The Final Fantasy Holiday release is on the horizon, and there are a lot of different products to look forward to. From bundles to scene boxes, there’s something for every MTG and Final Fantasy enthusiast.
Yesterday, we showcased 18 of the 24 new scene box cards. Today, the last remaining six cards from the Final Fantasy 9 scene box have been revealed. There are some awesome cards for EDH in the mix that we wanted to highlight.
Judgment of Alexander
Kicking things off, we have Judgment of Alexander. This card is in a long line of cards that resemble Fog with some clear upsides. From Teferi’s Protection to Comeuppance, white has a lot of these options.
Still, Judgment of Alexander is a very strong version in the right deck. Not only do you prevent the combat damage that would be dealt to you, but you get to have your Commander deal damage equal to its power to each of those creatures. Unsurprisingly, the bigger your Commander is, the more likely you’ll be able to shoot down the opposing threats. As such, in Voltron-style EDH decks, Judgment of Alexander can work overtime.
Where this card gets really gnarly is when your Commander has other potent abilities. Because your Commander is the card dealing the damage, effects from Lifelink and Deathtouch work in your favor.
With Deathtouch, setting up a one-sided board wipe is easy. With Lifelink, you’ll be able to buffer your life total significantly, assuming your creature is also big. Equipment decks with access to Loxodon Warhammer and other similar cards should make good use of Judgment of Alexander. No wonder players are excited about this printing.
Brilliant Wings
Brilliant Wings is another white card that has some EDH potential. As a Flash enchantment that grants Hexproof, this is the perfect card to cast in response to a removal spell. This card is cheap, and once you land it, your creature has Hexproof for as long as Brilliant Wings sticks around.
Granting evasion to your Voltron Commander is no joke, either. What’s nice is that thanks to its final ability, you can use Brilliant Wings to protect any one of your creatures, then when you want to jam a bigger, more impactful threat, you’re free to move Brilliant Wings over to it.
Brilliant Wings is supposedly the first effect to grant permanent Hexproof in white, which makes it very appealing. As such, Brilliant Wings should become an automatic inclusion in Light-Paws, Emperor’s Voice shells. Auras is a popular theme in Commander, so expect Brilliant Wings to see a decent amount of play.
Search for Dagger
Our last white card is Search for Dagger. Search for Dagger is much narrower than the previous two cards. Not only do you need to be consistently attacking with your Commander or blinking it to get the most out of this enchantment, you also need a high density of legends in your deck to maximize the effect.
There are some decks that may be able to get some usage out of this card. The Seriema comes to mind as a potential home for Search for Dagger, assuming you can reliably Station The Seriema and start attacking. The card advantage and selection this enchantment provides is no joke; you just need to put in the work.
Vivi’s Persistence
Vivi’s Persistence is our first red card in this scene box, and it also cares about your Commander entering or attacking. Unfortunately, the card is very weak at face value.
A 0/1 Wizard with this ability is not worth two mana in most decks. So, you’ll need to keep rebuying and recasting this card to get the most out of it. The problem is that recurring it costs two mana itself. Combine this with the cost of casting Vivi’s Persistence in the first place, and you’ve got an inefficient engine.
In a 40-life format, unless you’re planning on Storming off with lots of free noncreature spells, the Wizards just aren’t that scary. It seems unlikely that this card has a major impact on any format.
Mega Flare
Mega Flare is another red card and this one requires some set up cost. You need a big creature in play to make Mega Flare worth casting. The Kicker ability helps this cause, though paying eight mana isn’t always easy.
Assuming you have a creature on your side of the board that outsizes most of those your opponents control, Mega Flare has the capability of killing multiple creatures at once.
With the Kicker ability in mind, Mega Flare looks at its best in Dragon Commander decks. Having access to a cheap removal spell that pairs nicely with your other big threats is nice. With any Dragon synergies present, such as having Utvara Hellkite in play, having the luxury of sinking mana into this card to make a 6/6 Dragon goes a long way. Even if Mega Flare doesn’t make the cut in most decks, its flexibility makes it a solid addition to EDH.
Amarant Coral
Our last scene card is Amarant Coral. All things considered, this legend is a bit on the boring side. It threatens damage quickly in a multiplayer game, but that’s all it does. You’re forced to attack, too, so if the path ever isn’t clear, you’ll get blown out.
Amarant Coral synergizes with pump spells and other ways to modify its power. If you like beating down, Amarant Coral does just that. Still, the card isn’t the most enjoyable build-around and doesn’t lend itself to very interesting gameplay.
The good news is that Judgment of Alexander and Brilliant Wings are powerful enough to supplement a couple duds. The Final Fantasy Holiday release comes on December 5th, so if these scene boxes are of interest, keep them in the back of your mind as we approach the holiday season.
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