War Balloon
Artifact — Vehicle
Flying
: Put a fire counter on this Vehicle.
As long as this Vehicle has three or more fire counters on it, it's an artifact creature.
Crew 3 (Tap any number of creatures you control with total power 3 or more: This Vehicle becomes an artifact creature until end of turn.)
- CMC
- 3
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- R
- Rarity
- uncommon
- Set
- Avatar: The Last Airbender
- Price
- $0.16
- EDHREC rank
- #18571
War Balloon gives a creature flying until end of turn for two mana — a narrow effect that rarely justifies a deck slot. Outside of very specific combo or evasion-dependent win conditions, War Balloon is outclassed by equipment, auras, or spells that grant permanent flying rather than a one-shot boost.
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 |
War Balloon is legal in every major format but sees essentially no competitive play in any of them. In Commander, where a single card needs to pull consistent weight across a long game, a temporary flying enabler on an artifact with no other utility is a tough sell — the only home is a dedicated combo shell that needs evasion to close on a specific turn. In constructed formats like Modern or Pioneer, instant-speed tricks have a higher bar and War Balloon doesn't clear it. Standard has it legal but it won't make lists there either.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.16 bulk tier
At $0.16, War Balloon is deep bulk — the price reflects demand, not scarcity. It won't appreciate unless a specific combo or ruling catapults it into relevance, which nothing on the horizon suggests.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.