Welcome back to the Daily Dose of Guilds of Ravnica, where it's going to be a legendary day!
Today I'll be talking about three new legendary creatures, all of which portray some of the more iconic characters in Magic history. With the recent surge of legendary creatures in Dominaria, it's great to see a few more pop up in this set. Each of them seems very powerful, which is why there's such a heavy dependence on coloured mana cost to cast them. These guild leaders are sure to make an impact in Limited and, with the right build, could see some Standard play as well.
I want to start off by talking about Dimir's guild leader who only costs two mana. Let's take a look at Lazav, the Multifarious:
To start off you get a 1/3 for a black and a blue with an enter the battlefield ability to surveil 1. Pretty solid return for just two mana.
Lazav's casting cost is a bit deceiving however. If you want to start getting extra value out of this shapeshifter, the mana only really starts flowing once he's on the battlefield. Gaining extra value out of your graveyard with this ability lets your dead creatures come back to life through the power of Lazav, the Multifarious. Of course, your creatures don’t have to die to use this ability thanks to the power of surveil. This ability could become mana intensive, depending on the creature you target, but remember that the change is permanent once you copy a creature and it won’t go away at the end of your turn.
Next up we have the Golgari guild leader that you want to play later in the game with a graveyard full of creatures. Here is Izoni, Thousand-Eyed:
One of my favourite cards over the past couple of years was Ishkanah, Grafwidow. This card reminds of that, and gets me just as excited. Sure, the tokens it creates aren’t as good as 1/2 Spiders with reach, but there is the opportunity to make much more than three tokens when you cast Izoni, Thousand-Eyed. As a bonus cherry on top, that pile of chump blockers you just created can become fodder to help you gain life and draw cards on future turns. This card is a tad expensive with a cost of six, but the value it creates will often outweigh its high mana cost.
And last but not least, we have a legendary creature we’ve seen a few times before that's back better than ever before, Niv-Mizzet, Parun:
Niv-Mizzet is back and ready to battle!
I'm already dreaming of casting Sarkhan, Fireblood on turn three followed by Niv-Mizzet, Parun on turn four. Your opponent can't counter it and any removal spells they cast will still net you one card and one damage to any target. Still a reasonable return against your opponent’s removal spell.
If it can stick on the battlefield until your next turn, the value will start to increase ten-fold. All your instant and sorcery spells become cantrips that draw cards, and each card drawn lets you get in some extra damage. And don’t forget, it’s also a 5/5 Flying creature, meaning it’s only a four-turn clock to kill your opponent. I look forward to playing this Dragon and building either a Grixis or Jeskai deck around it.
There you have it, three legendary creatures that you can look forward to playing in a few short weeks. Which one has you the most excited?
Thanks again for reading the Daily Dose of Guilds of Ravnica. Join me again next week as we continue to review new cards and get closer to a full set reveal. I’ve already booked my prerelease spot, but I’m still undecided on which guild to choose. Hopefully next week will shed some light on my choice.
