Heat of Battle
Enchantment
Whenever a creature blocks, this enchantment deals 1 damage to that creature's controller.
- CMC
- 2
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- R
- Rarity
- uncommon
- Set
- Stronghold
- Price
- $0.25
- EDHREC rank
- #21637
Heat of Battle pings every attacking creature's controller for 1 damage whenever a creature blocks it — zero mana to activate, runs on autopilot, and stacks up fast in a game with multiple attackers. It's a narrow enchantment that only matters in combat-heavy metas, but in those tables it's a genuine tax that forces opponents to think twice before swinging.
Format Analysis
Where it lives, where it can’t
| Format | Verdict |
|---|---|
| commander | legal |
| legacy | legal |
| modern | not legal |
| pioneer | not legal |
| standard | not legal |
| vintage | legal |
| pauper | not legal |
| oathbreaker | legal |
Heat of Battle is legal in Commander, Legacy, Vintage, and Oathbreaker, but Legacy and Vintage have no practical interest in a slow enchantment that requires a combat step to function. Commander is the only format where Heat of Battle earns a slot — games go long, the table is full of attackers, and the cumulative 1-damage pings can actually chip players toward range over many turns. In Oathbreaker the compressed game length and two-player-focused lines make it too slow to matter.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.25 bulk tier
At $0.25, Heat of Battle is deep bulk — you're not paying for this card, you're paying for shipping. That price is stable by default; there's no spike potential here, so grab it if the effect fits your deck and don't worry about the market.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.