Lightning Bolt

Instant

Lightning Bolt deals 3 damage to target creature, player or planeswalker.

Discussion (48)

StopShot on I need help choosing another …

13 hours ago

@Raging_Squiggle, the cards you suggested removing have benefitted me countless times in cEDH though. Personally, I'd rather remove Terminate first. Holding up less mana every turn to address multiple threats is better as it gives me more flexibility. If you want to advance your boardstate it's better to hold up two 1's and a 2 than two 2's and a 3. Finding ways to do things cheaper without need for ramp is in a way card advantage as I see it and it mitigates how severe a discard cost is when you build your deck around flexibility than tempo. As I said I like playing more reactively than proactively. As for my experiences Lightning Axe 's removal capabilities in commander I find to be on par with Lightning Bolt 's capability in 60 card formats - not capable of removing everything but efficient enough to not get in the way of doing two things at once. Sinister Concoction is telegraphed removal which is incredibly undervalued in multiplayer settings as no one willingly wants to have it proc on their best card in hand, and having that kind of chilling effect on a whole table for one mana is pretty strong. And then there's Molten Vortex which is probably the best thing on earth for removing hatebear after hatebear and bypassing counter spells in blue combo decks. Losing lands to it may seem steep, but the cost is nothing when your opposition is locking you down and locking you out in the first place and if its a dead card I pitch it to the Lightning Axe or Sinister Concoction anyway.

Personally I've grown to loathe "non-black" removal spells. It's not just this combo but its also The Gitrog Monster and Kaalia of the Vast and Nekusar, the Mindrazer and Opposition Agent . I acknowledge there are a lot of non-black targets I can use it on instead, but picking between a Doom Blade and a Murder when Lightning Axe / Dismember takes out more of them for less mana sums up my approach to this. And I do run Chaos Warp , Anguished Unmaking and Generous Gift along with a slew of boardwipes for anything bigger - I just didn't mention I ran them here when the focus of my thread is on small and early game threats where the heavier removal isn't as apt at addressing these problems.

Still, even without the mana ramp the combo can come down on turn three by casting the cards on consecutive turns or on turn four by playing them all at once, and we are talking about competitive black which has plenty of tutors. In the early game holding up 2 or 3 mana for only one answer every turn I find to be a waste. It's not just this combo either as I'm in the company of decks that are looking to end or lock the game before turn six if left in a vacuum. At the same time I still want to acknowledge other non-aggressive strategies do exist and striking the balance is difficult when one set of cards is too slow for my current meta and another set don't go far enough for everything outside of that meta. Personally, I think the small spells still have some merit in all cases whereas the larger spells become an annoying liability when you're put on the clock. It's another reason why I value being reactive than proactive, to value flexibility over tempo, because I'd need to pick a different commander entirely if I want to match the speed my competitors play at. However, my opponents lose much more value than I do when they go headfirst into certain strategies only for them to be thwarted such as with the Witherbloom Apprentice + Chain of Smog combo or with the Auriok Salvagers + Lion's Eye Diamond combo or the Worldgorger Dragon + Animate Dead combo or anything that relies on Doomsday . My deck is built to address this kind of madness, but when I make card decisions I still want to keep more normal metas in mind when picking cards. Cards like Magma Spray and Fatal Push are incredibly narrow, I know that, but what I need to know is which card of that set is the best for taking on problems outside of my own meta.

StopShot on I need help choosing another …

15 hours ago

I enjoy playing competitive EDH and one of the recently spoiled Strixhaven cards I already know is going to shake-up my meta and make things difficult for me. Namely Witherbloom Apprentice is the card I'm dreading as it can close out a game if it's controller casts Chain of Smog as it can be copied infinitely if the controller always targets themself with it. It's very likely every BGx deck in my play group is going to run this combo given how easy it is to setup and when you pair the possibility of closing out the game on turn two through Dark Ritual or Sol Ring into a mana rock, it becomes a lethal threat I can't ignore when making deck building decisions. As such, I feel I need to add another one mana creature removal spell in my deck, but I'm stumped over which spell I should include not just to address this potential combo but also have the most practical use outside of it as well.

My current list of removal spells are: Path to Exile , Swords to Plowshares , Sinister Concoction , Dismember , Lightning Axe , Molten Vortex , Red Elemental Blast , Pyroblast and Terminate (I enjoy playing more reactively than proactively.)

The removal spells I'm considering are: Dark Betrayal , Fatal Push , Human Frailty , Lightning Bolt , Magma Spray , Weight of Spires and Seal of Fire . (The last one I'm considering for its use around counterspells by casting it early.)

Notable exclusions are: Deadly Rollick , Defile , Dispatch , Force of Despair , Galvanic Blast , Murderous Cut , Mutual Destruction , Necrotic Wound , Pyrokinesis , Reckless Rage , Skred and Tragic Slip as I feel I don't have the means to meet these card restrictions consistent enough to be useful in my deck, especially in the early game. I'm also not considering two mana removal spells like Go for the Throat because I feel at this point cost effectiveness matters more than removal range.

Of course the best removal spell is going to depend heavily on the meta, but I'm generally trying to figure out which of the spells I'm considering is the best in a competitive environment in general. I'm looking for feedback and second opinions on whether you think any of the spells shines well above the rest through your own play experiences. I appreciate any insight I can get, thanks.

TriusMalarky on What Makes Phyrexian Mana More …

3 days ago

Two-brid mana is inherently balanced. It takes work and building around it to be able to pay instead of , but it also takes work to be able to pay . The two-brid cards available are pretty bad outside of mono color(and even then, it tends to be Spectral Procession in Modern and Beseech the Queen in EDH that are the only ones that see play) for that reason. However, if new cards were printed, there would be no real problem outside of some annoying people complaining about color pie breaks online.

For example, Lightning Bolt but twobrid. Giving ALL colors access to Lightning Strike isn't broken at all. Does it help decks like Tron or Monoblue who typically have problems removing creatures? Yep. But will it break any format? Most definitely not. Well, it will make Modern Burn and Pioneer Red Aggro lists a lot better in this specific case.

Compare this to . You are almost always paying life instead of the mana cost. You will only ever not pay life in very specific situations. In fact, if you pay mana for it when you have enough life, people question you. They wonder what the hell you are doing in your deck. Phyrexian mana is like having a multicolored Simian Spirit Guide in your hand at all times, except it costs 2 life. It's raw, unfettered mana advantage, which quickly and easily turns into advantage in the action economy.

Also, take a look at the banned Phyrexian mana cards. And the playable ones. Gitaxian Probe is Peek , which is basically unplayable. Mental Misstep would be unplayable if it cost instead of . Gut Shot , Postmortem Lunge , Mutagenic Growth , Dismember are all horrible if they didn't have the Phyrexian mana attached. It's the fact that they cost the generic cost only that makes them good. Dismember is a 1-mana spell, that costs a bit more later on if you have mana to spare but not the life. All the 1 mana Phyrexian Mana cards are actually zero mana.

BrassLord on First day of persisting

6 days ago

Howdy! I think your take on this deck is a decent one! That card seems really good! Another payoff (possibly sideboard) would be Carrion Feeder get huge. I've seen a similar brew online that used Rendclaw Trow and Ivy Lane Denizen .

If you're leaning into the combo, Shred Memory acts as a tutor. Faithless Looting is another resilient way to continue to cycle through your deck.

Sideboard is always meta dependent, but currently I don't see a whole lot of interaction with your opponent in the deck. Combo decks always run the risk of being run over by aggro. So things like Lightning Bolt Fiery Cannonade Cast Down Abrade can go a long ways in dealing with Affinity or Elves. Control matchups are a nightmare, though your combo seems pretty resilient. Pyroblast helps resolve needed spells.

Would also experiment with having some of the Lessons like Introduction to Prophecy Introduction to Annihilation Environmental Sciences as one offs just so you still get value from going for the combo win even if your opponent messes with that interaction!

philosopher on Dragons,Speed, and Control

1 week ago

Hello Hachendis,

Dragons & Dragon Support:

Dragonlord's Servant reduces the cost of your dragon spells by {1}.

Dream Devourer reduces the cost of your dragons by {2} by foretelling them with Dream Devourer , meaning, you could potentially play Dragonlord Kolaghan on turn 4.

Haven of the Spirit Dragon acts as a mana confluence with the ability to recur a dragon from the graveyard to your hand.

Crucible of Fire is the ultimate +3/+3 anthem effect.

Crucible of the Spirit Dragon : builds up mana to cast your dragons.

Draconic Roar costs the same as a Lightning Strike and if you reveal a dragon you get to Lightning Bolt your opponent's face for free - talk about value!

Crux of Fate a one sided board wipe.

Glorybringer : repeated Flame Slash on a flying and haste dragon.

Surviving the early game:

Frost Bite or Wild Slash are good 1 drop removal spells, with Frost Bite acting as a Lightning Bolt is you have a snow covered mountain in play.

Bloodchief's Thirst is better than Bedevil because for it is more useful in the early game and is worth the cost of having to pay the extra mana to remove a MV 3 or greater creature or planeswalker later in the game.

Remaining thoughts:

Thoughtseize and Duress is good in the sideboard vs control decks because you will want to remove their sweepers like Supreme Verdict .

Sign in Blood should be removed for early game removal or to keep in some Thoughtseize s in as Sign in Blood is less valuable in surviving the early game.

I hope this helps.

Thanks,

Philosopher

philosopher on Purphoros Mono-Red Token Tax (Pioneer)

1 week ago

Hey wryguy87,

Frost Bite is an alternative to Lightning Strike because if you have a snow covered mountain it becomes a Lightning Bolt and, if not, it's another Wild Slash .

zAzen7977 on SCOURGE BOLT - Suicide Burn

1 week ago

Hey vladpontes, thanks for your suggestions. In the past I ran a different variation of burn which used creatures like Monastery Swiftspear and Goblin Guide , and it worked very well. With enough burn spells it doesn’t need Scourge of the Skyclaves to win, but it runs out of steam really fast. This is why I transitioned away from prowess and focused on reducing my life and my opponent’s as fast as possible with this new hybrid “suicide burn.” Since I was running fetches and Sunbaked Canyon already, I thought I would take advantage of the synergy and put the life-loss to good use.

Like you I was reluctant to run Death's Shadow s at first. I thought too many creatures would water down the burn potential of the deck. But after many games it turns out that the Shadows work very well. Running 4 Scourges and 3 Shadows make it likely to draw at least 1 of either during the game. There are no other creatures with the size potential of Scourge or Shadow for their mana cost that I am aware of.

Also I think you’re placing too much importance on the creatures instead of focusing on dealing damage. The burn spells are the most consistent way to deal damage in burn decks. In the early game, a strong blocker will immediately shut down burn decks relying on Swiftspear, Guide, etc, but Lightning Bolt always deals damage.

This variant has Shadows and Scourges to fill in during the mid-late game (which is turns 3-5 for burn decks) and Canyons and Street Wraith s for card draw, whereas other decks have tiny blockers and rely on top decking a burn spell to seal the deal. Shadows and Scourges are unique because they are aggressive by being defensive and lock down the board, so I can stall a turn or two if necessary. The trick is carefully monitoring life totals to not overextend too quickly. I want to be in control of the life loss.

Goblin_Guide, thanks for commenting. You make a good point about using cheap reanimation spells like Unearth to bring back Shadows and Scourges if they die. That is definitely a valid approach. Personally I really like Apostle's Blessing as a way to pay life while preventing a creature’s death, or making it essentially unblockable. This prevents graveyard interaction so I can run Rest in Peace on the sideboard and ignore grave-hate in general.

anime_girl64 on Black Red Burn; Lightning Skelemental

1 week ago

Tiadon777 Thanks you:))) Lightning Bolt is a bit expensive for how cheap I was trying to keep it. I figured the fast trample creatures would work well enough as a way to get rid of their small creatures, and Bump in the Night serves the same purpose as Bolt does in terms of player damage. Good thoughts though. And thanks for the input!