Breath of Life
Sorcery
Return target creature card from your graveyard to the battlefield.
- CMC
- 4
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- W
- Rarity
- common
- Set
- Portal
- Price
- $0.49
- EDHREC rank
- #13550
Breath of Life returns any creature from your graveyard to the battlefield — no targeting restrictions, no entering-tapped clause — for four mana at instant speed. It's strictly worse than Resurrection in every way except that it shares a legal slot with it, and commanders like Preston, the Vanisher that want flicker-and-enter triggers will almost always prefer something cheaper or more repeatable.
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 |
Breath of Life is a four-mana sorcery in a world where reanimation has never been cheaper, which limits its appeal in every format where it's legal. In Commander, it competes directly with Reanimate, Animate Dead, and Unburied Alive lines that win games rather than just replace a creature; casual tables will tolerate it, but it rarely makes a meaningful impact. In Legacy and Vintage, the reanimation ceiling is so high that Breath of Life doesn't register. Pauper is where it's most at home — the common card pool thins the competition considerably, and a clean "return target creature card" effect at common has genuine utility in creature-heavy decks.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Preston, the VanisherKarmic GuideBreath of LifePhyrexian Altar
Exile all nonland permanents opponents control; Infinite colored mana; Infinite death triggers; Infinite ETB; Infinite LTB; Infinite sacrifice triggers
View on Commander Spellbook ↗Price Context
Current price
$0.49 bulk tier
At $0.49, Breath of Life is deep bulk, and there's no pressure holding that floor up — it's a functional duplicate of effects that exist at every price point. Pick it up if you need it, but don't expect the price to move in either direction.
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Sources
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.