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Torchling

Creature — Shapeshifter

{R}: Untap this creature.
{R}: Target creature blocks this creature this turn if able.
{R}: Change the target of target spell that targets only this creature.
{1}: This creature gets +1/-1 until end of turn.
{1}: This creature gets -1/+1 until end of turn.

CMC
5
Mana cost
{3}{R}{R}
Color identity
R
Rarity
rare
Set
Duel Decks: Venser vs. Koth
Price
$0.25
EDHREC rank
#19777
Buy on TCGplayer
Torchling card art
Torchling is a five-mana value engine that redirects spells targeting it, pumps its own power, and untaps itself — all on a body that is genuinely hard to kill with targeted removal. The ceiling is highest in Mairsil, the Pretender, where caging Torchling hands Mairsil every one of those activated abilities, and the Dual Casting combo turns that engine into a game-ending loop.

Best Commanders

Commanders with the highest synergy

01
Mairsil, the Pretender

Mairsil, the Pretender

68.2% of decks · synergy 0.68

Mairsil, the Pretender cages Torchling to inherit its full suite of activated abilities — redirection, power adjustment, and self-untap — then uses Torchling's untap ability to activate caged abilities an arbitrary number of times per turn, which is exactly the engine Mairsil decks are built around.

Format Analysis

Where it lives, where it can’t

FormatVerdict
commander legal
legacy legal
modern legal
pioneer not legal
standard not legal
vintage legal
pauper not legal
oathbreaker legal

Torchling is legal in Commander, Legacy, Modern, Vintage, and Oathbreaker, but it only sees real play in Commander. In Legacy and Vintage, a five-mana creature with no immediate board impact is too slow against the formats' threat density. Modern has largely passed it by as well — five mana buys you far more threatening creatures in that format. In Commander, Torchling earns its slot almost exclusively in Mairsil, the Pretender decks, where the activated ability suite is the entire point rather than a bonus on a vanilla beater.

Key Combos

Combo lines featuring this card

Price Context

Current price

$0.25 bulk tier

At $0.25, Torchling is deep bulk — a card whose niche demand from Mairsil, the Pretender players hasn't been enough to move the needle off the bulk bin. It's a safe pickup at this price; the downside is essentially zero.

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Sources

Mentioned

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Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.