Unlikely Alliance
Enchantment
: Target nonattacking, nonblocking creature gets +0/+2 until end of turn.
- CMC
- 2
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- W
- Rarity
- uncommon
- Set
- Alliances
- Price
- $0.25
- EDHREC rank
- #30192
Unlikely Alliance puts a +1/+1 counter on two different creatures you control for two mana — efficient, instant-speed, and flexible enough to trigger constellation, counter-doubling, or evolve payoffs. It's a role-player, not a staple, but in the right shell it punches well above its bulk price.
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 |
Unlikely Alliance is a Commander card through and through — the format's slower pace and creature-heavy tables give the counter distribution real value, especially in decks built around Atraxa, Praetors' Voice, Hamza, Guardian of Arashin, or any counters-matter shell. Legacy and Vintage legality is technically present but practically irrelevant; those formats have no interest in a sorcery-speed-adjacent effect at this power level. Oathbreaker is the only other home worth considering, where a counters-focused planeswalker pair could squeeze genuine value out of two bodies growing at once.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.25 bulk tier
At $0.25, Unlikely Alliance is firmly bulk — easy to pick up in any trade binder or as a throw-in. Bulk commons and uncommons rarely spike unless a new commander makes them essential, so don't expect movement, but at this price there's no reason not to own a copy if your deck wants it.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.