Dark RitualDark Ritual | Art by Robbie Trevino

Despite only ever living for a brief moment on the stack and then disappearing to the graveyard, instants are the language that writes the cEDH meta. These cards define how players interact with each other, how they churn out the most mana, the fastest, and how piles of 99 distinct cards can be maximized into reliable, consistent machines.

So, which of them have gone on to epitomize the competitive meta? This list will take a look at cEDH's top ten best instants.

#10 - Dark RitualDark Ritual

Starting off with a classic that's as old as the game itself, Dark Ritual is one of those cards that can get dismissed at first because it doesn't do anything on its own. It doesn't counter a game-winning spell or find you your next combo piece; but that doesn't really matter when you're producing mana this quickly.

Three black for one mana is just that good, whether it's churning out NecropotenceNecropotences or Opposition AgentOpposition Agents. Sure, it can feel like a dead draw in the later game, but when your plan is “be done with the game by turn three,” that’s not much of a downside.

Turbo decks live and die by their speed, and Dark Ritual is the infamous card against which all other rituals are evaluated, accelerating games to their final turns before anyone else has the time to prepare.

#9 - Chord of CallingChord of Calling

Next up is our first tutor of the list, one which has earned its spot not due to its flexibility in finding cards (it can only grab creatures), but rather all in all thanks to its unmatched efficiency in finding impactful threats and cheating them straight into play. It's Chord of Calling.

For , this instant with convoke lets you search your deck for any creature and put it right onto the battlefield. In effect, that means that you're paying a premium of to tutor up a creature and to give it flash.

Not too bad, considering that Demonic TutorDemonic Tutor is a two-mana premium which has the sorcery speed timing restriction, to say nothing of convoke's usefulness.

#8 - Gifts UngivenGifts Ungiven

Continuing the line of powerful tutors is Gifts Ungiven, a card with unmatched flexibility in its ability to assemble combos.

For , this instant lets you search your library for up to four cards with different names, then you reveal them and target opponent chooses two of them to go straight to your graveyard. The other two go to your hand.

In practice, this usually results in players either assembling some sort of reanimation line, some pile of cards that are more or less functionally identical, or anything with Sevinne's ReclamationSevinne's Reclamation to get back whatever other card is put into a graveyard. The possibilities are endless, and plenty of them end the game in your favor.

#7 - IntuitionIntuition

At seventh place is essentially Gifts Ungiven again, although this card costs less and gets you one card fewer: it's Intuition.

Take everything I just said about Gifts Ungiven, except confine the deckbuilding potential slightly and increase its efficiency. That's Intuition, for you.

Sure, it can't pull of the trick of double-EntombEntombing something, as Intuition requires that exactly three cards be found whereas Gifts Ungiven lets you find as few as you want, but that decrease is a real boon to plenty of decks where the fourth card is unnecessary.

#6 - Crop RotationCrop Rotation

Crop Rotation is the kind of card that’s easy to underrate if you’re not playing the decks that truly abuse it — but in the right hands, it’s a one-mana tutor for not just some good land, but a combo enabler, a ritual, or interaction - all at instant speed.

Whether it’s finding Gaea's CradleGaea's Cradle, Shifting WoodlandShifting Woodland, or just Talon Gates of MadaraTalon Gates of Madara, Crop Rotation is the glue for a staggering number of decks in cEDH. Sure, you'll have to sacrifice a land in addition to paying that , but all that means is that Crop Rotation isn't always pure ramp.

It is, however, always pure value.

#5 - SilenceSilence

Here at the halfway point on our list is the first true piece of interaction, and that's Silence.

For , this instant tells the rest of the table that they can't cast spells until end of turn. Use it on your turn to defend a win, or cast it on an opponent's turn to stop them in the middle of theirs, Silence is truly one of the most flexible, universal, and all-in-all powerful pieces of interaction out there.

#4 - Force of WillForce of Will

Speaking of interaction, what would an eternal format be without its free countermagic? In fourth place, we have Force of Will.

For , Force of Will is an instant that counters target spell - except no one really ever pays the . That's because it also has an alternate cost which allows you to cast it for free if you exile a blue card from your hand and pay one life instead. A fair trade in a world where every card matters, but also an incredibly valuable one. Mana is arguably more important of a resource in cEDH than card advantage, and Force of Will takes that edge and runs with it.

Sometimes, you just need something off of the stack, and Force of Will has got you covered.

#3 - Vampiric TutorVampiric Tutor

Our last tutor of the list, Vampiric Tutor packs a whole lot of value into its minimal cost.

For just , Vampiric Tutor is an instant that causes you to search your library for a card, shuffle, then put that card on top of it. You lose two life.

Despite players' best efforts to run decks that approximate the consistency that 60-card decks are capable of, there is an inherent increased degree of volatility which comes with playing Commander. Tutors cut down on that, and very few cut down on that flexibility as well as Vampiric Tutor. For just one more mana - mana which can be spread across turns, mind you - Vampiric Tutor is effectively a second copy of whatever card you need it to be.

#2 - Borne Upon a WindBorne Upon a Wind

Borne Upon a Wind is the card that started cEDH's current flash metagame, and - despite the subsequent printing of more flash enablers (Valley FloodcallerValley Floodcaller, High Fae TricksterHigh Fae Trickster, etc.), remains the best in class.

For , Borne Upon a Wind is an instant that draws you a card and gives the rest of your spells flash until end of turn. Two mana may be a real cost in this format, but the ability to seize previously closed timing windows is an invaluable opportunity in cEDH.

Cast Borne Upon a Wind as the ultimate "gotcha" in response to another player's win attempt, unleashing your own combo while the rest of their plan gets buried in the stack.

#1 - Ad NauseamAd Nauseam

It may not be the most broken card in cEDH, but I'd wager that this is the card that has done the most to define what it really means to play cEDH. What else could it be but Ad Nauseam?

For , Ad Nauseam is an instant that causes you to reveal the top card of your library, lose life equal to its mana value, then put it into your hand. You may repeat this process any number of times. (You repeat the process one card at a time, choosing to continue or not after each individual card.)

Ad Nauseam is a game-winning spell that has allowed for cEDH players to reap the greatest possible reward from playing in a 40-life format. Couple that with an insatiable drive to lower a deck's average mana value, and it's pretty routine to see a resolved Ad Nauseam put 20 (or more) cards into its owner's hand.

Follow that up with some free mana rocks, some rituals, and the combo pieces you've more than likely drawn into, and just like that the game is yours.

Wrap Up

Instants spread across every core component of cEDH. Interaction, ramp, card advantage, and combos all live and breathe in the world of instants.