Soul Manipulation
Instant
Choose one or both —
• Counter target creature spell.
• Return target creature card from your graveyard to your hand.
- CMC
- 3
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- BU
- Rarity
- common
- Set
- Alara Reborn
- Price
- $0.25
- EDHREC rank
- #7828
Soul Manipulation counters a spell and returns a creature from your graveyard to hand on a single two-mana instant — the catch is that both halves require a creature target, so it's blanked without one in play or the yard. In Anowon, the Ruin Thief and similar Dimir creature-heavy builds, those conditions are almost always met, making this a two-for-one that most decks pay more than two mana to approximate.
Best Commanders
Commanders with the highest synergy
Anowon, the Ruin Thief
Anowon, the Ruin Thief floods the board with rogues and mills creatures into graveyards constantly, so Soul Manipulation nearly always has both legal targets — counter the threat, recover the threat, keep the rogue engine intact.
Sivitri, Dragon Master
Sivitri, Dragon Master tutors up expensive dragons, which means a countered or killed creature in the yard is a real loss; Soul Manipulation answers the board threat and gets that dragon back before Sivitri can be taxed for a second search.
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 |
Soul Manipulation is a role-player in Commander, not a staple — it slots cleanly into Dimir creature decks where the graveyard is already active and the counterspell doubles as recursion. In Legacy and Vintage, the format bar is too high; Counterspell exists, and the creature-in-yard condition is a liability in unpredictable game states. Pauper is where it earns the most respect outside Commander, since the card-advantage floor is lower and a two-for-one instant at two mana punches hard in that environment.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.25 bulk tier
At $0.25, Soul Manipulation is deep bulk — it costs less than a sleeve and shows up in any bargain bin. Bulk commons with narrow conditions rarely move on price, so there's no urgency either way; just pick it up alongside your next order if the deck calls for it.
Explore
Sources
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.