5 Most Fun Build Around Legends in March of the Machine

Introduction

One of the most exciting aspects of March of the Machine is the new Multiverse Legends bonus sheet. This sheet adds variety to drafts by sprinkling iconic legendary creatures into the experience. Many of these legendary cards open up exciting new deck possibilities and invite you to build around novel strategies not necessarily represented by the 10 draft archetypes of the set.

This is not a list of the five strongest Multiverse Legend cards in the set. Instead, this list is meant to show the five Legendary creatures that provide the most interesting deckbuilding possibilities. If you see a Ragavan, Nimble Pilferer you should absolutely take it, it is an immensely powerful card, but it doesn’t offer a fun new strategy for you to build around. These five cards do…

5. Valduk, Keeper of the Flame

Valduk, Keeper of the Flame is a popular Voltron Commander that also works as a Limited build around. This Keldon Shaman is a three mana 3/2. Whenever Valduk attacks he generates a number of 3/1 Elemental tokens with trample that attacks alongside him. One elemental is created for each aura and equipment card attached to him. These tokens gets exiled at the end of the turn.

While there aren’t many auras for Valduuk in March of the Machine (Astral Wingspan and Crystal Carapace are the only ones you would want to put on him and neither of the two are in his colors) there are eight pieces of equipment to slide into Valduk’s hands to help him generate Elemental tokens.

You can give Valduk flying with a Kitesail to keep him safe from blockers, on the ground or use a Bladed Battle-Fan to keep him safe from removal. If you’re really lucky you might even be able to arm your Valduk with the Sword of Once and Future.

4. Fynn, the Fangbearer

There are eight creatures with deathtouch in March of the Machine (although one of them, Marchesa, Resolute Monarch, is the reverse side of a Battle). Fynn, the Fangbearer turns all of these deathtouch creatures into a win condition. This venomous viking causes all deathtouch creatures, including itself, to distribute two poison counters whenever they damage an opponent, killing them when they have 10.

While typically a 1/1 deathtoucher like Aetherblade Agent works best as a defensive card, hanging back and threatening to block and destroy your opponent’s bigger threats when they attack. With Fynn, the Fangbearer in play, Aetherblade Agent gets turned into an offensive force. Opponents are forced to make a tough call, do they allow Aetherblde Agent through and head 20% of the way toward a game loss, or do they block the card and likely end up trading down?

3. Imoti, Celebrant of Bounty

Cascade is an extremely powerful mechanic from Alara block. Whenever a card with Cascade enters play, it digs through cards from the top of its controller’s deck until it reaches a nonland card with a lower mana value than itself, that card then gets cast for free. Imoti, Celebrant of Bounty not only has cascade but also grants the mechanic to every single creature in its controller’s deck that costs six or more.

In some formats this card just wouldn’t work, Phyrexia: All Will Be One was infamously fast-paced, so the game would probably not have long left by the time Imoti, or any of the high mana value cards she encourages players to build around, entered play. Fortunately, at least as far as early impressions go, March of the Machine seems to have a fairly slow-paced Limited format. There are lots of high-value bombs that Imoti can grant Cascade to from Ancient Imperiosaur to Interdisciplinary Mascot.

If you like making big plays, and slamming down powerful creatures, then putting Imoti in your draft deck could be a recipe for fun.

2. Yarok, the Desecrated

Yarok, the Desecrated is a. For five mana, three of which are in the Sultai colors, Yarok is a 3/5 Elemental Horror with deathtouch and lifelink. Yarok’s claim to fame is that it allows triggered abilities that happen as a result of a permeant entering play to activate an additional time. In other words, this card doubles enter the battlefield effects, and effects that care about cards entering play.

March of the Machine has two mechanics that trigger upon entering the battlefield: backup and battles. Backup cards like Doomskar Warrior and Archpriest of Shadows are already pretty fantastic, doubling the amount of +1/+1 counters they provide, and allowing them to spread their effect to another creature makes them even better.

Doubling the effects of battles is also very powerful. With Yarok in play, Invasion of Innistrad removes two creatures and Invasion of Ixalan searches pretty deeply into your deck for two good cards. Even less flashy and exciting battles become pretty amazing, forcing your opponent to discard four cards with Invasion of Eldraine is a potentially devastating setback.

1. Lurrus of the Dream-Den

While Lurrus may be the number one card on this list, really this slot just represents the 10 Companions as a whole. These contentious cards debuted in Ikoria and were so powerful they all had to be nerfed retroactively. The Companions can be added to their controller’s hand from outside of the game, in return they impose deckbuilding limitations on the player wanting to use them. Some of the restrictions Companions place on players are very significant. Zirda, the Dawnwaker cannot be used unless every permanent in its controller’s deck has an activated ability, something which is basically impossible to achieve in Limited. Other Companions are more lenient, such as Lutri, the Spellchaser which only requires its controller to be running a singleton deck.

Lurrus, of the Dream-Den has been chosen to represent Companions here because it’s probably the most powerful of them. This three mana 3/2 lifelinker allows its controller to cast a card with mana value two or lower from their graveyard once per turn. This ability is hugely valuable, a fact demonstrated by Lurrus being banned in Pioneer, Modern, and Legacy. In a creature combat focussed format like Limited, the ability to continue perpetually playing all of your two drops from the graveyard means your momentum can never run out as long as Lurrus remains alive.

Just remember that you can include Companions in your deck as regular cards, even if you don’t want to follow their restrictions. Maybe you want Lurrus’s ability to recur low-cost cards, but you don’t want to cut the Boon-Bringer Valkyrie you cracked in pack two from your deck. This is totally fine, just slot Lurrus into your 40 cards, rather than using it as your companion.

Conclusion

There we have five fun build around legends. Legendary cards make great pack one picks in March of the Machine, as they can open up unique paths that you may never have explored otherwise. Maybe not all of these cards will be the center of amazingly powerful decks that will secure an undefeated win streak, but they will all guarantee you a good time and a creative deckbuilding experience.

Read more: Top 10 Most Expensive MTG Multiverse Legends Cards!