It’s hard to escape Commander design in MTG nowadays. Every set is attended by a quartet of Commander precons at the very least, to say nothing of the many main set cards clearly geared towards the format as well. Many players, understandably, find this a bit wearisome. But it’s worth noting that the road does go both ways.
Sometimes cards printed originally for Commander products make a real impact in formats like Legacy, as we saw with True-Name Nemesis and Lumbering Megasloth. Today, I believe we have another card like this on our hands. That card is Ancient Cellarspawn, and it turns one of the most infamous MTG mechanics into a viable win condition.
Ancient Cellarspawn MTG
- Mana Value: 1BB
- Rarity: Rare
- Stats: 3/3
- Card Text: Each spell you cast that’s a Demon, Horror, or Nightmare costs 1 less to cast. Whenever you cast a spell, if the amount of mana spent to cast it was less than its mana value, target opponent loses life equal to the difference.
At first glance, Ancient Cellarspawn doesn’t look like anything special for MTG. A three mana 3/3 that discounts the costs of three very specific types, with some occasional ping damage thrown in? Hardly the stuff of multi-format nightmares. Even the fact that it’s also an enchantment, which can be a significant upside, doesn’t seem enough to elevate this design out of mediocrity.
Examine that second ability a bit closer and the reason for my excitement will become clear. Ancient Cellarspawn counts any spell you cast, not just those affected by its ability. It also scales its damage based on the discount you received in each case. Even if you’re a relatively new player, you’re likely aware of the many ‘free’ spells available in Magic. Every Modern Horizons set has had a cycle of them, and there are plenty more lurking in the depths of Scryfall too. These cards are notoriously powerful on their own, and with Cellarspawn they get even better.
What’s extra interesting about Cellarspawn is that its damage ability only hits a single player per use. Typically you can spot Commander designs by their use of ‘each opponent,’ since that magical phrase makes a lot of otherwise mediocre cards viable in the format. The fact that it’s absent here, on a card from a Commander precon, implies that the designer had constructed formats in mind. Of course, it’s also possible that this decision was made purely for balance reasons. Commander is meant to be a fun format and, as we’ll see, this card can do some very unfun things.
A New FTK In Legacy
One of the most exciting applications of Ancient Cellarspawn is enabling a new FTK strategy in the MTG Legacy format. Legacy is one of the oldest, most powerful formats in Magic. For anything to make an impact there, it needs to be pretty high on the Storm Scale. With Cellarspawn, you can end the game on your very first turn thanks to some very specific interactions.
The first three cards you’ll need are a black source, Dark Ritual, and Ancient Cellarspawn. These will let you drop a Cellarspawn on turn one, without hanging around for more lands or mana rocks. Once the Horror is in play, it’s time to push the notion of a ‘free spell’ to the limit.
The Shoal cycle from Betrayers of Kamigawa is unique in that their X costs can be paid by exiling cards from your hand. The mana value of an X spell is set when you cast it, so if you push a Shoal to the limit, Ancient Cellarspawn can deal a huge chunk of damage. To pull off the combo, you need to exile the 15 mana Autochthon Wurm to either Nourishing Shoal or Shining Shoal. In both cases, the mana value of the cast spell will be set at 17, and you’ll pay nothing to cast it. This will result in 17 damage to your opponent via Cellarspawn.
That’s not quite 20, of course, so to wrap things up you’ll need to work another free spell into the mix. There are a number of good options for this, all of which work by exiling cards from your hand. Any of the non-Grief MH2 Elementals would do, as would most of the MH1 Forces. Alternatively, you can dig deep and use something like Unmask from Mercadian Masques.
General Chicanery
This is a very specific combo that requires a near-perfect opening hand to pull off. The great thing about Ancient Cellarspawn, however, is that it has applications beyond this. Plenty of decks in Legacy run free, or close-to-free, spells as part of their regular strategies, which means there are plenty of opportunities for Cellarspawn to deal some big damage.
Take Grixis Tempo, for example. This is one of the most dominant decks in the format right now, and it runs no less than 11 free spells. Both Daze and Force of Will become pretty solid incidental burn spells with Cellarspawn out. They also help to protect it, which is vital since it dies to a single Lightning Bolt. Murktide Regent, the deck’s main win condition, also gets to dome your opponent for a juicy five damage on entry. In a Tempo deck like this, extra damage on that scale is seriously valuable.
The card also has potential in the likes of Beanstalk Control: a list built around cheating out big spells to get free draws from Up the Beanstalk. This deck runs excellent Cellarspawn cards like Leyline Binding and Scion of Draco, which can deal five and 10 damage on cast, respectively. Factor in the obligatory Force of Wills, and it’s surprisingly easy to burn someone out with just a single turn of having Cellarspawn in play.
Of course, while these scenarios are all very exciting, it’s worth tempering expectations. Legacy is a very fast format, and a 3/3 isn’t the most resilient body in the world. Whether Cellarspawn makes it in the format or not remains to be seen. But the fact that it even could is very exciting in itself.
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