BitterblossomBitterblossom | Art by Rebecca Guay

With Lorwyn Eclipsed on the horizon, let's take a trip back in time to the original Lorwyn block. We first visited Lorwyn, a plane inspired by the Celtic folklore of the British Isles, 18 years ago, in October of 2007.

None of the sets from Lorwyn block performed well commercially. In fact, Magic's Head Designer Mark Rosewater claims that Lorwyn was one of the worst selling large sets in the history of the game. Like Kamigawa before it, however, Lorwyn developed a cult following, and there were enough dedicated players championing the plane to convince Wizards of the Coast that it was worth a second visit.

Our first trip to the world, for all of its failure to perform financially, wasn't so bad. Lorwyn gave us some cards that, despite their age, still see plenty of play today. It even gave us the Lorwyn Five, the first five planeswalkers ever to see print.

Let's use EDHREC's data to find out which ten cards from Lorwyn are still alive and kicking now. In today's article, we'll be looking at the top 10 most used cards from Lorwyn and Morningtide. Then, in a fortnight, we'll move on to Shadowmoor and Eventide, Lorwyn's sequel sets.

All of the usage stats listed below were gathered at the time of writing. So if you're reading this article in the distant future, things might have changed, and Squeaking Pie SneakSqueaking Pie Sneak might have climbed all the way to the top.

For now, here are the cards for Lorwyn that have held up the most successfully.

10. Idyllic TutorIdyllic Tutor

Printed in Morningtide - Currently in 133,925 decks.

Tutors allow their controller to search through their deck and add a card to their hand - or sometimes the top of their library. Idylic Tutor is an enchantment tutor, and one of the best options available. It costs two more mana than its rival Enlightened TutorEnlightened Tutor, but it puts the card straight into its controller's hand rather than dumping it on top of the deck.

The cEDH format is built around tutors, since they enable highly competitive players to gather their game-ending combo pieces. Even at less competitive tables, Idylic Tutor is still a great card in any deck that cares about playing enchantments.

9. Springleaf DrumSpringleaf Drum

Printed in Lorwyn - Currently in 144,282 decks.

Mana rocks that only cost are great. Springleaf Drum may not be as good as Sol RingSol Ring, but its ability to turn any creature that you control into mana shouldn't be underestimated.

Springleaf Drum works best in decks that want to fill the board with creatures. The more creatures that you have out, the easier it is to keep one aside to play the Drum and generate one mana. If Lathril, Blade of the ElvesLathril, Blade of the Elves is your commander, then you'll have more than enough spare Elves to get a drum solo going.

It also works well as a method of tapping down commanders that want to be turned sideways, but are too fragile to reliably send into combat. Kona, Rescue BeastieKona, Rescue Beastie, Emmara, Soul of the AccordEmmara, Soul of the Accord, and Kilo, Apogee MindKilo, Apogee Mind can all benefit from some drumming lessons.

8. BitterblossomBitterblossom

Printed in Morningtide - Currently in 144,528 decks.

Considering that Bitterblossom is, arguably, the most famous card from the original Lorwyn block, it's quite surprising to see it so low down on this list. Bitterblossom was a competitive staple in its day. Few decks could keep up with the unending tide of Faeries that this enchantment reliably rolls out.

Bitterbloom BearerBitterbloom Bearer from Lorwyn Eclipsed has an effect that's almost identical. The Faerie generated gains blue in its color identity, and is no longer a Rogue, but otherwise Bitterblossom Beaerer does the same thing as the original card, but on a 1/1 flying body.

Does this mean that Bitterblossom's time in the sun is over? Has fall finally come and left this blossom to droop and wilt as the cold sets in? Fortunately, this isn't the case, and Bitterblossom remains relevant.

First of all, as a creature, Bitterblossom Bearer is significantly more vulnerable to removal than the enchantment. There are a massive selection of removal spells, and board wipes, capable of killing creatures. Only a smaller number can target enchantments. Even if this weren't the case, and enchantment removal was everywhere, the token generating effect that Bitterblossom provides is powerful enough that it's worth running alongside the bearer.

Commander is a singleton format after all, and having multiple copies of this ability in play just grants you Faerie tokens that much faster.

7. Shared AnimosityShared Animosity

Printed in Morningtide -Currently in 149,206 decks.

These next two cards serve as a reminder of Lorwyn's typal theme. This woodland realm of Fae, Kithkin, and Treefolk really cared about different creature types, and rewarded players who were willing to commit themselves to creatures of one kind.

Shared AnimosityShared Animosity works best for aggressive decks that want to go-wide. Giving all of your creatures a +1 attack bonus for every other attacking creature that you control who's charging into the breach alongside them is a clear and effective payoff for typal decks.

If Krenko, Mob BossKrenko, Mob Boss is your commander, then you'll be rubbing your hands with glee at the possibility of giving all of his Goblin pals a massive power boost.

Of course, it's not just Krenko that benefits from this card. Najeela, the Blade-BlossomNajeela, the Blade-Blossom, Gev, Scaled ScorchGev, Scaled Scorch, and the newly crowned 2nd most popular commander Edgar MarkovEdgar Markov are all more than happy to share a bit of animosity.

6. Distant MelodyDistant Melody

Printed in Morningtide - Currently in 152,854 decks.

While Shared Animosity lets you punish your opponents for not keeping your board in check, Distant Melody allows you to reward yourself instead. When it comes to draw spells, four mana is a pretty steep price to pay, especially since the card advantage that Distant Melody provide is conditional. In some games drawing this card will just make you sigh deeply.

If your board has just been wiped, it's painful to top deck this as it's effectively a blank piece of cardboard, albeit one that would have been amazing to draw a turn earlier.

There will be some games, though, where drawing this card will make you cackle with glee. If you've got ten Merfolk in play, digging ten cards deeper into your deck to search for some more feels fantastic.

Distant Melody is unambiguously a win-more card. When it misses, you'll wonder why you ever included it in your deck. When it hits, it'll push the advantage that you already hold into an overwhelming lead that the rest of the table may not be able to claw back from you.

5. MulldrifterMulldrifter

Printed in Lorwyn - Currently in 166,259 decks.

This fantastic Fish, that's secretly an Elemental and not a Fish at all, is one of the most recognizable draw spells in the game. Mulldrifter is so ingrained into the minds of Magic players that it got a Vehicle counterpart in the form of HulldrifterHulldrifter, and even an Eldrazi alternative in NulldrifterNulldrifter.

What is it that gives this card so much staying power?

Mulldrifter can either be cast for as a DivinationDivination, or cast for as a DivinationDivination stapled to a Wind DrakeWind Drake.

While these cards aren't powerful enough individually to see much play in Commander today, the power provided by combining the two of them, on top of the versatility of being able to choose which mode you want to cast, has given Mulldrifter the ability to stay relevant for almost two decades now.

4. Mosswort BridgeMosswort Bridge

Printed in Lorwyn - Currently in 337,875 decks.

Mosswort Bridge is the green representative from a cycle of hideaway lands. Each of these lands allows their controller to look at the top four cards of their library and exile one of them. The exiled card gets tucked beneath the hideaway land. It can later be cast for only a single mana of the color the land produces if a condition is fulfilled.

In the case of Mosswort Bridge, the card hidden beneath it can be cast if Mosswort Bridge's controller has creatures in play with a total of ten or more power between them.

Several of the other Lorwyn hideaway lands are also very popular cards. To stop them from taking up 30% of the list, Mosswort Bridge is being used to represent the entire cycle.

Windbrisk HeightsWindbrisk Heights, the white hideaway land, is in 148,576 decks, which would have put it in eighth place. Meanwhile, Spinerock KnollSpinerock Knoll, the red representative, is in 135,907 decks - enough to make the number ten spot.

The blue and black hideaway lands are nowhere near as popular as their counterparts.

Shelldock IsleShelldock Isle is in only 3,197 decks, while Howltooth HollowHowltooth Hollow is in 1,273. This is due to their activation conditions being tricky to pull off in Commander, particularly Howltooth Hollow, which requires everyone in the game to have no cards in their hand.

Since green decks love going big, Mosswort Bridge is very easy to activate, explaining why it's the most popular hideaway land, and the fourth most popular card from Lorwyn block.

3. Austere CommandAustere Command

Printed in Lorwyn - Currently in 398,730 decks.

Lorwyn started a trend by introducing "Command" cards to the game. In Magic, a Command refers to a spell with four available modes that allows two options to be chosen at once. Commands would go on to show up on several other planes, from StrixhavenStrixhaven, to TarkirTarkir, to DominariaDominaria.

It all started here, though, with a cycle of five of five monocolor modal spells.

Austere Command is by far the most popular card from the original cycle. None of the others even breach 100,000 deck inclusions. Cryptic CommandCryptic Command comes the closest, at 65,297, but its role as a deluxe counterspell with additional modes has been eclipsed by Sublime EpiphanySublime Epiphany, which is more costly, but much more powerful, and Three Steps AheadThree Steps Ahead, which is more versatile.

ProfaneProfane, PrimalPrimal, and IncendiaryIncendiary have similarly all been left behind as the power level of the game has crept forward, no longer achieving enough to justify their high costs.

Why has Austere Command survived then, when its counterparts have all been left behind? At six mana, it's the most expensive card in the cycle, but also has the most useful effect.

It's a board wipe that can be tailored to suit the needs of the current game state. It can destroy the low cost creatures of players looking to go-wide, the high cost bombs of players looking to go-tall, and all of the artifacts and enchantments in play when the situation requires it.

White has no shortage of board wipes, but Austere Command has earned its place as one of the most popular choices. Despite its high cost, we won't be saying FarewellFarewell to it any time soon.

2. PonderPonder

Printed in Lorwyn - Currently in 407,325 decks.

Ancestral RecallAncestral Recall is famously the most powerful draw spell in the game, letting its controller draw three cards for only a single blue mana. This rate has never been equaled since, nor should it be.

The card BrainstormBrainstorm was printed in Ice Age as a reigned-in version of Ancestral Recall. Brainstorm lets its controller draw three cards, but then forced them to put two back, meaning not much card advantage is gained. Unfortunately, Brainstorm still proved too powerful, since it could put dud cards on top of the deck, ready to be shuffled away. This earned it restricted status in Vintage.

Ponder came along in Lorwyn as another crack at this same idea. It allows its controller to look at, and rearrange, the top three cards of their library, they can then optionally shuffle everything they've just seen away and draw a single card.

Even though Ponder has significant limitations on it when compared to Brainstorm and Ancestral Recall, it's still a powerful cantrip that has been on the Modern banlist ever since the format started in 2011. Fortunately, it's perfectly legal in Commander. Not only that, but it works great alongside its predecessor, Brainstorm, as it can be used to shuffle away the unplayable cards that Brainstorm slots on top of the deck.

1. NegateNegate

Printed in Morningtide - Currently in 735,886 decks.

Negate is one of those evergreen card that feels like it gets reprinted in just about every set. It might be surprising to hear that Magic was already 14 years old when Negate made its debut in Morningtide.

Maybe Negate isn't the most glamorous card out there, but it does its job of keeping frustrating non-creature spells at bay well enough. And since it's printed so frequently, it's exceedingly easy to get your hands on a copy.

It's more expensive, mana-wise, than An Offer You Can't RefuseAn Offer You Can't Refuse, but then it doesn't give the opponent any Treasure tokens. It can't be cast for free like Fierce GuardianshipFierce Guardianship, but it's nowhere near as costly in terms of actual dollars.

It can still be countered, unlike Dovin's VetoDovin's Veto, but then it doesn't require your commander to have white in their color identity.

If you're planning on putting counterspells in your deck, Negate isn't going to be your first choice. It may well be your third, fourth, or fifth choice though. Its complete ubiquity in Standard sets, alongside its dry reliability, has gotten it into enough decks to carry it to the number one spot on this list.

Conclusion

There we have it. Satisfyingly, there's a fifty-fifty split here. Five of the cards on this list are from Lorwyn, while the other five are from Morningtide.

When Lorwyn Eclipsed comes out, maybe some of these cards will get a reprint. In the case of Bitterblossom that would be fantastic, although cards like Negate are already in so many sets that it's difficult to get too excited.

Alternatively, perhaps we'll get more cards like Bitterbloom Bearer that are reinterpretations of these classics, designed to slot into the more aggressive meta of 2025.

One thing is for certain though: The world of Lorwyn still has plenty to offer.

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