Hour of Devastation
Sorcery
All creatures lose indestructible until end of turn. Hour of Devastation deals 5 damage to each creature and each non-Bolas planeswalker.
- CMC
- 5
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- R
- Rarity
- rare
- Set
- Hour of Devastation Promos
- Price
- —
- EDHREC rank
- #9661
Hour of Devastation wipes the board of indestructible creatures and planeswalkers simultaneously — two categories most five-mana sweepers simply ignore. At five mana with a double-red pip, it fits cleanly into any Nicol Bolas, the Ravager list and earns its slot the moment an opponent's Avacyn or Ugin is staring you down.
Best Commanders
Commanders with the highest synergy
Nicol Bolas, the Ravager
Nicol Bolas, the Ravager is the natural home — Hour of Devastation carries Bolas's name, hits indestructible blockers that would otherwise stop his attack, and the flavor lock-in means these lists run it at nearly 30% inclusion.
Firesong and Sunspeaker
Firesong and Sunspeaker turns every non-combat damage source into a lifegain trigger and a potential Flame Rift effect, so Hour of Devastation dealing five to each creature and player converts into a pile of life and additional burn — it's a sweeper that also fuels the engine.
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 | not legal |
| oathbreaker | legal |
In Commander, Hour of Devastation fills a specific niche: it answers indestructible creatures and planeswalkers at a mana cost competitive with Wrath of God, which handles neither. The five-damage ceiling means it misses large threats, so it's a surgical tool in Grixis and Rakdos shells rather than a universal staple. In Modern and Pioneer the card sees essentially no competitive play — five mana for a conditional sweeper is too slow when cheaper, more reliable options exist. Legacy and Vintage are similarly inhospitable; the formats move too fast for sorcery-speed board control at this cost. Commander is where Hour of Devastation actually earns its reputation.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
unknown tier
Pricing data isn't available in the current feed for Hour of Devastation, so check Scryfall or TCGPlayer for live numbers before buying. Given its narrow but real Commander niche, it tends to sit in the bulk-rare-to-a-few-dollars range — worth picking up opportunistically if you're building Bolas or any indestructible-hate shell.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
- Nicol Bolas, the Ravager
- Firesong and Sunspeaker
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.