Virtue of Loyalty – Wilds of Eldraine
Date Reviewed: October 9, 2023
Ratings:
Constructed: 4.13
Casual: 5.00
Limited: 5.00
Multiplayer: 4.00
Commander [EDH]: 4.13
Ratings are based on a 1 to 5 scale. 1 is bad. 3 is average. 5 is great.
Reviews Below:
Adventure cards are intrinsic card advantage. Everyone knows that by now. The only reason nobody (seemingly) leans into it for white is because they’re actually talking about Commander, and there is an either tacit or explicit understanding that Commander is about drawing lots of cards all at once. You can do that too, and increasingly not just with artifacts; but for a deck more focused on the more core parts of white’s abilities, Virtue of Loyalty and Ardenvale Fealty are deceptively strong choices. A 2/2 creature with vigilance at instant speed is good in the abstract, though merely decent in high-level tournaments; but when you get it as part of what can only be seen as a multi-turn Overrun effect, it can be seen as part of the setup and a facet of a frighteningly flexible card. You could almost have called it Virtue of Endurance for the way it gradually pulls your side of the table further and further ahead a la Luminarch Aspirant. They wouldn’t have, because the virtue of Locthwain (black) is persistence and it’d be too similar, but that doesn’t change how good the card is.
Constructed: 4
Casual: 5
Limited: 5
Multiplayer: 4
Commander [EDH]: 4
The mythic rare Virtue enchantment cycle from Wilds of Eldraine is certainly not meant to disappoint in terms of flash and splash, and the white one is…a lot better than other white cycle members have been at times. It leans into enabling white’s “go wide” strategies, and viciously, by readying a more ferocious strike on your next turn and letting attackers put their shields back up for round two. Pseudo-vigilance aone isn’t enough, but this represents a lot of potential added power.
While this would be better to enable a lethal strike on the turn it comes down, this sort of “long game” enchantment plays better than it looks, thanks to it having an impact on the turn it comes out. The adventure half is also pretty nice, presenting a surprise blocker or attacker after you hold mana up to bluff other things, and it plays well in multiples. I think this card is definitely going to make an impact, between an early cheap blocker/threat and a ticking time bomb for future turns, and letting this stay on the board is a horrible idea for your opponents.
Constructed: 4.25 (I think it’s strong enough to make waves, but five mana is a bit of a tall ask)
Casual: 5
Limited: 5 (this ends games with little additional support)
Multiplayer: 4
Commander [EDH]: 4.25
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