Multiversal PassageMultiversal Passage | Art by Pablo Mendoza

Edge of Eternities has been rocking the Commander format with countless new and powerful cards, the introduction of legendary Vehicles as commanders, and the uber-flexible warp mechanic. It also made a big impact on the price of Shocklands, long considered staples of multiple formats.

Of the ten total Shocklands, five saw reprints in EOE: Breeding PoolBreeding Pool, Godless ShrineGodless Shrine, Sacred FoundrySacred Foundry, Stomping GroundStomping Ground, and Watery GraveWatery Grave, each of which is down from its usual double digit price and can be snagged for between $6-$8. (Presumably, the other five Shocklands will appear in another set in the near future.)

Meanwhile, MTG preview season remains unrelenting, and the upcoming Marvel’s Spider-Man set contains an interesting inclusion called Multiversal PassageMultiversal Passage. It’s a land that enters tapped unless you pay two life and can become any type of basic land and, thus, tap for that color of mana.

The main text of Multiversal Passage reads like a Shockland at first glance, but the differences far outweigh the similarities. Does that make Multiversal Passage unplayable? Or, does it represent a more flexible sort of Shockland that will become an instant Commander staple?

Let’s dive into the details and see which is best.

What Makes Shocklands Good?

Newer players would be forgiven if they thought Overgrown TombOvergrown Tomb was a downgrade from, say, Woodland CemeteryWoodland Cemetery or Llanowar WastesLlanowar Wastes, which don’t require a payment to enter untapped. But it’s not that simple. The superiority of the Shockland is a product of multiple factors that extend well beyond the shock of it all.

Shocklands are fantastic in any format where Fetchlands — lands that can be sacrificed to search for a different land from your library — are available. In this case, I don’t mean lands that technically fetch, like Evolving WildsEvolving Wilds or Fabled PassageFabled Passage, but rather the cycle of 10 lands that can grab cards with basic land types.

These include Polluted DeltaPolluted Delta, Windswept HeathWindswept Heath, Arid MesaArid Mesa, Flooded StrandFlooded Strand, and more, one for each pair of two basic land types available in the game.

Verdant CatacombsVerdant Catacombs won’t be able to fetch Woodland CemeteryWoodland Cemetery, but can certainly find a basic Forest or basic Swamp. Beyond that is where the Shocklands’ utility factors in.

Unlike most other two-color lands, Shocklands maintain the basic land types of the colors they produce. Overgrown TombOvergrown Tomb counts as both a Forest and a Swamp; Breeding PoolBreeding Pool is a Forest and an Island; and so forth for all 10 available. So, that Verdant Catacombs can also grab an Overgrown Tomb or, for what it’s (financially) worth, a BayouBayou.

This benefit extends to cards like Nature's LoreNature's Lore and Three VisitsThree Visits, which are perfectly capable of finding a Stomping GroundStomping Ground or a Temple GardenTemple Garden.

But wait…there’s more! With the right composition of Shocklands, any Fetchland in a five-color deck can provide access to any color of mana. A Marsh FlatsMarsh Flats can grab a Godless ShrineGodless Shrine, sure, but also a Watery GraveWatery Grave, Sacred FoundrySacred Foundry, or Temple GardenTemple Garden to produce blue, red, or green mana, respectively. Then, for a paltry price of two life, you can use what you fetch on the turn it comes out.

It’s also worth noting that Fetchlands thin out your deck, reducing the chances, ever so slightly, that you’ll draw a land later in the game when you really need something more impactful.

When you can effectively run up to 10 dual lands and not worry about hitting your colors, a significant aspect of the game suddenly shifts into easy mode. It’s also worth nothing that the Commander rules don’t preclude you from running a Fetchland that grabs a land type you don’t run; the word “Plains” isn’t the same as a white mana pip.

Where Multiversal Passage Can Be Better…and Worse

Multiversal Passage is not fetchable like a Shockland, as it gains the attributes of a basic land upon entering the battlefield rather than in your library. However, in Commander, it still holds a fair amount of utility.

Decks without Fetchlands, and particularly those without green in their color identity, are at the whim of whatever lands their pilots happen to draw during the match, which is where Multiversal Passage can shine. Opening hands can feel less restrictive when a turn-one tapped land isn’t the end of the world, but it’s nice to look at your starting seven and know you can choose to power out a Land TaxLand Tax, Mystic RemoraMystic Remora, or Dragon's Rage ChannelerDragon's Rage Channeler reliably with the same untapped land.

In the mid-to-late game, Multiversal Passage can help fix your colors for multi-pip spells or if you’ve been unlucky in finding a particular land type. Two life is still a very small price to pay for an untapped land of any color.

Plus — and I admit these are quite the corner cases — Multiversal Passage can contribute to your Island or Swamp count if your deck cares about that sort of thing, via cards like Scourge of FleetsScourge of Fleets or Cabal CoffersCabal Coffers. Or, perhaps a Ragavan, Nimble PilfererRagavan, Nimble Pilferer deck wants to leverage Multiversal Passage as a way to cast non-red spells more reliably…?

At this point, I’m grasping at straws. Cards like Urborg, Tomb of YawgmothUrborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth and Yavimaya, Cradle of GrowthYavimaya, Cradle of Growth already accomplish the above land type-fixing feats quite elegantly. City of BrassCity of Brass, Mana ConfluenceMana Confluence, Prismatic VistaPrismatic Vista, and Exotic OrchardExotic Orchard are easy ways to guarantee you can produce any color of mana at the table.

Even if the two-life loss from Multiversal Passage is less than what a Mana Confluence would dish out over the course of a game, Multiversal Passage locks you into a color, its flexibility diminishing as the game drags on.

Is There Any Comparison?

The most accurate comparison point for Multiversal Passage isn’t a Shockland, but rather the cycle of MDFC Pathway lands found in Kaldheim and Zendikar Rising. These are untapped lands with one color of mana per side — Darkbore PathwayDarkbore Pathway is the Golgari one, but there exist nine others, each representing a color pair.

Once Darkbore Pathway is played, the land produces black until it can be replayed as a Slitherbore Pathway.

Think of Multiversal Passage as a five-sided Pathway land, and its appeal continues to diminish. In a vacuum, a Shockland limits you to two color options while in your hand, but Multiversal Passage’s inflexibility on the battlefield is far more of a liability.

Heck, at least something like Prismatic VistaPrismatic Vista let’s you wait a beat before forcing a decision on color.

Shock and Awe

I can certainly see Multiversal Passage slotting into budget decks quite well, as those decks were never going to run Fetchlands that fetch double-digit prices. For the moment, it’s priced at $18, but the Spider-Man set is still a ways away and I’d be utterly shocked if Multiversal Passage settles at anything more than Fabled PassageFabled Passage, currently $3.

Now, if Multiversal Passage counted as every land type while in your library, that would be something else. Perhaps in the next multiverse!

What do you think? Where do you see Multiversal Passage fitting in?