Contest of Claws
- Mana cost
- {1}{G}
- Type
- Sorcery
- Set
- The Lost Caverns of Ixalan Commander #12 (rare)
- Price
- $8.07 USD
Target creature you control deals damage equal to its power to another target creature. If excess damage was dealt this way, discover X, where X is that excess damage. (Exile cards from the top of your library until you exile a nonland card with that mana value or less. Cast it without paying its mana cost or put it into your hand. Put the rest on the bottom in a random order.)
Contest of Claws has 2 printings, first in The Lost Caverns of Ixalan Commander (2023). EDHREC ranks it #4,993 among Commander cards. It appears most in Wolverine, Best There Is decks (3,568 on EDHREC). It has 10 official rulings.
Legality
- commander: legal
- legacy: legal
- vintage: legal
- pauper: not legal
- modern: not legal
- pioneer: not legal
- standard: not legal
- brawl: not legal
Commanders that run Contest of Claws most
Deck counts from EDHREC.
- Wolverine, Best There Is: 3,568 decks
- Pantlaza, Sun-Favored: 2,964 decks
- Maarika, Brutal Gladiator: 1,372 decks
- Shelob, Child of Ungoliant: 1,289 decks
- Rocco, Street Chef: 1,234 decks
- Legolas, Master Archer: 1,039 decks
- Ghalta, Primal Hunger: 698 decks
- The Muckslinger Gang: 579 decks
Often played with Contest of Claws
Cards that show up in the same decks on EDHREC.
Rulings
- : Some spells and abilities that cause you to discover may require targets. If each target chosen is an illegal target as that spell or ability tries to resolve, it won't resolve and you won't discover.
- : When you discover, you must exile cards. The only optional part of the ability is whether you cast the exiled card or put it into your hand.
- : If you discover an adventurer card, split card, or modal double-faced card, you might be able to cast that card with either set of characteristics depending on the effect's discover value. For example, if you discover 4 and reveal Galvanic Giant (an adventurer card from Wilds of Eldraine with a mana value of 4), you could cast Galvanic Giant, but not Storm Reading (its Adventure, which has a mana value of 7). If you discover 7 and reveal Galvanic Giant, you could cast either Galvanic Giant or Storm Reading.
- : Excess damage has been dealt to a creature if the damage dealt to it is greater than lethal damage. Usually, this means damage greater than its toughness, although damage already marked on the creature is taken into account.
- : A spell's mana value is determined only by its mana cost. Ignore any alternative costs, additional costs, cost increases, or cost reductions.
- : If you can't cast the discovered card (perhaps because there are no legal targets for the spell), you'll put it into your hand.
- : The mana value of a split card is determined by the combined mana cost of its two halves. If discover allows you to cast a split card, you may cast either half (as long as its mana value is less than or equal to the effect's discover value) but not both halves.
- : You exile the cards face up. All players will be able to see them.
- : If you cast a spell "without paying its mana cost", you can't choose to cast it for any alternative costs. You can, however, pay additional costs. If the spell has any mandatory additional costs, you must pay those to cast it.
- : If the discovered card has {X} in its mana cost, you must choose 0 as the value of X when casting it without paying its mana cost.