Sphinx of Foresight
Creature — Sphinx
You may reveal this card from your opening hand. If you do, scry 3 at the beginning of your first upkeep.
Flying
At the beginning of your upkeep, scry 1.
- CMC
- 4
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- U
- Rarity
- rare
- Set
- Ravnica Allegiance
- Price
- $0.36
- EDHREC rank
- #10827
Sphinx of Foresight gives you a free scry 3 on your opening hand before the game even starts, then scrys 1 every upkeep once it's in play — that's the draw. The cost is four mana for a 4/4 flyer that does nothing the turn it arrives, which means it belongs in decks that actually want the scry triggers, not just any blue shell. Elminster is the clearest home; everywhere else, think hard before the slot.
Best Commanders
Commanders with the highest synergy
Elminster
Sphinx of Foresight's upkeep scry feeds Elminster's triggered ability directly — every turn you're guaranteed to hit the scry-on-upkeep condition, which means Elminster is generating value before you even cast a spell.
Format Analysis
Where it lives, where it can’t
| Format | Verdict |
|---|---|
| commander | legal |
| legacy | legal |
| modern | legal |
| pioneer | legal |
| standard | not legal |
| vintage | legal |
| pauper | not legal |
| oathbreaker | legal |
In Commander, Sphinx of Foresight earns its slot narrowly: the free opening-hand scry 3 is genuinely powerful at a singleton table where consistency matters, but the four-mana body needs a deck that can use the upkeep trigger repeatedly to justify it. In Pioneer and Modern, it competes with cheaper, faster threats and cantrips — the body is fine for the cost but the payoff is too slow against interactive opponents. Legacy and Vintage have no use for it; those formats end before the upkeep engine gets rolling. Oathbreaker is the sleeper home, especially under a blue planeswalker commander who already rewards card selection.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.36 bulk tier
At $0.36, Sphinx of Foresight is bulk — easy to pick up without a second thought. Bulk rares with narrow application tend to stay cheap, so there's no urgency to buy in quantity, but the price makes it a zero-risk include if the deck wants it.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
- Elminster
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.