Galvanic Arc
Enchantment — Aura
Enchant creature
When this Aura enters, it deals 3 damage to any target.
Enchanted creature has first strike.
- CMC
- 3
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- R
- Rarity
- common
- Set
- Ravnica: City of Guilds
- Price
- $0.23
- EDHREC rank
- #18421
Galvanic Arc sticks to a creature, deals 3 damage immediately, and grants that creature first strike for every subsequent attack — removal and a combat upgrade stapled together for three mana. Three Dog, Galaxy News DJ runs it in roughly a third of all builds because the Arc's broadcast trigger plays perfectly with enchantment-matters payoffs. It's not a bomb, but it earns its slot cleanly.
Best Commanders
Commanders with the highest synergy
Three Dog, Galaxy News DJ
Three Dog, Galaxy News DJ casts Galvanic Arc as both a removal spell and an enchantment for his broadcast triggers, meaning it does double duty the moment it resolves — deal 3 to a threat and immediately fuel the next perk ability.
Stangg, Echo Warrior
Stangg, Echo Warrior copies Auras and enchantments, so Galvanic Arc hitting the battlefield once can mean two creatures get first strike and two separate 3-damage pings, turning one three-mana spell into a significant tempo swing.
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, Galvanic Arc is a niche role-player rather than a staple — it shows up in enchantment-matters builds where the Aura subtype matters more than raw efficiency. Pauper is where it has the most legitimate competitive standing: three mana for a damage-plus-first-strike effect is playable in a format where commons set the ceiling. Legacy and Vintage have no interest — the card is simply outclassed by faster interaction at every turn. Modern is legal but irrelevant; nothing about Galvanic Arc's rate competes in that card pool.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.23 bulk tier
At $0.23, Galvanic Arc is deep bulk — the kind of card you pull from a box rather than order individually. Bulk commons rarely move on price unless a format breaks them wide open, and nothing on the horizon points that direction for this one.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
- Three Dog, Galaxy News DJ
- Stangg, Echo Warrior
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.