Skeletonize
Instant
Skeletonize deals 3 damage to target creature. When a creature dealt damage this way dies this turn, create a 1/1 black Skeleton creature token with "
: Regenerate this token."
- CMC
- 5
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- BR
- Rarity
- uncommon
- Set
- Shards of Alara
- Price
- $0.12
- EDHREC rank
- #26322
Skeletonize deals 3 damage to a creature and leaves a 1/1 Skeleton token if that creature dies — a two-for-one stapled to five mana in red. The cost is the problem: at 4R, you're paying a premium for an effect that comparable spells deliver cheaper, and in Commander that tempo loss is hard to justify outside of dedicated token or aristocrats shells.
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 | legal |
| oathbreaker | legal |
Skeletonize is bulk in every competitive format — Legacy, Vintage, and Modern all have damage-based removal that costs two or three mana less, so it never sees play there. Pauper is the one format where the 1/1 Skeleton rider could theoretically matter in a grindy red deck, but even there the five-mana ask competes poorly against commons with better rate. Commander is where Skeletonize finds its most plausible home, specifically in aristocrats or token-doubler lists that can extract value from the Skeleton — commanders like Chainer, Nightmare Adept or Wilhelt, the Rotcleaver turn the leftover body into a resource. Outside of that narrow synergy context, five mana for conditional removal is a slot better spent elsewhere.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.12 bulk tier
At $0.12, Skeletonize is deep bulk — you're paying for cardboard, not card power. It won't appreciate; niche bulk removal with this kind of rate ceiling stays at this price floor indefinitely.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.