Suffocation
Instant
Cast this spell only if you were dealt damage this turn by a red instant or sorcery spell.
Suffocation deals 4 damage to the controller of the last red instant or sorcery spell that dealt damage to you this turn.
Draw a card at the beginning of the next turn's upkeep.
- CMC
- 2
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- U
- Rarity
- uncommon
- Set
- Alliances
- Price
- $0.15
- EDHREC rank
- #30518
Suffocation kills a tapped creature for a single blue mana — instant speed, no questions asked. The catch is that it only hits tapped creatures, which is a real restriction, but in the right shell that clause costs you almost nothing.
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 |
In Commander, Suffocation is a role-player in blue decks that can reliably engineer tapped states — think tap-heavy control builds, opposition effects, or combat-heavy metas where attackers are always tapped on your turn. Legacy and Vintage have access to it, but dedicated removal slots there go to spells without conditionality like Swords to Plowshares, so Suffocation barely sees play in those formats. It's not legal in Modern, Pioneer, Standard, or Pauper, which keeps it squarely in Commander and Oathbreaker territory where the slower pace makes the tapped clause easier to exploit.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.15 bulk tier
At $0.15, Suffocation is deep bulk — you're picking it up out of a dime box or a bulk lot. Conditional removal at this price tier doesn't hold or gain value, so buy it because the effect fits your deck, not as a hold.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.