<h6 style="text-align: right;">(<span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Wrenn and Seven" href="#" target="_blank">Wrenn and Seven</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> | Art by <a href="https://www.artstation.com/kilart">Heonhwa Choe</a>)</h6>
<h1>I Was Working at the Lab, Late One Night</h1>
<p>It’s Halloween, and there’s nothing more frightening than seeing some of these cards across the table from you in <em>Magic: The Gathering</em>. I’m Josh, and I’ll be taking you on this terrifying journey through some of the most horrifying cards in <em>Magic</em>. This wouldn’t be a <em>Preview Review</em> article without some utility though! Each of these cards is playable and if you really want to scare your opponents, you might want to include them in your decks.</p>
<h2>When My Eyes Beheld an Eerie Sight</h2>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Shadow Kin"></div></div>
<p>The first card on this list is <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Shadow Kin" href="#" target="_blank">Shadow Kin</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> from <em>Innistrad: Midnight Hunt</em>. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Shadow Kin" href="#" target="_blank">Shadow Kin</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>’s art has always unnerved me. What makes this card so creepy is that you can just picture it: You’re walking along by the shore and you see someone gathering in the wetlands. You could swear for a moment before you looked away that the figure moved in some unnatural motion. Maybe it was just in the corner of your eye.</p>
<p>On Innistrad, it’s probably very difficult to walk ten paces without seeing something you want to run from. Let’s switch up the pace and think about why this Shapeshifter is one we’d like to run in our decks instead. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Shadow Kin" href="#" target="_blank">Shadow Kin</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is a fairly interesting <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Clone" href="#" target="_blank">Clone</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> which almost skirts the definition of a traditional clone effect. Typically, clones copy a creature that's already on the battlefield whereas <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Shadow Kin" href="#" target="_blank">Shadow Kin</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is looking to clone a card that an opponent mills into their graveyard. This makes it a little harder to utilize because you don’t quite know what you’re going to get.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Shadow Kin"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Gyruda, Doom of Depths"></div></div>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p><span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Shadow Kin" href="#" target="_blank">Shadow Kin</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> has particular utility in a <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Gyruda, Doom of Depths" href="#" target="_blank">Gyruda, Doom of Depths</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> deck, or a deck where you’re running Gyruda as the companion. It’s got an even mana value so it fits with the theme. Shadow Kin will help increase the pool of cards you’re able to pull from; Each <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Shadow Kin" href="#" target="_blank">Shadow Kin</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> trigger milling cards into your opponent’s graveyard. You’re not only able to copy something conveniently, but you can do it again with Gyruda. Don’t overlook the fact that <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Shadow Kin" href="#" target="_blank">Shadow Kin</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> has flash. Scare the living daylights out of your opponent by flashing in a Shadow Kin after your opponent has cast a <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Worldly Tutor" href="#" target="_blank">Worldly Tutor</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> and enjoy your four mana <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Vorinclex, Monstrous Raider" href="#" target="_blank">Vorinclex, Monstrous Raider</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>.</p>
<h2>For My Monster from his Slab, Began to Rise!</h2>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Swooping Lookout"></div></div>
<p>The next card on this list is <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Swooping Lookout" href="#" target="_blank">Swooping Lookout</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, because <strong><em>oh my god it’s the teeth</em></strong>. The year 2023 brought us many new and <em>Magic-</em>al things. We were all surprised with the addition of a new card type in Battles. We’ve been delighted with a trip through the universes beyond, and we’ve seen everything from <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Gandalf, Friend of the Shire" href="#" target="_blank">Gandalf, Friend of the Shire</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> to <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="The Eleventh Doctor" href="#" target="_blank">The Eleventh Doctor</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> lead a Commander deck. What we didn’t see coming (and frankly may have willfully repressed by this point) was <em>Phyrexia: All Will Be One</em> and its obsession with teeth.</p>
<p>Phyrexia has always served to be a perversion of everything we know and trust in <em>Magic: The Gathering</em>. White is typically the color of truth, law and justice. This law and rule is turned on its head under <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Elesh Norn" href="#" target="_blank">Elesh Norn</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> and her plans to dominate the multiverse and ensure that all will be one. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Elesh Norn" href="#" target="_blank">Elesh Norn</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> apparently decided to do this by making lots of beings out of porcelain, enamel, exposed sinew and teeth, which is where <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Swooping Lookout" href="#" target="_blank">Swooping Lookout</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> comes in.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Sephara, Sky&#039;s Blade"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Odric, Lunarch Marshal"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Winota, Joiner of Forces"></div></div>
<p>But I hear you. You’re like, Josh. Surely this card isn’t playable in EDH. To which, reader, I say "If I have to look at the awful teeth bird, so does your playgroup." Sephara is a commander who cares about flyers. Notably, tiny flyers so you can ramp out your commander ahead of schedule. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Odric, Lunarch Marshal" href="#" target="_blank">Odric, Lunarch Marshal</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> cares about keywords. For one mana, you’re getting two sweet keywords: flying and vigilance. Great when applied to one horrifying teeth amalgamation, but even better when applied to each creature you control. Finally, there’s not much that isn’t scary when included in a <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Winota, Joiner of Forces" href="#" target="_blank">Winota, Joiner of Forces</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> deck. If you’re looking to make a Winota deck that’s a little less inherently powerful, this creature will do the trick. Lacking haste will give your opponent one chance to deal with your deck before it gets going. After that point? It’s going to be a bloodbath.</p>
<h2>And, Suddenly... To My Surprise!</h2>
<p>The next card on this list is <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Cut of the Profits" href="#" target="_blank">Cut of the Profits</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Cut of the Profits"></div></div>
<p>Donato Giancola is a master of art and has put his talents into some of your favorite cards (I’m serious, take a look through your decks, you’ll find something). There’s one thing that artists fear more than anything, and that’s hands. Hands are so renownedly tricky to master that not even artificial intelligence can get them right. Looking at <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Cut of the Profits" href="#" target="_blank">Cut of the Profits</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> we see a frankly uncomfortable scene. We see a poor victim, or perhaps some competition given this card’s origins in the <em>Streets of New Capenna</em>. Held down hard against a cold marble floor. There’s no escape, not that this individual hasn’t tried. The redness in their face could be from exasperation as they struggled to get free, or from pressure as they were held down to the ground remorselessly to suffer their fate. This card might not seem scary at first, but the implied struggle here makes this an uncomfortable viewing. Oh, and that’s before we point out that this individual is being cut into literal gold. What a weird scene.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Rowan, Scion of War"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Crackle with Power"></div></div>
<p>Do you know who loves this scene though? <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Rowan, Scion of War" href="#" target="_blank">Rowan, Scion of War</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>. Rowan loves this card. Our latest bad girl from the <em>Wilds of Eldraine</em> is looking for lots of ways to lose life and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Cut of the Profits" href="#" target="_blank">Cut of the Profits</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> has her covered. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Cut of the Profits" href="#" target="_blank">Cut of the Profits</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> helps you dig deep, albeit not as deep as the equally creepy <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Peer into the Abyss" href="#" target="_blank">Peer into the Abyss</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> (But you’ve all heard of that one, and this is <em>Preview Review</em>) and there’s nothing scarier for your opponent than those few in-game moments as they anticipate whether you've found your answer or not. Don’t keep them in anticipation too long, though. Throw them a <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Crackle with Power" href="#" target="_blank">Crackle with Power</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> and be done with it.</p>
<h2>Wa-ooh, Wa-ooh!</h2>
<p>Sometimes a card in <em>Magic </em>is so oppressive, that an answer needs to be printed to make sure that the card doesn’t overrun the format. I think you know the one I mean. It’s black, it was printed in 2022 and you never want to see it cast, no matter the format you’re playing.</p>
<p>That’s right, it’s not <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Sheoldred, the Apocalypse" href="#" target="_blank">Sheoldred, the Apocalypse</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>... It’s <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="You Are Already Dead" href="#" target="_blank">You Are Already Dead</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="You Are Already Dead"></div></div>
<p>Thankfully, our fourth card on this list has come to the rescue. This card is a relatively new one, printed recently in <em>Wilds of Eldraine</em>.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="You Are Already Dead"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Not Dead After All"></div></div>
<p>It’s the perfect answer to <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="You Are Already Dead" href="#" target="_blank">You Are Already Dead</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>. That’s right, it’s <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Not Dead After All" href="#" target="_blank">Not Dead After All</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>.</p>
<p><span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Not Dead After All" href="#" target="_blank">Not Dead After All</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is one of the latest in this cycle of cheating death cards we can find in black. This one, you’ll find offers a bit of extra utility however and can give black that little something extra that staples like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Malakir Rebirth" href="#" target="_blank">Malakir Rebirth</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> don’t, for a fraction of the price (Yes, admittedly without the land utility, but<strong> it's Halloween</strong>, so sue me). Once the hilarity has settled in of telling your opponents that your commander isn’t dead after all, let them know that your <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Braids, Arisen Nightmare" href="#" target="_blank">Braids, Arisen Nightmare</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> will now let you sacrifice your wicked role token created by <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Not Dead After All" href="#" target="_blank">Not Dead After All</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>. Once you’ve sacrificed your token, you’ll find that each opponent will be sacrificing an enchantment too. There’s nothing scarier than something you don’t see coming, and your opponents will not be seeing black enchantment removal coming at all.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Braids, Arisen Nightmare"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Eriette of the Charmed Apple"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Beseech the Mirror"></div></div>
<p>Run this card in an <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Eriette of the Charmed Apple" href="#" target="_blank">Eriette of the Charmed Apple</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> deck to increase your enchantment count and drain your opponents for even more life, so you can stay young forever. Utilize the token left behind and bargain for more power, casting a <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Beseech the Mirror" href="#" target="_blank">Beseech the Mirror</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> to find a number of threats from your library.</p>
<h2>Happy Halloween!</h2>
<p>Happy Halloween, wherever you are. We hope you get a spooky treat in your booster packs and you pull nothing but tricks for your opponents. If you’ve spotted some art that's stopped you from sleeping at night, let us know in the comments below.<em> Magic: The Gathering</em> is a storied game with a history of incredible art pieces. Back in the 90s, the news called <em>Magic</em> Satanic and dangerous. The art might have mellowed out and so too the media, but there are plenty of frights abound for those who wish to look for them.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Oko, the Trickster"></div></div>
<p>If you’d like to chat <em>Magic</em> with me, you can do so on <a href="https://twitter.com/PrinceofBielTan">Twitter</a>. Look forward to the return of this series in which we’ll be talking about some actual good cards, rather than ones that are covered in teeth.</p>
<p><strong>From us at EDHREC, all the best, and Happy Halloween!</strong></p>


not dead after all

Preview Review: The Halloween Special!

Wilds of Eldraine: The Starring Roles