Spiny Starfish
Creature — Starfish
: Regenerate this creature.
At the beginning of each end step, if this creature regenerated this turn, create a 0/1 blue Starfish creature token for each time it regenerated this turn.
- CMC
- 3
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- U
- Rarity
- uncommon
- Set
- Alliances
- Price
- $0.25
- EDHREC rank
- #24127
Spiny Starfish trades a blue mana per turn for a steady stream of 0/1 Starfish tokens, and when it finally dies, those tokens inherit its regeneration ability. The payoff is real in token-doubling or sacrifice shells, but the setup cost — one mana every upkeep just to stay relevant — makes it too slow for most tables.
Format Analysis
Where it lives, where it can’t
| Format | Verdict |
|---|---|
| commander | legal |
| legacy | legal |
| modern | not legal |
| pioneer | not legal |
| standard | not legal |
| vintage | legal |
| pauper | not legal |
| oathbreaker | legal |
Spiny Starfish is legal in Commander, Legacy, Vintage, and Oathbreaker, but its home is Commander and nowhere else. In 60-card formats where it's legal, the mana-sink structure and 0/1 token output are laughably underpowered against any real threat. In Commander, the card finds its niche in blue token strategies or sacrifice engines where each Starfish token is a resource — commanders like Brudiclad, Telchor Engineer or Lonis, Cryptozoologist can actually do something with the bodies. Even there, Spiny Starfish is a fringe inclusion, not a pillar.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.25 bulk tier
At $0.25, Spiny Starfish is pure bulk — you're not paying for power, you're paying for a quirky piece of token infrastructure. It won't appreciate, but it won't break a budget either.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.