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Magmakin Artillerist

Creature — Elemental Pirate

Whenever you discard one or more cards, this creature deals that much damage to each opponent.
Cycling {1}{R} ({1}{R}, Discard this card: Draw a card.)
When you cycle this card, it deals 1 damage to each opponent.

CMC
3
Mana cost
{2}{R}
Color identity
R
Rarity
common
Set
Aetherdrift
Price
$0.28
EDHREC rank
#3661
Buy on TCGplayer
Magmakin Artillerist card art
Magmakin Artillerist pings for 1 whenever you draw outside your first draw step, turning every cantrip and looting effect into free damage that adds up fast. The cost is real — it does nothing alone, and in low-draw shells it's a 3-mana 3/3 with no text — but slap a Curiosity on it alongside Captain Howler, Sea Scourge and you're looking at a loop that drains the table.

Best Commanders

Commanders with the highest synergy

01
Captain Howler, Sea Scourge

Captain Howler, Sea Scourge

71.2% of decks · synergy 0.67

Captain Howler, Sea Scourge triggers repeated card draws on a loop, making Magmakin Artillerist a kill condition that converts every draw into a ping until opponents are dead.

02

Clive, Ifrit's Dominant

60.9% of decks · synergy 0.58

Clive, Ifrit's Dominant generates a high volume of Aether Tokens and draw effects that let Magmakin Artillerist stack damage quickly while Clive's own triggers keep the engine running.

03
Queen Kayla bin-Kroog

Queen Kayla bin-Kroog

51.3% of decks · synergy 0.50

Queen Kayla bin-Kroog's activated ability draws a burst of artifacts and creatures each turn, and Magmakin Artillerist converts that sudden refill into a burst of pinged damage across the table.

04
Gavi, Nest Warden

Gavi, Nest Warden

48.7% of decks · synergy 0.47

Gavi, Nest Warden gives you a free cycling draw each turn, and every cycle trigger feeds Magmakin Artillerist — in a dedicated cycling build the pings accumulate into meaningful pressure over a long game.

05

Norman Osborn

45.9% of decks · synergy 0.43

Norman Osborn's strategy of drawing and discarding enemy cards means an above-average draw count each turn, which Magmakin Artillerist translates directly into chip damage that clears out low-loyalty planeswalkers and finishes weakened opponents.

Format Analysis

Where it lives, where it can’t

FormatVerdict
commander legal
legacy legal
modern legal
pioneer legal
standard legal
vintage legal
pauper legal
oathbreaker legal

Commander is where Magmakin Artillerist earns its slot — the format's high density of draw triggers, cycling synergies, and looping commanders means the damage clause fires often enough to matter. In 60-card formats like Modern and Pioneer it's strictly outclassed: three mana for a 3/3 with conditional reach doesn't compete with the format's speed, and the draw-payoff space is already crowded with more efficient options. Pauper is the one non-Commander format worth watching, where the card pool is shallow enough that a recurring pinger with a reasonable body could find a niche in a dedicated draw-heavy shell. Legacy and Vintage have no interest — the rate is too slow and the payoff too marginal against the threats those formats present.

Key Combos

Combo lines featuring this card

Price Context

Current price

$0.28 bulk tier

At $0.28, Magmakin Artillerist is firmly bulk — easy to pick up as a four-of or to slot into multiple Commander decks without budgetary concern. Given its narrow best-use case in draw-heavy Commander builds, don't expect the price to move unless a future commander pushes the archetype into the spotlight.

Explore

Sources

Mentioned

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