Radiance in MTG: Rules, History, and Best Cards

Bathe in Light – Illustration by Alex Horley-Orlandelli

Some mechanics are popular, but others just aren’t. Have you ever heard of the radiance mechanic? If not, that may be because there are only 10 cards with it in the MTG universe.

So how do radiance cards work? Why are there so few of them in print? What’s the history behind radiance cards?

Let’s let our light shine like a radiant star and find out!

How Does Radiance Work?

Incite Hysteria | Illustration by Paolo Parente

Radiance is an ability word that affects a target permanent and any other permanents of the same type that share a color with it, including your opponents’. Although radiance spells have fit into the Boros () color identity by being either white, red, or both, they still affect other colors depending on your spell’s target.

Say that you choose a red creature on your opponent’s board as a target. Any other cards that include red as one of their colors will be affected as well. Not that this is actual color, not color identity. Bomat Courier has a red color identity, for example, but isn't a red permanent for the purposes of radiance.

If your chosen target is blue, other blue matching permanents are also affected. The same is true if you select a mono-white, green, black, or red target.

The same goes if the target is a mix of colors. Say that Wojek Embermage deals 1 damage to a Bant () creature. This means that any other creatures that are mono-white, mono-blue, mono-green, or any multicolored card with one or more of these colors will also have 1 damage point thrown at them.

The History of Radiance in MTG

Radiance is an ability keyword and not an evergreen mechanic like flying or haste. The first and only 10 cards in which radiance ever appeared were in Ravnica: City of Guilds released in October 2005.

It was mainly affiliated with the Boros Guild as the color identity of the cards was either mono-white, mono-red, or white and red.

No other cards with radiance came after this set of 10 in 2005. However, a few of the cards were reprinted in future set releases. For example, Bathe in Light and Cleansing Beam were reprinted in Commander 2011 and Commander Anthology.

Can You Choose Colorless With Radiance?

Since cards with the radiance mechanic only affect cards that share a color with it, colorless permanents aren’t affected by these spells. Remember: Colorless is not a color.

Does Hexproof Stop Radiance?

Hexproof will stop the “target creature” portion of radiance’s rule text. However, hexproof doesn’t stop the “and each other creature that shares a color with it” part. Gladecover Scout can't be targeted by Bathe in Light, but if Bathe targets a different green creature, Gladecover Scout will gain protection.

Does Protection Stop Radiance?

Cards with protection from white and/or red can’t be the target of the radiance abilities printed on these 10 cards.

Protection from white, red, or both will also protect a creature from any damage that a radiance spell can deal. For example, protection from any of these colors will prevent the damage from a Brightflame dealt to that creature. Cards with protection from these colors also can’t be the targets of these spells. You can’t target a creature with protection from white with your Bathe in Light, for example.

However, protection won’t stop a radiance spell’s “and each other creature that shares a color with it” from affecting a permanent if the radiance effect isn’t doing damage. Protection prevents damage, prevents enchanting/equipping, prevents a creature from blocking your creature, or prevents targeting (d.e.b.t., for short). If you’re doing anything else, protection doesn’t work. That’s part of why an overloaded Cyclonic Rift is so good.

Some radiance spells give abilities, like how Surge of Zeal grants haste or how Incite Hysteria prevents creatures from blocking. Protection from red will prevent you from targeting a creature with these spells, but you can target another red creature to give these abilities to a creature with protection.

Does Radiance Target Each Permanent?

No. Radiance targets one permanent. The other permanents affected by the “each other creature/enchantment that shares a color with it” text aren’t targeted.

What If the Target Is Destroyed?

If the target of the radiance spell is destroyed, the spell fizzles because it no longer has a legal target. The radiance spell goes to the graveyard with no effect.

Gallery and List of Radiance of Cards

The following are the 10 radiance cards in the MTG universe. They are all legal in popular play formats such as Commander, Modern, Oathbreaker, Legacy, Vintage, Pauper, and Penny.

Six of the radiance cards are instants, two of them are creatures, and two of them are sorcery spells. Four of the radiance spells are mono-red, four are mono-white, and the last two are red and white.

• Brightflame
• Leave No Trace
• Bathe in Light
• Wojek Embermage
• Incite Hysteria
• Rally the Righteous
• Cleansing Beam
• Wojek Apothecary
• Wojek Siren
• Surge of Zeal

Best Radiance Cards

Brightflame can become a one-sided board wipe depending on which colors your opponent is playing. If you’re playing a Boros Commander deck while your opponent is playing a Dimir one, pour in enough mana for the X cost to completely wipe out your opponent’s creatures and gain life equal to the damage you deal to all the creatures. For example, if X is 4 and you dealt 4 damage each to three creatures on your opponent’s board, you gain 12 life.

Incite Hysteria is a great radiance card that can also cause some shenanigans when cast at the right time. Say that the target creature you select on your opponent’s side is blue. This means that this specific targeted blue creature can’t block, and neither can your or your opponents’ other blue creatures. If this opponent is running a mono-blue deck and you have enough power on board, you can swing in for the win.

Leave No Trace is best suited against enchantment-matter decks like Light-Paws, Emperor's Voice and Sythis, Harvest's Hand. In the right application, this can be a much lower-cost version of Farewell or Austere Command when you’re in a pinch!

Bathe in Light is seeing the most play in the Commander format because it' is's a cheap 2-drop protection spell that can give all your creatures protection from a board wipe or targeted removal.

Decklist: Draftsim’s Mono Red Prison in Legacy

Cleansing Beam | Illustration by Pat Lee

As a reminder, radiance cards are legal in Modern, Commander, Legacy, and Pauper.

Here is one of our decks that could possibly include some of the mono-red radiance cards like Incite Hysteria, Cleansing Beam, and Surge of Zeal.

While they aren’t listed on the link above, you can make edits accordingly to include some radiance cards. You can replace Dead in the deck’s sideboard with Cleansing Beam to deal 2 damage to a creature and everything that shares a color with it.

Wrap Up

Surge of Zeal | Illustration by Justin Sweet

As an overall mechanic, radiance didn’t become very popular amongst players because its card effects didn’t properly embrace the heart of the Boros Legion. Radiance sits at a 9 out of 10 on Mark Rosewater's “Storm Scale,” which means it's highly unlikely to make a return to the MTG universe.

Do you use any radiance cards in your decks? For which formats? Let me know in the comments below or over on Draftsim’s Discord. Whether you think that radiance cards are radiant or dull, I hope that you enjoyed learning about this mechanic.

Until next time, shine bright while crafting your next deck!