Fierce Retribution
Instant
Cleave 
(You may cast this spell for its cleave cost. If you do, remove the words in square brackets.)
Destroy target [attacking] creature.
- CMC
- 2
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- W
- Rarity
- common
- Set
- The List
- Price
- $0.08
- EDHREC rank
- #16036
Fierce Retribution destroys target attacking creature for one white mana at instant speed — clean, efficient, and exactly what aggressive creature decks hate to see. It's a narrow combat trick rather than a versatile removal spell, so it earns its slot only in dedicated go-wide defense strategies or formats where cheap instants matter.
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, Fierce Retribution is too conditional to compete for a removal slot — it only hits attackers, which means it does nothing outside your opponents' combat steps and blanks entirely against combo or control players. Pauper is where it has the most realistic home, since cheap white instants that trade up on mana are genuinely useful in aggressive weenie mirrors. In Legacy, Modern, and Pioneer the competition at one mana is steep enough that Fierce Retribution rarely makes the cut over unconditional options. Oathbreaker follows the same Commander logic: the format's faster pace makes the attacking-only restriction even harder to justify.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.08 bulk tier
At $0.08, Fierce Retribution sits firmly in bulk territory — the kind of card you pull from a common box rather than buy outright. Bulk commons with narrow effects don't appreciate, so there's no reason to acquire more than a playset if you need one for a specific build.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.