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Fathom Mage

Creature — Human Wizard

Evolve (Whenever a creature you control enters, if that creature has greater power or toughness than this creature, put a +1/+1 counter on this creature.)
Whenever a +1/+1 counter is put on this creature, you may draw a card.

CMC
4
Mana cost
{2}{G}{U}
Color identity
GU
Rarity
rare
Set
Commander 2016
Price
$0.45
EDHREC rank
#1718
Buy on TCGplayer
Fathom Mage card art
Fathom Mage turns every +1/+1 counter placed on it into a free card, which in the right shell means drawing four, six, or ten cards off a single spell. The cost is that it needs external support — Wizard Class can accelerate its evolve triggers, and Tidus, Yuna's Guardian builds an entire engine around it — but in a counter-stacking deck, Fathom Mage is one of the most efficient draw engines in blue-green.

Best Commanders

Commanders with the highest synergy

01
Tidus, Yuna's Guardian

Tidus, Yuna's Guardian

75.2% of decks · synergy 0.64

Tidus, Yuna's Guardian is the single best home for Fathom Mage: Tidus distributes +1/+1 counters to the party on cast triggers, and Fathom Mage converts each of those counters directly into cards, turning a wide board strategy into a relentless draw engine.

02
Ezuri, Claw of Progress

Ezuri, Claw of Progress

71.0% of decks · synergy 0.64

Every experience counter Ezuri, Claw of Progress generates puts four +1/+1 counters somewhere, and pointing them at Fathom Mage means you're drawing four cards from a single combat trigger — the two cards reward each other in a tight feedback loop.

03
Zimone, Paradox Sculptor

Zimone, Paradox Sculptor

58.0% of decks · synergy 0.51

Zimone, Paradox Sculptor proliferates and doubles counters, so Fathom Mage scales exponentially rather than linearly; a single proliferate chain can draw half a hand from one creature.

04
Yuna, Grand Summoner

Yuna, Grand Summoner

59.9% of decks · synergy 0.49

Yuna, Grand Summoner's Aeon tokens and summon effects stack +1/+1 counters across the board, and Fathom Mage sits in that shell as a passive payoff that cashes those counters into cards without requiring any additional mana investment.

Format Analysis

Where it lives, where it can’t

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

Commander is where Fathom Mage actually lives — the format's long games and counter-stacking commanders give it the density of triggers it needs to be broken rather than merely decent. In Modern and Legacy it's legal but unplayed; four mana for a 1/1 that draws cards only when it grows is too slow and too fragile against interaction-heavy fields where faster engines exist. Pioneer is the same story: the evolve mechanic never had the critical mass of powerful counter synergies to make Fathom Mage a constructed consideration. Oathbreaker is a legitimate home if the signature spell stacks counters, but the format's tighter deck construction makes it a niche pick compared to Commander's 99-card flexibility.

Key Combos

Combo lines featuring this card

1,611 decks
Lyla, Holographic AssistantFathom Mage

Lyla, Holographic AssistantFathom Mage

Infinite card draw; Infinite draw triggers; Near-infinite +1/+1 counters on a creature

View on Commander Spellbook ↗

Price Context

Current price

$0.45 bulk tier

At $0.45, Fathom Mage is firmly bulk — the price reflects its narrow playability rather than its ceiling in the right deck. It's been reprinted enough to stay cheap, so there's no urgency to buylist it, but there's also no reason to pay above bulk rates when copies are widely available.

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Sources

Mentioned

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