Unstable Shapeshifter
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Magic: The Gathering
Mana cost
TempestTMP · #100
- Card type
- Creature — Shapeshifter
- Rarity
- Rare
- Indicative price
- 0.52 € · 1.12 $
- Mana value
- 4
- Power
- 0
- Toughness
- 1
- Colour
- Blue
Card text
Whenever another creature enters, this creature becomes a copy of that creature, except it has this ability.
Format legality
- CommanderLegal
- DuelLegal
- LegacyLegal
- OathbreakerLegal
- PredhLegal
- PremodernLegal
- VintageLegal
Legalities follow the imported catalogue; check format rules before a tournament.
Data imported on 2026-10-06 (UTC).
Indicative Scryfall prices, updated daily. ★: foil; ★ E: etched foil. EUR and USD represent different markets.
Printing information
- Illustrator
- Terese Nielsen
- Card language
- English
- Release date
- 1997-10-14
Flavour text
"In a world of untruths, the living lie rules." —Oracle *en*-Vec
Rulings
If a creature enters that has some characteristic or ability set when it enters, the copy does not get to make that choice (because it is not entering. All values are zero and all checks for choices consider the choice not to have been made.
If the creature has power/toughness that is continuously recalculated, so does this copy of it.
The copy effect is not targeted.
When it changes "shape" to a new creature, any "enters" abilities of the creature do not trigger.
If an Unstable Shapeshifter is on the battlefield when another Unstable Shapeshifter enters, the first one gets the second one's triggered ability, so it will copy the next creature that enters twice. It will only do so the next time a creature enters, because the second "becomes a copy" effect to resolve will erase the extra triggered ability.
The ability is granted as part of the copy effect, which means it will be removed by any effects that would remove abilities regardless of when the effect was created.