The Top 20

Once again, Wizards has provided us with a wealth of new Battle Box cards:

20. Pledge of Unity

The only reason this is on this list is that these effects are usually at sorcery speed. Having one available at instant speed opens up a whole new range of shenanigans. For what is does, I think it is reasonably priced as well.

19. Wanderer’s Strike

Removal is always good (although this one doesn’t require much strategic thought). I would only include this in boxes that can really use the proliferate rider.

18. Tibalt, Rakish Instigator

Shutting off lifegain will not do much in most boxes. Creating 1/1 devils that ping any target for 1 does provide some potential for fun. A nice card for lower powered boxes.

17. Soul Diviner

This seems very versatile. Unconditional card draw is usually a bit too powerful, so it’s good that you need a counter first. In modern Magic, this does not seem like a difficult requirement however, so time will tell if this proves too powerful or a dud.

16. Spark Harvest

As I have said before, I prefer conditional removal over things like Murder. Here, you either pay too much, or you have to sacrifice a creature. Being able to target planeswalkers will become more and more important with this new set out.

15. Kaya, Bane of the Dead

Her anti-hexproof ability could be useful in some boxes, and having the power to exile two creatures on consecutive turns will certainly raise some eyebrows. I think people will do their best to remove this in the turn between.

14. Rescuer Sphinx

This really only becomes good when you have a permanent to return to your hand. However, since that can also be a depleted planeswalker or a creature with an ETB trigger, this has the potential to be really good. And if it’s not, a 3/2 flyer is still decent enough most of the time.

13. Feather, the Redeemed

The rate is good, although the color requirements are quite heavy. I think you should only consider this if your box contains a certain number of combat tricks (as many boxes do). At that point, Feather really gets a chance to shine.

12. Domri, Anarch of Bolas

Because Domri can only function with some other creatures around, I think he is the right power level for the Battle Box format. +1/+0 is OK, an extra mana is certainly useful, and fighting your opponent’s annoying utility creatures can also be powerful. Or not; but that’s a good thing.

11. Angrath’s Rampage

Sacrifice cards are always a gamble. They allow you to work around hexproof and indestructible and similar abilities, but as soon as your opponent has a 1/1 goblin token they become pretty much useless. This card circumvents that downside by letting you choose another permanent type instead. It still has limitations, but I think I would include this if my box had enough artifacts and planeswalkers.

10. Vivien, Champion of the Wilds

Creatures with flash can create some wacky combat situations, and giving a creature vigilance and reach gives you a good chance you’ll be able to protect Vivien as well. Her -2 ability may prove to be a bit too good, because in most Battle Boxes you are almost guaranteed to hit at least 1 creature every time.

9. Ral’s Outburst

Direct damage combined with card selection and card draw is a pretty potent package. But then again, it costs 4 mana, which makes it a fine power level for most boxes.

8. Jiang Yanggu, Wildcrafter

One of the most innocuous planeswalkers in the set, I think Jiang can actually do some nice work. It works well if your box has a way to proliferate the +1/+1 counters, but even just the mana boost will help in the early turns of the game. And because its ability only costs -1, it works especially well with proliferate effects.

7. Grateful Apparition

It’s a clean version of a “proliferate by damaging an opponent” card. And as a 1/1 flyer for 2 it’s both fast and vulnerable enough to create some fun tension. Of course, only put it in boxes where there’s plenty to proliferate.

6. Angrath, Captain of Chaos

Giving your team menace has the potential to be a game changer or a dud. That’s perfect. And in my experience the amass 2 also provides some nice tension as you have to decide whether to block with your 2/2 or give it a chance to grow to a 4/4 on the next turn.

5. Flux Channeler

Similar to the apparition, this gives a nice elegant way to proliferate. The fact that it stays active after you’ve played all your lands and it can proliferate at instant speed give this the edge over Evolution Sage

4. Spark Double

It’s a clone, but it enters with a +1/+1 counter. It can copy planeswalkers. It can copy legendary creatures. This has so much upside it’s almost crazy to think clones were once the benchmark for this type of card. I think most of the upsides will lead to fun situations, although the card does have the potential to get out of hand. If that happens sometimes but not too often, I would be happy to have this in any box.

3. Krenko, Tin Street Kingpin

He’s not very strong when he hits the table. But he does get stronger by attacking (before blocking) and he can grow an army of goblins quite quickly if he’s unopposed for a turn or two. Vulnerable, wacky and with a high ceiling, it’s a perfect Battle Box card.

2. Dreadhorde Butcher

Finding good aggro cards to put into Battle Boxes is not easy. Most aggro cards are too weak after 3-4 turns to warrant inclusion. With the Butcher, we have a nice addition to the list. It needs to connect at least once to be really worth the two mana, but with haste that might occur more often than you think. And even if it doesn’t, dealing 1 damage to any target can already be a useful feature. I’m not by nature a Rakdos mage, but I must say Wizards has been doing some great work at making the Rakdos cards more interesting.

1. Saheeli, Sublime Artificer

I love Saheeli. Her triggered ability can put 1/1 servo tokens on the table quickly, while her loyalty ability can turn those same tokens into almost anything. Sometimes all she’ll do is turn out 2 or 3 chump blockers, and sometimes she’ll hit hard with a copy of your biggest dude. All of that for only 3 mana. Love it.

That’s it for today. Don’t forget to check out the War of the Spark Mini Battle Box. As you may expect of a set like this, it has a ton of flavor and wacky interactions, and I think it is really worth building. Next week, we’ll see Modern Horizons hit the shelves. It won’t be available on Arena, so I won’t get to draft it as much as the Standard sets. That’s a pity, but it does mean you will not have to wait so long for my next set review. See you soon!