<p style="text-align: right;"><em><span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Merciless Repurposing" href="#" target="_blank">Merciless Repurposing</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> | Art by <a href="https://www.artstation.com/artur_nakhodkin" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Artur Nakhodkin</a></em></p>
<p>Welcome! <a href="https://edhrec.com/articles/5-magic-characters-who-deserved-better-story-treatment" target="_blank" rel="noopener">When I last wrote about this subject</a>, many of my readers had a lot to say about characters who deserved better treatment within the <em>Magic</em> story. Well, I took in some of your feedback. Frankly, I'm a bit surprised that there were a handful more characters who deserve more than their fates.</p>
<p>Thankfully (or not, for their sakes), there's more than enough mistreated characters for another entry into what is now a two-part series. So let's explore that with five more characters who deserved better story treatment!</p>
<h2>#5. Davvol</h2>
<div id="attachment_161980" style="width: 1004px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><a href="https://edhrecstatic.com/articles/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Carnival-of-Souls.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-161980" class="wp-image-161980" src="https://edhrecstatic.com/articles/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Carnival-of-Souls.jpg" alt="Carnival of Souls. Illustrated by Brian Snoddy. Image credit: Wizards of the Coast" width="994" height="559" srcset="https://edhrecstatic.com/articles/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Carnival-of-Souls.jpg 1920w, https://edhrecstatic.com/articles/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Carnival-of-Souls-300x169.jpg 300w, https://edhrecstatic.com/articles/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Carnival-of-Souls-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://edhrecstatic.com/articles/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Carnival-of-Souls-768x432.jpg 768w, https://edhrecstatic.com/articles/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Carnival-of-Souls-1536x864.jpg 1536w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 994px) 100vw, 994px" /></a><p id="caption-attachment-161980" class="wp-caption-text">Carnival of Souls. Illustrated by Brian Snoddy. Image credit: Wizards of the Coast</p></div>
<p>Davvol was the first Evincar of the artificial plane of Rath. He was the elder of a place known as Coracin. Whether this is a plane of existence or a village within another plane is unknown at this time. He was terminally ill and an exile from this place, however. Thus, when the Phyrexians came to Davvol looking for information, he spitefully, and willingly gave that information to them. In exchange, Davvol was partially compleated and became the overseer of the construction of Rath within the Blind Eternities.</p>
<p>During this time, Davvol conducted experiments on Rath and adjacent Multiversal planes to figure out what would eventually be the Rathi overlay upon Dominaria, spurring the fabled Phyrexian Invasion of Dominaria and the climax to the Weatherlight Saga. However, another Phyrexian killed Davvol in cold blood and stole his knowledge from him.</p>
<p>Davvol may have gotten it even worse when we look at the flavor text for <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Carnival of Souls" href="#" target="_blank">Carnival of Souls</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>:</p>
<blockquote><p>“‘Davvol, blast those elves.’ ‘Davvol, transport those troops.’ No one cares that today is my birthday.”</p></blockquote>
<p>From other interactions, it seems that Phyrexians don't appear to care about trivialities such as birthdays. However, Davvol, only partly compleat, still did. What a torment to essentially be the ruler of an entire plane of existence, but to have ignored the trifle that is one's own birthday! It is for that reason that, perhaps only <em>half</em>-facetiously, I recognize Davvol as #5 on this list.</p>
<h2>#4. Lukka</h2>
<div id="attachment_161981" style="width: 1004px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><a href="https://edhrecstatic.com/articles/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Weaponize-the-Monsters.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-161981" class="wp-image-161981" src="https://edhrecstatic.com/articles/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Weaponize-the-Monsters.jpg" alt="Weaponize the Monsters. Illustrated by Magali Villeneuve. Image credit: Wizards of the Coast" width="994" height="559" srcset="https://edhrecstatic.com/articles/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Weaponize-the-Monsters.jpg 1920w, https://edhrecstatic.com/articles/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Weaponize-the-Monsters-300x169.jpg 300w, https://edhrecstatic.com/articles/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Weaponize-the-Monsters-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://edhrecstatic.com/articles/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Weaponize-the-Monsters-768x432.jpg 768w, https://edhrecstatic.com/articles/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Weaponize-the-Monsters-1536x864.jpg 1536w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 994px) 100vw, 994px" /></a><p id="caption-attachment-161981" class="wp-caption-text">Weaponize the Monsters. Illustrated by Magali Villeneuve. Image credit: Wizards of the Coast</p></div>
<p>At #4 on this list is Lukka, a Planeswalker from Ikoria. From the very get-go, Lukka had a hard life. He was bullied from a young age, perhaps because he always felt like an outsider to the Ikorian populace. Eventually, Lukka learned how to bond with the predatory creatures of the plane. However, sadly, upon bonding with a patagia tiger called <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Leori, Sparktouched Hunter" href="#" target="_blank">Leori</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, the Drannith military exiled him and killed Leori. Lukka could not catch a break on Ikoria.</p>
<p>Lukka's outcast feelings are exacerbated when the man's Planeswalker spark ignites. Monsters immediately attack Lukka on another currently unknown plane. He shrugs off the attack after bonding with one of the beasts.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Heartless Act"></div></div>
<p>Eventually, Lukka arrives on Arcavios, where he is captured by the Oriq, a group of cultists working under <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Extus, Oriq Overlord" href="#" target="_blank">Extus</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, an antagonizing force to the plane and also to the Strixhaven Academy. Lukka manages to flee. Again, no lucky break.</p>
<h3>Lukka's Compleation and Death</h3>
<p>When the Planeswalker <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Vivien Reid" href="#" target="_blank">Vivien Reid</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> recruits Lukka to her cause to take down New Phyrexia internally, Lukka accepts and enters the Hunters' Maze with Nissa. Lukka is compleated when he underestimates his control over a Phyrexian Beast within the sphere and gets infected with glistening oil. Lukka later invades Ikoria, but dies a gruesome and painful death at the hands of Vivien and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Vadrok, Apex of Thunder" href="#" target="_blank">Vadrok, Apex of Thunder</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Vadrok, Apex of Thunder"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Vivien Reid"></div></div>
<p>Lukka invaded Ikoria as an ultimate amalgamation of biomass, acclimated by compleating many of Ikoria's monsters and incorporating their forms into himself. However, when Vadrok engulfs Lukka in its magical flames, nothing remains but the Planeswalker and his original Phyrexian bonded beast.</p>
<p>Lukka has lost everything by the time he dies, and it's largely fair for what he'd done. However, fate treated Lukka, as a character, so poorly throughout his life in the literature, that it hardly feels good for him to meet this fate.</p>
<h2>#3. Urabrask</h2>
<div id="attachment_161982" style="width: 771px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><a href="https://edhrecstatic.com/articles/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Urabrask-Heretic-Praetor-Variant-MtG-Art.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-161982" class="wp-image-161982" src="https://edhrecstatic.com/articles/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Urabrask-Heretic-Praetor-Variant-MtG-Art.jpg" alt="Urabrask, Heretic Praetor. Illustrated by Igor Kieryluk. Image credit: Wizards of the Coast" width="761" height="559" srcset="https://edhrecstatic.com/articles/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Urabrask-Heretic-Praetor-Variant-MtG-Art.jpg 1200w, https://edhrecstatic.com/articles/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Urabrask-Heretic-Praetor-Variant-MtG-Art-300x221.jpg 300w, https://edhrecstatic.com/articles/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Urabrask-Heretic-Praetor-Variant-MtG-Art-1024x753.jpg 1024w, https://edhrecstatic.com/articles/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Urabrask-Heretic-Praetor-Variant-MtG-Art-768x564.jpg 768w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 761px) 100vw, 761px" /></a><p id="caption-attachment-161982" class="wp-caption-text">Urabrask, Heretic Praetor. Illustrated by Igor Kieryluk. Image credit: Wizards of the Coast</p></div>
<p>At #3 on our list is the New Phyexian Praetor called Urabrask. Urabrask, as a character, was a reclusive, enigmatic figure. I distinctly recall many speculating, myself included, that Urabrask was the result of the <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Mirari" href="#" target="_blank">Mirari</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> doubly fusing with Slobad's and Bosh's corpses in the Furnace Layer of the reformed New Phyrexian Mirrodin. When this proved not to be the case, I will admit that I was surprised by it.</p>
<p>Urabrask's views about the Nornian perspective on freedom outcast the red Praetor. As you can see in the first image of this very article, Urabrask's dissenting views caused his undoing. He was ripped limb from limb, his bio-mechanical parts repurposed as spare scrap.</p>
<p>It feels like there are a <em>lot</em> of red characters in the <em>Magic</em> story that get mistreated and deserve so much better than they get. Thankfully for red, Urabrask is the last red-aligned character I'm going to list in this article. On to pick #2!</p>
<h2>#2. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Garruk Wildspeaker" href="#" target="_blank">Garruk Wildspeaker</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span></h2>
<div id="attachment_161983" style="width: 1930px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><a href="https://edhrecstatic.com/articles/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/In-Garruks-Wake.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-161983" class="wp-image-161983 size-full" src="https://edhrecstatic.com/articles/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/In-Garruks-Wake.jpg" alt="In Garruk's Wake. Illustrated by Chase Stone. Image credit: Wizards of the Coast" width="1920" height="1080" srcset="https://edhrecstatic.com/articles/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/In-Garruks-Wake.jpg 1920w, https://edhrecstatic.com/articles/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/In-Garruks-Wake-300x169.jpg 300w, https://edhrecstatic.com/articles/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/In-Garruks-Wake-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://edhrecstatic.com/articles/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/In-Garruks-Wake-768x432.jpg 768w, https://edhrecstatic.com/articles/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/In-Garruks-Wake-1536x864.jpg 1536w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px" /></a><p id="caption-attachment-161983" class="wp-caption-text">In Garruk's Wake. Illustrated by Chase Stone. Image credit: Wizards of the Coast</p></div>
<p>My penultimate choice within this article is the Planeswalker known as Garruk. From very early post-Mending comics, some depict Garruk's origins as a child whose Planeswalker spark ignited quite early, sending him from one unknown homeplane (though many speculate it to be Dominaria) to another. This may have stunted Garruk's development. Garruk then grew up relatively feral, living alongside the many beasts he found.</p>
<p>Eventually, Garruk would take up hunting game for noble means, using the meat for food, the pelts for warmth, and the rest with respect in other ways. But, in time, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Liliana Vess" href="#" target="_blank">Liliana Vess</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> cursed Garruk inexplicably to be afflicted with a malady that only murder would seem to satiate.</p>
<p>Garruk became a serial hunter of Planeswalkers. Even during <em>War of the Spark</em>, the mad Draconic Planeswalker <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Nicol Bolas" href="#" target="_blank">Nicol Bolas</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> made sure that Garruk could not hear his beacon. That beacon attracted every other Planeswalker to Ravnica; to summon Garruk would provide him with a safari's worth of game, so to speak, which would, in turn, ruin Bolas's plans to steal their sparks.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Interplanar Beacon"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="The Elderspell"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Despark"></div></div>
<p>For a while, Garruk didn't get a lot of story representation. This changed during <em>Throne of Eldraine</em>, wherein Oko frees him of Liliana's curse but makes Garruk subservient to Oko in turn. As a fae-cursed Planeswalker, Oko mistreated Garruk, who Oko refers to many times as his literal pet. There's a degree of humiliation here that Garruk probably doesn't deserve either, but my beef is more with the egregious amount of curses Garruk has had to withstand.</p>
<h3>Garruk's Poor Story Characterization</h3>
<p>It also doesn't exactly help that in certain cards, the art characterizes Garruk in a way that is unbefitting of a game for ages 13+. Triumph of Ferocity was a mistake, artwise (and thus I'm not adding a link to said art). Many players seem to look at that card with the mindset that it depicts an undue sort of violence. I agree, though it probably wasn't the artist's intent. To spare those who are dealing with trauma stemming from similar violence, I'm not including that art here.</p>
<p>Nevertheless, <em>Wizards of the Coast</em> slightly compounded the issue by giving Garruk an extended sabbatical from the <em>Magic</em> Gatewatch saga.</p>
<p>With that, the article is almost at a close. Which character in the <em>Magic: The Gathering</em> story is my #1 pick for most deserving of a better fate?</p>
<h2>#1. Dyfed</h2>
<div id="attachment_161979" style="width: 1261px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><a href="https://edhrecstatic.com/articles/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/tumblr_0ed5643f1c6a3ccdff84a0588bbe2c36_bb39a605_1280.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-161979" class="wp-image-161979" src="https://edhrecstatic.com/articles/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/tumblr_0ed5643f1c6a3ccdff84a0588bbe2c36_bb39a605_1280.jpg" alt="Horizon Boughs. Illustrated by Jean-Sebastien Rossbach. Image credit: Wizards of the Coast" width="1251" height="559" srcset="https://edhrecstatic.com/articles/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/tumblr_0ed5643f1c6a3ccdff84a0588bbe2c36_bb39a605_1280.jpg 1000w, https://edhrecstatic.com/articles/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/tumblr_0ed5643f1c6a3ccdff84a0588bbe2c36_bb39a605_1280-300x134.jpg 300w, https://edhrecstatic.com/articles/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/tumblr_0ed5643f1c6a3ccdff84a0588bbe2c36_bb39a605_1280-768x343.jpg 768w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1251px) 100vw, 1251px" /></a><p id="caption-attachment-161979" class="wp-caption-text">Horizon Boughs. Illustrated by Jean-Sebastien Rossbach. Image credit: Wizards of the Coast</p></div>
<p>Potentially the oldest character in our timeline for this series, Dyfed was a character who, naively, showed the Thran healer known as Yawgmoth a great number of other planes of existence. Pyrulea was one of the planes she showed to the ambitious future ruler of Phyrexia. This plane only has two confirmed representations in cards: <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Horizon Boughs" href="#" target="_blank">Horizon Boughs</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, a plane from <em>Planechase</em>, and the original art for <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Horizon Canopy" href="#" target="_blank">Horizon Canopy</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>.</p>
<p>As for Dyfed, she has no representation whatsoever. The novel she features in, <em>The Thran</em>, is scarcely represented in any cards in the first place, save for <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Yawgmoth, Thran Physician" href="#" target="_blank">Yawgmoth, Thran Physician</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Glacian, Powerstone Engineer" href="#" target="_blank">Glacian, Powerstone Engineer</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Rebbec, Architect of Ascension" href="#" target="_blank">Rebbec, Architect of Ascension</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>. But this isn't about them, so much as it is about Dyfed's missing card. She's very much absent from <em>Magic</em>'s card-centric canon.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Glacian, Powerstone Engineer"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Yawgmoth, Thran Physician"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Rebbec, Architect of Ascension"></div></div>
<h3>Dyfed's Unfortunate Fate</h3>
<p>When we think about Dyfed in the storyline, however, things get even worse for this early-canon Planeswalker. Yawgmoth lobotomized Dyfed upon her return to Phyrexia, preventing her from planeswalking away. And then, Yawgmoth's followers do something arguably worse: they vivisect Dyfed's body. Yawgmoth, looking for some physical organ that houses a Planeswalker's spark, cannot retrieve it from Dyfed. Eventually, Rebbec saves Dyfed from a fate worse than death by killing the Phyrexian priests doing the vile deed, allowing Dyfed to finally pass away.</p>
<p>When I, as a reader, consider the cruel end to Dyfed's life, I wince at the idea of lobotomy and vivisection. This, paired with the guild Dyfed must feel for allowing Yawgmoth to see that planes beyond Dominaria exist, is a painful consideration. That's why I've put Dyfed as my #1 pick in this article.</p>
<p>I can't necessarily compare her pain with that of Squee, whom we covered in the previous article. However, Dyfed has a fairly good case for her being <em>even more</em> tortured.</p>
<h2>Conclusion</h2>
<p>As a closing statement, I find that there are plenty of other <em>Magic</em> characters that are undeserving of their fate, their bad writing, or other factors that afflict their characterization in the form. However, for other characters to truly shine, <em>Wizards of the Coast</em>'s creative team will always have to make some sacrifices.</p>
<p>Perhaps, in the end, it's only right that ten or so characters are shunted to the sidelines or treated worse than others. Time will tell if any of the characters I've mentioned in either article will get justice in any way. Hopefully, they will! It's a matter of time, in many ways.</p>
<p>In the meantime, how do you feel about this list? Are there still any characters within <em>Magic</em>'s extensive story that you feel got the short end of the stick? Alternatively, what about characters that got it <em>too well</em>? Sound off below!</p>


5 More Magic Characters Who Deserved Better in the Story

<p style="text-align: right;"><em><span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Tibalt, the Fiend-Blooded|avr|161" href="#" target="_blank">Tibalt, the Fiend-Blooded</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> | <a href="https://www.artstation.com/bugmeyer" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Peter Mohrbacher</a></em></p>
<p>Let's face the facts: <em>Magic: The Gathering</em>'s story is vast and colorful. Great heroes abound in every single part of the story. Like in other forms of media, such as on television, on film, or in comics, <em>Magic</em> has so many important, interesting, and powerful characters shaping its multiversal destiny.</p>
<p>However, for every Gerrard, Jace, or Elesh Norn, there's also a Zagorka, a Sash, and a Feroz. I won't be covering these characters today in particular; instead I'm writing about five characters in the <em>Magic</em> storylines who deserved better writing in many ways.</p>
<p>This list may be brief, potentially due to the number of really cool fan favorites in the game. However, the impacted characters, whether fan favorites or not, matter to many <em>Magic</em> fans. I hope I can do them a bit of justice here. Let's begin!</p>
<h2>#5. Tibalt of Nephalia</h2>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Tibalt, the Fiend-Blooded|AVR|161"></div></div>
<p>A character that I - edgy, young, and still in college - immediately thought was a true paragon of badassery, was Tibalt, the half-devil of Nephalia. Obviously, I'd never wish to emulate his sadism or anything; I just really liked his backstory notes.</p>
<p>It's not like he had much else going for him since his original card from <em>Avacyn Restored</em> was decidedly trash. I thought his art, done by the acclaimed artist and illustrator Pete Mohrbacher, was really interesting as well. Tibalt had a ton going for him everywhere but mechanically.</p>
<p>This initial mechanical flop of a planeswalker card ultimately turned Tibalt into a memetic joke for years, all the way up until <em>Kaldheim</em>, where he got an awesome card... Except his side of it was more-or-less on the rear face of <em>another</em> character's card. Yes, Tibalt disguised himself as <span class="edhrecp__link side-by-side"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Valki, God of Lies" href="#" target="_blank">Valki, God of Lies</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, but Valki exists somewhere in the Kaldheim mythos, so it's a bit unfair.</p>
<h3>Tibalt's Unceremonious Death</h3>
<p>Fast forward a bit to <em>Phyrexia: All Will Be One</em>. By this point, Elesh Norn has compleated Tibalt fully and recruited him to her side. We only got a single card showing Tibalt in this new form, and it was the one where he just... <em>dies</em>.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Tyvar&#039;s Stand"></div></div>
<p>Now, <em>is that really fair</em>?</p>
<p>This, ultimately, is why Tibalt deserved better. There's absolutely nothing to do here with his toxic demeanor or actions. We all know Tibalt is a complete bastich, to co-opt from DC Comics a little bit. But if nothing else, we at least deserved to have a card fully depicting Phyrexian Tibalt, and not just as a story beat alone.</p>
<h2>#4. Dack Fayden of Fiora</h2>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Dack Fayden"></div></div>
<p>One of the more suave characters in the <em>Magic</em> story was Dack Fayden of the plane of Fiora. As the self-proclaimed "greatest thief in the multiverse," Dack stole the hearts of so many fans of <em>Magic</em>'s <em>IDW</em> Comics series.</p>
<p>Many cards came with <em>IDW</em>'s comics, mostly showcasing Dack in some way. They were usually images of the comics' covers. These were truly cool promos. However, due to the way <em>IDW</em> and <em>Wizards of the Coast</em> collaborated on this comic run, Dack couldn't be portrayed beyond the comic promos, and one planeswalker card bearing his likeness (as well as a few non-planeswalker cards with his image on them).</p>
<h3>IDW's Legal Story Kerfuffle</h3>
<p>Because of the legal issues, <em>Wizards of the Coast</em> had to find a way to unceremoniously kill Dack Fayden off - permanently. That's why he died in the trailer for <em>War of the Spark</em>. The trailer was so interesting, but it truly hurt to see Dack get got.</p>
<p><iframe loading="lazy" title="War of the Spark Official Trailer – Magic: The Gathering" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/b5W9t62t10I?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe></p>
<p>There's a glaring issue with his death in <em>War of the Spark</em>, however. <em>WAR</em> had a ton of Planeswalkers get cameos in cards. But outside of that trailer, as beautifully done as it was, Dack received a resounding tally of <em>zero</em> representation in <em>WAR</em>.</p>
<p><em>Wizards of the Coast</em> could have acted a little closer to the vest and not assigned IDW to write a comic with a main character original to anywhere but <em>Wizards</em>. If they had, perhaps we wouldn't be in this situation regarding Dack Fayden's unnecessary demise. However, Dack absolutely deserved far better than he got. As Linkin Park wrote and as emoted in the trailer for <em>WAR</em>, Dack "tried so hard and got so far / But in the end, it doesn't even matter."</p>
<h2>#3. Jeska of Otaria</h2>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Jeska, Thrice Reborn"></div></div>
<p>The <em>Odyssey</em> and <em>Onslaught</em> book trilogies are, to this day, some of my favorite <em>Magic</em> stories. Kamahl's triumph against so many adversaries and odds felt to me to be truly Herculean. But the Pardic barbarian-turned-Krosan druid suffered a lot in his social relationships.</p>
<p>For the main example, take Jeska, his younger sister and the third character who deserved better. The mad dementia caster Braids corrupted her into <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Phage the Untouchable" href="#" target="_blank">Phage the Untouchable</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, and turned her into a vessel of the Numena Kuberr. The <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Cabal Patriarch" href="#" target="_blank">Cabal Patriarch</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> then, most unfortunately, had relations with Jeska-as-Phage, siring Kuberr.</p>
<p>To make matters worse, after Phage birthed Kuberr, she was later killed by her own brother. Kamahl just can't catch a break, huh?</p>
<h3>Jeska-as-Karona</h3>
<p>However, as Jeska was killed, Kamahl also slew <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Akroma, Angel of Wrath" href="#" target="_blank">Akroma, Angel of Wrath</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> in the same fell swoop. Furthermore, Zagorka, a character whom we never saw on a single card, was also caught in the cleaving. The death of these three prominent female characters (in the story, anyway) caused Jeska to be reborn a second time into Karona, the false goddess of magic on Dominaria.</p>
<p>Karona then, at some point, departed Dominaria, taking with her much of the magic she heralded. This inevitably catalyzed the temporal crisis of <em>Time Spiral</em>'s block, although readers wouldn't have known it at the time. When she returned, Kamahl had to slay Karona again, with the assistance of the three Numena Kuberr, Averru, and Lowallyn. She returned, as Jeska, but the other two women did not.</p>
<h3>The Temporal Crisis</h3>
<p>Later, during the aforementioned temporal crisis, the black-aligned Planeswalker Leshrac took control of Jeska and forced her to seal many of the rifts and take their power in. Part of this was done by forcing Jeska to embrace her past as Phage. For Jeska to relive the atrocities she committed as a corrupted version of herself must have been <em>awful</em>.</p>
<p>And finally, when the last rift was sealed and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="The Mending of Dominaria" href="#" target="_blank">The Mending of Dominaria</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> occurred at last, Jeska died. Happy ending? I think <em>not</em>.</p>
<p>To that end, Jeska could have been treated way more by writers than just as a puppet to multiple evil forces. She could have been more than a one-note false goddess of magic. And above all, more than just a damsel in extreme distress.</p>
<p>A lot of her time as a Planeswalker was spent mentored by Karn, but then again, a majority of it is only done "off-screen." Jeska certainly deserved better than any of that from a writing standpoint.</p>
<h2>#2. Ixidor of Otaria</h2>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Ixidor, Reality Sculptor"></div></div>
<p>Otarian characters really received no love from their writers. Ixidor, an illusionist and later the embodiment of the Numena Lowallyn, was a successful pit fighter in the Cabal City pits on Otaria. He had great debts to the Cabal, however. His fighting partner and love of his life, Nivea, was killed by Phage, forcing Ixidor into exile as he could not pay his debts any longer.</p>
<p>In an Otarian desert, he learned how to make manifest his illusions, making them into real things. This was due to Lowallyn's influence on his abilities, although Ixidor was a great illusionist in his own right.</p>
<p>With this newfound power, he created Akroma, whom he fashioned into the image of Nivea. Phage later maimed Akroma, and Ixidor gave her jaguar legs.</p>
<p>Eventually, Ixidor was eaten by an Otarian deathwurm and later found still alive (albeit barely) by Kamahl. Akroma, who Ixidor believed was his magnum opus, was already absorbed into Karona by this time. Kamahl led Ixidor out of the deathwurm, and the two, alongside Kuberr and Averru, ultimately vanquished Karona.</p>
<p>The Numena Lowallyn, manifested within Ixidor, perished in this final confrontation alongside his brothers.</p>
<h3>Despair in Other Timelines</h3>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Null Profusion"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Akroma, Angel of Fury"></div></div>
<p>Unfortunately, Ixidor's despair manifested in a large, destructive way in many timelines. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Akroma, Angel of Fury" href="#" target="_blank">Akroma, Angel of Fury</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is one example. No matter what timeline it took place in, Nivea's death was potentially a nexus event in the <em>Magic</em> story canon.</p>
<p>Akroma, while her own being, was also an extension of Ixidor's pain and grief in losing his lover, Nivea. She was hellbent on avenging Nivea and Ixidor. For Akroma to die surely took a huge toll on Ixidor, who had to see his lover die twice, in essence. Nobody deserves that, and for Ixidor to be such a neat character idea and suffer that much is a tragedy.</p>
<h2>#1. Squee</h2>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Squee, Goblin Nabob"></div></div>
<p>The short synopsis of <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Squee, Goblin Nabob" href="#" target="_blank">Squee, Goblin Nabob</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, the skyship <em>Weatherlight</em>'s cabin boy-turned-immortal, is just that. Yawgmoth the Ineffable granted Squee immortality so that Crovax and Ertai could torment the Goblin forever without fear of killing him and ending their fun.</p>
<p>There's much more to this story, however. As such, I've enlisted the help of <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/hobbesq.bolasgang.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Hobbes</a>, a content creator, Goblin aficionado, and advocate of the <a href="https://bsky.app/search?q=%23BetterDaysMTG" target="_blank" rel="noopener">#BetterDaysMTG</a> movement on social media. Here is what Hobbes had to say about this tragically underutilized character:</p>
<blockquote>
<p dir="ltr">Oh Squee, my poor beautiful mess of a Goblin. Squee is very interesting to me as someone who I think was largely seen as comedic relief for so long that him actually getting the story that he deserved literally took 20 years. He is a character who, like most early Goblins, filled the role of comedic relief. Just look in all the flavor texts he appears on! And yet, his story is actually pretty tragic; that beautiful, loyal Goblin experienced torture for information, and was essentially turned into an object to be killed, over and over.</p>
<p dir="ltr">Squee was a member of the Weatherlight crew as the cabin boy. He proved to be loyal to the crew, and quite adept at getting them out of trouble (and he was a surprisingly good shot). During the Phyrexian Invasion, Squee was captured by the Phyrexians and granted immortality by Yawgmoth. Yawgmoth literally did this so that he could be killed over and over again by Ertai and Crovax (as depicted in the card <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Phyrexian Tyranny" href="#" target="_blank">Phyrexian Tyranny</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>).</p>
</blockquote>
<p dir="ltr"><div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Phyrexian Tyranny"></div></div></p>
<blockquote>
<p dir="ltr">However, this backfired and allowed Squee to accidentally kill Ertai. Squee remained immortal.</p>
<p dir="ltr">And then, we got no story for Squee for roughly 20 years. The wildest part about this is that we even returned to Dominaria in 2018, and he was given a card showing that he was still immortal, and still around. But, he did not feature in the story at all. Even when the <em>Weatherlight</em> came back, crew and all, the cabin boy was <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Slimefoot, the Stowaway" href="#" target="_blank">Slimefoot, the Stowaway</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>. There were 12 stories for that set and he did not make a single appearance (which made having a card for him even more baffling). I was known for ranting about this for way too many years. Anytime Dominaria as a plane was mentioned, I would talk about how Squee was done dirty. I felt that with <em>Dominaria</em> the set, in particular, he had so much cool potential. Here you have a member of a species known for their short lifespan, who was now immortal, not a Planeswalker, and still living on Dominaria.</p>
</blockquote>
<p dir="ltr"><div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Slimefoot, the Stowaway"></div></div></p>
<blockquote>
<p dir="ltr">But here's the thing: in 2022, with <em>Dominaria United</em>, we finally got the side story of Squee and his immortality. Seriously, <a href="https://magic.wizards.com/en/news/magic-story/death-and-salvation-2022-08-16" target="_blank" rel="noopener">go read that story by Dan Sheehan</a>, it’s haunting, it’s beautiful, and it ends up with Squee giving up his immortality as a choice after Ertai had returned and attempted to turn Squee into a Phyrexian. We then had him present for the fight against the Phyrexians, in a sweet team-up with Slimefoot (cabin boys of the <em>Weatherlight</em> rise up!). And now… we again know nothing other than the fact that he is now mortal. I fear it could be another 20 years before we get his full story.</p>
</blockquote>
<p dir="ltr"><div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Slimefoot and Squee"></div></div></p>
<p dir="ltr">I wholeheartedly agree with this assessment. Hobbes knows his Goblins from toe to tip, and he's a great authority on the matter, especially regarding Squee. Hopefully, it <em>doesn't </em>take two decades before we get more literature surrounding this esteemed Goblin character.</p>
<h2 dir="ltr">Conclusion</h2>
<p>All in all, there were plenty of other characters to look at who were also written in a way that did them dirty. So now, I'd like to open the floor to you, dear readers. What <em>Magic: The Gathering </em>characters do you believe deserved better in the story? Sound off below!</p>


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