Smoldering Tar
Enchantment
At the beginning of your upkeep, target player loses 1 life.
Sacrifice this enchantment: It deals 4 damage to target creature. Activate only as a sorcery.
- CMC
- 4
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- BR
- Rarity
- uncommon
- Set
- Invasion
- Price
- $0.17
- EDHREC rank
- #28148
Smoldering Tar drains one life per turn and can sacrifice itself to deal 4 damage to any target — meaningful reach stapled to a slow clock, all for four mana. It's too slow and too low-impact for competitive tables, but in casual black-red decks that want persistent pressure it earns its slot.
Format Analysis
Where it lives, where it can’t
| Format | Verdict |
|---|---|
| commander | legal |
| legacy | legal |
| modern | not legal |
| pioneer | not legal |
| standard | not legal |
| vintage | legal |
| pauper | not legal |
| oathbreaker | legal |
Smoldering Tar is legal in Commander, Legacy, Vintage, and Oathbreaker, but it only realistically sees play in Commander. Legacy and Vintage have no interest in a four-mana enchantment that drains one per turn when faster, more efficient threats dominate both formats. In Commander, Smoldering Tar occupies a narrow niche in group slug and Rakdos attrition builds where the persistent drain compounds across four opponents and the 4-damage sacrifice doubles as unconditional removal for a utility creature or planeswalker.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.17 bulk tier
At $0.17, Smoldering Tar is deep bulk — you're paying for cardboard, not card power. It won't appreciate; pick it up only if you have a specific home for it.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.