Phyrexia: All Will Be One Set Review Notes (Last Update: 1/24 @ 3:26 p.m. ET) (Patreon)

It is set review time again! I'll be updating these notes every day until the day before the set review.

White:

1 - Against All Odds - D // C

Individually, each of these effects is situational and not worth four mana, especially at Sorcery speed. Blinking a creature is only going to do something in a few situations: like if you have a creature with an ETB ability, or a creature shut down by an Aura. It can give you pseudo-vigilance too, but that really isn’t worth 4 mana. Obviously, reanimating something small only does something when you have a target. Both of these things are far from guaranteed!  However, you do have the option of getting both, and I think if you can do something meaningful with both parts, this seems like a fine card. This can be especially true with Enter the Battlefield abilities, because you can potentially get 2 of them going at the same time. The White/Blue deck likes blinking artifacts especially. It does have a fail case where you can use it when you can only make one mode do something, though that certainly isn’t optimal.  So, I think this seems alright, but there are probably only very few decks that are super interested in running this, so it probably needs a build around grade. Feels like a D in your typical deck in the format, and a C in a deck with enough ETB abilities.

2 - Annex Sentry - B

This is a great Uncommon. It takes down a cheap artifact or creature, and leaves behind a reasonable defensive body that can even help you poison your opponent. This is going to give you a big swing when you play it. I’m giving it a B.

3 - Apostle of Invasion - C

A 6-mana 4/4 flyer isn’t enough to cut it these days, and is a card that you end up not playing more often than you do – it is something like a D+. That much mana for something that inefficient is a real liability these days. You just expect more for six mana! Now, Adding Double Strike to the mix is definitely interesting, and it seems like a decent number of White decks will have accomplished that by the time the Apostle comes down. That probably makes this a C.

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5 - Bladed Ambassador - B-

Like other recent two mana 3/1s that can become indestructible, this is going to be a great two drop. Sure, if you don’t proliferate or something, it can only use the ability once – but the great thing about this type of ability is the threat of activation is often enough for people to decide not to block or attack into it, because they end up getting 2-for-1’d in a ton of situations. So, even with only one oil counter, this will be good. I’m giving this a B-.

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7 - Compleat Devotion - C

Two mana for +2/+2 is a mediocre boost, but the 2-for-1 upside you get when you use this on a Toxic creature is definitely real upside. There’s enough Toxic in White that I feel like this is a C.

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9 - Duelist of Deep Faith - C+

This is going to be a pain to block all game long, and that goes really well alongside Toxic. That makes this a pretty high quality Common. I’m giving it a C+.

10 - Elesh Norn, Mother of Machines - A-

A 5-mana 4/7 with Vigilance is already a card you’d play in most formats. It can attack and block well, and of course Vigilance makes it easy to do both.  So, the additional upside here is awesome! She doubles your ETB triggers and cancels your opponents, and these days there are lots of cards that have those types of effects. I think she does enough to get into the lower bomb range, especially because even if you don’t have a deck with a critical mass of ETB triggers, the addition of shutting down opposing triggers makes it more likely she has a real effect in addition to the statline. I’m giving her an A-.

11 - The Eternal Wanderer - A+

This is definitely a bomb. Her static ability alone does a pretty good job of protecting her, as taking down a walker with a single creature attacking at a time is quite the challenge, but her other abilities are also really good and make it challenging to ever take her down. Her +1 can be used to rebuy an ETB, but you can also use it to temporarily remove opposing creatures or artifacts, since they don’t return until your opponent’s next end step. Her 0 loyalty ability makes a formidable token that will do a great job of deterring them from even attacking with one creature, this ability can also be used when you are ahead to generate pressure! Her -4 is a little more situational, but it makes sure that if you’re behind, you’re going to be able to change that in a hurry – and she still holds on with 1 loyalty if you use it right away! Honestly this feels like one of the biggest Limited bombs we’ve ever seen. She’s just so powerful, builds a massive advantage, and is challenging to kill. I’m giving her an A+.

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15 - Incisor Glider - C+

This looks like a pretty nice common! A two mana ⅓ with Flying is sort of passable to begin with, and this has a really nice Corrupted Trigger, as buffing the whole board can really change combat. It also doesn’t hurt that cheap Flyers go really well with all the Equipment in the set. I’m giving this a C+. It will be interesting to see how a card like this ultimately shakes out – I think it will be fairly doable to turn on Corrupted in white, but if its even easier than I’m thinking, this will definitely move up.

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17 - Infested Fleshcutter - C

I don’t love the cost of casting and equipping this, but the fact it spits out a token is pretty nice. Of course, that token can’t block – but it does mean you have somewhere to stick this thing on the next turn. +2/+0 is enough to make a lot of creatures problematic too. I obviously think this is worse than all the For Mirrodin! Equipment, because with that you get the body right away – but this kind of does a similar thing in the end, since it adds a body to the board. With Equipment payoffs in the format and lots of nice creatures to put this on, this at least seems solid. I’m giving it a C.

18 - Jawbone Duelist - B-

I like this. A two mana 1/1 Double Strike always plays really well – it does a great job against other X/1s, and can trade for X/2s, while having all kinds of additional upside with Equipment, tricks, and other buffs. So, adding Toxic 1 to the mix is pretty sweet – especially because it means this will give the opponent two poison each time it goes unblocked. This will also hold all the Equipment in the set really well. I’m giving this a B-.

19 - Kemba, Kha Enduring - B+

There is a lot of good Equipment in this set, so Kemba is going to thrive. The free equip when it enters isn’t always going to matter, but when it does it will be pretty insane, especially because Kemba will get an additional +1/+1! And, if the ability to make EQuipment way better wasn’t enough for you, in the late game Kemba can generate tons of cat tokens. It is a little bit of a build around maybe, but this can do things that all White decks in the format will be interested in, even if Kemba isn’t doing all of those things in each of those decks. I’m giving this a B+.

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23 - Mondrak, Glory Dominus -B+

If you’re making tokens, this is going to make your day! Generating all those extra tokens is great, especially because as a baseline, you’ve got a 4-mana 4/4 here. If you have enough expendable tokens around, Mondrak can also become indestructible, which is a nice thing to have on a card that can function as a pretty impressive engine. Obviously, you’re going to need tokens to get this going – but that doesnt’ seem like a huge ask in the format. I’m giving it a B+.

24 - Norn’s Wellspring - C+

This seems like it can generate some pretty real value, especially because White is so good at making tokens in this set. Scrying 1 when a creature dies isn’t amazing, but drawing a card for every second creature that dies makes a difference, and with Proliferate, you can probably get it going even better. Your deck obviously needs a lot of creatures for this to do its thing, but it has some real upside. I’m giving it a C+

25 - Ossification - B

This is a neat take on this type of removal, one we haven’t really seen since Chained to the Rocks. Basically, this is going to be a two mana removal spell, and that’s certainly premium. The only downside about this getting attached to a land is that your opponent can rid themselves of it with land destruction or enchantment destruction, and that matters but I don’t think it is a huge concern, since land destruction is mostly awful in Limited. Its nice it hits planeswalkers too! We’ll be seeing more of those than usual since there are some at Rare. I’m giving it a B.

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27 - Phyrexian Exemplar - A-

It is really cool that there is a cycle of mythics that cost 4 mana of the same color that are designed after Phyrexian Obliterator. Like the other cards in this cycle, this is a super powerful reason to consider going mono-colored or close to it. It has amazing stats, and it is very hard to deal with. It does just die to straight up removal, but the fact that damage gets blanked and punished the opponent makes a huge difference. I think this is a bomb, with the caveat that you do have to be pretty darn close to monocolored to make it worth it. I’m giving it an A-.

28 - Planar Disruption - B

This really leaves Pacifism and Arrest in the dust, and is a great removal spell for White. Regular Pacifism effects often have the downside of not shutting down activated abilities, so you can’t always completely remove a card – but you can do that with Planar Disruption. You still have to worry about static effects, but those are much rarer. Its great you can slap it on Artifacts and Planeswalkers too. Yeah, this is premium. I’m giving it a B.

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31 - Resistance United - C-

This trick is a D-level card without the Equipment upside. Two mana for +2/+2 can definitely win you some combats, but it isn’t that efficient and doesn’t have that much additional upside, and you need tricks to be flexible and powerful to counteract the downside of a 2-for-1 risk, and +2/+2 for 2 doesn’t really get you there. The Equipment upside is nice  – and once you’re doing that, you can turn it in to a card that blanks removal too. Even in this set, with lots of Equipment, I think you’re going to cut this a decent chunk of the time. I’m giving it a C-.

32 - Sinew Dancer - C-

So, if you don’t get Corrupted going, this is a pretty bad card. While Master Decoy-type creatures are nice, we’ve seen in the past that asking for four mana for such an effect is just too much, and not an effective way to use your mana on most turns. Obviously, if you can get some poison on your opponent, it gets a lot better – as one mana a turn to tap something often just feels like removal.  There is some interesting synergy to be had here, as if you have three poison on your opponent, you probably have some Toxic creatures in play, in which case tapping down a blocker is going to be increasinglyh problematic for your opponent. That said, getting three poison on your opponent is significant set up, and the baseline card is pretty bad. I’m giving it a C-.

33 - Skrelv, Defector Mite - B-

This is pretty neat! If you can play him early, he can get a few poison on your opponent so your corrupted cards get better, and if you get him late, he can function as a really obnoxious way to protect your other creatures from removal or make them unblockable. This gives him some pretty relevance all game long, which is not something one often says about a one drop. I’m giving him a B-.

34 - Skrelv’s Hive - C+

Playing this on turn two seems pretty sweet, as you’re likely to overwhelm your opponent with Mites, and once they’ve been hit a few times, the fact they all gain lifelink is great – and really offsets the fact that they can’t block. The great thing is, even if you get this late, you can get some value by at least giving your board lifelink – assuming you have poisoned your opponent a bit. Still, it isn’t nearly as good in the mid to late game as it is early, because your 1/1 tokens aren’t likely to be much of a problem for your opponent once you reach those stages of the game. I’m giving this a C+.

35 - Swooping Lookout - C+

A one mana ½ with Flying and Vigilance would be a solid card in most formats. It is typically a card people can overrate in Limited, because a ½ Flyer is pretty irrelevant in most games by the middle or late game, but in a format with lots of incentives to play Equipment, this gets significantly more interesting. There will definitely be games where this comes down on turn one and does some damage, then gets suited up and runs away with the game. It probably isn’t great, but I don’t imagine you’ll ever cut the first of these from a White deck that is interested in being aggressive. I’m giving it a C+.

36 - Vanish Into Eternity - C

This has a pretty neat design. Six mana to exile a creature is pretty far from an ideal rate, even on an instant. It just isn’t easy for a spell that expensive to ever be premium, because you will usually overpay to kill a cheaper creature.  But  the fact that this can deal with other permanent types much more efficiently helps things even out. Basically this is going to be a more expensive Disenchant early, and late it can deal with anything.  It definitely isn’t premium, even with its modality, but I think the first copy will make the cut in a lot of White decks. I’m going to give this a C.

37 - Veil of Assimilation - C

This seems pretty solid. +1/+1 and Vigilance is often a pretty meaningful buff, and getting it over and over is pretty nice. This is obviously way, way worse than getting a full blown +1/+1 counter, but I think the buffs this will offer will be nice for any deck with lots of Artifacts. Worth remembering most tokens in the format are Artifacts! I’m giving this a C.

38 - White Sun’s Twilight - A-

If you don’t cast this with X as 5 or more, it will sometimes be pretty bad. The new creatures you make can’t block, so as far as your opponent is concerned on their turn – you didn’t really add to the board. Sure, those tokens have Toxic 1, which means they can represent more of a threat than your typical 1/1, I think I would pretty gladly trade Toxic 1 for the ability to block, especially on a card like this! Gaining the life does offset things a little bit, but there will certainly be times where this is pretty bad – like in the mid-game. However, if you can pay a full 7 mana for this, obviously it becomes insane thanks to the fact that you will always come out ahead after the dust clears. If it was only a 7-mana card with that effect, it would be pretty close to a bomb. Expensive, sure, but utterly gamebreaking. So, adding the additional upside of being able to cast this early when you need to is definitely enough for it to get there. I’m giving it an A-.

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41 - Atmosphere Surgeon - B

This looks pretty good. It is basically a convoluted version of a creature that can give flying to other creatures when you cast a noncreature spell. It can even give Flying to itself, and that’s pretty nice. Using those oil counters does mean it works better with proliferate. I think this is worth taking fairly highly. I’m giving it a B.

Blue:

42 - Blade of Shared Souls - B+

So when you first play this, you’re getting a three-mana 2/2 with Clone upside. That’s pretty nice, as three mana will often net you something worth even more! I do like that you can play it on an empty board if you have to, too, unlike a lot of clones. It then has the upside of sticking around and potentially letting you make your creatures better. You won’t always be able to generate a ton of value with that, but there will also be times where this duplicates an amazing creature! I think this is a B+.

43 - Blue Sun’s Twilight - A+

Mind control is an incredibly powerful effect, as taking an opposing creature and gaining it on your side of the board is effectively a 2-for-1. This comes with the additional absurd upside of making a token if you pay 5 or more for X. 7 mana to steal an opposing permanent and make a copy of it is insane, and an easy 3-for-1! The one downside here is it can be a little awkward early, but even stealing a two drop with this can be a play that flips the game wildly in your favor. This is an amazing bomb, I’m giving it an A+.

44 - Bring the Ending - C+

This starts out as a bad mana leak, and by the later stages of the game becomes a really efficient hard counter. I actually like that design, because this type of counterspell is usually good earlier in the game and horrible late. So, adding Corrupted to the mix means that this will actually be pretty good all game long, especially because I think Corrupted will be reasonably accessible in Blue. I’m giving this a C+.

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47 - Encroaching Mycosynth - F

So, this is basically a Mycosynth Lattice that doesn’t hit lands and only affects you. And…that doesn’t seem awful in Limited. Sure, I get it, there’s artifact payoffs in the set, but the impact this has on the board will be pretty meaningless about 99% of the time, and the times where it gives you an actual card worth of value will be even rarer. This is a card that was printed with other formats in mind for sure – its an F in Limited.

49 - Experiment Augury - C+

I think this will be better than it looks. Anticipate usually isn’t great in Limited, but tacking Proliferate on to is a pretty big deal. There are lots of counters in this set, and even payoffs for prolfierating specifically! On top of that, UR likes spells, and this kind of instant that replaces itself always gets a boost there. Basically, this will actually effect the board reasonably often thanks to the synergies in the set, while also giving you some solid card selection. I think you’re always going to play the first copy of this in your Blue decks. I’m giving it a C+.

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56 - Ichormoon Gauntlet - F

Pretty much every set has an unplayable Planeswalker buildaround, and that’s certainly what we have here! This format does have more planeswalkers than normal, but it isn’t like this is War of the Spark where there are 36 of them running around, including many at Uncommon. You will still have a very hard time having more than one Planeswalker, and even two probably isn’t enough to run this. This is an F.

57 - Jace, the Perfected Mind - B

This doesn’t quite feel like a bomb to me, but Jace does look like a pretty real win condition in control decks. His +1 makes it harder to take him down, his -2 will let you either load your own graveyard or try to mill out your opponent. I think most of the time you’ll actually choose the latter, especially because it synergizes better with his -X, which feels like the biggest threat. If you pay the full 4 mana for him, he can come down and immediately mill 15 cards, which can get pretty close to milling your opponent out, especially by the late game. If you play him early, he can build up his loyalty with +1 while protecting himself, before you fire off the -X. It really seems like this is one card that can singlehandedly mill the opponent out. The problem, though, is that he isn’t that great at protecting himself, especially if your opponent is even remotely ahead of you, so keeping his loyalty high will be tough. Stil, the upside of just coming down and milling 15 is pretty real in Limited. He may not always be able to stick around, but that ability on its own is enough for this card to be pretty powerful.  I’m giving him a B.

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61 - Mercurial Spelldancer - B+

A two mana 2/1 that is unblockable is already something I would sign up for, so the fact that this can get oil counters and convert them into copies of spells is great. You can play this in any Blue deck and feel pretty good about it, but if you are really getting there on noncreature spells, and especially instants and sorceries, this is going to be even better. I’m giving this a B+.

62 - Mesmerizing Dose - B-

This looks really good to me. Three mana to lock a creature down is usually a playable card. Sure, it doesn’t fully remove a creature, and that can be a liability sometimes – and there are lots of ways your opponent can get around this card – like by bouncing their creature. So, that card usually isn’t premium removal – it is more like a C+. Adding Proliferate is pretty serious, though! This format has lots of counters to proliferate with: +1/+1 counters, Poison counters, Oil Counters, even Loyalty counters! You’ll usually get a decent bit of value out of Proliferating, and I feel like it does just enough for this to be a B-.

63 - Mindsplice Apparatus - F

In Limited, cards that do nothing but give you a discount are almost never playable. Outcarding someone matters more than mana for the most part, and this makes you go down a card for a slow-building discount that only matters on two card types. Even with a spell deck, and oil counters, and proliferate in the format, this is probably just an F.

64 - Minor Misstep - F

This is a nice callback to Mental MIsstep, and probably has some legs in Modern – but in Limited this just doesn’t counter enough stuff. Its an F.

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66 - Quicksilver Fisher - C+

This has reasonable Flying stats and a solid ETB ability. Looting is always a nice effect to tack on to a reasonable creature. I’m giving this a C+.

67 - Reject Imperfection - C-

Cancel ends up being a dud more often than not. The double Blue is surprisingly difficult to get at the right time, and leaving up three mana to counter something can horribly backfire if your opponent can play around it. Cancel is usually a D+ – this has the Proliferate upside, which is enough for me to at least consider it in the early going in the format, so I’m giving it a C-. It is nice that it triggers when you counter something cheap, as countering something that costs less than three feels particularly bad with this kind of card, so at least you get a consolation prize.

68 - Serum Snare - C

This sort of bounce effect is usually solid card – not usually amazing because it is card disadvantage, but in a lot of decks the tempo is big – and when you can use it to trade 1-for-1 and get tempo it feels pretty absurd. You can do this if you cast it in response to a combat trick or something like that. The Proliferate upside is nice, as bouncing something expensive is usually the best thing to do to get the most tempo, but if you have enough counters around, or you feel the need to fire it off early, you get some upside. I’m giving this a C.

69 - Tamiyo’s Immobilizer - C+

This is trying to do an impression of Icy Manipulator – and its doing a pretty solid job. It isn’t colorless, which is bummer – but it doesn’t cost mana to tap things. You can eventually run out of oil counters, but there is enough Proliferate in this set – not to mention oil counter payoffs – that this certainly seems playable. It is going to feel pretty bad if the game reaches a point where you run out of counters, but tapping something down 4 times is often enough to get you there anyway. I’m giving this a C+.

70 - Tamiyo’s Logbook - D // B-

This reminds me a lot of Jodah’s Codex. It can give you some unbeatable card advantage, but there is some serious work you need to do to get there.  You’re going to have to get the cost way down on this significantly or it won’t be worth playing. While there are lots of artifacts in the set, I’m skeptical that just any Blue deck can turn this into a card worth playing, so it feels like this needs a buildaround grade. In a deck that can get this down to one or two mana consistently, this will be a B-. In your typical Blue deck, its probably a D.

71 - Tekuthal, Inquiry Dominus - B+

This has good stats, doubling Proliferate is great and the ability to become indestructible is fairly accessible. It does take enough work for this to be at its best that it falls a little short of being a bomb for me. I’m giving it a B+.

72 - Thrummingbird - B-

This was a nice card last time we saw it, and it certainly will be here. Multiplying poison and oil is going to be something Blue decks want to do. I’m giving this a B-.

73 - Transplant Theorist - C+

I’m already considering playing a 4-mana 2/4 that loots when it ETBs, so the additional artifact upside here is nice! The last ability doesn’t come up a ton, but sometimes if a game goes long, being able to put cards on the bottom of your library is a big deal. Not only can you outlast your opponent, but if you really run out of cards you can basically decide what you draw each turn! STill, about 99% of the card’s value comes from everything else about it, and not the graveyard ability. I’m giving it a C+.

74 - Trawler Drake - C+

A three mana 1/1 Flyer isn’t good, but there are enough ways to grow this – between casting spells and Proliferating, that it won’t be that hard to make this a good investment. The big downside is that it will die to pretty much everything the turn it comes down. I’m giving it a C+.

75 - Unctus, Grand Metatect - B+

I guess this is what a Phyrexianized grand architect looks like! And it looks like a pretty darn good card. Just looting when your blue creatures get tapped is a nice ability to have, but also buffing lots of artifact creatures and having the ability to turn creatures into blue artifact creatures makes all of that a lot better, because it lets you turn on those very bonuses! The one downside, I guess – is that the loot isn’t optional, so you might have to be a little careful sometimes, but that’s really splitting hairs. This is going to come down and make your whole board better with ease. I’m giving it a B+.

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78 - Watchful Blisterzoa - C

So, this is basically a 6-mana 4/4 Flyer that draws you a card when it dies, and that’s a 2-for-1..  Sometimes you’ll get more oil on it and draw more cards too. That’s a reasonable enough card, even if that stat-line has felt pretty bad lately. As much as I love 2-for-1s, paying this much mana for one that doesn’t leave behind any board presence at all – and dies to lots of cheap removal – is going to feel rough sometimes. If you need a 6-drop that can finish the game and have some upside, you could do worse than this – but you can probably do better too. I’m giving this a C.

Black:

79 - Ambulatory Edifice - C+

When you can kill something with the -1/-1 this will feel pretty good. When you can’t, it will feel pretty mediocre. Sometimes you’ll be able to weaken something in a way that is beneficial for you, but you definitely want to be killing stuff with it. This card is a bit strange to me, because we have seen versions of this card that always give -1/-1 without paying life, so it is a bit of a bummer that you have to do it here. Still, the 2-for-1 potential and reasonable baseline makes this a C+.

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81 - Anoint With Affliction - B

This is great. Even without Corrupted, this would be a very nice removal spell – so, the fact that this will be able to remove anything by the mid-to-late game in most Black decks is great. This is certainly premium removal you can spent a high pick on. I’m giving it a B.

82 - Archfiend of Dross - B+

A 4-mana 6/6 flyer can end the game in a hurry! And it better, because if this stays in play too long, it is going to force you to lose the game. That said, four oil counters is kind of a lot for a creature this big – especially because the Archfiend punishes your opponent for losing creatures in play too. Plus, Proliferate can keep you from losing. The downside is definitely real – but the upside is enough that this is something you’re always going to play, and something you’ll take very early. I’m giving it a B+.

83 - Bilious Skulldweller - C+

A one mana 1/1 with Deathtouch usually comes out as about a C – it can trade for anything, including trading up! Gets interesting with Fight effects and stuff to. So, adding Toxic 1 to this is a nice upgrade, as it makes it more of a problem as an attacker. I’m giving this a C+.

84 - Black Sun’s Twilight - A

So, if we take away the “X is 5 or more” part of this card, it would already be quite good. While it will never feel super efficient, the fact it scales all game long is great. That card would probably be at least a B-, and adding the additional late game upside is pretty massive, because killing an opposing creature and reanimating one of yours is a pretty incredible 2-for-1. I’m giving this an A.

85 - Blightbelly Rat - C+

This looks like a nice Common – and no, I’m not just saying that because I have pet rats. A two mana 2/2 is a passable place to start – so adding both Toxic and a nice death trigger to the mix probably makes this one of the best Black Commons. I’m giving this a C+.

86 - Bonepicker Skirge - B-

A three mana 2/2 Flyer isn’t quite as good as it used to be – but it is still decent enough, so adding some additional effects usually makes for a nice card, and that’s what we have here. If this always had deathtouch and lifelink it would be pretty close to a B+, but you do have to jump through some hoops here, and that’s probably enough fo a reason to drop this to a B-. Still a good card, though.

87 - Chittering Skitterling - C+

A three mana ¼ isn’t great, but this does end up with a pretty nice ability if you can get Corrupted going. Cashing in irrelevant artifacts or creatures for cards is always nice. It also has the potential to combine quite well with the format’s Threaten effect, since it sacrifices stuff for free! I’m giving this a C+

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90 - Drivnod, Carnage Dominus - B+

This is the first 8/3 in Magic history, so if you think that stat-line is strange, you’re not wrong! This triggering abilities more is really sweet, especially because this format has a decent number of them around. Like the other Domini, it can also become indestructible – in this case by using the graveyard. An 8/3 indestructible is an absolute beast for sure, as your opponent will basically be out of luck when it comes to blocking it effectively. But before you can make this indestructible it dies to several Common and Uncommon removal spells in the format that cost a lot less than 5 mana, and that’s pretty rough. Still, a very good card – I’m giving it a B+.

91 - Drown in Ichor - B

This is great removal. -4/-4 is enough to kill the majority of creatures, and this is cheap enough that you can trade up in a big way. If you get value out of Proliferate too it will feel truly absurd. I’m giving this a B.

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93 - Feed the Infection - C-

This is a cool design. Lately, Sorcery-speed card draw effects that make you lose life have felt pretty bad, since you spend a significant amount of mana, don’t add to the board, and actually help out your aggressive opponent. However, I do think making your opponent lose 3 as well is a significant upgrade. If that’s what this card always was, it would probably be a C+. You still wouldn’t really want more than one, but that first copy is pretty nice. That’s sort of the ceiling of the card – obviously in a deck that can’t do poison counter stuff consistently this gets a lot worse. Overall, that probably makes this a C-.

94 - Fleshless Gladiator - C+

This seems like a solid Common. You can play it early as a bear, and then in the mid to late game it can start coming back from your graveyard, which can net you a pretty real advantage. I’m giving this a C+.

95 - Geth, Thane of Contracts - C+

Giving your whole board -1/-1 isn’t normally something you want to be doing, even if you do get a three mana ¾ out of the deal. However, Geth does come with the powerful ability to repeatedly reanimate things from your graveyard, which balances things out a little bit. Obviously the things you reanimate will be a little worse, but if he’s left unchecked Geth will quickly populate your board. That said, he’s going to be really rough to play in the early game, and all game long there will be scenarios where playing him kills one or two of your creatures, and that will be particularly painful if your opponent can simply deal with Geth on their turn. I think the downside, coupled with the need to load your graveyard for him, probably means he’s just a C+.

96 -

97 - Karumonix, the Rat King - C+

We have a new Legendary Rat, which is pretty exciting for me – if you don’t know, my wife and I have a bunch of pet rodents, including rats! Sucks this guy got Phyrexianized though. There are a few Rats in the format, so the ETB does actually have a chance to draw you a card, but if it doesn’t –   you’re getting a 3-mana 3/3 with Toxic 1, which is a card you would always play anyway. I’m giving this a C+.

98 -

99 - Necrogen Communion - D

I don’t like this very much. It is rare that an Aura that brings a creature back when it dies is worth it, and I don’t think adding Toxic 2 is quite enough to make a difference. Both of these effects are only good if your creature is already quite good, and that’s never how you want to do Auras. I’m giving this a D.

100 -

101 - Nimraiser Paladin - C+

This will often grant you a 2-for-1, which is always nice, and the 5-mana 4/4 body it gives you isn’t completely terrible. Lots of ways to take advantage of Toxic too! Still feels a little to inefficient – and a little too specific about what it can return to your hand – to be great, but I think the first copy will usually make the cut. I’m giving it a C+.

102 -

103 - Pestilent Syphoner - C

This seems solid enough. It represents a real threat thanks to toxic, and is likely to contribute a few poison early. Some decks will just want to turn on their corrupted effects and not actually win with poison, and this will probably be at its best in that type of deck. I’m giving this a C.

104 - Phyrexian Arena - B+

This is a sweet reprint, and a great card! It doesn’t add to the board, which seems like it has been a liability in lots of sets lately, but the card advantage it grants you can really allow you to overwhelm your opponent. Losing life is a fine price to pay for something this powerful. I think in the old days of Limited it was definitely a bomb, but in this world where getting on board early has become increasingly important, it probably tops out at a B+, and if the format is really fast, it could slip down further.

105 - Phyrexian Obliterator - D // A-

This is definitely an incentive to be mono-black, as the Obliterator makes your opponent’s life incredibly difficult. Blocking it or attacking into it and coming out ahead is basically impossible, and your opponent has to have removal that doesn’t do damage to ever feel good about things, otherwise they’re going to be losing several permanents just to take out the Obliterator. Most Limited formats don’t have a ton of decks that would be able to consistently cast something for four mana of the same color, and this is basically an F in your typical deck because of it – but if you can make mono-black work, this will certainly feel like a bomb. I’m giving it an A- in a deck like that.

106 - Ravenous Necrotitan - C

I’m not in love with this. A 4-mana 6/6 that always makes you sacrifice a creature when it enters isn’t worth it except in decks with good sacrifice fodder. And while its nice that sometimes this will just be a straight up 4-mana 6/6 with no downside, it will probably be at the point in the game where it isn’t nearly as imposing. We’re still just talking about a card that’s biggest upside is that it is a big vanilla creature, and that isn’t exciting. I think its just a C.

107 - Scheming Aspirant - B-

Proliferate is already a good thing to be doing in this format, so the fact this also lets you drain your opponent for two when you do it is great. There’s enough proliferate in the format that I think this will be a good inclusion in most Black decks. I’m giving it a B-.

108 - Sheoldred’s Edict - C

Edict effects aren’t nearly as good in Limited as in constructed, mostly because most decks have multiples of things in play and can really minimize the downside. This one is an instant, and it gives you three options that should, in theory, allow you to maximize what it can do, but I’m still not overly impressed with this. It is better early, and pretty bad the longer the game goes on. I’m giving it a C.

109 -

110 - Stinghive Master - C+

This is a very nice common. A three mana 3/2 with Toxic 1 is already probably playable, so the fact it spits out a Mite when it dies is sweet. It is worth noting that the token’s inability to block does lower the value of the token – more than adding Toxic 1 makes up for. But this is just a good rate, is good sacrifice fodder, and it does really well in decks that care about poison. I’m giving it a C+.

111 -

112 - Vat Emergence - C+

We have seen many 5 mana reanimation spells be complete duds. There’s one at Uncommon in most sets! They tend to underwhelm because it is hard to consistently get something back that is actually worth that hefty investment.   However, there are two things going on here that that really change things. The first is Proliferate, which has synergy everywhere in the format. More importantly, though, is the fact that this lets you get something from any graveyard. That effectively doubles your chances of finding something to reanimate that is worth the mana, and that’s a big deal! I think that makes this a C+, and maybe it can go even higher. I kind of hope it does.

113 - Vat of Rebirth - D+

This seems like it takes a little bit too much work. If you play it early it will definitely build up counters and then reanimate something at some point, but if you get it in the mid to late game, it is likely to be a little too slow to actually do anything, and that’s a huge downside. I’m giving this a D+.

114 - Vraan, Executioner Thane - B-

This looks really good! It has a baseline as a two mana 2/2, which is a decent starting point, and its ability to drain 2 life for your first creature that dies every turn is legit. It is the kind of thing that makes a combat a real pain, and if you can combine it with sacrifice stuff it gets especially silly. I’m giving this a B-.

115 - Vraska, Betrayal’s Sting - A

This is another bomb planeswalker. She can draw you cards and remove creatures, and if you can do both of those you’re in really good shape. Her 0 is really a +1 because of Proliferate, and it will synergize really well with other counters in the set. Her -2 can act as some pretty nice removal, especially because it is so repeatable. There will be times where you give your opponent a treasure when they really needed it, but most of the time this will be great removal. Her ultimate is…kind of silly. If you have some Toxic on the board it can set up a win the turn you use it, otherwise you’re going to have to wait until you Proliferate. Still, her 0 and -2 is where she’s going to do the most work, and its great you can choose to play her on either 5 or 6. I’m giving her an A.

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Red:

118 - All Will Be One - D+ / B+

This is definitely a build around, as you’re going to really need a critical mass of counter nonsense to really take advantage of it. However, there is enough token stuff in the format that I think it is actually a fairly legit and powerful build around. While it won’t always do something when it enters the battlefield, there are a few cards – especially in Blue/Red – that gain oil counters when you cast a noncreature spell, so in that deck getting to ping something when you cast it is fairly legit. Oil counters, poison, proliferate are just everywhere, so I see this doing enough damage to be a very real threat. Like I said – definitely a buildaround – but I think a great one. It is probably a D+ in your typical deck in the format, and a B+ in a deck that has enough ways to add counters to things.

119 - Awaken the Sleeper - D // C+

Here’s the usual Threaten effect! It is interesting its an Uncommon, which means consistently getting it when you have sacrifice outlets is going to be harder than normal. It is also kind of a bummer that it destroys the equipment immediately, instead of you getting a swing in first. But hey, the Equipment destruction angle does mean that you get to trade 1-for-1 in that situation, and that’s not too bad on top of all the other things that this can allow. As usual, this kind of a card is a build around. If you can’t consistently get that full card of value – by destroying Equipment or by sacrificing what you steal – you’re looking at a card that is pretty much only useful in one situation: When you can use it and win on the spot. So yeah, a D in your typical deck, and a C+ in a deck with sacrifice outlets.

120 -

121 -

122 -

123 -

124 - Cacophony Scamp - C+

A one mana 1/1 that does 1 to something when it dies is usually a playable card – it can trade up for X/2s and it can get 2-for-1s against two X/1s! On top of that, this has proliferate upside. Getting in with this and sacrificing it to get a couple extra counters – while also pinging something for 1, is going to feel pretty good. But even outside of Proliferate decks, this feels like an excellent one drop, as it gets silly the more you can buff it. This means it goes quite well with Equipment, for instance. I think this is a C+.

125 - Capricious Hellraiser - B+

The Hellraiser wants your graveyard to be well-stocked – both to reduce its cost, and use its ETB trigger. 9 cards is sort of a lot, so don’t count on getting that done a ton. And the ability isn’t quite as good as it looks at first. Because it exiles three cards at random and only lets you cast noncreature nonlands, there’s a pretty real chance you just wiff. Now, you will probably hit something you can cast pretty often, and casting it for free can be pretty insane – but the Hellraiser is annoyingly random and not always easy to set up. I think you’ll get a nice 2-for-1 often enough out of this for it to be quite good, but it doesn’t feel like a bomb. I’m giving it a B+.

126 -

127 -

128 - Dragonwing Glider - A-

This looks great. On its own, it is a 5-mana 4/4 with Flying and Haste. That card is already a B+ – it represents a fast, evasive clock. And this is even better because you can choose to move it around, and if they kill the token – or the Equipment - you still have something left behind. I think this does enough to get into the lower bomb range. I’m giving it an A-.

129 - Exuberant Fuseling - C

If you play this on turn one, and can back it up with tricks, Equipment, and the like, it is going to be a real problem. But that’s a lot of stuff you have to do, and if you draw this late it is going to be pretty terrible. I think that makes it a C overall.

130 -

131 -

132 - Furnace Punisher - C+

In Limited, this is going to be a 3-mana 3/3 with Menace and the rest of the text won’t matter on a regular basis. I guess if you went first and play this on turn three, and your opponent played a non-basic on turn one, it has a shot at chipping in for two extra damage – and that’s probably going to be the usual way that ability triggers. This actually would have been really interesting in Dominaria United, where the ability would actually have punished Domain decks – but here, it is mostly a 3-mana 3/3 with Menace and slight upside. The good news is, that’s a really good stat-line, so its hard to go lower than a C+.

133 -

134 - Gleeful Demolition - B-

This set has a lot of great designs, and this is another one! This format has a lot of Artifacts including Artifact creatures, so a card that can destroy them for one mana is already a card you’ll always play. That is definitely the mode you’re going to choose most frequently, but sometimes destroying your own thing is more beneficial. Like if you need extra bodies to go wide to win the game, or if you need those bodies to block. I think this look like premium removal. I’m giving it a B-.

135 -

136 - Hexgold Halberd - B-

This looks pretty nice! It is a two mana 2/2 that has First Strike and trample on your turn, and that makes for a pretty good attacker early and a solid presence all game long. That’s sort of the floor here too, because you can move the Halberd to other stuff that can take more advantage of it! Like all of these For Mirrodin! Equipments, the Equip cost is a little rough, but I think its a fair trade to get a creature up front. I’m giving this a B-.

137 - Hexgold Slash - B-

Even without the Toxic-hating upside this card has, it would be quite good! One mana for 2 damage just tends to be a great deal, even allowing you to trade up for lots of 3 and 4 mana cards. Toxic is really everywhere in the format too, so you’re going to be able to do the 4 damage with this at some point in most games. This looks like premium removal to me! I’m giving it a B-.

138 - Koth, Fire of Resistance - C // B

This isn’t the most impressive planeswalker for Limited. Sure, he has a +2 that technically draws you a card and a -3 that is technically removal, and those things are usually pretty good – but both are fairly weak versions of that effect. The +2 can only net you a Mountain, and the -3 is dependent on the number of Mountains you can control. Even the ultimate demands you have mountains – though obviously if you can fire off the ultimate and then use the +2 every turn to grab a Mountain you’re going to wind, but that’s going to be tough, since Koth doesn’t do much to protect himself. So, to some extent, Koth is an incentive to go Mono-Red or close to it, and if you can do that, obviously the -3 will kill most stuff, but on a board that is built out at all, your opponent can easily deal with Koth.  All of that might sound like I think this is horrible – I don’t quite think that – but it does feel like a build around planeswalker. He’s probably a C in a regular two-color deck in the format, and a B in a deck that can go monocolored. So he has a nice ceiling, but it doesn’t feel like an insane one.

139 -

140 - Magmatic Sprinter - B-

This looks really good. A three mana 3/2 with Haste is easily a C, and this comes with some pretty real upside! You can use this to put oil counters all over the place by casting it every turn, and there are definitely reasons to do that. Or, you can choose to have this stick in play for a couple of turns at a time if you need the board presence. I think this modality is pretty powerful. I’m giving it a B-.

141 -

142 - Nahiri’s Sacrifice - D

Obviously this has some potential. Dividing damage is always great, as you get the ability to take down multiple things, but that certainly gets less attractive when you 2-for-1 yourself upfront, and that’s what you’ll be doing here. You can’t even do something like give up a token, since it won’t really do any damage. So, what you need to do here is sacrifice something with a high mana value that maybe has a death trigger or ETB ability. At that point, you’re mitigating against 2-for-1ing yourself – but that is still kind of a narrow subset of cards for you to sacrifice. I’m starting this at a D.

143 - Oxidda Finisher - C

Paying 7 for this is bad, 6 is medium, and 5 is solid. Getting it lower than that is sort of unlikely, although with For Mirrodin!, it will be easier to play more EQuipment in this format than in most. Normally you can’t run a ton of it because you need the creatures to put it on, but most of the Equipment in this set gives you both. Still, getting this to 5 is a reasonable expectation, getting below that probably isn’t. I’m giving it a C.

144 - Rebel Salvo - B

This is a great removal spell. Even in a deck with 0 Equipment, it is premium. It kills almost everything and can very easily trade up. Once you have some Equipment in your deck it can get really silly. I’m giving this a B.

145 -

146 - Resistance Skywarden - C+

This is a pretty nice rate! Menace and Reach can be a bit awkward together, since one is an aggressive keyword and the other is defensive, but it also means that this can do a reasonable job as an attacker and a reasonable job as a blocker. It certainly isn’t exciting, but seems like a solid 5-drop. I’m giving it a C+.

147 - Sawblade Scamp - C

This is kind of close to being Thermo-Alchemist, and that card has been great in spell decks in several different formats at this point. This does die super easy, but it only costs one, so your opponent won’t really be able to trade up for it or anything, and if it sits around in play in your spell-heavy deck, it is going to chip in for a ton of damage. Now, it is worse that the Alchemist, because the Alchemist can do damage without the help of spells, it just does more when you have them. The Scamp doesn’t do anything when you can’t find your spells, which happens. So…this is probably just a C.

148 -

149 - Slobad, Iron Goblin - C

This has a solid stat-line and an ability that will be useful on occasion. You can definitely find situations where sacrificing something with this can net you some nice mana to cast an artifact, but more often than not, the ability won’t matter. But hey, it is a 3-mana 3/3 with upside, so it is hard to go below a C.

150 -

151 -

152 - Urabrask’s Anointer - D / B-

So, the stat-line is bad enough here that you probably want to consistently do 2 or more with this, and that probably makes this a build around. Oil counters are definitely around, especially in Blue-Red, but I don’t feel super confident that your typical deck in the format will have enough of them to make this acceptable. If you do 0 with it, it will be awful – 1 with it is semi-passable, and once you’re at 2 or more you’re going to really feel like you’re really doing it, because you can consistently get a 2-for-1 at that point. I think this is a D in your typical deck in the format, and a B- in a deck that managed to get there on oil counters.

153 - Urabrask’s Forge - B-

So, every turn, you get an increasingly large Haste Trampler that gets sacrificed at the end of the turn. This can obviously let you pressure your opponent pretty effectively, but it also doesn’t add something to the board that has a permanent impact on it, and that definitely matters. Still, the presence of Proliferate and other oil counter nonsense in the format does mean that you can get this going faster than it might look at first. If your deck has some sacrifice payoffs going it can get really silly too. The lack of a permanent board presence definitely matters, but it feels like there’s enough going on here for this to perform quite well in a lot of Red decks. I’m giving it a B-.

154 - Vindictive Flamestoker - C

If you play this really early, you’re likely to get a lot of counters on it and eventually use the ability and reload your hand, at which point you’ve got a great chance at winning…but at the same time it adds a body to the board that basically doesn’t matter, and it is a body that can die to lots of cheap removal too. If you get it late, it will take fewer counters to get it going. Don’t forget about Proliferate either, which means you can get the tokens going a bit better. Still, this seems slow and clunky, even as powerful as that ability is. I think this is just a C.

155 - Volt Charge - B-

This is a reprint of a card that was great last time! Three mana for 3 damage at instant speed is usually pretty close to a B-. It isn’t always going to be able to trade up, but being able to go after your opponent and being Instant speed means you’re usually getting a good deal. Proliferate is a big addition, though, as this format has plenty of tokens for you to get value out of, and I think that’s enough for this to firmly get a “Premium removal” grade. I’m giving it a B-.

156 - Vulshok Splitter - C

So, this is effectively a 4-mana 4/2 when it comes down – one that leaves behind a pretty clunky piece of equipment. Neither of these things is that impressive for 4 mana, but the initial creature you get out of this definitely softens the blow, especially in a format with lots of payoffs for Equipment. I’m giving this a C.

Green:

157 -

158 -

159 - Bloated Contaminator - B+

This has a great statline, comes with evasion, and Proliferate and toxic both synergize really well with the set – not to mention one another. It probably falls a little short of being a bomb, as it doesn’t dominate the game when it gets to the later stages, but it is still pretty darn good. I’m giving it a B+.

160 -

161 - Cankerbloom - B-

This has really good stats, and a great modal ability that will almost always do something meaningful. I’m giving it a B-.

162 - Carnivorous Canopy - C-

There are enough Artifacts and Enchantments in this set that this is probably acceptable in your main deck, especially with that Proliferate upside. It is a bit of a bummer that all this Artifact spot removal is a little worse in a world with the “For Mirrodin!” mechanic, because your opponent still holds on to a token. So yeah,  you probably don’ t play it all the time  – as there is lots of more flexible removal and plenty of other ways to Proliferate, like Cankerbloom, the card we saw just before this! I’m giving it a C-.

163 - Conduit of Worlds - C+

Playing lands from the graveyard is rarely super meaningful in Limited, but the other ability on the conduit is really interesting. Casting things from your graveyard is pretty great obviously, but making it so you can’t cast other spells is obviously a problem. This feels like a pretty bad card in the early and mid game, when you need to develop things, but int he later stages of the game it definitely has the potential to take over – you can’t really blank on draws if your graveyard is effectively part of your hand, and that’s how it is going to feel. It is an awful enough card for enough of the game that it is probably just a C+.

164 -

165 -

166 - Evolved Spinoderm - B

This is a fun call back to Blastoderm, and it carries on that legacy pretty effectively! A 4-mana 5/5 Hexproof is great, and while I wish it could hold on to Hexproof forever, the fact that it trades it in for Trample definitely softens the blow, and means it becomes more of a problem as an attacker. Obviously, its time on this earth is limited, but having a hexproof 5/5 around for two turns, and a 5/5 trampler for the other two is a solid deal. I think this is a B.

167 -

168 - Expand the Sphere - C+

This is a pretty cool card. You have a pretty good chance of hitting two lands when you cast this, and that’s some pretty serious ramp – but I love that you can choose some combination of lands and proliferating when you cast this. Sometimes in the late game drawing your ramp spell is pretty awful, and this becomes a 4-mana Sorcery that Proliferates twice in that situation, and that’s often going to have a significant impact on the board. So yeah, love the modality here, as both options have their situations. I’m giving it a C+.

169 - Green Sun’s Twilight - B

I think you’ll have to pay 3 for X for this to get you two cards consistently, which means this is often a more expensive Green Divination which isn’t…great. After all, it won’t really add to the board. Obviously if you can 5 for X, you’re likely to get a land and a creature on to the battlefield, and at that point we’re talking about something that’s way better, since it gives you something on the board immediately. If this was only a six mana card that looked at your top six and put a creature and a land on the battlefield, that would probably be pretty close to a B-. There will be times where you don’t get six mana’s worth of value out of it, but most of the time you’ll do alright. It is a little awkward that the more mana you spend, the less likely you’re going to get a good return on your investment – this isn’t really true of the other cards in this saga.  But still,, the fact this is pretty nice on six and it has the early game upside is pretty real! Paying two for this in a pinch to draw one card from your top two isn’t too bad, after all. So, I think overall, this is probably a B.

170 -

171 - Incubation Pod -  B

This has the potential to be really good in Limited, especially because it has the ability to make three bodies at the very least! Now, it certainly isn’t efficient at doing it, but in a lot of Limited formats cards that simply let you outcard the opponent are what you need, and this will definitely do it. A three-for-one really isn’t out of the question, and that’s not something you find at lower rarities most of the time.  It reminds me a little bit of Mask of the Jadecrafter from The Brothers’ War, which turned out to be pretty good. I’m going to start the format pretty high on this thing – though if it ends up being a format that is dominated by aggro, this will drop precipitiously. For now, I’m giving it a B.

172 - Infectious Bite - B-

Instant speed Rabid Bite is great, so tacking on Proliferate upside is pretty awesome. As always, you have to be a little careful about casting removal like this, but it will do the job really well most of the time. I’m giving it a B-.

173 -

174 -

175 - Nissa, Ascended Animist - A

This is a bomb no matter how you cast it, and the modality is a huge upside. She can come down and generate a huge token right away, and that token will do a great job of protecting her. Even if you play her with 3 loyalty, that token will usually be a problem. Note, by the way, that the token is locked in its size when it gets created. It doesn’t have text on it that adjusts the power and toughness like some effects – so even if Nissa dies, the token will stick around. Anyway, her -1 will have plenty of targets in this format, and her -7 will be a huge overrun effect. If you pay a full 7 for her, she can even use that effect right away, which will usually win you the game right away.  So yeah, no matter how you decide to cast her, she will be a token factory that can remove plenty of permanents, that also threatens to just win the game with her -7. I’m giving her an A.

176 - Noxious Assault - D

This is an interesting take on a mass pump effect. There will certainly be times where this puts your opponent in a lose-lose situation, since they can neither take all the damage or get the poison counters, but most of the time they can probably find a way to mix and match and survive. Five mana for this sorcery speed boost is normally just not a very good card in Limited and I don’t feel like the poison counter upside is enough for me to want to play this in this format. It is definitely hard to evaluate, as the poison vs. damage choice can definitely be powerful, but I think this is probably still too situational to be very good. I’m giving it a D.

177 -

178 - Paladin of Predation - C

This is hard to chump block, and it can end the game in two swings thanks to Toxic. The stat-line isn’t amazing for the cost though, and there will still be enough boards where your opponent can just double block it to take it down. It also doesn’t deliver any bonus value you get to hold on to in the event it gets destroyed, and if I’m going to spend 7 mana, I feel like I should get something, even a bit of life or a 1/1 token would make a big difference. As is, I think this is probably just a C.

179 - Plague Nurse - C

A 4-mana ¾ with Toxic 2 is fine, and adding more Toxic to your Toxic creatures can definitely cause problems. The threat of activation is something that your opponent really has to consider on a board with a few other Toxic creatures. I’m giving this a C.

180 - Branchblight Stalker - C

Not a lot to say here – but this seems like a fine two drop, especially in decks that are into poison.

181 - Rotvine Cultivator - D

This doesn’t look very good. The best thing about a mana dork is that it can play you more powerful spells every turn. This can’t do that. It will finally untap a land on turn three, and while the boost is nice, the fact you had to tap this twice to get it is no small thing. Sure, you can proliferate and stuff to have to tap it less, but you’re jumping through some pretty serious hoops to make your one drop work. I think this is a D.

182 - Venerated Rotpriest - C

A one mana ½ with Toxic 1 will get some poison going if you play it on turn one, but after that it becomes increasingly irrelevant. It is nice that your opponent is going to gain at least one poison counter no matter what, since if they remove the priest they get one too, and if you have a bunch of creatures with Toxic it will feel particularly good when they have to kill one of them and leave the priest alone. All that said, this is probably just a C. It won’t do something meaningful enough most of the time – whether you play it early or in the mid-to-late-game.

183 -

184 -

185 -

186 - Thrun, Breaker of Silence - A-

This new Thrun looks great. You could take away any of his individual abilities and it would still be an awesome card! He is incredibly difficult to deal with, as only opposing Green cards can target him – and on your turn he also happens to be indestructible, which really matters for a 5/5 Trampler. It will be a great attack on most boards as a result. I think Thrun’s resilience allows him to sneak into the lower bomb range – I’m giving him an A-.

187 -

188 - Tyrannax Atrocity - C+

Toxic 3 is a lot, as it will immediately give you Corrupted if you don’t already have it, and if you do already have it 3 poison is going to get your opponent in the red zone. Toxic pairs really well with Haste too, as it makes it easier to get in that first time, or at the very least set up a situation where your opponent’s options are a bad chump block or taking the hit. I’m giving this a C+.

189 - Tyrranax Rex - A-

Obviously, this has some very impressive efficiency. It can also come down and do something right away thanks to Haste! Ward also means this can’t be dealt with efficiently. Toxic and Trample might seem like a strange pair, but its actually pretty great! If your opponent takes any damage at all from the Rex, even 1 trample damage, they end up with 4 poison – and you still destroy their creature. Triple Green can be surprisingly hard to get in Limited, but I still think this does enough right away, and is hard enough to deal with, that it gets into the lower bomb range. I’m giving it an A-.

190 - Tyvar’s Stand - C+

Two mana for +1/+1, hexproof, and indestructible is a pretty solid trick, and this has the upside of both scaling as the game goes on and being castable for only mana when that’s useful for you. The best tricks have the ability to win combat and protect a creature from removal, giving them broad situations where you want to use them, and this definitely does that! It is still a trick of course, and it is hard for those to ever be super high picks or anything, but I think the first copy of this is a C+.

191 - Unnatural Restoration - C-

We see this effect a lot, and a  Regrowth that only gets permanents is not usually very good in Limited, especially if that’s all the card does.  It isn’t a disaster to play, but can be underwhelming for a lot of reasons! For one thing, it doesn’t do anything until there’s a permanent in the graveyard – and it doesn’t really feel like you’re accomplishing something until there is a worthwhile permanent, so it can be a dead card for awhile! So yeah, that card is usually a D – but how much better does this get with Proliferate? I mean, it definitely gets better – I’m pretty high on it in general, especially given how it performed the last couple of times we saw it – but I still don’t think this gets above a C-.

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193 -

194 - Viral Spawning - B

This is a great uncommon maybe Green’ best! You’d already play a 3-mana 3/3 with Toxic 1 – that’s probably right around a C, but the Flashback upside here is huge, because it gives the card fairly accessible 2-for-1 potential. And I think most of the time you’ll find a way to get that second body during the game – especially because the first body helps you get there! I’m giving this a B.

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Multicolored:

196 - Atraxa, Grand Unifier - B+

Pretty neat they are previewing a card type here that doesn’t exist yet with Battle! It is a fun throwback to Tarmogoyf. Anyway – Obviously, if you can cast Atraxa, you’re going to get a massive formidable creature that also draws you something like 3 or 4 cards. That’s going to pretty much always win you the game, but the question is how easy this will be to cast. I think the fact that Green is one of her four colors really matters, and probably does make it possible to cast this thing in some decks. When you cast this, it is going to be an A+, but the mana is challenging enough that we probably need to drop that grade a full letter – and I’m going to start her at a B+.

197 - Bladehold War-Whip - B-

This gives you a three mana 2/2 with double strike up front, and that’s great, as is reducing the cost of your other Equipment. The bad news is that once that 2/2 goes down, you have to pay five to put this on something. And sure, Double Strike is a big boost on a lot of creatures, but that cost is pretty massive. I think this is a B-.

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199 - Charforger - B

This is a great signpost Uncommon.  A three mana ⅔ that makes a 1/1 is already a great rate, so the fact that this can save up oil counters and use them to draw cards is pretty amazing. It takes some work to do of course, but as usual Black-Red has ways to make its own stuff die, so it is certainly doable. I’m giving this a B. I think it has the potential to be the best signpost Uncommon in the set between the great rate and ability to draw cards.

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201 - Ezuri, Stalker of Spheres - B+

Playing this on four isn’t amazing as it has bad stats and doesn’t really do anything all on its own, but Proliferate is a pretty big theme in the set, so you’ll often be able to take advantage of it and draw a whole lot of cards. I love that it also has the late game upside though, where you can cast is for 7, Proliferate Twice – which already is quite strong – but you also get to draw two cards! I’m giving this a B+.

202 - Glissa Sunslayer - A-

Glissa still has both First STrike and Death touch, which makes for a nasty combination! A three mana 3/3 with those two keywords is probably already a B, as it is near impossible to attack through or block. So, the fact she comes with big upside is great! She’s awful to block, but if your opponent lets her through, they are going to give you some serious value! Drawing the card is going to be the option you choose the most, but the other two are nice to have around. I think Glissa gets into the lower bomb range. She is great all game long, and probably takes over the game if left unchecked. I’m giving her an A-.

203 - Jor Kadeen, First Goldwarden - B

A two mana 2/2 with Trample is probably a C – it isn’t like that’s a scary statline for a trampler, but it does incentivize you to enhance it – and especially with Equipment in this case, since Jor Kadeen gives you a pretty nice upgrade if you can do it! If it has one EQuipment on it, it is likely to get to at least 4 power, making it a formidable attacker that also draws you a card. RW is enough about Equipment in this format that I don’t really think this needs a build around grade. Most RW decks will have 3+ Equipment because of other incentives around, so I think this is probably just going to be a B in those decks.

204 - Kaito, Dancing Shadow - A+

This looks excellent. He has a -2 that is very good at protecting him – a death touch body is not something your opponent can take lightly, and even if they do find a way to get rid of it, you still get to drain 2 life! He can also draw you cards for no loyalty at all, and Pacify a creature for an entire turn cycle! His static ability is also pretty great, and will at a minimum draw you an extra card when you trigger it, since you’ll use that ability again. Turns where you can make something unable to block to allow you to get in with a creature, then use his triggered ability to return it to your hand, use another loyalty ability to draw a card, and then just recast the creature are going to feel insane, and that isn’t even a Magical Christmas land scenario. Bouncing something to your hand can even be upside if you’re trying to abuse an ETB ability! I think this is a massive bomb – a 4-mana card that can get pretty close to ending the game on the spot. He protects himself, he draws you cards, and he even has an effect that will get pretty close to feeling like removal. I’m giving him an A+.

205 - Kaya, Intangible Slayer - A

7 mana is a lot, especially when you have to have two mana of two different colors! But Kaya definitely delivers. Each time you use her -3 you’re going to be getting a pretty sweet two-for-one, since she removes an opposing creature and gives you a flying 1/1 copy of it. In other words, the effect is both removal and a way to protect her quite effectively, which is pretty insane for one ability!  Her other two abilities are also very good, but the -3 is really the star of the show here. It is also great that she comes with Hexproof, as these days more and more things seem capable of killing planeswalkers. So yeah, she’s kind of hard to cast, but she is pretty close to unbeatable on most board states, so I think she is a bomb. I’m giving her an A.

206 - Kethek, Crucible Goliath - B

A 4-mana 4/4 is a great stat-line in Limited, and the ability this has is very real. You’re always going to get a cheaper creature of course, but giving up a creature that is no longer useful, or one with an ETB ability that gave you most of its value is going to feel great. Note that it is a may clause too, which is important. In a pinch, you can even sacrifice something you attacked with to find a creature who can come into play untapped – basically a really convoluted way to do Vigilance, but it does let you pressure your opponent and keep your shields up.  I’m giving this a B.

207 - Lukka, Bound to Ruin - A

This looks like another impressive Planeswalker. You either get a 4-mana 3 loyalty planewalker, or a 5-mana 5-loyalty planeswalker. I think you usually will want to pay the full five, because that gives you the option of using his -4 right away, and that’s an ability that will usually allow you to kill something. However, his most consistent ability is probably his -1 anyway, as adding a real presence to the board that can pressure your opponent and protect him is pretty great, and there will be times where his ability to start cranking those out on turn 4 just wins you the game! The +1 is probably the least impressive, but sometimes you’ll want to get your ramp on. All in all, he is going to be pretty effective at removing creatures and protecting hismelf, and that’s usually enough for a walker to be a bomb. I’m giving him an A.

208 - Malcator, Purity Overseer - B+

A three mana 1/1 that makes a 3/3 token is already a really good card – pretty close to Blade Splicer, which is about a B+ –  but this comes with the additional upside of occasionally spitting out another 3/3. Now, making that happen isn’t going to be easy, as getting three artifacts into play in one turn is a big ask in Limited, but I think it will happen on occasion. I’m giving this a B+.

209- Melira, the Living Cure - B

This is a pretty sweet two-mana creature! Obviously she has above-rate stats, but the fact that she weakens the Toxic mechanic is nice upside, as is her ability to reanimate a creature or artifact that has died during your turn. That second part is definitely going to be more important, but what we’re looking at here is still a two mana 3/3 with substantial upside. I’m giving it a B.

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211 - Nahiri, the Unforgiving - B-

So because of Compleated, Nahiri is either a 3-mana + 2 life 3-loyalty planewalker, or a 4-mana 5 loyalty planeswalker. Overall, she doesn’t seem like a super impressive planeswalker for Limited. Effects like her +1 are usually pretty underpowered – you can certainly force an attack that is bad for your opponent, but it is still super situational – you won’t always accomplish something by using it. Her other +1 lets you rummage, which is solid but unexciting – but it does set up her 0 loyalty ability – which can be pretty good if you have a well-stocked graveyard. Still, the token she can make is restricted in several ways – it has to have a low enough mana value, and it only gets to swing once. She can work pretty well with the “For Mirrodin!” Equipment in the set, because the tokens those Equipment make will stick around. But still, she doesn’t come with a real removal effect, she doesn’t protect herself, and she doesn’t even net you cards. Usually a great Limited Planeswalker does 2 or more of those things, and we’re being generous here if we say she is doing 1 of 3 of them! All of that said, she isn’t a bad card, just sort of a situational value-engine type planeswalker, and not one that takes over games. If you’ve managed to stabilize or you’re ahead, her 0 ability will definitely pressure your opponent – but if you’re behind, this is a pretty ineffective planeswalker. I’m giving her a B-.

212 - Necrogen Rotpriest - C+

Black/Green is a grinder Toxic deck, as the Rotpriest shows you. It provides a medium defensive body, along with all kinds of toxic upside – you get to poison stuff more quickly, and granting death touch to toxic stuff is nice all game. On some boards, you’re going to put your opponent in a spot where they have to get a significant number of poison counters or set up an ugly block against your potential deathtouch creature. Threat of activation will be pretty real there! That said, I’m a bit underwhelmed with this overall. Obviously you’re always going to play it in Black/Green, but the idea of taking this with a really early pick doesn’t appeal to me a whole lot. I’m giving this a C+.

213 - Ovika, Enigma Goliath - A-

This is expensive, but it does give you quite the impressive creature. Ward 3 and pay three life is pretty legit, as it makes it harder for your opponent to efficiently deal with the Goliath, and they are going to take a hit in terms of their life no matter what they do – and that’s the fail case here. Then, if you untap with it and cast some noncreature spell, the game is pretty much over, since you make an army of tokens that can either allow you to finish your opponent off or gain a massive advantage on the board. You won’t always find yourself able to do that of course, but you’re still talking about a 6/6 Flyer that is an absolute pain to kill. I think this sneaks into the lower “bomb” range, since it gives you solid value even if the worst-case thing happens, and if it sticks around, you’re just going to win.  I’m giving it an A-.

214 - Ria Ivor, Bane of Bladehold - B+

A four mana ¾ with battle cry is a nice place to start, and the ability is really interesting. It is pretty much all upside, because it doesn’t say you have to choose your own creature. So, if you’d rather have all your creatures able to damage your opponent, you can just choose an opposing creature, which won’t really do anything one way or another, since it only counts combat damage done to a player. And sometimes, you’ll want to go wide with all those pests – especially because Battle Cry pays you off for making a bunch of them! I think this is a B+.

215 - Serumcore Chimera - B-

As usual, Blue/Red is into spells – but there is an oil counter theme too! Like most signposts, this looks pretty nice. A 4-mana 2/4 Flyer isn’t amazing, but is actually a solid stat-line – so the upside of drawing a card and bolting a creature or planeswalker every three spells is pretty massive. The thing I don’t love here is that there are often going to be times where you just can’t get that third oil counter, even with proliferate around. I’m giving it a B-.

216 - Slaughter Singer - B-

So, GW is about Toxic aggro – and A two mana 2/2 with Toxic 2 is already pretty solid, so offering a boost to all of your toxic creatures is nice – and will feel especially good with the tokens in the format. I think this is a B-.

217 - Tainted Observer - B

This is another strong signpost Uncommon. A three mana ⅔ Flyer with Toxic 1 is something you’ll always play, and the Proliferate upside here is pretty sweet, especially because it works with the Poison counters. You generally won’t have the mana available to proliferate until the mid or late game, but the baseline here is great. I’m giving this a B.

218 - Tyvar, Jubilant Brawler - D+

This is a pretty bad planeswalker for Limited. The really cool thing he can do is allow you to play a creature with a tap activated ability and use that ability right away – and then you can use the +1 to use the ability again! But situations like that aren’t just going to happen in your typical Limited game. His -2 also isn’t guaranteed to reanimate something, though if you do play him in the mid to late game, playing him and using the -2 does probably mean you get a small creature back. It just seems like he’s doing stuff that is very hard to take advantage of in Limited, and even when he does get you a 2 drop from the graveyard you’re not going to be that excited. I think this is a D+.

219 - Venser, Corpse Puppet - B+

A two mana ⅓ with Lifelink and Toxic 1 is probably a C+...and this has massive proliferate upside! Making a 3/3 is no joke, and you can give that 3/3 lifelink and flying when you Proliferate again. Obviously, you need to have 4-5 cards with Proliferate to really unlock this, but that doesn’t seem like a big ask, and the floor of the card is so good that it is hard to look at this as anything less than amazing. I’m giving it a B+.

220 - Vivisection Evangelist - B

A 5-mana 4/4 with Vigilance isn’t great, but obviously if you can get the ETB going here this is an absolutely incredible card. The upside is huge, the baseline is fine, and I think getting that upside is pretty accessible. I’m giving this a b.

221 -

Artifact:

222 - Argentum Masticore - B+

This is a fun callback to the original Masticore and to Argentum Armor  – it maintains the downside Masticores usually have, but also turns it in to a bit of upside! So yeah, a 5-mana 5/5 with First Strike and protection from Multicolored that makes you discard every turn would probably be a C at best – that’s a huge downside, even on an efficient creature.  But turning the cards you discard into removal spells is amazing, and really softens the blow. When you have this in play you’ll usually be able to get more value out of holding on to cards than playing them. Now, there will be times where you just have lands to discard – or you run out of cards to discard, and things will go really sideways if that happens, but I think the upside here is enough for this to be a high pick. I’m giving it a B+.

223 - Atraxa’s Skitterfang - B

This looks great for an Uncommon. Gray Ogre stats are never very good, but the ability tacked on to this is pretty huge! Granting a keyword to something once a turn for three turns is quite strong, especially because you can do it the turn you play it if you play it before combat. One of these keywords is extremely likely to be beneficial for you every single turn, giving you attacks you just didn’t have. It can also give the keyword to itself, though that doesn’t help you on that first turn. But if you don’t have a creature to buff with it, you can just wait to play it until your second main phase. It gets better in a world where you have ways to take more advantage of oil counters too! Its also colorless, so I can see this getting first picked a lot, since it will end up in your deck 100% of the time and is a powerful card. I’m giving this a B.

224 - Basilica Skullbomb - C

Glad to see a Phyrexian variant of the Mirrodin Spellbomb! At worst, these all cycle away while giving you some artifact synergy, and that makes it hard for them to be terrible. Then, when you have the mana, it does something reasonably significant while still replacing itself. +2/+2 and Flying is the kind of boost that matters a big chunk of the time.  I’m giving this a C.

225 - Dross Skullbomb - C

This one can get a creature back from your graveyard and draw you a card, and once it does that you get a pretty nice 2-for-1. It is sorcery speed, which definitely makes it worse – but I think this is solid at the very worst. I’m giving it a C.

226 - Dune Mover - C

This kind of fixing usually isn’t great, because putting the card on top is a pretty massive difference from getting it in your hand or something. But it does have solid stats and brings Toxic to the table. I’m giving it a C.

227 - The Filigree Sylex - C

This is basically an upgraded Ratchet Bomb, which is pretty cool and will mean it sees play in lots of formats. But, is it good in Limited? Probably not. These sweeper effects that take a ton of time to set up tend to be pretty awful. This kind of card is great in formats with really low curves, where you can easily get it to blow things up, but most Limited formats don’t get there. Now, there are tokens in the set all over, and this can blow those up immediately, and sometimes that will be good. The additional oil counter upside on the card is definitely interesting, and does give the card something to do in situations where you can’t really set this up to be a good sweeper. There are lots of oil counters in the format and proliferate, but 10 is still a lot of counters! I think this is probably just a C.

228 - Furnace Skullbomb - C-

I think this is probably the worst of the bunch, mostly because its effect is more niche than the others. If you don’t have a permanent that cares about oil counters, it doesn’t do anything, while the others have effects that pretty much always do something. It still can be cycled away easily, and when you can get value out of the counters it is fine, but it is a bit worse than the others. I’m giving it a C-.

229 - Graaz, Unstoppable Juggernaut - C

This is a cool call back to the old school Juggernaut, and it can certainly enhance your board state. Your average creature is likely to be worse than a 5/3 – making the whole board hit that hard is pretty real, and at the stage of the game when you cast Graaz, your opponent probably can’t be hit by more than one of them. All that said, Graaz costs a ton of mana, and also comes with some downside – making all your stuff attack isn’t always a good thing. I think the mana cost, the need for a developed board, and the downside probably keeps this from being more than a C.

230 - Ichorplate Golem - C+

An easy to cast three mana ⅔ isn’t a terrible starting point, and the oil counter upside here feels pretty real in this format. It does probably mean that it is at its best in a UR deck, but I think even if you have 2+ creatures that do something with oil tokens, you’re playing this. I’m giving it a C+.

231 - Maze Skullbomb - C

Again, we’re talking about a card that cycles at worst, and has a pretty real effect when you have the time to use the ability. Its another C.

232 - Mirran Safehouse - F

This has a cool design! Especially because it even gains the ability to tap for mana, but this won’t amount to much more than a hard-to-use 3 mana mana rock, and that’s not worth a card in Limited. This is an F.

233 - Monument to Perfection - F

This has a really neat design, but I think it is pretty much a dud in Limited. We’ve seen artifacts that let you search up a land for three mana, and they are usually far too clunky to be worth using. Moreover, actually getting enough lands in play to make it so this can animate into this really scary creature isn’t likely. I kind of hope it does work out, because it seems like a lot of fun – but this seems really slow and in 99% of decks it won’t even be able to turn into a creature. I think its an F.

234 - Myr Convert - B-

This seems pretty darn good. It ramps your mana, fixes your mana, and even has kind of a decent baseline as a two mana 2/1 with Infect 1. I think that whole package is worth a pretty early pick I’m giving it a B-.

235 -

236 -

237 - Phyrexian Atlas - D+

In most formats, a three mana mana rock just isn’t worth it. You need to add more meaningfully to the board, and using a card to get a small mana boost can be pretty rough. In theory, this does start doing something in the middle part of the game, but I’m still not in on this. I’m giving it a D+.

238 -

239 - Prosthetic Injector - D

This is cheap to play and Equip, but it doesn’t feel like it is worth a whole card to me. +0/+2 is a pretty meager boost, and while Toxic and Equipment have synergy in this format, there are better options for both of those of things that are also at lower rarities! I’m giving this a D.

240 - Rib Skiff - C+

A 4-mana 4/4 vehicles with Crew 3 is not especially good, but this does replace itself, and Toxic has some real upside. The 2-for-1 potential is very real, so it is hard for me not to give this a C+.

241 -

242 - Staff of Compleation - D+

This is a fun call back to Staff of Domination – but like the Staff, this isn’t anything special in Limited. The Pay 1 life ability almost never comes up. The 2 life ability makes this a really mediocre mana rock. Paying 3 life to proliferate and 4 to draw a card is where things start to get interesting, but that amount of life can add up quickly, and having a card that makes you pay life that also doesn’t usually add to the board seems like a recipe for disaster in a lot of games. If you have some ways to gain life this obviously gets more interesting, but that doesn’t seem to be a big theme here. This is probably a D+.

243 - Surgical Spellbomb - C

Like the others, this cycles at worst, and can have a real impact on the board that still nets you a card. Its a C.

244 - Sword of Forge and Frontier - A

The cards in this mega-mega cycle have pretty much always been bombs. Even just +2/+2 and protection from two colors is a huge problem in a lot of games – with everyone playing two color decks, there’s a pretty good chance Red or Green is one of their colors! Obviously though, its the effect you get when you hit your opponent that makes this really good, as it will just start drawing you extra cards at a pretty crazy rate! You can get up to two extra cards when you hit your opponent, and it even makes sure you get some value if you hit two lands. So yeah, it grants an efficient boost, one that can be moved around all game long, and grants serious card advantage. I think it does enough to be a bomb, like most of its predcessors. I’m giving it an A.

245 - Tablet of Compleation - D+

I don’t think this will be very good in Limited. It takes too long to get going. Getting two oil counters on it won’t exactly feel amazing anyway – you’re going to need to get to five before this card starts to do something worthwhile, and that’s a lot! Even in a format with Proliferate. I’m giving this a D+

246 - Zenith Chronicler - C

A two mana 3/1 isn’t a terrible baseline, and the Chronicler comes with an interesting effect. Obviously, it is going to be at its best in a deck with very multicolored cards, since you make the effect one sided. This is not a set with a huge multicolored theme, with only the signpost uncommons and some rares and mythics actually being multicolored, so the Chronicler’s effect will only be coming up zero to 2 times in most games. Once nice thing is that even if you do have multicolored cards of your own, you can play with that knowledge – in other words, you can trade it off or something so you don’t give your opponent a card. That’s something else that makes this feel more beneficial than not. Still, a lot of the time it will just be a two mana 3/1, and the upside won’t always go your way, so its probably just a C.

Lands:

254 - Mirrex - C

Well, this is interesting. The turn you play it, it is great at fixing mana. After that, it doesn’t do it at all! But it can still tap for colorless mana and crank out 1/1 pests. As I’ve noted, making it so tokens can’t block is a big downside, as that is usually the main thing 1/1s are doing in the mid-to-late game. But still, this can add to the board while you’re flooding out. I think it seems solid overall between the one-turn fixing it provides and its ability to make tokens. I’m giving it a C.

255 - Monumental Facade - F

Oil counters are definitely a thing in the set, but I have a hard time imagining that you’re going to end up with so many things that use oil counters that you’re actually going to want to use this. Especially in a set where Proliferate is everywhere and far more flexible. Basically, this is bad for your mana base and has very minor upside. I’m giving it an F.

256 - The Mycosynth Gardens - B-

I am not normally a fan of filter lands, they tend to be super clunky at fixing your mana – and that’s certainly true here. But, the upside here is pregit legit. I think there are enough artifact creatures in this set that it will feel like a creature land a significant chunk of the time, and those always perform well, since it lets you turn a land into something that actually impacts the board. It obviously has more flexibility than a creature land too! So basically, this is a powerful utility land that can also fix your mana, and I think I’m in for that. I’m giving it a B-.

Fast Land Cycle - C

These all offer great fixing, like most dual lands, and the fact that they enter untapped early is pretty nice. I’m giving them a C.

259 - The Seedcore - C

There are a lot of Phyrexians in the set, so you’ll be able to make mana of any color with this for a decent percentage of the creatures in your deck – and you’ll kind of need to, because if this can only tap for colorless it probably isn’t worth the hit to your mana. Obviously, being able to tap and buff a creature is pretty sweet, but not all decks will be that capable of getting that online. I think this is probably a C.