Staff of the Sun Magus
Artifact
Whenever you cast a white spell or a Plains you control enters, you gain 1 life.
- CMC
- 3
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- C
- Rarity
- uncommon
- Set
- Magic 2015
- Price
- $0.14
- EDHREC rank
- #13087
Staff of the Sun Magus gains you life whenever you cast a white spell or tap a Plains — in a white-heavy shell, that's a counter ticking up almost every turn. The cost is that life gain without a payoff is just a clock extender, so this card earns its slot only when Aerith Gainsborough or a similar life-matters engine is converting those points into something real.
Best Commanders
Commanders with the highest synergy
Aerith Gainsborough
Aerith Gainsborough's ability triggers off life gain, which means every white spell you cast through Staff of the Sun Magus is doing double duty — gaining life and fueling her engine. In a deck already leaning on Plains and white spells, the Staff turns routine turns into a cascade of value.
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 |
Staff of the Sun Magus is a Commander card through and through — the longer the game, the more white spells and Plains you'll tap, and the more life it generates. In competitive 60-card formats like Modern or Pioneer it's essentially unplayable: life gain at this rate and on this body is nowhere near the bar those formats set. Legacy and Vintage are even less welcoming. Commander is the only place where a slow accumulation engine has time to matter, and even there it needs a dedicated life-matters payoff to justify the slot over something with more immediate impact.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.14 bulk tier
At $0.14, Staff of the Sun Magus is deep bulk — you'll find it in any dollar bin without looking hard. At that price there's no financial risk, but bulk mythics and rares don't tend to appreciate, so buy it to play it, not to hold it.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.