Needlebug
Artifact Creature — Insect
Flash
Protection from artifacts
- CMC
- 4
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- C
- Rarity
- uncommon
- Set
- Mirrodin
- Price
- $0.15
- EDHREC rank
- #28320
Needlebug enters as a 1/1 and immediately mills three, replacing itself in the graveyard with a free Insect token under Zask, Skittering Swarmlord — that's two bodies and three cards milled for two mana. Outside of dedicated Insect or self-mill strategies, it does nothing a generic two-drop couldn't do better.
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 |
Needlebug is legal in Commander, Legacy, Modern, Vintage, and Oathbreaker, but it's effectively a Commander card — the only 60-card context where milling yourself three and producing an Insect token matters enough to run a 1/1 for two. In Legacy and Vintage, the card is too slow and too small to compete. Commander is where Needlebug earns its slot, specifically in Insect-tribal or Golgari self-mill builds where every mill trigger has compounding value.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Zask, Skittering SwarmlordMana EchoesNeedlebugGoblin Bombardment
Infinite colorless mana; Infinite damage; Infinite death triggers; Infinite ETB; Infinite LTB; Infinite sacrifice triggers; Infinite self-mill; Infinite storm count
View on Commander Spellbook ↗Price Context
Current price
$0.15 bulk tier
At $0.15, Needlebug is deep bulk — pick it up from any binder or throw it in a trade without thinking. Demand is narrow enough that the price isn't going anywhere, but the low floor means there's no reason not to run it in the right deck.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
- Zask, Skittering Swarmlord
- Mana Echoes
- Goblin Bombardment
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.