Play with Fire
Instant
Play with Fire deals 2 damage to any target. If a player is dealt damage this way, scry 1. (Look at the top card of your library. You may put that card on the bottom.)
- CMC
- 1
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- R
- Rarity
- uncommon
- Set
- Innistrad: Midnight Hunt
- Price
- $0.93
- EDHREC rank
- #10012
Play with Fire deals 2 damage to any target and replaces itself with a scry 1 when it hits a player or planeswalker — a clean, efficient cantrip that costs just one red mana. In Tor Wauki the Younger decks, the damage-plus-draw loop is exactly what the engine wants, making this a near-auto-include.
Best Commanders
Commanders with the highest synergy
Tor Wauki the Younger
Tor Wauki the Younger pings for 2 whenever you cast an instant or sorcery that deals damage, so Play with Fire effectively becomes a 4-damage cantrip for one mana — the scry 1 then filters toward the next spell to keep the chain moving.
Solphim, Mayhem Dominus
Solphim, Mayhem Dominus doubles noncombat damage from your spells, turning Play with Fire's 2 damage into 4 before the scry 1 even resolves — cheap, repeatable, and exactly the kind of low-floor high-ceiling slot Solphim wants filled.
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, Play with Fire occupies a narrow but real niche: damage-matters commanders like Tor Wauki the Younger treat it as a two-mana-value cantrip in a one-mana shell, and that efficiency is hard to dismiss. In Pioneer and Modern, it competes directly with Lightning Bolt and Shock — it loses that fight on raw damage, but the scry 1 gives control-adjacent red decks a reason to consider it when card quality matters more than the extra point. Legacy and Vintage have access to so many superior options that Play with Fire never makes the cut outside of budget constraints. The card's ceiling is Commander, specifically in dedicated burn-trigger builds.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.93 bulk tier
At $0.93, Play with Fire sits at the top of the bulk tier — cheap enough to throw into any red deck without hesitation. Supply is high and demand is narrow enough that the price is unlikely to climb, so buy it now if you need it and don't wait.
Explore
Sources
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.