Cornered by Black Mages
Sorcery
Target opponent sacrifices a creature of their choice.
Create a 0/1 black Wizard creature token with "Whenever you cast a noncreature spell, this token deals 1 damage to each opponent."
- CMC
- 3
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- B
- Rarity
- common
- Set
- Final Fantasy
- Price
- $0.19
- EDHREC rank
- #3472
Cornered by Black Mages stacks a meaningful debuff on a target creature — reducing its power and toughness — for a cost that makes it a staple in any deck built around Kuja, Genome Sorcerer's spellslinger triggers. It's a role-player, not a headline card, but in the right shell it does exactly what it promises.
Best Commanders
Commanders with the highest synergy
Kuja, Genome Sorcerer
Kuja, Genome Sorcerer triggers off casting instant and sorcery spells, and Cornered by Black Mages is a cheap, on-theme spell that simultaneously shrinks a threat and fuels that engine — nearly 89% of Kuja decks run it for exactly that reason.
Black Waltz No. 3
Black Waltz No. 3 rewards you for casting spells with black mana pips, and Cornered by Black Mages is a low-cost black spell that fits naturally into that count while handling a problematic creature.
Inalla, Archmage Ritualist
Inalla, Archmage Ritualist wants a high density of instants and sorceries to stay active, and Cornered by Black Mages provides an efficient spell that contributes to that spell count while keeping the board in check.
Zevlor, Elturel Exile
Zevlor, Elturel Exile copies spells that target a single opponent to hit each other opponent instead, and Cornered by Black Mages is a single-target effect that scales dramatically when Zevlor multiplies it across the table.
Format Analysis
Where it lives, where it can’t
| Format | Verdict |
|---|---|
| commander | legal |
| legacy | legal |
| modern | legal |
| pioneer | legal |
| standard | legal |
| vintage | legal |
| pauper | legal |
| oathbreaker | legal |
Cornered by Black Mages is legal across every major format, but it's doing real work almost exclusively in Commander. In 60-card formats — Modern, Pioneer, Legacy — dedicated removal slots demand more unconditional answers, and a stat-reduction effect rarely clears that bar. In Commander, the calculus shifts: cheap spells that trigger commanders like Kuja, Genome Sorcerer or copy-friendly commanders like Zevlor, Elturel Exile make Cornered by Black Mages a functional piece rather than filler. Pauper is the one competitive format where a cheap instant might find a niche, but even there the effect needs to match what the format's threats actually require.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.19 bulk tier
At $0.19, Cornered by Black Mages is firmly bulk, and that price reflects its narrow application outside of specific commander synergies. It's not a card that appreciates — pick it up because your deck wants it, not as a hold.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
- Kuja, Genome Sorcerer
- Black Waltz No. 3
- Inalla, Archmage Ritualist
- Zevlor, Elturel Exile
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.