Core sets are nothing new to Magic. Their generally simplistic style can be a breath of fresh air, especially given how complex modern-day card designs can be. The downside, of course, is that core sets are often a bit more underpowered than typical premier sets.
MTG Foundations is an exception. This set is chock full of elite new toys for players to utilize. This isn’t just limited to Standard play, either. In fact, one of the most expensive cards in the set has started putting up strong results in both Modern and Legacy. The card in question is none other than Sire of Seven Deaths.
Sire in Modern
- Mana Value: 7
- Rarity: Mythic Rare
- Card Type: Creature – Eldrazi
- Stats: 7/7
- MTG Sets: MTG Foundations
- Card Text: First strike, vigilance. Menace, trample. Reach, lifelink. Ward- Pay 7 life.
Sire of Seven Deaths is a keyword monster. Even at seven mana, all the abilities add up to make Sire of Seven Deaths a force to be reckoned with. Thanks to being a 7/7, many decks will struggle to get this creature off the battlefield. Even if opponents turn to removal, they’ll have to pay seven life, which is quite a sizable hit.
In a Modern setting, Sire of Seven Deaths will dominate almost any board state. With Lifelink and Vigilance, Boros Energy will have a difficult time racing it. With Reach, it easily brick-walls Abhorrent Oculus. The key is getting Sire onto the battlefield in the first place.
One of the shells that is fully capable of paying the cost is Eldrazi Tron. First of all, Eldrazi Tron has access to the Tron lands, which together add up to seven mana cleanly. Beyond that, though, both Eldrazi Temple and Ugin’s Labyrinth help discount Sire. Seven mana is the sweet spot once again, as you can always pitch Sire to Ugin’s Labyrinth when applicable.
With a recent Magic Online Modern Challenge top eight under its belt, Eldrazi Tron seems like an excellent home for Sire. But it’s not the only place for the potent Eldrazi…
Sire in Legacy
- Mana Value: 1(C)R (C is colorless)
- Rarity: Rare
- Card Type: Creature – Eldrazi
- Stats: 3/3
- MTG Sets: Modern Horizons 3
- Card Text: Devoid (This card has no color.)
Trample.
At the beginning of combat on your turn, target creature you control gains haste and gets +X/+0 until end of turn, where X is the number of Eldrazi you control.
In Legacy, some players have also been experimenting with Sire in the Eldrazi Stompy archetype. This deck also has access to Eldrazi Temple and Ugin’s Labyrinth but adds Ancient Tomb into the mix too. You’ll find other ramp elements such as Sowing Mycospawn to enable you to reach the seven mana threshold.
What makes Sire especially threatening in the deck above is that it pairs perfectly with the playset of Eldrazin Linebreaker. Glaring Fleshraker can easily spew out a bunch of Eldrazi Spawn tokens quickly alongside Lotus Petal. So, once you slam Sire, you simply give it Haste and a big buff and attack for a boatload of damage.
Sire will easily Trample over any small chump blockers. Thanks to Cavern of Souls, you may be able to get Sire on the board regardless of whether your opponent has Force of Will at the ready.
Sire is quickly making a name for itself as one of the strongest cards in MTG Foundations. There’s still plenty of room to explore with the card, too. Perhaps Soulflayer enjoyers in Pioneer will incorporate Sire, for instance. Sometimes, all it takes is a plethora of different keywords to make an MTG card shine.
