Bitterbloom BearerBitterbloom Bearer | Art by Rebecca Guay | MoonshadowMoonshadow | Art by Olivier Bernard

It seems as though every set lately has a ton of emphasis on its legendary creatures. Yes, far be it from an EDHREC author to state this, but hear me out, folks. Lorwyn Eclipsed has a reasonable number of legends within its confines!

And, of course, to compensate for this, the set also has a larger number of nonlegendary creatures, many of which are superb.

This article seeks to document ten - a mere drop in the bucket, if I'm being honest - of the best nonlegendary creatures in Lorwyn Eclipsed. These creatures are listed with no particular order in mind; they're all fantastic, and I love them all equally.

And so, with that, let's look at some positively neat creature cards, shall we?

Adept WatershaperAdept Watershaper

The first card on our list is Adept Watershaper, a mono-white Merfolk Cleric with an above-rate statline of 3/4 for . Adept Watershaper is remarkable, and frankly, remarkably good, because it serves as half of a nonflying Avacyn, Angel of HopeAvacyn, Angel of Hope, in essence, for less than half the cost (and, again, half the size, but for a better rate).

This Merfolk will hugely decide many games; giving your other tapped creatures indestructible is the difference between dying in a board wipe, versus surviving one. Not to mention relatively secure attacks, especially for players who desire staying power.

This kind of creature has always been helpful in Stax builds where protection is a key aspect of the victorious game plan. However, all manner of decks that use white can benefit from this card, across multiple Brackets. To this end, players running commanders like Grand Arbiter Augustin IVGrand Arbiter Augustin IV, Zurgo HelmsmasherZurgo Helmsmasher, and the aforementioned Avacyn are probably having a field day right now. And it's all thanks to Adept Watershaper!

Kinscaer SentryKinscaer Sentry

Next, we have Kinscaer SentryKinscaer Sentry, a creature with the fairly infrequently used Kithkin creature type, which is my other mono-white pick for this list. A white Grizzly BearsGrizzly Bears in statline and cost, all of the abilities this Kithkin Soldier possesses are positive. That's right, no downside in sight! So, as a creature with first strike and lifelink, the Sentry is going to impact Prerelease events all over.

However, this is Commander, and so I want to focus on that. That's where Kinscaer Sentry's last ability shines the brightest (if not in Constructed as a whole). When you attack with Kinscaer Sentry, you may put a creature with mana value X or less onto the battlefield tapped and attacking, where X is the number of attacking creatures you control.

As such, go-wide builds will adore cards with this kind of effect. Selesnya () decks led by Emmara, Soul of the AccordEmmara, Soul of the Accord, Boros () Aggro builds (as well as those headed by The Jolly Balloon ManThe Jolly Balloon Man), and especially Naya () decks, will go wild with this creature if given the chance.

Glen Elendra GuardianGlen Elendra Guardian

Moving onto Lorwyn Eclipsed mono-blue creatures, Glen Elendra GuardianGlen Elendra Guardian, another remarkably above-rate creature, certainly makes the list. A 3/4 with flash and flying for is already a Limited bomb, but on top of all that, it has another stellar ability. See, it enters with a -1/-1 counter on it, which is a downside, but for more, its controller can remove that counter to, well, counter a noncreature spell and have that spell's controller draw a card.

So, in essence, it's like a five-mana NegateNegate with a 3/4 flier tacked on. Alternatively, it's like a three-mana 2/3 with a noncreature-focused, personal Essence CaptureEssence Capture tacked on. No matter how you spin it, Glen Elendra Guardian is a fabulous creature.

The decks that want to run this card are mostly going to be Faerie-typal decks, such as Oona, Queen of the FaeOona, Queen of the Fae or the new Maralen, Fae AscendantMaralen, Fae Ascendant, or Control builds such as Baral, Chief of ComplianceBaral, Chief of Compliance or Y'shtola, Night's BlessedY'shtola, Night's Blessed.

Depending on the level of salty you're going for, Glen Elendra Guardian could be used in pretty much any Bracket beyond the first. Regardless of the Bracket or playstyle, your opponents may still never see it coming. How tricksy!

Loch MareLoch Mare

Next on my list is Loch MareLoch Mare, an astonishingly-pushed 4/5 for ! Sure, it enters the battlefield with three -1/-1 counters on it, yes, but any player worth their keep will find a way to remove them. Fortunately, Loch Mare comes with not one, but two ways to do this!

For , its controller can remove one counter to draw a card. In this way, Loch Mare is kind of like a Think TwiceThink Twice that you can use three times (and at a much better rate than flashing it back! Wait, is this Think Thrice?).

But it doesn't stop there. For , removing two counters will tap down, and then put a stun counter on, an opposing creature. This, in essence, freezes a given obstacle creature for two rounds of combat. That's huge, in many contexts. And, don't forget that the Horse Serpent is getting gigantic in the process.

Like with Glen Elendra Guardian, Loch Mare will see play in Brackets across the board, perhaps save for cEDH/Bracket 5. From a Bracket 1 Horse-typal to the blue commanders mentioned in the Guardian's section, Loch Mare is a versatility machine with multiple niches to offer. But in addition to this, it'll see play in Izzet () Niv-MizzetNiv-Mizzet decks aplenty, as well as Hylda of the Icy CrownHylda of the Icy Crown builds.

Bitterbloom BearerBitterbloom Bearer

Next on the list is Bitterbloom BearerBitterbloom Bearer, a 1/1 flier with flash for . You'll almost always want to cast this Faerie Rogue just before your turn starts. The reason being, it's essentially a BitterblossomBitterblossom with some fairly frail stats to it. You typically won't want to put Bitterbloom Bearer into the fray of combat, but it's a great way to stay relevant in combat.

In the same way that its inspiration enchantment has when it creates 1/1 flying tokens, this creature comes with a target on its tiny little head.

Bitterbloom Bearer's frailty as a creature is easily mitigated, however, by way of its utility in many Reanimator and Aristocrats builds. I can see decks that like to sacrifice anything they can, such as Chainer, Dementia MasterChainer, Dementia Master (a commander I probably overvalue nowadays, frankly) or Tayam, Luminous EnigmaTayam, Luminous Enigma, running this guy for as much value as possible.

And, lest it bear endless repeating, Faerie-typal decks want this creature too.

Twilight DivinerTwilight Diviner

The other mono-black creature on this list is Twilight DivinerTwilight Diviner. This creature has the same Reanimator playstyles wanting it as Bitterbloom Bearer, but for vastly different reasons. See, Twilight Diviner doubles up on reanimation by creating a token copy of the creature you resurrect when it happens. Plain and simple.

It's extremely powerful in a deck like Chainer or Tayam, and, while Elf-typal decks couldn't care less, some builds might find use for the Diviner as well.

To be quite frank, Twilight Diviner's potential discourse probably comes about when talking about the Bracket it belongs in. This creature doesn't seem to have a home in low brackets, but who knows? It definitely has a home; I just don't think it's in Brackets 1 or 2 (Brackets 3 and 4 seem like fair game, though!).

Hexing SquelcherHexing Squelcher

Let's face it, if you're reading this website, you may have come to this article fully expecting to see Hexing SquelcherHexing Squelcher on here. This Goblin Sorcerer is so pushed it's not even funny. Anyone underselling you on the efficacy of this creature seriously wants something from you, and it's probably your copy of the Squelcher.

And it's not hard to see why; allowing all of your spells to be uncounterable and protected by a (somewhat less impactful) ward effect while possessing these qualities itself is massive.

All this to say, Hexing Squelcher has a home in pretty much every deck running red in its color identity, except for those in Bracket 1, but definitely including Bracket 5/cEDH! Our cEDH expert Harvey McGuinness did a whole article about it, which you can find here. Need I say more?

Village PillagersVillage Pillagers

Next, I present Village PillagersVillage Pillagers, a 5/5 Goblin Warrior capable of wiping an entire board's worth of weenies for a very fair rate of . The thing about this creature is that while it deals only one damage to each opposing creature, it also permanently weakens them because of its wither keyword. Often, the enfeeblement of opposing creatures' power is a key way to stay alive while using a color that usually... doesn't.

Look, I'm not saying that red is the weakest color right now, but it is, without a doubt, the one with the worst staying power. Nevertheless, this card also has the capacity to create many Treasure tokens. That's alluring all by itself!

Almost any deck focused on using red in its color identity as more than a splash, especially Goblin-typal decks and -1/-1 counter decks, will want to run Village Pillagers. I don't think it gets a lot better as the Bracket goes up, though, and Bracket 5/cEDH decks won't want to play this five-drop at all, Treasure token generation be damned.

Formidable SpeakerFormidable Speaker

The next card on this list, Formidable SpeakerFormidable Speaker, was the card designed by Jean-Emmanuel Depraz, the 29th Magic: The Gathering World Champion. And what a card it is! For , this 2/4 Elf Druid can serve as a one-off Survival of the FittestSurvival of the Fittest effect as well as act as a creature copy of Deserted TempleDeserted Temple, a fantastic nonbasic land.

I can already see Teval, the Balanced ScaleTeval, the Balanced Scale players, myself included, squealing in delight over the release of this card. However, green decks of every make and model will want to play Formidable Speaker, and I can't think of one that doesn't.

And, let's also insert the obligatory Elf-typal mention here, as is their right because, well, Lorwyn Eclipsed is Elf-heavy.

JubilationJubilation

The last card on my list, but the first card on many Elemental-typal lists, is JubilationJubilation. This creature is an amazing stand-in for Craterhoof BehemothCraterhoof Behemoth or End-Raze ForerunnersEnd-Raze Forerunners, and I see players in the former camp running Jubilation as an additional Hoofie, and those in the second outright replacing the Forerunners.

I don't see a world in which Jubilation is cEDH-viable, but in every other bracket I see the card seeing extensive play. Commanders that will appreciate Jubilation the most include Stompy Aggro decks, and Reanimator builds like Meren of Clan Nel TothMeren of Clan Nel Toth.

Conclusion

There were so many amazing nonlegendary creatures in Lorwyn Eclipsed that I had to cut a whole section from this list. Multicolored cards are great, but the hybrid-mana Elementals are not quite as strong as the monocolored creatures in this set. However, if I expanded this list two include two more, I would've included VibranceVibrance and EmptinessEmptiness.

With that, I'd like to ask if there were any nonlegendary creature cards that you, dear readers, would value higher than the ones I've listed in this article. Do you like any other ones from Lorwyn Eclipsed in particular? Sound off in the comments below!