Within Magic: the Gathering, there are an awful lot of tokens that creatures can create. To accommodate this, to date, Wizards has produced over 600 unique Token cards. Existing since the earliest days of MTG, it’s rare to get excited about tokens outside of their fetching new art. That is, at least, unless Wizards mixes things up and does something different.
As you might expect, since we’re talking about it, in Wilds of Eldraine, Wizards of the Coast has done something different. Thanks to Role Tokens, Wizards has created seven new tokens which all fall under a new sub-type. Brand new and half upside down, these tokens are unlike most others in MTG.
Thanks to this novelty, you may well be wondering, what on earth even is a Role Token, and why is it on my creature? If you’re wondering that very specific thought, you’re in luck, as we’re here to help! Throughout this guide we’ve got all you need to know about the new Role Tokens in Wilds of Eldraine, so let’s not wait around any longer!
What are Role Tokens in MTG?
As the name suggests, Role Tokens are a brand new type of Token in MTG. Currently, seven different Role Tokens exist within Wilds of Eldraine, each with different names and effects. While their effects may be different, each token is an Aura Enchantment that must be attached to a creature.
Before we get into the nitty-gritty details, here is a rundown of each type of Role Token in MTG.
- Cursed — Enchanted creature has base power and toughness 1/1.
- Monster — Enchanted creature gets +1/+1 and has trample.
- Royal — Enchanted creature gets +1/+1 and has ward 1.
- Sorcerer — Enchanted creature gets +1/+1 and has “Whenever this creature attacks, scry 1.”
- Wicked — Enchanted creature gets +1/+1 and “When this Aura is put into a graveyard from the battlefield, each opponent loses 1 life.”
- Young Hero — Enchanted creature has “Whenever this creature attacks, if its toughness is 3 or less, put a +1/+1 counter on it.”
- Virtuous — Enchanted creature gets +1/+1 for each enchantment you control. (As a note, this Role is currently exclusively found on Commander cards)
As you can see in the image above, there are two Role Tokens on each card in order to save space. Currently, it is unknown if dedicated single Role Tokens will be available to players through supplemental products. Since they are tokens, however, players can always create their own if they wish.
How Do MTG Role Tokens Get Applied
While Role Tokens may look rather straightforward, there is one major detail to remember when playing them. Each creature can only have one role Token controlled by the same player attached to it.
For example, consider you have a creature, Savannah Lions, with a Royal Role Token attached to it. Should you attach a new Role to this card, a Monster Role, for instance, the Royal Role Token will be replaced. Only the latest role you put on the card will remain.
While this all makes sense so far, Role Tokens can also be applied to creatures by opponents. If this happens, it will not remove the Role Token that you have already applied. Instead, the creature will have multiple Role Tokens, receiving the benefits and negatives of each.
For example, consider an opponent casts Asinine Antics putting a Cursed Role Token on each creature you control. This will not remove the existing Monster Role Token on our Savannah Lions. Instead, the effects of the roles will stack, leaving you with a 2/2 Savannah Lions with Trample.
Should you apply another Role Token yourself after this point, you will not remove the Cursed Role Token. Instead, each player is only able to replace their own Role Tokens on each creature. Subsequently, through this action, you would only be able to replace your own Monster Role Token.
In a Commander game, it is possible for a single creature to have four Role Tokens at once.
The Best Role Token Cards in MTG
At the time of writing, we are still part way through the spoiler season for Wilds of Eldraine. Despite this, however, a number of incredibly powerful Role Token cards have already been revealed. In case you’re eager to build a Role Token-themed deck, or keep your eye out for Limited powerhouses, here’s a quick rundown of the best cards so far.
Not Dead After All
On the surface, Not Dead After All may seem like a very tame MTG card. After all, they’re simply a variant of the resurrection effect we’ve all seen time and time again. While this is true, they’re also a strict upgrade over several past variants of this effect. Thanks to this, they may see a surprisingly large amount of play in Modern.
As we wrote about recently, Not Dead After All is an easy upgrade to the Rakdos Midrange/Rakdos Scam deck in Modern. Here, effects like Feign Death can be used to reanimate powerful cards such as Grief. While this deck is already strong, arguably the best in Modern, Not Dead After All offers a marginal improvement over Feign Death thanks to the Wicked Role.
While pinging for one damage may not seem like the most monumental change, in a hyper-competitive format such as Modern, it can make all the difference. Subsequently, there’s nary a reason not to play this new card within the deck.
Outside of Modern, Not Dead After All should still see some play as an interesting combat trick. Capable of saving creatures in any format, this effect is always useful to have in your arsenal.
Asinine Antics
If you’re looking to dish out Cursed Role Tokens with incredible efficiency, look no further than Asinine Antics. For just four mana, this Sorcery puts a Wicked Role Token on each creature your opponents control. Whether you’re playing Standard or Commander, this effect is sure to ruin someone’s day.
While turning a horde of rowdy creatures into 1/1s is already powerful at Sorcery speed, Asinine Antics can be even better. Should you pay two mana more, you can cast this spell as if it had flash. This turns an already debilitating spell into a crushing combat trick that can wipe your opponent’s board.
Before you get carried away with the potential strength of Asinine Antics, it’s important to remember it’s not Turn to Frog. With a Wicked Role Token attached, creatures will retain their abilities and types. This will some decks to continue synergizing and buffing their board, mitigating the effectiveness. Even with this in mind, however, Asinine Antics still has the power to decimate your opponents.
Ellivere of the Wild Court
If you’re looking to build a Role Token-themed Commander deck, there’s no better option than Ellivere of the Wild Court. Thankfully, for players looking to acquire this card, they’re the face Commander of the Virtue and Valor deck. This means getting them, and a compelling starting point is very easy to do.
Beyond being easily accessible, Ellivere of the Wild Court is also incredibly powerful. This is thanks to them creating the Commander-exclusive Virtuous Role Token. Similarly to All That Glitters this Role Token provides a buff that scales with the number of Enchantments you own.
Considering Role Tokens are themselves enchantments, in a themed deck, this can get out of hand rather quickly. Especially since Ellivere of the Wild Court can create a Virtuous Role Token each time they attack. Even if they die, this allows them to consistently buff your board with frightening efficiency!
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