Mana Short
Instant
Tap all lands target player controls and that player loses all unspent mana.
- CMC
- 3
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- U
- Rarity
- rare
- Set
- Fourth Edition
- Price
- $2.13
- EDHREC rank
- #15313
Mana Short taps down an opponent's entire mana base and empties their mana pool at instant speed — cast it at the end of their upkeep and they lose a full turn of interaction. Three mana for that much tempo is the deal; the cost is that it does nothing against the other two or three players at the table.
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 |
In Commander, Mana Short is a political weapon: you cast it to neutralize the archenemy's counterspell mana at the end of their upkeep, buying the table a free attack step or a critical spell resolution. Legacy and Vintage are the only other formats where it's legal, and neither has run it seriously in years — fast mana and cantrip density make a single tap-out effect too narrow to compete. Oathbreaker is where it quietly overperforms, since two-player-equivalent threat removal matters more in a smaller pod. Everywhere it's legal, the card is a tempo tool, not a win condition.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$2.13 cheap tier
At $2.13, Mana Short sits comfortably in the budget tier — low enough that it's a painless include if the effect fits your gameplan. Niche instants with no reprint pressure tend to sit flat; don't expect it to move much in either direction.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.