In Magic: The Gathering, few cards are safe from the endless march of power creep. Even format-defining staples are falling by the wayside these days, as Wizards pumps out better and better options. This week, with MTG Marvel Super Heroes previews in full swing, we’ve seen a perfect example of this principle in action with Ultron, Artificial Malevolence.
Ultron, Artificial Malevolence MTG
As many MTG players have already pointed out, Ultron, Artificial Malevolence is essentially an upgraded Mirrorworks in the command zone. Not only is it two mana cheaper, but you get a 2/4 body in the bargain, too, making an already popular Commander card even better. As with Mirrorworks, you can get a ton of value out of this by copying artifacts with enters effects, like Ichor Wellspring.
Because Ultron is much cheaper than Mirrorworks, it can also serve as a ramp engine by doubling your mana rocks in the early game. You can even tap them with the ability on the stack to help pay for it, letting the likes of Sol Ring duplicate themselves for ‘free.’ This can quickly accelerate you into powerhouses like Portal to Phyrexia, which Ultron can also duplicate for game-ending swings.
Since Ultron’s token copies are also 2/2 creatures, you can pull off some pretty disgusting plays with cards not normally compatible with artifacts. Bring in Blade of Selves or Cyberman Squadron, for instance, and you can churn out Myriad copies of any copied artifact. Making so many tokens also gives Ultron a surprising Aggro edge, which you can lean into with cards like Chrome Dome and Stridehangar Automaton for quick wins.
You can also copy Ultron’s triggered ability itself, with cards like Roaming Throne, for even more artifact tokens. Going wide with Ultron like this is riskier than with Mirrorworks, since a single wipe will take out all of your 2/2s. To combat this, you’ll want to run extra protection pieces in your deck, like Darksteel Forge and Krang, Utrom Warlord.
Fire Up The Foundries
Ultron also inherits Mirrorworks’s capacity for infinite combos, allowing for a range of instant wins. With Myr Retriever and Krark-Clan Ironworks, for instance, Ultron can create infinite death loops for Altar of the Brood kills. Simply cast Retriever and copy it with Ultron for two, then sacrifice the original Retriever to refund that mana. Next, sacrifice the copy and recur the original Retriever to your hand, with enough mana floating to repeat the loop.
Join The Ranks
While it certainly has potential as an MTG Commander, Ultron, Artificial Malevolence will likely shine brighter in the 99. Access to more colors unlocks a lot more synergy for Ultron, including token doublers like Anointed Procession, and prime copy targets like Simulacrum Synthesizer.
Running Ultron in the 99 unlocks even more combo lines, too. You can take infinite turns with Ugin’s Nexus and Master Transmuter, for example, or make infinite mana with Urza, Lord High Artificer and Worldwalker Helm. This makes Ultron a great addition to blue Artifact decks in particular, like Mendicant Core, Guidelight and Breya, Etherium Shaper.
Whether you run it at the helm or in the main, Ultron seems like a banger in Commander. It’s immediately one of the best colorless Artifact Commanders we have, easily outpacing Karn, Legacy Reforged and The Capitoline Triad. On top of that, it’s great as a value piece in the 99 of decks like Ragost, Deft Gastronaut to boot. With so much power and flexibility in tow, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Ultron become one of the priciest cards in Marvel Super Heroes when the dust settles.
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