Swallow Whole
Sorcery
As an additional cost to cast this spell, tap an untapped creature you control.
Exile target tapped creature. Put a +1/+1 counter on the creature tapped to pay this spell's additional cost.
- CMC
- 1
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- W
- Rarity
- uncommon
- Set
- Ikoria: Lair of Behemoths
- Price
- $0.18
- EDHREC rank
- #19419
Swallow Whole exiles a tapped creature at instant speed for a single white mana — one of the most efficient answers in the format. The catch is real: you need a creature of your own to grow, which makes this a synergy piece rather than a universal answer.
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 |
In Commander, Swallow Whole punches above its mana cost in creature-heavy builds that already want to grow a threat — every Aura or +1/+1 counter deck gets a free size bonus alongside the exile. In Modern and Pioneer, the creature prerequisite is a real constraint; aggressive white decks can slot it, but pure control can't reliably activate it, leaving it on the fringes of those formats. Legacy and Vintage have faster, unconditional answers, so Swallow Whole rarely competes there. The card's sweet spot is Commander, where tapped creatures are common, exile is premium, and incidental counters can matter enormously.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.18 bulk tier
At $0.18, Swallow Whole is deep bulk — one of the most cost-efficient pieces of exile removal available for white creature decks. Prices at this tier rarely move unless a deck archetype explodes in popularity, so pick up copies freely without any concern about timing.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.