Illusory Gains
Enchantment — Aura
Enchant creature
You control enchanted creature.
Whenever a creature an opponent controls enters, attach this Aura to that creature.
- CMC
- 5
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- U
- Rarity
- rare
- Set
- Dragons of Tarkir
- Price
- $0.18
- EDHREC rank
- #21654
Illusory Gains gives you control of the best creature on the board and migrates automatically whenever something bigger shows up — for four mana at sorcery speed. The catch is that it moves away from your creature too, so opponents can bait it off something dangerous by playing something expendable.
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 Illusory Gains earns its keep: tables always have at least one threatening creature worth stealing, and the aura's auto-migration means a single copy does continuous work across a long game. In Legacy, Modern, and Pioneer the card is legal but essentially ignored — one-for-one aura removal is too punishing in focused two-player games, and sorcery-speed theft at four mana doesn't compete with those formats' power level. Vintage has the raw card power to make it irrelevant by comparison. Stick to Commander.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.18 bulk tier
At $0.18, Illusory Gains is deep bulk — one of the cheapest ways to run a persistent theft effect in the format. Bulk rares with narrow applications rarely climb, so don't expect appreciation, but at this price it's a zero-regret pickup.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.