First Volley
Instant — Arcane
First Volley deals 1 damage to target creature and 1 damage to that creature's controller.
- CMC
- 2
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- R
- Rarity
- common
- Set
- Betrayers of Kamigawa
- Price
- $0.08
- EDHREC rank
- #23686
First Volley deals 1 damage to any target and 1 damage to that target's controller — two pings for one mana, which matters most when your commander cares about repeated damage triggers or spell count. It's a fine role-player in the right shell and a blank in any other.
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 | legal |
| oathbreaker | legal |
In Commander, First Volley earns its slot only in decks that weaponize spell-cast triggers or incremental damage — Magda, Brazen Outlaw storm lists, Veyran, Voice of Duality magecraft shells, or Firesong and Sunspeaker burn strategies get real mileage from the split-damage clause, everyone else does not. In Pauper it competes in aggressive red decks where one mana for two damage spread across two targets can close out a race or trade up on a chump blocker, but it rarely makes the cut over more efficient options. Legacy and Vintage are non-starters — one mana for one damage is far below rate in those formats, and no storm variant is reaching for First Volley when Grapeshot exists.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.08 bulk tier
At $0.08, First Volley is deep bulk — you're grabbing it out of a common box, not a binder. Bulk commons don't appreciate; pick it up if you need it and don't think twice about the cost.
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Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.