Ixalan Set Review - Green

It's Friday which means it's time for a look through all of the Green cards from Ixalan, so sit back and enjoy.

Ancient Brontodon

It's big in both power and mana cost and that what dinosaurs should be. You play this in limited if you're playing green or can consistently generate double green in your non green deck, which is kinda hard. It hits hard and blocks well, what more can I say.

Atzocan Archer

I'm not sure how I feel about this creature, it comes down early and blocks really well even against flyers, the fight trigger when it enters the battlefield is weird though. It could just get a one toughness creature and you'll be happy but what about when there aren't any? You could play it post combat for that extra one point of damage to finish a creature off or you could pump Atzocan Archer with the trigger on the stack and fight for more. The problem with that inline of play is that you're wasting a lot of mana on your own turn and giving your opponent more information to respond to. It's probably fine in limited however I would exercise caution when playing this as it could just end up being a 1/4 blocker.

Blinding Fog

This three mana instant fan be used one of two ways; firstly, a whoops card in the sense of "I didn't think you'd block like that because I didn't see it" and secondly as a sudo counterspell for your opponents removal spell/spells by giving your creatures Hexproof. It's a bit costly for constructed but I could see Blinding Fog getting you out of some tight spots in limited.

Blossoming Dryad

In this limited format you are going to want some ramp to get up to those giant costing dinosaurs. Blossoming Dryad can help with that, however it can't fix your mana and in combat it could be a bit underwhelming as a lot of the two drop creatures would have a fairly simple time dealing with it.

Carnage Tyrant

This could turn out to be one of the easiest cards to evaluate in Ixalan. When would you not want this? On curve it's such a beating, if you can drop it earlier than turn six then the game is pretty much over and even in the late game it still provides a massive threat that is super hard to deal with. Any green deck runs Carnage Tyrant no questions asked and I think many other decks would love to have a couple in their sideboard. It's a limited bomb that you run all the time, splash it, force green whatever, when you play Carnage Tyrant you're going to be very happy with the power you will get out of it.

Colossal Dreadmaw

I know it's a little unfair, but when you compare Colossal Dreadmaw with Carnage Tyrant it kind of pales in comparison. They are both six drop dinosaurs and both have Trample but from that point onward Dreadmaw starts to fall behind a bit. Obviously if you had the choice in limited you would snap pick Carnage Tyrant but I wouldn't automatically turn my nose up at Colossal Dreadmaw as it's still a big Trampling threat, although only one will make it into constructed and we all know which one that is.

Commune With Dinosaurs

Despite not being a big fan of the name, I do like this card. In limited it's going to allow you to dig for a certain dinosaur, or even land, for just one mana which is great if you have a bomb rare or utility dinosaur. I don't know if it will make it into constructed as Dinosaur tribal could be a thing but I'm skeptical about it.

Crash The Ramparts

A combat trick that works nicely on both offensive and defensive. It gives your creature a decent amount of toughness to survive most things and gives you a nice amount of power and the Trample needed to get there over your opponents blocker in the late game.

Crushing Canopy

Modal spells can be very useful as they allow you to cut down on your card choices. Crushing Canopy could see some sideboard constructed play but I think it's going to find it's home in limited as a way of dealing with a certain enchantment from the legendary cycle or if your deck has a weakness to flyers. It's easy to splash to so I could see it making an unexpected appearance in your opponent's eyes coming out of your white deck for example.

  Deathgorge Scavenger

Deathgorge Scavenger is the type of creature that could transcend through multiple formats, like Scavenging Ooze. Both take graveyards apart fairly efficiently, in Ooze's case you could do it multiple times, at the end of your opponent's turn and the +1/+1 effects were permanent. Pretty much what I'm saying is Scavenging Ooze is a much better card but we're not here to talk about that. Deathgorge Scavenger can only trigger once per turn, twice if you can give it Haste, but I think the main point of this card is being able to combat against Embalm, Eternalise, Aftermath and any other cards that fiddle with the graveyard leading me to think that WoTC think this will be a constructed playable card. With an ability like this it's set for limited just becoming either a three mana 4/3, which in the early game is good enough to trade up or deal a decent chunk of damage, or just gain you some life. I think this is one to watch for constructed in the coming months.

Deeproot Champion

Quirion Dryad was a powerful creature; it dropped early and needed to be dealt with before it got out of hand and took over a game. In some cases Deeproot Champion is a strictly better card as it doesn't just ask for a non green spell to get bigger but a non creature spell, and in this limited format the Merfolk creature type does give it an edge over the Dryad. It's a good creature in most limited decks because it can get out of hand and become very hard to block effectively and it will see constructed play as Quirion Dryad did and probably in much the same capacity.

Deeproot Warrior

As a two mana 2/2 you play this in limited all the time in green, the effect may not be huge but it could also be a thing against an absentminded opponent. Once in a while they may forget that you can have a 3/3 while attacking, if they block, or you could use it to your advantage with a pump spell using the effect to get a little edge out of the situation. One thing to note is that Deeproot Warrior only gets +1/+1 once and not for every creature blocking it so make sure you don't overestimate this bear.

Drover Of The Mighty

Rampant Growth was way too good, two mana for an extra land put you so far ahead on mana, and while I'm still holding out hope that there will be a good two mana ramp spell in the future for know we're going to have to settle for two mana ramp creatures. We've already got Servant Of The Conduit but what if you're one of those mad people that doesn't want to play with energy? Well now you have Drover Of The Mighty, a two mana ramp creature that doesn't use up all your energy. Obviously there are other reasons to play Drover, for example Servant Of The Conduit can only attack for a maximum of two on its own whereas Drover Of The Mighty can hit for three if he has a dinosaur friend about. You should play Drover Of The Mighty in limited because it fixes your colours nicely and can provide you with an early game threat if you can drop a dinosaur on turn three or four, it has some tribal synergy but i would say Servant Of The Conduit

Emergent Growth

Emergent Growth is the card you want when you need to alpha strike your opponent in limited to win. It nice clears the way for all but one of your creatures to get through and even if it's not an alpha strike, giving a creature +5/+5 will take a lot to take down in combat. The only thing to worry about is tor opponent having a removal spell for the targeted creature but even then you've forced them to use it so that's not all bad.

Emperor's Vanguard

You could stop at a four mana 4/3 with this guy and I would play it every time in limited. Thanks to its ability to Explore whenever it deals combat damage it jumps in potential power and becomes a threat that you need to deal with lest you will lose. At four mana it might be a bit slow for constructed but it's definitely what you want at four in limited.

Grazing Whiptail

Say hello to Ixalan's Giant Spider, a run of the mill creature that you will play almost every time in limited. It is more difficult to cast than Giant Spider and because of that it gives you an additional power, but it achieves the same results and is better on the offensive as well.

Growing Rites Of Itlimoc

It's not quite Oath Of Nissa but it's what we have to work with now that's gone. Three mana to maybe find a creature is fine, obviously there isn't always a guarantee that you will hit one but honestly that's not what we're here for. The flip side of Growing Rites is the real meat of this card and it only needs you to control four creatures to get it there. Itlimoc, Cradle Of The Sun could be potentially one of the most powerful cards in Ixalan, it's reminiscent of Gaea's Cradle in ability, giving you green mana equal to the amount of creatures you control and that could lead to some stupidly powerful turns where you just empty your hand and give your opponent a turn to deal with all the huge creatures you've just made. It will see constructed play and I think could become a staple, obviously it's limited playable even if you just get an extra mana out of it, that's plenty of value to justify playing it.

Ixalli's Diviner

Another creature I'm not so sure about, it doesn't come down early and could net you a card with the Explore but it could also be a 1/4 that lets you kinda Scry. I guess you can't be to upset with either one of those choices but Ixalan's Diviner is a little underwhelming on the whole I think, if you need to dig through your deck for certain cards then it should be fine and like I said it's a good blocker, so it can hold the ground a bit while you piece together what you need.

Ixalli's Keeper

The last in the Keeper cycle in Ixalan and it's not as bad as some of them have been, although I'm still not a fan of having to pay eight mana and losing a creature in the process. Having an instant speed, albeit on board, trick that gives a creature +5/+5 and Trample could be your ticket to winning the game but like I said it is eight mana so it may take a while to get there, but I guess that's what the Treasures are for. Limited playable but I think it's going to be played more as a two mana 2/2 than a pump spell.

Jade Guardian

I like this creature because it's going to make things difficult for your opponent in limited. If you have any better Merfolk to put the +1/+1 counter on when Jade Guardian comes into play then you have a bigger Merfolk and still have a 2/2 Hexproof but at worst you could just have a 3/3 Hexproof, and with some of the pump spells we've already covered I could see this being part of your game winning board by the end of the game.

Jungle Delver

I love this guy as a one drop and a great mana sink. There will be points in your limited games where you will find yourself with a lot of mana and not much to use it on, enter Jungle Delver, it's cheap and if left unchecked can get increasingly bigger to the point where it's really hard to deal with in combat and needs a removal spell to kill it. Play these in limited all the time in green and multiples are a good thing as you can then start splitting up the power creep on them and make it even harder for your opponent.

Kumena's Speaker

A long time ago there was a creature called Wild Nacatl, this one mana 1/1 got bigger if you controlled a mountain and then even bigger if you controller a plains, resulting essentially in a one mana 3/3. Kumena's Speaker isn't quite as good as Wild Nacatl for good reason but it has potential as it asks for you to control either an Island or another Merfolk. Having a two power creature able to attack on turn two is above the curve and In limited you would be a fool not to play this if you are playing Merfolk or green blue, constructed may be a little narrower as Merfolk may not be as heavily played but it could still be a thing.

Merfolk Branchwalker

Even though I'm not hot on the Explore mechanic I like Merfolk Branchwalker. At worst it's a slightly worse off Grizzly Bear but even then it's a worse Grizzly Bear that draws you a card and at best it's a three powered two drop creature which can be pretty powerful if your opponent doesn't have many early blockers. It helps your Merfolk tribal in limited or can just be played as a two power two drop, you'll be happy with it either way in limited.

New Horizons

The three mana mana ramp enchantment is ground well trodden, some give you life and others gave you Clues, New Horizons is a good one for limited though as it can pump a creature of your choice while giving you extra mana. Hitting New Horizons on curve can make your two drop quite formidable and being able to utilise that mana next turn could put you so far ahead. I don't think it will break into constructed though as the effect doesn't seem particularly strong there but like I said I like it in limited.

Old-Growth Dryads

So the toss up here is; would you rather keep on par on lands with your opponent or let them be one ahead but you have a 3/3? Being able to knock them down to seventeen on turn two seems great but they will be closer to a removal spell with there increased mana and slightly thinned deck, albeit of one card. I think what really makes this decision easy for me is Fatal Push, a card they could cast on turn one anyway so all you would have done is give them a free ramp spell in exchange for a removal spell, not a bad trade off but there are better things to do and from that point you're just falling behind. Great in limited where removal is more scarce and more expensive but you still have the same dilemma about keeping up with lands.

Pounce

Great limited trick, cheap to cast and can blindside your opponent. It works really well with all these big dinosaurs running about it you could just end Of turn Pounce to get a blocker out of the way with one of your smaller creatures and just hope they don't have a pump spell.

Ranging Raptors

A good creature for limited because it comes down early, attacks and blocks well enough and even if you block and Ranging Raptors dies you're still a turn ahead on mana and it can fix your colours. It's a bit costly and slow for constructed, you'd need to be able to consistently deal it damage enough that it wouldn't die but you can get the ramp effect and that's a few too many hoops to jump through.

Ravenous Daggertooth

Another good three drop for limited, more on the aggressive side this with more power so there is potential for trading up and gaining life in the process. Multiples play well as they throw off combat maths and if you can pump it and keep it around the value keeps going up and up. Play this in limited if you're playing green and even if you're not it's easy to splash.

Ripjaw Raptor

I love this guy because he's just straight up value. It's on the curve nicely, blocks and attacks really well and you can net a card from Ripjaw Raptor just by doing exactly that. It's a great card to have in limited in your four drop slot and there is a chance it could make its way into constructed although it may be a tad slow.

River Herald's Boon

This could turn out to be a fantastic combat trick in limited given the right deck. Playing Merfolk would give you maximum value out of River Herald's Boon but even failing that it's still two mana for a permanent power toughness increase. You play this if you're playing green in limited almost all the time but like I said Merfolk is the best place for it.

Savage Stomp

Fight is back in Ixalan and with all these huge dinosaurs they're going to be some big fights. At three mana Savage Stomp is a good removal spell, pumping your creature possibly to the bare minimum of power to perform in said fight or even put it just out of reach in order to win the fight and remain in play. Like I said, with the big dinosaurs in Ixalan it would be a no brainier to choose one of them you have in play to fight and if you do you get a nice two mana discount on Savage Stomp. It then essentially turns into a one mana removal spell with your dinosaurs and excuse of that I think it's going to be an all star in limited.

Shapers' Sanctuary

Not really sure about this one, I'm sure Shapers' Sanctuary could be used in some sort of weird combo deck to get some value but it relies heavily on your opponent having targeted spells and abilities and when you give you opponent the choice it's not always the best outcome for you. There's a shout for the twenty third card in limited but there are better one drops and even if you really needed one, another land could even be better. Competitive constructed doesn't need this, it's slow and has no immediate impact despite how cute it could be.

Slice In Twain

Great sideboard card, replaces itself and it's an instant, not really maindeckable in limited but it's definitely playable as a sideboard card there too.

Snapping Sailback

You're not going to struggle for top end cards in this limited format thanks to all the massive dinosaurs. Getting to those cards could be the issue so getting through the mid game would be your plan to ensure enough mana to play those bombs, that's where Snapping Sailback comes in. It's splashable which makes it easy to play and versatile as well but it's also just good as a creature in most situations, being able to double up as an instant speed threat or an instant speed blocker that turns into a 5/5. Failing some removal spell a 5/5 Sailback Snapper is very difficult to attack through or block profitably and has the potential to grow even bigger, I think it's going to be a powerhouse in limited and you'll get your opponent so many times with this.

Spike-Tailed Ceratops

Another good limited creature that can help get you through the mid game, Spikes Ceratops is also very hard to attack through being able to block two creatures and if couple with a pump spell could deal with both. You play it because it's easy to cast and strong.

Thundering Spineback

This is your game winner in limited, if left unchecked the sheer power and board advantage will just overwhelm your opponent. It is costly but it's equally as powerful, enabling you to create 4/4 Tramplers each turn which is why you should be playing this all the time in green. Unfortunately it doesn't have a place in constructed despite how powerful it is mainly for being too slow.

Tishana's Wayfinder

Good early game creature, three mana for a 2/2 that draws a card is fine and a 3/3 on turn three is even better. Easy to splash so if you need another creature and your playing even the smallest amount of green look no further than Tishana's Wayfinder.

Verdant Rebirth

Not hot on this card, unless you have a lot of creatures all with good enter the battlefield triggers or just outright big creatures, I don't see this being particularly effective. In limited there's a shout for it because it actually nets you a card by replacing itself and giving you your creature back but it feels a bit lackluster and another creature would provide a similar effect.

Verdant Sun's Avatar

Close to game winning in limited because it can pull you back into the game and then start taking you out of reach from your opponents damage. A green bomb dinosaur like Verdant Sun's Avatar would really benefit from a lot of ramp to power it out and start controlling the game, make sure to have a creature or two to drop afterwards though.

Vineshaper Mystic

Green three drops in Ixalan are pretty good and Vineshaper Mystic is one of them. Obviously it would be nuts in your limited Merfolk deck providing you with faster clock, but even on its own it's a three mana 2/4. Splashable and cheap, you will get work out of Vineshaper Mystic in combat, it being very good at gumming up the ground.

Waker Of The Wilds

Waker Of The Wilds is a limited bomb, being able to animate your lands each turn will very quickly overwhelm your opponent, and they can be as big as you want, attack right away or become a surprise blocker. Play Waker Of The Wilds in green as it won't perform well in a three plus colour deck because you need to devote a fair bit of green to mana to it.

Wildgrowth Walker

Wildgrowth Walker is a little confusing, not in a bad way, the amount of Explore in this set makes it incredibly playable in limited and potentially powerful. Even Exploring once nets you three life and give you a 2/4 and it's easy to get Wildgrowth Walker to a 3/5 or 4/6. It's splashable which means you can put it in your heavy Explore deck with light green.

We're nearing the end of the week which means its getting close to the end of the set review but fear not, there is a little more to come. Check back to Game Changers tomorrow for all the multicoloured cards in Ixalan.