Smaug the Impenetrable - Combos & Interactions

Smaug the Impenetrable role: Smaug is the indestructible damage recipient that turns each noncombat damage event into Treasures.

Timing: Chain Lightning is sorcery speed. Equip is sorcery speed unless another effect attaches Blazing Sunsteel.

Rules notes: Blazing Sunsteel makes the equipped creature deal the reflected damage, so Smaug can be the source and the target. This line is deterministic after attachment and a legal starter damage event, but it is not a casual value line. Only noncombat damage triggers: Smaug creates Treasures only when he is dealt noncombat damage. Combat damage dealt to Smaug does not trigger the ability. Treasure count follows damage actually dealt: The Treasure count equals damage actually dealt to Smaug after prevention and replacement effects are applied. Indestructible limits only some answers: Indestructible does not prevent damage. It also does not stop exile, bounce, sacrifice effects, or lethal -X/-X toughness reduction. Separate damage events: Separate noncombat damage events trigger Smaug separately, which matters for Pyrohemia, Pestilence, Mayhem Devil, and copied Chain Lightning lines. Exact Spellbook combo records: Mayhem Devil plus one Treasure, Chain Lightning with {R}{R}{R}, and Pyrohemia are tracked as Spellbook-backed records. Pyrohemia stays near-infinite unless life totals, prevention, or life gain are solved. Raw loop labels for review: Pestilence variants, Volcano Hellion with Pariah's Shield, Dizzying Gaze, Cut Propulsion, and Scrapheap preserve private review labels until every prerequisite, interruption point, and card identity is resolved. Chandra's Ignition placement: Chandra's Ignition makes Smaug deal damage to other creatures and opponents. It does not deal damage to Smaug, so it is a payoff line instead of a direct Treasure trigger. Two Smaug commanders: Smaug the Impenetrable and Smaug the Magnificent are different cards with different deck plans and version checks. No market shortcut: EDHREC percentages do not prove sell-through, seller loss, price movement, inventory pressure, marketplace agreement, or Pricing Confidence.

Last reviewed: Jul 26, 2026

Smaug the Impenetrable role: Smaug replaces each sacrificed Treasure by creating one Treasure from the Mayhem Devil damage.

Timing: Treasure mana abilities can start the loop whenever you have priority or a cost to pay; the damage and Treasure replacement use triggered abilities.

Rules notes: Mayhem Devil does not sacrifice permanents itself; a Treasure or another sacrifice source is the required starter. This is a deterministic combo with a starting Treasure, but the damage-to-opponents finish requires a payoff or a separate outlet. Only noncombat damage triggers: Smaug creates Treasures only when he is dealt noncombat damage. Combat damage dealt to Smaug does not trigger the ability. Treasure count follows damage actually dealt: The Treasure count equals damage actually dealt to Smaug after prevention and replacement effects are applied. Indestructible limits only some answers: Indestructible does not prevent damage. It also does not stop exile, bounce, sacrifice effects, or lethal -X/-X toughness reduction. Separate damage events: Separate noncombat damage events trigger Smaug separately, which matters for Pyrohemia, Pestilence, Mayhem Devil, and copied Chain Lightning lines. Exact Spellbook combo records: Mayhem Devil plus one Treasure, Chain Lightning with {R}{R}{R}, and Pyrohemia are tracked as Spellbook-backed records. Pyrohemia stays near-infinite unless life totals, prevention, or life gain are solved. Raw loop labels for review: Pestilence variants, Volcano Hellion with Pariah's Shield, Dizzying Gaze, Cut Propulsion, and Scrapheap preserve private review labels until every prerequisite, interruption point, and card identity is resolved. Chandra's Ignition placement: Chandra's Ignition makes Smaug deal damage to other creatures and opponents. It does not deal damage to Smaug, so it is a payoff line instead of a direct Treasure trigger. Two Smaug commanders: Smaug the Impenetrable and Smaug the Magnificent are different cards with different deck plans and version checks. No market shortcut: EDHREC percentages do not prove sell-through, seller loss, price movement, inventory pressure, marketplace agreement, or Pricing Confidence.

Last reviewed: Aug 14, 2026

Smaug the Impenetrable role: Smaug is the damage target that turns each Chain Lightning resolution into 3 Treasures.

Timing: Chain Lightning is sorcery speed.

Rules notes: The first copy payment still needs outside mana because Smaug's Treasures from the original Chain Lightning are created after that spell finishes resolving. Once the first 3 Treasures are available, two Treasures can fund the next copy and the third Treasure is net mana. Only noncombat damage triggers: Smaug creates Treasures only when he is dealt noncombat damage. Combat damage dealt to Smaug does not trigger the ability. Treasure count follows damage actually dealt: The Treasure count equals damage actually dealt to Smaug after prevention and replacement effects are applied. Indestructible limits only some answers: Indestructible does not prevent damage. It also does not stop exile, bounce, sacrifice effects, or lethal -X/-X toughness reduction. Separate damage events: Separate noncombat damage events trigger Smaug separately, which matters for Pyrohemia, Pestilence, Mayhem Devil, and copied Chain Lightning lines. Exact Spellbook combo records: Mayhem Devil plus one Treasure, Chain Lightning with {R}{R}{R}, and Pyrohemia are tracked as Spellbook-backed records. Pyrohemia stays near-infinite unless life totals, prevention, or life gain are solved. Raw loop labels for review: Pestilence variants, Volcano Hellion with Pariah's Shield, Dizzying Gaze, Cut Propulsion, and Scrapheap preserve private review labels until every prerequisite, interruption point, and card identity is resolved. Chandra's Ignition placement: Chandra's Ignition makes Smaug deal damage to other creatures and opponents. It does not deal damage to Smaug, so it is a payoff line instead of a direct Treasure trigger. Two Smaug commanders: Smaug the Impenetrable and Smaug the Magnificent are different cards with different deck plans and version checks. No market shortcut: EDHREC percentages do not prove sell-through, seller loss, price movement, inventory pressure, marketplace agreement, or Pricing Confidence.

Last reviewed: Aug 14, 2026

Smaug the Impenetrable role: Smaug is the damage recipient that refunds each Pyrohemia activation with one Treasure.

Timing: Pyrohemia can be activated at instant speed.

Rules notes: Spellbook labels this near-infinite because normal life totals constrain the repetitions. Do not label this infinite unless a life gain or damage-prevention solution is present. Only noncombat damage triggers: Smaug creates Treasures only when he is dealt noncombat damage. Combat damage dealt to Smaug does not trigger the ability. Treasure count follows damage actually dealt: The Treasure count equals damage actually dealt to Smaug after prevention and replacement effects are applied. Indestructible limits only some answers: Indestructible does not prevent damage. It also does not stop exile, bounce, sacrifice effects, or lethal -X/-X toughness reduction. Separate damage events: Separate noncombat damage events trigger Smaug separately, which matters for Pyrohemia, Pestilence, Mayhem Devil, and copied Chain Lightning lines. Exact Spellbook combo records: Mayhem Devil plus one Treasure, Chain Lightning with {R}{R}{R}, and Pyrohemia are tracked as Spellbook-backed records. Pyrohemia stays near-infinite unless life totals, prevention, or life gain are solved. Raw loop labels for review: Pestilence variants, Volcano Hellion with Pariah's Shield, Dizzying Gaze, Cut Propulsion, and Scrapheap preserve private review labels until every prerequisite, interruption point, and card identity is resolved. Chandra's Ignition placement: Chandra's Ignition makes Smaug deal damage to other creatures and opponents. It does not deal damage to Smaug, so it is a payoff line instead of a direct Treasure trigger. Two Smaug commanders: Smaug the Impenetrable and Smaug the Magnificent are different cards with different deck plans and version checks. No market shortcut: EDHREC percentages do not prove sell-through, seller loss, price movement, inventory pressure, marketplace agreement, or Pricing Confidence.

Last reviewed: Aug 14, 2026

Smaug the Impenetrable role: Smaug refunds each Pestilence activation with one Treasure from noncombat damage.

Timing: Pestilence can be activated at instant speed.

Rules notes: This variant is kept as reviewed research because the exact Spellbook search confirms the family, while local exact ID mapping remains unresolved. Do not label it infinite without a life/prevention solution. Only noncombat damage triggers: Smaug creates Treasures only when he is dealt noncombat damage. Combat damage dealt to Smaug does not trigger the ability. Treasure count follows damage actually dealt: The Treasure count equals damage actually dealt to Smaug after prevention and replacement effects are applied. Indestructible limits only some answers: Indestructible does not prevent damage. It also does not stop exile, bounce, sacrifice effects, or lethal -X/-X toughness reduction. Separate damage events: Separate noncombat damage events trigger Smaug separately, which matters for Pyrohemia, Pestilence, Mayhem Devil, and copied Chain Lightning lines. Exact Spellbook combo records: Mayhem Devil plus one Treasure, Chain Lightning with {R}{R}{R}, and Pyrohemia are tracked as Spellbook-backed records. Pyrohemia stays near-infinite unless life totals, prevention, or life gain are solved. Raw loop labels for review: Pestilence variants, Volcano Hellion with Pariah's Shield, Dizzying Gaze, Cut Propulsion, and Scrapheap preserve private review labels until every prerequisite, interruption point, and card identity is resolved. Chandra's Ignition placement: Chandra's Ignition makes Smaug deal damage to other creatures and opponents. It does not deal damage to Smaug, so it is a payoff line instead of a direct Treasure trigger. Two Smaug commanders: Smaug the Impenetrable and Smaug the Magnificent are different cards with different deck plans and version checks. No market shortcut: EDHREC percentages do not prove sell-through, seller loss, price movement, inventory pressure, marketplace agreement, or Pricing Confidence.

Last reviewed: Aug 14, 2026

Smaug the Impenetrable role: Smaug is the equipped damage recipient that turns redirected noncombat damage into Treasures.

Timing: Equip is sorcery speed unless another effect attaches Pariah's Shield. Volcano Hellion's enters trigger resolves once unless copied or blinked.

Rules notes: This is intentionally stored as rules_interaction, not infinite, until exact requirements are reconciled locally. Treasure count follows only damage actually dealt to Smaug. Only noncombat damage triggers: Smaug creates Treasures only when he is dealt noncombat damage. Combat damage dealt to Smaug does not trigger the ability. Treasure count follows damage actually dealt: The Treasure count equals damage actually dealt to Smaug after prevention and replacement effects are applied. Indestructible limits only some answers: Indestructible does not prevent damage. It also does not stop exile, bounce, sacrifice effects, or lethal -X/-X toughness reduction. Separate damage events: Separate noncombat damage events trigger Smaug separately, which matters for Pyrohemia, Pestilence, Mayhem Devil, and copied Chain Lightning lines. Exact Spellbook combo records: Mayhem Devil plus one Treasure, Chain Lightning with {R}{R}{R}, and Pyrohemia are tracked as Spellbook-backed records. Pyrohemia stays near-infinite unless life totals, prevention, or life gain are solved. Raw loop labels for review: Pestilence variants, Volcano Hellion with Pariah's Shield, Dizzying Gaze, Cut Propulsion, and Scrapheap preserve private review labels until every prerequisite, interruption point, and card identity is resolved. Chandra's Ignition placement: Chandra's Ignition makes Smaug deal damage to other creatures and opponents. It does not deal damage to Smaug, so it is a payoff line instead of a direct Treasure trigger. Two Smaug commanders: Smaug the Impenetrable and Smaug the Magnificent are different cards with different deck plans and version checks. No market shortcut: EDHREC percentages do not prove sell-through, seller loss, price movement, inventory pressure, marketplace agreement, or Pricing Confidence.

Last reviewed: Aug 14, 2026