Welcome back A Seat at the Table! It’s time for round two on my favourite cards from Dominaria United! This set has a lot of fun to it, but it’s pretty difficult to pick for each colour because so many of them are multicoloured! Let’s take a look at my favourite cards divided by colour as best as I can.
RED
I love this kind of chaos effect. Especially with a guaranteed hit. It makes it possible to build around a single enchantment. There are plenty of ways to churn out creature and artifact tokens which you can turn into something valuable from your deck. Turn your opponent’s Nykthos into a basic land. Get rid of Smothering Tithe and have them turn it into something else. Not to mention getting rid of a planeswalker rarely leads to another planeswalker coming out. Yeah, it’s six mana, but it changes the game. Have a little fun!
Jaya is a pretty flexible and strong planeswalker. Of course, you’ll want to play her in decks where you play red instants and/or sorceries like storm or spellslinger decks. I have a Zaffai, Thunder Conductor deck that’s going to want to try this out. Being able to create Monks with prowess is a solid uptick, but that -1 is the one that’s got me eager to try this with Prosper, Tome-Bound and Faldorn, Dread Wolf Herald.
The Defiler cycle is really powerful in permanent based decks of certain colours and the red one gets the nod here despite my extreme excitement for Squee’s return. I’m disappointed in the Squee card, it’s basically got Escape, that’s fine, whatever, it’s okay.
This Defiler though! It’s brutal. A 4/4 for four with First Strike is already great, but then it makes it so permanent spells cost you two life instead of one of your red pips. Curse of Opulence only costs you two life and lets you ping anything for one damage. Give this deathtouch with like Basilisk Collar and you’ll take down a board with your basically free goblin spells. It has other applications in that now Prosper, Tome Bound costs three mana and two life. Anje Falkenrath costs two and two life. Ragavan, Nimble Pilferer costs just two life. Can you infinitely bounce Rograkh, Son of Rohgahh back to your hand with Defiler of Instinct in play? It’s time to shuffle up, buddy, you’ve got the win.
Honorable Mentions: Keldon Flamesage, Rundvelt Hordemaster, Shivan Devastator, Squee, Dubious Monarch, Twinferno
GREEN
I’m going to start off by reminding anybody who has ever read me and welcome those who haven’t to my opinion on the colour Green in Magic: The Gathering – I think Green is too easy. The entire Defiler cycle is powerful, but compare this green one to the White or Black ones and you’re like “who the hell okayed this card”. If you cast a Green permanent – a colour that largely plays mostly permanents – put a +1/+1 counter on EACH creature you control. Not to mention that instead of having to spend mana on that Llanowar Elves, you can pay two life. Save your mana and pump your team. Meanwhile the Black one says target creature gets a temporary buff and evasion. Come on. This thing is disgusto busto!
Give the creature colour the best Swiss-army knife they could ever ask for, go ahead. For five mana, you get the beefiest ape shaman – oh yeah, shaman, say hi to Harmonic Prodigy – that destroys an artifact or enchantment, finds you a land to play from the top five cards of your library, or gains you four life… whenever you CAST A CREATURE SPELL! This colour has it so easy, this creature’s so damn good. It’s hard to talk about it because it does it all already.
Elfball decks get one of the best lords they could ask for. Two mana gets you an Elven anthem and a Lifecrafter’s Bestiary triggered ability for elves stapled to a synergistic creature. It’s fair to say if this comes down early, the table has to have their eyes set on the Elves player immediately. This turbo charges a deck whose top speed is already rivalled only by very few other archetypes.
Honorable Mentions: Floriferous Vinewall, Quirion Beastcaller, Slimefoot’s Survey, Threats Undetected, The World Spell
ARTIFACTS (And One Land)
I could faint. I love this card. Two mana that scries every time a creature you control dies, then starts drawing cards instead when you hit seven counters or seven deaths. It’s a flying 5/5 once you hit four counters. It’s a beloved vehicle from the history of Magic that’s been corrupted, it’s a vehicle without a crew cost. What’s not to like. Kotori, Pilot Prodigy and Astor, Bearer of Blades will want this no doubt, but I want this mostly for Lyzolda, the Blood Witch, my pet aristocrats deck, and of course my Thalisse, Reverent Medium deck. I really, really love this card.
If there’s ever been a card in a recent set that screams “every commander deck”, it’s this one. A land that taps for colourless or for any colour for legendary spells is already good. But then it becomes a legendary-matters Meteor Crater a la Mox Amber. Fantastic. Then, it can protect a legendary creature of your choice by giving it hexproof and indestructible until end of turn. Better look out for Farewell, but hot damn, this is spicy. Any deck that needs to protect their legends and has a heavily multicoloured commander needs this. Hell, monocoloured decks could use this. I love this land.
I love Honor-Worn Shaku. I was upset to realize this doesn’t untap by tapping legendary permanents in general. But, instead, we get an Urza, Lord High Artificer-esque way to turn our legendary creatures into mana dorks. King Macar, the Gold-Cursed decks will be stoked to pack this in their 99. Any commander that doesn’t like being goaded can use this to tap it down. This is my favourite mana rock in a little while. Pick yours up while they’re cheap!
Honorary Mentions: Golden Argosy, Karn’s Sylex, Inscribed Tablet, Jodah’s Codex, the common dual tap-lands that have land types.
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