Leyline of Lightning
Enchantment
If this card is in your opening hand, you may begin the game with it on the battlefield.
Whenever you cast a spell, you may pay 
. If you do, this enchantment deals 1 damage to target player or planeswalker.
- CMC
- 4
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- R
- Rarity
- rare
- Set
- Wilds of Eldraine: Enchanting Tales
- Price
- $0.29
- EDHREC rank
- #12209
Leyline of Lightning turns every spell you cast into a free ping — and if it opens in your starting hand, it does that from turn zero. The setup cost is zero mana when it's in your opening seven, which makes it a genuine free-roll in any deck that casts dozens of spells per game.
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 | not legal |
| oathbreaker | legal |
In Commander, Leyline of Lightning is a niche piece that earns its slot only in storm-style or spell-slinger decks that cast ten-plus spells in a turn — think Veyran, Voice of Duality or Krark, the Thumbless chains where the incremental damage actually closes games. In Legacy and Vintage, the card sees essentially no competitive play; the formats move too fast and the damage output too slowly to matter against the threats those formats present. Modern is the same story — burn already has more efficient options and doesn't need a five-mana enchantment that requires a lucky opener to justify itself. Across all formats, Leyline of Lightning is a build-around, not a staple.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.29 bulk tier
At $0.29, Leyline of Lightning is deep bulk — you're paying almost nothing for what is a genuinely narrow card. Don't expect the price to move; it has a small enough target audience that demand will stay low.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.