Grave Sifter
Creature — Elemental Beast
When this creature enters, each player chooses a creature type and returns any number of cards of that type from their graveyard to their hand.
- CMC
- 6
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- G
- Rarity
- rare
- Set
- Commander 2014
- Price
- $14.15
- EDHREC rank
- #10804
Grave Sifter enters and lets each player name a creature type, then returns any number of creatures of their chosen type from their graveyard to hand — in a tribal deck, that's a full hand refill on a single trigger. Ashling, the Limitless runs it because copying the enter-the-battlefield trigger multiplies the recursion, and in a token-heavy Elemental build the returns stack fast enough to bury opponents in card advantage.
Best Commanders
Commanders with the highest synergy
Ashling, the Limitless
Ashling, the Limitless copies enter-the-battlefield triggers, so Grave Sifter's ability fires multiple times in a single turn — each copy lets Ashling's controller name Elementals again, turning one cast into a recursive engine that refills hand and rebuilds board in tandem.
Slinza, the Spiked Stampede
Slinza, the Spiked Stampede runs creature-type tribal at high density, and Grave Sifter's mass recursion means a board wipe doesn't end the game — Slinza decks recover a full grip of creatures while opponents are still rebuilding.
Format Analysis
Where it lives, where it can’t
| Format | Verdict |
|---|---|
| commander | legal |
| legacy | legal |
| modern | not legal |
| pioneer | not legal |
| standard | not legal |
| vintage | legal |
| pauper | not legal |
| oathbreaker | legal |
Grave Sifter is a Commander card through and through — its power scales directly with the number of players at the table and the density of creature types in graveyards, both of which Commander maximizes. In Legacy and Vintage it's technically legal but competes with far more efficient recursion and has no reliable home in a format that doesn't reward six-mana creatures without immediate combo payoff. Oathbreaker can use it in the same tribal shells that Commander does, though the smaller deck size and faster clock make the six-mana ask harder to justify unless the signature spell accelerates the game plan. Anywhere outside those slower, multiplayer environments, Grave Sifter doesn't have the raw efficiency to compete.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Ashling, the LimitlessGrave SifterAnimar, Soul of Elements
Each opponent returns all creature cards from their graveyard to their hand; Infinite +1/+1 counters on a creature; Infinite ETB; Infinite LTB; Infinite creature tokens with haste; Infinite death triggers; Infinite sacrifice triggers; Infinite storm count; Return all cards from your graveyard to your hand
View on Commander Spellbook ↗
Ashling, the LimitlessAshnod's AltarGrave Sifter
Each opponent returns all creature cards from their graveyard to their hand; Infinite ETB; Infinite LTB; Infinite death triggers; Infinite sacrifice triggers; Infinite storm count; Return all cards from your graveyard to your hand
View on Commander Spellbook ↗
Ashling, the LimitlessGrave SifterTemur Battlecrier
Each opponent returns all creature cards from their graveyard to their hand; Infinite ETB; Infinite LTB; Infinite creature tokens with haste; Infinite death triggers; Infinite sacrifice triggers; Infinite storm count; Return all cards from your graveyard to your hand
View on Commander Spellbook ↗
Ashling, the LimitlessMana EchoesGrave Sifter
Each opponent returns all creature cards from their graveyard to their hand; Infinite ETB; Infinite LTB; Infinite colorless mana; Infinite creature tokens with haste; Infinite death triggers; Infinite sacrifice triggers; Infinite storm count; Return all cards from your graveyard to your hand
View on Commander Spellbook ↗
Ashling, the LimitlessFood ChainGrave Sifter
Return all cards from your graveyard to your hand; Each opponent returns all creature cards from their graveyard to their hand; Infinite ETB; Infinite LTB; Infinite colored mana that can only be spent to cast creature spells; Infinite death triggers; Infinite sacrifice triggers; Infinite storm count
View on Commander Spellbook ↗Budget Alternatives
Cheaper options that do most of the same work
Haunted One is the closest budget stand-in — it doesn't return creatures from the graveyard directly, but it grants encore to everything in your graveyard, which generates comparable board presence for far less investment. If the specific recursion-to-hand effect is what you need, Patriarch's Bidding does the same job at mass scale for less than half the price, though it gives every tribal player at the table the same benefit where Grave Sifter lets you choose who benefits most.
Price Context
Current price
$14.15 mid tier
At $14.15, Grave Sifter sits in the mid tier — expensive enough to feel like a deliberate inclusion but not a chase rare. It's a single-printing card with a narrow but loyal home in tribal Commander decks, so the price reflects genuine demand rather than speculation, and it's unlikely to drop significantly without a reprint.
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Sources
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.