Ignite the BeaconIgnite the Beacon | Art by Slawomir Maniak

A long time ago, there was a Magic set called War of the Spark. What made this set so different from any other was the prevalence of planeswalkers. To be exact, there are 40 planeswalkers in the set, ranging from uncommon to mythic and spread all across the color pie.

Featuring fan-favorite characters like Gideon and Liliana, as well as newcomers such as Kasmina and Teyo, War of the Spark revolutionized the game by focusing on a specific card type that had never been shown to this degree.

It was a bit much. I'm a fan of planeswalkers - in fact, it's how I first got into writing about Magic - but 40 is too many for one set, and not all of them were good, or even great.

What has the presence of planeswalkers looked like since this significant influx? Reserved is the word I'd use to describe it. Despite this reservation, some incredibly cool and powerful planeswalkers have been released since War of the Spark, and today I'll be highlighting the 10 best.

Elspeth, Storm SlayerElspeth, Storm Slayer

The first planeswalker on the list is a well-loved character among many players: Elspeth, Storm SlayerElspeth, Storm Slayer. This version of Elspeth is a token player's dream come true. With 7.3 thousand mono-white token decks on EDHREC, that means many dreams have come true.

The primary focus of this card is the passive ability, turning every token made into twice that many tokens. Token decks love doubling effects, and over the years, mono-white has gotten a fair bit of love when it comes to doubling or even tripling tokens.

Anointed ProcessionAnointed Procession and Mondrak, Glory DominusMondrak, Glory Dominus join Elspeth in doubling tokens. In contrast, Ojer Taq, Deepest FoundationOjer Taq, Deepest Foundation turns up the factorial by tripling the number of made tokens. Elspeth's +1 ability also creates one, but really two, Soldiers that pair very nicely with the 0 ability of giving your board +1/+1 and flying till your next turn. Slap on a -3 removal ability to destroy a creature an opponent controls with three mana value or more, and this might be a perfectly designed planeswalker.

Elspeth attacks with tokens, she protects with removal and blockers, and she has a passive that makes her a priority to stick around. The worst part about this card is how good it is. Other players at the table should remove this card with prejudice, or they’ll find out what happens when it’s left unchecked.

Wrenn and SevenWrenn and Seven

A whole integer better than its previous version Wrenn and SixWrenn and Six, Wrenn and SevenWrenn and Seven should see more play. Most planeswalkers with four individual abilities are very good - looking at you, Jace, the Mind SculptorJace, the Mind Sculptor and Chandra, Torch of DefianceChandra, Torch of Defiance.

While Wrenn might not be meta-defining, they’re still underrated. A +1 that can get up to four lands into your hand or put four cards into your graveyard starts us off with a world of options. The 0 lets us empty our hand of all lands, and the -3 makes a token that will block most potential threats.

Evaluating planeswalkers on their ultimates alone is usually a bad idea, and Wrenn and Seven doesn’t have an ultimate that screams "win the game." But getting all permanents back from your graveyard, along with no max hand size, is worth building around. As always, since this card means you have to play green, Doubling SeasonDoubling Season is on the menu for an immediate ultimate if you sequence your spells.

Teferi, Who Slows the SunsetTeferi, Who Slows the Sunset

Sometimes it doesn't matter if you're mono-blue or Azorius, if you love to combo with The Chain VeilThe Chain Veil you might be Teferi. In this case, Teferi, Who Slows the SunsetTeferi, Who Slows the Sunset. While this Teferi isn't friendly when it comes to understanding the words on the cards, know that the +1 tapping and untapping and gaining two life does a lot of work for only .

The -2 on this Teferi is a nice bit of card selection, but nothing to write home about. The -7, however, is bannable. Not that Teferi should be banned, but Prophet of KruphixProphet of Kruphix is banned for a few reasons, and half of those reasons are on this card. Prophet only gets creatures and lands, while Teferi gets everything.

Getting to the -7 doesn't happen too quickly, unless the following turn features a Deepglow SkateDeepglow Skate. So this menace is kept somewhat in check.

Grist, the Hunger TideGrist, the Hunger Tide

Few planeswalkers are as cool as Grist, the Hunger TideGrist, the Hunger Tide. If Grist is anywhere except the battlefield, they count as a creature. This is what makes Grist one of the best: the possibilities. The number of things that you can do with Grist is almost endless. You can find Grist with Green Sun's ZenithGreen Sun's Zenith or discard it to a Survival of the FittestSurvival of the Fittest. But the coolest thing about it being a creature in other zones means that it can be your commander.

Even the simple things that Grist does are impactful. Golgari () is a color combination that loves to mill cards and is no stranger to Insects, Zask, Skittering SwarmlordZask, Skittering Swarmlord being a perfect example. Grist isn't a stranger to the classic commanders either. -2 to sacrifice a creature and destroy another creature or planeswalker sure seems like a good choice for commanders such as Meren of Clan Nel TothMeren of Clan Nel Toth.

Ral, Crackling WitRal, Crackling Wit

Not often, even in the Commander format, do you get new cards with troublesome mechanics. Ral, Crackling WitRal, Crackling Wit brings with it a passive ability and a win-the-game ultimate. The passive ability giving Ral loyalty for every non-creature spell you cast helps to propel you towards the -10 ultimate. Once there, the payoff is drawing three cards and an emblem that gives all of your instant and sorcery spells storm.

From there, you can win the game in almost any way you would like.

Ral does a good job at staying on the board by creating 1/1 blue and red Otter tokens. Those tokens can also become a lethal threat thanks to prowess, making them massive attackers in a spell-slinging style of deck.

Ral is another planeswalker that will become a must-answer threat for all of your opponents.

Tyvar, Jubilant BrawlerTyvar, Jubilant Brawler

The worst part about having creatures with tap abilities is having to wait for them to no longer be summoning sick. With Tyvar, Jubilant BrawlerTyvar, Jubilant Brawler, that's a thing of the past. Tyvar comes down early with or without the help of cards like Llanowar ElvesLlanowar Elves or Ignoble HierarchIgnoble Hierarch. Being able to use a mana dork of any kind, the turn they come down once would be good enough. Thanks to Tyvar and his +1, you get to do it again.

If any of those creatures die, Tyvar gives you a chance to get them or a better creature back with the -2 milling three cards and getting a mana value two or less creature back to the battlefield. Normal mana dorks tapping and untapping are fine, but some creatures make Tyvar even better.

Tyvar might be a best friend to Elf decks, but even a creature like Marrow-GnawerMarrow-Gnawer can get in on the action.

Oko, Thief of CrownsOko, Thief of Crowns

Terror. Format ruiner. Scourge of Standard. Absolute smokeshow. All of these are ways that you could describe Oko, Thief of CrownsOko, Thief of Crowns. What makes Oko so much better than other planeswalkers? Design mistakes from the people who make the game.

For some reason, Oko was given a +2 and a +1 ability. Usually, one of those abilities would instead take loyalty away, forcing the controller to manage abilities to keep Oko alive. Instead, the ability to make a Food token and to turn something into an Elk both add loyalty to Oko, keeping him on the board till the game reaches its end.

Oko's +1 ability is the true strength of the card, turning off the abilities of any artifact or creature you need turned off. The secret strength of the card is and always will be just how hard it is to attack off the board.

Ugin, Eye of the StormsUgin, Eye of the Storms

We've seen a planeswalkers with four abilities, and multiple with passive abilities. Ugin, Eye of the StormsUgin, Eye of the Storms decided it needs to be different. It comes with a passive ability that gives you an exile for every colorless spell you cast, and also exiles a permanent spell upon its own cast.

Ugin provides so many things to a colorless deck, even outside of card draw and removal. Life gain, mana ramp, and a massive game-winning ultimate come along with this new version of Ugin.

The AethersparkThe Aetherspark

What if your planeswalker could be more than just a planeswalker? Then it just might be The AethersparkThe Aetherspark, both a planeswalker and an artifact Equipment. As a planeswalker it's harder to remove because it can't be attacked when it's attached to a creature. But as an artifact, it's easier to remove since it can be targeted by any artifact removal effects.

While the abilities on The Aetherspark are strong, they don’t synergize with a typical Superfriends strategy. While many planeswalkers do make tokens that this could be equipped to, it will work better in a classic Equipment deck.

Having an Equipment that can auto attach to a creature and give it a +1/+1 counter, draw you cards, or make you ten mana is quite the card. At a minimum, this is one of the coolest planeswalkers ever made and shows that there is always room for variation in card design.

Comet, Stellar PupComet, Stellar Pup

The best boy to ever walk the planes, and one that people will want to forget exists. Comet, Stellar PupComet, Stellar Pup, is a surprisingly strong card that needs to be experienced to understand fully.

The wildest thing about Comet is that it's completely random. Dice rolling determines how long it can stay on the board and what it does while it's there. You either make Squirrels for the dog to chase, return any card (dig up a bone) with a mana value under two back to your hand, deal damage to any target (idk, scratch you), or maybe go infinite by rolling a six and getting two more activations.

Yes, that’s correct, your planeswalker can go self-infinite if the dice gods bless you. I don't know the math behind this, and I think the whimsy of it makes it better that I never find it out.

Out of everything on the list, this might be the worst card at a Commander table since you don't know what it will do when you activate it. In a 1v1 format, however, it usually doesn't matter since all of the abilities are so powerful when there’s only a single person you need to deal with.

Wrap Up

Are these truly the best planeswalkers printed since War of the Spark? I think so, but I want to hear what you think. Let me know what your favorite planeswalker is or which one makes you the most mad when cast. Why is Comet the best dog around? What other subtype would you like to see added to a planeswalker next, since The Aetherspark checked Equipment off the list? Do you think we could ever see a planeswalker with more than four abilities?

All these questions and more can be answered here or directly to me anywhere @nicnax96. I'll see you all next time, and may your dice always land on double sixes.