Ikoria: Rise of Behemoth Limited Set Review Notes (Last update 4/9/2020 @ 9:35 a.m. ET) (Patreon)

Ikoria: Lair of Behemoths Limited Set Review Notes:

White:

5 - Checkpoint Officer - C+

This isn’t QUITE Master Decoy -- they are identical other than that this costs an additional mana to tap stuff down -- but that’s close enough to Master Decoy to still be a pretty high quality common.  Tap effects tend to be great, and it is a kind of pseudo-removal that is good all game long.  It may be even better than usual in this format that is loaded up with huge monsters and Mutate, where tapping down one guy might be bigger than it normally would.  Master Decoy is usually a B- or so, and having the tap ability cost one more mana is a very real difference, so I think this guy is a C+

7 - Cubwarden - B

The Mutate mechanic is what intrigues me a lot about this format – it is potentially difficult to judge because it is so unique, but obviously I’m gonna do my bes tjob.  So, creatures with the “Mutate” mechanic are all effectively split cards, and split cards are always nice because of their flexibility.  This can just be a 4-mana ⅗ with lifelink, a pretty attractive card already -- probably close to a C+.  It also holds on to the Mutate upside even if you just cast it normally, so that if mutating ever happens in the future, you still get those Cat tokens.  You can also cast it for the mutate cost, and either put it on top of or under another non-Human creature you control. Basically, if the creature is bigger than 3/5 you probably want to put the Liger underneath it, effectively giving a big creature lifelink and making a couple of tokens.  If it is smaller, you probably want to put it on top, making whatever it is into a ⅗ with lifelink, plus whatever abilities it had, and you also get those two 1/1 tokens. One of the cool things about Mutate is it doesn’t just involve thinking more about the cards with Mutate --  Mutate also makes it so that with any non-human creature in the format, you have to consider how good it would be if it was Mutated on to – like if it is a small creature but has powerful abilities, it will be extra attractive.   Something to keep in mind about Mutate that is not intuitive, by the way, is that if you target a creature with the Mutate cost, your opponent killing the creature you are mutating on to in response does not cause a 2-for-1.  Instead, in this case, the Liger would just come down as its normal creature self, and not get the Mutate trigger.  However, if you wait to kill the creature until after they have Mutated together, you DO get the 2-for-1.  Of course, with a creature like the Cubwarden it won’t be a real 2-for-1, because the Mutate trigger will still have happened.  So, with that long Mutate aside out of the way -- how good is Cubwarden?  Pretty darn good, I think -- it gets around the risk of 2-for-1s, and will frequently be giving you a ton of value whichever way you end up casting it.  I think this is first pickable.  I’m giving it a b.

10 - Drannith Healer - C

A two mana 2/2 with this ability is fairly underwhelming, and while adding Cycling to it makes it better -- since when you don’t need it as a 2-mana 2/2 you can just pitch it -- it still is just a very medium card, I think this is just a C.

11 - Dranith Magistrate - D+

So, this is the kind of card really printed with constructed in mind.  In most Limited games in this format, this Hatebear isn’t going to have anything to hate on, so he is effectively just a two mana ⅓.  He’s also a human, which has some tribal support here for sure, but still he’s not something you really want to run most of the time.  I’m giving him a D+.

12 - Fight as One - C+

This reminds me a lot of River Herald’s Boon from Ixalan, a card that turned out to be pretty incredible in that format.  Now, they aren’t identical -- the Boon gave +1/+1 counters as a permanent boost instead of a temporary one -- but the boon also cost two mana and didn’t grant indestructibility for a turn.  I start to be very interested in tricks once they have the possibility of allowing you to 2-for-1 your opponent, and that’s definitely what we have here.  In addition to that, because indestructibility is granted, you can use it to blank most removal spells too -- and generally at a price much cheaper than what your opponent is paying.  It just seems like this will have a fine floor of +1/+1 and indestructibility, and a very impressive ceieling when you can give two things the boost -- and yeah, sometimes that will blow out the opponent.  I’m pretty high on this, as far as tricks go -- I don’t quite thing I want to give it the B- the River Herald’s Boon ended up being -- that format was pretty unique, but I am willing to start at C+.  I can’t imagine aggressive White decks cutting this very often.  And yeah, it could end up being as good as the Boon for sure, but I’ll start at C+.

13 - Flourishing Fox - C+

This seems like a nice Cycling build around.  Heck, the fact it has Cycling itself is actually pretty nice.  Sometimes you’ll draw this late without any way to make it bigger, but you can throw it away for something else, which is a nice fail case.  But, if you get this down early and just Cycle a few times, you’re going to get a great return on your investment.  I like that a lot of the Cycling payoffs also have Cycling too, as it seems like it will make it easier to make these decks work in Limited.  This is a nice card, but not one to take super early.  I’m giving it a C+.

14 - Garrison Cat - C-

I’m not usually hugely impressed with this kind of creature, unless it gives me a token with Flying or something.  This is a little more interesting than normal, because it seems like there are a decent number of mutate creatures with low mutate costs, and some of them will really pay you off for playing a one drop, and adding the ability to get a token does soften the blow of potentially getting 2-for-1’d, too.  I don’t imagine this being something that always makes the cut or anything, but I think you’ll play it enough that it doesn’t quite drop into the D range.  I’m going to give it a C-.

15 - Helica Glider - C

This is a solid Common.  I think most of the time, you’re going to go with the Flying option -- but sometimes First Strike will be better.  It is nice on turn three, and then later in the game a nice thing to mutate on top of thanks to the keyword ability it brings with it. So basically it is a White wind drake with a bit of extra upside, and I think that’s enough for a C these days. 

16 - Huntmaster Liger - C+

A 4-mana ¾ with some Mutate upside is what this is in its most basic form, and that is probably enough to be a C -- especially because the Mutate upside is pretty powerful, pumping your whole team.  You can also cast it for the mutate cost, and either put it on top of or under another non-Human creature you control.   So, with all that said, where does this fall?  I think I’m going to start it at C+ for now.  I think if I am wrong about it, I am probably underrating it, but yeah, a C+ for now.  I imagine it being a nice piece for many White decks, but not one you want to first pick. 

18 - Keensight Mentor - C+

Vigilance isn’t the most amazing keyword ability -- it doesn’t make a creature Evasive or anything, but its fine.  And, at worst, this like all the Mentors just gives one thing Vigilance, and then in the later game you can pay mana to make that creature progressively larger.  That’s a nice late-game mana sink, and if you have more creatures with Vigilance it gets even sillier!  A 3-mana ¼ isn’t great, but overall I think this is a nice card for most White deck.  I’m giving it a C+

19 - Lavabrink Adventurer - B-

This seems pretty good.  A 3-mana 3/3 is usually a solid C, and the upside this has is pretty real! Because you get to choose Odd or Even, you can always choose whatever choice gives you the best advantage on the board.  Sure, sometimes your opponent will have a mix of creatures off Odd and Even, and that will be annoying, but your fail case is still an efficient creature.  Making it so you can indefinitely block cards of odd or even mana costs, attack through creatures of certain mana costs, and blank removal spells of certain mana costs is some real power.  I do think I’m reluctant to go with a straight up B here, just becuase I know there will be a considerable amount of time where he is just that 3 mana 3/3.  So I’m going to go with B-, which means you can first pick him in some weaker packs. 

21 - Luminous Broodmoth - A

A 4-mana ¾ flyer is already a great rate for Limited, and probably a B-.  Then, this has a super powerful ability.  Making all of your non-flying creatures come back from the graveyard with flying is insane.  The Broodmoth will frequently destabilize the board.  I mean, think about it -- you play your Moth, and suddenly you can attack with a bunch of creatures you may not have wanted to attack with before.  This puts your opponent in a nasty situation, where they have to decide whether to just take damage, or block them and let them come back as Flyers.  In many ways, this means the Broodmoth has an immediate impact on the board, since it will in most cases at least make combat hard for your opponent, even if they untap and kill the moth right away.   So yeah, between its own huge body, and bringing creatures back with Flying, it is hard to say that this isn’t a bomb.  I’m giving it an A.

22 - Majestic Auricorn - C

So, how good would this be if it were just a 5-mana 4/4 with vigilance?  Probaly a C- or C.  Overall, this seems kind of underwhelming compared to a lot of the Mutate creatures in this set.  If you’re playing this for its Mutate cost on turn 4, you’re probably upgrading one of your creatures to a 4/4 vigilance and gaining 4 life.  Other times, you’ll be paying 4 to give something bigger vigilance and gain 4 life.   While that’s decent, it seems like most of the time the risk is not worth the reward here.  The mutate creatures who give you big rewards that make it so getting potentially 2-for-1’d doesn’t hurt as much are the ones I’m really after, and this isn’t that.  I think this is just decent, and not much more than that.  This might be an example of a Mutate creature you actually end up hardcasting more, because it definitely seems like you are getting closer to 5 mana worth of value when you’re just going with the creature.  So yeah,  I’m giving it a C.

24 - Mythos of Snapdax - C+ / B+

So, there is a cycle of mono-colored Mythos that all do something extra if you are playing one of the wedges.  This one has a Cataclysm effect -- an effect that often underwhelms in Limited.  It is very dependent on the board state.  Because, if your opponent has an advantage over you because they have the best creature on the board well -- that advatnage isn’t going to change because you cast this -- at least if you are paying all White for it.  If your opponent has an advantage over you because their board is huge, then it will help.  And both of those situations will happen -- I’m just saying there will be times where this card is pretty bad.  However, if you pay Mardu mana for this thing, you get around that problem, since you make choices for your opponent!  And that is truly devastating.  I think of the cycle of Mythos, this is the one that gets the most sizable upgrade by paying all three colors -- the others have a better floor than this, but I thinkt his might have the highest ceiling.  I think you should try pretty hard to find a way to go three colors if you have the Mythos because of that.  Still, it is weird to give a grade to a card liek this that varies wildly in how good it is both depending on the board state, and depending on whether you can pay the three colors of mana for it.  I guess I’m going to say this is like a C+ if you aren’t able to ever get the bonus effect.  It would be like an A+ in a deck that always got the bonus effect, but that jus twon’t happen -- so let’s say it is a B+ in a deck that can get the bonus at least some of the time. 

25 - Pacifism - B

Pacifism is a great card every time we see it in Limited -- which is a lot!  Two mana to take away what are normally the two most important things creatures can do Limited -- attacking and blocking -- is just amazing efficiency, and it makes Pacifism a premium removal spell.  Sure, it has downsides -- doesn’t shut off static or activated abilities, your opponent can bounce their creature, etc., but the downside is always worth it for the efficiency, and most of the time those downsides won’t even matter.  As usual, Pacifism is a B, and likely one of White’s best commons. 

26 - Patagia Tiger - C+

A 5-mana ¾ Flyer is usually a serviceable card in Limited, close to about a C.  This brings some pretty real additional upside, in that it can pump humans.  White and Black especially have a lot of humans, and in those decks this will be a nice common because it will frequently give one of your Humans an attack that wouldn’t have worked before the Tiger came down.  I think the Tiger is a C+.

28  - Sanctuary Lockdown - D // B-

Obiously, this is a build around -- but it is definitely a nice one, not only providing Humans with an Anthem effect, but also being able to use humans to tap stuff down.  That can be truly devastating in some situations, where you have say 4 humans in play, and can just tap down both of your opponent’s blockers at the end of their turn.  This means that this card is useful in multiple scenarios, whether being aggressive or defensive.  Still, it does need a build around grade.  This set has fewer humans in it than most do, and even though White has the most, it doesn’t seem like there will be a ton.  People may also be less inclined to play Humans because they can’t Mutate, but we’ll have to see.  Still, I think this is a great buildaround for Human decks -- I just don’t imagine your average White deck will be very good with this.  I’m going to give it a D in a regular deck, and a B- in a Human-heavy one.  It will be one of the best Human payoffs, at least at lower rarirites. 

29 - Savai Sabertooth - C-

Two mana 3/1s tend to be fine two drops for aggressive decks.  That’s a C-.  Not much else to say!

32 - Splendor Mare - B-

I like this whole cycle, and that includes the Mare!  A three mana 3/3 with lifelink is probably already at least a C+, then you add the Cycling upside here and you have something really nice.  Paying 1W to draw a card and permanently give something life link is a nice option to have in addition to just having an efficient creature.  Cycling is a well-supported mechanic in this set too.  So yeah, I think you can get away with taking this with an early pick, or even a first pick in some weaker packs!

33 - Spontaneous Flight - C

So, three mana tricks have to do a lot for me to be interested in them.  Usually the best tricks are the cheap ones that can allow you to come out ahead on mana, and basically really efficiently kill your opponent’s stuff.  I demand efficiency if I’m going to be doing something risky like playing a trick!  The stats boost offered by Spontaneous Flight would not normally be enough for this to be a trick worth playing -- I would probably give this an F if that’s all it was -- but adding a Flying counter to the mix is actually a pretty big deal.  Permanently giving something flying is great, and is often enough to shake up most board states.  In addition to that, you can also use this to just make a lethal swing in the air, giving it sort of a secondary use. You shouldn’t do that unless it will be lethal of course -- but, it is nice to have that additional use.  So yeah, I think despite this being a more expensive trick, it does enough that aggressive decks will probably feel fine about playing that first copy.  I’m giving it a C -- it is still a trick, with all the usual problems they have -- but a C is a pretty solid grade for a trick!

34 - Stormwild Capridor - D+

So - mostly, this is a 3-mana ⅓ with Flying.  That’s not a card you normally play.  Sure, it has a little bit of additional upside -- damage-based removal doesn’t work on it, and in fact it just makes it bigger!  I guess the idea here is that you can Mutate stuff on to this to get its abilities, but even then, you’re only ending up with something that impacts a very narrow number of cards in the set -- damage-based removal.  One of the funnier things you can do with it is run damage-based board sweepers in your deck, which it will be immune too and everything.  But yeah, I’m still not really in on this.  I think you’ll play it sometimes if you’re going hard on Mutate, but its ability just won’t matter most of the time.  I’m giving it a D+.

35 - Swallowing Bite - B-

Well, this is a pretty fascinating design.  One white mana to exile a tapped creature would be at least a B, maybe even a B+.  It might be situational, but it is crazy efficient.  Obviously, this isn’t quite that -- it makes you tap one of your creatures to pay for the cost, and that won’t always be a cost you can easily pay.  The upside is that the creature you tap also gets a +1/+1 counter, though -- so you get to kill something and make one of your creature’s permanently bigger, and that seems nice.  I think the set up will be frustrating sometimes, but I think this is too efficient to not want to take with early picks.  I’m giving it a B-.

36 - Valiant Rescuer - C+

This seems like a pretty sweet Cycling build around.  As we saw earlier in this video, a two mana 3/1 is usually a C- anyway.  If you add Cycling alone to this guy, he is better, since you can just Cycle him on boards where you don’t really want a 3/1.  But then, the ability to make a 1/1 token every time you cycle something is REALLY nice.  Note that it only counts the first time you cycle each turn, but that’s still a nice deal.  I feel like this guy is probably at least a C+, and I could see him being even more of an engine than I am thinking right now, but yeah, let’s start at C+.

38 - Will of Snapdax - C+

Two mana for +2/+2 and nothing else as a trick is usually like a D -- it does help a creature win combat, but it isn’t all that efficient.  However, this has a lot more going on than that. I think this is a really cool design for a trick too, since it is technically better on the block because the counters are permanent.  Then, it also has Cycling if you draw it and you don’t need a combat trick, which will be the case sometimes.  One of the issues with tricks can be how situational they are, but this mitigates against that for sure.  I think you will always run the first couple of these in aggressive White decks -- but it is still a trick, and not one that can get you 2-for-1s or anything in most cases, so it is hard to go above C+.

Blue

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41 - Archipelagore - B-

Really cool name here, and also a pretty nice Uncommon for Limited.  Obviously, the ideal thing you want to do is play this for the Mutate cost, since it gives you a discount on the card and gives you the powerful Mutate trigger -- tapping down one of your opponent’s creatures for a turn is no joke, especially because if you put the Archipelagore on to something that was on the abttlefield the previous turn (which is likely) it can get in there and rumble right away!  Obviously, the more it mutates, the more tapping you get to do, and that’s awesome.  And yeah, doesn’t hurt that if you have this and no creatures, you can at least pay 7 mana for a 7/7 with some Mutate upside.  I thinkt his is first pickable in some weaker packs.  I’m giving it a B-. 

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43 - Boon of the Wish-Giver - C+

As we have seen and will continue to see, adding Cycling to a card makes it way better.  This is especially true with late game or situational cards.  Boon of the Wish-Giver as just a 6-mana draw 4 wouldn’t be great -- it would mean the only thing the card can do is tap you out for a turn, and while drawing 4 is awesome, not adding to the board is sometimes not an option.  Basically this is a split card.  The 6-man sorcery, and a one-mana Instant that draws you a card.  Flexibility is important, and I can’t imagine not wanting one of these in most Blue decks as a result.  Still, the clunkiness of the spell keeps me from wanting to take it super early -- though I could see myself being wrong about that depending on the speed of the format.  I’m giving it a C+. 

44 - Capture Sphere - C+

Well, we’ve seen this one before, and it will be about as good as it always is.  It can shut down most creatures entirely at Instant speed, and that’s nice.  Problem is that it doesn’t stop static or activated abilities in most cases, and sometimes that’s really bad news.  Also has the usual weaknesses of an Aura-based removal spell in that they aren’t all that hard to get rid of.  This never really feels like premium removal to me, but it is solid and Blue decks will need it.  I’m giving it a C+

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47 - Dreamtail Heron - B-

I love herons in real life, and I’m glad this one seems pretty sweet in Limited.  A 5-mana ¾ Flyer, which this is on a base level, is usually a solid C in Limited.  It can serve as a finisher in decks that are really lacking one.  But this does more than that, of course, thanks to the Mutate mechanic.  If you play it first, it is a ¾ Flyer that might draw you a card later if you mutate on it.  If you play it second, you can use it to give a beefier creature Flying and draw a card, or make a smaller creature into a ¾ flyer that draws you a card.  That drawn card really helps avoid the 2-for-1 that you are potentially going to be dealing with here.  I think this is an excellent Common for any Blue deck, and in the lower range of first pickable.  I’m giving it a b-.

48 - Evasion Protocol - ???

Well, this is a fun Cycling payoff that is very reminiscent of Astral Slide.  Obviously it isn’t quite as good -- Slide could target creatures on either side of the board, and it exiled them until end of turn.  But yeah, this is sort of a fixed Astral Slide.  So, what’s the best way to use this?  Well, the ideal thing is to blink your creatures with ETB abilities.  But you can also use it in several other scenarios -- to help a creature dodge removal, to set up blocks that you can then exile your creature out of before it dies, or to help an attacking creature escape an ugly block.  But yeah, I don’t imagine triggering this will be a huge problem -- but having actual things worth targeting is the key to how good this will be.  I’m going to withhold judgment on this one until we have more information about the set. 

49 - Essence Scatter - C

If you know me, you know I’m not usually a huge fan of Counterspells.  However, I always think Essence Scatter is solid.  Two mana counterspells offset the risks of your opponent playing around it, and even though it can only counter creatures, that’s going to be just fine in this set.  Most Limited decks have 15 creatures or more in them, and the average might even be a little bit higher in this set.  This is a solid C. 

56 - Keep Safe - F

This is a little too situational to be worth it most of the time in Limited.  There will be times where it feels incredilbe -- you counter the spell that targets one of your creatures and draw a card -- that’s a 2-for-1!  But unfortunately, that actually lining up isn’t ultra likely.  Your opponent has to play the removal at the exact opportune time -- when you both have mana up and you have this in your hand, and most decks run 3 or 4 removal spells.  That means a lot of the time, this will just be a dead card.  I could see siding this in against someone who has all the removal ever I guess, but most of the time I don’t think I want to play this.  It is just too narrow.  I’m giving it an F. 

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58 - Mythos of Illuna

59 - Neutralize - C+

If you know me, you know I am not usually a fan of three-mana counterspells. I usually give cancel a D or D+.  Counterspells have some very real downside over a lot of removal, in that you have to be able to cast it whenever what you want to remove is cast.  That’s not the case for other removal -- this makes counter-magic situational, and if it is hard to create that situation -- and leaving up three mana isn’t always possible -- that makes the counter magic not so good.  However! This is a good illustration of how Cycling can really change a card.  By adding Cycling, you end up with a card that is much less situational -- in fact, you can pretty much always do something with it, even if that thing is just Cycling it.  All of that makes this a nice counterspell.  I’m giving it a C+.

60 - “De una mente” - C+

I am usually interested in running one Divination in most Limited formats, and this is a strictly better one since its cost can be reduced.  If you are consistently casting this for one, it will be absolutely silly -- but the requirement it asks for, while doable, isn’t the kind of thing that will just always be the case.  Still, having Divination as a fail case makes me like this card a fair bit -- I don’t think you’ll really ever cut the first copy in Blue decks.  I’m giving it a C+.

61 - Ominous Seas - D // C+

Well, this is an interesting build around.  So, if yoru deck has 0 other ways to draw extra cards, this is a straight F.  Paying two mana and waiting 8 turns to get an 8/8 just won’t be worth it most of the time, you’d rather just play a Grizzly Bear.  HOWEVER, ending up with a deck that has 0 ways to draw extra cards is highly unlikely in this format.  Keep in mind, this not only counts the usual Blue card draw spells, but it also counts Cycling.  The question is, how much extra card draw do you need for this to be worth running?  My guess is at least 5 ways to draw an extra cards, and I think it is entirely possible to really get up to 10 if you’re going for it.  So yeah, I want to say this will probably be like a D in your typical deck, but a solid payoff for decks that can draw cards consistently -- in those decks it will be two mana for an 8/8 about 5 turns later, and that seems sweet -- but honeslty, it still isn’t completely incredible.  I think this has a ceiling as a C+.

62 - Phase Dolphin - C-

We have seen similar cards before -- like those who grant Flying.  But, normally, the creature who grants the evasive ability has it on its own -- not really the case here.  This will probably perform similarly to Mistford River Turtle -- which is to say, it is probably mostly underwhelming.  Sure, if your opponent has a board where getting an unblockable creature through once is a big deal, that will feel pretty good -- but a lot of the time you’ll only get a single swing out of this.  A ¼ isn’t EASY to kill per se, but it isn’t exactly hard either. With all that in mind, though -- this is another good example of this format making one think differently because of Mutate.  This ability on a more imposing creature is pretty intriguing, and I think the fact that that’s a possibility means I have to at least consider this a solid playable.    I think this is a C.

63 - Pollywog Symbiote - C+

This seems pretty nice.  A two mana ⅓ that reduces the cost of cards with Mutate would probably be a nice payoff to have in Mutate-heavy decks.  It gets even better since the Symbiote lets you loot whenever it mutates, which is pretty great.  Now, I think the best Mutate payoffs are the ones that allow you to offset the risk of getting 2-for-1’d -- since if your combined Mutation creature gets killed, that’s what will be happening, and the Symbiote doesn’t quite do that -- but I think looting and reducing the cost of Mutate is good enough for this to be a pretty nice card for most Blue decks.  I’m giving him a c+

64 - Pouncing Shoreshark - B-

I like this a lot!  So, by giving a Mutate creature Flash, you open up some very interesting options.  For one thing, the mutate trigger here is excellent -- bouncing something at instant speed is huge, especially in this format with Mutate all over the place.  Although, it isn’t entirely clear as I’m writing these notes whether or not bouncing a mutate creature sends all the creatures back to the opponent’s hand or not -- even if it does, that is a pretty huge tempo advantage, even if you don’t get a 2-for-1 or something like that.  You can also Flash it in to make a creature suddenly larger so that it can win combat, in addition to bouncing something else.  Then, like all of these, you can potentially trigger the Mutate effect multiple times, and then things will be really silly!  I think this is first pickable sometimes.  I’m giving it a B-. 

65 - Recconnassance Mission - C // B

If you have ever played with Bident of Thassa, you don’t need me to tell you how good this can be.  Every creature that hits your opponent draws you a card, and that usually creates a snowball effect -- because you draw more cards, which means more creatures, which means more cards -- see where I’m going with this?  Now, this is certainly reliant on creatures having evasive abilities -- but this set is loaded up with that, with keyword tribal being a real theme here.  Creatures with Flying will be especially powerful with it.  However, that does mean this can be super situational.  There will be times when you draw it and you have no board state to speak of -- that’s going to feel bad -- EXCEPT -- that this has Cycling, so when you end up in that bad situation, you can still just pitch it to dig deeper.  I think this is definitely something of a build around, but some of that is mitigated by that Cycling.  I want to say this is goign to be a C in your usual Blue deck, but a B in a deck that really gets there on evasion. 

66 - Sea-Dasher Octopus - B-

This guy is my kind of card.  A three mana 2/2 with that ability and Flash isn’t anything all that exciting, it would be playable but just barely -- but this does so much more!  For only two mana you can add a powerful damage trigger to your creature at Instant speed.  The fact that the mutate is so low means that putting this on your one or two drop and drawing a card isn’t a crazy thing to do.  Obviously, because the ability is the best thing about the creature here, you will probably generally want to be mutating it on to the bottom.  I think between the surprise Flash can give you, and a very powerful ability, Sea-Dasher Octopus is a lower-range first pick -- I’m giving it a B-.

67 - Shark Typhoon - A-

Well, this is a very interesting design.  So, you have two options here.  One of these is that you can pay 6 mana for an Enchantment that probably won’t actually add to the board until your next turn -- and sometimes it won’t even add to the board then.  The other is that you can cycle this and pay like 6 mana -- which results in you getting a 4/4 flying Shark at instant speed while also drawing you a card.  So, the latter option here is the one that I think you choose most often, and the fact that that is an option at all is great, because sometimes you just won’t end up with enough noncreature spells to really abuse the Enchantment itself -- but the fail case you’re getting out of the deal is still quite powerful, and could easily result in 2-for-1s.  What this means is, you can first pick this and not have to get a bunch of noncreature spells for it to be great -- Cycling it will usually be pretty nice.  And in general, Cycling it is probably the right call the majority of the time, since it adds to the board right away and doesn’t ask for any additional help.  Meanwhile, if you do end up in a deck that abused the actual Enchantment part of the card, you’re also going to be really happy.  I think all of this comes together to make the Typhoon an easy first pick, and even in the lower range of bomb.  I’m giving it an A-.

68 - Snare Tactician - C

This has mediocre stats, but a solid Cycling trigger -- tapping down an opponent’s thing on their turn is usually the nicest thing to do with these effects, because it means you shut down both an attack and a block from one creature, which will feel pretty good when you are drawing a card anyway off of cycling!  This seems like a solid payoff for Cycling decks in this format, but I don’t think it is going to be one of the premier payoffs for it either.  I’m giving it a C. 

69 - Thieving Otter - C

Well, it isn’t quite Sea-Dasher Octopus, but I think I’m interested in this.  So, a 3-mana 2/2 that draws you a card when it hits the opponent would probably normally just be a D+  in a regular format.  It has a great ability, but actually getting in to draw you that card is difficult pretty much all game.  But, this isn’t an ordinary format.  There are keyword counters all over the place, and of course there is mutate.  Playing this on turn 3, and then mutating something on to it later that has more size and/or abilities is going to feel pretty good.  You still are dealing with a kind of ugly fail case on this little guy, but I think the upside is real enough that you end up playing this in most of your Blue decks, and it may even be better than that if you have enough Mutate going on.  One combo with a couple of Commons will be to play Otter turn 3, and then mutate the Heron onto it on turn 4 -- suddenly you have a ¾ flyer with this powerful ability -- and it is two commons! So, that’s going to be a play you see a significant chunk of the time.  I think that this is a solid C, but I could see it going higher. 

70 - Voracious Greatshark - B

This seems pretty great to me -- with the caveat that I always love creatures who can counter spells.  They set themselves up to be nice 2-for-1s, and it is hard to say no to that.  Nice thing here is, even if your opponent does not play something you can counter, you can still find a 2-for-1 by having it flash in and eat something smaller so that it survives.  Then you have a 5/4 who can easily trade with something else, while also threatening some pretty hard attacks.  And sure, it can’t counter everything -- but the vast majority of the spells in Limited decks are creatures, so it will be able to counter the majority of most decks, so I wouldn’t worry about that.  Especially because if your opponent plays around it you still have the fail-case of just Flashing it in.  Overall, I think you first pick this most of the time -- hard to say no to 2-for-1s!  I’m giving it a B. 

71 - Wingfold Pteron - C+

A 6-mana 3/6 with Hexproof, or a 6 mana 3/6 with Flying would be a playable card already, at least in slower decks.  But, the fact that this gives you flexibility is great.  I would be especially tempted to name Hexproof with this, so that I have an excellent place to put a bunch of other keyword counters and/or Auras.  Just going full Voltron on the Pteron with Mutate seems fun too.  I think this will be a nice finisher for Blue decks.  I’m giving it a C+. 

Black

73 - Bastion of Remembrance - C-

As of now, I just think this is fine.  3 mana for a 1/1, and an ability that drains a life when a creature dies just doesn’t seem like anything special to me.  Now, if this format ends up with a strong token/sacrifice theme than it looks like right now (and maybe BW will be all about Human tokens), I don’t think this is very good.  I’m giving it a C-.

74

75 - Blood Curdle - B

This is a great common.  4 mana for instant speed kill anything is usually at least a B-, and this permanently gives something lifelink.  Sure, sometimes that upside won’t mean much, but sometimes it will really matter -- and when it is stapled to an already premium removal spell, I’m pretty happy about it.  I’m giving this a solid B, it is going to be one of the best commons in the set. 

76

77 - Bushmeat Poacher - C+

This is a very nice activated ability.  Cashing in creatures for cards is always a nice thing to have in Limited, because it isn’t unusual for some of your early creatures to become kind of useless as the game wears on, and this gives you something really nice to do with them -- gaining life and drawing a card is great.  Any time those two are put together I’m pretty happy, because the life you gain makes it more likely you’ll be able to use that extra card you drew before you die.  You can also use it in response to removal, or on a creature who has been shut down by an Aura.  This can also be used to sacrifice creatures who are blocking and would die anyway.  A 4-mana 2/4 isn’t even the worst stats ever, and overall this seems solid in slower Black decks. It also combos well with Red Threaten effects, by the way.  I think there will be plenty of Black decks that don’t actually want this since it seems so grindy, but I think it is a nice Common.  I’m giving it a C+. 

78 - Call of the Death-Dweller - C+

This card has a super cool design, and is interesting enough that it definitely feels like it could have been a rare.  Look, if you can consistently have creatures in your graveyard for this, it is going to be amazing.  3 mana for two 3 mana creatures who each have a keyword ability counter is awesome. Now, this set doesn’t seem to be going super hard on a graveyard theme, but I think I’m ok with that.  I can imagine always wanting one of these in my Black decks in the format, and just planning on having it give you some serious late-game advantage.  Small creatures will end up in your graveyard -- not normally by turn 3, but by mid-game or so it isn’t a huge stretch to imagine this doing some serious work.  I am really tempted to go as high as B-  here, because I think this is the kind of card that can change the course of the game -- but it super situational, and I should probably reel myself in back down to a C+.

79 - Cavern Whisperer  - C

So, a 5-mana 4/4 with Menace is usually probably close to a solid C, maybe more like a C-.  It will make the cut for you sometimes for sure, and that’s the baseline on this mutate creature.  It also has a solid Mutate trigger, albeit one of the less exciting ones around, especially because its efficacy decreases as the game goes on.  But hey, it can also lend Menace to a creature it Mutates on to! Or you can use it as the creature on top to make a 4/4 menace out of oneo f your creatures’.  Still, costing 5 to mutate for an underwhelming trigger isn’t great, even if you’re upgrading a creature at the same time.  I think this is just solid.  I’m giving it a C. 

80 - Chittering Harvester - C

So, Edict effects may be extra good in a format with Mutate, since people will more frequently not be going wide as a result.  But Edict effects can really let you down by the later part of the game -- like turn 5 when you play this.  It can also have a nice effect -- but I mean, is making a creature into a 4/6 for 5 mana, while making your opponent sac something really that great?  I don’t think it is. Making your opponent lose their worst creature is pretty close to irrelevant on many boards.  Sure, if you stack Mutating it gets sillier, but I’m still not in love with this one.  It doesn’t seem that efficient, and the Mutate payoff isn’t amazing -- though again, probably better here than in most sets.  I’m going to start this at a C. 

81

82

83

84 - Dirge Bat - A

This seems pretty sweet to me.  I think in an ideal world, you hang on to this until you can pay the Mutate cost.  It is kind of like a 6-mana 3/3 Flying Ravenous Chupacabra -- but one that requires you to have a non-human creature in play.  I’m willing to jump through that hoop though, and it won’t be that hard.  In a pinch, you also have a 4-mana 3/3 flyer, which is a nice rate anyway.  I think this will be hard to pass up, since it is premium removal that comes with a sizable evasive body.  And I haven’t even mentioned how silly it will be to mutate multiple times!  I’m giving this an A.  It is a bomb. 

85

86 - Dusk Mentor - C+

This whole cycle is pretty nice.  Granting keywords to creatures who don’t have them -- especially big creatures -- is going to feel good, and this whole cycle also has the ability to pump up creatures with that keyword, including the one the counter was put on.  That means these have an immediate impact ont he board in most cases, and they also have late game value in their mana sink ability.  They are generally all undersized for their cost, but they do enough in addition to that to all be something you are intereste din putting in your deck.  I’m giving this a C+.

87

88 - “Mass Extinction” - B-

I don’t know how I feel about this.  It is nice that you get to make the choice here -- because you can choose whatever is best for you.  Most of the time that will let you come out ahead, but board states where the impact is negligible won’t be that uncommon, and it isn’t like you will always have even permanents and your opponent will have odd ones -- in those cases it will be amazing! But it has a pretty random nature to it overall, in the sense that you can’t really determine what CMC creature son the board will have.  Still, I think in the end, the fact that you get to make the choice means you will come out ahead most of the time, but I think you also need to be prepared for it to disappoint you some of the time too.  I’m giving it a B-.

89 - Gloom Pangolin - D+

Pangolins sure are cute!  But this one isn’t anything special.  A ⅕ for 3 might be something you play in slower more controlling decks sometimes -- it can block pretty effectively, but I think most of the time you won’t REALLY want this, and you’ll play it when you’re desperate for creatures, and that’s about it.  That means it is a D+. 

90 - Grim Dancer - B

This is a great Uncommon.  We have seen plenty of 3-mana 3/3s with just one of these keyword abilities be good, getting a combination of two of them is great -- Menace and Deathtouch together are typically a Nightmare for opponent’s to deal with.  This thing will be getting in for lots of damage.  Menace and Lifelink are pretty nice too -- basically all the combinations are, though I think Menace + Deathtouch will be the best way to go more often than not.  This is going to be one of the best Uncommons in the set.  I’m giving it a B, you’ll first pick it frequently.

91 - Heartless Act - B+

This seems like a really good removal spell.  I get it, this set has lots of counters, so this won’t actually be able to kill everything -- but it will still be able to kill a majority of creatures for only two mana, and that’s a pretty good Doom Blade impression.  On top of that, even if you end up in a situation where all your opponent’s stuff has creatures, it comes with another option that lets you take away those counters.  Depending on the counters, that could sometimes act as a removal spell anyway, because if something attacks you and you take away some keyword abilities or +1/+1 counters, an advantageous block may emerge.  I do think most of the time you’r ehoping for a nice target to just straight up kill, but the fact that this has something else to fall back on in the worst-case scenario makes it pretty nice.  I think this is definitely premium removal, and first pickable even over most of the rares in this set.  I’m giving it a B+.

92

93 - Insatiable Hemophage - C

A 4-mana 3/3 death toucher is usually a C- or so -- being able to trade for anything and decent size is fine. And that’s one thing that is nice about most of the Mutate creatures, they all have a very reasonable fail-case.  The Hemophage can also drain the opponent every time you mutate, and in a format with the Mutate mechanic in general, being able to staple Deathtouch on to stuff will be nice sometimes.  The Mutate payoff here isn’t the most exciting -- the first time you do it won’t be a big deal, but if you can stack it, it seems pretty nice.  Overall, though, I think this is just a fine Black card.  I’m giving it a C. 

94

95

96

97 - Mythos of Nethroi - B+

So, 2B to destroy a creature at Instant speed is a very good card, and certainly premium removal.  This comes with the additional upside of, if you are going straight up Abzan, you can turn this into Vindicate, and destroy any permanent -- not just creatures!  That is some serious power.  Now, will it be super easy to go three-colors? Probably not.  But it will be doable.  Still, I’m going to give this a B+ -- what I think it deserves as an easier-to-cast Murder, with the caveat that it is probably a straight A in a deck that has no problem making this Vindicate. 

98

99

100

101 - Unbreakable Bond - C-

There is a lot of reanimating in this set! And this is another decent example of it.  We see 5 mana reanimates a lot, and they usually aren’t anything special.  The problem is that you need something in your graveyard that is worth spending 5 mana to reanimate, and not all decks will be able to do that.  However, in a world where you get some bombs or creatures with strong ETB abilities, it becomes a little more itneresting.  But my feeling is that most of the time, a Black deck won’t really want to be running this.  I’m giving it a C-.

102

103

104 - Void Beckoner - C+

So, an 8-mana 8/8 Deathtouch would not normally be something I want to play -- that’s because it is just so hard to get to 8 mana!  But by adding cycling to this, it becomes much more intriguing.  Cycling really lets you get away with playing stupid expensive cards, since if you can’t cast them, you can always turn them in for a card.  It is especially nice that this Beckoner also has a trigger with Cycling -- giving something Deathtouch at Instant speed and drawing card is pretty nice.  Even if your creature still dies in combat, you end up netting a card out of this, so that fact is offset, especially if you are trading a little guy who could previously only chump block for something scary on the opponent’s side of the table.  And yeah, the fact that you can play this huge creature in the ultra late game is nice too.  I think this is a nice card for Black decks, but not one you want to first pick.  I’m giving it a C+.

105 - 

106 - Zagoth Mamba - D // C+

This is most definitely a card that needs a build around.  The fail case of being a one mana 1/1 is pretty ugly, so you definitely need to be able to do some Mutating to make it worth while.  The good news is, there is plenty of Mutate in this set, and when you do get this trigger -- which will frequently let you pick off small creatures, or even larger ones if you do it after combat -- when you do get that trigger it will be pretty nice, and offset some of the risks of Mutating.  But still, I think your average Deck in this format will have a few cards with Mutate, but that won’t be enough most of the time for Mamba -- I think it is just a D in your typical Limited deck.  If you can get 6 or more Mutate creatures, then you’re ending up in a place where you actually want to play this.  I’m gving it a C+ in those situations.

Red

107

108

109 - Blitz of the Thunder-Raptor - D / B-

So, you probably need at least two instants and sorceries in your deck for this to feel like it is worth it, and once you get 3 or more you will really be in business.  The fact it exiles stuff isn’t going to be HUGE in this format, but it will matter sometimes.  So, the problem with a card liek this is usually that it is effectively blank, or almost blank for much of the early game, and that can be a pretty big problem!  I also think you really need to be a spell-heavy deck to really take advantage of it, because those decks will make it stop being a blank card more consistently and earlier in most cases.  I don’t think it is a foregone conclusion that Red decks will have the necessary 7+ Instants and Sorceries to make Blitz of the Thunder-Raptor make sense, and I think that your average deck that probably has 3-5 instants and sorceries will probably only be getting like a D out of this.  In a deck that really gets there on instants and sorceries, this will become a highly efficient removal spell relatively quickly, and in those cases it is probably going to be like a B-.

110 - Cathartic Reunion - D+

This is a reprint, and one that would be better in a set that has more of a graveyard theme.  In this set, it is mostly just a fine 23rd card, like Tormenting Voice effects often are.  It is a nice way to dig deeper into your deck, even if you do have some considerable set up costs in discarding two cards.  I think you will probably cut this more than you play it though.  I’m giving it a D+.

111 - Clash of Titans - B-

This kind of Fight effect is always interesting.  Note, you don’t have to have one of the creatures who is fighting be YOUR creature -- you can make two of your opponent’s creatures fight eachother.  That means you can get a 2-for-1 out of it in some ideal scenarios -- and even when you don’t quite get the ideal scenario, you can still use your big creature to kill their small creature.  It is an Instant though, so finding that ideal window isn’t exactly far-fetched.  We saw a similar card a few years ago -- Dissension in the Ranks -- and it ended up being a dud, but it was too narrow -- it could only make blocking creatures fight eachother.  This is obviously way better, and I think good enough that I’m willing to say I want to first pick this sometimes.  I’m giving it a B-. 

112 - Cloudpiercer - C

A 5-mana 5/4 with Reach is probably pretty close to a solid C.  The Mutate trigger might not be as exciting as most of them, but rummaging can be nice later on in games.  This is also nice because if you make it into the top creature of a Mutation, because it brings some beefy stats to the table -- so if you’re mutating this on to a creature with any sort of evasive ability, that will be pretty interesting.  Seems like a solid Red common to me!  I’m giving it a C. 

113 - Drannith Stinger - C

This is a two mana 2/2 with some nice Cycling upside.  In the early game, you can just play it to have a Bear that might do an extra damage or two with its Cycling trigger.  Then, in the late game, when a two mana 2/2 with this ability doesn’t seem especially useful, you can cycle it away to try to find what you really need.  That makes for a solid Red common.  I’m giving this a C. 

114 - Everquill Phoenix - A-

A 4-mana 4/4 with Flying on its own is usually a B.  That’s your fail case here, really.  The upside is that you can mutate it and make sure you can get your Phoenix back most of the time, in addition to changing a creature on the board into into a 4/4 flyer.  Yeah, this is yet another bomb -- an A-.

115

116 - Fire Prophecy - B

Well, this is nice removal.  Two mana for three damage to a creature at instant speed is usually a B- or so, because it tends to be efficient enough to trade up pretty often.  But, adding this card selection ability -- which is something we havent’ seen Red do in a while -- is pretty interesting.  It will play much like rummaging would, except that you don’t get the card in the graveyard, so sometimes it will be weaker that rummage, but most of the time you wouldn’t know the difference.  This is definitely premium removal -- kills something and then helps you find more gas, and I always like that.  I’m giving it a B. 

117 - Flame Spill - B

Another nice Red removal spell -- 3 mana for 4 damage at Instant speed is usually good enough for a B- at the very least, and the additional value this gives you is nice, as you can use it to do some damage to your opponent too.  And sometimes, killing their X/1 and doing 3 to them will just be game over.  Don’t get me wrong, most of the time you should kill something bigger, but if the spillover damage here is going to be lethal for your opponent well -- obviously, yo ushould do that.  This is another premium Red removal spell, and another B.

118 - Footfall Crater - C-

This is pretty interesting.  So, how good is giving something haste or trample every turn?  My instinct is that it is probably good enough to be worth a card, assuming your deck has some nice big boys, especially.  Turning your creatures into Charging Monstrosaurs is definitely intriguing!  I think some people will see this and think about how they can give a creature Haste and Trample every turn, even their two-drop! But, it won’t really work that way, since the land has to tap to use the ability.  And that is a real downside, it means that the Crater won’t be doing much in the early going of most games, and I don’t think you can really count on it always doing something late either.  But, of course, this has Cycling -- and in situtations where casting it doesn’t seem to do much, you can always pitch it. I think that ramp decks and aggro decks will be somewhat interested in this -- but without Cycling, I think this would not be especially good. With it well -- I still don’t think it is good, but I do think it is in the lower range of being something you will play without feeling too bad.  I’m giving it a C-.

119 - Forbidden Friendship - C

This is a reasonable deal for two bodies, and will help decks that want to go wide. It is a mostly better Krenko’s Command, since the dinosaur gets to have Haste, and that card is always just fine.  This is a solid card, but not a whole lot more than that.  I’m giving it a C.

120

121 - Frillscale Mentor - C+

This whole cycle is solid -- giving a ncie keyword like Menace to something, and then being able to pump that creature in the late game when you have the mana to do it -- which becomes even sillier when you have more Menace creatures -- is pretty great.  The 3/2 body here is perfectly fine too.  This is a C+

122 - Go for Blood - C

So, a two mana Fight spell with no other effect is not exactly exciting.  Even when we have seen Prey Upon, a one mana Fight effect we have seen in Green from time to time, it hasn’t been very impressive.  The best Fight spells give some sort of boost, so that more of the creature sin your deck are capable of fighting and surviving doing it.  This doesn’t do that, so you have to count on having creatures with good stats in play in most cases.  Then of course it comes with the very real risk of a 2-for-1 if your opponent can respond to it.  Adding Cycling to the mix is nice -- it means that in the situations where you have no good ways to Fight with it you can just pitch it, and that helps.  But this is still nowhere close to being premium removal or something you want to grab early.  I’m giving it a C.  There is a caveat here -- this set IS filled with big boys, and if there are enough of those maybe this gets better, but yeah, let’s start at a C. 

123

124

125 - Lukka, Coppercoat Outcast - A-

Lukka seems pretty good to me.  His +1 grants you card advantage, and in a way also help you find ways to protect him.  Granted, the turn you play him, you most likely won’t be able to cast one of the cards you exiled that turn, since he costs 5 mana.  But, the potentialy card advantage he can grant you, even in a typical Limited deck with 15 or so creatures, is pretty awesome, and can definitely take over games.  His -2 is nice too, and theoretically you could use it when he comes down in an effort to find a bigger creature who can do a better job of keeping him alive.  His -7 isn’t super exciting or interesting, but it definitely can end games.  Basicaly, if you play Lukka and get to untap, and then use his +1 a second time -- you are going to be in business.  He will have a moment of vulnerability the turn you play him most of the time, but after that it is going to be hard for your opponent to take him down.  I think he’s a bomb that you take with the first pick.  I’m giving him an A-.

126 - “Shock the Dragon” - C+

A 4-mana 3/3 that gains First Strike when it attacks is already a card that would be worth playing, probably a C at least -- but obviously this is way more than that.  First of all, it gains First Strike permanently once you attack with it, and second of all, after that first swing it starts gaining Double Strike.  This is an interesting card on its own, but it might also be interesting to use Mutate with -- if you put something bigger on top of it that will have double strike every time it attacks, it will feel pretty good.  If you put something under it to give it more evasive abilities, that feels good too.  This seems like a nice Uncommon for most Red decks.  However, it is worth noting there will be board states where you play this and it just can’t attack, and then you’re just looking at a Hill Giant, which won’t feel so great.  I think that very real downside keeps this from being something you ever want to first pick, but I think it might be close.  I’m giving it a C+.

127 - Mythos of Vadrok - B+

So, a 4-mana Sorcery that divides 5 damage is already something I am very much in on.  Sure, it can’t hit players, but I don’t care, that is an effect that isn’t too hard to get a 2-for-1 out of, and sometimes you can do even better than that!  Then, if you’re Jeskai, you get a nice additional effect -- one that will probably lead to you using the card differently.  Instead of killing stuff, you’ll probably just make it so 5 things can’t attack or block, since that is often just going to be lethal depending on the board state.  So, either mode of this card is really powerful, even if going the Jeskai route isn’t super easy or anything.  I think this is a B+, and an early pick for sure, and certainly premium removal. 

128

129

130

131

132 - Reptialian Mirroring - D- // C+

Obviously, this is a build around.  While cycling is certainly abundant in this set, just having like 5 cards with Cycling is probably not enough to be running this.  You need for it to become that 5/4 at least a couple of times to be worth the mana, and if you don’t have enough Cycling there is a real chance that you paid 3 mana for something that does nothing.  I am going to say it is like a D- in your typical deck.  Most decks probably have enough Cycling for it not to be a straight F, but its close.  As far as Cycling payoffs go, it does seem like a solid one, but you really have to get there on Cycling with this one because its entire value is tied to it.  It doesn’t do a thing without it.  I think it is a C+ in a deck that cycles enough. 

133 - Rooting Moloch - B-

This guy is sweet, and an interesting design to give Red a recursion-type effect. If you can consistently have this be a 5-mana 4/4 that draws you a card, you’re going to be pretty happy with it. Sure, you have to play that card before the end of your next turn or lose it, but that’s fine -- it is still very real card advantage that can give you a 2-for-1, and it is attached to a beefy creature.  It even has Cycling itself, in case you’d rather do that.  I think this is first pickabl ein some packs -- getting Cycle cards into your graveyard is almost a foregone conclusion in this set.  I’m giving it a B-.

134

135 - Sanctuary Smasher - B

This whole cycle is nice, but this might be the best card in it.  A 6-mana 6/4 First Strike is already a pretty nice creature in Limited -- it is hard for opponent’s to set up advantageous blocks on this, and even if you’re behind, First Strike allows this thing to block pretty effectiely too!  Then you add the Cycling ability -- which even if it did nothing else would be a nice thing to add to this creature, since you could get rid of it if you were desperate for a land drop and nowhere near the six mana -- but this Cycling ability actually does something, and it is something that can completely alter combat.  Giving First Strike to something at Instant speed is nice, especially when it is attached to a creature who can be a scary attacker in the late game.  So yeah, I think this is pretty awesome, and definitely worth a first pick.  I’m giving it a B. 

136 - Shredded Sails - C-/C+

I like the modality this has.  It has two very sideboardy effects -- you won’t always have an artifact of a creature with Flying to hit with it, but between both being on this card you have a decentish chance of your opponent having a few targets.  On top of that, it has Cycling -- so if you end up with some sweet Cycling payoffs, it is even more likely to be useful for your deck.  I think the three options this gives you is enough for you to feel finish about running one of these in your deck.  It is probably still ideal out of the sideboard in most decks -- but it is fine main deck.  I’m giving it a C- as a main deck card, and a C+ as a sideboard card. 

138 - Tentative Connection - C

Well, this is interesting.  Threaten effects often aren’t worth it in Limited, especially when they cost 4 mana.  This is because stealing one of their creatures is usually pretty situational -- doing it is usually only worth it if they die from it, so these tend to sit in your hand.  But, this won’t always cost 4, in fact sometimes it will only cost one Red! How good is one Red mana for threatening something?  Well, I think it would take this from a D+ to at least a C+.  Worth noting too that Menace combos quite well with Threaten effects in general, since taking away one blocker is even bigger than it usually is when you have Menace going.  And, in this format there are also some attractive sacrifice outlets, something that is always desirable in a situation where you temporarily steal a creature.  So, it won’t always only cost one Red, but I think this does enough that it gets to be a solid playable for most Red decks.  I’m giving it a C.  

139

140 - Weaponize the Monsters - D // B-

The name here is really weird, but the card like a pretty nice buildaround.  Repeatable Shock is always very powerful in Limited, but many decks won’t really have the necessary fodder to really abuse this, and as a result this is probably not better than a D in your typical deck.  Now, it does provide any aggro deck with some reach, and for that reason I don’t think it is a straight up F in a typical deck.  However, in a deck with lots of tokens, this is going to be a nightmare for your opponent, as it will allow you to get small blockers out of the way without giving up much, or help you do the last 6 or 8 damage to your opponent.  So, I think this is a very powerful build around -- one that pairs really well with the Threaten effect we saw earlier too!  I think this may have a ceieling as high as a B- in a deck that can really use it. 

141 - Yidaro, Wandering Monster - B+

This has a really fun design.  So, one thing that is kind of sad when you cycle away a big creature you can’t play early, is that sometimes you get to the late game and that creature sure would be nice to have in your deck!  Well, Yidaro fixes that for you.  You can cycle it away early to hit a land drop or whatever, and then you have a chance to draw him again later.  Sometimes you’ll just be want to cast him at that point since he haste, Trample, and a massive body -- but other times you still won’t have the mana, but you can cycle him again!  Cycling him the 4 times probably won’t come up again in Limited, but hey, it isn’t impossible.  So where does he fall?  Is he a straight bomb?  I’m inclined to say that he isn’t quite there, but he’s close enough.  I’m giving him a B+.

Green

143 - Almighty Brushwagg - C-

Alright, I think it is easy to overlook this guy, mostly because the card is sort of a joke on WotC’s part, in that it references an obscure creature type from the old days of Magic, and it has a name that sounds like it should be a silver-bordered card.  And in most formats, I thinkt his card would probably be a D, just because it asks for a huge mana investment to ever do anything significant.  But, in this format, Almight Brushwagg is actually kind of interesting -- this is becuase of the Mutate mechanic.  This will be a nice thing to mutate on to, beetween giving your mutate creature trample and this activated ability.  Now, don’t get me wrong -- this BRushwagg still really isn’t something special, and will be cut a decent chunk of the time -- but I think instead of a D, I’m willing to go to C- on this one. 

144 - Auspicious Starrix - B+

This is pretty silly for an Uncommon.  It definitely feels like it could have been a Rare as a result of how complex and powerful it is.  So, let’s break this down.  At worst, you have a 5-mana 6/6.  That’s probably a B- or close to it.  But this gives you SO much more!  If you pay its Mutate cost, or mutate something else on to it, it has a very powerful Mutate trigger that lets you put permanents on to the battlefield for free!  You can also make sure it Mutates that first time by paying the Mutate cost for it and putting it on one of your creatures.  The first time it Mutates, you get the top permanent from your library -- and sure, good chance it is a land, but a free land isn’t a bad thing.  You also have a reasonable chance of hitting something real, like a two drop or whatever.  Then, if you really stack the Mutate high here, things will get really silly.  The free permanents really offset the risk of going all in one mutate creature -- and this is really what the Starrix wants you to be doing.  Yeah, this thing is a powerhouse, and one of hte best uncommons in the set.  I’m giving it a B+.

145 - Barrier Breach - D // C+

Man, this thing would have been sily in Theros Beyond Death, right?  In this format?  It doesn’t look like it will anything special.  Your opponent will not have more than one enchantment in play very often, so most of the time this is an overly narrow Disenchant that costs an additional mana. It does have Cycling, and that helps offset the fact that this won’t have targets most of the time, and the fact that it isn’t all that efficient.  However, even with Cycling, I think this is more well suited to starting your sideboard in most cases.  I think this is a D as a card in your main 40, but a C+ out of the sideboard. 

146 - Bristling Boar - C

This is a reprint, and one that overperformed the last time we saw it.  Making it so the only way it dies in combat is if your opponent has one creature that can do 3 damage is surprisingly effective, and grants it an evasive ability -- albeit a weak one.  A 4-mana 4/3 is usually playable anyway, and the upside here is real.  This is a solid little Green common.  I’m gving it a C. 

147 - Devouring Bite - B-

This is nice removal for Green, and I think maybe it is in the lower range of premium.  It is a little bit situational -- you need a creature with big power in your hand to really get the full value out of it -- but if you’re in Green, then that isn’t exactly far-fetched, especially because there are several cards in the set that care about high power.  You will normally pay 3 mana to kill something that costs the same or more mana, and that’s fine.  And yeah, sometimes you’ll top deck this late and it will be absolutely useless, and that’s going to be a nightmare -- but I think the efficiency on this is still enough for me to give it a B-. 

148 - Colossification - F

If you know me, you know I have a hard time getting behind Auras that don’t give you some sort of value to offset the colossal risk of getting 2-for-1’d -- and this doesn’t do that.  Which is even worse because it costs 7 mana, so  you will take a huge tempo hit too.  Yes, the stats boost is cool and all, and putting this on something evasive might be worth doing.  But for now, I’m going to say, steer clear of this, it is a trap.  You can also use it to tap down an opponent’s creature if that does something for you -- but yeah,  I’m giving it an F.

149 - Essence Symbiont -  C+

This is a Grizzly Bears with some nice upside.  Making mutate creatures bigger and gaining you a bit of life is a very real bonus.  And, I think your average Green deck will probably have 3-5 cards with Mutate, so it will be triggering regularly in most decks in this format.  Something to keep in mind too, is that if you Mutate ON to this, it will start putting counters on the new Mutate creature, something that might be the ideal path to take sometimes.  I think between being a fine fail case and having some real impact on the game with its Mutate payoff, this is a nice Common for Green -- I’m giving it a C+.

150 - 

151 - Exuberant Wolfbear - B-

This seems pretty good to me, the fail case is a highly efficient 4-mana 4/4, and if you have a few Humans lying around, it is likely that he will be making one of your other creatures considerably larger too.  Between the efficient fail-case and nice upside, I think this is in the lower rnage of first pickable.  I’m giving it a B-.

152 - Fertilid - C+

This is a reprint, and it is a nice one. A three mana 2/2 isn’t especially good, but the fixing Fertilid provides for you is quite nice.  Green usually gets nice commons for Splashing or going three colors, and that’s what this is.  It has the ability to grab a couple of land over a few turns, and that is nice -- helps mitigate against mana screw, helps you find your colors, etc.,  It isn’t incredible certainly, but I think most Green decks will welcome the first copy.  I’m giving it a C+.

153

154 - Fully Grown - D+

I have a hard time liking 3-mana combat tricks in most situations.  It makes the risk of a blowout even more painful because of the extra mana you’re paying.  And sure, +3/+3 will frequently be enough to win combat, and it is nice that the creature permanently gets Trample, instead of just temporarily, but tricks are just so situational, that I really only like the idea of them at lower mana costs in most cases.  I don’t think I want to play this most of the time.  I’m giving it a D+.

155 - Gemrazer - B

A 4-mana 4/4 with Reach and Trample is an easy B.  Mutate Naturalize is nice too, as is being able to put this on to something to make it a 4/4 and give some extra keyword abilities.  I always like being able to run mainboard Artifact and Enchantment hate, and this makes that really easy.  I think he is first pickable a lot of the time, I’m giving him a B. 

156 - Glowstone Recluse - C+

A three-mana ⅔ with Reach is usually a C or C-, and obviously this comes with some additional upside.  You can use it to lend reach to a creature who really needs it, if you are mutating it and putting it underneath a big creature, but the more valuable option will usually be to Mutate with this on top, since it will be a ⅘ who also gains the abilities of whatever is underneath it.  All of that additional upside is enough that I think Glowstone Recluse will at least be a C+.

157

158

159 - Hornbash Mentor - B-

So, at its base level, this is a 3-mana 3/3, which is usually about a C -- but this will usually be more than that.  Giving one of your other creatures a trample counter is nice, and the mana sink ability here, that will at least be putting +1/+1 counters on the creature you put the trample counter on, is some nice additional upside that makes the Mentor pretty relevant all game long, especially if you have even more Trample in your deck.  I think this is good enough to take with a first pick in some weaker packs.  I’m giving it a B-.

160

161

162 - Kogla, the Titan Ape - A-

A 6-mana 7/6 that fights something when it comes into play is already an excellent card -- compare it to something like Pheres-Band Brawler we saw in the last set -- which was a 6-mana 4/4 that could fight something when it entered the battlefield.  That card was pretty good, and this has lots of upside beyond that -- nuking artifacts or enchantments definitely comes up sometimes, and bouncing a Human to make him indestructible will too.  Sure, those two things won’t always come up, but because the baseline is so good, I don’t really care.  Kogla does ask for triple Green, but that’s not the biggest ask by turn 6 in a two-color deck.  I think you first pick Kogla most of the time.  I’m giving him an A-.

163 -

164 - Migration Path - B-

I really like the places they chose to put Cycling in this set -- and this is a great example of that.  When you need to ramp or find mana of a specific color, this does the job really well.  In fact, if you have a couple of these, it even potentially enables you splashing a double colored card.  But one of the downsides of ramp spells like this, is that if you already have all the mana you need, casting it might not be the optimal thing to do.  Instead, you can just Cycle it away and try to find something else.  As I’ve been saying a lot -- this makes cards that have effects that have diminishing returns, or htat have narrow effects, a lot better than they would be otherwise.  I am going to go go pretty high here -- I’m going to give Migration Path a B-.  I think that this format looks to have lots of reasons to ramp, and ther eare enough payoffs for playing three colors that I am definitely interested in taking this with a first pick sometimes.  

165 - Migratory Greathorn - C+

This is another decent peace of fixing and ramp for Green.  Paying 4 mana to put this under something bigger, or on top of something smaller, while also searching up a land is a nice deal to me. It helps you splash while also giving you some Mutate synergy.  It isn’t amazing or anything, but it will be a solid role player for Green decks.  I’m giving it a C+

166 - Monstrous Steps - C-

As you’ve heard me say a lot this week -- I’m not normally a big fan of a card like this, but Cycling makes a real difference!  5 to give +7/+7 to something at Sorcery speed is not the greatest rate, and it begs for you to get blown out by removal.  And yeah, I get that it makes an opposing creature block it, and normally that creature will die and whatever got +7/+7 will not.  But, frequently your opponent’s best creature will be tapped, and unable to block anyway -- so not always being able to take that out when you spen 5 mana is kind of rough, especially with the risk of an ugly 2-for-1.  So, I think I would probably normally give this a D.  But when you add Cycling, you definitely get a real boost -- pitch it when it doesn’t do what you want it to do in the ideal situation -- which will be often -- and use it to do something when you can.  It still isn’t a great or even good card or anything, but it is something that you’ll play sometimes. I’m giving it a C-.

167 - Mosscoat Goriak - C

This is some nice stats for three mana, especially because with Vigilance, he will often be able to attack on boards where he also happens to be a good blocker, and Vigilance lets him do both.  The Goriak certainly isn’t special, but it is a solid Green common you feel fine about.  I’m giving it a C. 

168 - Mythos of Brokkos - B-

Four mana to get two permanents back from your graveyard is pretty nice on its own, probably at least a C+.  Then, you add the Sultai payoff into the mix, which lets you tutor up any card in yoru deck, and you have something even better!  Like the other Mythos, it is nice that all of these have a reasonable floor and a nice ceiling.  I think this is a B-.

169

170

171

172

173 - Thwart the Enemy - C-

One-sided fogs are more intriguing than the symmetrical ones, but they are still pretty situational.  But the main problem with most Fogs is that you can’t get rid of any of your opponent’s stuff when you use them, so you just go down a card to delay the inevitable, which is not ideal.   Here you can actually do stuff to take away opposing creatures. With a one-sided effect like this you could set up a  multi-block on an opponent’s huge creature and then use this to take that creature down, while saving yours.  You can slo just set up all kinds of trades and do the same thing, and you can even do it aggressively if you want to.  But still, those are kind of hte ideal scenarios.  There will also frequently be times where it does very little.  I still don’t think I’m on board with running this in most cases -- I give an F to most Fogs -- but I think that this one is good enough that it is in the lower range of decent playable -- I’m giving it a C-.

174- Titanoth Rex - C

A 9 mana 11/11 trample would normally just be an F, because you will get that much mana so infrequently.  But, adding Cycling to a card makes it significantly better, because in a fail case you can cash it in for a card.  In this case, you also give a creature Trample permanently, and that’s a nice thing to do.  It won’t always be super impactful, but sometimes Trample at instant speed will ruin your opponent’s day.  Overall, I think this is solid filler.  I’m giving it a C. 

175 - Vivien, Monster’s Advocate - A

Well, the new Vivien is incredibly good. Her static ability means that a decent chunk of the time, you effectively have an additional card in your hand.  And it is even impossible to rip through more than one card if you have enough mana and creatures on top of your library.  Additionally, her +1 is very effective at protecting her, and that’s usually something you want with your Planeswalkers in Limited.  Getting a 3/3 is nice, especially because it can have Reach if you want it to.  Sometimes you play a walker and yeah, you can make a creature token -- but your opponent has flyers so your Walker isn’t staying around.  This Beast does a good job of locking things down even in the air.  Her -2 is also quite powerful, especially because it synergizes so well with her static abilities, which will make it more likely you can cast a creature on a given turn.  Vivien’s one weakness is her relatively low Loyalty, and the fact that she doesn’t exactly raise it quickly -- but that’s nitpicking, especially because she will frequently do a good job of protecting herself with the Beast token.  So yeah, this Vivien grants you card advantage with the static ability, and with the 3/3s, and with her -2 -- and that’s the kind of thing that can just take over the game, so she’s a bomb.  I’m giving her an A. 

176 - Wilt - C-

Naturalize with Cycling is nice.  If you play a lot of Bo1 on Arena, this set overall is going to be pretty nice, because there are plenty of cards with sideboard-type effects, but because they have Cycling you can play them in your mainboard without it being a disaster.  They still aren’t great by any stretch, but they are playable, and that’s a real upgrade.  I think Wilt is a C-, it can deal with only two very specific not-all-that-common card types, but because you can Cycle it when its useless, that’s ok. 

Multi-Color

177 - Back for More - C+

Well, this seems like fun!  There is so much you can do here.  Let’s start with the ideal case.  Because this is an Instant, you can do something nasty like bring back a big boy who blocks one of their creatures, and also have that creature fight one of their small creatures.  If your creature is big enough to take all that damage, you end up with an amazing deal.  So yeah, that won’t line up all the time -- but even if your creature dies from the damage, you still take down 2 things of your opponent’s.  And then, there’s also the case where all you can do is kill a single creature with the fight effect -- but that’s fine too.  So what’s the downside here?  Well, you have to have a creature in your graveyard that is worth fighting with, and while that looks easier to accomplish in this set than in most sets, it is not a foregone conclusion.  This thing looks like it will be really fun to play with, and is a nice signpost uncommon, but right now I don’t think it would be the kind of signpost to pull me into the color pair.  I’m giving it a C+.

178 - Boneyard Stingbeast - B

Yet another Mutate payoff that helps you get around the potential for a 2-for-1.  Like all the Mutate cards, you can kind of look at it as a split card -- it can be a 4-mana 4/4 if that’s what you need -- which is usually a good rate in Limited anyway -- or it make a creature into a 4/4 that gets you a card from the ‘yard.  You can also put it UNDER the creature to get the card in a situation where you have a creature bigger than 4/4, but that does seem less ideal mana-wise most of the time.  But yeah,  Getting any permanet back from your graveyard when this mutates is great.  It also has Hybrid mana, so you don’t have to be locked into BG to play it.  I think this is a nice first pick.  I’m giving it a B.

179 - Brokkos, Apex of Forever - A-

This guy doesn’t stay dead, and I always like that, especially in Limited where that type of resilience is crazy.  And sure, you have to have something for it to Mutate with, but that isnt’ a big ask.  Usually, it will lead to a heavily upgraded creature -- normally you’ll be putting Brokkos on top to get the 6/6 trample, and then you will of course have any abilities of the cards underneath it, which is pretty sweet.  The whole graveyard thing means that you will always be able to drasticaly upgrade a creature, even from your graveyard.  All the Apex creatures have hybrid mana in their cost too, which means it is easier to paly this than it might seem at first glance, as you don’t even necessarily have to splash anything, since two-color decks can pay for the Mutate cost. I think Brokkos might be the least impressive of the Apex cycle -- but that’s saying something, it is still a really good card, and a card whose refusal to stay dead still makes it a bomb.  I’m giving it an A-.

180 - Channeled Force - C

This is interesting, because it is sort of a split card.  You can use it just to rummage a bunch, even if you don’t have any targets for it, or you can use it to rummage and do some damage.  Obviously the latter is more useful most of the time, but being able to use this on an empty board does definitely matter.  Anyway, I feel like the most common case with this card will be paying 4, discarding a couple of lands, drawing 2 cards, and doing 2 to something. Card selection and some damage is nice, but this thing has some serious flaws.  Namely, that you basically never want to cast it early, and most of the time when you use it you’ll just be pitching extra lands.  Sure, it is nice that you CAN use it early to rip through your deck a bit, but I’m not sure that’s what I REALLY want to be doing.  This card is definitely weird enough that I could see myself being wrong -- maybe it turns out that rummaging and doing 2 to something is way better -- but for now, I thinkt his is just a C -- a solid card if you are in UR, but not something to pull you into it. 

181 - Chevill, Bane of Monsters - B

This set has some cool designs as we’ve seen all week -- and this is another one.  A two mana ⅓ with deathtouch, albeit kind of hard to cast since it is two colors, would be a passable card, but he does a lot more than that.  He really makes your opponent’s life a challenge, since you start bountying their creatures and they have to then think about whether or not it is worth attacking you with a bountied creature, since you gain such an advantage out of the deal.  And, because Chevill has deathtouch, even if you bounty your opponent’s best creature, you can probably take it down.  Sure, it might not be as much fun to just trade Chevill right away for their best creature, and draw a card and gain some life, but I think frequently that will be the correct play.  Turning the whole board into bounties and really torturing your opponent is probably more fun, but it won’t work out that way as often.  But yeah, making your opponent make those tough decisions will be fun.  Chevill also is fairly fragile, but the fact that he only costs two mana means it won’t kill you for him to die to a removal spell either.  And if your opponent’s best creature has like, Flying, or something it isn’t going to feel so good.  I think he is a good card, but I’m stopping short of a bomb.  I’m giving him a B.

182 - Death’s Oasis - C+

I am going to say upfront, that this is a hard one to judge because it is so weird.  So, it isn’t super easy to cast since it requires all the Abzan colors, but it does seem like it has the potential to really be a value engine.  It mills your library when creatures die, and then lets you put a creature from your graveyard into your hand too, assuming that creature has a lesser converted mana cost than the one that died. So the potential problem I see here, is setting that up in the early game to actually work out won’t be very easy.  Two and Thre mana creatures dying just isnt’ going to net you a card out of this most of the time.  However, in the later part of the game, when your graveyard has several creatures, and you are higher up on your curve -- that’s where this could get pretty interesting.  Getting a creature back when your 4 drop trades for theirs will feel amazing.  It also has an ability that lets you gain life equal to the highest CMC of creatures you control so yeah, this thing is basically a high CMC build around of sorts. But yeah, in the early game I suppose it still mills you and helps set things up later, but I can see this not doing a whole lot a little too often to be super psyched up about it.  I think I want to start it at a C+.

183 - Dire Tactics - B

Well, exiling a creature for two mana is pretty awesome, especially at Instant speed.  And sure, you might lose some life from it -- but if your deck ahs Humans in it -- and BW is one of the Humans color pairs -- you might not even have to deal with that downside!  This is premium removal for sure, and one of the best uncommons in the whole set.  I’m giving it a B. 

184 - Eerie Ultimatum - C+

This is super hard to cast, but if you can, you’re going to be in business, as potentially reanimating your whole graveyard for 7 mana is a super good deal.  But Ultimatums are super cool, and generally with the cycle of them in this set, if you can manage to cast them, they’re going to back-breaking.  Actually casting them is no small feat though -- between the high converted mana cost and the mana-intensive costs.  It will frequently just happen that you have one of these but you can’t actually swing playing   Getting this stuck in your hand won’t feel very good. I’m giving this a C+

184 - Frontland Felidar - B

Wow, this is real good, even on its own.  A 4-mana ⅗ with Vigilance would probably be at least a C+, and then this brings the always very powerful in Limited ability to tap down creatures. Being able ot attack with this AND use that ability is seriously nice.  Plus your other Vigilance creatures get that upgrade too, and it synergizes with them as well as it does the Felidar.  This is a nice card, not quite a bomb, but a very good first pick in most cases.  I’m giving it a B.

185 - Emergent Ultimatum - C+

Ultimatums are super cool, and generally with the cycle of them in this set, if you can manage to cast them, they’re going to back-breaking.  Actually casting them is no small feat though -- between the high converted mana cost and the mana-intensive costs.  It will frequently just happen that you have one of these but you can’t actually swing playing it.  That said, emergent Ultimatum costs 7 mana to give you two free creatures, and that’s certainly going to be worth it -- especially because they will probably be the second and third most useful or powerful creatures in your whole deck.  But I think all of these really have to have a grade that reflects just how hard that mana is to get together in a Limited format.  As a result, I think I would steer clear of first picking this one -- it might be strong, but the low chance of you playing it in your deck, as well as the still relevant chance that even if you do play it, you won’t be able to cast it, holds it down to a C+.

186

187 -  General Kudro of Drannith - B-

A three mana 3/3 human lord that hates on graveyards is pretty decent -- this set doesn’t have a ton of Humans in it, but the ones that are are mostly concentrated into BW, so the lord ability will usually have some impact.  The fact he can help you take down big boys is nice too.  Keep in mind he can sacrifice himself with that ability, as that could definitely come up.  He isn’t super exciting, even with all the Humans around, but he seems like he will be in the lower range of first pickable.  Obviously, if you end up with a deck with like 15 humans he gets way better, but for now let’s say he is a B-.

188 - General’s Enforcer - C+

So, a two mana ⅔ who can make 1/1 tokens out of stuff in graveyards is a nice card, probably a C+.  The question is, how many Legendary humans will there be in this set?  There could be a cycle of them at Uncommon, but it could also be possible that they are only at rare or higher.  How good this guy is will definitely be influenced by the answer to that question, but for now, let’s go with that C+

189 - 

190 - Iluna, Apex of Wishes - A-

So, if you don’t mutate this, it is a 5-mana 6/6 with Flying and Trample -- that’s a pretty good deal, even if it does ask you for three different colors of mana.  However, the real power of this card will come from you either casting it for its Mutate cost, or Mutating other stuff with it, because then it will grab a nonland permanent from your deck and put it into play for free, which is pretty absurd. Mutate does have the danger of devastating you with spot removal when you stack creatures on top of eachother, but this Mutate trigger helps offset that.  Soemthing to note here too -- while you have to be three colors if you want to hardcast Iluna, you don’t necessarily have to be if your plan is Mutating -- because it has RG Hybrid mana as part of the Mutate cost, you can Mutate this in a UG or RG deck too -- and like I said, the real value will come from doing that an way.  Between impressive stats and the amazing Mutate trigger, it is hard to imagine Iluna not being incredible -- especially because it is playable in two color decks!  I think Iluna is a bomb that will take over the game with either her size, or the card advantage she helps you obtain by Mutating.  I’m giving her an A-. 

191 - Jeskai Ultimatum - C+

Like we’ve said about the other Ultimatums:  This is just silly when you cast it, and will more or less end the game ont he spot -- but casting it is far from guaranteed.  For that reason, I can’t see myself taking this super early, but boy, will it be fun to cast!

192

193 - Labyrinth Raptor - B-

This is a powerful little two-drop.  A two mana 2/2 Menace is already a solid playable, probably at least a C -- but this brings far more to the table!  Making your opponent sacrifice one of the creatures blocking it means that your opponent has to have a way to do lethal damage to the Raptor with just one of the blocking creatures.  In short, that makes it a lot harder to set up the necessary double-block -- especially because the Raptor can pump its power and the power of other Menace creatures, making it even more challenging for things to go the Labyrinth Raptor’s way.  Menace is also a keyword ability that appears frequently in this set, including on counters, so that Firebreathing ability will be relevant frequently.  I think this is a decent first pick, though not something to take over Premium removal.  I’m giving it a B-. 

194 - Lore Drakkis - C+

So, getting an instant or sorcery back from the yard is a pretty nice mutate trigger, but the actual creature here is nothing very impressive.  However, spending two Hybrid Red/Blue mana to get an instant or sorcery back from the graveyard isn’t the worst rate ever, and of course it means that the more you mutate in one stack, the more times you get to do it.  So yeah, the real draw here is the trigger, which means you will mutate this under stuff most of the time -- and in a fail case it is a 3-mana 2/2 that can give you some mutate value later on in the game.  UR is about spells as usual, so being able to get something back isn’t a stretch.  Also, keep in mind the flexibility of Hybrid mana means this can be played in a whole lot of decks!  I think this is a nice card for UR decks, and I’m giving it a C+.

195 - Narset of the Ancient Ways - C+

So, Narset does not do a great job of protecting herself.  She helps you ramp and gain life with that +1, which often won’t be the most exciting thing, but it isn’t bad either.  Although the limitation to non-creature spells is a bit of a bummer.  I think most of her value in Limited will come from her -2, which lets you Loot and then do damage to a creature or planeswalker.  Sure, you have to discard a non-land card to get that value, but it will usually be worth it.  Just think of it as you are using that card to cast a removal spell.  Her ultimate is actually not the most game-breaking one, as in Limited you usually won’t have a ton of non-creature spells.  So yeah, I think if you can play her and user her -2 twice, you’re probably doing a pretty good job.  Keeping her around longer would be nice too, I’m just saying she can do that -2 twice provided you can protect her for a single turn, and that seems fine.  In general, I don’t like the limitations on her +1 or her -6 a whole lot, as it is hard, even in a spell-heavy deck to always get value out of those things. I don’t actually think this Narset is a bomb or even first pickable most of the time -- her somewhat challenging mana cost doesn’t help either.  I think she is held to a C+.

196 - Necropanther - C+

So, this guy has a nice design.  Lots of times in the early game, you won’t be able to do anything with that Mutate ability, and in those cases just played it as a 3-mana 3/3 is probably wise, since it means if you Mutate on to it in the later game, you’ll still get that trigger.  And yeah, in the later game, when you can get something out of Mutating it, it will feel pretty good to do, becuase it also makes sure you don’t get 2-for-1’d.  This is another one with Hybrid mana too, so you can conceivably play it in a wide variety of color combinations.  For now, I don’t think I want to first pick Necropanther -- but I could see myself being off here -- but for now, I’m going to give it a C+

197 - Nethroi, Apex of Death - A

This guy has a huge mutate cost, but it is super powerful, so that’s probably wise.   Most of the time you mutate this you’ll get 2-3 permanents back from your graveyard, which is insane.  At that high of a mana cost, this is the only one of the cycle where I think you will sometimes want to put this on the bottom -- becuase you might have a creature who can take advantage of those two powerful keywords more effectively than a 5/5.  Playing this will be an unbelievable swing!  And of course, you can just play it as a 5-mana 5/5 with Deathtouch and Lifelink -- something that would probably be a B+ if that’s all it was.  But with everything else going on, I think I want to give this an A.

198 - Offspring’s Revenge - D

Well, this seems like fun, but I don’t think it will be particularly good.  There aren’t a whole lot of great targets in this set to make into 1/1s -- obviously, the ideal thing here is to have creatures with good ETB abilities and stuff like that, but it just doesn’t seem like you’ll have a deck with a good enough mix of those, combined with graveyard action most of the time.  I mean, getting a 1/1 token every turn from something in your graveyard is still relevant, but certainly not worth the mana here in most cases.  I’m giving this a D for now.

199 - Parcelbeast - B

This is an interesting card -- which I know I’ve said a lot this set, but whatever.  So, a 4-mana 2/4 with this ability would probably already be at least a B- I think.  The ability only asks for a single mana and it draws you a card every turn, more or less -- whether it is putting a land on the table or actually drawing you that card.  That’s just the kind of creature who can take a game over with the hand advantage it gives you.  Then, of course, you can also Mutate with it, and it has a very low Mutate cost.  Most of the time the 2/4 body won’t be all that desirable, but in the early game putting this on top for Mutate will probably be attractive.  Later on, just putting this under a big boy will be more ideal.  But  I think that a significant chunk of the time, yo’ure just wanting to go ahead and hardcast this thing.  4-mana for a 2/4 with this ability will frequently be better than paying 2 mana to give some other creature the ability and no additional bonuses.  Obviously there are Mutate payoffs, which would make that more attractive.  But yeah, even withou all the Mutate stuff, Parcelbeast is a good card, and I think the added flexibility makes it even better than that. I think this is a great uncommon, one that you shouldn’t hesitate to snatch up in many first pick scenarios.  I’m giving it a B. 

200 - Primal Empathy - B-

Well, this is an early candidate for my favorite card in the set!  Effects that draw you a card every turn are very powerful, it is the kind of card advantage that just becomes insurmountable for your opponent. And sure, you DO have to meet a requirement to draw that card, but even if you can’t draw a card, a +1/+1 counter every turn is no joke -- and obviously it also means that you will be able to get your creature big enough to start drawing cards with it eventually. Obviously UG is about getting big boys in play, and this is a great incentive for doing it.  I’m giving it a B-.

201 - Quartz Forest Crusher - A

This seems pretty incredible to me.  Even on its own, it is pretty likely that the Crusher will make a dinosaur when it attacks.  As a 5-mana 6/6 with Trample, it has the kind of size that is a real problem.  And, if you happen to have something with trample in play the turn you play it, it can actually impact the board right away when that creature attacks!  It has a somewhat challenging mana cost, but I think that’s worth the risk.  This thing will just snowball as more dinosaurs with Trample get made, and it will take over the game.  I’m giving this an A. 

202 - Regal Leosaur - C+

So the mutate trigger here doesn’t technically help you avoid a 2-for-1 most of the time, but it is powerful.  Pumping your whole team +2/+1 for only three mana is a pretty great deal, and if you’re going wide, it is usually going to end the game or get close to it.  And, when you haven’t gone wide enough to really take advantage of that effect -- you can always play this as a 2-mana 2/2 who has some Mutate upside for later in the game.  I think this will be pretty easy to include in all of your RW decks, though for now I don’t think I would say that it pulls me into that color pair all on its own. Also, keep in mind this is another one with Hybrid mana mutate cost.  I’m giving this a C+

203 - Rielle, the Everwise - B

Well, she seems pretty sweet.   Even if your deck doesn’t have a ton of spells, there’s a chance that Rielle could really shine in your deck, and that’s because of her second ability.  Keep in mind, when you Cycle, part of the cast of doing so is “Discard a card:”  that means that the first time you Cycle each turn with her, you end up drawing two cards.  So basically, she is both a spell and Cycling build around -- and the most powerful thing to do would be to be able to take advantage of both of those things, but that won’t always be super easy.  However, I do think ending up with a little bit of support for both things is enough too.  As a result, I think Rielle will just be quite good in most UR decks.  I think you can take her with a first pick pretty happily -- I’m giving her a B.  There is a caveat that, if your deck has both like 10 cards with Cycling and 10 Instants and sorceries, she is probably just a straight up bomb. 

204 - Ruinous Ultimatum - C+

Like the other ultimatums, this is hard to cast, but boy does it give you a nice payoff -- allowing you to blow up all of your opponent’s nonland permanents.  These all make you basically win the game when you cast them, but their prohibitive mana costs keep me from ever wanting to first pick them, so they are in kind of a weird place.  It just won’t be that unlikely to have one of these stuck in your hand the whole game even if you DO have decent fixing.  So yeah, I’m going with C+, with the caveat that -- if your mana is amazing, it will be much better than that.

205 - Savai Thundermane - B

Wow, talk about a Cycling payoff.  Sure, you have to have the mana to spend, but Cycling in this set usually costs 1-2 mana, so it isn’t a stretch to be able to pay the 2, and when you do, you get to start killing smaller stuff and gaining life, which is pretty awesome.  It is nice you get something out of the trigger even if you don’t actually kill their creature -- getting some life no matter what is not too bad.  On top of that, it is just a nice aggressive body as a 2-mana 3/2.  This is the kind of signpost that I think is powerful enough to go after early, and see if you can make it work.  I’m giving it a B.

206 - Skull Prophet - B

Well, between the Thundermane and the Prophet we have had two very impressive signpost uncommons back to back!  It may be a little fragile with only one toughness, but a creature who ramps and enables graveyard shenanigans?  That’s a lot of value for two mana.  And hey, while one toughness might be fragile, 3 power means it can hit pretty hard and trade fairly well, so I’ll take that.  I think this is a powerful enough signpost uncommon that I want to take a risk on it early.  I’m giving it a B.

207 - Skycat Sovereign - B

Well, two mana for a 1/1 flyer obviously isn’t so good, but this won’t usually be a 1/1 flyer for long, and sometimes it will never be one, assuming you have other flyers in play.  The thing that really makes this strong is the activated ability.  Every time you use it, you’re adding two additional flying power to the board, and that is definitely the kind of thing that can snowball on your opponent.  In the early game, sometimes the Sovereign will be underwhelming -- and easy to kill -- but this is the kind of card that will just end late-game board stalls.  I don’t think you have to give this a buildaround grade, since it can do it all on its own -- but obviously, it is going to be a bit better in a deck with flyers -- but if you’re in UW that’ sgoing to happen even if you aren’t really trying.  I think this is first pickable despite being multi-colored.  I’m giving it a B.

208 -  Flash Nightmare - C+ / B

Wow, talk about a silly powerful Flash payoff! Making every card with flash draw you a card and do 1 to your opponent is just a crazy good trigger.  A 3 -mana 3/2 with Flash is usually a C or so too, so you have a reasonable floor here.  You can Flash it in to eat smaller creatures or just to trade -- although that latter option doesn’t sound super attractive given this guy’s ability.  UB does have plenty of Flash too -- that’s why this guy is here really -- so I think you can expect this to be a C+ in your typical UB deck that has like 3 cards with Flash.  But it has a very high ceiling -- if you end up with 6 or 7 cards with Flash, this is going ot be one of the best cards in your deck, and an easy B.  I think that means you can first pick this even if it is multi-colored with a somewhat difficult casting cost, just because your fail case is so reasonable and the ceiling is so high. 

209 - Snapdax, Apex of the Hunt - A

Well, this is silly.  I mean, I think all of the Apexes are silly, but this is probably the best one for Limited.  A 4-mana ⅗ double strike as a fail case isn’t too bad -- even if it DOES ask for three colors of mana, which is by no means easy to pull off in most formats.  However, like all of them, he has an easier-to-cast Mutate thanks to Hybrid mana, and his Mutate trigger lets you do 4 to somethign an dgain 4 life, which certainly offsets the risk of mutating.  Plus, putting this on top of a Mutation, and holding on to the Double Strike while it gains additional abilities is pretty tempting.  I think this is a straight bomb. I’m giving him an A. 

210 - Song of Creation - B+

This is my kind of card -- I’m going to have a hard time not first picking this, even with a somewhat difficult mana cost.  Drawing extra cards is super powerful, and this thing will get silly in a hurry.  Sure, you won’t always want to play it right away since you have other stuff going on in your hand, but once it makes sense ot cast this, you will, and you will take over the game -- no question about it.  Drawing extra cards, playing extra lands, it all goes well together, because it makes it more likely you can cast the extra cards you are drawing in the first place!  The difficul tmana cost holds it back some, but I think this is pretty close to a bomb.  I’m giving it a B+, and it wouldn’t be super surprising to see it go even higher. 

211 - Sprite Dragon - B-

This seems like a pretty sweet buildaround for a spell deck, and obviously that is UR’s thing in this set, so getting a counter or two on this won’t be a challenge.  It is also made interesting by the fact that it is great to mutate on to.  The +1/+1 counters will stick around on the newly mutated creature, and the other abilities of Flying and Haste will become part of the creature too.  Most of the pwoer of this card is in its textbox, and that’s just going to go well with Mutate every single time.  So, good with Mutate and spells?  I think that might make this a signpost uncommon I want to first pick.  I’m giving it a B-.

212

213 - Trumpeting Gnarr - C+

This guy is nice, but seems kind of underwhelming compared to the rest of the cycle.  It doesn’t bring impressive stats to the table or a key word ability -- you usually want mutate creatures to have one or the other so it is good with other mutate stuff.  So most of the time, you’re going to pay 5 mana for a 3/3 beast.  So, mutating this the first time won’t feel very special.  Once you start stacking stuff up with it it might get more interesting, and certainly hedges against a 2-for-1, but still.  I’m just not that excited about this.  I’m giving it a C+

214 - Vadrok, Apex of THunder - A-

The Apex creatures are all pretty sweet, and Vadrok doesn’t disappoint there.  A fail case of a 3-mana 3/3 with Flying and First Strike is nice, even if it is a somewhat challenging mana cost. But, like all of the Apexes, Vadrok has hybrid mana in his Mutate cost, which means to play it, you don’t necessarily NEED to be playing all thre ecolors.  In this case, he works in RW or UR, too.  His mutate trigger is very powerful too, bringing back small creatures from the graveyard, which also offsets any issues you might have with getting 2-for-1’d by removal on your Mutate creature.  I think Vadrok is in the lower range of being a bomb -- I’m giving him an A-. 

215 - Jeskai Enchantment - F / B-

Four mana for an Enchantment that has no immediate impact on the board is always kind of painful.  Especially because this will continue to not have a big impact on the board unless your deck is loaded up with non-creature spells.  And, while that is certainly doable, that is a pretty big deckbuilding requirement.  This will just be a straight F in most Limited decks, you can’t play this in a limited deck that only has 3-5 non-creature spells, it won’t do enough.  You have to be going big on noncreature spells -- and there are other incentives to do that -- but I think this still needs a build around grade.  Let’s say it is an F in your typical deck in the format -- and a B- in a deck that really gets there.  I still don’t absolutely love it in a deck with lots of non-creature spells, because it is still expensive and not all that easy to cast for something that takes awhile to really impact the game. 

216

217 - Zenith Flare - D / B

Well, this Cycling Helix is a pretty awesome Cycling payoff. Doing damage to somethign and gaining life at the same time is always pretty nice.  Obviously enough, getting cards with Cycling into your graveyard isn’t that difficult to make happen, since when you Cycle them, they uh...go to the graveyard.  The question becomes how much Cycling do you need for this to be worth it?  Probably a decent amount.  I think if you have 2 cards in your graveyard this is somewhat passable, but you probably want three before you feel good, and anything above that is awesome.  I think your typical deck in this format will have 3-5 cards with Cycling in them, and I think in a deck like that the Flare is probably like a D.  Getting two in your graveyard is doable in those decks, but you shouldn’t count on more.  If you really get there on Cycling though -- I’m talking, like 10 cards with CYcling, Zenith Flare will be one of the best cards in your deck, consistently doing 4 or more -- keep in mind too, this can hit the opponent, and that means this can sometimes just end a game.   It is going to be one of your best cards in a deck that really gets there -- I’m giving it a B in that scenario.  I think this has a passable floor, and a very high ceiling, so taking it with a first pick might not be a bad idea. 

Hybrid

218 - Alert Heedbonder - C

This isn’t especially exciting.  A three mana 2/4 with Vigilance is fine, and so is gaining 1 life every end step -- which is what it is when it is alone.  The fact you gain more life the more Vigilance creatures you have is nice additional upside, but still not something amazing.  I think this is just decent, and not much else.  I’m giving it a C.

219 - Cunning Nightbonder - C+

So I would feel fine about playing a two mana 2/2 with Flash anyway -- can occasionally ambush a more expensive creature with 2 toughness, or a creature with less than two power, and it has fine stats.  It would probably be a C- if that’s all it did. But, reducing the cost of spells with Flash is nice too, especially because there seems to be a decent amount of it in this set.  Still, I don’t get the feeling that there is so much Flash in the set that this will always be amazing -- it willf requently just be the flash 2/2 -- but like I said, that’s a solid failcase.  I’m giving this a C.

220 - Fiend Artisan - B

This guy is interesting.  Obviously he isn’t so good in the early game, since you are unlikely to have creature sin your graveyard, but by the time you can get even one  in there, he is still not a bad play as a two mana 2/2, especially because in the late game he can help you tutor up the best creatures in your deck -- assuming you’re willing to lose a creature in the process.  And hey, the creature you lose will actually make the Artisan even bigger!  And in theory, the Artisan will just get bigger and bigger as the game goes on anyway.  Keep in mind the activated ability only works at Sorcery speed, too.   I think the whole package here, which might be difficult to make work sometimes, is still worth a first pick a lot of the time.  I’m giving this a b. 

221 - Gyruda, Doom of Depths - A-

Making this a Companion seems doable in Limited, though not something that will always work out.  But you still have access to 2 and 4 drops, so it isn’t like you’ll get run over or anything -- but still, I think most of the time you won’t be able to make this your Companion.   However, Gyruda makes up for all of that by having a very powerful ETB ability, that lets you reanimate an even-costed creature.  Note, by the way, that you don’t get to choose any card from the graveyards, which is often how effects like this work -- instead, you have to choose from among the 8 cards total that he mills -- the 4 from your opponent and the 4 of your own -- but, among those 8 cards, it seems pretty unlikely that you’re not going to see a creature to get out of the deal, and if you can hit a creature with this you’re going to be in business, even if it is just a 2/2 or something like that.  6 mana for a 6/6 and 2/2 is absolutely something you’re happy with -- and you will frequently get something even bigger!  I think Gyruda makes it into the lower bomb range, and if you can Companion him he probably goes even higher.  But for now, I’m giving him an A-. 

222 - Kaheera, the Orphanguard - B

This is a Companion requirement that is probably somewhat doable in this set, given the huge number of creatures with these types.  However, it won’t be super easy.  That said, even without the Companion requirement being fulfilled this is a very good card.  A 3 mana 3/2 with Vigilance is semi-passable, but the real value of this card comes from its Lord effect -- even if it is difficult to successfully build your deck with only creatures of that type, your deck is going to have enough creatures with those types that the orphanguard will be pumping and giving Vigilance to a good chunk of creatures in your deck, even if you don’t really try to take things with these creature types -- it will just happen naturally.  For that reason, I think that Kaheera is a B, and something you can first pick easily.  Don’t try super hard to make sure that you manage the Companion effect, but again -- I do think it is doable.  I

223 - “Owl Rider” - C+

On its own, this gives you a 3-mana 2/2 who is more expensive to kill than most creatures.  And, since this only costs 3 mana, it will be pretty difficult for your opponent to ever kill this and come out ahead mana wise.  Even something like Shock would cost three mana!  Of course, it also gives this effect to all of your other flyers, and that’s some nice additional upside.  This seems like it will be really nice in a deck full of flyers, but even on its own it is a solid card.  I’m giving this a C+. 

224 - Jegantha, the Wellspring - B-

This is a companion that could plausibly end up as a Companion in Limited.  Sometimes you jsut end up with a deck in Limited that meets these requirements.  And in general, trying to make this work  is probably somewhat worth it.  It may not be the most powerful card in this cycle for Limited -- its ability to add mana is nice, but not being usable for Generic costs makes it difficult to be a good source of mana for mana sinks and stuff like that -- so it may not be the most powerful, but if you can make it your companion, you are effectively giving yourself an 8-card opening hand, and that advantage is real.   And I mean, even if you can never use the mana here, you still have a 5-mana 5/5, which is usually good enough for a C or so on its own.  Because making this a Companion is a very real thing, I think it actually is enough to be first pickable in some weaker packs, especially because the fail case is passable.  I’m giving this a B-. 

225 - Keruga, the Macrosage - B

I think the Companion mechanic is pretty cool -- but I don’t think you normally want to be building around this one in Limited -- though it does depend on the speed of the format, and this one might be really slow with all the big monsters running around.  But generally, not running anything that costs less than 3 is dangerous, even if you do essentially get an 8th card in your opening hand in Keruga.  Still, Keruga has a powerful ETB trigger even if you take the Companion part out of the equation.  It isn’t a stretch to think that this will frequently be a 5-mana 5/4 that draws you a card.  Sure, sometimes it won’t -- but othertimes it will draw you 2-4 cards, or maybe even more.  The fact that this is a 5/4 makes the fail case not seem too bad, either.  But yeah, this will usually at least be a 2-for-1, and while I don’t quite think that’s bomb territory, you’ll first pick this a lot.  I’m giving it a B. 

226 -  Lurrus of the Dream-Den - B-

So, a 3-mana 3/2 with lifelink is usually a C, but this does a lot more.  Now, don’t expect to ever succeed in pulling off the Companion requirement here in Limited -- I wouldn’t advise making yoru deck only have one and two mana cards in it just for this, because you will end up getting overpowered.  However, this is fine even in the absence of Companion -- like all of these are.  Most decks will have enough one and two mana creatures in them that Lurrus helping you cast one or two of those from your graveyard is not far-fetched.  And, the fail case here is perfectly fine, so yeah -- I think I would feel ok spending an early pick on this in some of the weaker packs.  I’m giving it a B-.

227 - Lutri, the Spellchaser - B

Now THIS is a companion effect that will be pretty easy to make work in Limited.  Frequently, you don’t end up with any multiples in Limited decks anyway, and if you do have multiples, it isn’t that hard or damaging to your deck to cut everything down to one in most cases -- especially when the payoff is having this in a special zone from the start of the game.  A 3-mana 3/2 with Flash would normally be a C or so, but between that companion effect and the ETB trigger, you’re going to be getting a lot more than that out of it.  Sure, costing 3 means it won’t be very effective at copying spells in the super early game or anything, but casting a one or two mana removal spell, and then copying it with this isn’t far-fetched at all.  And sure, the downside is your opponent knows this Flash creature is coming if you have it as your Companion, but I’m ok with that.  I think this is a nice card that you will first pick frequently -- I’m gving it a B.

228 - Obosh, the Preypiercer - B-

Like the other  Companion cards, we have to look at this on its own, because actually pulling off the Companion requirement is challenging.  Here, you get a 5-mana ⅗ that is effectively a 5-mana 6/5, who also doubles the damage of your other odd permanents.  That means often times it will come down an alter the board right away, assuming you have some permanents that have odd mana costs already.  But yeah, the companion requirement is tricky here -- skipping two drops is not usually a good idea, and I don’t really think it is quite pwoerful enough to REALLY warrant going all in on that.  It is good, don’t get me wrong, but I think it is only in the lower-range of first pickable.  I’m giving it a B-. 

229 - Proud Wildbonder - C+

A 4-mana 4/3 with Trample is fine, and the fact that he can do 4 no matter how he gets block is a nice upgrade -- especially because he does it for all of your tramplers!  He obviously gets better the more Trample you have, and I like that if you have trample on the table already he has an immediate impact the turn you cast him.  I think he gets about a C+. 

230 -  Sonorous Howlbonder - C+

So on its own, this has Super Menace -- and that’s a pretty good evasive ability.  Three creatures being able to block this just won’t be the case a decent chunk of the time, and iti s nice that it also grants the same awesome bonus to other Menace creatures.  Like all of these, it will definitely be making some creatures with that keyword ability better, but it won’t be something that happens all the time or anything.  I think this is a nice card in most Black, Red, and Black/Red decks.  I’m giving at a C+

231 - Umori, the Collector - B

This is another Companion effect that is a bit tricky to pull off in Limited.  If you can pull it off, it will be that your deck is all creatures. I think we have to consider this without thinking about Companion.   So, if we look at this as a 4-mana ⅘ that reduces the cost of all your creatures, where would we put that?  I think we would give that a solid B.  Good stats, saves you some mana, certainly a good card, even if you never companion with it.  I’m giving it a B. 

232

233 - Zirda, the Dawnwaker - B

Our last companion gets a pretty similar grades to the others.   This one will be near impossible to make a Companion in your Limited deck -- though not completely impossible, but it is certainly unlikely enough that we need to not consider the Companion thing here.  Instead, what you have here is a 3-mana 3/3 that reduces the cost of activated abilities, and has a nice activated ability that makes something unable to block.  Keep in mind, by the way, that the activated ability part does apply to Cycling.   That all makes this a very good card, even without Companion, and one that you can first pick pretty confidently.  I’m giving it a B. 

Artifacts/Colorless:

1

2 - Farfinder - C+

We have seen cards like Skittering Surveyor and Pilgrim’s Eye be really nice sources of fixing in the past.  And this set is a wedge set, where splashing a third color and even straight up playing a third color will happen a decent chunk of the time.  On top of that, this is not the worst thing to Mutate on top of, since it at least gives your new monster the Vigilance keyword.  So yeah, I don’t think you generally want to take this with a first pick ever, but it is the kind of card that will become increasingly valuable the more demanding your mana needs are.  I think it is a C+.

3 - Mysterious Egg - D

I don’t think I like this a whole lot.  The flavor is cool and all, but I feel like you’d rather have a more exciting ability for Mutate, and a more exciting fail case than one mana 0/2.  I don’t think I want to play this in most decks.  I’m giving it a D. 

234 - Crystalline Giant - B

This seems pretty good.  A 3 mana 3/3 that gains a random keyword ability or +1/+1 counter each combat is pretty nice.  I also like that it makes sure it doesn’t ever give you double of the key word counters, which would obviously be useless.  So, if left out long enough the Giant becomes a 4/4 with all those keyword abilities -- that isn’t ultra likely or anything, but just getting more and more powerful every turn seems nice to me!  And it is colorless, so you know you’ll get to play this 100% of the time.  I’m starting this at B+ -- not quite a bomb, since so much is left to chance.

Crystals - C

These are all pretty nice.  Normally, 3-mana mana rocks that produce 3 colors are a bit suspect, they’re just kind of slow and don’t add to the board in any real way.  They are usually something like a D+ -- you run them if you need the fixing, but hope you don’t have to.  HOWEVER, if you add Cycling to pretty much anything, you make it substantially better.  Sometimes you really don’t need one of these crystals, you need to hit a land drop or find something more impactful -- and Cycling them away gives you a way to do that.  Of course, this set also has Cycling payoffs, and this fits nicely there too.  I think these are all going to be solid pieces of fixing.  I’m giving them a C.

237 - The Ozolith - D // C+

Well, this is a cool design.  I think it is probably something that won’t work in every deck though.  I know counters are all over the place in this set, but you have to have the Ozolith actually doing something a significant chunk of the time to make it worth a card, and doing that is not -- I don’t think -- a foregone conclusion.  So basically, your deck needs to be loaded up with counters, and if it is, being able to sort of customize your creatures with those counters is a pretty cool effect, and could certainly help you win some games.  I think I want to say that this is a D in your typical deck in this format, and probably a C+ or so in a deck that can really take advantage of it.