MagicTheGathering.fyi

Corsair Captain

Creature — Human Pirate

When this creature enters, create a Treasure token. (It's an artifact with "{T}, Sacrifice this token: Add one mana of any color.")
Other Pirates you control get +1/+1.

CMC
3
Mana cost
{2}{U}
Color identity
U
Rarity
rare
Set
Foundations
Price
$0.26
EDHREC rank
#4842
Buy on TCGplayer
Corsair Captain card art
Corsair Captain enters and immediately hands every Pirate you control +1/+1 and menace, then leaves a Treasure behind when it dies — that's a lord, a combat enhancer, and a mana rock trigger stapled to a three-mana body. The cost is that it does nothing in isolation outside tribal, so it's a snap-include in Admiral Brass, Unsinkable shells and a blank in anything else; pair it with Deadeye Navigator and you can blink it repeatedly to flood the board with Treasures while re-triggering the anthem.

Best Commanders

Commanders with the highest synergy

01
Admiral Brass, Unsinkable

Admiral Brass, Unsinkable

87.5% of decks · synergy 0.83

Admiral Brass, Unsinkable reanimates Pirates from the graveyard, and Corsair Captain's death trigger produces a Treasure that accelerates that engine while the continuous +1/+1 and menace anthem makes every reanimated body hit harder — it's in nearly 88% of Admiral Brass lists for exactly that reason.

02
Admiral Beckett Brass

Admiral Beckett Brass

79.1% of decks · synergy 0.74

Admiral Beckett Brass wants Pirates connecting in combat, and Corsair Captain's menace anthem makes blocking your whole crew a nightmare — Corsair Captain shows up in over 79% of Beckett Brass decks because evasion and a lord effect are exactly what that theft strategy needs to close games.

03
Edward Kenway

Edward Kenway

56.9% of decks · synergy 0.52

Edward Kenway cares about Rogues and Pirates attacking, so Corsair Captain's blanket menace and power boost translate directly into more reliable combat damage and the triggers that come with it.

04
Breeches, Brazen PlundererMalcolm, Keen-Eyed Navigator

Breeches, Brazen Plunderer // Malcolm, Keen-Eyed Navigator

52.5% of decks · synergy 0.51

Breeches, Brazen Plunderer // Malcolm, Keen-Eyed Navigator rewards Pirates dealing combat damage to players, and Corsair Captain's menace makes those hits more consistent while the Treasure death trigger funnels straight into the deck's already-greedy mana demands.

05
Francisco, Fowl MarauderMalcolm, Keen-Eyed Navigator

Francisco, Fowl Marauder // Malcolm, Keen-Eyed Navigator

39.8% of decks · synergy 0.39

Francisco, Fowl Marauder // Malcolm, Keen-Eyed Navigator leans on evasive Pirates connecting repeatedly, and Corsair Captain's menace anthem is one of the cheapest ways to push through blockers in a Dimir shell that doesn't always have access to red's direct combat tricks.

Format Analysis

Where it lives, where it can’t

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

Commander is where Corsair Captain lives — the Pirate tribal density in EDH is high enough that the lord effect is almost always live, and the Treasure death trigger generates real value in a format where a single mana can matter across a 40-life game. In 60-card formats like Modern and Pioneer, Corsair Captain is legal but Pirates lack the critical mass to make a dedicated tribal shell competitive, so it doesn't see meaningful play there. Legacy and Vintage have access to it but have no incentive to run a three-mana lord when those formats are defined by speed and efficiency that Corsair Captain can't match. Standard legality gives it a window in limited environments where tribal synergies are supported, but outside of Draft or Sealed it remains a Commander card through and through.

Key Combos

Combo lines featuring this card

Price Context

Current price

$0.26 bulk tier

At $0.26, Corsair Captain is bulk — it's a safe pickup for any Pirates build without any budget consideration. Bulk rares with strong tribal homes tend to stay cheap unless a competitive format adopts them, which isn't on the horizon here, so buy the copies you need and don't overthink it.

Explore

Sources

Mentioned

← All cards

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