Survival of the Fittest

Standard	Rotated out on November 1, 1999
Pioneer	Not Legal
Modern	Not Legal
Legacy	Banned since January 1, 2011
Vintage	Never Banned
Commander	Game Changers since February 11, 2025
Pauper	Never Banned
Oathbreaker	Never Banned
Extended	Rotated out on October 20, 2005

View on Scryfall

Timeline

• June 15, 1998 - Released
• April 1, 2001 - Status changed to Banned in Extended
• October 20, 2005 - Status changed to Rotated in Extended
• January 1, 2011 - Status changed to Banned in Legacy
• February 11, 2025 - Status changed to Game Changers in Commander

Rationale

In the Legacy format, *Survival of the Fittest* was banned due to the widespread success of decks utilizing its effects, which led to the format becoming overly dominated and significantly lacking in diversity. This status is rooted in the card's ability to provide considerable resilience to potential answers and support powerful, optimized strategies. Due to its exceptional power and efficiency, *Survival of the Fittest* was subsequently designated as a Game Changer in the Commander format. Its inclusion on this watchlist reflects its classification among best-in-class tutors capable of generating combo pieces or homogenizing the game.

This summary was generated by gemma4 on September 14, 2026. It has not yet been reviewed by a human editor and may contain some inaccuracies. Learn more.

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