Dead Man's Chest
Enchantment — Aura
Enchant creature an opponent controls
When enchanted creature dies, exile cards equal to its power from the top of its owner's library. You may cast spells from among those cards for as long as they remain exiled, and mana of any type can be spent to cast them.
- CMC
- 2
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- B
- Rarity
- rare
- Set
- Rivals of Ixalan Promos
- Price
- —
- EDHREC rank
- #8551
Dead Man's Chest attaches to an opponent's creature and dumps its controller's top X cards into exile when that creature dies, giving you access to cast them — raw card advantage stapled to a removal magnet for two mana. The catch is you need a reliable way to kill the enchanted creature on your own terms, which is exactly why it slots so cleanly into shells built around Eriette of the Charmed Apple.
Best Commanders
Commanders with the highest synergy
Eriette of the Charmed Apple
Eriette of the Charmed Apple drains opponents for each Aura you control and punishes them for attacking into your board, so sticking Dead Man's Chest on a dangerous creature does double duty — it makes that creature a liability while setting up a free kill that floods you with the opponent's own cards.
Gonti, Night Minister
Gonti, Night Minister cares about casting spells from zones other than your hand, and Dead Man's Chest is a repeatable pipeline for exactly that — every creature that dies under the Chest refills your exile pool for Gonti to exploit.
Tasha, the Witch Queen
Tasha, the Witch Queen creates Demon tokens whenever opponents cast spells from anywhere other than their hand, so every card you rip out of exile with Dead Man's Chest that you actually cast is also a free 3/3 — the synergy is direct and scaling.
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 | not legal |
| oathbreaker | legal |
Commander is where Dead Man's Chest does its best work: three opponents means three potential targets, creature-heavy metas mean frequent death triggers, and the exile pool it builds can fuel a whole game's worth of casting. In competitive Legacy and Vintage the card is legal but irrelevant — two-mana setup enchantments that require a creature to die don't fit those formats' speed or threat density. Pioneer and Modern are the same story: the card is legal on paper, but the two-step setup (attach, then kill) is too slow against efficient removal suites and combo decks that don't cooperate. Oathbreaker is the one other format where it can matter, particularly in black shells that already want to interact with the opponent's library.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
unknown tier
Current pricing data for Dead Man's Chest isn't available in the system, so check Scryfall or your preferred retailer for the live number. Historically it's been a budget-friendly pickup given its niche setup requirement, but demand in Eriette and theft-strategy builds keeps it from bottoming out entirely.
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Sources
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.