Mantis Engine
Artifact Creature — Insect
: This creature gains flying until end of turn. (It can't be blocked except by creatures with flying or reach.): This creature gains first strike until end of turn. (It deals combat damage before creatures without first strike.)
- CMC
- 5
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- C
- Rarity
- uncommon
- Set
- Tenth Edition
- Price
- —
- EDHREC rank
- #29307
Mantis Engine gives you a self-equipping, trample-and-first-strike threat that attacks on multiple axes without requiring support cards. Five mana for a 3/3 is below rate, and that cost is the whole argument against it.
Format Analysis
Where it lives, where it can’t
| Format | Verdict |
|---|---|
| commander | legal |
| legacy | legal |
| modern | legal |
| pioneer | not legal |
| standard | not legal |
| vintage | legal |
| pauper | not legal |
| oathbreaker | legal |
In Commander, Mantis Engine occupies the same awkward space as most five-mana artifact creatures — the ceiling isn't high enough to justify the slot when the format demands efficiency or synergy at every point on the curve. Legacy and Vintage are non-starters; nothing about Mantis Engine is close to competitive there. Modern has long since moved past standalone artifact creatures at this cost. Oathbreaker mirrors Commander's judgment: playable in the loosest sense, but rarely the right call.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
unknown tier
Price data for Mantis Engine isn't currently available, so check Scryfall or TCGPlayer for a live quote. Given its limited competitive demand, it almost certainly sits at bulk or near-bulk pricing.
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Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.