After a jam-packed week of spoilers, the preview season for Murders at Karlov Manor is finally, almost, at an end. With just one day to go, Wizards only has the remaining Commander cards up their sleeves. Recently teased by MTG Designer Gavin Verhey, it sounds like players have a good deal to look forward to.
Before those final spoilers get released, however, there are still a fair few notable cards from the main set to cover. Boasting a suite of powerful and interesting effects, it seems that Murders at Karlov Manor is truly loaded with value. Curiously, a number of the most interesting cards released recently all have one thing in common; their mana value.
Costing just two mana to play, these cards have a great deal of potential for early-game shenanigans. Between upgrading existing decks, spicing up a Commander list, or just being plain weird, these cards are undeniably interesting. So, before the Commander decks get spoiled and steal the show, let’s take a look over these potential constructed staples.
Tenth District Hero
“(1W) Collect evidence 2: “Tenth District Hero” becomes a Human Detective with base power and toughness 4/4 and gains vigilance.
(2W) Collect evidence 4: If “Tenth District Hero” is a Detective, it becomes a legendary creature named Mileva, Stalwart Hero with base power and toughness 5/5 and “Other creatures you control have indestructible.”
Scryfall
Offering decent stats that only get better, Tenth District Hero is the latest option for White Weenie decks everywhere. While they do take some mana, and Evidence, to get going, they’re nonetheless a force to be reckoned with. After all, giving all other creatures you control Indestructible is devastating in an aggressive and fast-paced deck.
While Tenth District Hero has some constructed potential, it’s ultimately not an auto-include. Requiring seven mana in total, Tenth District Hero is more of a mid to late-game threat than anything else. Technically, White Weenie can go this late, however, seven mana is usually better spent on Intrepid Adversary.
Thankfully, while Standard may be a bit of a bust, Tenth District Hero has plenty of potential in Commander. Within Human or Detective Typal decks, this card has plenty of space to grow and excel. While this is definitely a positive, unfortunately, Commander players aren’t totally happy with this card.
In their final form, Tenth District Hero turns into Mileva, Stalwart Hero. Much to the annoyance of players, Mileva has never really had their own card before. Sure, they’ve appeared on Tenth District Guard and Tenth District Legionnaire, but no card is named Mileva. Considering they’re now a familiar face within Ravnica, this causing growing disappointment as players want a true legendary variant.
Hopefully, it won’t be too long before this wish is finally granted. Unfortunately, however, it seems we won’t be returning to Ravnica for a little while, so we may be left without…
Expedited Inheritance
“Whenever a creature is dealt damage, its controller may exile that many cards from the top of their library. Until the end of their next turn, they may play those cards.”
Scryfall
To change things up Expedited Inheritance isn’t quite the bomb it seems like at first. In an ideal world, this card would be an insane value engine giving red decks tons of remarkably affordable gas. Unfortunately, however, in reality, this card is just a big pile of meh since the effect is symmetrical.
Benefiting your opponents as much, if not potentially more than yourself, this card is potentially downright dangerous. Worse than this, however, you can’t even exploit it to mill out your opponent. Since Expedited Inheritance is a may ability, opponents can simply choose not to exile cards.
If you want to live dangerously, Expedited Inheritance technically is an insane value engine. You just have to be careful, however, that you don’t let your opponents get too much value as well. In theory, this dubious Enchantment could fit within an ultra-aggressive burn deck, however, it’s nonetheless a massive risk.
Officious Interrogation
Turning the tables once again, Officious Interrogation is actually a good card. In fact, within Commander, this card has the potential to be amazing. Capable of generating an immense amount of Clue Tokens, this card provides players with no shortage of card draw. In EDH, this is obviously a godsend, especially for just two mana.
To make Officious Interrogation even better, this card has Strive. While it might not have the keyword, it’s nonetheless the exact same mechanic as on Call the Coppercoats. Allowing you to target extra players for a reasonable cost, this mechanic undeniably massively expands the card’s utility and potential.
As much as it’s nice to have all the Clues you’d need, there’s a near-mandatory upgrade when playing Officious Interrogation. With Academy Manufacturer in play, you’ll get Food and Treasure tokens galore as well. Even without this value-providing staple, however, Officious Interrogation is still a great card that’s bound to see play in Commander.
Break Out
For better or worse, Break Out likely isn’t going to be the Break Out success from Murders at Karlov Manor. That being said, however, the card nonetheless has potential, especially in Gruul Aggro decks. Since this archetype is currently seeing decent success in Standard, Break Out is well worth keeping an eye on.
Beyond this card’s weak tutor effect that should help you find what you need, Break Out’s biggest boon is its aggression. Potentially putting a 2 drop into play with Haste, this card piles on the pressure, especially with the right card. By finding Picnic Ruiner, for instance, you could suddenly be swinging in for big damage. With the right board and a pump spell, this swing could even be for the win.
Alongside potentially seeing some Standard play, Break Out fits nicely within Modern’s Domain Aggro deck. Here, only Scion of Draco can’t be put immediately into play, which gives the deck decent odds at great value. While this is definitely compelling, Break Out likely isn’t going to be an auto-include within the rather conservative main deck. As an optional aggressive sideboard piece, however, this card should excel.
Vengeful Tracker
Last but by no means least, Vengeful Tracker is a surprisingly deadly and punishing 2-drop, especially in Commander. Essentially, whenever an opponent cracks a Clue, Treasure, or Food Token, they get hurt because of it. Given the prevalence of these Tokens within Commander, Vengeful Tracker could be a rather annoying thorn in your side.
For better or worse, as a 2/2 for 2, Vengeful Tracker can be removed fairly easily, which limits their annoyance. Since removal is typically saved for higher-priority targets, however, Vengeful Tracker may still be able to sneak in decent damage. At worst, this unassuming uncommon may make an opponent think twice about sacrificing Artifacts, giving you room to get ahead.
Should Vengeful Tracker not be enough Treasure hate for you, the new Anzrag’s Rampage is another devastating option. Unfortunately, however, this card costs a whole lot more than two mana…
A Lot More Than Just 2 Drops
At the end of the day, while these 2 drops have potential, they’re hardly the only cards in Murders at Karlov Manor. All in all, as spoiler season progressed, this set has continued to impress. With upgrades, power creep, and plenty of unique cards, 2024 is off to a truly cracking start. Hopefully, each of these cards can actually see some play so players get to enjoy what’s new.
Murders at Karlov Manor is now only a few weeks away, as the set is due to launch on February 9th, 2024.
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