Stroke of Midnight
Instant
Destroy target nonland permanent. Its controller creates a 1/1 white Human creature token.
- CMC
- 3
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- W
- Rarity
- uncommon
- Set
- Wilds of Eldraine
- Price
- $0.55
- EDHREC rank
- #192
Stroke of Midnight hits any nonland permanent — creatures, enchantments, artifacts, planeswalkers — and replaces it with a 1/1 White Human token, all for three mana at instant speed. The token it hands your opponent is the only real cost, and in most board states that trade is firmly in your favor.
Best Commanders
Commanders with the highest synergy
Kambal, Profiteering Mayor
Kambal, Profiteering Mayor triggers off every nontoken creature an opponent plays, so the 1/1 Human that Stroke of Midnight hands them becomes free value — Kambal immediately taxes it into a life payment and a token of your own.
Zurgo Stormrender
Zurgo Stormrender cares about instant and sorcery spells fueling its combat threat, and Stroke of Midnight is the cleanest three-mana answer to any problem permanent that keeps the spell count climbing.
Neriv, Crackling Vanguard
Neriv, Crackling Vanguard cares about tokens entering the battlefield, and the 1/1 Human that Stroke of Midnight generates — even on the opponent's side — feeds any symmetrical token-doubling or triggered effects Neriv enables.
Alisaie Leveilleur // Alphinaud Leveilleur
Alisaie Leveilleur // Alphinaud Leveilleur rewards casting instants and sorceries, making Stroke of Midnight a two-for-one: clean removal that simultaneously advances the spell-payoff engine.
Killian, Ink Duelist
Killian, Ink Duelist reduces the cost of Aura and targeted spells, which brings Stroke of Midnight down to a single white mana — one of the most efficient instant-speed answers to any nonland permanent in the game at that price.
Format Analysis
Where it lives, where it can’t
| Format | Verdict |
|---|---|
| commander | legal |
| legacy | legal |
| modern | legal |
| pioneer | legal |
| standard | legal |
| vintage | legal |
| pauper | not legal |
| oathbreaker | legal |
In Commander, Stroke of Midnight is one of white's best catch-all answers — the ability to hit any nonland permanent at instant speed for three mana is exactly what the format demands, and the 1/1 token rider rarely matters at a table of four. In Modern and Pioneer, it competes in a crowded removal slot where hitting enchantments and planeswalkers is genuinely useful, but the three-mana cost and token concession make it a sideboard or budget consideration rather than a maindeck staple. Legacy and Vintage have faster, cheaper options, so Stroke of Midnight doesn't see meaningful play there. Commander is where it belongs, and it earns its slot in nearly any white deck that needs flexible, permanent-type-agnostic interaction.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.55 bulk tier
At $0.55, Stroke of Midnight sits firmly in bulk territory despite being one of the more versatile white removal spells in Commander. That price is stable — it sees enough casual demand to keep copies moving, but wide print availability keeps the ceiling low.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
- Kambal, Profiteering Mayor
- Zurgo Stormrender
- Neriv, Crackling Vanguard
- Alisaie Leveilleur // Alphinaud Leveilleur
- Killian, Ink Duelist
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.