Demolition Field
50% of games where Demolition Field was cast ended in a win for its controller, a +14.4 percentage-point lift over the 35.6% win rate when it sat uncast in the library.
Demolition Field sits in 4.6% of tracked Commander decks on Playgroup Live, a narrow niche for a colorless land that doubles as targeted nonbasic removal. The early signal is striking: decks that actually resolved it won 50% of the time, compared to 35.6% when it never left the library.
That +14.4-point delta is the most honest measure of what the card does at the table. Both sample sizes are small — 20 cast observations and 90 library observations — so treat this as a directional finding rather than a settled verdict. What it consistently suggests is that the moment to activate Demolition Field tends to arrive in winning game states: you have the mana up, a target worth blowing up, and a stable enough board to trade the land for a tempo swing.
The draw-to-play rate of 67.9% and a median first-cast turn of 5 tell the rest of the story. Players hold it about one turn after drawing it before pulling the trigger, which tracks with a card that needs a live nonbasic target and three mana available at the same time. It is legal in Commander, Modern, Pioneer, Legacy, and Vintage.
- 4.6% inclusion rate across tracked Commander decks
- +14.4pt win-rate lift when cast versus sitting uncast in the library
- 50% win rate in games where it was actually cast (20 observations)
- 68% of drawn copies get cast before the game ends
- T5 median first-cast turn
- 50% battlefield stickiness — a sacrifice land by design, so half the time it ends in a graveyard
First-cast turn
n=21The "good card" funnel
137 broughtOf 121 Demolition Fields brought to games, 28 were drawn, 20 of those were cast, and only 10 remained on the battlefield at game end — a low stickiness figure that reflects the land being sacrificed on purpose to resolve its ability.
Players who cast this card win 48% of the time (n=21) , vs 35% when it never left the library (n=104).
Final zone distribution
137 instances90 of 121 brought copies ended in the library, the expected result for a singleton land that requires specific board conditions to activate. The 18 graveyard entries represent successful sacrifices, not removal.
Top commanders running this card
by deck count-
1
Y'shtola, Night's Blessed
19 decks
-
2
Terra, Herald of Hope
11 decks
-
3
Krang, the All-Powerful
9 decks
-
4
Olivia, Opulent Outlaw
6 decks
-
5
Ardyn, the Usurper
5 decks
-
6
Elas il-Kor, Sadistic Pilgrim
4 decks
-
7
Greven, Predator Captain
3 decks
-
8
Karazikar, the Eye Tyrant
3 decks
-
9
Minwu, White Mage
3 decks
-
10
Satya, Aetherflux Genius
3 decks
The top commander, Y'shtola, Night's Blessed, accounts for 17 decks, roughly double the next entry. The list spans five different color identities, reflecting how freely a colorless land distributes across the format.
How big is the win-rate difference when Demolition Field is cast versus uncast? ▾
In our tracked games, decks that cast Demolition Field won 50% of the time across 20 observations. Decks where it stayed in the library won 35.6% of the time across 90 observations. That is a +14.4 percentage-point delta. Both buckets are below the threshold for statistical confidence, so we call it a consistent early signal rather than a definitive finding. The baseline win rate in a 4-player pod is around 25%, so both numbers sit above that floor.
What turn does Demolition Field usually get activated? ▾
The median first-cast turn is 5, with the middle 50% of casts falling between turns 3 and 7. The distribution is somewhat bimodal: a cluster on turns 2-4 likely reflects early mana denial lines, while a second cluster around turns 7-8 suggests late-game opportunism when a critical nonbasic becomes the right target. The maximum observed cast turn was 9.
How often do players cast it once they draw it? ▾
67.9% of drawn Demolition Fields are cast before the game ends. The median time between drawing the card and casting it is 1 turn, with a same-turn cast rate of 36.8%. Together those numbers suggest players usually know they want to use it but wait one turn to line up the mana and a worthwhile target. The max observed hold was 2 turns.
Why does Demolition Field show a low battlefield stickiness? ▾
Battlefield stickiness sits at 50%, which is low compared to most permanents. That is not a weakness — it is the card working exactly as designed. Activating the ability requires sacrificing the land, so every successful use removes it from the battlefield intentionally. Of the 121 instances brought to games, 18 ended in the graveyard and 10 remained on the battlefield at game end, which aligns with roughly half the cast copies being sacrificed during play.
Which commanders most often pair with Demolition Field? ▾
Y'shtola, Night's Blessed leads with 17 decks, followed by Krang, the All-Powerful (9 decks) and Terra, Herald of Hope (8 decks). Because Demolition Field is colorless, it slots into any deck regardless of color identity. The spread across Esper, mono-blue, Mardu, and five-color commanders reflects that flexibility rather than any single archetype claiming it as a staple.
Is Demolition Field banned in any formats? ▾
Demolition Field is legal in Commander, Modern, Pioneer, Legacy, Vintage, Standard, Historic, and several other formats. It is not legal in Pauper or Pauper Commander, where its uncommon rarity bars it. It is also not legal in Old School or Premodern, which restrict card pools by set year. There are no bans on record for the card in any format where it is otherwise eligible.