Boom Scholar
Creature — Goblin Advisor
Exhaust abilities of other permanents you control cost 
less to activate.
Exhaust — 
: Creatures and Vehicles you control gain trample until end of turn. Put two +1/+1 counters on this creature. (Activate each exhaust ability only once.)
- CMC
- 3
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- GR
- Rarity
- uncommon
- Set
- Aetherdrift
- Price
- $0.09
- EDHREC rank
- #21226
Boom Scholar puts a free spell on the stack the moment it enters — that on-board impact is immediate and doesn't ask you to jump through hoops. The cost is that you're leaning on Redshift, Rocketeer Chief to get full mileage out of the effect, so outside that shell it's a role-player, not a staple.
Best Commanders
Commanders with the highest synergy
Redshift, Rocketeer Chief
Redshift, Rocketeer Chief wants every spell trigger it can find, and Boom Scholar delivers one the instant it lands — that's an ETB that feeds the engine without requiring any additional setup.
Format Analysis
Where it lives, where it can’t
| Format | Verdict |
|---|---|
| commander | legal |
| legacy | legal |
| modern | legal |
| pioneer | legal |
| standard | legal |
| vintage | legal |
| pauper | not legal |
| oathbreaker | legal |
In Commander, Boom Scholar earns its slot specifically in spell-slinger builds that reward casting or copying instants and sorceries — Redshift, Rocketeer Chief being the clearest home. In 60-card formats like Modern and Pioneer, the bar for a three-mana creature is high enough that Boom Scholar won't compete with faster, more consistent options. Legacy and Vintage have the same problem at a more extreme level: the card does nothing broken at any speed, so it doesn't register there. Standard is its most permissive environment outside Commander, but even there it's a deck-specific include rather than a format staple.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.09 bulk tier
At $0.09, Boom Scholar is deep bulk — pick it up without a second thought if the deck calls for it. Bulk rares and uncommons at this price floor rarely appreciate unless they find a broken interaction, and nothing about Boom Scholar's text suggests that's coming.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.