Sunspine Lynx
Creature — Elemental Cat
Players can't gain life.
Damage can't be prevented.
When this creature enters, it deals damage to each player equal to the number of nonbasic lands that player controls.
- CMC
- 4
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- R
- Rarity
- rare
- Set
- Bloomburrow Promos
- Price
- $3.78
- EDHREC rank
- #2864
Sunspine Lynx shuts off nonbasic lands the moment it enters — any opponent who can't pay 3 life per nonbasic tap is functionally locked out of their mana base. The cost is a two-mana 2/1 with no protection, so it dies to a stiff breeze, but the pressure it applies the turn it lands is real enough that decks built around punishing life loss or land-hate run it without hesitation — Transcendence in particular turns that mandatory life payment into a potential game-ender, and Dragonhawk, Fate's Tempest abuses it as a cheap repeated body.
Best Commanders
Commanders with the highest synergy
Dragonhawk, Fate's Tempest
Dragonhawk, Fate's Tempest draws a card whenever you roll dice, and Sunspine Lynx is a cheap early drop that applies immediate tax pressure while Dragonhawk builds toward its draw engine — the Lynx's low mana cost makes it easy to replay after it dies, feeding further value.
Clive, Ifrit's Dominant
Clive, Ifrit's Dominant wants aggressive cheap red creatures to press early advantages, and Sunspine Lynx fills that role while taxing opponents' nonbasics — the life drain synergizes with Clive, Ifrit's Dominant's damage-amplifying gameplan.
Zo-Zu the Punisher
Zo-Zu the Punisher is the natural home: both cards punish opponents for doing the basic thing Magic requires, and stacking Sunspine Lynx's nonbasic tax on top of Zo-Zu the Punisher's landfall damage turns every land drop into a painful decision.
Delina, Wild Mage
Delina, Wild Mage copies creatures on attack, and a copied Sunspine Lynx means multiple instances of the nonbasic tax hitting opponents simultaneously — the Lynx's cheap mana cost makes it easy to have in play before Delina, Wild Mage swings.
Solphim, Mayhem Dominus
Solphim, Mayhem Dominus doubles noncombat damage, so every 3-life payment Sunspine Lynx forces becomes 6 under Solphim, Mayhem Dominus — what was a nuisance tax becomes a clock.
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, Sunspine Lynx is a staple of land-punishment and stax shells — nonbasic-heavy four- and five-color mana bases make the tax hurt immediately, and it only takes one or two opponents blinking at a greedy land drop to justify the slot. In competitive 1v1 formats like Legacy and Vintage, it's too fragile and too slow against combo; a 2/1 for two that opponents simply kill before it matters doesn't move the needle. Modern and Pioneer have efficient enough removal that it won't stick, and the formats' threat density means opponents rarely feel forced to pay the tax before they've already won. Standard is the one place it might see fringe sideboard play against greedy nonbasic mana bases, but the effect is too narrow for main-deck consideration. Pauper would be its best fit by power level, but Sunspine Lynx isn't legal there.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
TranscendenceSunspine Lynx
You can't lose the game due to having 0 or less life; Players can't gain life; Lock
View on Commander Spellbook ↗Price Context
Current price
$3.78 cheap tier
At $3.78, Sunspine Lynx sits in the cheap tier — affordable enough to slot into any land-punishment build without budget friction. It's a niche card with a defined home, so the price is unlikely to spike unless a new commander emerges that breaks the nonbasic tax mechanic wide open.
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Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.