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Skeleton Ship

Legendary Creature — Skeleton

When you control no Islands, sacrifice Skeleton Ship.
{T}: Put a -1/-1 counter on target creature.

CMC
5
Mana cost
{3}{U}{B}
Color identity
BU
Rarity
rare
Set
Masters Edition II
Price
—
EDHREC rank
#19759
Buy on TCGplayer
Skeleton Ship card art
Skeleton Ship puts a repeatable -1/-1 counter engine on the board — tap it to shrink any creature, untap it, repeat — and paired with Intruder Alarm it becomes a full board-wipe that triggers every time a creature enters play. The cost is a narrow two-color identity (blue-black) and a body that needs protection to do anything.

Format Analysis

Where it lives, where it can’t

FormatVerdict
commander legal
legacy legal
modern not legal
pioneer not legal
standard not legal
vintage legal
pauper not legal
oathbreaker legal

Commander is the only format where Skeleton Ship sees real play, and even there it occupies a niche slot rather than a staple role. Legacy and Vintage both allow it, but a five-mana 2/3 that needs untap support is simply not competing in those environments. Skeleton Ship's home is specifically -1/-1 counter decks or combo shells in Commander that can exploit its tap ability at scale — outside of that context, it's a curiosity.

Key Combos

Combo lines featuring this card

20 decks
Skeleton ShipIntruder AlarmGeralf's MessengerAshnod's Altar

Skeleton ShipIntruder AlarmGeralf's MessengerAshnod's Altar

Infinite colorless mana; Infinite death triggers; Infinite ETB; Infinite lifeloss; Infinite LTB; Infinite mana creatures you control can produce; Infinite sacrifice triggers; Infinite untap of creatures; Infinite untap of creatures you control

View on Commander Spellbook ↗

Price Context

Current price

unknown tier

Pricing data for Skeleton Ship isn't available in the current market snapshot, so check Scryfall or TCGPlayer for a live number. Given its narrow appeal and age, it tends to sit in the bulk-rare-to-a-few-dollars range unless a specific combo spike drives demand.

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Sources

Mentioned

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Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.