For better or worse, Alchemy is being shut down when rotation happens in early 2027. Before then, however, Wizards of the Coast is sending the format off with a bang. The format’s final unique set, Alchemy: Reality Fracture, has just been revealed, and it really doesn’t disappoint. While the future of these cards in the namesake format barely matters anymore, many of these have exciting long-term potential!
Dina, Flesh Sower
Much to the chagrin of some on social media, each of the core Strixhaven five got a reality-swapped counterpart in Alchemy: Reality Fracture. While each of these designs is incredibly interesting, the fact that these cards aren’t on paper is still frustrating some. Still, given that Alchemy more than deserved a proper sendoff, the fact that these cards exist is to be celebrated.
Speaking of which, Dina, Flesh Sower looks like a fantastic new Lifegain Commander to build around. Capable of quickly scaling up and then dishing out her power upon death, Dina is a potent one-woman army. Even if you’re not maximizing her ability as your Brawl Commander, this legend is sure to have a home in the 99.
Killian, Spotlight Chaser
So long as you have a decent well of mana, Killian, Spotlight Chaser is an absolutely brutal burn Commander. Each spell or ping effect will grab a new card from your deck, allowing you to keep going and going. Hell, since most burn spells deal more damage than they cost, you can easily scale up over a turn to devastating effect.
Sadly, while Killian can easily string spells together for insane damage, you do have to worry about discarding unused spells. Technically, cards like
Past in Flames
Past in Flames
Each instant and sorcery card in your graveyard gains flashback until end of turn. The flashback cost is equal to its mana cost.
Flashback {4}{R} (You may cast this card from your graveyard for its flashback cost. Then exile it.)
or
Monument to Endurance
Monument to Endurance
Whenever you discard a card, choose one that hasn't been chosen this turn —
• Draw a card.
• Create a Treasure token.
• Each opponent loses 3 life.
can help, but you’re not guaranteed hits with Killian. While he can replace burn spells you cast, you could find creatures or any non-burn spell that stops the chain.
Still, even with this downside in mind, Killian, Spotlight Chaser looks like a fantastic new Brawl Commander to build around.
Rootha, Ardent Artisan
Sadly, Rootha, Ardent Artisan is… quite bad actually. Not only is she limited by a pesky “only once each turn” clause, but her Prepared spell isn’t cheap either. Dumping all of your mana into it each turn might be funny, but even then, your deck lives and dies on the random Conjured cards.
Thankfully, while Rootha might not be good, you can still have some fun with her. Building a ramp-focused deck that wants to quickly create massive artifacts might not be good, but it could snowball all the same. Realistically, don’t expect this legend to have much presence in Competitive Brawl, but it should be fun for casual play.
Zimone the Calculating
While Alchemy cards are developed separately from the main set, Zimone the Calculating feels rather familiar. Like Look, the Anomaly, this Zimone has a negative power and assigns damage as if her power were positive instead. While this does open up some fun play patterns, Zimone can do a lot of heavy lifting herself.
Thanks to her Prepared spell, which is fairly easy to re-Prepare, you can easily stack up tons of negative power on her. Unlike Loot, this buff will stick around, too, turning Zimone the Calculating into a real threat. With Zimone being cheaper and having a better color identity, the better Commander here is obvious.
Valgavoth, the Lifeline
As much as Valgavoth’s existence in the Echoverse is somewhat dubious, we’re very happy to see him here. The ability to grow not only your hand but your graveyard through lifegain can easily get out of control on its own. As if this weren’t enough, however, Valgavoth also lets you effortlessly reanimate your creatures after they’ve been buffed.
Technically, there are some downsides in the Finality Counters and Valgavoth being mono-white, but realistically, those barely matter. As such, Valgavoth, the Lifeline, feels like an easy soon-to-be staple in Brawl. Hell, even in the 99, this legend can do some real work, so long as it doesn’t end up getting nerfed.
Etali, Primal Garden
For better or worse, the Echoverse’s calmer Etali is much worse than its main Magic Multiverse counterparts. Technically, it can create a solid board on its own, not to mention reduce its own cost fairly effectively. Given that most Dinosaurs are pretty powerful, too, Etali does offer a solid game plan, but realistically, she’s better in the 99.
Since many of MTG’s best Dinosaurs are red-aligned, having Etali, Primal Garden in the command zone can actually be quite restrictive. She’ll still be fun to build around, of course, but for maximum results, you’ll want something like
Pantlaza, Sun-Favored
Pantlaza, Sun-Favored
Whenever Pantlaza or another Dinosaur you control enters, you may discover X, where X is that creature's toughness. Do this only once each turn. (Exile cards from the top of your library until you exile a nonland card with that mana value or less. Cast it without paying its mana cost or put it into your hand. Put the rest on the bottom in a random order.)
helming your deck. In this scenario, this Etali becomes a very solid and surprisingly cheap mid-game bomb that’s well worth playing.
Oko, Lord of the Fae
Like Etali, Oko, Lord of the Fae isn’t the best choice for Commander in Brawl. It’s a solid Planeswalker, with tons of in-built protection, but this Oko is really all about its ultimate. As such, being mono-white can be a major limitation, so it should be better in Superfriends decks like
Tam, the Possibility
Tam, the Possibility
Planeswalker spells you cast cost {1} less to cast.
{W}{U}{B}{R}{G}, {T}: Proliferate X times, where X is the number of planeswalker types among planeswalkers you control. (To proliferate, choose any number of permanents and/or players, then give each another counter of each kind already there.)
.
Once you reach Oko, Lord of the Fae’s ultimate, this Alchemy: Reality Fracture card really comes alive. Getting a free random Planeswalker on each of your upkeeps is wonderfully silly, and genuinely quite strong, too. That said, getting random value is much stronger with an already stable Superfriends core, rather than being a deck’s linchpin.
Wild New Staples
For anyone looking to build a new Planeswalker deck with Alchemy: Reality Fracture cards, this set really has you covered. Between Prophet of the Planeswalker, Change the Narrative, and Sparks Ablaze, there’s tons of new Superfriends support. With this trio providing loyalty acceleration, card generation with added ramp, and cost reduction, this should be a major boost for the archetype.
While it didn’t get quite as much love, Flourishing Forces will also be a godsend for Selesnya lifegain decks. Over the course of a longer game, this card can provide a sizeable board for just three mana, completely turning the tables. With this in mind, don’t be surprised if Flourishing Forces becomes a staple in lifegain decks going forward.
In a similar vein, the new Searing Soloist is bound to be a staple in burn decks going forward. Not only does this card provide a solid damage buff, but the Conjured
Aria of Flame
Aria of Flame
When this enchantment enters, each opponent gains 10 life.
Whenever you cast an instant or sorcery spell, put a verse counter on this enchantment, then it deals damage equal to the number of verse counters on it to target player or planeswalker.
will quickly tick up, too. Alongside the new Killian, Spotlight Chaser, in particular, this creature should do a ton of work.
Speaking of staples, one of the new lands from Alchemy: Reality Fracture is bound to see tons of play going forward. As a potentially unrestricted and free Fetch Land, Potential Horizon is absolutely busted if you go second. Sadly, going first is a major downgrade, since the tap effect never goes away, but even then, it’s hardly unplayable.
A Final Few Duds
Sadly, while there are plenty of gems, a few Alchemy: Reality Fracture cards are much closer to being unplayable. The other land, Jace’s Saga, for instance, is really quite poor, especially compared to
Urza’s Saga
Urza’s Saga
(As this Saga enters and after your draw step, add a lore counter. Sacrifice after III.)
I — This Saga gains "{T}: Add {C}."
II — This Saga gains "{2}, {T}: Create a 0/0 colorless Construct artifact creature token with 'This token gets +1/+1 for each artifact you control.'"
III — Search your library for an artifact card with mana cost {0} or {1}, put it onto the battlefield, then shuffle.
. Offering a
Jace’s Sentinel
Jace’s Sentinel
As long as you control a Jace planeswalker, this creature gets +1/+0 and can't be blocked.
basically at cost, then Empowering Jace 3, isn’t much to write home about outside hyperfocused decks.
In a similar vein, Nylea’s Oracle is interesting, but it doesn’t look very good. Riffing off
Thassa’s Oracle
Thassa’s Oracle
When this creature enters, look at the top X cards of your library, where X is your devotion to blue. Put up to one of them on top of your library and the rest on the bottom of your library in a random order. If X is greater than or equal to the number of cards in your library, you win the game. (Each {U} in the mana costs of permanents you control counts toward your devotion to blue.)
, you can theoretically spiral quite hard, creating a heavy-hitting board before long. Doing this in Brawl, while restricted to singleton deck construction rules, however, is much easier said than done.
Unfortunately, Avoided Stairwurm falls into a similar category, as while interesting, this card seems rather weak. Ideally, a one-mana 5/5 can do a ton of work in a control deck, but only having one creature really isn’t great. Potentially, in Historic, running a playset wouldn’t be too terrible, but even then, you’re not guaranteed success.
Beyond these disappointments, cards like Crux of the Theory and Selfless Germinator just aren’t very good. Technically, Heisting something with Crux isn’t bad, but Empowering Jace doesn’t work well outside of limited. Even in limited, Selfless Germinator is very weak, as paying for
Seed of Hope
Seed of Hope
Mill two cards. You may put a permanent card from among the milled cards into your hand. You gain 2 life. (To mill two cards, put the top two cards of your library into your graveyard.)
is hardly exciting, especially as an Exhaust ability.
Ending on a High
Thankfully, while Alchemy: Reality Fracture has some stinkers, it’s not all bad news. Far more powerful and interesting cards than duds exist, almost too many to talk about. While they won’t all be staples, cards like Banescale Serpent can put in tons of work, especially against the right opponent.
Similarly, both Bend Mortal Limits and Boisterous Clique have a very high ceiling, depending on what you hit. At the very least, either of these cards can shut down an opponent, while Bend Mortal Limits goes especially hard in Reanimator decks. On that note, Paradox Kraken is basically a self-reanimating dream, so you just have to get it into the bin.
Beyond these respectably solid cards, you’ve also got fun and playable deep cuts like Echogoyfs. Alternatively, Diabolic Formula looks incredibly interesting to build around, although it’s admittedly a bit close to being a dud. Thankfully, the same can’t be said for Asymmetry Sage, which effectively replaces the un-nerfed
Symmetry Sage
Symmetry Sage
Flying
Magecraft — Whenever you cast or copy an instant or sorcery spell, target creature you control has base power 2 until end of turn.
.
Out of all the cards in Alchemy: Reality Fracture, Asymmetry Sage feels like the biggest love letter to fans. The loss of the rebalanced Symmetry Sage really hurt Wizards’ decks in Historic, and now they’re being built back up. While this is a very nice touch, sadly, it’s hard to ignore the fact that this is the end of an era.
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