Here is Part 1.
Lets start this off with a couple of creatures that didn't make the cut and I'll finish by going through the Planeswalkers.
Good 7 Drops, but...
These are all really powerful cards, but at 7 mana it was kind of hard to justify adding them next to the powerful 1 and 2 drops that we have. They do deserve a mention though.
The Whale has a very white flavor but with Islandwalk instead of Flying.
The Sphinx is downright nasty in a flying deck. It can easily win a game of Limited, though not a Commander.
The Horde costs one less than Scaled Wurm, let that sink in.
The Color Hosers:
Sideboard options, but in Limited they are powerful enough to justifiably be included. They are all nice weenie creatures which can have a board presence even when not matched with their optimal colors. I love all three of these, I would just never main deck them. Intimidate is better than First Strike, and exiling creatures is better than having hexproof which makes the Zombie the best one.
15. Traumatize
You shouldn't ever play strict mill cards like this if you have no intention of winning by mill. In Limited though, you can put them on a 14 turn max time limit. That may sound like a bit, but in a stalemate - which can often happen, you just win those games by playing this. It fits right in the typical mill deck as well. By hitting on turn 5 you can mill for 24! That's not Glimpse the Unthinkable powerful, but it's darn close.
14. Mutavault
The Mishra's Factory reprint. A land that moon lights as 2/2 creature when you've got nothing better to do. It gives pseudo card advantage and possibly some free damage, but it isn't likely to win any game by itself.
13. Archaeomancer
It's not exactly the next coming of Snapcaster Mage, but it's ability is more powerful. If you can bounce this via Riptide Laboratory or Evacuation, then it becomes even greater. It does cost less than Izzet Chronarch.
12. Elixir of Immortality
Any control deck needs to at least consider this card. The lifegain is a bonus, but the ability to help smooth out your draws in combination with the extra life makes this a winner. It works against graveyard lovers as well.
11. Scourge of Valkas
Probably a mono red card only. In Limited it's nothing more than a Storm Breath/Shivan combo creature which is just enough to ping for one and become a huge problem. In constructed it can gain even more advantage. Imagine getting a Lightning Bolt and a 4/4 pumpable flier for only four mana together, cause that's what this can be.
10. Duress
Blacks biggest issues are Artifacts and Enchantments. Duress can just stop either one of these cold. With no counterspells a mono black deck also has little defense against devastating burn cards or tempo reduces. This card is an answer to all those problems.
9. Ratchet Bomb
Another wonderful tool for black to take out pesky enchantments and artifacts. It also gives blue and green the ability to take out creatures, you get the idea. Not the greatest top deck and playing this on turn one is always a pickle because you never know how high it's going to need to be. Kind of like a Nevinyrral's Disk in a way - it's a delayed answer, but an answer none the less.
8. Liliana's Reaver
A 4/3 Deathtouch creature for four is already above the curve. It does need to deal damage to a player to get a 2/2 Zombie. It's clearly not as broken as Grave Titan, but as it's little brother it's got lots of potential to cause many problems - mostly Limited ones.
7. Scavenging Ooze
It's a Grizzly Bear, yet it has so much more potential than that. Not only can it exile all cards from all graveyards, it can also get bigger and gain you life in the process. It's kinda broken at 2 mana. It probably should have costed 4. It stops Tarmogoyf, reanimator, dredge, flashback.
6. Ogre Battledriver
Does it go at the top of the curve or at the bottom? Either way this guy is going to be helping any deck which runs multiple creatures. A 3/3 for 4 that gave everything haste would be playable. But to add a damage bonus on top of it makes it one of the more powerful cards in the set. Works really well with weenie generators - Assemble the Legion and Young Pyromancer.
5. Seraph of the Sword
A 3/3 for 4 with flying is right on curve. It's very splash-able. Adding the bonus that it can't be killed in combat makes it both the perfect blocker and attacker. Sure it dies to Searing Spear or whatever the hell equivalent M14 uses, but it's well worth the card.
4. Shadowborn Demon
This is more of a play around card than it seems by ranking him this high. A 5 mana Sorcery kill spell is the minimum of what this can do, not the max. Hopefully you have a weak weenie lying around or a way to dredge yourself because then, not only did you hit for 5, have a huge blocker on turn 5 you also killed a creature on top of it. That is well worth the 5 mana investment. If you just 2-2 with this, you still came out ahead card wise.
3. Planar Cleansing
It's hard to get a card that takes out everything. It's appropriately costed, but to put a card like this in your deck, it's taking the spot of something else that might be more appropriate. This is a reset button, but what kind of deck are you playing that might need one? Hitting Planeswalker is the big thing as white can struggle with those.
2. Archangel of Thune
It's a Serra Angel with another ability on it. It doesn't gain as much life or win as many battles as Baneslayer Angel, but pumping your whole team is enormous even if the Archangel gets taken out immediately after. Works incredibly well with other life gain cards and goes infinite with Spike Feeder.
1. Kalonian Hydra
Pretty similar to Archangel of Thune, but this Hydra wins the game by himself if left unchecked for only 2 turns! It has no business having Trample with an ability like that. Who is dealing with an 8/8 on turn 6 very effectively. In Limited with no synergy, it still dominates the game. Heck you can easily get this out turn 4 in green. Pair him with the Archangel or Ogre Battledriver and see sparks fly.
The other number 1:
Anyone who has read my articles or knows me knows that I love ranking these Planeswalkers ahead of pretty much anything. Card advantage and having multiple choices make winning easier.
E. Liliana of the Dark Realms
The four mana casting cost is just too much for what this brings to the table. It should probably have costed 3. Searching for a swamp is okay, but you would need to grab 2-3 at minimum for this to really be useful. The ultimate at 6 is kind of neat, but what are you doing with all that mana. The killing ability is good but overall it's too lackluster.
D. Ajani, Caller of the Pride
It's hard to pull of the flying and double strike combo twice, so you have to ask if 3 mana is worth that. It takes a long time to get to ultimate range which might not be that great when you finally can pull it off. A counter a turn is okay too and thankfully it's casting is appropriate.
C. Jace, Memory Adept
Jace also costs one more than I would have liked. At 4 mana it's very playable, but at 5 it's too expensive. The milling for 10 is great in Limited, but outside of that with no way to protect itself he's not going to live long. I don't know how I feel about drawing 20 cards, or if I want my opponent doing that. It's just kind of average.
B. Garruk, Caller of Beasts
6 is a ton of mana. If drawing 3 creatures and taking 5 points of damage is worth that cost, then by all means run with him. There aren't much better ways of drawing cards in green. Playing green creatures is probably a rare one, as at 6 mana there can't be too much left in your hand. The ultimate will likely win you the game, but I think at 6 it's hard to put in a constructed deck slot without really building around it.
A. Chandra, Pyromaster
My favorite of this cycle. It's the only one not truly over-costed. It can gain serious card advantage if not checked. It also can semi protect itself and works for aggressive decks very well. The ultimate just looks fun. It's probably the best Chandra to date.
Check out my other posts:
The Top 10 Planeswalkers
My Top 20 Journey Into Nyx Cards
The Top 20 Land Cards
The Top 20 Theros Cards
The Top 20 Dragon's Maze Cards
The Top 20 Common Cards
The 30 Coolest Dragons
The Top 40 Born of the Gods Cards
The Top 40 Black Cards
The 80 Worst Creatures
The Top 100 One Drop Creatures
100 Unique Creatures
The 100 Worst Cards
Lets start this off with a couple of creatures that didn't make the cut and I'll finish by going through the Planeswalkers.
Good 7 Drops, but...
These are all really powerful cards, but at 7 mana it was kind of hard to justify adding them next to the powerful 1 and 2 drops that we have. They do deserve a mention though.
The Whale has a very white flavor but with Islandwalk instead of Flying.
The Sphinx is downright nasty in a flying deck. It can easily win a game of Limited, though not a Commander.
The Horde costs one less than Scaled Wurm, let that sink in.
The Color Hosers:
Sideboard options, but in Limited they are powerful enough to justifiably be included. They are all nice weenie creatures which can have a board presence even when not matched with their optimal colors. I love all three of these, I would just never main deck them. Intimidate is better than First Strike, and exiling creatures is better than having hexproof which makes the Zombie the best one.
15. Traumatize
You shouldn't ever play strict mill cards like this if you have no intention of winning by mill. In Limited though, you can put them on a 14 turn max time limit. That may sound like a bit, but in a stalemate - which can often happen, you just win those games by playing this. It fits right in the typical mill deck as well. By hitting on turn 5 you can mill for 24! That's not Glimpse the Unthinkable powerful, but it's darn close.
14. Mutavault
The Mishra's Factory reprint. A land that moon lights as 2/2 creature when you've got nothing better to do. It gives pseudo card advantage and possibly some free damage, but it isn't likely to win any game by itself.
13. Archaeomancer
It's not exactly the next coming of Snapcaster Mage, but it's ability is more powerful. If you can bounce this via Riptide Laboratory or Evacuation, then it becomes even greater. It does cost less than Izzet Chronarch.
12. Elixir of Immortality
Any control deck needs to at least consider this card. The lifegain is a bonus, but the ability to help smooth out your draws in combination with the extra life makes this a winner. It works against graveyard lovers as well.
11. Scourge of Valkas
Probably a mono red card only. In Limited it's nothing more than a Storm Breath/Shivan combo creature which is just enough to ping for one and become a huge problem. In constructed it can gain even more advantage. Imagine getting a Lightning Bolt and a 4/4 pumpable flier for only four mana together, cause that's what this can be.
10. Duress
Blacks biggest issues are Artifacts and Enchantments. Duress can just stop either one of these cold. With no counterspells a mono black deck also has little defense against devastating burn cards or tempo reduces. This card is an answer to all those problems.
9. Ratchet Bomb
Another wonderful tool for black to take out pesky enchantments and artifacts. It also gives blue and green the ability to take out creatures, you get the idea. Not the greatest top deck and playing this on turn one is always a pickle because you never know how high it's going to need to be. Kind of like a Nevinyrral's Disk in a way - it's a delayed answer, but an answer none the less.
8. Liliana's Reaver
A 4/3 Deathtouch creature for four is already above the curve. It does need to deal damage to a player to get a 2/2 Zombie. It's clearly not as broken as Grave Titan, but as it's little brother it's got lots of potential to cause many problems - mostly Limited ones.
7. Scavenging Ooze
It's a Grizzly Bear, yet it has so much more potential than that. Not only can it exile all cards from all graveyards, it can also get bigger and gain you life in the process. It's kinda broken at 2 mana. It probably should have costed 4. It stops Tarmogoyf, reanimator, dredge, flashback.
6. Ogre Battledriver
Does it go at the top of the curve or at the bottom? Either way this guy is going to be helping any deck which runs multiple creatures. A 3/3 for 4 that gave everything haste would be playable. But to add a damage bonus on top of it makes it one of the more powerful cards in the set. Works really well with weenie generators - Assemble the Legion and Young Pyromancer.
5. Seraph of the Sword
A 3/3 for 4 with flying is right on curve. It's very splash-able. Adding the bonus that it can't be killed in combat makes it both the perfect blocker and attacker. Sure it dies to Searing Spear or whatever the hell equivalent M14 uses, but it's well worth the card.
4. Shadowborn Demon
This is more of a play around card than it seems by ranking him this high. A 5 mana Sorcery kill spell is the minimum of what this can do, not the max. Hopefully you have a weak weenie lying around or a way to dredge yourself because then, not only did you hit for 5, have a huge blocker on turn 5 you also killed a creature on top of it. That is well worth the 5 mana investment. If you just 2-2 with this, you still came out ahead card wise.
3. Planar Cleansing
It's hard to get a card that takes out everything. It's appropriately costed, but to put a card like this in your deck, it's taking the spot of something else that might be more appropriate. This is a reset button, but what kind of deck are you playing that might need one? Hitting Planeswalker is the big thing as white can struggle with those.
2. Archangel of Thune
It's a Serra Angel with another ability on it. It doesn't gain as much life or win as many battles as Baneslayer Angel, but pumping your whole team is enormous even if the Archangel gets taken out immediately after. Works incredibly well with other life gain cards and goes infinite with Spike Feeder.
1. Kalonian Hydra
Pretty similar to Archangel of Thune, but this Hydra wins the game by himself if left unchecked for only 2 turns! It has no business having Trample with an ability like that. Who is dealing with an 8/8 on turn 6 very effectively. In Limited with no synergy, it still dominates the game. Heck you can easily get this out turn 4 in green. Pair him with the Archangel or Ogre Battledriver and see sparks fly.
The other number 1:
Anyone who has read my articles or knows me knows that I love ranking these Planeswalkers ahead of pretty much anything. Card advantage and having multiple choices make winning easier.
E. Liliana of the Dark Realms
The four mana casting cost is just too much for what this brings to the table. It should probably have costed 3. Searching for a swamp is okay, but you would need to grab 2-3 at minimum for this to really be useful. The ultimate at 6 is kind of neat, but what are you doing with all that mana. The killing ability is good but overall it's too lackluster.
D. Ajani, Caller of the Pride
It's hard to pull of the flying and double strike combo twice, so you have to ask if 3 mana is worth that. It takes a long time to get to ultimate range which might not be that great when you finally can pull it off. A counter a turn is okay too and thankfully it's casting is appropriate.
C. Jace, Memory Adept
Jace also costs one more than I would have liked. At 4 mana it's very playable, but at 5 it's too expensive. The milling for 10 is great in Limited, but outside of that with no way to protect itself he's not going to live long. I don't know how I feel about drawing 20 cards, or if I want my opponent doing that. It's just kind of average.
B. Garruk, Caller of Beasts
6 is a ton of mana. If drawing 3 creatures and taking 5 points of damage is worth that cost, then by all means run with him. There aren't much better ways of drawing cards in green. Playing green creatures is probably a rare one, as at 6 mana there can't be too much left in your hand. The ultimate will likely win you the game, but I think at 6 it's hard to put in a constructed deck slot without really building around it.
A. Chandra, Pyromaster
My favorite of this cycle. It's the only one not truly over-costed. It can gain serious card advantage if not checked. It also can semi protect itself and works for aggressive decks very well. The ultimate just looks fun. It's probably the best Chandra to date.
Check out my other posts:
The Top 10 Planeswalkers
My Top 20 Journey Into Nyx Cards
The Top 20 Land Cards
The Top 20 Theros Cards
The Top 20 Dragon's Maze Cards
The Top 20 Common Cards
The 30 Coolest Dragons
The Top 40 Born of the Gods Cards
The Top 40 Black Cards
The 80 Worst Creatures
The Top 100 One Drop Creatures
100 Unique Creatures
The 100 Worst Cards
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