Sanctum Prelate
Creature — Human Cleric
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Noncreature spells with mana value equal to the chosen number can't be cast.
- CMC
- 3
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- W
- Rarity
- mythic
- Set
- Magic Online Promos
- Price
- —
- EDHREC rank
- #9010
Sanctum Prelate is a hard lock piece — name a mana value and every spell at that number simply stops existing for your opponents. The cost is that it's symmetrical and static, so you need to build around it deliberately, which is why it shows up most in structured stax shells like Gaddock Teeg or aggressive non-human lists like Winota, Joiner of Forces where the Prelate's restriction hurts opponents far more than it hurts you.
Best Commanders
Commanders with the highest synergy
Winota, Joiner of Forces
Winota, Joiner of Forces attacks with non-humans to cheat humans into play, and Sanctum Prelate on two or three shuts off the cheap interaction — Lightning Bolts, Swords to Plowshares, Counterspell — that opponents use to survive long enough to stabilize against her.
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, Sanctum Prelate is a stax staple that punches above its mana cost — naming two stops most cheap removal and counterspells, naming three locks out Blasphemous Act and Toxic Deluge, and the right call can kneecap entire archetypes at a four-player table. In Legacy, it sees play in Death and Taxes and Painter shells as a searchable lock piece that turns off the format's most format-warping cheap spells. Modern has enough two- and three-mana interaction that landing Sanctum Prelate with backup is genuinely game-warping, though the format's speed means it often needs protection to matter. Vintage has access to faster lock pieces, so Sanctum Prelate is fringe there, but it's not irrelevant in hatebears shells.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Gaddock TeegSanctum PrelateRite of Replication
Players can't cast noncreature spells; Lock
View on Commander Spellbook ↗Price Context
Current price
unknown tier
Pricing data for Sanctum Prelate isn't available in context right now — check Scryfall or TCGPlayer for the current market rate. It's a mythic from a single printing, so supply is limited and price tends to reflect its competitive demand across Legacy and Commander stax builds.
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Sources
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.