Tarkir: Dragonstorm spoiler season is finally here, and the new cards are just as absurd as expected. Mox Jasper certainly created some high expectations for the set and Tarkir: Dragonstorm has certainly delivered. The two Planeswalkers for this set are particularly ridiculous, but there’s a lot more than that to see. In total, Wizards revealed 20 brand-new cards, so a lot is putting it very lightly!
Elspeth, Storm Slayer
Elspeth, Storm Slayer fixes a massive problem with Doubling Season effects. While these are some of the best effects you can come across for Commander, they are very difficult to use in competitive formats. This is because paying five mana for a card that doesn’t create any value on its own isn’t always the best deal.
Elspeth, Storm Slayer solves this by both being an Anointed Procession and a Planeswalker. The doubling effect even allows Elspeth to create two 1/1s with her plus ability. This, alone, makes Elspeth a powerhouse. This Planeswalker can protect itself, buff your board state for lethal swings, and even remove something in a pinch.
On the flip side of things, Elspeth, Storm Slayer is easier to remove than your typical doubling effect. Creatures can deal damage to this Planeswalker, making it easier to take care of in Commander. Two blockers are a big deal in competitive formats, but if three players team up to get rid of a Planeswalker, it generally isn’t too difficult to accomplish.
There is a very good chance that Elspeth sees Standard play, and an even better chance of this being a $ 50+ card. Commander and constructed players alike will want this card, which could cause a massive amount of demand.
Ugin, Eye of the Storms
I am convinced that some Modern Urzatron player made a deal under the table with Wizards of the Coast’s design team. This is the perfect payoff for that archetype. Dropping an Ugin, Eye of the Storms on turn three will end a lot of games of Magic.
Similar to Devourer of Destiny, Ugin, Eye of the Storms removes a colored permanent of your choice on cast. This means that countering Ugin with anything outside of Consign to Memory still allows you to remove a threat. This alone means that the card will likely see Standard play as well.
Things get ridiculous if Ugin actually manages to stay in play. Any colorless spell you cast will now remove a colored permanent. Essentially, Mishra’s Bauble and Expedition Map become removal spells. Ugin may not present a body on impact, but it is very easy to stabilize as soon as you resolve this card.
If that weren’t enough, Ugin offers card draw, life gain, and can ramp into ten-mana spells easily. If a turn three Ugin wasn’t enough, a turn four, Ulamog, The Ceaseless Hunger should be. If you somehow manage to Ultimate Ugin, the game should end on the spot. Colorless Commander decks can quite literally cast their entire library.
Craterhoof Behemoth
Craterhoof Behemoth’s reprinting into Standard is absolutely wild. That being said, this card is really only at its best when there is an easy way to cheat it in. The card is unquestionably the best green payoff in Standard, and may even give Green Nykthos decks a new win condition in Pioneer. Despite this, Craterhoof Behemoth isn’t an auto-include in every deck, as it does require some tricks to get working.
Kona, Rescue Beastie and Oviya, Automotarch Artisan are two Standard-legal examples of cards that can cheat Craterhoof Behemoth in way ahead of schedule. Sadly, Kona won’t accomplish much since it will cheat Craterhoof Behemoth into play post-combat, and Oviya can’t really create much value outside of this specific scenario. My prediction is that Craterhoof doesn’t do much in Standard, but it’s a great reprint nonetheless.
Voice of Victory
In some strange way, Voice of Victory might be even better than the new Planeswalkers, but is less flashy. Mobilize 2 makes Voice of Victory worth playing in Standard already. Swinging for three damage across three bodies for two mana is a fantastic deal. Add on that your opponents can’t cast spells on your turn, and the value of Voice of Victory Skyrockets.
Grand Abolisher already sees play in Standard, but Voice of Victory may replace it in a lot of decks. The card is easier to cast and offers stronger combat implications. The Silence effect is also incredibly sought after in cEDH, which means that this is yet another card that may see demand from both constructed and Commander players.
While Grand Abolisher will still have its place thanks to shutting down activated abilities of cards like Ghostly Vacuum, Voice of Victory will definitely see play, potentially in multiple formats.
Ureni, the Song Unending
Ureni, the Song Unending gives some strong Dragonlord Atarka vibes. Ureni costs a bit more to cast and offers a stronger body. The card also has the potential to deal more damage than its predecessor since the damage scales with lands in play. Ureni should generally enter, remove a few threats, and threaten a two-turn clock.
This is a rather powerful curve topper that could allow for a Dragon ramp deck to exist. Unfortunately, Ureni suffers the same issue that many top-end threats do: the card is worse than Atraxa, Grand Unifier. Ureni stabilizes the board in an instant, but so does Atraxa a majority of the time. Atraxa also refills your hand, making it very difficult to compete with. Ureni will certainly appear in Commander, but if Dragon Ramp, in particular, isn’t good enough for Standard, Atraxa will continue to dominate the top end until morale improves.
Sidisi, Regent of the Mire
Sidisi, Regent of the Mire continues a trend of bringing Birthing Pod variants into Standard. This one is a bit strange since it is essentially a Birthing Pod reanimator spell on a stick. Summoning sickness slows Sidisi down a lot, and makes the card rather unexciting. That said, there is certainly potential.
Sidisi, Regent of the Mire can create some powerful synergies with Abhorrent Oculus decks. Jeskai Oculus could turn into Esper, with Sidisi being another way to reanimate the undercosted eyeball. Turning your Fallaji Archeologist into your win condition is certainly a powerful move. That said, since the deck already wants to reanimate Abhorrent Oculus and doesn’t need to jump through quite this many hoops, Sidisi probably isn’t worth it.
This card is most likely to make its home in Commander. Sidisi might be a strong inclusion in the Terra reanimator decks coming out with Final Fantasy or could be an interesting inclusion in the Aetherdrift Zombie precon.
Rediscover the Way
I’m a fan of Rediscover the Way. Getting two Anticipate effects for three mana is a decent deal, even if it happens over a couple turns. The third mode of this card makes it a bit awkward to use properly since Rediscover the Way doesn’t impact the board itself.
This card is a bit difficult to judge. It will certainly see Commander play, especially in Saga decks. Two Anticipate effects may also be good enough for combo decks that want to dig for certain pieces, but spending three mana for a card that doesn’t impact the board is a bit expensive. That said, Stock Up is seeing play absolutely everywhere, and Rediscover the Way essentially does a similar thing. The potential is certainly there, as long as the Jeskai mana value isn’t too demanding.
Qarsi Revenant
Qarsi Revenant is going to make some Commander players very happy. This is a fantastic support card for the keyword counter decks and is a decent threat in itself. Older MTG players may find this card evokes some scary nostalgia thanks to its similarities with Vampire Nighthawk.
Honestly, this card seems like the real deal. The card will certainly tear up Limited thanks to it being a must-remove threat that turns another card into a must-remove threat after death. Qarsi Revenant could even see play in midrange decks trying to combat the rise of aggressive strategies across Standard and Pioneer. Between its own body and its Renew effect, Qarsi Revenant ensures some extra life. Don’t expect this card to be a $50 powerhouse, but Qarsi Revenant might surprise you.
Neriv, Heart of the Storm
Neriv, Heart of the Storm is an interesting build-around that can create massive damage swings. With some effort, this could become a very powerful top-end threat that could even see play in constructed formats.
If you can manage to give Neriv Haste, you’ll immediately come crashing in for eight Flying damage, which is rather scary in a format like Standard. The obvious implications of this card seem to be to synergize with the Mobilize mechanic. The warriors created may not stick around, but they will immediately deal double damage.
Neriv offers a big payoff that can be tricky to access. Depending on how players utilize the card, Neriv will likely be a Dragon that sees lots of play or none at all.
Marang River Regent
As an adventure fan, Marang River Regent appeared to be one of the most exciting cards in the Tarkir: Dragonstorm debut. Don’t be fooled, though. This is not an Adventure. This is an Omen card.
Omens function similar to Adventures, but they are infinitely worse. Instead of going on an Adventure after you cast the spell, you have to shuffle the card back into your deck. This means that you might be able to use the creature side of Marang River Regent at a later date, but you have to draw it again.
That said, Marang River Regent is a decent card. Both the Omen and the creature are worth running in slower strategies. Bouncing two permanents means that Marang River Regent should stabilize the board on impact, and being able to turn that into a card advantage spell at instant speed gives the Dragon a lot of flexibility.
Maelstrom of the Spirit Dragon
If any card makes Standard Dragon ramp a deck, it will be this one. Maelstrom of the Spirit Dragon gives you a land that both fixes mana for Dragons and can search your library for a Dragon if you no longer need the mana.
If this card ends up being a constructed powerhouse, there’s going to be a lot of demand for it. Maelstrom of the Spirit Dragon is an auto-include in any Commander deck with a Dragon theme, which means that there’s going to be a decent amount of demand for it out of the gate. Utility lands are incredibly sought-after in the Commander format. A land that can repurpose itself as a tutor is very difficult to beat. Even decks that don’t have a Dragon theme, but have a Dragon central to their strategy may consider running this.
Kotis, the Fangkeeper
Kotis, the Fangkeeper is an incredibly powerful card. Not only do you get an Indestructible blocker, but should Kotis connect with the opponent, you can acquire an absurd amount of value. Even casting one spell from your opponent’s library for free already gives you an incredible tempo advantage.
Kotis’s fatal downside is that the card is incredibly understatted. Considering how easy it is to break a card like this, this could save Kotis from being a disaster. This will make Kotis easy to chump block, making his damage ability much more difficult to trigger.
While Kotis is flashy, my prediction is that this card doesn’t accomplish much outside of Commander. The mediocre stats makes it difficult to utilize, and there is lots of exile-based removal present in every competitive format.
Frostcliff Siege
Frostcliff Siege is rather mediocre. The effect isn’t bad for three mana and should allow midrange decks to keep up in slower matchups. Jeskai provides steady card draw, and Temur punishes strategies that try to stabilize with board wipes.
As is the problem with most of these cards, while Frostcliff Siege can do a lot, it doesn’t provide value on its own. This makes it a problematic enchantment in topdecks situations when you don’t have a board. Even in Commander, this card just seems ok.
Betor, Kin to All
Betor, Kin to All will likely only see play in Commander. This creature has the potential to provide tons of value, but the requirement to do so is steep. Drawing a card with Betor on your end step doesn’t seem too difficult, but that isn’t enough to run this creature in constructed. The only reason worth playing this card is for its final ability, and if you have 40 toughness in play, you likely don’t need Betor to win the game.
In Commander, Betor’s ability halves the life of all your opponents. This is considerably more valuable than in constructed play. Unlocking the achievement of 40 Toughness is also much easier in that format since the games tend to go a lot longer. This is an interesting build-around Commander, but that’s where Betor’s potential ends.
Anafenza, Unyielding Lineage
Anafenza, Unyielding Lineage introduces another new Tarkir: Dragonstorm mechanic: Endure. Endure is a rather powerful mechanic that allows you to grow your creatures or create new ones whenever another creature dies. Anafenza having Flash means that, most of the time, it can enter as a 4/4 First Striker. If you Flash this in when a creature is about to die, Anafenza can turn herself into a decent threat.
While Anafenza offers the potential to make sticky boards, this will likely be a sideboard card at best. Anafenza is understatted on her own, and won’t create much meaningful value it it eats a removal spell. That means Anafenza will perform best against decks that load up on removal, but may be disappointing in other places.
All-Out Assault
All-Out Assault is a win-more anthem that grants your creatures Deathtouch alongside a small buff. That description should demonstrate my thoughts on this card: it’s not great.
Gaining an extra combat step is rather flashy, but for five mana, there are a lot of other MTG cards that can do more on their own. Unless you have a massive board on the turn that All-Out Assault drops, all you have is an overpriced anthem.
This will certainly see Commander play in go-wide decks with small creatures, but that should be about it.
Ureni’s Rebuff
Ureni’s Rebuff demonstrates the Temur Harmonize mechanic. This card essentially functions as a sorcery speed Unsummon that can be Flashed back. Tapping a massive creature to cast this can occasionally be worthwhile, but Sorcery speed makes it a hard sell. this isn’t the most impressive card in the world, but could be a good tempo option in Tarkir: Dragonstorm draft.
Roiling Dragonstorm
Roiling Dragonstorm is a weird Dragon support card that essentially generates endless card advantage. This can help Dragon decks keep up later in the game, but most of the time, Dragon decks will struggle with turning the corner against faster decks, not ending the game once you can resolve Dragons.
Nonetheless, this card certainly has potential and could be a massive signpost uncommon for a Limited Dragon archetype.
Raksasha’s Bargain
The most amount of mana you’ll want to pay for Raksasha’s Bargain is four. This card advantage spell excels in decks that want to fill the grave. Three mana is a great price for something like this, and having the ability to cast this spell in other situations gives it an interesting degree of flexibility. This isn’t a very exciting card, but it is good enough to potentially see play in Standard.
Equilibrium Adept
Equilibrium Adept is not a good Magic card. It has some great Limited implications, but that’s a far as this card will go.
Equilibrium Adept introduces the new Flurry mechanic associated with the Jeskai clan. Hopefully, casting two spells per turn will grant more interesting awards on other cards.
A Very Powerful Set
Tarkir: Dragonstorm may render a lot of Standard’s previous cards obsolete. It’s common for an MTG set at the end of a storyline to have a lot of powerful cards, but Tarkir: Dragonstorm seems even stronger than normal. If anything, this gives some serious War of the Spark vibes.
As a reminder, this is just the beginning of Tarkir: Dragonstorm’s spoiler season. There’s likely going to be even more cards like the two Planeswalkers revealed that continue to stump players. The MTG community is in for a wild ride.
