Vantress Gargoyle
Artifact Creature — Gargoyle
Flying
This creature can't attack unless defending player has seven or more cards in their graveyard.
This creature can't block unless you have four or more cards in hand.
: Each player mills a card.
- CMC
- 2
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- U
- Rarity
- rare
- Set
- Throne of Eldraine Promos
- Price
- —
- EDHREC rank
- #11442
Vantress Gargoyle is a 5/4 flyer for two mana — that rate is real, and the conditions to unlock it are trivially met in any self-mill or graveyard-matters shell. The Mindskinner decks in particular treat it as a free threat that comes online the moment libraries start filling graveyards.
Best Commanders
Commanders with the highest synergy
The Mindskinner
The Mindskinner's whole game is milling opponents down, and Vantress Gargoyle flips active the instant any graveyard hits seven cards — which in a dedicated mill build is turn two or three at the latest, giving you a 5/4 blocker and attacker at minimal investment.
Xanathar, Guild Kingpin
Xanathar, Guild Kingpin controls what opponents can cast on their turns, and Vantress Gargoyle pairs naturally there as a cheap threat that demands an answer while Xanathar is locking the table down — two mana for a 5/4 that opponents can't easily race.
Format Analysis
Where it lives, where it can’t
| Format | Verdict |
|---|---|
| commander | legal |
| legacy | legal |
| modern | legal |
| pioneer | legal |
| standard | not legal |
| vintage | legal |
| pauper | not legal |
| oathbreaker | legal |
In Commander, Vantress Gargoyle earns its slot in mill and self-mill decks that hit the seven-card graveyard threshold without trying — it's a two-mana 5/4 flyer in a format where evasive threats at that cost are scarce. In competitive 60-card formats like Modern and Pioneer, the activation condition is harder to guarantee on curve, and a 5/4 that can sit as a 1/4 until graveyards fill isn't reliable enough to displace dedicated threats. Legacy and Vintage have too many faster, unconditional options to make Vantress Gargoyle worth a slot. Its natural home remains Commander, specifically in blue-black shells where the graveyard condition is a byproduct of the deck doing its job.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
unknown tier
Pricing data for Vantress Gargoyle isn't currently available, so check Scryfall or TCGPlayer for the current market rate before buying. Given its narrow competitive appeal outside Commander, it tends to sit in bulk or near-bulk range — worth grabbing a copy cheaply if you're building mill.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.