Spikeshot Elder
Creature — Goblin Shaman
: This creature deals damage equal to its power to any target.
- CMC
- 1
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- R
- Rarity
- rare
- Set
- Scars of Mirrodin
- Price
- $0.27
- EDHREC rank
- #15699
Spikeshot Elder turns every pump spell and equipment into a repeatable, instant-speed damage source — tap to deal damage equal to its power, and in the right shell that number gets out of hand fast. The narrow home is real: outside of Mairsil, the Pretender, where caging it turns a single exile into an unkillable pinger for the rest of the game, it rarely earns a slot.
Best Commanders
Commanders with the highest synergy
Mairsil, the Pretender
Mairsil, the Pretender cages Spikeshot Elder once and inherits the activated ability permanently — pair that with any power-boosting cage target and Mairsil becomes a machine that kills the table one activation at a time.
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 |
Spikeshot Elder is legal in Legacy, Modern, Vintage, and Commander, but competitive constructed formats ignore it entirely — a 1/1 pinger that requires external support to deal meaningful damage can't compete in those card pools. Commander is the only format where it meaningfully sees play, and even there it's a specialist card rather than a general include. Outside of Mairsil, the Pretender and aggressive Voltron or equipment shells that can reliably pump power every turn, Spikeshot Elder underperforms.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Mairsil, the PretenderSpikeshot ElderTree of Perdition
Target opponent loses the game
View on Commander Spellbook ↗Price Context
Current price
$0.27 bulk tier
At $0.27, Spikeshot Elder is deep bulk — easy to acquire and unlikely to move unless a new commander pushes the cage-ability archetype into mainstream play. Pick it up without thinking twice if the deck calls for it.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.