Today, Wizards of the Coast published an update to the Banned & Restricted list that affects formats on MTG Arena. Additionally, The Commander Format Panel made some changes to Magic’s most popular format.  The updates to the B&R primarily affect Alchemy and Timeless where cards were either rebalanced, banned, or unbanned.  Meanwhile, the CFP made changes to the legality of a few cards and updated the Game Changers list.  The cards affected were:

• Alchemy
• Kona, Rescue Beastie — rebalanced
• Val, Marooned Surveyor — rebalanced
• Dazzling Flameweaver — rebalanced
• Marshland Hordemaster — rebalanced
• Charged Conjuration — rebalanced
• Tempest Trapper — rebalanced
• Sanguine Soothsayer — rebalanced
• Polterheist — rebalanced
• Valiant Emberkin — rebalanced
• Ethrimik, Imagined Friend  — rebalanced
• Network Marauder — rebalanced
• Prototype X-8 — rebalanced
• Sliver Weftwinder — rebalanced
• Historic
• Eldrazi Temple  — banned
• Ajani, Nacatl Pariah  — banned
• Crop Rotation  — banned
• Scholar of the Lost Trove  — banned
• Magus of the Moon — unbanned
• Harbinger of the Seas  — unbanned
• Force of Vigor — unbanned
• Force of Negation  — unbanned
• Endurance  — unbanned
• Wilderness Reclamation  — unbanned
• Agent of Treachery  — unbanned

• Timeless
• Necropotence — restricted
• Commander
• Farewell — Game Changer
• Biorhythm — Unbanned
• Lutri, The Spellchaser — Unbanned

Rebalanced Cards

In MTG Arena, cards are routinely examined to see if small changes can avoid an outright ban.  For instance, in digital formats, instead of banning Vivi Ornitier, Wizards changed the cost of his first ability to tap instead of paying 0.  Similarly, the cards rebalanced today were determined to be good for the Alchemy format with small tweaks.

Kona, Rescue Beastie was rebalanced to slow the speed by which a player can win by combo using Kona, Omniscience, and a planet. Previously, Kona cost 3G to cast but will now cost 4G.  

Val, Marooned Surveyor was rebalanced to make her easier to cast and have a punchier triggered ability.  Previously, her cost was 2R(G/W) but will now be R(G/W).  Further, her triggered ability that allowed her to deal 1 damage to each opponent and her controller gain 1 life has been increased to 2 damage and 2 life. 

Dazzling Flameweaver was given a significant nerf. Previously it cost 1BR but will now cost 2BR to cast.  Further, its power and toughness have both been decreased from 4/4 to 3/3.

Marshland Hordemaster is receiving an adjustment to make it more visible in the format.  Previously it cost 1BR but will now cost [/mana]BR[/mana] to cast. On the other hand, it will now be a 2/2 instead of a 2/4.

Charged Conjuration was reduced in cost to cast from 3R to 2R.

Tempest Trapper was rebalanced in an attempt to encourage storm decks following the release of Alchemy: Lorwyn.  As a result, the cost to cast has been reduced from 3U to 2U. The power toughness has been adjusted to 2/4 from 2/5.

Sanguine Soothsayer is being buffed to encourage its use in black and white bat decks following the addition of [card]Golden Sidekick[/mana] to the format.  It will now be  a 2/2 instead of a 2/1. 

Polterheist is receiving a buff to toughness becoming a 3/3 instead of a 3/1. Additionally, it now has Ward — Pay 3 life instead of Pay 2 life.

Valiant Emberkin is receiving a buff to toughness to rebalance mice in the format following last year’s nerf to Recruit Instructor.  It will now be a 1/2 instead of a 1/1. 

Ethrimik, Imagined Friend is being rebalanced to reduce the casting cost and the power/toughness.  It will now cost 1WW instead of 2WW. Its power/toughness is now 4/4 instead of 5/5.

Network Marauder previously said that whenever another artifact you control with mana value 3 or greater enters, all artifact creature cards and Spacecraft cards you own perpetually get +1/+0.  Not adding any toughness has caused it to struggle in Alchemy so now the card will read “...perpetually get +1/+1.” Further, the power/toughness will be reduced to 1/2 from 1/3.

Prototype X-8 is being rebalanced with the hope of making it easier to cast for UB.  Previously, the casting cost was 6UB with the ability to reduce the cost by 1 for every creature in the graveyard.  Now the cost to cast it outright will increase to 8UB with the ability to lower by 2 for each creature in the graveyard.

Sliver Weftwinder is being buffed to a 7/7 instead of a 6/6 to encourage a higher win-rate. More buffs may come for this creature in the future.

The next update scheduled for the Banned & Restricted list is March 23rd.  

Changes to Commander

Gavin Verhey, made an announcement about changes to Commander that started with a reminder that Bracket 1 should be considered able to be more flexible with the rules.  This reinforces the necessity of pre-game conversations about bracket level, game changers, and card legality.  Things like unconventional commanders, silver border cards and other changes that would be a hard no in higher brackets may be acceptable in bracket 1 with the consent of the pod. That consent is encouraged in bracket 1.

Farewell is a card that has appeared in multiple recent Universes Beyond Commander precons including Final Fantasy and Doctor Who.  Due to its flexibility in wiping all or parts of the board at the discretion of its controller, Farewell is being added to the game changers list. 

Biorhythm is being unbanned to give it another shot at being successful in the format.  As part of that, Biorhythm and other cards being unbanned will be added to the Game Changers list.

Lutri, the Spellchaser is an exception to that rule because it was banned not for its strength but rather for its Commander-specific companion ability.  With that in mind, the CFP unbanned Lutri but kept him banned as a companion. Also, Lutri will not be added to the Game Changers list.

No specific announcement was made for the next update from the Commander Format Panel but more changes could be coming later in 2026.