Wrack with Madness 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
Target creature deals damage to itself equal to its power.
Complete guide
Wrack with Madness is a unique red sorcery that turns a creature's greatest strength into its fatal flaw. Instead of dealing direct damage itself, this spell forces a creature to turn its own power against its own toughness, creating fascinating interactions with keyword abilities.
What It Does
Wrack with Madness targets a single creature and causes that creature to deal damage to itself. The amount of damage dealt is exactly equal to the creature's power at the time the spell resolves. This is not the spell dealing damage; it is the creature acting as the source.
How It Resolves Step by Step
First, you choose a legal target creature as you cast the spell. Upon resolution, the game checks the creature's current power, including all buffs from equipment or enchantments. The creature then deals that much damage to its own toughness. If the creature has Deathtouch, any amount of damage is lethal, and if it has Lifelink, you (the controller of the creature) will actually gain life even as your creature potentially dies.
Common Mistakes
A common misconception is that the player casting Wrack with Madness gains the benefits of the creature's abilities. In reality, because the creature is the source of the damage, the creature's controller benefits from Lifelink. Additionally, protection from red will not prevent the damage if the creature itself is not red, as the creature is the source, not the spell.
When to Play It
This spell is most effective against high-power, low-toughness threats or creatures with dangerous combat keywords. It is an excellent way to bypass 'Indestructible' if you can reduce the creature's toughness, or to force a player to trigger their own 'Whenever this creature deals damage' abilities to your advantage.
Interaction examples
Mana GeyserIf your opponents have many tapped lands, you can cast Mana Geyser to generate a massive amount of red mana. You can then use this mana to cast Wrack with Madness on a massive threat that would otherwise be too expensive to handle with standard burn spells.
Jeska's WillIf you control your commander, you can cast Jeska's Will to exile the top three cards of your library and add mana. If Wrack with Madness is among those exiled cards, you can use the red mana generated to cast it immediately, removing a blocker before you move to your combat phase.
Guide written with AI from the official text and rulings. Official English text prevails.
How it works : Wrack with Madness
Original English text — Wizards of the Coast / Scryfall
- #1· Wizards of the Coast
Creature abilities like deathtouch or lifelink may affect the results of the damage dealt.
No other card is named in this ruling.
Legal formats
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Meta decks with Wrack with Madness
No archived Top 8 deck with this card yet.