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Grim Monolith

Artifact

This artifact doesn't untap during your untap step.
{T}: Add {C}{C}{C}.
{4}: Untap this artifact.

CMC
2
Mana cost
{2}
Color identity
C
Rarity
rare
Set
World Championship Decks 2000
Price
$32.16
EDHREC rank
#679
Buy on TCGplayer
Grim Monolith card art
Grim Monolith is two mana into three mana on turn two — that tempo advantage is real enough that it shows up in 74% of Rograkh, Son of Rohgahh // Silas Renn, Seeker Adept lists and even carries fringe shells like Valley Floodcaller that need a burst of colorless fast. The untap cost is steep, but in any deck that wants to drop a four- or five-mana threat a full turn early, the math is simply correct.

Best Commanders

Commanders with the highest synergy

01
Rograkh, Son of RohgahhSilas Renn, Seeker Adept

Rograkh, Son of Rohgahh // Silas Renn, Seeker Adept

74.5% of decks · synergy 0.70

Rograkh, Son of Rohgahh // Silas Renn, Seeker Adept is the single highest-synergy home for Grim Monolith because the deck wants to equip Silas on turn two and start attacking with Rograkh to recur artifacts — Grim Monolith accelerates that engine a full turn ahead of schedule and doubles as a recurrable artifact target itself.

02
Kinnan, Bonder Prodigy

Kinnan, Bonder Prodigy

44.2% of decks · synergy 0.41

Kinnan, Bonder Prodigy doubles the output of every nonland mana source, so Grim Monolith stops being two-into-three and becomes two-into-six — that one interaction is why nearly 44% of Kinnan lists include it.

03
Zirda, the Dawnwaker

Zirda, the Dawnwaker

40.3% of decks · synergy 0.39

Zirda, the Dawnwaker cuts Grim Monolith's untap cost from four colorless to two, turning the monolith into a net-positive mana engine every turn rather than a one-shot accelerant.

04
Dargo, the ShipwreckerTymna the Weaver

Dargo, the Shipwrecker // Tymna the Weaver

39.5% of decks · synergy 0.38

Dargo, the Shipwrecker // Tymna the Weaver sacrifices artifacts to reduce Dargo's commander cost, and Grim Monolith serves double duty — front-loading mana on the turn you want to deploy Dargo and then feeding the cost reduction once its mana is spent.

05

Etali, Primal Conqueror

31.9% of decks · synergy 0.30

Etali, Primal Conqueror costs nine mana, so Grim Monolith is simply doing the most basic job here: getting Etali onto the battlefield a turn sooner than the land count alone would allow.

Format Analysis

Where it lives, where it can’t

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

Commander is where Grim Monolith does its real work — the singleton format's reliance on the command zone means decks routinely need to hit four or five mana on turn two or three, and Grim Monolith is one of the few two-mana artifacts that makes that reliably possible. In Vintage, it sees niche play in artifact-combo shells where the unresolved tension between its tap and unravel costs is less punishing because games end quickly. Legacy is legal but the format's density of free interaction and faster clocks makes a four-mana unravel investment a hard sell outside dedicated combo lists. Modern, Pioneer, Standard, and Pauper are all off the table, so if you're not playing Commander, Vintage, Legacy, or Oathbreaker, Grim Monolith simply isn't available to you.

Key Combos

Combo lines featuring this card

Budget Alternatives

Cheaper options that do most of the same work

Basalt Monolith is the closest functional replacement — same tap-for-three, same colorless output, lower unravel cost, and it runs under a dollar — but it costs three mana to deploy rather than two, which is exactly the turn-order advantage Grim Monolith is selling. Thought Vessel and Mind Stone each hit two mana into two mana with upside, which isn't the same ceiling but keeps your curve honest without a $32 entry fee.

Price Context

Current price

$32.16 premium tier

At $32.16, Grim Monolith sits in premium artifact territory — expensive relative to most ramp, but not irrational given that it's a Reserved List card with no reprint path. The price has been stable at this tier for years, which reflects genuine demand from cEDH and high-power Commander rather than speculation.

Explore

Sources

Mentioned

← All cards

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