Molten Rain
Sorcery
Destroy target land. If that land was nonbasic, Molten Rain deals 2 damage to the land's controller.
- CMC
- 3
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- R
- Rarity
- uncommon
- Set
- Modern Masters 2017
- Price
- $0.29
- EDHREC rank
- #16149
Molten Rain destroys a land and deals 2 damage to its controller if it was nonbasic — three mana for a tempo swing that punishes greedy mana bases and advances a land-destruction gameplan simultaneously. In any deck helmed by Zo-Zu the Punisher, that damage stacks on top of Zo-Zu's triggered ability, making each spell a clock.
Best Commanders
Commanders with the highest synergy
Zo-Zu the Punisher
Zo-Zu the Punisher's static ability pings opponents every time a land enters the battlefield, so Molten Rain doubles down — you destroy the land, deal 2 for the nonbasic clause, and the opponent still took Zo-Zu triggers from all the lands they played before it.
Svella, Ice Shaper
Svella, Ice Shaper runs a Gruul shell that wants to slow opponents down while ramping into expensive activated abilities, and Molten Rain fits as cheap disruption that can kneecap a two-color opponent's fixing while Svella builds toward her mana engine.
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, Molten Rain is a niche card — land destruction is a political liability at a four-player table, so it earns a slot primarily in dedicated land-hate builds around commanders like Zo-Zu the Punisher rather than as general-purpose removal. In Pauper, where it's a common, Molten Rain sees real play as a sideboard or main-deck tool against the format's greedy dual-land mana bases, and the 2 damage is often relevant against aggressive life totals. Legacy and Vintage have access to harder answers, so Molten Rain doesn't compete there. Modern has largely moved past it in favor of effects with broader application, but it remains a budget-accessible sideboard option against Amulet Titan and Tron-style land strategies.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.29 bulk tier
At $0.29, Molten Rain is firmly bulk — a staple-level price for a card with a narrow but real use case. Bulk commons rarely spike without a competitive breakout, so expect the price to stay flat unless Pauper or a Commander trend pushes demand.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
- Zo-Zu the Punisher
- Svella, Ice Shaper
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.