Chandra's Flame Wave MTG Card


Chandra's Flame Wave - Core Set 2020
Mana cost
Converted mana cost5
RarityRare
TypeSorcery
Released2019-07-12
Set symbol
Set nameCore Set 2020
Set codeM20
Number295
Frame2015
Layoutnormal
Borderblack
Illustred byPaul Scott Canavan

Key Takeaways

  1. Provides a sweeping effect, damaging multiple targets and potentially clearing the board in one move.
  2. Demands strategic mana management due to its specific, and somewhat steep, casting cost.
  3. Stays relevant in changing metas, countering creature-heavy decks effectively when timed right.

Text of card

Chandra's Flame Wave deals 2 damage to target player and each creature that player controls. Search your library and/or graveyard for a card named Chandra, Flame's Fury, reveal it, and put it into your hand. If you search your library this way, shuffle it.

"It's high tide."


Card Pros

Card Advantage: Chandra’s Flame Wave offers significant card utility by dealing damage to multiple targets. This can lead to a net gain in card advantage as you can potentially remove several of your opponent’s creatures from the board with a single card.

Resource Acceleration: This card has the potential to shift the momentum of the game. By dealing damage to not just creatures but also players, it can accelerate your resource advantage, especially if it clears the path for your creatures to attack directly.

Instant Speed: Although Chandra’s Flame Wave is not an instant, its powerful effect at sorcery speed can be set up to coincide with your main phase, allowing you to maximize your turn by following up with creature attacks cleared by this wave of damage.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Chandra’s Flame Wave necessitates discarding one of your cards, a significant setback if your hand is already dwindling. This aspect can put you at a disadvantage by depleting valuable resources that you might need later in the game.

Specific Mana Cost: With a casting cost demanding both generic and red mana, integrating Chandra’s Flame Wave into a deck requires a commitment to red mana sources. This can restrict deck flexibility, as it may not fit into multi-colored decks that don’t heavily favor red.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: Chandra’s Flame Wave commands a notable amount of mana for its effect. In the landscape of MTG, where efficient mana expenditure is crucial, there are alternatives that might offer similar or greater impact on the game for a lower mana investment. Such a cost analysis is critical when deciding whether to include it in your deck.


Reasons to Include in Your Collection

Versatility: Chandra’s Flame Wave offers a dynamic edge in decks that thrive on dealing direct damage. It’s a game-changer for spell-heavy builds, empowering players with the ability to sculpt their plays around this powerful sweeper.

Combo Potential: This card is a dream for players eyeing to amplify their burn strategies. It can serve as a catalyst for fiery combos, turning the tide by clearing the board while padding your life total, making it a superb partner to a variety of synergistic spells.

Meta-Relevance: As the meta ebbs and flows, Chandra’s Flame Wave remains relevant. It’s particularly potent against creature-centric decks, allowing for sudden comebacks and asserting dominance over the battlefield when timed correctly.


How to beat

Chandra’s Flame Wave presents a unique challenge on the battlefield, offering a powerful spell that can shift the momentum of the game with its sweeping effect. Overcoming this card requires a strategic approach, focusing on minimizing the impact it has when cast. Players can counter this spell by using counterspells, protecting their board with cards that provide indestructibility or hexproof, and maintaining a low creature count to reduce the damage spread. Efficient use of instant-speed removal to respond to the spell’s on-cast trigger is also crucial. Timing is all-important when facing this surge of energy, and anticipating its arrival could mean the difference between a win or a loss. Additionally, holding onto cards that can exile Chandra’s Flame Wave from the opponent’s graveyard can prevent repetitive casting that could occur from various graveyard-recursion strategies. Resilience and preparedness are the keys to outlasting this fiery onslaught and keeping your aspirations alive in the game.


Cards like Chandra's Flame Wave

Chandra’s Flame Wave is a dynamic spell in the Magic: The Gathering arsenal, reminiscent of red deck pyrotechnics like Flame Rift and Pyroclasm. Like Chandra’s Flame Wave, Flame Rift deals damage directly to players but does so at a lower mana expense and without the specificity of hitting nonland permanents. When compared, Pyroclasm offers a more cost-effective way of dealing damage to creatures, but Chandra’s Flame Wave provides a broader sweep, targeting opponents and their boards in a fiery swath.

Shifting our focus, Fiery Confluence presents an interesting parallel. It serves as a modular damage dealer, capable of clearing the board or singeing opponents. Even with a higher cost, it provides versatility that is unmatched by Chandra’s Flame Wave yet misses on providing a direct thematic link to the iconic Planeswalker, Chandra Nalaar. Another similar card, Sweltering Suns, offers creature damage and the potential for cycling, yet it doesn’t pack the same targeted punch that Chandra’s Flame Wave promises against your adversaries.

Thus, Chandra’s Flame Wave holds a unique place, offering a combination of broad and direct damage with the narrative charm of Chandra’s fiery essence, making it a captivating choice for players who love to engulf the battlefield in flames while reveling in lore-rich gameplay.

Flame Rift - MTG Card versions
Pyroclasm - MTG Card versions
Fiery Confluence - MTG Card versions
Sweltering Suns - MTG Card versions
Flame Rift - Nemesis (NEM)
Pyroclasm - Ice Age (ICE)
Fiery Confluence - Commander 2015 (C15)
Sweltering Suns - Amonkhet (AKH)

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Chandra's Flame Wave MTG card by a specific set like Core Set 2020, there are several reliable options to consider. One of the primary sources is your local game store, where you can often find booster packs, individual cards, and preconstructed decks from current and some past sets. They often offer the added benefit of a community where you can trade with other players.

For a broader inventory, particularly of older sets, online marketplaces like TCGPlayer, Card Kingdom and Card Market offer extensive selections and allow you to search for cards from specific sets. Larger e-commerce platforms like eBay and Amazon also have listings from various sellers, which can be a good place to look for sealed product and rare finds.

Additionally, Magic’s official site often has a store locator and retailer lists for finding Wizards of the Coast licensed products. Remember to check for authenticity and the condition of the cards when purchasing, especially from individual sellers on larger marketplaces.

Below is a list of some store websites where you can buy the Chandra's Flame Wave and other MTG cards:

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Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Chandra's Flame Wave has restrictions

FormatLegality
HistoricbrawlLegal
HistoricLegal
LegacyLegal
OathbreakerLegal
GladiatorLegal
PioneerLegal
CommanderLegal
ModernLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
ExplorerLegal
PennyLegal
TimelessLegal

Rules and information

The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering Chandra's Flame Wave card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.

DateText
2019-07-12 Chandra’s Flame Wave targets the player, not their creatures. A creature with hexproof may be dealt damage this way.
2019-07-12 If the target player is an illegal target by the time Chandra’s Flame Wave resolves, the spell doesn’t resolve. No creatures or players are dealt damage, and you won’t search for Chandra, Flame’s Fury.

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