Balefire Dragon
Creature — Dragon
Flying
Whenever this creature deals combat damage to a player, it deals that much damage to each creature that player controls.
- CMC
- 7
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- R
- Rarity
- mythic
- Set
- Innistrad Remastered
- Price
- $14.29
- EDHREC rank
- #1238
Balefire Dragon hits the board and immediately threatens to wipe every creature an opponent controls the moment it connects — a 6/6 flying threat that doubles as a one-sided board wipe. Seven mana is steep, but Kaalia of the Vast puts it into play for free attacking, which makes that cost irrelevant.
Best Commanders
Commanders with the highest synergy
Kaalia of the Vast
Kaalia of the Vast cheats Balefire Dragon into play swinging, bypassing the seven-mana cost entirely and triggering the wipe on the same turn it enters — that's the whole reason it slots into over half of all Kaalia lists.
Tannuk, Steadfast Second
Tannuk, Steadfast Second wants large, punishing creatures that reward attacking, and Balefire Dragon delivers a board wipe stapled to a 6/6 flyer every time it gets through.
Lathliss, Dragon Queen
Lathliss, Dragon Queen generates a dragon token whenever another dragon enters, so Balefire Dragon not only contributes to the dragon count but clears the path for the whole team to attack uncontested.
Rivaz of the Claw
Rivaz of the Claw lets you cast dragons from the graveyard, meaning Balefire Dragon can be recurred after removal and threaten the same combat-damage wipe all over again.
The Ur-Dragon
The Ur-Dragon reduces the cost of every dragon you cast and draws a card whenever one attacks, so Balefire Dragon fits natively into the engine while providing a cleanup effect the five-color pile often needs.
Format Analysis
Where it lives, where it can’t
| Format | Verdict |
|---|---|
| commander | legal |
| legacy | legal |
| modern | legal |
| pioneer | not legal |
| standard | not legal |
| vintage | legal |
| pauper | not legal |
| oathbreaker | legal |
Commander is where Balefire Dragon actually lives — multiplayer boards run wide, and a triggered board wipe that punishes only one opponent per swing lines up perfectly with the chaos of four-player games. In Legacy and Vintage, seven mana is a near-disqualifying cost when those formats close games on turn one or two, and no competitive shell wants a slow dragon when faster threats and answers dominate. Modern is technically legal but practically irrelevant for the same reason; the format's clock is too fast for Balefire Dragon to matter. Oathbreaker is the one other format worth mentioning — if your spellbook can ramp hard or cheat it into play, the wipe trigger is just as punishing at that table size.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Budget Alternatives
Cheaper options that do most of the same work
Demanding Dragon and Thundermaw Hellkite both come in under $3 and offer flying dragon bodies in the same slot, but neither replaces the board-wipe trigger — you're trading the cleanup effect for a lower price tag. If the combat-damage wipe is the point, Hellkite Tyrant and Scourge of Valkas scratch different itches entirely; the honest budget answer is that Balefire Dragon's specific effect has no true cheap substitute, and the alternatives ask you to solve the board problem a different way.
Price Context
Current price
$14.29 mid tier
At $14.29, Balefire Dragon sits in the mid tier — expensive enough to feel like a deliberate purchase but not a barrier for most Commander budgets. It has held that range steadily given consistent demand across dragon and Kaalia lists, and there's no functional reprint that undercuts it.
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Sources
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.