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Universal Automaton

Artifact Creature — Shapeshifter

Changeling (This card is every creature type.)

CMC
1
Mana cost
{1}
Color identity
C
Rarity
common
Set
The List
Price
$0.64
EDHREC rank
#2046
Buy on TCGplayer
Universal Automaton card art
Universal Automaton enters the battlefield as every creature type simultaneously, which means it triggers every tribal payoff you control the moment it resolves — for a single colorless mana. In Magda, Brazen Outlaw specifically, it counts as a Dwarf, taps for treasure, and costs almost nothing to slot in, making it one of the cleanest one-drops the deck can run.

Best Commanders

Commanders with the highest synergy

01
Magda, Brazen Outlaw

Magda, Brazen Outlaw

76.6% of decks · synergy 0.72

Universal Automaton is a Dwarf for Magda, Brazen Outlaw's purposes — it taps to generate a Treasure and accelerates the five-treasure threshold toward fetching an artifact or dragon. At one colorless mana, it's the cheapest possible way to add a body to that engine.

02
Francisco, Fowl MarauderMalcolm, Keen-Eyed Navigator

Francisco, Fowl Marauder // Malcolm, Keen-Eyed Navigator

43.6% of decks · synergy 0.40

Universal Automaton counts as a Bird for Francisco, Fowl Marauder // Malcolm, Keen-Eyed Navigator, slotting into the pirate-and-bird synergy package without any color restriction. It's an on-curve enabler that the deck takes in nearly half of all lists.

03
Yuriko, the Tiger's Shadow

Yuriko, the Tiger's Shadow

32.2% of decks · synergy 0.29

Yuriko, the Tiger's Shadow wants cheap creatures with ninjutsu-friendly evasion, and Universal Automaton is a one-mana body that qualifies as a Ninja, enabling Yuriko's commander ninjutsu on turn two. Its cost is the whole reason it shows up in nearly a third of Yuriko lists.

04
Nalia de'Arnise

Nalia de'Arnise

26.1% of decks · synergy 0.26

Nalia de'Arnise cares about creatures with Dungeon synergies and, critically, counts Universal Automaton as a Rogue — triggering Nalia's ability to venture into the dungeon. It's a zero-friction inclusion that also hits any other creature-type payoffs in the 99.

05
Ayula, Queen Among Bears

Ayula, Queen Among Bears

20.4% of decks · synergy 0.20

Universal Automaton is a Bear for Ayula, Queen Among Bears, which means it triggers Ayula's fight or +1/+1 counter ability on entry. One mana for a Bear that immediately feeds the engine is exactly what that deck wants.

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 legal
oathbreaker legal

Universal Automaton is a Commander card first and foremost — its value scales directly with the number of tribal payoffs on the battlefield, and Commander is the format most likely to have five or six of them at once. In Pauper, it sees fringe play in tribal shells where a one-mana any-type creature is genuinely hard to replace. Legacy and Vintage allow it but have no real need for it; those formats move too fast for a 1/1 with no immediate board impact to matter. The card is not legal in Pioneer or Standard, which is irrelevant to how it's actually used.

Key Combos

Combo lines featuring this card

281 decks
Haakon, Stromgald ScourgeUniversal AutomatonAshnod's Altar

Haakon, Stromgald ScourgeUniversal AutomatonAshnod's Altar

Infinite colorless mana; Infinite death triggers; Infinite ETB; Infinite LTB; Infinite sacrifice triggers; Infinite storm count

View on Commander Spellbook ↗

Price Context

Current price

$0.64 bulk tier

At $0.64, Universal Automaton sits in bulk rare territory — cheap enough to grab without thought and unlikely to drop meaningfully lower given its consistent demand across dozens of tribal commanders. It won't appreciate, but it won't disappear from the dollar bin either.

Explore

Sources

Mentioned

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