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Flare of Duplication

Instant

You may sacrifice a nontoken red creature rather than pay this spell's mana cost.
Copy target instant or sorcery spell. You may choose new targets for the copy.

CMC
3
Mana cost
{1}{R}{R}
Color identity
R
Rarity
rare
Set
Modern Horizons 3
Price
$3.26
EDHREC rank
#1132
Buy on TCGplayer
Flare of Duplication card art
Flare of Duplication copies any instant or sorcery for free — no mana, just sacrifice a red creature you control — which means it turns a single haymaker spell into two without touching your mana for the turn. The alternate cost is real, but in red decks that already run expendable creatures or commanders like Rograkh, Son of Rohgahh // Silas Renn, Seeker Adept, it costs almost nothing and hits harder than Pyromancer's Goggles without requiring five mana on the stack first.

Best Commanders

Commanders with the highest synergy

01
Rograkh, Son of RohgahhSilas Renn, Seeker Adept

Rograkh, Son of Rohgahh // Silas Renn, Seeker Adept

85.9% of decks · synergy 0.82

Rograkh, Son of Rohgahh // Silas Renn, Seeker Adept is the canonical home — Rograkh himself is a zero-mana 0/1 who exists purely to be sacrificed, making Flare of Duplication effectively a free copy spell that doubles any storm piece, tutor, or game-ending ritual on the stack.

02
Ashling, Flame Dancer

Ashling, Flame Dancer

50.1% of decks · synergy 0.40

Ashling, Flame Dancer triggers on every noncreature spell cast, so doubling one with Flare of Duplication means double triggers and double the counter accumulation, compressing the number of spells needed to reach lethal attack range.

03

Ral, Monsoon Mage

42.1% of decks · synergy 0.38

Ral, Monsoon Mage rewards casting and copying instants and sorceries at a discount, and Flare of Duplication is exactly the kind of free copy effect that converts into extra damage and extra storm count without adding to the mana investment.

04

Etali, Primal Conqueror

39.5% of decks · synergy 0.37

Etali, Primal Conqueror costs nine mana and wants to attack immediately, so Flare of Duplication earns its slot by copying the haste enabler or reanimation spell that puts Etali into play in the first place — or by doubling the Etali trigger effect if creature copying is in the mix.

05
Rakdos, the Muscle

Rakdos, the Muscle

36.4% of decks · synergy 0.32

Rakdos, the Muscle cheats large creatures into play off combat damage, and Flare of Duplication doubles the spells that set up that attack step — removal clearing blockers, rituals enabling follow-up casts, or any game-winning sorcery that benefits from a second resolution.

Format Analysis

Where it lives, where it can’t

FormatVerdict
commander legal
legacy legal
modern legal
pioneer not legal
standard not legal
vintage legal
pauper not legal
oathbreaker legal

Commander is where Flare of Duplication does its best work — the free alternate cost scales perfectly in a format full of powerful sorceries and creatures worth less than the copy effect they enable. In Legacy and Vintage, the card is legal but faces stiff competition from Fork effects and Dualcaster Mage lines that slot into tighter, faster combo shells; it sees essentially no competitive play there. Modern is a similar story: legal on paper, but the format moves too fast for a conditional free spell that requires a creature sacrifice and offers no immediate card advantage. Flare of Duplication is a Commander card that happens to be legal elsewhere.

Key Combos

Combo lines featuring this card

Price Context

Current price

$3.26 cheap tier

At $3.26, Flare of Duplication sits in the sweet spot where it's cheap enough to include without a second thought but priced above bulk, reflecting genuine demand from the Commander decks that want it. Given its concentration in high-synergy builds and lack of meaningful play elsewhere, the price is stable rather than speculative — buy it when you need it, not as a hedge.

Explore

Sources

Mentioned

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Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.