Note: These cards have not been officially confirmed by Wizards of the Coast, but the evidence seems strongly in their favor. The card names here are translated from Japanese, and may not be exact.

Karn the Released - 7
Planeswalker - Karn (M)
+4: Target player exiles a card from his or her hand.
-3: Exile target permanent.
-14: Set aside all non-aura permanents exiled by Karn, then restart the game. After that, put into the battlefield under your control all cards set aside this way.
(loyalty) 6

The Card: How can I not start off with this card? It's Karn, it's a colorless planeswalker, and it's RIDICULOUS. Seriously, +4? Do you remember how hard it is to kill Jace TMS, who comes in with half as many counters, just because he has a +2? At worst, he draws you a card and sucks up three damage. At best, he exiles your opponent's biggest threat, exiles cards from the hand, and then restarts the game with you at a huge advantage.

Applicability: Seven mana is a lot, but this guy is going to see play. I don't know what deck he belongs in or if he'll make his own, but you will see him at the top tables. He is an almost unbeatable first pick in Limited, and will be a casual favorite slotted into most of the Commander decks that can afford him.

Implications: Karn is back and he is badass. Also, Wizards is still willing to push the bar on planeswalkers to keep them exciting and terrifying.

Phyrexian Deleter - BBBB
Creature - Horror (M)
Trample
Whenever a source deals damage to Phyrexian Deleter, that source's controller sacrifices that many permanents.
"It is blessed compleatness." --Sheoldred, Whispering One
5/5

The Card:An obvious throwback to Phyrexian Negator, this card is a beating. A 5/5 trampler for four with a terrifying upside? Sign me up.

Applicability: This card is totally ridiculous, but the mana cost ensure that you need to be Mono-Black (or very tricky) to be able to cast it. This could easily make Mono-Black Control or Mono-Black Aggro a viable deck, but we'll have to wait and see. He certainly doesn't fit anywhere in the current Standard. This bad boy is also likely to see play in Commander, but his mana cost to power ratio is less relevant there.

Implications: Phyrexia is also back, and scarier than ever before.


Urabrask, the Hidden - 3RR
Legendary Creature - Praetor (M)
Creatures you control have Haste.
Creatures your opponents control enter the battlefield tapped.
4/4

The Card: Our final mythic of the day is the Red Praetor, Urabrask. At five mana, he's a lot more accessible than Elesh Norn, but he's not quite as awesome as I was hoping our new Phyrexian overlords would be.

Applicability: Doesn't really fit into any existing Standard decks, but could definitely see play under the right circumstances. It is very strong in Limited, where the combination of mass haste and delaying blockers could spell game-over for a slower opponent. He will definitely see some play as a Commander, but he lacks the build-around potential of Red generals like Godo and Kiki-Jiki.

Implications: Urabrask shows that our five Praetors will not be bound by fixed stats or mana costs. He also implies that we may see a continued "your stuff, your opponent's stuff" theme throughout the cycle.


Caged Sun - 6
Artifact (R)
When Caged Sun enters the battlefield, choose a color.
Creatures you control of the chosen color have +1/+1.
Whenever you tap a land for one or more mana of the chosen color, add one mana of the chosen color to your mana pool.

The Card: Gauntlet of Power evolved! For one more mana, this card has two benefits over GoP: It affects your nonbasic lands, and it doesn't help your opponents lands or creatures.

Applicability: Marginal in Standard and playable in Limited, but this is a Commander card at heart. This is an auto-include in mono-color Commander decks, and will see more play than it's predecessor in two-color decks for both reasons above. This is a card that will triple in value in year or so after it rotates out of Standard.

Implications: This is the latest example of Wizards increasing interest in supporting the Commander format, and casual players in general.


Chancellor of the Furnace - 4RRR
Creature - Giant (R)
At the beginning of the game, if ~ is in your hand, you may reveal it. If you do, at the beginning of your first turn's upkeep, you may put a 1/1 red goblin creature with Haste on the battlefield.
When this enters the battlefield, put X 1/1 red goblin creatures with Haste onto the battlefield, where X is the number of creatures you control.
5/5

The Card: This guy is definitely pretty interesting. Seven mana is a bit much for a guy who needs you to have a bunch more creatures to do his job properly, but he's also a free Raging Goblin when in your opening hand. This is more interesting mechanically then he is actually useful.

Applicability: This guy is no Avenger of Zendikar -- I don't think he's going to see much play in constructed formats. The decks who want a Raging Goblin turn one don't want him stuck in their hand late, and the decks who want a big army-making finisher don't want to work this hard for it. He's solid in Limited, but not a certifiable bomb like some huge creatures.

Implications: As the card below shows, the Chancelors are a cycle of huge creatures that give you some benefit if they are in your opening hand.
Definitely a cool departure from the Leylines, which have to be balanced as fair on turn 0 but still playable on turn four.


Chancellor of the Dross - 4BBB
Creature - Vampire (R)
Flying, Lifelink
At the beginning of the game, if ~ is in your hand, you may reveal it. If you do, at the beginning of your first upkeep, you may have each opponent lose 3 life. Gain life equal to the life lost this way.
6/6

The Card: I like this guy better than his Red counterpart. Turn one Blood Tithe seems better than Raging Goblin, and a huge flying lifelinker is much better at turning games around than a vanilla 5/5 and a few goblins.

Applicability: While a bit better, I don't think this guys is going to make the cut in constructed formats. Mostly, he just doesn't compare well enough to Wurmcoil Engine, which is cheaper, easier to cast, and trades flying for resilience to removal. This guy is an utter bomb in Limited, though, and will definitely see play in casual multiplayer formats like Commander.

Implications: This strongly implies that the other Chancelors will all cost 4CCC and have psuedo-leyline abilities, but won't have much else in common. Definitely looking forward to seeing the rest of this cycle.


Phyrexian Unlife - 2W
Enchantment (R)
You do not lose the game for having 0 or less life.
While you are at 0 or less life, all sources of damage to you gain Infect.

The Card: An interesting design, but mostly just amounts to a white Delusions of Mediocrity.

Applicability: May see some play in sideboards, but most just as a three mana "gain 10-15 life." It's possible this will form some sort of combo if we see a "Circle of Protection: Infect" card of some kind.

Implications: If this card were better, it would be an interesting argument point in the "should the Commander poison total be increased" discussion.


Psychological Surgery - 1U
Enchantment (R)
Whenever an opponent shuffles his library, you may look at the top 2 cards of that library. You may exile one of them, then put them back on top of your library in any order.

The Card: Very strange card. This sort of effect is hard to evaluate -- the effect is so weird and marginal that it's difficult to tell if you're getting a card's worth of value out of it.

Applicability: Could see play as a sideboard card in Standard, but I feel like you're going to want something more consistent if you're spending sideboard slots. More likely, this will remain a weird niche card for Commander decks who want to punish excessive land search and tutoring.

Implications: Bad rares still exist, and will always exist.


Praetor's Grip - 1BB
Sorcery (R)
Search your opponent's deck for a card and exile it facedown. While it's exiled this way, you may look at it and play it as though it were in your hand.

The Card: 1BB seems like a pretty fair cost for a tutor with a restriction. In this case, the restriction is particularly unusual -- the card has to be from your opponent's library!

Applicability: This strikes me first and foremost as an awesome Commander card. It's a cool tutor that gives you access hundreds of different cards in a group game, and has the fun aspect of being totally different every time you cast it. I can also see this being good in constructed and Limited tournament formats, though: Imagine playing this on turn three against Caw-Blade and taking their Sword of Feast and Famine, or opening with this in sealed to tutor out your opponent's biggest bomb.

Implications: This card is going to start out cheap before people realize how awesome it is, so pick it up early! I know I'll be trying to get my hands on them.


Puresteel Paladin - WW
Creature - Human Knight (R)
Whenever an Equipment enters the battlefield under your control, you may draw a card.
Metalcraft - As long as you control 3 or more artifacts, equip costs of equipment you control is 0.
2/2

The Card: Personally, I love this guy. Equipment cards get an "enchantress" and after you build up a bit, you can start moving them around for free.

Applicability: This guy is absolutely amazing for equipment-based casual decks, Commander or otherwise. He may work in Standard or Limited, given the prevalence of good equipment right now, but I'm not as sure: You need a lot of equipment and artifact cards to make this work. You rarely want more than two to four equipment in your Limited deck, and Standard decks prefer to rely on Stoneforge Mystics and a similar two to four actual cards, limiting Puresteel Paladin's usefulness.

Implications: The set may only be 10% Mirran, but they're going to make it count.

That's all for now -- next article I'll review the other 11 cards, including the new Phyrexian mana symbol!

---

Are you an MTG Fanboy? Then why not be like Jake and our other MTG guys and Write for Eye of the Vortex?

We are looking for a few good men with a strong voice to speak to the masses about Standard and Limited Formats of Magic. If you are a regular to the FNM scene or simply enjoy the theory behind the game and its meta, then join our staff and help make Eye of the Vortex The place to go to ease your MTG Cravings.

Spoiler Season is just around the corner. Get involved in the chase!

Email the Editor if you are interested!

---

---