Secrets of Strixhaven is approaching fast but we’re only just getting started with previews for Magic’s next set.  Today, the Commander decks based on the Prismari college was fully revealed.  Daniel Holt, a senior game designer for Magic: The Gathering gave an exclusive interview to Tom Marks from IGN to discuss the Prismari Artistry deck. 

The Commanders

As is normally the case, the Prismari Artistry deck has two commander options.  The primary commander, Rootha, Mastering the Moment is a 4 drop orc sorcerer that creates a blue and red Elemental creature token with flying and haste at the beginning of combat so long as you’ve cast an instant or sorcery this turn.  Muddle, the Ever-Changing serves as the deck’s alternate commander option.  Also a 4 drop, this Elemental Otter Shapeshifter can become a copy of a nonlegendary creature until the end of turn, whenever you cast an instant or sorcery spell except that it also has myriad.  Myriad is a mechanic that allows you during combat to create a token copy that’s tapped and attacking the defending playing or planeswalker. The number of tokens created this way is equal to the number of opponents other than the defending opponent. 

New Lands

There are three new lands being printed for the Prismari Artistry deck. All three of these lands can be tapped for either red or blue mana.  All three also carry the Island and Mountain subtypes making them able to be fetched by any spell or ability that allows you to fetch an Island or Mountain.  Turbulent Springs enters tapped unless your opponents control eight or more lands.  Scorched Geyser enters tapped unless you control at least two basic lands. Coastal Peak enters tapped and has Cycling 2.  

Holt explained that Turbulent Springs is part of a new turbulent land cycle that will make it enter tapped in a duel but can enter untapped as early as turn three in a full pod.  When asked about the philosophy for land cycles Holt said, “ Lands for Commander have different goals than those designed with standard in mind. This cycle came from a brainstorm when we wanted one more cycle that was clearly more Commander-focused that we could use here in the precons.”

New Sorceries

Two new sorceries are being printed for the Prismari Artistry deck.  Furygale Flocking costs 8RR but is 1 less to cast for each instant or sorcery in the graveyard.  It allows you to create two 3/3 blue and red Elemental creature tokens with flying that attack that opponent this turn if able. They gain haste until end of turn.  Abstract Performance costs 5U to cast and allows you to exile the top four cards of your library in a face-down pile, then exile the top four cards in a face-up pile. An opponent chooses one of those piles to go into the graveyard. You look at the remaining pile and choose a card to cast without paying its mana cost. The rest of that pile goes into your hand.

With both of these sorceries being high mana valued cards, Holt explained “Players need to take advantage of treasures, mana rocks, and other mana discounts in the precon to get to their high-end spells faster. Cost reductions are really helpful in doing that too. Cards like Blasphemous Act may have a mana value of nine for all your cards that look for that number, but you’re often able to play it for only one mana in commander when it’s needed.”

New Creatures

Prismari Pianist and Renegade Bull are two of the new creatures being printed in the Prismari Artistry deck.  Prismari Pianist is a 2/1 and creates a 1/1 blue and red Elemental creature token whenever you cast an instant or sorcery. If that instant or sorcery was mana value 5 or greater, it creates three tokens instead.  Renegade Bull also interacts with instants and sorceries. Although it’s a 0/5, it gets +X/+0 until end of turn every time you cast an instant or sorcery where X is that spell’s mana value.  Additionally, it has trample so it works best with high mana instants and sorceries.  Then, whenever it attacks, you exile up to one instant or sorcery from your graveyard and copy it. You may then cast the copy without paying its mana cost.

Prepared Creatures

Two new creatures in the Prismari Artistry deck utilize the new Prepared mechanic found in Secrets of Strixhaven.  Inspired Skypainter enters prepared and can become re-prepared any time a creature token you control deals combat damage.  When it becomes prepared, it can cast a sorcery called Maestro’s Gift for 3UR that allows you to create a token that’s a copy of a creature you control that gains haste until the end of turn.  

Dirgur Focusmage is a Jeskai monk from Tarkir and is one of five visiting characters from other planes that Holt included in the five Commander precons.  Dirgur Focusmage becomes prepared by casting an instant or sorcery with mana value 5 or greater. It also reduces the cost of instants and sorceries by 1.  

Prismari Artistry releases as part of the Secrets of Strixhaven set on April 24th with four other precon Commander decks.