Explosive Derailment
Instant
Spree (Choose one or more additional costs.)
+ 
— Explosive Derailment deals 4 damage to target creature.
+ — Destroy target artifact.
- CMC
- 1
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- R
- Rarity
- common
- Set
- Outlaws of Thunder Junction
- Price
- $0.21
- EDHREC rank
- #11300
Explosive Derailment deals damage equal to a permanent's mana value to any target, then makes that permanent fight a creature — two removal effects stapled together for four mana. Riku of Many Paths copies it for free, turning one spell into a board-clearing double punch that scales off whatever high-value permanent is already in play.
Best Commanders
Commanders with the highest synergy
Riku of Many Paths
Riku of Many Paths copies instants and sorceries whenever you cast them, so Explosive Derailment becomes two separate triggers — one to burn a player or planeswalker and one to trade creatures — off a single card.
Format Analysis
Where it lives, where it can’t
| Format | Verdict |
|---|---|
| commander | legal |
| legacy | legal |
| modern | legal |
| pioneer | legal |
| standard | legal |
| vintage | legal |
| pauper | legal |
| oathbreaker | legal |
In Commander, Explosive Derailment earns its slot in decks that care about spell copying or need flexible removal that punishes high-mana-value permanents — an opponent's 8-mana threat becomes lethal burn on top of a forced fight. In 60-card formats like Modern and Pioneer, four mana for conditional removal is too slow and too situational; cheaper, unconditional options push it out completely. Pauper is where it gets marginally more interesting since the card pool for versatile removal is thinner, but even there the damage ceiling depends on your opponent's board, making it unreliable. Stick to Commander, specifically in spellslinger or copy-centric builds where Explosive Derailment gets doubled or recurred.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.21 bulk tier
At $0.21, Explosive Derailment is deep bulk — easy to pick up as a throw-in or from a commons box. Bulk rares with narrow appeal rarely climb without a format breakout, and nothing about this card's current trajectory suggests one.
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Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.