I got all the way up to writing my review of Liliana before I realized I hadn't talked about
these new planeswalkers'
applications in
Commander. Honestly, I'm not sure exactly how
they would work in that format. Do they return
to their mortal forms whenever they return to
the command zone (and thus require a lot of resleeving)? Do they still count for Commander
damage after they become planeswalkers, making
Chandra's emblem and Gideon's planeswalker
attack even more lethal than usual? I'm sure
someone will have an "official" ruling at some
point, but that second one in particular seems
like it would only be fair to the characters. I
mean, they are the same person in some sense
despite having ignited!
Considering how much black likes to sacrifice
creatures for some benefit, Liliana is by far
the easiest of the planeswalkers to ignite. You
can do it at instant speed, using only recent
cards, and probably get some kind of benefit in
the process. And I like what I see when it comes
to what you get: there's the disruptive element
from Liliana of the Veil, the powerful
reanimation effect from Liliana Vess' ultimate,
and a new ultimate that makes it literally
impossible for some decks to defeat you. In
fact, it's such a good deal, that I almost feel
like there has to be some horrible, iconically
black catch . . .
Today's card of the day is Liliana, Heretical
healer which is a three mana Black 2/3 legendary
with Lifelink with the easiest transformation to
trigger in the cycle. Having a non-token
creature you control die not only transforms her
it also gives a 2/2 zombie token making it
extremely efficient from the start. The +2 is
useful with an empty hand or a creature you want
to discard like Undead Servant. The -X is
excellent for zero cost creatures like Memnite
or Dryad Arborm, but just flat out sacrificing
her for -3 is a net gain and can chain a
creature like Fleshbag Marauder or Merciless
Executioner. The -8 is very powerful and in a
removal heavy build turns most of the deck into
a two for one and should make winning nearly
impossible for one opponent while it is even
stronger in Multiplayer. Overall this Liliana is
very aggressive with the only weakness being a
somewhat situational +2 and decks built around
her can function across many formats.
In Limited the card advantage of the token
with the -X can't be ignored and even the 2/3
with Lifelink is quite playable. A very easy
first pick in Booster even with the double Black
in the mana cost and barring a poor Black pool
it is a strong foundation for Sealed as well.
Okay, saving the best for last, though
Ironically this was our first peek at the
Dual-faced 'Walkers. For the creature half,
She's a 2/3 lifelink for 3. Not bad, but not
terrific. Her flip trigger is actually the only
flip trigger that actually gives you a little
something extra in a 2/2 zombie token. It's not
stupendous, but it helps keep field presence
especially after you've just lost Liliana as a
creature. Her Walker abilities don't reinvent
the wheel, but they don't have to. Discard
cards, Reanimating smaller to mid-sized
creatures is what black does. and it's still
really effective. Her ultimate is, well,
something to shoot for, but something you'd
rarely pull off in something other than EDH. At
the end of the day, it's a really nice
complement to almost any black deck.
applications in
Commander. Honestly, I'm not sure exactly how
they would work in that format. Do they return
to their mortal forms whenever they return to
the command zone (and thus require a lot of resleeving)? Do they still count for Commander
damage after they become planeswalkers, making
Chandra's emblem and Gideon's planeswalker
attack even more lethal than usual? I'm sure
someone will have an "official" ruling at some
point, but that second one in particular seems
like it would only be fair to the characters. I
mean, they are the same person in some sense
despite having ignited!