Welcome back to Ixalan! Everything you need to know and new commanders

Magic's newest set Lost Caverns of Ixalan is coming and there is plenty of new mechanics, cards but also powerful commanders. As we return to this fan favourite plane you can expect to go spelunking in caverns in search of treasures. In this article I will go over everything you need to know and showcase some of the most interesting cards previewed so far. So let's get into it!...

New and returning mechanics

Once you've been to the ancient city of Orazca there is nowhere else to go but down, so let's get spelunking! There are many wonders and treasures along the way and these new mechanics perfectly showcase this hidden side of Ixalan.

First up we have descend (descended), a graveyard focused mechanic that rewards you for filling your graveyard with goodies. To get benefits you have plenty of choices to get those cards in there, milling, sacrificing, discarding and everything else will work, just make sure they are permanents so sadly no instants and sorceries.

Another new keyword you can find in this set is discover. This mechanic is similar to cascade but with a small twist. It comes with a value and allows you to dig deep into your library for a card that costs that much or less. You then get the choice to cast that card for free or put it into your hand instead. Yeah it's pretty much cascade all over again...

If you find yourself lost in the deep and dark caverns, these new map tokens could help you. These new artifact tokens allow you to sacrifice them and make a creature you control explore which helps you easily get lands and cycle through your deck. We'll have to see just how powerful cards with these mechanics will be, but I will be surely brewing some new decks with them :) ...

The last new mechanic is craft. You can find it on some of the artifacts in the set. It allows you to transform them into more powerful cards if you manage to collect all of the required card types. It's similar to meld but it doesn't require 2 specific cards, just the types.

Powerful new commanders

Every set brings with it many new and unique legendary creatures and this one is no exception. There aren't that many cards revealed so far but there are already many choices you can try and build.

Abuelo, Ancestral Echo is one of my favourites so far. He is a great creature that is hard to deal with thanks to flying and ward, he can also protect your other creatures which can also be quite useful. I could see the card being run in some tempo decks of the format like Raffine, Scheeming Seer or even Aragorn. 

Yet another card with amazing potential si Bartolome del Presidio. This orzhov vampire wants you to build around him and fill your deck with things to sacrifice as he is a sacrifice outlet in the command zone. This make him a powerful commander for aristocrat strategies as giving those players a sacrifice outlet every game is dangerous (trust me I know...I play aristocrats). You are missing some of the powerful payoffs like mayhem devil but Bartolome could be an interesting commander nonetheless.

The last one I would like to mention is Malcolm, Alluring Scoundrel, a new mono blue commander. He is yet again a powerful value commander that comes with flash, flying and even card draw. Malcolm rewards you for dealing damage to your opponent with him, giving you a way to cycle through your deck in return. If you somehow manage to hit your opponent 4 times you get to even cast the card for free! You can even utilise prolifirate to speed up that progress but we will have to wait how this one shapes out.  

Collecting Lost Caverns of Ixalan

There is also plenty of things for collectors. The Treasure trove is a set of cards that come as box toppers with every display. This is a list of 20 powerful artifacts from magic's history reprinting some staples like Chalice of the Void. If you like your commanders nice and shiny there are also special showcase legends to be found in the set. There are a total of 25 different commanders with this treatment which is inspired by the local culture. 

New with this set is also the special guests set. It features fan favourite cards with a unique borderless artwork. Lost Caverns of Ixalan has 18 total reprints of powerful cards like Thrasios, Triton Hero or even Mana Crypt. You can also find a neon ink treatment for some cards which gives them quite a unique look which is similar to some of the cards found in Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty.

There are also 4 new commander decks with new cards that will be revealed a bit later into the spoiler season. So far we only know that all of them are themed around the original 4 tribes found on Ixalan and each brings with it a new powerful commander that supports their respective tribe.

Date: October 27th, 2023

Author: Tomas Solovic