Steam Vents
Land — Island Mountain
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As this land enters, you may pay 2 life. If you don't, it enters tapped.
- CMC
- 0
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- RU
- Rarity
- rare
- Set
- Unfinity
- Price
- —
- EDHREC rank
- #67
Steam Vents enters untapped on demand — pay 2 life and you have a blue or red mana available on turn one, no questions asked. The 2-life cost is the entire downside, and in a format where Commander games end on turns 7–10, it barely registers; Malcolm, Keen-Eyed Navigator // Vial Smasher the Fierce lists run it in over 82% of builds because the consistency it provides on early turns is simply worth it.
Best Commanders
Commanders with the highest synergy
Malcolm, Keen-Eyed Navigator // Vial Smasher the Fierce
Malcolm, Keen-Eyed Navigator // Vial Smasher the Fierce is a Grixis pirate-treasure engine that needs blue mana on turn two and red mana shortly after, and Steam Vents guarantees both without a tap restriction.
Rograkh, Son of Rohgahh // Silas Renn, Seeker Adept
Rograkh, Son of Rohgahh // Silas Renn, Seeker Adept is a zero-cost Boros-splash-blue artifact combo pair that needs to execute quickly, and Steam Vents is one of the few lands that can answer both the blue and red pip requirements on the same turn without slowing the clock.
Ral, Monsoon Mage
Ral, Monsoon Mage is an Izzet spellslinger commander that rewards casting multiple instants and sorceries per turn, making the unconditional untapped blue and red from Steam Vents directly fuel the engine from the opening hand.
Krark, the Thumbless // Sakashima of a Thousand Faces
Krark, the Thumbless // Sakashima of a Thousand Faces is an Izzet coin-flip storm deck that wants to chain spells as early as possible, and Steam Vents ensures neither a blue nor a red pip is ever the reason a line stalls on turn two.
Elsha of the Infinite
Elsha of the Infinite is a Jeskai commander that rewards casting noncreature spells off the top of the library, and Steam Vents covers the blue-red half of the color requirement the turn you need it without asking you to plan around it entering tapped.
Format Analysis
Where it lives, where it can’t
| Format | Verdict |
|---|---|
| commander | legal |
| legacy | legal |
| modern | legal |
| pioneer | legal |
| standard | legal |
| vintage | legal |
| pauper | not legal |
| oathbreaker | legal |
Steam Vents is a staple in every format where it's legal. In Commander it's an auto-include for any deck running blue and red — the 2-life cost is negligible over a 40-life game, and untapped dual lands at this reliability tier are simply too few to pass up. In Modern and Pioneer it's a format pillar; Izzet, Grixis, and Jeskai shells depend on it to cast two-color openers on curve, and no other land in those formats delivers the same unconditional flexibility at the same price point. Legacy runs it too, though the competition from fetch-plus-dual lines is stiffer there. Steam Vents is not legal in Pauper, which is the only format that locks it out entirely.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
unknown tier
Steam Vents has been reprinted multiple times across multiple sets, which keeps its price more accessible than comparable untapped dual lands that haven't seen reprint support. Check current prices on Scryfall or TCGPlayer for the most accurate figure — given reprint history, it's among the more attainable shock lands to acquire.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
- Malcolm, Keen-Eyed Navigator // Vial Smasher the Fierce
- Rograkh, Son of Rohgahh // Silas Renn, Seeker Adept
- Ral, Monsoon Mage
- Krark, the Thumbless // Sakashima of a Thousand Faces
- Elsha of the Infinite
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.