Sunflare Shaman is one of those cards players keep asking about. Here is, in plain words, what its official text says, the rulings published by Wizards of the Coast, and the combos players actually run.
Official card text
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: This creature deals X damage to any target and X damage to itself, where X is the number of Elemental cards in your graveyard.
Complete guide
Harness the power of your fallen kin with Sunflare Shaman, a low-cost Elemental that scales beautifully as the game progresses. By counting the Elemental cards in your graveyard, this creature acts as a repeatable source of direct damage. Whether you are clearing path blockers or aiming for the win, understanding how its ability interacts with the graveyard is key.
Harnessing the Graveyard
Sunflare Shaman features an activated ability that costs two mana and tapping the creature. When activated, it checks your graveyard for the total number of Elemental cards. It then deals that amount of damage, denoted as X, to any target and the same amount of damage to itself. Note that X is determined only when the ability resolves, not when you activate it.
The Resolution Process
When the ability resolves, it first calculates the value of X. If Sunflare Shaman was destroyed in response to the activation and is an Elemental card itself, it will actually count toward the damage total while in the graveyard. However, if the chosen target becomes illegal (for example, by gaining hexproof or leaving the battlefield), the entire ability fails to resolve. In that specific case, Sunflare Shaman will not deal any damage to itself.
Maintaining Your Shaman
Because Sunflare Shaman deals X damage to itself, its survival depends on its toughness being higher than the number of Elementals in your graveyard. Once your graveyard is sufficiently stocked, using this ability will likely result in the Shaman's death. This is often a worthwhile trade to remove a high-value threat from the opponent's side of the board.
Strategic Implementation
Play Sunflare Shaman in decks that focus on the Elemental creature type to maximize the value of X. Use it early to pressure small creatures, or save it for a late-game finishing blow. Remember that since it requires tapping, you must wait a turn for its 'summoning sickness' to wear off before you can utilize the flare.
Interaction examples
Professional Face-BreakerIf your opponent controls Professional Face-Breaker and you have two Elementals in your graveyard, you can activate Sunflare Shaman to deal 2 damage to the Face-Breaker. Since Professional Face-Breaker has 3 toughness, it will survive, but if you have three Elementals, the damage will be enough to destroy it. Sunflare Shaman will also take that damage and likely be destroyed.
Ornithopter of ParadiseYou activate Sunflare Shaman's ability targeting Ornithopter of Paradise. If you have at least one Elemental in your graveyard, the Ornithopter (which has 2 toughness) will take damage. If you only have one Elemental, Sunflare Shaman deals 1 damage to itself and survives; if you have two or more, both creatures will follow the rules for lethal damage and be destroyed.
Guide written with AI from the official text and rulings. Official English text prevails.
How it works : Sunflare Shaman
Original English text — Wizards of the Coast / Scryfall
- #1· Wizards of the Coast
If Sunflare Shaman leaves the battlefield before its ability resolves, it will still deal damage to the target. If Sunflare Shaman is put into your graveyard, it even counts toward the amount of damage dealt.
No other card is named in this ruling.
- #2· Wizards of the Coast
If the target leaves the battlefield or otherwise becomes an illegal target before the ability resolves, the ability doesn't resolve and Sunflare Shaman won't deal any damage to itself.
No other card is named in this ruling.
Legal formats
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Meta decks with Sunflare Shaman
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