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Wheel of Misfortune

Sorcery

Each player secretly chooses a number 0 or greater, then all players reveal those numbers simultaneously and determine the highest and lowest numbers revealed this way. Wheel of Misfortune deals damage equal to the highest number to each player who chose that number. Each player who didn't choose the lowest number discards their hand, then draws seven cards.

CMC
3
Mana cost
{2}{R}
Color identity
R
Rarity
rare
Set
Secret Lair Drop
Price
$26.33
EDHREC rank
#1148
Buy on TCGplayer
Wheel of Misfortune card art
Wheel of Misfortune refills every hand at the table and deals damage proportional to the bluffing game that resolves it — the player who bids highest takes the burn, everyone else gets a free wheel. The catch is that the damage output is entirely opponent-controlled, which makes it unreliable as a finisher but excellent in decks like Auntie Blyte, Bad Influence that want to absorb life loss, or with damage-redirect equipment like Pariah's Shield that turns the downside into an upside.

Best Commanders

Commanders with the highest synergy

01
Auntie Blyte, Bad Influence

Auntie Blyte, Bad Influence

61.1% of decks · synergy 0.51

Auntie Blyte, Bad Influence converts every point of self-inflicted damage into a +1/+1 counter and a mana ability, so Wheel of Misfortune's bidding damage is fuel rather than a drawback — the more you pay to win the bid, the bigger the payoff.

02

Ral, Monsoon Mage

39.7% of decks · synergy 0.36

Ral, Monsoon Mage triggers off instants and sorceries cast, and Wheel of Misfortune is both a cheap spell and a refill that keeps the spell count climbing to hit Ral's flip threshold faster.

03
Zurzoth, Chaos Rider

Zurzoth, Chaos Rider

41.5% of decks · synergy 0.31

Zurzoth, Chaos Rider creates a Devil token for every card opponents draw on your turn, so Wheel of Misfortune on your turn floods the board with Devils from a single three-mana spell.

04
Brallin, Skyshark RiderShabraz, the Skyshark

Brallin, Skyshark Rider // Shabraz, the Skyshark

24.9% of decks · synergy 0.24

Brallin, Skyshark Rider // Shabraz, the Skyshark pings each opponent whenever you discard, and Wheel of Misfortune makes the entire table discard their hands simultaneously — one cast translates directly into Brallin damage and Shabraz growth.

05
Norin the Wary

Norin the Wary

31.2% of decks · synergy 0.21

Norin the Wary blinks out whenever any spell is cast or combat damage is dealt, and Wheel of Misfortune triggers that exile-and-return loop while also refueling the hand that keeps the chaos engine running.

Format Analysis

Where it lives, where it can’t

FormatVerdict
commander legal
legacy legal
modern not legal
pioneer not legal
standard not legal
vintage legal
pauper not legal
oathbreaker legal

Commander is the home for Wheel of Misfortune — a multiplayer wheel that damages exactly one player and refills all four hands is designed for the threat-assessment dynamics of the format, and the three-mana cost means it lands early enough to matter. In Legacy and Vintage, it's technically legal but essentially unplayed: those formats want wheels that unconditionally refill your hand without handing opponents a choice, and the bidding mechanic introduces too much variance at parity-sensitive tables. Oathbreaker is the one other format where it shows up, again because the multiplayer context makes the mass-draw upside worth the damage gamble.

Key Combos

Combo lines featuring this card

Budget Alternatives

Cheaper options that do most of the same work

Wheel of Fortune is the closest functional replacement but costs significantly more, so the real budget swap is Reforge the Soul — it wheels the entire table for five mana or three with miracle, and the only trade-off is the absence of the damage component that makes Wheel of Misfortune worth running in damage-synergy builds. If the damage trigger is the point, Runehorn Hellkite offers a wheel stapled to a creature body at a fraction of the price, though the seven-mana cycle cost means it arrives much later in the game.

Price Context

Current price

$26.33 premium tier

At $26.33, Wheel of Misfortune sits in premium territory for a card that sees niche play rather than universal inclusion. The price reflects a low print run rather than cross-format demand, so it holds value best in dedicated damage-synergy builds where the bidding mechanic is the feature — if you're just after a wheel effect, cheaper options exist.

Explore

Sources

Mentioned

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Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.