Subversion
Enchantment
At the beginning of your upkeep, each opponent loses 1 life. You gain life equal to the life lost this way.
- CMC
- 5
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- B
- Rarity
- rare
- Set
- Battle Royale Box Set
- Price
- $2.30
- EDHREC rank
- #15907
Subversion drains each opponent for 2 every upkeep — that's 6 life swung per turn in a four-player pod, just for keeping an enchantment on the table. Five mana is a real cost, but the ongoing pressure is legitimate, and in black decks that want to grind life totals, it earns its slot.
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 |
Commander is where Subversion actually does work — three opponents means the life swing is tripled, and black life-drain strategies have the density of payoffs to make a five-mana enchantment feel worth it. Legacy and Vintage are legal but irrelevant; five mana for a slow enchantment with no immediate board impact is nowhere near competitive in those formats. Subversion is Commander-only in practice.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$2.30 cheap tier
At $2.30, Subversion sits at the cheap end of the spectrum for a niche enchantment with a narrow home. It's not a card that spikes — supply is stable and demand is low — so expect the price to stay in this range.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.