifact
, 
: Choose target non-Wall creature the active player has controlled continuously since the beginning of the turn. That player may pay 
, where X is that creature's mana value. If they don't pay, the creature attacks this turn if able, and at the beginning of the next end step, destroy it if it didn't attack this turn. Activate only before attackers are declared.
- CMC
- 3
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- C
- Rarity
- uncommon
- Set
- Ice Age
- Price
- $0.23
- EDHREC rank
- #27258
Arcum's Whistle taps down a non-Wall creature your opponents control at the cost of three mana and a tap — an effect so narrow and tempo-negative that it barely registers as interaction. Outside of very specific untap or tap-abuse strategies, it doesn't earn a slot.
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 | not legal |
| oathbreaker | legal |
Arcum's Whistle is legal in Commander, Legacy, Vintage, and Oathbreaker, but seeing play in essentially none of them. In Commander, tapping a single creature for three mana is a losing trade against any board with redundancy, and the artifact type doesn't rescue it — there are better tap targets for Voltaic Key loops or Unwinding Clock shells. Legacy and Vintage have access to interaction so far above this power band that Arcum's Whistle is a non-consideration. Oathbreaker follows the same logic as Commander: the effect is too narrow and too expensive to justify inclusion.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.23 bulk tier
At $0.23, Arcum's Whistle is deep bulk — the price reflects demand, which is nearly zero. Don't expect it to move; cards this situational don't find second lives unless a future mechanic explicitly rewards tapping opponents' creatures at scale.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.