Arcade CabinetArcade Cabinet | Art by Randy Gallegos

I can't say that I've ever been the biggest Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles fan, so my expectations coming into this set were fairly tempered. With that said, if you're an artifact fan, you just might find yourself all of the sudden being a Turtles fan too.

Why? Let's take a look!

Krang, Utrom WarlordKrang, Utrom Warlord

The latest in super-expensive artifact creature technology has arrived, and it's... fine, I guess? Artifact creature decks are going to love this thing if they can get it in play, and with enough Mycosynth GolemMycosynth Golem all things are possible.

I just think that if I'm going to go for the big splashy artifact creature that synergizes with artifact creatures, I'm more likely to reach for Cybermen SquadronCybermen Squadron than Krang, Utrom WarlordKrang, Utrom Warlord.

TechnodromeTechnodrome

TechnodromeTechnodrome is so close to being the best artifact card draw we've seen since The One RingThe One Ring, at least in artifact decks. Instead? There's just one too many knobs that got turned down on this thing, and I'm not sure it's any good at all. Here, just see if you can see the joy drain from each sentence I have about this card as I evaluate:

"All right, so for two mana, you can throw this artifact down. And realize it's a creature that can't do anything, not even creature things, for a full turn cycle."

"Okay, so you can tap and sac another artifact to draw a card."

"All right, so we got our Voltaic KeyVoltaic Key going and this thing is huge now, so I can swing in or draw another card. Hmmm..."

Every once in a while, you can tell that a mythic comes through that Wizards was just a little scared of. This one's close on a lot of fronts, to the point that I would guess that it made some trouble in the Future-Future League and got nerfed. Which is not to say that it will see zero play. I'm sure a lot of folks will throw this in their artifact decks (and then take it out a couple weeks later).

Arcade CabinetArcade Cabinet

Arcade CabinetArcade Cabinet is interesting, because it reads like it would see play in every +1/+1 counter deck, initially. For three mana, you get four counters, and can later double counters? Seems like a deal!

The issue is, you need four targets for this thing to start really paying off, otherwise it's kind of a mediocre effect that you can find all over +1/+1 counter land. In other words, what you're looking for here is a commander that spams tokens and cares about +1/+1 counters.

Now, if only there were someone obsessed with lists that could list a whole bunch of those out for us... Oh yeah, that's me!

Top 10 Commanders That Care About Creature Tokens and Counters

1. Edgar MarkovEdgar Markov: 42,277 Decks
2. Baylen, the HaymakerBaylen, the Haymaker: 24,260
3. Krenko, Tin Street KingpinKrenko, Tin Street Kingpin: 22,350
4. Zaxara, the ExemplaryZaxara, the Exemplary: 16,828
5. Urtet, Remnant of MemnarchUrtet, Remnant of Memnarch: 15,582
6. Satya, Aetherflux GeniusSatya, Aetherflux Genius: 13,984
7. Magus Lucea KaneMagus Lucea Kane: 13,081
8. Hylda of the Icy CrownHylda of the Icy Crown: 11,522
9. Wick, the Whorled MindWick, the Whorled Mind: 11,417
10. Brimaz, Blight of OreskosBrimaz, Blight of Oreskos: 8,364

Now, not all of these are slam dunks, but there are definitely some options to work with. Vampires have long been secretly in love with +1/+1 counters, and as much as Edgar MarkovEdgar Markov usually sits in the command zone not being played for his +1/+1 counter ability, it is an option.

Krenko, Tin Street KingpinKrenko, Tin Street Kingpin would love to make himself and his tokens bigger. Urtet, Remnant of MemnarchUrtet, Remnant of Memnarch can drown a table in Myr, and Arcade CabinetArcade Cabinet puts out more counters than his WUBRG ability does for cheaper.

All in all, there's no doubt that Arcade CabinetArcade Cabinet will find a home or twenty, even if it's not as much of an auto-include in +1/+1 counter decks as it may appear at first look.

Big Mother MouserBig Mother Mouser

Big Mother MouserBig Mother Mouser is like a lot of very impactful cards. It does a decent impression of Myr BattlesphereMyr Battlesphere for almost half the cost. If you squint just right, it looks a bit like Hangarback WalkerHangarback Walker.

No matter how you swing it, this thing is in good company for decks that want or need a lot of artifacts, and is going to see a ton of play. It actually even shares a three-card combo with another artifact from this set! Which artifact, you ask?

Chrome DomeChrome Dome

Oh hey, it's another, cheaper Cogwork AssemblerCogwork Assembler! Or is it?

Comparison of rules text between Chrome Dome and Cogwork Assembler

Aside from being cheaper, Chrome DomeChrome Dome is also slightly worse at comboing off, due to the restrictions on it not being able to target itself or your opponents' stuff. That said, the tradeoff of it being a full mana cheaper to cast and two mana cheaper to activate? That more than makes up for it.

In fact, right off the bat, it creates a combo that Cogwork Assembler can't claim: The chrome special, Chrome DomeChrome Dome and Chromatic OrreryChromatic Orrery, resulting in infinite artifact enters, leaves, and "dies" triggers.

That said, we're barely scraping the surface here, and more and more combos are being discovered every moment. With that in mind, I'll be revisiting this gem with a full article here in a couple weeks. Stay tuned!

Coin of MasteryCoin of Mastery

You know, I started the intro saying that artifact fans might have reason to rejoice with TMNT, but honestly? I think +1/+1 counter fans might have come out with even more.

That said, I don't think that Coin of MasteryCoin of Mastery is generically good. Instead, I think it's super good in a few sub-genres: colorless decks that care about +1/+1 counterscolorless decks that care about +1/+1 counters, Treasure decks trying to finish things off with combatTreasure decks trying to finish things off with combat, Myr decksMyr decks, and Modular decksModular decks.

For a deeper dive on Coin of Mastery, check out this article by Joshua Wood.

The OozeThe Ooze

While The OozeThe Ooze isn't quite on the level of The OzolithThe Ozolith, it's a decent backup that might even surpass it if you can find some synergy with MutagenMutagen (or you just value graveyard removal highly). But that ignores the fact that it's a card that transfers one type of thing into another type of thing, which means? You guessed it, combos!

While this is the only decent combo that's so far been submitted to Commander Spellbook with The Ooze, I would bet money that that number will balloon over the next few weeks as more folks realize that this will make a token every time you get rid of a creature token, so long as you have a way to put counters on said token. Which Mutagen of course already provides.

Weather MakerWeather Maker

When Weather MakerWeather Maker first got spoiled, a lot of folks felt like the three-mana rock barrier had finally been breached. Hype was out of control, and this thing was obviously going to see play in every deck, right alongside the various SignetsSignets and TalismansTalismans.

Well, it's been a minute, and I'm here to tell you that the hype was just that. Don't get me wrong, Landfall decks will absolutely find room for this and use it, for all three abilities. But just any deck off the shelf? Not on your life.

If you play this on turn three, on curve, it makes one mana. If you had a mana dorkmana dork and got to three a little earlier and play down a fetch, then this is a slightly better Worn PowerstoneWorn Powerstone, once.

The real flexibility, in any case, is it BoltingBolting things in the late game, which is great, but also is solidly in line with the kind of minor upside you expect from various three-mana rocks that are still not going to see play in higher Bracket decks.

Krang, the All-PowerfulKrang, the All-Powerful

I'm not gonna lie, I'm a huge fan of Krang, the All-PowerfulKrang, the All-Powerful. Not because it's good, mind you, but rather the opposite: I have never seen a more well designed trap card. His double triggers ability will happen all the time - at high-powered tables - off of cards that are powerful and see a lot of play at high-powered tables.

The issue? Those cards are already powerful, and them getting doubled up on in the late game isn't likely to actually make a difference in the game. If you already have these extremely powerful cards, it's likely that you're winning the game anyhow, or they'll be removed to prevent you from doing so.

In other words, Krang, the All-PowerfulKrang, the All-Powerful is a win-more card in the high-powered tables he was obviously designed for, while his second draw ability is unlikely to trigger much at the lower-powered tables where the fact that he'd grow to be a 20/20 might actually matter. In other words?

Krang, Master MindKrang, Master Mind

Krang, Master MindKrang, Master Mind is a fun variant on a card that sees a decent amount of play in Sandstone OracleSandstone Oracle. He's going to draw you fewer cards, but is also a lot less likely to cost you seven mana.

The real fun begins when you build around him in the command zone, however. All artifacts all the time will ensure that he comes down early and often, being a huge body that needs to be answered but that also dodges command tax when he's removed. A real catch 22 of a situation at the table, that.

Ravenous RobotsRavenous Robots

From Mirrodin BesiegedMirrodin Besieged to AlelaAlela to Pinnacle EmissaryPinnacle Emissary, there are a ton of effects that will make you creatures when you cast artifacts. Ravenous RobotsRavenous Robots, however, has a few things going for it that makes it stand out.

One, it's the first mono-red effect that can do it repeatedlyrepeatedly. Two, its cheaper than any of these other effects that don't also make you pay additional mana. And three, it's an artifact in itself that specifically makes artifact tokens.

In other words? Welcome to the new powerhouse in artifact multiplication.

Fugitive DroidFugitive Droid

In the realm of Siren StormtamerSiren Stormtamers and Malevolent HermitMalevolent Hermits, I wouldn't say Fugitive DroidFugitive Droid is anything to write home about. It being an artifact, however, makes it a lot more useful in a lot more decks that care about cheap artifacts or cheap artifact creatures.

Throw in that protection and the evasion, and you've got a package that's going to fit a lot of niches, from AffinityAffinity decks to NinjasNinjas to aggro-heavy artifact creatureaggro-heavy artifact creature decks.

Sewer-veillance CamSewer-veillance Cam

My award for best artifact of the set, however? That is reserved for the lowly common that is about to bust Pauper wide open, Sewer-veillance CamSewer-veillance Cam.

Far from just being impactful in Pauper, however, this little Cam on a cockroach is a discount on a known broken card, Corridor MonitorCorridor Monitor. Now, there are obviously huge differences. One, Sewer-veillance Cam isn't a creature and can't untap artifacts, therefore leaving it out of the Birthing PodBirthing Pod lines that Monitor is famous for. Two, again because it isn't a creature, it's harder to search up and can't be enchanted with Splinter TwinSplinter Twin to make it emulate PestermitePestermite nonsense.

All that said, this is a one-mana artifact you can play at flash speed that is still going to end up with a combo list a mile long and be synergistic enough to see play in a lot of lists anyhow. Just at the high end of play, UrzaUrza is licking his lips, EmryEmry is licking her lips, decks with Kiki-JikiKiki-Jiki in the 99 now have yet another combo piece that's cheaper and faster than all the rest, and what do you know, folks are already finding combos with it and our other combo card of the week, Chrome DomeChrome Dome.

In short? Get ready to start seeing this thing a lot, at all levels of play and across several different formats.

Hidden HideoutHidden Hideout

For TMNT to shine with artifacts, it had to make room with a very underwhelming set of lands. For my money, the gem of the lot is Hidden HideoutHidden Hideout, a tapland variant of Command TowerCommand Tower that can also hand out lifelink to creatures with counters on them.

The direct comparison as to where this lands is Witch's ClinicWitch's Clinic, the other commander-centric land that can give something lifelink. Where Clinic is usually situated around decks with huge commanders, however, Hidden Hideout I expect to see play in lower-powered, higher-colors lists that care about counters.

So, is TMNT the best artifact set since Urza block? Probably not. With that said, it's easily the best artifact set we've seen in the 2020s, which is saying something.

So, what are you excited about from it? Do you think any of these high-powered artifacts will end up on the ban list? Am I grossly off-base, and these are actually all bad cards? Let us know in the comments, and Cowabunga!

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