What is Myriad in MTG? That’s a good question, and it deserves a good answer. First introduced to MTG in Commander 2015, Myriad was last seen in Commander Masters. Here, and in Commander Legends: Battle for Baldur’s Gate, the mechanic saw plenty of play in the somewhat bizarre Commander Draft events. Currently, only 18 cards have the Myriad keyword. Due to the mechanic’s strength in Commander, however, it’s nonetheless well worth knowing about.
With the ability to cause chaos and devastation on the battlefield, Myriad is sure to keep you on your toes. Subsequently, to keep your wits about you, it’s best to learn the ins and outs of this potentially powerful mechanic. So, without further ado, here’s everything you need to know about Myriad in MTG!
What is Myriad in Magic: The Gathering?
Myriad is a keyword ability that allows the creation of token copies of a creature when attacking an opponent. Token copies that Myriad may create must be used to attack an opponent other than the defending player. This allows for a single creature to attack multiple players at once during a Commander game.
Thankfully, Myriad’s token-generating abilities are a “may” ability, allowing players to keep the peace and maintain any alliances they’ve made. Players looking to not attack their opponents directly also have the choice to attack Planeswalkers controlled by the corresponding player.
Typically, Myriad is found on individual creatures, however, there are creatures and enchantments that give the ability to other creatures. Duke Ulder Ravengard and Legion Loyalty are both Commander Legends: Battle for Baldur’s Gate cards capable of giving the Myriad ability to other creatures.
The best Myriad cards in Magic: The Gathering
As a keyword that has only featured in a handful of Magic: The Gathering sets, there aren’t too many choices for the best Myriad cards in MTG. Despite this, Myriad still has the ability to dole out a huge amount of damage and change the tide of a Commander game.
Wizards of Thay
Loaded up with Security Bypass to keep itself protected while attacking, Wizards of Thay can allow for all kinds of powerful shenanigans once its copies are in play. By reducing the cost of instants and sorceries by up to four, while also giving sorcery spells flash, Wizards of Thay can open the doors to a vast number of synergies capable of annihilating your opponents.
Blade of Selves
While its equip cost is not cheap, Blade of Selves is an incredibly versatile card for Commander play. Whether you want to combo it with powerful enter-the-battlefield effects, or just swing in with many Blightsteel Colossus-es, Blade of Selves does it all.
Compared to Legion Loyalty, admittedly, Blade of Selves is rather lacking somewhat. This, of course, is reciprocated in the card’s mana value. It’s important to note, however, that Blade of Selves is colorless, allowing it to go in any deck.
Battle Angles of Tyr
As a 4/4 for 4 with flying, at the very least, Battle Angles of Tyr has a compelling stat line. Given that they’re on this list, however, their power hardly ends there. Thanks to having a trio of triggered abilities, which activate when dealing combat damage, Battle Angles of Tyr is seriously powerful. Capable of drawing cards, generating treasure tokens, and gaining life, Battle Angles of Tyr does it all.
To make these three abilities even better, theoretically, these abilities can trigger three times when attacking! This is all thanks to Myriad.
Unfortunately, while there is a lot of potential, Battle Angles of Tyr’s trio of abilities won’t trigger every single time. After all, they require each opponent to have more cards in hand, land, and life than you. If you are severely on the back foot, however, Battle Angles of Try can be fantastic to level the playing field.
Legion Loyalty
While Legion Loyalty doesn’t come cheap, its effect is undoubtedly worth it if you have the mana. By giving all of your creatures Myriad, Legion Loyalty opens the doors for all manner of unfathomably oppressive combos.
Want to steal all your opponent’s creatures? Use Agent of Treachery! Want to cause untold chaos? Try Myriad on Marisi, Breaker of the Coil with Mirror Gallery! How about utterly steamrolling your opponents with Craterhoof Behemoth? The possibilities are endless!
How to use Myriad in Magic: The Gathering?
Alongside a few powerhouse MTG cards that are sure to either win the game or be swiftly removed, you’ll also want cards in your Commander deck supporting your Myriad army. For this, we recommend lords to buff and deal even more damage and enchantments to keep your creatures safe.
Predominantly, the Myriad keyword is found in red and white, making Balfire Liege an ideal choice for a lord. Knight Exemplar and Goblin Chieftain are other powerful options that can help to decimate all your opponents at once.
Alongside dishing out damage, Ephemeral Shields and Unbreakable Formation can both be used to ensure your Myriad creatures get to last more than one turn. Elspeth, Knight-Errant and Avacyn, Angel of Hope are also incredibly powerful options that are somewhat harder to enable.
One of the most powerful ways to use Myriad is in a way where you can avoid the tokens you create disappearing at the end of the turn. Thanks to the rise in popularity of the Encore mechanic, which shares a lot of similarities with Myriad, players have been picking up a lot of ‘end the turn’ effects. Sundial of the Infinite, for example, is capable of ending the turn before your Myriad tokens disappear. Because of that, they never will. You simply get to keep them.
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