Theoretical Duplication
Instant
Whenever a nontoken creature an opponent controls enters this turn, create a token that's a copy of that creature.
- CMC
- 3
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- U
- Rarity
- rare
- Set
- Commander 2021
- Price
- $1.76
- EDHREC rank
- #6041
Theoretical Duplication puts a token copy of any nonland permanent entering the battlefield onto your side of the table — at instant speed, for three mana. It's a one-shot effect rather than a standing replacement like Hive Mind or Adrix and Nev, Twincasters, but the ceiling is enormous: snap it in response to an opponent's Blightsteel Colossus and you've matched their threat for three mana.
Best Commanders
Commanders with the highest synergy
Adrix and Nev, Twincasters
Adrix and Nev, Twincasters doubles every token you create, so the copy Theoretical Duplication makes immediately becomes two — turning a three-mana instant into a two-for-one before the turn even ends.
Brudiclad, Telchor Engineer
Brudiclad, Telchor Engineer converts any token into a mold for the rest of your board, so the copy Theoretical Duplication creates — even a humble 1/1 — becomes the template that suddenly makes every token a clone of whatever you just snatched.
Tegwyll, Duke of Splendor
Tegwyll, Duke of Splendor cares about Faeries entering the battlefield and dying, so when Theoretical Duplication copies an opponent's Faerie the token enters and draws a card when it eventually leaves — squeezing an extra resource out of a reactive play.
Esix, Fractal Bloom
Esix, Fractal Bloom redirects the first token you create each turn into a copy of any creature on the battlefield, meaning the copy Theoretical Duplication makes can be immediately replaced with whatever the best creature in play is — essentially letting you name your own target on top of already copying someone else's.
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 the correct home for Theoretical Duplication: three opponents each threatening expensive permanents means it will almost always find a target worth copying, and the instant speed lets it double as reactive disruption. In Vintage and Legacy it's technically legal but too narrow — those formats close out games before expensive permanents stick long enough to warrant a three-mana answer that doesn't answer the threat, just matches it. Oathbreaker can use Theoretical Duplication in the same way Commander does, but the smaller pod size and lower average mana investment of those formats shrink the payoff.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Phage the UntouchableHive MindTheoretical Duplication
Each opponent loses the game
View on Commander Spellbook ↗Price Context
Current price
$1.76 cheap tier
At $1.76, Theoretical Duplication sits comfortably in the cheap tier — easy to slot in without a second thought on budget builds. The price is fair given the power ceiling; it's not the kind of card that spikes, but token-doubler commanders keep steady demand for it.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.