Wizards of the Coast has included eight Magic: The Gathering Commander cards in Phyrexia: All Will Be One set and collector booster packs, showcasing a variety of mechanics and callbacks.
Scheduled to release globally on Feb. 10, the Phyrexia: All Will Be One (ONE) set contains two preconstructed Commander decks and eight MTG Commander cards that players can crack open in set and collector booster packs. The regular version of the Commander cards will show up in set booster packs while the extended art versions are available only in collector booster packs.
Revealed today during MTGWeekly with game designers Corey Bowen and Adam Prosak, here are the eight Phyrexia: All Will Be One Commander cards players can pull in ONE set booster packs.
Urtet, Remnant of Memnarch
Myr returns in ONE Commander as a legendary creature with a five-color activated ability that puts three +1/+1 counters on each Myr you control. Urtet, Remnant of Memnarch creates a 1/1 Myr token each time you cast a Myr spell and can untap each Myr you control at the beginning of combat. The legendary Myr will become a staple within the MTG Commander format as Myr can tap for any color of mana, synergizing with Urtet, Remnant of Memnarch’s activated ability.
Skyhunter Strike Force
Skyhunter Strike Force showcases two older MTG mechanics: Melee and Lieutenant. The cat knight is a three-drop in White with 2/2 stats and Flying. The Melee mechanic allows Skyhunter Strike Force to gain +1/+1 stats for each opponent that was attacked that turn. And Lieutenant provides Melee to other creatures you control as long as you control your commander. Creature-heavy Commander builds that want multiple attacking creatures can benefit from Skyhunter Strike Force.
Mirage Mockery
Mirage Mockery is a modal Sorcery spell that lets players choose one upon casting and has Entwine as an additional cost to choose both options. For three mana, players can create a copy of a target Artifact creature they control or create a token of a target non-Artifact creature they control. And for an additional 2U mana, making it 4UU in total, players can choose both modes.
Cloning in Commander is a powerful mechanic and Mirage Mockery provides players with the flexibility to clone at will.
Synthesis Pod
Tapping into Phyrexian mana design, Synthesis Pod lets players cast cards from their opponent’s decks. The Artifact is slightly narrow, as the revealed card is mana equal to the exiled spell, plus one mana, you control. The ability on Synthesis Pod also has an additional activation cost.
Monumental Corruption
Card draw that can take out an opponent is what Monumental Corruption is all about. The five-drop Mono-Black Sorcery spell is slightly on the high side and requires Artifacts to get fully optimized. Monumental Corruption can draw cards for its controller in Artifact heavy decks, costing life for each card drawn. Or it can get applied to an opponent who has a bunch of Artifacts, potentially causing lethal damage.
Chiss-Goria, Forge Tyrant
Rebelling against the Phyrexian takeover of Mirrodin, Chiss-Goria returns to melt oil-ridden creatures in ONE Commander as Chiss-Goria, Forge Tyrant. The nine-drop dragon uses the MTG mechanic Affinity to reduce its casting cost, having Affinity for Artifacts. It can drop onto the battlefield for as little as three mana and has Flying and Haste.
Chiss-Goria, Forge Tyrant also has an ability that lets players cast an Artifact spell from the top five cards of their library—and it has Affinity for Artifacts as well, reducing its cost. Artifact-heavy decks will want Chiss-Goria as a top-end finisher in their Commander builds.
Tangleweave Armor
Living Weapon was an MTG mechanic used in Mirrodin Besieged that was adapted into For MIrrodin! within the ONE Standard set. The mechanic returns through Tangelweave Armor, a four-drop Equipment Artifact that gets +X/+X, where “X” is equal to the greatest mana among your commanders.
The idea behind Tangleweave Armor is cute and can provide monster stats to the equipped creature. But at an Equip cost of four and no other keywords like Trample, the Artifact Equipment is average at best.
Lux Artillery
Lux Artillery is a solid Artifact that takes advantage of the Sunburst mechanic, which was first printed in Fifth Dawn. Upon casting an Artifact creature, it gains Sunburst, putting a +1/+1 counter on it for each color of mana spent to cast the spell. The Artifact also has an ability that can end games at the beginning of its controller’s end step, if there are 30 or more counters among Artifacts and creatures you control.
Having alternative win conditions in Magic is a neat concept that the design team has been including in sets. Acquiring 30 counters isn’t easy and may have already ended the game depending on the counters. But knowing the win-con is there, especially with the increase of Oil counters in ONE, provides another fun aspect to playing Magic.
All images via WotC.
