Frostveil Ambush
Instant
Tap up to two target creatures. Those creatures don't untap during their controller's next untap step.
Cycling 
(, Discard this card: Draw a card.)
- CMC
- 5
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- U
- Rarity
- common
- Set
- Ikoria: Lair of Behemoths
- Price
- $0.10
- EDHREC rank
- #19695
Frostveil Ambush taps all creatures target opponent controls at instant speed — a full defensive reset or a one-sided combat lock for five mana. It's a narrow but occasionally decisive effect, and the cost keeps it out of most competitive lists.
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 | legal |
| oathbreaker | legal |
In Commander, Frostveil Ambush earns its slot in tap-synergy strategies — think Merfolk or Inspired builds that reward opponents having tapped creatures — and it doubles as emergency protection when a wide board is swinging your way. Outside Commander, the effect is too situational: Modern and Pioneer battlefields move too fast for a five-mana sorcery-speed-adjacent instant that doesn't generate card advantage. Pauper is the one other format worth mentioning, where defensive tools are more constrained and the effect can swing a game, though it still competes against cheaper options. Legacy and Vintage simply have better ways to spend five mana.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.10 bulk tier
At $0.10, Frostveil Ambush is deep bulk — the kind of card you pick up as a throw-in without thinking twice. The price reflects its narrow application, and there's no pressure vector that would push it higher.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.