Diminishing Returns? Not with this Scorpion God Budget Deck!

<p style="text-align: right;"><em><span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Shapesharer" href="#" target="_blank">Shapesharer</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> | Art by <a href="https://scryfall.com/search?q=a%3A%E2%80%9CAlan+Pollack%E2%80%9D&amp;unique=art" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Alan Pollack</a></em></p>
<p>We're going back to Lorwyn! Finally! I'm so excited to revisit the beloved plane and I know I'm not alone.</p>
<p>The Human-less plane with a creature type focus is the home of some of the most beautiful art in <em>Magic</em> and has given us a lot to revisit over the years. The first planeswalkers were printed here and before there was a mythic rarity!</p>
<p>With the return happening in <em>Lorwyn Eclipsed</em> next January, I wanted to discuss the things I hope to see again and the things I hope we skip this time around. Given the infrequency with which we revisit Lorwyn and we're not going back to a block of sets, I'll cover the things I love (and don't) from <em>Lorwyn, Morningtide, Shadowmoor, and Eventide. </em></p>
<h2>Things I Love About <em>Lorwyn</em> and <em>Shadowmoor</em> Blocks</h2>
<h3>Hybrid Mana</h3>
<p>One of my favorite pieces of technology that I very strongly associate with <em>Lorwyn</em> is hybrid mana. I know that it's from OG <em>Ravnica: City of Guilds, </em>but I've always really loved how well hybrid mana works in the <em>Lorwyn/Shadowmoor</em> blocks.</p>
<p>There are so many iconic hybrid cards that I love, like:</p>
<ul>
<li><span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Swans of Bryn Argoll" href="#" target="_blank">Swans of Bryn Argoll</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span></li>
<li><span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Batwing Brume" href="#" target="_blank">Batwing Brume</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span></li>
<li><span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Dire Undercurrents" href="#" target="_blank">Dire Undercurrents</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span></li>
<li><span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Memory Plunder" href="#" target="_blank">Memory Plunder</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span></li>
<li><span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Murderous Redcap" href="#" target="_blank">Murderous Redcap</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span></li>
<li><span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Kitchen Finks" href="#" target="_blank">Kitchen Finks</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span></li>
<li><span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Fulminator Mage" href="#" target="_blank">Fulminator Mage</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span></li>
<li><span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Rhys the Redeemed" href="#" target="_blank">Rhys the Redeemed</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span></li>
</ul>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Dire Undercurrents"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Murderous Redcap"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Rhys the Redeemed"></div></div>
<p>My strong association of hybrid mana with this plane comes from all these cards, but more so from some incredible cycles featured across the blocks.</p>
<p>The Liege cycle in <em>Shadowmoor</em> is such an achievement. Interesting and powerful designs that reward you for leaning toward committing to multicolored creatures and spells. While some are much stronger than others, there's no doubt that there's a space for each of these in the right deck.</p>
<p>My personal favorite is <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Deathbringer Liege" href="#" target="_blank">Deathbringer Liege</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> - a wonderful control piece that turns your <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Felisa, Fang of Silverquill" href="#" target="_blank">Felisa, Fang of Silverquill</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> Inklings and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Teysa, Opulent Oligarch" href="#" target="_blank">Teysa, Opulent Oligarch</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> Spirits into beefier flying threats that gum up the board or threaten to end things.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Deathbringer Liege"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Balefire Liege"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Murkfiend Liege"></div></div>
<p>Next to the Lieges, the Demigods are phenomenal creatures that today's design team would pin the legendary supertype to without hesitation. A cycle of Avatars that demand payment in pips of two colors, no matter their combination, these creatures all have interesting abilities and need to be answered.</p>
<p>Finding a place for these is a little more difficult, but there are certainly <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Omnath, Locus of All" href="#" target="_blank">Omnath, Locus of All</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> decks out there slamming the cycle in the 99 as a nostalgia pull.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Godhead of Awe"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Deus of Calamity"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Dominus of Fealty"></div></div>
<p>Not to mention their accompanying Auras. I always keep an eye on these when new commanders get printed in case there's some synergy to exploit.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Steel of the Godhead"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Helm of the Ghastlord"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Fists of the Demigod"></div></div>
<h3>Set Mechanics</h3>
<p>There are a number of mechanics that are quintessentially <em>Lorwyn</em> and <em>Shadowmoor. </em>With some of these mechanics making their way onto more modern cards - for instance, evoke on the <em>Modern Horizons 2 </em>Elementals that warped things in some formats - I expect them to make a return.</p>
<p>Similarly, changeling has been used a few times since. While in the past, it was used to be the glue between all the kindred strategies, I expect it to return as well, but be represented less. Also, shout out to <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Mistform Ultimus" href="#" target="_blank">Mistform Ultimus</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Ingot Chewer"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Mulldrifter"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Mirror Entity"></div></div>
<p>So what mechanics do we need to touch on?</p>
<p>Clash is a mechanic I'm always excited to see pop up. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Marvo, Deep Operative" href="#" target="_blank">Marvo, Deep Operative</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is a very cool commander and adds plenty to decks that can make good use of it. If Marvo is an indication of where <em>WotC</em> design is at with new clash cards, I'd be stoked to see more.</p>
<p>I love a little gamble off the top of people's decks. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Keen Duelist" href="#" target="_blank">Keen Duelist</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> feels like an honorary clash card. While there aren't many great clash cards out there, a new batch of them would definitely mean eyes on <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Sylvan Echoes" href="#" target="_blank">Sylvan Echoes</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>.</p>
<p>Could we see a clash legend? Potentially! I'm just hoping for more stuff like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Spring Cleaning" href="#" target="_blank">Spring Cleaning</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> that can turn a <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Disenchant" href="#" target="_blank">Disenchant</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> into an asymmetrical enchantment wipe. And <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Woodland Guidance" href="#" target="_blank">Woodland Guidance</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, which can be a <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Regrowth" href="#" target="_blank">Regrowth</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> with a little cheeky untap to it. Clash is fun! You're rewarded for playing cards with high mana values and the trend lately is that mana values have been going down. It's the perfect time to bring this mechanic back.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Spring Cleaning"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Recross the Paths"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Pollen Lullaby"></div></div>
<p>My wish list is getting a little long, but it would bring me so much joy to see more wither and persist in <em>Magic. </em>My world for a Jund commander that would make running <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Hapatra, Vizier of Poisons" href="#" target="_blank">Hapatra, Vizier of Poisons</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="The Scorpion God" href="#" target="_blank">The Scorpion God</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> in the same deck worth it!</p>
<p>The polar opposite to the ever-present +1/+1 counters, -1/-1 counters might mean you need a different set of dice to track things, but they are so fun. As an Aristocrats lover, persist is definitely something I'd love to see come back.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Everlasting Torment"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Cauldron of Souls"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Cauldron Haze"></div></div>
<p>There are only 13 cards in <em>Magic</em> with conspire. Only two of those are recent; the rest all come from these sets.</p>
<p><span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Wort, the Raidmother" href="#" target="_blank">Wort, the Raidmother</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> isn't as popular as she once was, but you haven't lived until you've conspired <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Battle Hymn" href="#" target="_blank">Battle Hymn</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> with a <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Twinning Staff" href="#" target="_blank">Twinning Staff</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> out to get a conspired <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Banefire" href="#" target="_blank">Banefire</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, ending the game.</p>
<p>I've got a <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Rassilon, the War President" href="#" target="_blank">Rassilon, the War President</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> deck that has been really fun. I believe a new conspire legend in a different set of colors would go hard. Would putting conspire on new spells be any fun? Probably! But at this point, I think we're at the point where a legend granting conspire is likely where things are headed.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Gleeful Sabotage"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Memory Sluice"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Wort, the Raidmother"></div></div>
<h3>Reprint the Filter Lands</h3>
<p>Look, I'm not going to spend much time here. Bring back the filter lands, <em>WotC</em>! Get 'em in Standard, why not!</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Mystic Gate"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Graven Cairns"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Cascade Bluffs"></div></div>
<h3>Can't Forget About the Art</h3>
<p>Some of the coolest art in the game comes from these blocks. The beautifully painted pieces that flesh out the environment and the world, the flowing fantasy, the use of color, shadows and light - ugh! I missed this period of <em>Magic</em> and the thought of opening a box of these cards would make me weep from the art alone. I mean, just singling out Rebecca Guay's 15 cards from these sets would get me there.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Bitterblossom"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Enchanted Evening"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Peppersmoke"></div></div>
<p>The world is so rich and evocative and even the teaser images for the upcoming return to <em>Lorwyn </em>assure me that the art department is ready to revisit just as much as we are.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Bloom Tender"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Augury Adept"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Painter&#039;s Servant"></div></div>
<h2>Things I Could Leave Behind</h2>
<p>While this plane has given us many cool mechanics and important firsts, it's also given us some mechanics I'd rather let go. Not to mention, the kindred/typal focus isn't my favorite way to go. I think prowl might be the exception for me, but otherwise, I don't really feel a pull from kindred strategies.</p>
<h3>Kinship</h3>
<p>With that in mind, kinship is a mechanic that feels like it's been reworked on <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Herald&#039;s Horn" href="#" target="_blank">Herald&#039;s Horn</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>. It feels like a little bit too much of a box, and while I appreciate some restrictions on cards to see how I can make them work, the coolest cards require you to jam them only in the typal decks they belong to and that doesn't scratch an itch for me.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Leaf-Crowned Elder"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Squeaking Pie Grubfellows"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Sensation Gorger"></div></div>
<p>I like Faeries plenty, but I don't feel the urge to put together a Faerie deck. I know that's what people like about this set, and <em>Bloomburrow</em> was popular thanks to its focus on critters' creature types, but...eh.</p>
<h3>Champion</h3>
<p>There's a good reason we haven't seen champion come back. It's narrow, it's confusing, and the payoffs are either awful or abusable. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Mistbind Clique" href="#" target="_blank">Mistbind Clique</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Wanderwine Prophets" href="#" target="_blank">Wanderwine Prophets</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> are infamous for infinites in <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Inalla, Archmage Ritualist" href="#" target="_blank">Inalla, Archmage Ritualist</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> decks.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Boggart Mob"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Nova Chaser"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Changeling Titan"></div></div>
<p>It would take a really cool design for me to be happy to see this mechanic again and even then, please don't be a cycle, dear lord, please.</p>
<h3>Hideaway</h3>
<p>Probably my most controversial inclusion on the list. I think hideaway just isn't it. We've seen it return already; it's a mini game that's interesting to some players, which is why some of these hideaway lands are included in precons, like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Mosswort Bridge" href="#" target="_blank">Mosswort Bridge</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> or <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Spinerock Knoll" href="#" target="_blank">Spinerock Knoll</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Howltooth Hollow"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Shelldock Isle"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Windbrisk Heights"></div></div>
<p>I don't need it back in the set so desperately. Maybe it'd be nice to have playable blue and black lands out of the cycle, but truly, it's not something I'm particularly interested in. I know people like it plenty and we've even seen <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Collector&#039;s Cage" href="#" target="_blank">Collector&#039;s Cage</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> do work in 60-card formats, but to me, it's not a marker of what makes <em>Lorwyn</em> feel like the beloved plane it is.</p>
<h2><em>Lorwyn Eclipsed</em></h2>
<p><em>Lorwyn Eclipsed </em>is the first set slated for 2026, and I am thrilled to be back. What stuff from the Lorwyn/Shadowmoor plane are you most excited to see again? Are there any particular characters you hope to see reimagined? Let us know in the comments.</p>


wither

Diminishing Returns? Not with this Scorpion God Budget Deck!

What I Hope To See in Lorwyn Eclipsed

Commander Showdown — Hapatra vs The Scorpion God