Zap
Instant
Zap deals 1 damage to any target.
Draw a card.
- CMC
- 3
- Mana cost
- Color identity
- R
- Rarity
- common
- Set
- Invasion
- Price
- $0.16
- EDHREC rank
- #23698
Zap deals 1 damage and replaces itself — the cantrip is the entire reason it exists, not the damage. In most contexts, that rate is too low to justify a slot; a 1-damage spell only earns its keep when the draw matters more than the effect.
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 | legal |
| oathbreaker | legal |
In Commander, Zap is a niche include: the 1 damage is nearly irrelevant, but the cantrip keeps it from being a pure blank, and a handful of spell-count commanders — Kalamax, the Stormsire or Veyran, Voice of Duality — can extract extra value from the cast trigger. In Pauper, where commons compete on tight efficiency, Zap loses to nearly every other cantrip burn spell at the same slot. Legacy and Vintage have access to so many strictly better one-mana cantrips that Zap never sees play. Oathbreaker mirrors the Commander calculus — playable only when the commander specifically rewards cheap instants.
Key Combos
Combo lines featuring this card
Price Context
Current price
$0.16 bulk tier
At $0.16, Zap is deep bulk — you're not paying for power, you're paying for cardboard. The price is stable because demand is narrow and supply is plentiful; don't expect movement in either direction.
Explore
Sources
Mentioned
Updated . Data from Scryfall, EDHREC, and Commander Spellbook.