Sudden Breakthrough
Instant
Target creature gets +2/+0 and gains first strike until end of turn.
Create a Treasure token. (It's an artifact with "
, Sacrifice this token: Add one mana of any color.")
- CMC
- 2
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- R
- Rarity
- common
- Set
- Jumpstart 2022
- Price
- $0.27
- EDHREC rank
- #5020
Sudden Breakthrough gives a creature haste and draws you a card for two mana — that's a clean two-for-one on rate before you factor in any copying effects. In Zada, Hedron Grinder decks it's a staple, not a flex slot: one cast copies to every creature you control, turning a cantrip into a mass-haste enabler and a full hand refill in the same action.
Best Commanders
Commanders with the highest synergy
Zada, Hedron Grinder
Sudden Breakthrough is in over 82% of Zada, Hedron Grinder decks for good reason — targeting Zada copies the spell to every creature you control, granting the whole board haste and drawing a card per creature, which often means you're drawing six to ten cards while swinging for lethal that same turn.
Vadrik, Astral Archmage
Vadrik, Astral Archmage reduces instant and sorcery costs based on his power, and Sudden Breakthrough both cantrips to keep the spell chain alive and can pump Vadrik's power by granting haste to attack before the next spell — exactly the kind of cheap, self-replacing spell the deck wants to chain through a turn.
Feather, the Redeemed
Feather, the Redeemed returns instants and sorceries that target your creatures to hand at end of turn, so Sudden Breakthrough becomes a permanent fixture — cast it every turn for a repeating haste grant and free card draw, all for two mana.
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 | legal |
| oathbreaker | legal |
Sudden Breakthrough's natural home is Commander, specifically the Zada and Feather archetypes where targeting your own creatures generates outsized value from a single cast. In Pauper it's legal and the haste-plus-cantrip package is efficient, but the format lacks mass-copy engines so it plays as a fair combat trick — playable, not broken. Modern and Pioneer have access to it, but two mana for haste and a card without an immediate board impact doesn't clear the bar in those formats, where tempo is punishing. Legacy and Vintage have no use for it at all.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.27 bulk tier
At $0.27, Sudden Breakthrough is pure bulk — pick up as many as you need without a second thought. Bulk commons with a clear home in a high-popularity archetype like Zada tend to stay in this price band indefinitely, so there's no urgency, but no reason to wait either.
Explore
Sources
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.