It’s that time again, all of the Mythic Rares are waiting for us to sift through them to find the true gems of Dominaria. So, without further ado let’s get started.
Chandra, Bold Pyromancer
The Planeswalker deck Chandra is a very straight forward card. For six mana she gets a starting loyalty of five, which isn’t bad as far as things go, and with a plus one ability and a minus seven ultimate it won’t take long for Chandra to really show what she’s made of. Speaking of her plus one ability, there are two parts to it: adding two red mana and Shocking your opponent. I’m much more interested in the damage portion of this ability because it gives you an inherent sense of tempo and pressure every turn for free. In my opinion the mana isn’t anything special, you’re already at six mana to be able to cast Chandra, Bold Pyromancer, though being able to cast multiple spells in a turn also ups the pressure. Chandra’s second ability is the typical defensive red ability, dealing damage to an opposing creature in order to protect herself. Chandra doesn’t just protect herself from creatures though and in a nice addition she can target planeswalkers too. Targeting planeswalkers could help against slower or more controlling decks that rely less on creatures, while also giving you an avenue to attack planeswalkers without actually attacking with creatures. Chandra’s ultimate essentially wipes the board of any planeswalker or creature based threats by hitting everything your opponent controls for ten damage including them. Even though she’s in the planeswalker deck and she is a simplified version, Chandra, Bold Pyromancer hits everything a good planeswalker needs to hit: thematic offensive ability, defensive second ability and devastating ultimate. She isn’t going to see any constructed play and obviously won’t see the light of day in limited but Chandra, Bold Pyromancer checks the Mythic Rare box nice and neatly.
Darigaaz Reincarnated
The power, the flavour, the art, everything about Darigaaz Reincarnated is right on the money for a Mythic Rare. I like the clean design of this big scary dragon: seven mana for a 7/7, three colours, three egg counters, everything about it just feels right. Darigaaz is a limited bomb thanks to the evasion and enhanced attacking potential (Flying, Trample and Haste) and if it was giving a chance in constructed I’m sure it could put all of those to good use there too. However, at seven mana and being such a late game spell I don’t think Darigaaz will see constructed play. If you can cheat on mana and drop him earlier than normal then of course Darigaaz would be insane and maybe that’s a viable strategy. Though, I don’t see it being as effective as it sounds, if Darigaaz was met with a counterspell for example. There is also a lot of removal that exiles creatures in standard at the moment so you won’t even get everything out of Darigaaz that you could. With all that said, Darigaaz definitely hits the Mythic Rare status even if it’s just on flavour and story. The power level of this seven mana dragon is up there which is the cherry on this scaley, fire-breathing cake.
Demonlord Belzenlok
Liliana’s last demonic foe, her last hurdle between servitude and utter freedom and power. Belzenlok is a typical, sneaky demon and he offers the potential for great power but at a price. You’re always going to get at least one card off of him in exchange for one life but both of those could increase so be careful, all of that damage for cards can add up. His ability is by the by and as a creature he’s a huge threat, the thing that puts Belzenlok into the Mythic Rare bracket though is his tie to the current story. Belzenlok is the last of the demons Liliana needs to destroy to be free of her contract and it looks like they’ve saved the best till last. Belzenlok is intimidating, powerful and incredibly thematic, the neat little bow on the design? He comes with all the sixes like a demon should.
History Of Benalia
History Of Benalia is a great early to mid game enchantment, it provides creatures and a big bonus for them at the end. However, I’m not convinced that it should’ve been a Mythic Rare, it doesn’t seem to distant from the power level of a simple Rare. Three mana gets you two power, over the next two turns that two power can turn into eight (four power from both of the 2/2’s History Of Benalia makes). Of course it can effect other knights you control which pushes the power level up a notch but not enough for me. History Of Benalia doesn’t hit the mark, I think it would’ve been perfectly fine as a Rare, even if it may have been a little pushed in comparison.
Jaya Ballard
Jaya may be one of my favourite characters in the Multiverse. I loved her card back in Time Spiral, acting as a Swiss Army knife of abilities, and her story throughout Magic’s history is one of the more interesting ones. As a planeswalker Jaya is awkward to cast and very narrow, which may have made you think that I wouldn’t like her, you’re wrong. Yes, her mana cost contains triple red which means a devotion to a single colour restricting deck options, though her starting five loyalty and two plus abilities are a nice trade off. Her first ability is a nice amount of mana ramp but for a specific use, this means a heavy reliance on instants and sorceries though that isn’t a downside as blue red control decks have been around for a while now. Jaya’s second plus ability essentially takes the place of any self-protection ability and instead gives you card selection. Card selection can prove incredibly powerful in the right decks and the fact that you can discard and draw up to three cards makes it very useful for digging through your library. Lastly, Jaya gives you an emblem that brings the first two abilities together in letting you cast instants or sorceries from your graveyard. Without a defensive ability it’s hard for me to justify the investment of Jaya Ballard, she does provide two nice plus abilities but even with them she is very narrow. Down to the sheer power she can represent I’m going to say that she hits the Mythic status but it’s a tight one.
Jhoira, Weatherlight Captain
Honestly, I have no idea what Jhoira is doing at Mythic Rare. A four mana 3/3 with a card draw effect isn’t enough for me, I understand that she is one of the poster characters for Dominaria but I don’t think she should get Mythic status just for that. I think she would have done fine at Rare, not too weak, not too pushed.
Karn, Scion Of Urza
Speaking of poster characters for Dominaria, Karn is full of history, flavour and lore which is a part of him being a Mythic Rare. The main reason for the Mythic Rare status, apart from being a planeswalker, is that he is stupid powerful. Four mana planeswalkers are usually pretty good - Chandra, Torch Of Defiance, Jace The Mindsculptor - and Karn trumps them by being colourless making it easy for any deck to play him. The card draw from both the first abilities can become overwhelming for your opponent and his last ability to make creatures is designed to snowball. All in all Karn is a slam-dunk Mythic, he hits it on all accounts: power level, flavour and constructed ability. Get ready to see a lot of him.
Lyra Dawnbringer
This one is easy for me. Baneslayer Angel was a Mythic Rare and Lyra is everything Baneslayer was with a better effect. The big difference is that Lyra is a legendary creature which is a good move, you never really needed two Baneslayer Angel but if you had two there was almost nothing your opponent could do when you gained ten life each turn. So it’s safe to say that the power level is there and obviously Lyra will see constructed play for sure, the last point is the flavour. Lyra is a relation of Reya Dawnbringer, an angel from a long time ago that lead the Serra Angels against the Phyrexian invasion. With everything taken into account, Lyra definitely hits Mythic Rare status and deservedly so. This five mana bomb is going to win you a lot of games and, on the flip side, going to wreck your plans if left unchecked.
Mox Amber
Those of you that have read my set review will know that I don’t like Mox Amber, just because a card has the word “Mox” on it that doesn’t make it good. I just think that Mox Amber isn’t going to live up to the Mox name with the hoops you have to jump through. First you have to control a legendary creature or planeswalker, doesn’t sound too hard right? But you also have to keep them around for Mox Amber to be any use whatsoever, even then it only adds one colour from legendary creatures or planeswalkers you control which could leave you in an awkward position if your mana screwed. Obviously a Mox can’t be a Rare it has to be a Mythic Rare, though I don’t like it as a Mythic Rare and for me it doesn’t hit the mark it needs to. Maybe I’m wrong and I’ll hold my hands up if I am but this is very underwhelming to me.
Muldrotha, the Gravetide
I love this card. The three colours lend very nicely to commander of brawl, the ability is splashy as hell and the power and toughness are brilliantly on curve in relation to the mana cost. However, for me Muldrotha could’ve been a Rare. The power level of this ability seems incredibly strong but in reality you’re still probably going to be playing only one spell per turn, so what Muldrotha actually does it open up your graveyard as a resource. Taking everything into consideration, Muldrotha probably didn’t need to be a Mythic Rare, you don’t want this running around the limited tables as much as a normal Rare but the three colours would’ve restricted that nicely.
Multani, Yavimaya’s Avatar
The flavour is on point here, along with the power level and playability. It’s not constructed playable with a lack of immediate impact but limited decks will love Multani for the incredibly power it can offer. Multani hits Mythic Rare for me on the whole because of the ties to the lore and its potential to be huge and difficult to deal with.
Naru Meha, Master Wizard
Naru Meha falls into the same category as Jhoira for me: a four mana 3/3 with a slightly underwhelming effect. The potential to copy an instant or sorcery spell you control could hold a lot of power but the fact that it’s just one that you control obviously restricts that power. As a Flash creature Naru Meha could be a surprise blocker and she does pump your other wizards which is also a nice “gotcha” situation to be in. As is with Jhoira though, I think Naru Meha would have made a fine Rare without having to push anything too much.
Phyrexian Scriptures
Wizards obviously want to push the Sagas, being a new card type and everything, and the design space they open up is pretty neat. Ultimately though, all of these abilities don’t add up to a Mythic Rare in my opinion: making a creature bigger is fine, Wrathing non-artifact creatures is fine, exiling your opponent’s graveyard is fine. For four mana, and waiting a couple of turns, Phyrexian Scriptures holds a lot of power, if you get maximum effect of the abilities then you’re golden. However, if your opponent is able to deal with this four mana enchantment after the first ability then you’ve grossly overpaid for a +1/+1 counter. Phyrexian Scriptures would’ve been fine at a Rare because it doesn’t really push any boundaries, the only reason it is a Mythic Rare is to show off the new design space but I think the power level could’ve been upped a bit. Doesn’t hit that Mythic Rare status for me.
Teferi, Hero Of Dominaria
Love it, love everything about Teferi. This is a very well designed planeswalker that keeps in flavour with the character (messing with time in a sense of removing creatures for a handful of turns), the power level that a planeswalker deserves (a great tempo aligned plus ability, defensive minus ability and big splashy ultimate) and primed for constructed playability. Teferi, Hero Of Dominaria hits the Mythic Rare status and then some for me.
Teferi, Timebender
As the Planeswalker deck Teferi, Teferi, Timebender is good. He doesn’t really defend himself but does gain your life and card advantage in exchange, leaving you to find a way to protect him. His plus ability is tempo inspired, being able to give a creature pseudo-Vigilance, and his ultimate is incredibly powerful but does leave you to insert the power based on what pressure you can apply using that extra turn. Hits the Mythic status for me and could even see constructed play with an ultimate like that.
Verix Bladewing
Unfortunately, I feel Verix is another card that was given Mythic Status mainly because of the tie to the lore. It’s not a bad history to have, being a decent of Rorix Bladewing and being able to produce a sibling with enough mana. Four mana for a 4/4 are fine stats and the Kicker cost for three doubling the amount of dragons does push up the power level, I feel that Verix could’ve been pushed a little more by giving him Haste and it probably wouldn’t have been too broken. Taking this all into consideration, Verix does deserve the Mythic Rare status as he checks the lore box, power level box and constructed playability box very nicely.
Weatherlight
Lastly, we have the Weatherlight. I’m not going to be coy, this four mana artifacts smashes the Mythic Rare status on all counts. It’s super flavourful (being a returning character from Magic’s history), very powerful as a Flying 4/5 creature, ties the themes of the art together being able to find Historic cards, and looks very constructed playable in a Vehicles deck. The Weatherlight is iconic with Magic in the same way Karn, Teferi and Jhoira are which is why it’s showcased so perfectly in Dominaria. Having the Weatherlight as an actual vehicle this time around rather than an artifact has opened up more design space and I think it’s been used very well. Love it.
So that’s all of the Mythic Rare cards from Dominaria. A nice mix of power levels, flavour and playability, maybe it’s given you some ideas for decks in the future or maybe just more of an insight into the story of Dominaria.
If you are looking to grab any of the cards we’ve looked at today be sure to check out Arcanecardshop.co.uk and remember to keep checking back to Game Changers for more gaming news and updates.
Chandra, Bold Pyromancer
The Planeswalker deck Chandra is a very straight forward card. For six mana she gets a starting loyalty of five, which isn’t bad as far as things go, and with a plus one ability and a minus seven ultimate it won’t take long for Chandra to really show what she’s made of. Speaking of her plus one ability, there are two parts to it: adding two red mana and Shocking your opponent. I’m much more interested in the damage portion of this ability because it gives you an inherent sense of tempo and pressure every turn for free. In my opinion the mana isn’t anything special, you’re already at six mana to be able to cast Chandra, Bold Pyromancer, though being able to cast multiple spells in a turn also ups the pressure. Chandra’s second ability is the typical defensive red ability, dealing damage to an opposing creature in order to protect herself. Chandra doesn’t just protect herself from creatures though and in a nice addition she can target planeswalkers too. Targeting planeswalkers could help against slower or more controlling decks that rely less on creatures, while also giving you an avenue to attack planeswalkers without actually attacking with creatures. Chandra’s ultimate essentially wipes the board of any planeswalker or creature based threats by hitting everything your opponent controls for ten damage including them. Even though she’s in the planeswalker deck and she is a simplified version, Chandra, Bold Pyromancer hits everything a good planeswalker needs to hit: thematic offensive ability, defensive second ability and devastating ultimate. She isn’t going to see any constructed play and obviously won’t see the light of day in limited but Chandra, Bold Pyromancer checks the Mythic Rare box nice and neatly.
Darigaaz Reincarnated
The power, the flavour, the art, everything about Darigaaz Reincarnated is right on the money for a Mythic Rare. I like the clean design of this big scary dragon: seven mana for a 7/7, three colours, three egg counters, everything about it just feels right. Darigaaz is a limited bomb thanks to the evasion and enhanced attacking potential (Flying, Trample and Haste) and if it was giving a chance in constructed I’m sure it could put all of those to good use there too. However, at seven mana and being such a late game spell I don’t think Darigaaz will see constructed play. If you can cheat on mana and drop him earlier than normal then of course Darigaaz would be insane and maybe that’s a viable strategy. Though, I don’t see it being as effective as it sounds, if Darigaaz was met with a counterspell for example. There is also a lot of removal that exiles creatures in standard at the moment so you won’t even get everything out of Darigaaz that you could. With all that said, Darigaaz definitely hits the Mythic Rare status even if it’s just on flavour and story. The power level of this seven mana dragon is up there which is the cherry on this scaley, fire-breathing cake.
Demonlord Belzenlok
Liliana’s last demonic foe, her last hurdle between servitude and utter freedom and power. Belzenlok is a typical, sneaky demon and he offers the potential for great power but at a price. You’re always going to get at least one card off of him in exchange for one life but both of those could increase so be careful, all of that damage for cards can add up. His ability is by the by and as a creature he’s a huge threat, the thing that puts Belzenlok into the Mythic Rare bracket though is his tie to the current story. Belzenlok is the last of the demons Liliana needs to destroy to be free of her contract and it looks like they’ve saved the best till last. Belzenlok is intimidating, powerful and incredibly thematic, the neat little bow on the design? He comes with all the sixes like a demon should.
History Of Benalia
History Of Benalia is a great early to mid game enchantment, it provides creatures and a big bonus for them at the end. However, I’m not convinced that it should’ve been a Mythic Rare, it doesn’t seem to distant from the power level of a simple Rare. Three mana gets you two power, over the next two turns that two power can turn into eight (four power from both of the 2/2’s History Of Benalia makes). Of course it can effect other knights you control which pushes the power level up a notch but not enough for me. History Of Benalia doesn’t hit the mark, I think it would’ve been perfectly fine as a Rare, even if it may have been a little pushed in comparison.
Jaya Ballard
Jaya may be one of my favourite characters in the Multiverse. I loved her card back in Time Spiral, acting as a Swiss Army knife of abilities, and her story throughout Magic’s history is one of the more interesting ones. As a planeswalker Jaya is awkward to cast and very narrow, which may have made you think that I wouldn’t like her, you’re wrong. Yes, her mana cost contains triple red which means a devotion to a single colour restricting deck options, though her starting five loyalty and two plus abilities are a nice trade off. Her first ability is a nice amount of mana ramp but for a specific use, this means a heavy reliance on instants and sorceries though that isn’t a downside as blue red control decks have been around for a while now. Jaya’s second plus ability essentially takes the place of any self-protection ability and instead gives you card selection. Card selection can prove incredibly powerful in the right decks and the fact that you can discard and draw up to three cards makes it very useful for digging through your library. Lastly, Jaya gives you an emblem that brings the first two abilities together in letting you cast instants or sorceries from your graveyard. Without a defensive ability it’s hard for me to justify the investment of Jaya Ballard, she does provide two nice plus abilities but even with them she is very narrow. Down to the sheer power she can represent I’m going to say that she hits the Mythic status but it’s a tight one.
Jhoira, Weatherlight Captain
Honestly, I have no idea what Jhoira is doing at Mythic Rare. A four mana 3/3 with a card draw effect isn’t enough for me, I understand that she is one of the poster characters for Dominaria but I don’t think she should get Mythic status just for that. I think she would have done fine at Rare, not too weak, not too pushed.
Karn, Scion Of Urza
Speaking of poster characters for Dominaria, Karn is full of history, flavour and lore which is a part of him being a Mythic Rare. The main reason for the Mythic Rare status, apart from being a planeswalker, is that he is stupid powerful. Four mana planeswalkers are usually pretty good - Chandra, Torch Of Defiance, Jace The Mindsculptor - and Karn trumps them by being colourless making it easy for any deck to play him. The card draw from both the first abilities can become overwhelming for your opponent and his last ability to make creatures is designed to snowball. All in all Karn is a slam-dunk Mythic, he hits it on all accounts: power level, flavour and constructed ability. Get ready to see a lot of him.
Lyra Dawnbringer
This one is easy for me. Baneslayer Angel was a Mythic Rare and Lyra is everything Baneslayer was with a better effect. The big difference is that Lyra is a legendary creature which is a good move, you never really needed two Baneslayer Angel but if you had two there was almost nothing your opponent could do when you gained ten life each turn. So it’s safe to say that the power level is there and obviously Lyra will see constructed play for sure, the last point is the flavour. Lyra is a relation of Reya Dawnbringer, an angel from a long time ago that lead the Serra Angels against the Phyrexian invasion. With everything taken into account, Lyra definitely hits Mythic Rare status and deservedly so. This five mana bomb is going to win you a lot of games and, on the flip side, going to wreck your plans if left unchecked.
Mox Amber
Those of you that have read my set review will know that I don’t like Mox Amber, just because a card has the word “Mox” on it that doesn’t make it good. I just think that Mox Amber isn’t going to live up to the Mox name with the hoops you have to jump through. First you have to control a legendary creature or planeswalker, doesn’t sound too hard right? But you also have to keep them around for Mox Amber to be any use whatsoever, even then it only adds one colour from legendary creatures or planeswalkers you control which could leave you in an awkward position if your mana screwed. Obviously a Mox can’t be a Rare it has to be a Mythic Rare, though I don’t like it as a Mythic Rare and for me it doesn’t hit the mark it needs to. Maybe I’m wrong and I’ll hold my hands up if I am but this is very underwhelming to me.
Muldrotha, the Gravetide
I love this card. The three colours lend very nicely to commander of brawl, the ability is splashy as hell and the power and toughness are brilliantly on curve in relation to the mana cost. However, for me Muldrotha could’ve been a Rare. The power level of this ability seems incredibly strong but in reality you’re still probably going to be playing only one spell per turn, so what Muldrotha actually does it open up your graveyard as a resource. Taking everything into consideration, Muldrotha probably didn’t need to be a Mythic Rare, you don’t want this running around the limited tables as much as a normal Rare but the three colours would’ve restricted that nicely.
Multani, Yavimaya’s Avatar
The flavour is on point here, along with the power level and playability. It’s not constructed playable with a lack of immediate impact but limited decks will love Multani for the incredibly power it can offer. Multani hits Mythic Rare for me on the whole because of the ties to the lore and its potential to be huge and difficult to deal with.
Naru Meha, Master Wizard
Naru Meha falls into the same category as Jhoira for me: a four mana 3/3 with a slightly underwhelming effect. The potential to copy an instant or sorcery spell you control could hold a lot of power but the fact that it’s just one that you control obviously restricts that power. As a Flash creature Naru Meha could be a surprise blocker and she does pump your other wizards which is also a nice “gotcha” situation to be in. As is with Jhoira though, I think Naru Meha would have made a fine Rare without having to push anything too much.
Phyrexian Scriptures
Wizards obviously want to push the Sagas, being a new card type and everything, and the design space they open up is pretty neat. Ultimately though, all of these abilities don’t add up to a Mythic Rare in my opinion: making a creature bigger is fine, Wrathing non-artifact creatures is fine, exiling your opponent’s graveyard is fine. For four mana, and waiting a couple of turns, Phyrexian Scriptures holds a lot of power, if you get maximum effect of the abilities then you’re golden. However, if your opponent is able to deal with this four mana enchantment after the first ability then you’ve grossly overpaid for a +1/+1 counter. Phyrexian Scriptures would’ve been fine at a Rare because it doesn’t really push any boundaries, the only reason it is a Mythic Rare is to show off the new design space but I think the power level could’ve been upped a bit. Doesn’t hit that Mythic Rare status for me.
Teferi, Hero Of Dominaria
Love it, love everything about Teferi. This is a very well designed planeswalker that keeps in flavour with the character (messing with time in a sense of removing creatures for a handful of turns), the power level that a planeswalker deserves (a great tempo aligned plus ability, defensive minus ability and big splashy ultimate) and primed for constructed playability. Teferi, Hero Of Dominaria hits the Mythic Rare status and then some for me.
Teferi, Timebender
As the Planeswalker deck Teferi, Teferi, Timebender is good. He doesn’t really defend himself but does gain your life and card advantage in exchange, leaving you to find a way to protect him. His plus ability is tempo inspired, being able to give a creature pseudo-Vigilance, and his ultimate is incredibly powerful but does leave you to insert the power based on what pressure you can apply using that extra turn. Hits the Mythic status for me and could even see constructed play with an ultimate like that.
Verix Bladewing
Unfortunately, I feel Verix is another card that was given Mythic Status mainly because of the tie to the lore. It’s not a bad history to have, being a decent of Rorix Bladewing and being able to produce a sibling with enough mana. Four mana for a 4/4 are fine stats and the Kicker cost for three doubling the amount of dragons does push up the power level, I feel that Verix could’ve been pushed a little more by giving him Haste and it probably wouldn’t have been too broken. Taking this all into consideration, Verix does deserve the Mythic Rare status as he checks the lore box, power level box and constructed playability box very nicely.
Weatherlight
Lastly, we have the Weatherlight. I’m not going to be coy, this four mana artifacts smashes the Mythic Rare status on all counts. It’s super flavourful (being a returning character from Magic’s history), very powerful as a Flying 4/5 creature, ties the themes of the art together being able to find Historic cards, and looks very constructed playable in a Vehicles deck. The Weatherlight is iconic with Magic in the same way Karn, Teferi and Jhoira are which is why it’s showcased so perfectly in Dominaria. Having the Weatherlight as an actual vehicle this time around rather than an artifact has opened up more design space and I think it’s been used very well. Love it.
So that’s all of the Mythic Rare cards from Dominaria. A nice mix of power levels, flavour and playability, maybe it’s given you some ideas for decks in the future or maybe just more of an insight into the story of Dominaria.
If you are looking to grab any of the cards we’ve looked at today be sure to check out Arcanecardshop.co.uk and remember to keep checking back to Game Changers for more gaming news and updates.
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