Trap the Trespassers
Instant
Secret council — Each player secretly votes for a creature you don't control, then those votes are revealed. For each creature with one or more votes, put that many stun counters on it, then tap it. (If a permanent with a stun counter would become untapped, remove one from it instead.)
- CMC
- 3
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- U
- Rarity
- rare
- Set
- Tales of Middle-earth Commander
- Price
- $0.83
- EDHREC rank
- #7766
Trap the Trespassers exiles up to three target creatures — one card handling three threats at instant speed is a legitimately strong rate. The five-mana price tag is steep, but Galadriel, Elven-Queen decks that care about scrying and tempo can afford the cost, and exile sidesteps recursion entirely.
Best Commanders
Commanders with the highest synergy
Galadriel, Elven-Queen
Galadriel, Elven-Queen rewards scrying and controlling the top of your library, and Trap the Trespassers delivers a clean three-for-one that keeps the board clear while Galadriel's engine runs — 66% of her decks run it for exactly that reason.
Círdan the Shipwright
Círdan the Shipwright leans into card advantage and tempo, and Trap the Trespassers does the heavy lifting of clearing multiple blockers or problem creatures in a single spell, letting Círdan's draw triggers compound without interference.
Tivit, Seller of Secrets
Tivit, Seller of Secrets builds around voting and council's dilemma effects, and Trap the Trespassers slots in as a high-impact removal spell that can swing a vote-heavy board state by eliminating the creatures most likely to punish you at the table.
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 |
Trap the Trespassers is a Commander card through and through — the three-target exile clause is designed for a four-player game where one opponent can field multiple threats you need gone immediately. In Legacy and Vintage it's legal but irrelevant; five mana for removal is glacially slow in those formats where a single Swords to Plowshares ends the conversation on turn one. Oathbreaker is the one other format where it can earn a slot, particularly in blue-white shells that lack efficient creature removal and need the exile clause to dodge indestructible or persist creatures.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.83 bulk tier
At $0.83, Trap the Trespassers sits firmly in bulk territory — you're paying almost nothing for a spell that punches above its price in Commander. Bulk rares with narrow applications tend to stay cheap, so don't expect movement, but at this price it's a pure value pickup for any deck that wants it.
Explore
Sources
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.