As has proven to be the case in the run-up to the set’s launch, Modern Horizons 3 leaks tend to travel in packs. Today, however, we have just one leaked card to cover. What this one lacks in quantity, though, it more than makes up for in quality. Not only does this new MH3 leak mark the return of Eladamri, a rarely-seen legendary Elf from the early days of Magic, but it’s also a very real contender for play in multiple formats.
In a way, this card is the perfect embodiment of the ideals behind sets like Modern Horizons 3. It expands the world of Magic, riffing on a beloved character we haven’t seen in over 25 years. At the same time, it presents an exciting new option for multiple decks, both janky and not-so-much.
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The MH3 Eladamri Leak
As you can see from the above image, this is one of the blurriest leaks we’ve seen all season. Thankfully we can still make out all the relevant stats and abilities. That being said, whether the name is ‘Eladamri, Korveedal’ or ‘Eladamri, Korvecdal’ is still up in the air.
Whatever his name is, the new Eladamri is one and two green for a 3/3 legendary Elf Warrior. While he’s in play you can look at the top card of your library, and play creature cards from it, any time. In addition, you can pay one green and tap him, along with two other creatures you control, to cheat a creature from your hand or the top of your deck into play. Both abilities here, as well as the always-relevant Elf creature type, have players across formats excited.
Beyond that, like many cards in MH3, this new Eladamri leak is a nice lore deep cut as well. We have seen this character before, as Eladamri, Lord of Leaves back in Tempest. As a cheap way of granting Shroud to all of your Elves, he sees a lot of play in Commander. Perhaps more famously, he also lent his name to Eladamri’s Call. This is a powerful instant-speed creature tutor, with applications in Commander and Modern alike.
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A New Modern Master?
But let’s leave lore at the door for now. As with any Modern Horizons 3 card, it’s worth looking at how Eladamri could perform in its namesake format. Straightforward Elves builds aren’t a big player in the meta right now, even on the budget level. Those that do exist, though, often play a copy or two of Realmwalker. Green mana requirement and legendary status aside, Eladamri is a strictly better version of this card.
First of all, it lets you cast any creature, not just an Elf, from your library. Second, it comes with that very juicy activated ability. Elves decks tend to go wide rather than tall, with no big hitters in their ranks, however, Eladamri could change that. His activated ability is so cheap and so easy to activate thanks to the many Elves in the deck, that it may be worth it to splash a surprise finisher like Emrakul, the Aeons Torn. Or even take a leaf out of Legacy’s book and go for Craterhoof Behemoth.
Elves may be the obvious home for this one, but it actually has potential elsewhere, too. Players are already discussing its potential in Yawgmoth decks. For the uninitiated, these are green/black Midrange/Combo builds, which typically rely on Yawgmoth, Thran Physician loops to close out games. Eladamri is on-color for the deck and can cheat out combo pieces at a discount. Including it in Yawgmoth also opens the door for an alternate win condition via a big, one-of threat.
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Legacy Of Leaves
Modern isn’t the only format where Eladamri could make a splash. Older formats, including Legacy and Commander, will likely find slots for him as well.
To get the obvious out of the way: yes, Eladamri will see play in Elf-based Commander decks until the end of time. As both a commander and a proud member of the 99. The synergy is just too obvious to ignore. He may also become a staple in green decks in general, since his abilities aren’t Elf-specific. Huge creatures, which are ideal for cheating out with Eladamri, are ten-a-penny in the format, after all.
A more interesting discussion is whether or not the card has legs in Legacy. Elves are about as popular here as in Modern, but Eladamri probably slots in easier to this version of the deck. It already runs cards like Craterhoof Behemoth and Atraxa, Grand Unifier, so there are unfair things it can do here. In addition to the fair things, like dropping your many utility creatures from the top of your deck.
Eladamri could also find a home in Legacy Maverick lists. These are made up almost entirely of cheap creatures, which makes him an efficient card draw engine in many situations. The activated ability is less useful here, but it can give you a discount when you have the board to enable it. There aren’t too many other creature-focused green decks in Legacy, but maybe more will spring up in Eladamri’s wake. We’ll just need to wait and see.
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