Ripples of Undeath
Enchantment
At the beginning of your first main phase, mill three cards. Then you may pay 
and 3 life. If you do, put a card from among those cards into your hand.
- CMC
- 2
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- B
- Rarity
- rare
- Set
- Modern Horizons 3
- Price
- $8.04
- EDHREC rank
- #552
Ripples of Undeath puts a repeatable draw-and-discard engine on the board that fuels graveyard strategies every single turn for just two mana. It's the kind of cheap enchantment that makes The Master of Keys decks hum, and in any shell that wants the graveyard stocked, it overperforms its price tag.
Best Commanders
Commanders with the highest synergy
The Master of Keys
The Master of Keys runs Ripples of Undeath in over 61% of lists because the discard trigger is free fuel — every card pitched to the graveyard is a resource The Master of Keys can monetize rather than a cost.
Xu-Ifit, Osteoharmonist
Xu-Ifit, Osteoharmonist wants bodies and card types in the graveyard constantly, and Ripples of Undeath provides that drip-feed of self-mill and selection every upkeep without spending additional resources.
Teval, Arbiter of Virtue
Teval, Arbiter of Virtue cares about what's in the graveyard for its triggers, and Ripples of Undeath gives Teval a steady stream of cards to set up those conditions while replacing itself in hand.
Shilgengar, Sire of Famine
Shilgengar, Sire of Famine needs a stocked graveyard and a hand that keeps pace with its aggressive sacrifice plan, and Ripples of Undeath supplies both at a cost that doesn't slow the curve down.
Emet-Selch, Unsundered
Emet-Selch, Unsundered rewards filling the graveyard with high-value targets, and Ripples of Undeath is one of the most mana-efficient ways to get there while maintaining hand parity.
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 |
Commander is the natural home for Ripples of Undeath — the long game gives the enchantment time to generate multiple triggers, and the graveyard-heavy commanders it pairs with are concentrated in that format. In Legacy and Vintage it's technically legal but has no competitive presence; those formats move too fast for a slow value engine that doesn't impact the board immediately. Modern has enough efficient graveyard enablers that Ripples of Undeath would be competing for slots in established shells where it's unlikely to make the cut. Oathbreaker is worth watching as graveyard planeswalkers become more viable, but for now Commander is where Ripples of Undeath earns its slot.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Budget Alternatives
Cheaper options that do most of the same work
Altar of Dementia and similar sacrifice outlets can mill at a faster rate in dedicated graveyard builds, but they don't provide the card selection that makes Ripples of Undeath distinctive — you're giving up the draw step replacement for raw speed. If you want a closer functional analogue at lower cost, Altar of the Wretched or a simple looter creature can approximate the discard-to-graveyard effect, but neither gives you the persistent, no-activation-required trigger that makes Ripples of Undeath worth two mana.
Price Context
Current price
$8.04 mid tier
At $8.04, Ripples of Undeath sits in the mid tier — noticeable but not painful for what is effectively a two-mana draw engine in the right shell. Given its 61%+ inclusion rate in The Master of Keys decks alone, demand is not going anywhere, so this price is likely the floor rather than a ceiling.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
- The Master of Keys
- Xu-Ifit, Osteoharmonist
- Teval, Arbiter of Virtue
- Shilgengar, Sire of Famine
- Emet-Selch, Unsundered
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.