We know that not everyone enjoys the whole eldritch thing, but having once again visited Innistrad, it’s worth wondering about why we’ll be seeing the Eldrazi next. It’s an interesting conundrum, because there’s no sign of them anywhere else, despite them being omni-dimensional beings.
They’re an essential part of MTG, in our opinion, because they offer some of the most intriguing designs, and they’re key to improving the quality of colorless cards in Commander. The lack of them in the last few years has us feeling a bit like there’s no real big bad in MTG, so we’re trying to figure out if we could see them next year at all.
Eldrazi of every flavor
While the Eldrazi Winter certainly caused a fuss, and boy oh boy was that a silly time, we stand by the fact that some of the designs of the Eldrazi were truly wonderful in 2015 and 2016. Battle for Zendikar and Oath of the Gatewatch introduced us to the idea of colored Eldrazi, despite the fact that they were devoid. Cards like Ulamog, the Ceaseless Hunger were to be feared, and while other cards, such as those found in the Kaladesh block, sort of broke the titans, they were fun.
Cards like Void Winnower showed off intriguing ways to interact with the board state and how card were cast as well. You then had the likes of Eldrazi Obligator, and Eldrazi Displacer, which are still strong Commander cards even now. Things changed even more when Eldritch Moon dropped too.
Eldritch Moon introduced us to the idea that the influence of the Eldrazi titans, specifically Emrakul, could cause horrifying changes on any plane. Just look at what happened to Brisela, Voice of Nightmares. This obviously fit well with Innistrad, but seeing Eldrazi erupt out of other creatures was memorable and an incredibly cool mechanic. It shows that Eldrazi are more than just exiling thing, and we want to see what else they can do.
Read More: Did Innistrad Inspire One Of The Best Games Of All Time?
Could Eldrazi return in 2022?
Next year we’re getting four new sets in Standard. Kamigawa seems like an unlikely choice for these otherworldly beings, and it’s far more likely to be all about the split between Spirits and technology than anything else. Exciting, sure, but not Eldrazi.
Streets of New Capenna is going to be all about demonic gangsters, which again, is incredibly cool, but not eldritch. So, any hope of seeing Eldrazi next year likely lies within either Dominaria United, or The Brothers War.
Both of these sets certainly have the potential for a return of the tentacles, but neither is an obvious place either. It’s quite p[possible that 2022 is going to be yet another Eldraziless year, and while that’s a bit sad, we’re still living in hope that we’ll get to see the mighty titans return to us once more. We’ll just have to wait and see, but it would definitely be nice to once again be wrapped in Emrakul’s warm embrace, or at least get her out of the moon.
Read More: Best Starter Commanders – Jirina Kudro
