The Best 40 Cards In The Brothers’ War (2 of 3)

The list continues, and we’re deep into it now. This is the part of the forty cards where the true power of The Brothers’ War starts to shine. We’ve got impactful reprints, brutal removal, and experimental cards that I’m excited to see played.

So, if you’re ready, let’s keep going.

Hostile Negotiations

This is about as close to Fact or Fiction as we’ve gotten in a long time. It’s a draw-three spell at instant speed for only four mana. I love the mind games that cards like these inspire, so I hope it becomes a common sight in Historic and Modern.

Misery’s Shadow

This card would be even better if it didn’t have so much competition at the two-mana slot. Even so, it’s a Leyline of the Void on a pumpable creature. Misery’s Shadow seems like a natural fit for formats like Pioneer or Modern, where the graveyard is a much more noticeable factor in most games. As an Izzet Phoenix player, this card is honestly terrifying.

No One Left Behind

You never want to cast this spell for its full cost, and I’m evaluating it as a two-cost revival spell. And, with that in mind, it’s a great tempo swing that can get just the right creature to mess with your opponent. I could see this getting used in a Humans or a Death and Taxes list to revive one of their hatebears.

Brotherhood’s End

This card will probably not do too much outside Standard, but I really like it for that format. Mass damage options are a nice release valve to ensure aggro builds don’t overrun metas. I could see the second ability mattering in other formats like Legacy—which like their small artifacts—but that’s a reach, and this is mostly a Standard sideboard card.

Dwarven Forge-Chanter

Okay, not all The Brothers’ War cards I’m covering are absolute powerhouses. This one is more of a pet card. I like all its abilities; its stats make it hard to kill. Even its types are useful, making things like Wizard’s Lightning cheaper. I see this, and the next card, being viable options in some aggressive Standard builds. At the very least, I can see them making splashes in Limited or Draft.

Gaint Cindermaw

Look, I’ve played a fair bit of aggro. And I can tell you from experience there is nothing more annoying than life gain. This card can hit people and make the damage stick. I also like that it’s a dinosaur. That doesn’t matter in any meta I’m aware of, but it’s good to have around if it becomes relevant.

Mishra’s Command

The other Command had a lot of okay abilities, but this one is genuinely good. Even pumping three to four mana into it is enough for some blowout turns. You can kill a creature and a planeswalker in one shot, and it’s also got a lot of random tricks you can pull with it. Technically, you can pay nothing for the x-cost and surprise someone by giving something haste. I see this having some serious midrange applications.

Monastery Swiftspear

I’m terrified this got reprinted in The Brothers’ War. It’s in Standard now. It’s in Historic now. This is easily one of the best aggro creatures around and giving everyone access to it will cause massive ripples. You can bet I’m trying this out in Izzet Phoenix. If you’ve never seen this card in action, you’re in for such a treat.

Fauna Shaman

I’m not sure how this card will see play, but it will see play. It’s a repeatable tutor, discard outlet, and an elf. I expect to see this fetching Craterhoof Behemoths for Elf Ball decks and being pivotal in various reanimation shells.

Obstinate Baloth

A little more sideboard friendly than some cards on this list, Obstinate Baloth is an annoying creature to deal with on a few levels. You will die to this card if you’re running non-precision hand attack. And, if you’re in any form of aggro, Obstinate Baloth is an annoying stabilizer. Life gain is weak in Magic but gaining life and a brutal blocker is another matter.

Legions to Ash

It’s not quite a Maelstrom Pulse, but it’s got its uses. Scute Swarm is an obvious target for formats like Brawl, but it also shuts down things like treasure tokens, power stones, and thopter/elemental swarms. Even if there aren’t multiple targets, it’s still a cheap way to exile something.

Mishra, Lost to Phyrexia

It’s our first meld card! I don’t like meld cards. No matter the payoff, they seem like too much work. But this overall The Brothers’ War list wouldn’t be complete without pointing out the good aspects of two of them (the third didn’t make the cut). If Mishra attacks even once, it will ruin your day. I imagine its most common modes will be hitting someone with Blightning and either killing a planeswalker or giving everything menace and trample. Again, I don’t see this being a card people play outside Brawl, but it will be amazing if someone pulls it off.

Saheeli, Filigree Master

Like Teferi, Saheeli ticks so many boxes. She can defend herself, generate card advantage, and has a strong ultimate. I also like that she can ultimate way sooner than some Planeswalkers, meaning you can probably stack this ability in a deck with multiple copies.

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And that’s the next section done. Wednesday’s article will mostly tackle artifact creatures. And, considering the story of The Brothers’ War, you already know how impressive those cards will be.

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