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In every new set of Magic: The Gathering cards, there are some that stand out from the rest of the pack, ones that are simply more powerful than any other.
Here are a set of them that simply have the potential to be the absolute top tier in several cases. Unfortunately, this is going to change from player to player though, and this is just one player’s opinion on what can be the top of the heap in Magic: The Gathering.
Though it did not make the cut, it’s also worth mentioning Serra Paragon. It’s sitting at a pretty high monetary value right now, and it’s not a secret why. The ability to play a land or cast a permanent spell from the graveyard during all of your turns? That has the power to be absolutely devastating.
Though I did change my mind about this list several times, Serra Paragon almost made it each and every time. Here are, in my opinion, the best cards in Dominaria United, though that can change as the meta shakes out.
What are the best cards in Dominaria United for Magic: The Gathering?
1) Weatherlight Compleated
It does all this for 2 mana? Weatherlight Compleated generates a lot of value, that's for sure. It’s a 2-cost Legendary Artifact Vehicle, and as long as it has 4 phyresis counters on it, it’s also a Phyrexian, in addition to its other types.
Getting phyresis counters is easy enough, you get one each time a creature you control dies. It doesn’t have a crew cost, but you play it early and play aggressively. Once it becomes a creature, it’s a 5/5 Flyer.
If this card has 7 or more phyresis counters, and you put a counter on it, you also draw a card. If you don’t have 7 or more, you Scry 1 instead. That’s an incredible value, and in a sacrifice/aggro deck, this will be a game-winning card, from the Dominaria United expansion.
2) Karn’s Sylex
I’ve already written about Karn’s Sylex before, and I stand by my position. It’s going to be one of the most valuable cards in terms of power in Magic: The Gathering’s Standard meta. There are so many ways to create tokens, and this deals with that in a hurry. It’s another artifact, and it only costs 3 mana to put into play.
Granted, it comes into play tapped, but that’s not really a big deal. When this is in play, all players cannot pay life to activate abilities that aren’t mana abilities, or cast spells with their life total. No more paying with Phyrexian Mana!
In addition, you can pay X, tap, and sacrifice this, to destroy each non-land permanent with a Mana Value X or less. This can only be done as a Sorcery, which makes sense. The beauty of it though is that tokens have a 0 mana value. It’s a cost-effective way to board wipe, while also dealing with other minor threats.
3) Shivan Devastator
A Shivan Dragon is once again one of the most iconic cards in Magic: The Gathering? You bet! Once upon a time, Shivan Dragon was one of the most powerful creatures, since it could inflate itself. However, in a modern setting, it costs too much mana to put it into play.
Say hello to this monster! It’s a 1 Red + X, with Flying/Haste. This creature has 0 power and toughness when it comes into play, but, depending on how much mana you pump into it, that’s how many +1/+1 counters it receives.
It’s an aggressive terror at all phases of this game. You can play it on turn 2 and swing for an immediate 1, or hold it until the end of the game. Cash in all of your treasure tokens and hammer someone for a potentially unblockable 20 damage. Since it has a malleable cost, it’s mana curve friendly, and is never a bad play.
4) Silverback Elder
When it comes to Magic: The Gathering, you need synergy. You want everything in your deck to feel like a well-oiled machine, and for Green-themed creature decks, this is going to be your best friend. It’s expensive, at 5 mana, but it does so much to warrant the Mana Value.
A Magic: The Gathering creature with 5 power, 7 toughness, it gives you a choice of three abilities every time you cast a creature. Considering this is going in Green decks, that’s going to be often.
- Destroy target artifact or enchantment
- Look at the top five cards of your library. You may put a land from among them into play tapped. Put the rest on the bottom of your library in a random order
- You gain 4 life
If you need to come back and gain life, that’s easy enough with some low-cost creatures. It’s an excellent tool for further mana ramp, or to start destroying Sagas and other powerful cards. Pulling land is probably going to be the most frequently picked, but the others are nothing to sneeze at.
Also, this is Green! Mana ramp is their speciality, so getting this in play early won’t be difficult at all.
5) Ajani, Sleeper Agent
Ajani being turned by the Phyrexians in Magic: The Gathering is a decision that has left a bitter taste in some fans’ mouths, but it was a great idea, regardless. Magic: The Gathering’s most stoic hero to still be alive has been turned, and is now Ajani, Sleeper Agent.
The powerful cat warrior is now an agent of evil, and his powers are absolutely great. He can easily end the game a turn or two after he enters play, with the right set up.
- +1: Reveal the top card of your library. If it’s a creature or planeswalker, put it into your hand. Otherwise, you can choose to put it on the bottom of your library
- -3: Distribute three +1/+1 counters among up to three target creatures. They gain vigilance until the end of the turn
- -6: You get an emblem with “Whenever you cast a creature or planeswalker spell, target opponent gets two poison counters.”
Play him on turn 4, use his +1. Next turn, do it again, and cast Urza Assembles the Titans on Chapter 2. Next turn, you can use his abilities twice. Use his +1, in case you need to keep him around, then his -6. Cast as many creatures as you can - all you need is five creatures.
Tokens count in Magic: The Gathering! When your opponent gets to 10 Poison Counters, they immediately lose, making Ajani a deadly foe.
There are simply so many powerful cards in Magic: The Gathering’s latest expansion, Dominaria United, but these sit at the pinnacle of the power scale, for several reasons.
