Planeswalkers Invade Innistrad!

It's a Planeswalker Extravaganza! Spoiler season rolls onward in leaps and bounds with a new Planeswalker released each day this week! Wizards has been putting it's top personalities to task with such names as lovable pro player Luis Scott Vargas and streamer Gaby Spartz responsible for officially introducing us to these cards. The hype is real and InstantSpeedMTG brings you an in-depth analysis of our new favorite cards.

Large questions have loomed over Magic: The Gathering, players wondering ubiquitously where Nahiri was and when she would re-enter the lore. Now we know, not only where she is (here), but that hell follows her.

4 mana, 4 loyalty
Nahiri, The Harbinger is a practical, balanced Planeswalker at its 4 mana cost. It is cheap enough to curve into and still have cards one might be able to discard. Nahiri is vulnerable, as she doesn't quite protect herself and can be rattled pretty easily at 4 loyalty.

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  A "blind loot" ability is usable with tons of Madness cards in hand, but it remains to be seen how often Madness will show up in any format. The upside of this ability is that it is a +2, and not a +1, so although you will have to discard cards to build her up, you still may happily do so twice if it means getting to her third ability. The value of this card will not be in card value. however.

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 Your opponent will be less enthused about attacking Nahiri unless confident in being able to overcome her. This ability falls short of counting as protection, yet its range of targets gives her more versatility. Shadows Over Innistrad is also shaping up to be an enchantment heavy set, so this ability may prove more useful than it might have been in previous sets.


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Nahiri's third ability, typically not entered into the discussion of a Planeswalker card, is actually slightly more relevant given that, in a board stall, or with no cards in hand, one may simply +2 her, and decline to discard a card, thereby doing nothing, and building her up to becoming a deadly tutor.

InstantSpeedMTG broke this story for you as soon as the hints dropped. We made puerile predictions for this card that were mostly off, but we can be happy to stand corrected while checking out our newest Planeswalker in the pantheon, Arlinn Kord/Arlinn, Embraced by the Moon.

4 mana, 3 Loyalty
She is a young Planeswalker, as shown by her 3 loyalty points, yet can have a profound affect on the mid-game. She has a total of 5 planeswalker abilities, so 4 mana might be undervaluing Arlinn.

Arlinn Kord

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While necessary for strengthening her loyalty count and carrying her into the late game, this ability is actually on the short end of the effectiveness stick. You will be able to create one advantageous attack with this ability, which can sneak through 4-5 damage. This will be unlikely to create any change in the board state.

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Arlinn's transform ability is extra special, being the mode in which she protects herself as well. InstantSpeedMTG's preview of the card predicted some 2/2 beasts would be summoned, and boy are we happy to be right about that one. One will likely use this ability right off and transform Arlinn, starting a very comforting cycle that will be one of pain for your opponent.

Arlinn, Embraced by the Moon

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Storywise, we learn that because of her Planeswalker spark, she is able to retain the same consciousness (and power) in both of her forms. On the card, this means not only the ability to transform back and forth between forms, which is a first in Magic, but also means she can share with her team and grow as a Werewolf. This means great things for a player's board state, as using this ability will quickly, if not immediately, force chump blocks our of your opponent and get you very close to a lethal strike. This ability will likely be the main win condition for any deck Arlinn is in.

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The turn after being played, you have a choice to lightning bolt a creature, sending Arlinn back to human form and opening the way for more 2/2 protectors. While not as versatile as some burn-style Planeswalker abilities, this does have the important caveat of saying "or player." Getting your opponent close enough will do for Arlinn's deck, or even doing six damage before attacking with 3-4 creatures being pumped by her. This is the Pain part of the aforementioned cycle for your opponent.

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We appreciate the effort, but really, do we need more abilities here? If played extremely late, Arlinn can create a "Gruesome Slaughter" on your opponents side of the battlefield. This ability is notably cheap and notably does not require your creatures to take damage (side note, they do tap, so watch out for Reality Smashers). This is a medium powered ability that one would likely not wish to sacrifice Arlinn for, opposed to continuing the wolf-bolt cycle that she is so well suited for.

He has produced some of the most astronomical prices in Standard history; he is one of the most recognized names in Magic: The Gathering today; he is the Living Guildpact, and he is back -- It's Jace!

5 mana, 5 loyalty

Jace isn't going to be helping anyone in the early game, but shows he is the master of control and the epitome of a mono-blue Planeswalker in the sheer domination he will have over the mid-and late- game. On curve, he should be easy enough to protect long enough protect himself, and once he starts drawing you cards at a higher quality percentage, victory is in hand.

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Card quality is effective, and Jace is card quality incarnate. His is the purest card draw ability we've seen in Shadows Over Innistrad, if not the most imposing. A wise opponent, however, will know not to undervalue the threat that the Scry 1 portion presents, and if that opponent is being mana flooded at the same time, a concession typically follows.

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Jace is able to protect himself in a limited fashion by bouncing any specific threat to him. This will mean evasive creatures or tramplers, but will only mean one of them. Played on curve, this can set a player up for a slow but certain victory. Played late game, this ability loses a bit of value, as you are most likely to either have the blockers necessary or have far fewer.

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While just short of a total game-ender, this sure is a fun ability that does not seem too tough to achieve. Decks playing this card are likely to have blockers, counter-spells, and tempo spells to protect Jace, while the card itself helps you draw three cards at higher quality to help get there. Once achieved, Opponent's will likely lose hope, especially without card draw sources of their own.

It being a week of startling Planeswalker spoilers, why not add in a real jolt of madness? Hints to a certain vampire Planeswalker's presence have been dropped, as we explored Markhov Manor at GP Bologna and saw the pervasive madness tearing it apart. Perhaps, thought we, Sorin Markhov would be visiting us in the next set, Eldritch Moon. Wizards has upped the number of Planeswalkers (by at least one) by including the following card in Shadow's Over Innistrad.

6 Mana, 6 Loyalty
Sorin is now the most expensive Planeswalker revealed to us (seated in a color combination that in the last couple formats has wanted to play quicker, with less expensive creatures). Each besides, Arlinn, has a starting loyalty equal to its mana cost. In Sorin's case, this is a boon and makes him into a removal spell as well. Planeswalker cards this expensive rarely break into formats beyond Limited, as well. That being said, Sorin might be the one to change that trend (though he won't be too happy about it, or anything really).

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Sorin has a great card draw ability, which is something that both the new Nahiri and Jace cards wish to do as well. One will likely do 5-6 damage to one's opponent while building loyalty counters. Revealing your draw to your opponents may be a drawback for some, but in a black/white deck, one will likely be playing zombies, vampires, and clerics, so the element of surprise typically has much less affect than, say, a blue/black control deck. And, you are drawing cards!

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Easily his most useful ability, this middle section of text makes Sorin a removal spell worth 4-5 damage immediately, and if one has blockers, he will stick around and help draw cards for a while. This is quite powerful, quite versatile, and gets rid of pretty much every creature your opponent might be playing. If he is to see any use in Standard, this would be the way.

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This is definitely the kind of ultimate power that makes you guffaw once or twice, and everyone definitely will want to end a game in this manner. It's the most game-ending ability we've seen from this week's new Planeswalkers. It does seem like one could use the ability to make a huge comeback, however successfully blocking when you need such a comeback is an extreme rarity. You will get this off when you are already at a board stall or better, when you will most likely drop the card, lightning bolt something big, and start drawing cards and dealing damage. For this reason we believe this ability will not be used as often as guffawed at.