Bolt Bend

Bolt Bend card image

Bolt Bend: Instant, War of the Spark. This spell costs 3 less to cast if you control a creature with power 4 or greater. Prices and printings on Mana Grove.

Mana cost
{3}{R}
Mana value
4
Type
Instant
Colour identity
Red (R)
Rarity
Uncommon
Set
War of the Spark (WAR)
Released
2019-05-03
Collector number
115
Artist
Svetlin Velinov
Commander rank
547 (by how often it appears in Commander decks)

Build around this card with Grover

About Bolt Bend

Bolt Bend is a Magic: The Gathering card, an uncommon red instant from War of the Spark (WAR), an expansion set released in May 2019. It is collector number 115 in that set, with art by Svetlin Velinov. It costs {3}{R} (three generic and one red mana) to cast, for a mana value of 4. Its colour identity is red. It is legal in Standard, Pioneer, Modern, Legacy, Vintage, Commander, Duel Commander, Oathbreaker, Brawl, Standard Brawl, Historic, Timeless, Alchemy and Gladiator. It has been printed in 4 sets, from War of the Spark (2019) to Avatar: The Last Airbender Eternal (2025). The latest aggregated market price for this printing is $3.91 (normal finish, as of 2026-11-02).

Card text

This spell costs {3} less to cast if you control a creature with power 4 or greater.

Change the target of target spell or ability with a single target.

"Give them everything you've got . . . and some things you don't." -Ral Zarek

Market price

Latest aggregated market price for the normal finish of this printing: $3.91 (as of 2026-11-02).

The figure covers this printing only; other printings carry their own price on their own page.

Format legality

Legality of Bolt Bend by format. Formats in which it is not legal are not listed.

StandardLegal
PioneerLegal
ModernLegal
LegacyLegal
VintageLegal
CommanderLegal
Duel CommanderLegal
OathbreakerLegal
BrawlLegal
Standard BrawlLegal
HistoricLegal
TimelessLegal
AlchemyLegal
GladiatorLegal

Other printings of Bolt Bend

Bolt Bend has been printed in 4 sets. The other printings are listed newest first, with the rarity and release year of each.

PrintingRarityYear
Avatar: The Last Airbender Eternal (TLE) #163Uncommon2025
Foundations (FDN) #619Uncommon2024
The List (PLST) #WAR-115Uncommon2024

Official rulings

Seven official rulings apply to Bolt Bend, newest first.

  • Once you've cast Bolt Bend, losing control of all creatures with power 4 or greater won't affect the spell or cause you to pay more mana.
  • Once you announce that you're casting Bolt Bend, no player may take actions until the spell has been paid for. Notably, opponents can't try to change whether you control a creature with power 4 or greater.
  • The single target that the target spell or ability targets doesn't have to be a creature you control with power 4 or greater.
  • To determine the total cost of a spell, start with the mana cost or alternative cost you're paying, add any cost increases, then apply any cost reductions. The mana value of the spell remains unchanged, no matter what the total cost to cast it was.
  • If a spell or ability targets the same player or object multiple times, you can't target it with Bolt Bend.
  • If a spell or ability targets multiple things, you can't target it with Bolt Bend, even if all but one of those targets have become illegal.
  • You don't choose the new target for the spell or ability until Bolt Bend resolves. You must change the target if possible. However, you can't change the target to an illegal target. If there are no legal targets to choose from, the target isn't changed. It doesn't matter if the original target has somehow become illegal itself.

Similar cards

Other instant cards with a red colour identity, ranked by how often they appear in Commander decks.

Explore Mana Grove