Crushing Disappointment
Instant
Each player loses 2 life. You draw two cards.
- CMC
- 4
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- B
- Rarity
- common
- Set
- Strixhaven: School of Mages
- Price
- $0.12
- EDHREC rank
- #10483
Crushing Disappointment deals 2 damage to each opponent and draws you two cards for four mana — solid rate when the damage triggers something, dead weight when it doesn't. Outside of dedicated life-loss engines, it's too expensive to compete with cleaner draw spells, but Belbe, Corrupted Observer turns that incidental poke into two colorless mana per opponent and makes this card pull well above its weight.
Best Commanders
Commanders with the highest synergy
Belbe, Corrupted Observer
Belbe, Corrupted Observer cares about opponents losing life, and Crushing Disappointment hits all of them at instant speed for the turn's trigger — four mana that replaces itself and funds a massive Eldrazi two turns ahead of schedule.
Rakdos, Lord of Riots
Rakdos, Lord of Riots needs opponents to take damage before the combat step, and Crushing Disappointment covers that while also refilling your hand — two birds, one sorcery, though the four-mana cost means you're casting it as setup rather than acceleration.
Format Analysis
Where it lives, where it can’t
| Format | Verdict |
|---|---|
| commander | legal |
| legacy | legal |
| modern | legal |
| pioneer | legal |
| standard | not legal |
| vintage | legal |
| pauper | legal |
| oathbreaker | legal |
In Commander, Crushing Disappointment is a role-player, not a staple — it earns its seat only in decks that monetize the 2-damage clause, otherwise it's a clunky Divination. Pauper is where the card sees the most legitimate competition, since the format's card-draw options at common are narrow enough that a four-mana draw-two with upside is worth evaluating, though Unexpected Windfall and similar effects still outclass it in most lists. In Modern, Pioneer, Legacy, and Vintage, Crushing Disappointment is functionally invisible — those formats have access to Brainstorm, Faithless Looting, and cantrip suites that make a four-mana sorcery unplayable outside of niche combo shells. The honest assessment: this is a Commander-and-Pauper card, and even there it needs the right shell.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.12 bulk tier
At $0.12, Crushing Disappointment is deep bulk — grab a copy whenever you need it and don't think twice about the price. Bulk rares and commons at this price point don't move unless a deck archetype explodes in popularity, so there's no reason to stock up speculatively or hesitate to trade one away.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
- Belbe, Corrupted Observer
- Rakdos, Lord of Riots
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.