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Chainbreaker

Artifact Creature — Scarecrow

This creature enters with two -1/-1 counters on it.
{3}, {T}: Remove a -1/-1 counter from target creature.

CMC
2
Mana cost
{2}
Color identity
C
Rarity
common
Set
Shadowmoor
Price
$0.24
EDHREC rank
#17820
Buy on TCGplayer
Chainbreaker card art
Chainbreaker enters as a 2/2, removes two -1/-1 counters from itself or spreads the removal across other creatures — meaningful board presence that scales with how many counters your deck generates. The real pull is Mikaeus, the Unhallowed: Chainbreaker is a non-Human that recurs via undying, and each time it returns it can shed counters again, making it a repeatable engine piece rather than a one-shot fix.

Best Commanders

Commanders with the highest synergy

01
Mikaeus, the Unhallowed

Mikaeus, the Unhallowed

16.8% of decks · synergy 0.17

Mikaeus, the Unhallowed gives Chainbreaker undying, which means every time it dies and returns with a +1/+1 counter, Chainbreaker can immediately strip that counter off itself — resetting the loop and enabling infinite death triggers with any free sacrifice outlet.

Format Analysis

Where it lives, where it can’t

FormatVerdict
commander legal
legacy legal
modern legal
pioneer not legal
standard not legal
vintage legal
pauper legal
oathbreaker legal

Commander is where Chainbreaker actually matters, almost exclusively in Mikaeus, the Unhallowed shells that need a non-Human body capable of indefinitely resetting its own undying counter. In Pauper it's legal and theoretically available, but -1/-1 counter synergies at common are too narrow to make it a staple. Legacy and Vintage have it legal but no competitive shell wants a three-mana 2/2 with this effect when faster, more resilient combo pieces exist. Chainbreaker is a Commander card wearing a multi-format legal badge.

Key Combos

Combo lines featuring this card

Price Context

Current price

$0.24 bulk tier

At $0.24, Chainbreaker is deep bulk — pick it up without hesitation if the Mikaeus, the Unhallowed combo is your target. Bulk combo enablers this specific don't tend to spike unless the commander itself surges in popularity, so don't expect much movement either direction.

Explore

Sources

Mentioned

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Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.