Vraska, Swarm's Eminence - A Magic the Gathering (MTG) Card Review

Vraska, Swarm’s Eminence is an uncommon green and black planeswalker card from War of the Spark. This four-mana planeswalker has a hybrid mana cost, meaning you can pay either green or black mana to cast her. This Vraska planeswalker shares Standard with another four-mana Vraska card from Ravnica Allegiance: Vraska, Golgari Queen. So, where does this Vraska fit in?


Vraska, Swarm’s Eminence Helps You Build a Deathtouch Tribal Deck

Like all of the uncommon War of the Spark planeswalkers, Vraska, Swarm’s Eminence has two abilities, one static ability and one loyalty ability. Her static ability is rather interesting: “Whenever a creature you control with deathtouch deals damage to a player or planeswalker, put a +1/+1 counter on that creature.” There’s only a few good creatures with deathtouch currently in Standard. But, there are some possibilities.

Death Baron, for example, gives other Skeletons and Zombies you control deathtouch. So, Vraska, Swarm’s Eminence could work in a Zombie tribal deck. Dire Fleet Poisoner can give Pirates you control Deathtouch. Other playable creatures with deathtouch include Dire Fleet Ravager, Isareth the Awakener, Pestilent Spirit, and Tetzimoc, Primal Death. There’s also the split instant card Status / Statue which would be fairly playable in a deck with Vraska, Swarm’s Eminence.


Vraska, Swarm’s Eminence Makes Planeswalker Assassin Tokens!


The particularly fun aspect of Vraska, Swam’s Eminence is the tokens that she creates. For minus-two loyalty, she creates a 1/1 black Assassin creature token with deathtouch. Those tokens also have the ability that whenever they deal damage to a planeswalker, destroy that planeswalker. Those tokens have perfect synergy with Swarm’s Eminence’s other ability, so they can get bigger quickly.



Vraska, Swarm’s Eminence in EDH / Commander


Many Hapatra, Vizier of Poisons Snake Tribal Commander players added Vraska, Swarm’s Eminence to their EDH decks. Damia, Sage of Stone Deathtouch Tribal EDH decks can make use of Vraska, Swarm’s Eminence, too. While this Vraska planeswalker does need to fill a particular niche in EDH, she finds more than a few homes in Commander decks.




Vraska, Swarm’s Eminence in Standard


At the very least, Vraska, Swarm’s Eminence could be Standard-playable as a sideboard card against planeswalker-heavy strategies. Because of her hybrid mana cost, she can be played in decks that feature either green or black mana, and not just both. Red/black (Rakdos) and Blue/black (Dimir) decks can play her, as well as Red/Green (Gruul) and White/Green (Selesnya) decks. She’s a bit too niche for Modern and other Eternal competitive formats.


Being only an uncommon, Magic the Gathering players are happy to add a playset of this Vraska planeswalker to their collections. While Vraska, Swarm’s Eminence may not be a super important card outside of a Planeswalker-heavy Standard metagame, she is a well-designed and flavorful planeswalker just like all those we have seen in War of the Spark.


How would you play Vraska, Swarm’s Eminence?

Read more War of the Spark card reviews here!

Emergence Zone - A Magic the Gathering (MTG) Card Review

Emergence Zone is an uncommon nonbasic land from Magic the Gathering's War of the Spark. This colorless land is in the vein of Alchemist’s Refuge and Winding Canyons. Not only does it provide one colorless mana by tapping it, but it also has a sacrifice ability for a single mana to give all spells you cast flash until end of turn.That means everything in your hand can be played at instant speed. While Alchemist’s Refuge and Winding Canyons didn’t require you sacrifice them, there are a few things about Emergence Zone that make it a particularly fascinating card across many different competitive Magic the Gathering formats.


While needing to sacrifice Emergence Zone does present a drawback, the ability only costs a single colorless mana for any type of spell you cast. Because you are sacrificing a land, though, sacrificing Emergence Zone essentially costs you two mana and not just one. It’s a fair price for the ability, though, and because you can play it in any deck, Emergence Zone can fit into many different deck strategies.


It has already been suggested that Emergence Zone will see a lot of play in decks that can retrieve it or recur it from the graveyard. Without a doubt, Emergence Zone becomes a lot more powerful with something like Crucible of Worlds in play (which actually is in Standard at the time of War of the Spark’s release).Being able to play it from the graveyard is a crazy powerful play, as it doesn’t even come into play tapped.



Emergence Zone in EDH / Commander


The most obvious place for Emergence Zone to see play is in EDH, as many Commanders already enjoy having access to flash through lands like Alchemist’s Refuge and Winding Canyons. Alchemist’s Refuge, though, requires Blue and Green mana to activate. While the Refuge does not require the sacrifice, it can only be played in decks with Blue and Green mana. Winding Canyons only requires two colorless mana to activate its ability, but only gives flash to creature spells.




Emergence Zone in Modern Colorless Eldrazi


There has already been speculation that Emergence Zone may be played in some Eldrazi decks in Modern. It provides the required colorless mana for some of the Colorless Eldrazi deck’s best creatures like Matter Reshaper, Thought-Knot Seer, Reality Smasher, and Endbringer. But, it also gives you the ability to flash in your creatures, something that is relevant with Eldrazi Mimic already in play. The Mimic can copy the power and toughness of any colorless creature that enters the battlefield on your side. That makes for a neat combat trick. Flash is also relevant for flashing in the deck’s other spells like Basilisk Collar. Ghostfire Blade, and Ratchet Bomb. It’s particularly cute with Ratchet Bomb, because Flash allows you to tick it up with an additional charge counter.


Emergence Zone in Standard


Probably the most interesting use for Emergence Zone in the Standard format it enters is a deck heavy on planeswalkers. Sure, planeswalkers have been played at instant speed in EDH before thanks to a wide variety of Flash enablers like Alchemist’s Refuge, Leyline of Anticipation, and Vedalken Orrery. But, with War of the Spark planeswalkers having static abilities besides just loyalty abilities, suddenly giving them the ability to have flash becomes a lot more important. It could be argued that Emergence Zone is going to be a key card in some sort of Planeswalker Control deck. We shall see how this land’s use develops as War of the Spark is released.
How would you use Emergence Zone?

Chandra, Flame’s Fury - A Magic the Gathering (MTG) Card Review

In most cases, a planeswalker-deck exclusive like Chandra, Flame’s Fury would be a fun casual curiosity. The planeswalkers in these Planeswalker decks are greatly powered down mirrors of their counterparts in their respective sets. But, with Magic’s Core Set 2020, Chandra planeswalkers are more important than ever. Thanks to a little rare called Chandra’s Regulator, suddenly every Chandra planeswalker ever printed becomes quite a bit more powerful.


What is Chandra's Regulator?

Chandra’s Regulator is a two-mana Red Artifact that allows you for a single generic mana to copy any loyalty ability of a Chandra planeswalker that you activate. So, even powered-down Planeswalker deck Chandra planeswalkers suddenly become a lot better than they first appear. In the case of Chandra, Flame’s Fury, her abilities become surprisingly a lot more relevant than they would be ordinarily on a comparatively under-powered six-mana planeswalker.


What Does Chandra, Flame's Fury Do?


Chandra, Flame’s Fury is a six-mana planeswalker with a casting cost of 4 colorless and 2 red. She enters the battlefield with four loyalty counters, which isn’t bad, but not great. Her +1 loyalty ability reads: “Chandra, Flame’s Fury deals 2 damage to any target.” A Shock is always a nice ability to have, but extremely underwhelming on a six-mana walker. However, with the Chandra’s Regulator, this is an ability well worth copying for the extra colorless mana.


Flame’s Fury’s −2 loyalty ability reads: “Chandra, Flame’s Fury deals 4 damage to target creature and 2 damage to that creature’s controller.” This is actually a semi-decent ability. If you were to just use this ability twice before losing Chandra, Flame’s Fury, that’s not a terrible return. However, with Chandra’s Regulator, this becomes a very potent ability.


Chandra, Flame’s Fury’s “ultimate” ability is actually a pretty good one. Her −8 loyalty ability reads: “Chandra, Flame’s Fury deals 10 damage to target player and each creature that player controls.” This is actually a nice finisher, even if it’s unlikely that you’ll usually get her up to the eight necessary loyalty counters. Chandra’s Regulator’s ability copying makes this pretty much an “oops, I win” ability.


How Good is Chandra, Flame's Fury?


As planeswalker cards go, Chandra, Flame’s Fury is pretty much the casual-only curiosity that you would expect. But, because of Chandra’s Regulator, and the presence of three other new Chandra planeswalkers, “Chandra Planeswalker Tribal” is actually now a thing. Chandra, Flame’s Fury may be a fringe planeswalker, but with Chandra’s Regulator around, she will show up in at least a few Oathbreaker and Commander decks in the future.

Bolas’s Citadel - A Magic the Gathering (MTG) Card Review

Bolas’s Citadel is a fascinating Legendary Artifact from War of the Spark. This card is sort of a strange cross between the powerful Instant spell Ad Nauseam and a popular enchantment called Future Sight. But, Bolas’s Citadel is more powerful than those two cards combined.


Let’s take a look at what this six-mana Enchantment does:


Bolas's Citadel {3}{B}{B}{B}

Legendary Artifact

You may look at the top card of your library any time.

You may play the top card of your library. If you cast a spell this way, pay life equal to its converted mana cost rather than pay its mana cost.

{T}, Sacrifice ten nonland permanents: Each opponent loses 10 life.



Is Bolas’s Citadel a better Future Sight and Ad Nauseam Combined?


Future Sight is an enchantment that has you reveal the top card of your library at all times. The advantage is that you can play the top card of your library. But, with Bolas’s Citadel, you can look at the top card of your library at any time, but don’t have to reveal it. This means less information you give your opponent. Also, with the Citadel, you can play the top card of your library, but it comes at a price.


With Bolas’s Citadel, if you decide to play the top card of your deck, if its a spell, you pay life equal to that card’s converted mana cost instead of paying its normal casting cost. This is similar to the powerful Modern spell Ad Nauseum. That card allows you to reveal the top card of your library and add it to your hand as many times as you want. But, each card that you add to your hand comes at the cost of that card’s converted mana cost.


(One important note : lands cost zero converted mana, so they can be added to your hand for free. You can also choose to play lands from the top of your deck thanks to Bolas’s Citadel. Of course, that means you should check the top of your deck for a land before playing one from your hand.)


However, there are ways to make Ad Nauseum work well as a powerful draw spell. For example in Legacy Ad Nauseam Tendrils, the deck plays eight zero cost spells and twenty-four one-drop spells. So, when you cast your one copy of Ad Nauseum, the chances of it actually draining you of enough life to be a problem are fairly low.


Modern Ad Nauseam operates a bit differently, using an enchantment called Phyrexian Unlife to actually allow you to go below 0 life in exchange for dealing infect (poison) damage to you instead. This only buys you 10 damage, but sometimes it’s all you need to draw into the card that you need to win - in most cases Lightning Storm.



How is Bolas’s Citadel different from Ad Nauseam?


Whereas Ad Nauseum adds cards to your hand, Bolas’s Citadel allows you to instead cast them. Plus, you get to see what the next card is, so you can choose not to cast it if you don’t want to do so. Also, if you haven’t played a land card in a turn, you can choose to play that land without any penalty, essentially drawing you an extra card.


Plus, Bolas’s Citadel has a third ability. This tap ability allows you to sacrifice ten nonland permanents and have each opponent lose 10 life. While ten permanents is a lot - and it can actually include itself in the sacrifice - 10 life is a very substantial number. While this isn’t the main reason to play this card, it’s a nice weapon to have sitting there on the battlefield.



Will Bolas’s Citadel See Competitive Standard Play?


At six mana, Bolas’s Citadel is likely only going to be a single copy in a competitive deck, perhaps two copies at the most in a mono-Black deck.. Of course, Ad Nauseam is a five mana spell, so it’s not a huge stretch for this card to see play. The trick is playing a deck that can keep the game going long enough to cast the Citadel.


Fortunately, the Standard environment the Citadel of Bolas came into would support such a deck ready to play it. That deck is Esper Tempo, which proved itself as a formidable deck through Core Set 2020 Standard. Not every build of the deck plays Bolas's Citadel, but those builds that play Oath of Kaya and Elite Guardmage - both of which gain you life when they enter the battlefield - help take advantage of the Citadel's draw engine.



Bolas’s Citadel and Aetherflux Reservoir in Modern


The most obvious card that could make a Bolas’s Citadel deck work is Aetherflux Reservoir. People have been trying to make an Aetherflux Reservoir deck work in Modern for awhile with a card like Madcap Experiment to dig for the key artifact. Interestingly enough, Bolas’s Citadel may fit into that sort of deck. Because Aetherflux Reservoir decks can gain a substantial amount of life, a single Bolas’s Citadel could help speed the deck up significantly. This sort of deck, while it sounds good on paper, hasn't yet broken through into competitive play.



Bolas’s Citadel in Legacy or Vintage?


We have seen Ad Nauseum perform very well in Legacy, so what about Bolas’s Citadel? The key difference with the Citadel is that it allows you to cast cards, not put them into your hand. The sheer draw power of Ad Nauseum is key to the Legacy Tendrils deck digging into its key piece. While in theory having Bolas’s Citadel in play would be great - since you could play your Lotus Petals and Lion’s Eye Diamonds for free anyway - a six-mana enchantment is a lot to ask for in that format.


However, Bolas's Citadel HAS seen play in Vintage! You'll see the occasional Paradoxical Outcome deck run a copy of the Citadel. It's also a nice card engine for Tendrils of Agony Storm in Vintage. Bolas's Citadel can definitely see play in powerful decks if there's enough mana to power it out.



Bolas’s Citadel in EDH / Commander


The most obvious home for Bolas’s Citadel is in EDH. Six-mana Enchantments are much more at home in a format that takes awhile for board states to develop. Since you begin with 40 life in Commander, the ability to play many spells off of Bolas’s Citadel as soon as it hits the board is substantial. It’s very possible to play even a card that requires triple-Black in its casting cost earlier than turn six. Cabal Coffers and Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth, for example, make that cost easier to meet early on in a game. Also, black decks that also play green mana ramp should have little trouble casting Bolas’s Citadel on turn five or even turn four.


The number of EDH decks that can play Bolas’s Citadel is quite high. Plus, that tap ability to sacrifice 10 nonland permanents could be abused over and over in decks that create a lot of tokens. Ten damage may not be enough to close out a game, but it’s much more relevant in multiplayer as it hits all opponents. It’s going to be a very popular card in the format and any deck that loves sacrificing creatures will have a ball with it.


The top Commanders early in this card's life included VIlis, Broker of Blood, Yawgmoth, Thran Physician, Kethis, the Hidden Hand, Massacre Girl, and God-Eternal Bontu. Of these Commanders, only Yawgmoth is particularly popular. Then again, the others likely will have many more decks built over time. The Citadel of Bolas also hasn't worked itself into as many decks as it could be in yet, either.



While Bolas’s Citadel may not see much competitive 60-card Magic the Gathering play, it will most definitely be a powerful card in EDH. Players were rightly excited about the power level of this card. What do you think of Bolas's Citadel?



Read more War of the Spark card reviews here.

Atarka's Command - A Modern Magic the Gathering (MTG) Card Review

When it first released, there was some debate among Magic players as to how good Atarka's Command really is. Some weren't even sure it belongs in a constructed main deck. But, for a card that's at worst Skullcrack plus options for just two mana (Red and Green), Atarka's Command proved to be a very playable card.


The first two modes pretty much equal a Skullcrack since the Command cycle allows you to choose two of the four modes. Losing the damage prevention restriction from Skullcrack and adding the ability to hit each opponent isn't a big deal. The each opponent addition does seem odd, as this isn't a card you'd expect to be good in a multi-player format. But, it’s there all the same.


How about the other two modes? The ability to play a land card straight to the field is an interesting option, and it probably will be the most rarely used. Still, don't rule out using it, especially as that land can come in untapped. The last mode may easily be the best: giving creatures you control +1/+1 plus reach until the end of turn. Reach is actually pretty good since Red/Green does have problems with flyers. Of course, that means using this card defensively in decks that want to focus on being constantly on the offensive.



Atarka's Command in Standard


The obvious home for Atarka's Command was Gruul Aggro, an aggressive deck featuring the Green mana mostly just to play the Command. Another deck that spawned using the card was Atarka Red, which played another powerful Green card called Become Immense. Not only was Atarka's Command good in Standard, it was good enough for existing Red decks to add Green mana just to play it. The two decks eventually merged into Gruul Deck Wins, a strong deck in Standard that eventually just became known as Atarka Red.


There were already enough incidental life gain effects in Magic at the time that a card like Atarka's Command became a solid tempo card. Creatures with lifelink and cards with life gain effects like Siege Rhino being neutralized was a nice boon for aggro decks. The sheer versatility of the card, as well as the extra land drop at instant speed, made it an instant hit in the red/green decks that wanted to play hard and fast.


Atarka's Command in Modern


In Modern, Atarka's Command found homes in the popular Naya Blitz deck as well as Bushwhacker Zoo. It was particularly good in these Red/Green/X decks due to the presence of Burning-Tree Emissary, which adds a Red mana and a Green mana to your mana pool when it enters the battlefield. It would also find its way into Red Deck Wins variants and Burn decks that splashed Green just for the Command and the sideboard card Destructive Revelry.


Well into 2019, Atarka's Command still sees play at four main deck copies in Modern in upgraded versions of decks like Atarka Zoo and Bushwhacker Zoo. Most recently, Atarka's Command has made its way into the sideboard of Modern Goblins. These Goblin decks now run Green mana because of a new Legendary Goblin Grumgully, the Generous, who is Red and Green.



Atarka's Command in Pioneer


With the announcement of the Pioneer format - which begins with the Return to Ravnica set - many cards like Atarka's Command that were powerful Standard cards in the past are getting another look. As this is a card currently seeing Modern play, it's no doubt that we'll see this versatile instant see play in a format alongside cards that it has seen success beside, such as Burning-Tree Emissary and Reckless Bushwhacker.


Without a doubt, Atarka's Command is one of the more versatile two-mana instants out there. It's both good for tempo and burn. This is a card every Magic the Gathering player should try to have in their collections.

Which Deck Fits the Ashiok, Dream Render Planeswalker from War of the Spark Best?

 

Ashiok, Dream Render is an uncommon planeswalker from War of the Spark with two powerful abilities. With how relevant his abilities are to both the Standard environment he enters and other competitive formats, it’s not hard to see why he was a top pre-order before the War of the Spark set release. Not only does he not allow your opponents to search their libraries, but he can also mill four cards while exiling opponent’s graveyards.


Ashiok, Dream Render Stops Each Opponent From Searching Their Deck


The first ability on this Ashiok planeswalker is especially important in formats like Modern because opponents can’t even activate their fetch lands! The best part about the ability is that you are unaffected and can search your library freely. Dream Render’s ability is also powerful in EDH where people are constantly searching their libraries with Tutors and similar abilities. Stranglehold is a powerful card in the EDH format for this reason. Previously, that ability was only available in Red; now it’s available in Blue & Black decks thanks to this planeswalker. This is an ability also relevant in formats like Legacy and Vintage, although it’s hard to say that Ashiok, Dream Render would see play in those older formats simply based on this ability.



This Ashiok Planeswalker Exiles Your Opponents' Graveyards


Ashiok, Dream Render also has a second ability that could prove even more relevant than his Stranglehold-type ability. His minus-1 loyalty ability puts the top four cards of a target player’s library into the graveyard, then exiles all cards from opponents’ graveyards. The wording of that is very important, because you can actually mill yourself, then Relic of Progenitus/Tormod’s Crypt just your opponents.


Relic of Progenitus and Tormod’s Crypt see a lot of play in Eternal formats because of how powerful exiling the graveyard is against certain decks such as Phoenix, Reanimator, and Dredge decks. Because this Ashiok planeswalker enters play with 5 loyalty counters, this is an ability that can be used a few times. Interestingly, this Ashiok planeswalker may be good in the very decks he’s good against.




Does Ashiok, Dream Render Work With Any Combo Deck?

While Ashiok, Dream Render doesn't currently combo with anything specific, there has been an interesting interaction found with the Dominaria Saga Fall of the Thran. That six-mana enchantment costs 6 mana to cast and destroys all lands. But, for the next couple of turns, each player puts two land cards from his or her graveyard back onto the battlefield.


What makes this card even more powerful with Ashiok is that you can mill your opponent - or yourself - while exiling your opponents' graveyards along with all of their lands. Basically, because Ashiok allows you to purge your opponents' lands from play, Fall of the Thran becomes one-sided and extremely hard for opponents to come back from. There was a Standard Esper combo control deck that puts this combo into practice called Ashiok Thran Combo. It never became a top deck in the format, but it was definitely a great interaction that can shut opponents out of the game.


While there are other Ashiok planeswalkers in other formats that fill spots in a mill deck strategy, Ashiok, Dream Render is a good option to consider in such a deck. Being an uncommon, it’s certainly a more budget-friendly option to other mythic rare Ashiok planeswalkers. .


Is Ashiok, Dream Render Good in EDH or Oathbreaker?

This Ashiok planeswalker is obviously good in EDH thanks to that Stranglehold ability. In fact, Ashiok, Dream Render sees play in about 9 percent of possible decks cataloged by EDHREC. Shutting down tutors and fetch lands is very powerful in EDH. It also offers another way to exile an opponent’s graveyard. While Ashiok is limited to color combinations that include blue and black - which isn’t the case in regular 60-card Magic - there are plenty enough decks happy to include this Ashiok card.


In Oathbreaker, Ashiok, Dream Render can be a competitive planeswalker to use as your Commander. This is because of the Stranglehold ability, which shuts down opponents’ fetch lands, very popular in the Oathbreaker format. A good Signature Spell to pair with Ashiok could be Yawgmoth’s Will, the powerful sorcery that allows you to play cards from your graveyard as if they were in your hand - the caveat being they are exiled if you play them.



Where Else Can Ashiok, Dream Render Fit in Modern and Pioneer?


The War of the Spark Ashiok planeswalker has become a valuable sideboard card in Modern. Ashiok, Dream Render can be found in the side decks of Jund, Bant Snowblade, Grixis Death’s Shadow, and other competitive Modern decks. At only three mana and a hybrid mana cost of blue or black mana, Ashiok can fit into a variety of archetypes without putting any strain on the mana base. Ashiok, Dream Render has also been found in the occasional sideboard of Pioneer Sultai Inverter of Truth decks, as have other Ashiok planeswalkers.


Unfortunately, Ashiok would come down too late to be viable in Legacy, especially since the graveyard hate ability is at sorcery speed. The static Stranglehold ability can be useful, but not quite enough to be put in a Legacy 75. In any case, this Ashiok has seen plenty of play, especially in Standard against Arclight Phoenix decks. This Ashiok is easily one of the best uncommon planeswalkers we will likely ever see.

Read more War of the Spark card reviews here!