Best MTG Cards From The Big Score

The introduction of The Big Score is something plenty of players have been talking about. Unlike March of the Machine: the Aftermath, cards from The Big Score will be available in Thunder Junction play boosters. Despite featuring a different expansion symbol, these cards will indeed be Standard legal. It’ll be interesting to see if the release of The Big Score helps further pave the way for Aftermath sets in the future, especially considering how much of a bust March of the Machine: the Aftermath was.

At the very least, The Big Score has some extremely powerful cards for us to utilize. From excellent utility Artifacts for Commander to potent interactive elements for Constructed, The Big Score has a lot to offer. Today, we are going to take a look at the cards that stand out the most. There may only be 30 cards to choose between, but many of them are quite powerful. Without further ado, here are the best MTG cards from The Big Score.

#5 Lotus Ring

Lotus Ring is one of the most expensive cards from The Big Score and clearly has garnered a lot of hype. This isn’t too surprising, especially given its clear callback to Black Lotus, one of the strongest MTG cards ever printed. Of course, Lotus Ring does make you jump through some hoops to generate mana. You first need to spend three mana to Equip it, then only when you sacrifice the Equipped Creature to you get your mana back.

This alone isn’t anything special, but luckily, there are some ways to abuse Lotus Ring. Alongside Puresteel Paladin and a big board of Creatures, Lotus Ring threatens to build up a ton of mana. In conjunction with Fervent Champion and Koll, the Forgemaster, you can even generate infinite mana rather easily. Lotus Ring doesn’t seem like a major Constructed powerhouse, but it should have some strong Commander applications.

#4 Rest in Peace

Rest in Peace is an elite reprint that consistently sees play in multiple formats. In Pioneer, it helps keep Treasure Cruise decks in check. In Legacy, it serves as a decent tool against Dredge and Reanimator strategies. Rest in Peace has been around for a long time, though, so why is it in our rankings if it’s not a new card?

The answer is simple: Rest in Peace will now be legal in Standard. Currently, Standard is dominated by a Temur deck abusing Aftermath Analyst, Worldsoul’s Rage, and Lands like Brokers Hideout that go to the graveyard. This archetype has very few weaknesses, but its reliance on the graveyard is one of them. Rest in Peace’s presence may finally help keep the deck in check.

Beyond this Temur shell, there are also Standard decks focused on resolving Reenact the Crime that get hosed by Rest in Peace. Even if it’s just a sideboard card, it has the potential to be highly impactful in Standard and deserves a spot on this list as a result.

#3 Harvester of Misery

Harvester of Misery is a neat take on Massacre Wurm. It has the potential to wipe large boards of small Creatures, while leaving behind a massive body in the process. This by itself gives it a chance to show up in Standard given the popularity of Boros Convoke. However, that’s not where the fun stops.

Much like Trumpeting Carnosaur, you can discard Harvester of Misery to kill a small Creature. In Standard, this is a nice ability to have. Getting to remove problematic Creatures like Thalia, Guardian of Thraben for cheap is strong. This ability also gives Harvester of Misery a shot at showing up in Modern Living End decks as an out to Dauthi Voidwalker. As a large Creature that cycles, it synergizes with the rest of the deck, too.

#2 Esoteric Duplicator

Esoteric Duplicator is the ultimate value engine in Commander. By itself, you have the option to draw cards every single turn by sacrificing Esoteric Duplicator and making a token copy of it. The fun does not stop there, though. In conjunction with Krark-Clan Ironworks and Artifacts like Ichor Wellspring that you can sacrifice for value, the world is your oyster.

There are also plenty of combos to be had. For instance, if you pair Esoteric Duplicator with Mindslaver, you can control an opponent’s turn every turn cycle! Abusing Esoteric Duplicator is rather trivial, which is why it earns a spot high on this list.

#1 Simulacrum Synthesizer

Last but not least, we have Simulacrum Synthesizer. This card is yet another Artifact value engine, but it takes very little to get this going. Any Commander deck with a high density of Artifacts will want this card. The Constructs this card creates will likely be enormous. The more you make, the bigger they’ll get.

The only downside here is that you need to play Artifacts with mana value three or greater. That being said, this includes cards like Frogmite or Kappa Cannoneer that you can play with little mana investment necessary.

With this in mind, it’s possible Simulacrum Synthesizer’s printing is enough to revive Modern Affinity decks. Add in Sojourner’s Companion and Thought Monitor and it’s easy to imagine Simulacrum Synthesizer building out a massive board of Constructs in short order.

Between the main set and The Big Score, Outlaws of Thunder Junction has a lot to offer Constructed and Commander aficionados alike. Meanwhile, the Breaking News bonus sheet is sure to have major Timeless implications for MTG Arena. Outlaws of Thunder Junction is releasing soon, so get ready for some intense format shakeups.