Silverback Ape
Creature — Ape
- CMC
- 5
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- G
- Rarity
- uncommon
- Set
- Starter 1999
- Price
- $3.80
- EDHREC rank
- #21085
Silverback Ape is a 5/5 for five mana with no abilities — a vanilla body that every format has long since left behind. There is no competitive context in which this is the right card.
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 |
Silverback Ape is legal in Commander, Legacy, Modern, Vintage, and Oathbreaker, but legality and playability are different things. In Commander, a 5/5 vanilla for five mana competes with creatures that generate value on entry, enable combos, or dominate combat through keywords — Silverback Ape does none of that. Legacy and Vintage have access to the most powerful cards ever printed, and a french-vanilla five-drop doesn't register. Modern's creature bar is set by bodies that come with immediate impact; a 5/5 with no text doesn't clear it. Across every legal format, better options exist at every point on the curve.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$3.80 cheap tier
At $3.80, Silverback Ape sits in a price tier that implies far more utility than it delivers — the cost reflects scarcity from age, not demand from play. That price will not hold as reprints or collector interest shifts; don't buy in expecting value.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.