Artful Takedown
Instant
Choose one or both —
• Tap target creature.
• Target creature gets -2/-4 until end of turn.
- CMC
- 4
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- BU
- Rarity
- common
- Set
- Guilds of Ravnica
- Price
- $0.04
- EDHREC rank
- #24143
Artful Takedown trades instant-speed removal and a tempo hit — target creature gets -3/-3 or is tapped — for three mana at sorcery flexibility that other spells match cheaper. Two effects stapled together sounds appealing until you realize neither half is strong enough to justify the cost on its own in a format where unconditional removal exists.
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 |
Artful Takedown is a bulk common in every format that will see it, and the competition keeps it benched. In Commander, three-mana instant removal needs to either kill reliably or generate meaningful card advantage — Artful Takedown does neither, since -3/-3 leaves most threats alive and tapping a creature is a one-turn stall at best. Pauper is where it comes closest to relevance, since the card pool is constrained and modal spells carry more weight, but even there Snuff Out and Doom Blade outclass it on rate. In Legacy, Modern, and Pioneer, it simply doesn't come up.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.04 bulk tier
At $0.04, Artful Takedown is deep bulk — the price reflects its playability ceiling accurately. Don't expect movement; cards at this tier stay flat unless a fringe combo or reprint catapults them into visibility, and nothing about Artful Takedown suggests that's coming.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.