Tarkir: Dragonstorm is debuting a handful of interesting mechanics that looked like they’ll play out really well. Harmonize, for instance, is a neat take on flashback that rewards you for having big creatures. We’ve already seen multiple cards with harmonize that look poised to make an impact, such as Nature’s Rhythm.
One of the strongest mechanics in Tarkir: Dragonstorm is undoubtedly flurry, in part because it’s the simplest. Casting two spells in one turn just isn’t that hard if you build your deck right.
Recently, a new equipment featuring the potent keyword was spoiled, and it looks like it could be one of the best cards in the set. The reward for casting two spells in the same turn is massive, and your opponent will end up on the backfoot in no time. Let’s dive in and see all that Cori-Steel Cutter has to offer.
Cori-Steel Cutter
Cori-Steel Cutter is a cheap equipment, but it doesn’t actually play out like a traditional piece of equipment. This is because Cori-Steel Cutter both provides you with creature tokens to equip and also equips to those creatures for free whenever you generate them.
As long as you can continue to trigger flurry, Cori-Steel Cutter will pay you off in a big way. The consistent flow of tokens this artifact provides means that unlike most equipment, Cori-Steel Cutter lines up exceptionally well against removal spells. The key is that you need to be playing a high density of cheap spells to trigger flurry and make your prowess creatures as threatening as possible.
Cori-Steel Cutter in Standard
In a Standard setting, Izzet Prowess feels like the most natural home for Cori-Steel Cutter. This deck is chock-full of one-mana plays. With Stormchaser’s Talent, Monastery Swiftspear, and Emberheart Challenger in the mix, you’re already incentivized to play multiple noncreature spells on the same turn.
What really sets Izzet Prowess apart from other red aggro variants, though, is the presence of cantrips. Sleight of Hand and Opt do a great job helping you trigger flurry. Not only are they cheap spells, but because they replace themselves, they also ensure that you’ll have enough resources to continue to trigger flurry on future turns. While a bit clunkier, Stock Up then pulls you ahead on resources and makes it trivial to trigger flurry on follow-up turns.
It’s also worth mentioning that cards with plot (most importantly, Slickshot Show-Off) synergizes nicely with Cori-Steel Cutter. You can plot Slickshot Show-Off on turn two, and on a future turn, you have a spell you can cast for free lined up after jamming Cori-Steel Cutter. Cori-Steel Cutter gives this deck a better shot winning grindy games against Dimir midrange shells and the like, which is an area of weakness currently.
Beyond the typical prowess and spell-slinging shells where Cori-Steel Cutter shines brightest, it is worth mentioning that the token production works exceptionally well alongside Caretaker’s Talent and Enduring Innocence.
Mono-white tokens in its current form may have trouble triggering Flurry. Moving forward, though, it’s plausible players will look to red as well for Cori-Steel Cutter, cheap removal like Torch the Tower, and Urabrask’s Forge as another mass token producer. Some decklists have already featured a red splash for Imodane’s Recruiter as a finisher out of the sideboard, so this doesn’t seem too far-fetched.
Cori-Steel Cutter in Commander
Moving on to another format where Cori-Steel Cutter looks ready to shine, there are a number of Commanders that should welcome the new equipment as an addition. Veyran, Voice of Destiny is a great example. Veyran decks want to play lots of spells alongside permanents that feature triggered abilities associated with casting spells. Cori-Steel Cutter does everything you want here.
First of all, if the second spell you cast is an instant or sorcery with Cori-Steel Cutter out, you’ll get multiple prowess tokens for your troubles. Then, each instant or sorcery you cast moving forward will net you double the prowess triggers.
Another legend that complements Cori-Steel Cutter nicely is Anhelo, the Painter. The objective with Anhelo, the Painter is to use expendable creatures to copy powerful instants and sorceries. Cori-Steel Cutter provides a flow of tokens for the cause. Even though the tokens are 1/1s, you can always sacrifice the two-powered token wearing Cori-Steel Cutter to pay for the casualty cost and duplicate your spells.
Of course, pretty much any spellslinger-style deck can utilize Cori-Steel Cutter just fine. From Balmor, Battlemage Captain to Eris, Roar of the Storm, plenty of Commanders will be happy with the printing of Cori-Steel Cutter.
Cori-Steel Cutter in Pioneer and Beyond
Beyond Commander and Standard, there’s a chance Cori-Steel Cutter makes its presence felt in other formats, too. In Pioneer, Izzet Phoenix decks play so many cantrips that Cori-Steel Cutter has to be worth consideration.
It’s commonplace for Izzet Phoenix decks to play some support cards like Third Path Iconoclast in the sideboard that can sidestep graveyard hate. Cori-Steel Cutter fills a similar role.
Despite Third Path Iconoclast’s ability to go wide, it is vulnerable to cheap removal. Cori-Steel Cutter, by contrast, continues to generate value in the face of removal, which makes it rather appealing in a format dominated by Fatal Push decks.
The presence of more zero-mana spells like Mishra’s Bauble in Modern and Legacy makes Cori-Steel Cutter extra intriguing. Our initial estimation is that Cori-Steel Cutter is a bit too slow for these formats, but it wouldn’t be crazy to see the card pop up here and there.
Cori-Steel Cutter is a token producing machine attached to a nice, haste-granting equipment. What’s not to like?