Magic: The Gathering/Characters: Difference between revisions
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{{cleanup|The character names need to be taken out of boldface markup and put into header markup, and tropelist headers need to be added. See the "Miscellaneous Non-Planeswalkers" section for the correct format.}}
{{Characters need descriptions}}
Characters from ''[[{{TOPLEVELPAGE}}]]'' include:
== Colors ==
=== White ===
White is the color of [[Light
{{tropelist|Tropes exhibited by this character include:}}
▲White is the color of [[Light Em Up|light]], law, and [[Holy Hand Grenade|holy magic]]. It specializes in various forms of healing and protection (such as gaining life, preventing damage, and boosting creatures' toughness scores), efficient small creatures that reinforce each other, and abilities that dictate the flow of combat. White is chivalrous: rather than kill directly, it prefers to disable non-combative foes with spells like [http://magiccards.info/som/en/2.html Arrest] and [http://magiccards.info/arc/en/3.html Oblivion Ring], but has no qualms about killing creatures during the combat phase, as seen in cards like [http://magiccards.info/m10/en/8.html Divine Verdict] and [http://magiccards.info/10e/en/8.html Ballista Squad], or using occasional mass destruction to wipe the slate clean equally. Read more about white [http://www.wizards.com/Magic/Magazine/Article.aspx?x=mtgcom/daily/mr57 here].
* [[Apocalypse How]]: Armageddon, Wrath Of God, Balance.
* [[Absolute Xenophobe]]: White can become this in theory. See Fantastic Racism and All
* [[All of the Other Reindeer]]: White is the color of conformity, and doesn't care for those that are different unless they try to fit in.
* [[Black and White Insanity]]: Why White characters sometimes go [[Knight Templar]]. It's the colour that least recognises moral complexity.
* [[Combat Medic]]
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* [[Knight Templar]]
* [[Light Is Not Good]]: While white is pretty consistent in regards to [[Order vs. Chaos]] (Order, of course), it's fallen on different ends of the [[Good vs. Evil]] divide through ''Magic'''s history.
* [[Light
* [[Made of Iron]]: See Stone Wall.
* [[Moral Sociopathy]]: At it's worst; it is always moral, but being an enemy of Red, the colour of emotions, means that, at its purest, it has no empathy. Indeed, some pure White creatures, like Angels, sometimes appear rather robotic, following their duties at the expense of everything else.
* [[My Rules Are Not Your Rules]]/[[Screw the Rules, I Make Them]]: White is the color of Law, so it likes there to be rules, but it has no problem applying its rule magic unevenly.
* [[A Nazi
* [[No Cure for Evil]]: Averted with White characters that are evil, although curiously most White villains so far didn't had an explicit specialisation in healing magic.
* [[Omnicidal Maniac]]: The infamous [https://web.archive.org/web/20130807071654/http://wiki.mtgsalvation.com/article/Wrath_effect Wrath effect spells], of which the vast majority are White. Several cards like Magus of the Disk show that this goes deep in White's idealogy as well; ultimate order is death, after all.
* [[Our Angels Are Different]]: They are medium-sized to large flying creatures.
* [[Pure Awesomeness]]: Shown on Awe Strike. Like Blue's Awesome Presence, it's a serious take on the idea of Pure Awesomeness.
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* [[Rules Lawyer]]: White ''is'' the color of bureaucracy, so of course white has the most bureaucracy.
Blue is associated with knowledge, illusion, and mental magic. Its specialties are [[Anti
{{tropelist|Tropes exhibited by this character include:}}
▲Blue is associated with knowledge, illusion, and mental magic. Its specialties are [[Anti Magic|countermagic]], drawing cards, and delaying your opponent by forcing them to replay or redraw the same cards, or skipping phases or whole turns. Because of its careful, analytical approach, blue is often reactive, and rarely rushes directly into the fray. Accordingly, its creatures tend to sacrifice brute force in favor of abilities like flying that allow them to gain an advantage in other ways. Read more about blue [http://www.wizards.com/Magic/Magazine/Article.aspx?x=mtgcom/daily/mr84 here].
* [[Above Good and Evil]]: Being blue often involves ignoring conventional morality in pursuit of knowledge.
▲* [[Above Good and Evil]]: Being blue often involves ignoring conventional morality in pursuit of knowledge.
* [[An Ice Person]]
* [[Blow You Away]]
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* [[Mind Over Matter]]: Many of its tapping, stealing, and other manipulation effects are depicted as forms of mind control.
* [[Mind Rape]]: Blue's milling ability is often flavored as erasing memories.
* [[
* [[The Mole]]: [http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?multiverseid=15168 This] [http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?multiverseid=159749 combo].
* [[My Rules Are Not Your Rules]]: Blue is the only color that can consistently interact with spells on the stack. It's a bit jarring to many players, as most interactions happen with permanents already on the battlefield.
* [[Pure Awesomeness]]: Awesome Presence seems to display this.
* [[Red Oni, Blue Oni]]: Blue Oni
* [[The Sociopath]]: At its worst.
* [[The Spock]]
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* [[The Unfettered]]: Actually more so than any other colour; even Black tends to have empathy (even if twisted into sadism), while Blue is completely divorced from such "petty" emotions.
Black's goal is power, no matter the cost--black will do anything to win, even if it means sacrificing its own creatures or [[Hit Points]] to power its spells. Black specializes in death and decay; its power over death makes it excellent at both killing creatures and [[The Necromancer|raising them from the dead to fight again]]. It's also the best color at attacking the opponent's hand through [[Mind Rape]]-styled discard effects, and offers Faustian bargains of powerful creatures and effects that match or exceed other colors' specialties, if you don't mind paying for the difference with something other than mana. Learn more about black [https://web.archive.org/web/20081003122629/http://www.wizards.com/Magic/Magazine/Article.aspx?x=mtgcom
{{tropelist|Tropes exhibited by this character include:}}
▲Black's goal is power, no matter the cost--black will do anything to win, even if it means sacrificing its own creatures or [[Hit Points]] to power its spells. Black specializes in death and decay; its power over death makes it excellent at both killing creatures and [[The Necromancer|raising them from the dead to fight again]]. It's also the best color at attacking the opponent's hand through [[Mind Rape]]-styled discard effects, and offers Faustian bargains of powerful creatures and effects that match or exceed other colors' specialties, if you don't mind paying for the difference with something other than mana. Learn more about black [http://www.wizards.com/Magic/Magazine/Article.aspx?x=mtgcom/daily/mr109 here].
* [[Above Good and Evil]]: Being black means abandoning morality in the pursuit of power.
* [[Ape Shall Never Kill Ape]]: A lot of black creature removal will destroy a creature, but only if it isn't black. Not that black actually cares about its own - it's just that black creatures are often impervious to the insanity, horror, and disease it uses to do its work.
* [[Byronic Hero]]: What black may be when it steps into the light.
* [[Body Horror]]: Anything with "Pay X life..." in it, anything Yawgmoth does, a lot of the black auras.
* [[Cast
* [[Casting a Shadow]]
* [[Cold
* [[Dark Is Evil]]: The vast majority of black creatures are, in fact, evil. Either that or mindless.
* [[Dark Is Not Evil]]: While Black has many villains in its name, and is inherently ruthless, it has also some positive traits and a few characters to embody them.
* [[Deal
* [[Eldritch Abomination]]: Usually under the creature type "Horror" and "Nightmare".
* [[Equivalent Exchange]]: Shown on many cards, in particular those like Sign In Blood.
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* [[Mind Rape]]: Any "discard" card or "cap" effect.
* [[Nominal Hero]]: Black may help you, if you make it worth its while.
* [[
* [[The Necromancer]]
* [[Poisonous Person]] (along with green)
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* [[The Unfettered]]: As part of the opposite of white, where white establishes concepts of "right" and "wrong", black [[Above Good and Evil|rejects]] those notions in its quest for power.
* [[Uriah Gambit]]: "Sacrifice a creature" effects, along with creatures with disabilities that hurt you.
* [[What Is Evil?]]: Black is the colour mostly inclined towards moral relativism.
Red is the color of chaos, passion, and emotion. It's aligned with the elements of [[Playing With Fire|fire]], [[Dishing Out Dirt|earth]], and [[Shock and Awe|lightning]], and it specializes in direct damage and the destruction of all things material. Red lives in the moment and rarely considers the future consequences of its actions; this theme is frequently shown through powerful but temporary advantages such as [http://magiccards.info/10e/en/242.html Threaten] and [http://magiccards.info/m10/en/125.html Ball Lightning], with creatures that aren't always quite controllable once they hit the field, and with excessive bursts of mana or effects that destroy your lands in return for immediate power. Red is designed to play aggressively and win quickly, and is in danger of stalling out if it doesn't maintain the initiative. Learn more about red [http://www.wizards.com/Magic/Magazine/Article.aspx?x=mtgcom/daily/mr133 here].▼
=== Red ===
▲Red is the color of chaos, passion, and emotion. It's aligned with the elements of [[Playing
{{tropelist|Tropes exhibited by this character include:}}
* [[Apocalypse How]]: Decree Of Annihilation, Disaster Radius.
* [[Be Yourself]]: Red is the color of unbridled self expression.
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* [[Dishing Out Dirt]] (along with green)
* [[Dragon Rider]]
* [[Don't Think, Feel]]: Part of its opposition to blue. In fact, overthinking and second-guessing yourself can be a serious flaw when playing red.
* [[Fire Is Red]]: Though, to be fair, as in most other spells, Red spells don't necessarily have the same colour as the colour itself, and some fire spell artwork has apropriate orange or gold flames.
* [[For the Evulz]]: Red doesn't tend to do plans, so at its worst it often produces motiveless evil. Red villains are more likely to be evil, destructive, or sadistic just because it's fun than black ones.
* [[Great Balls of Fire]]: ''Blaze'' and ''Fireball'' are the best examples.
* [[Hot
* [[Instant Awesome, Just Add Dragons]]: [[Word of God]] is that dragons are the most popular creature type in the game, and each block ''will'' ensure red gets at least one, even in settings like Ravnica (where dragons are supposed to be extinct) or Innistrad (where dragons just don't fit with Gothic horror). On top of that, red's dragons get a "dragon discount": they're slightly cheaper than a red flying creature normally should be.
* [[Kill It
* [[Leeroy Jenkins]]: Red has the majority of creatures with the "cannot block" and "attacks each turn if able" abilities, and a variety of other effects like [http://magiccards.info/roe/en/157.html Lust for War] that force creatures to charge recklessly into battle.
* [[Light
* [[Lust]] and [[Wrath]]
* [[Magma Man]]
* [[The McCoy]]
* [[Our Goblins Are
* [[Playing
* [[Red Oni, Blue Oni]]: Red Oni.
* [[Screw the Rules, I'm Doing What's Right]]: Red never respects laws. It becomes this when it's the good guy.
* [[Shock and Awe]]
* [[Stuff Blowing Up]]: ''[http://gatherer.wizards.com/pages/card/details.aspx?name=Kaboom! Kaboom!]''
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* [[Thirsty Desert]]: Especially in ''Arabian Nights''.
Green magic represents [[Green Thumb|nature]]. Thanks to its mastery of life and growth, Green is the best color at creating swarms of token creatures, and its creatures tend to be bigger than those of other colors for the same cost, especially at the higher end of the scale. Green also has the ability to boost the size of its creatures, both temporarily and permanently, and is the best color at generating extra mana in the long term, often by playing additional lands. In recent years, it has become the second-best color at card drawing, representing a growth of the mind to match the body. Green magic is rarely subtle and often relies on brute force - while it's perfectly willing to destroy the opponent's artifacts, enchantments, and lands, Green preferred means of dealing with opposing creatures is to outmatch them in combat [[A Worldwide Punomenon|as nature intended]]. Learn more about green [https://web.archive.org/web/20081003112206/http://www.wizards.com/Magic/Magazine/Article.aspx?x=mtgcom
{{tropelist|Tropes exhibited by this character include:}}
▲Green magic represents [[Green Thumb|nature]]. Thanks to its mastery of life and growth, Green is the best color at creating swarms of token creatures, and its creatures tend to be bigger than those of other colors for the same cost, especially at the higher end of the scale. Green also has the ability to boost the size of its creatures, both temporarily and permanently, and is the best color at generating extra mana in the long term, often by playing additional lands. In recent years, it has become the second-best color at card drawing, representing a growth of the mind to match the body. Green magic is rarely subtle and often relies on brute force - while it's perfectly willing to destroy the opponent's artifacts, enchantments, and lands, Green preferred means of dealing with opposing creatures is to outmatch them in combat [[A Worldwide Punomenon|as nature intended]]. Learn more about green [http://www.wizards.com/Magic/Magazine/Article.aspx?x=mtgcom/daily/mr43 here].
* [[Anti
* [[Anti
▲* [[Anti Air]]: Many. Very many. Good examples are Hurricane and Giant Spider (it has Reach, which lets it block fliers without having flying). All green creature removal only attacks flyers.
* [[Attack of the
▲* [[Anti Cavalry]]: Appears on Trip Line. Antiquated by the static ability Horsemanship disappearing.
▲* [[Attack of the Fifty Foot Whatever]]: One of green's trademarks is the absurdly large creature, whether large to begin with or magically pumped up that way.
* [[The Beast Master]]
* [[Blow You Away]]: Although air is technically Blue's domain, [[Wind Is Green|Green wind spells]] are common.
* [[Dishing Out Dirt]] (along with red)
* [[Don't Think, Feel]]: Part of its opposition to blue, green strategies are often about pure smashing, with little in the way of trickery or manipulation.
* [[Everything Trying to Kill You]]: Green is the domain of dangerous, hostile places like forests and jungles.
* [[Fertile Feet]]
* [[
* [[
* [[Giant Creepy Crawlies]]: See Attack Of The 50-Foot Whatever. Green shares this with Black.
* [[Villainous Glutton|Gluttony]]
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* [[Healing Hands]]: Green shares the ability to gain life with White.
* [[Hungry Jungle]]
* [[In Harmony
* [[Make My Monster Grow]]: One of green's favorite abilities.
* [[Mother Nature]]
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* [[The Power of Friendship]]: With White and arguably, Red.
* [[The Social Darwinist]]: At its worst.
* [[Training
* [[That's No Moon]]: Green is in love with the idea of land animation.
== Planeswalkers: Pre-Mending ==
Regardless of whether it happened before or after the mending, the way in which a being becomes a Planeswalker is the same. Whenever a sentient being is born, there is a one in one million chance of it being born with "The Spark"--that is, the Planeswalker spark. And even then, the odds of that being triggering their ascension is also one in a million. The Spark is ignited typically in one of three ways--a near-death experience, situations of immeasurable psychological strain, or extremely deep meditation. These old-style Planeswalkers had powers comparable to most gods; they could travel to other realities with no more than a moment's concentration, they can take on any appearance they desire (though most choose to look the same as they did when they ascended), will not age or die of natural causes, no longer need to eat or sleep, and in a few cases, create their own artificial plane (and live there and practically be worshipped ''as'' gods).
'''Urza'''
One of the oldest and most powerful planeswalkers in the multiverse, the artificer Urza was first seen as a mortal in the ''Antiquities'' expansion, where he fought a bitter war against his fellow artificer and brother, Mishra. The disastrous war eventually led to the destruction of most of the continent, Mishra's death, Urza's ascension (after detonating the Golgothian Sylex, annihilating most of a continent and starting a millennia-long ice age), and the release of the lock that [[Sealed Evil in
* [[Anti
* [[Arch Nemesis]]: First Mishra, and then Yawgmoth.
* [[Badass Grandpa]]
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* [[Blind Seer]]: Used as a disguise.
* [[Cain and Abel]]: The conflict with his brother Mishra got a little out of control.
* [[The Chessmaster]]: Combine this with his [[Good Is Not Nice]] traits seen below, most of his gambits are only "good" because they're being used to fight Phyrexia.
* [[Face Heel Turn]]: {{spoiler|He betrays his fellow planeswalkers and gives in to Yawgmoth once he has reached Phyrexia.}}
* [[Gadgeteer Genius]]
* [[Good Is Not Nice]]: Gets worse as he gets older. It reaches its peak when {{spoiler|he didn't tell his longtime partner and friend Barrin that his daughter was dying of Phyrexian plague}}. It's after that point {{spoiler|when Barrin kills himself}} that Urza starts to ''really'' pick up the pace.
* [[He Who Fights Monsters]]:
** [http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?multiverseid=15255 "As the invasion drew closer, Urza's means began to resemble Phyrexia's end."]
** One of the Invasion-cycle novels it's mentioned that over the years of fighting the Phyrexians, Urza came to ''admire'' them.
** Once he has reached Phyrexia, {{spoiler|he finally gives up and bows before Yawgmoth.}}
* [[Hoist
* [[Insufferable Genius]]
* [[Losing Your Head]]: His planeswalker powers mean that he can be beheaded and survive. His disembodied head can later be spotted [http://magiccards.info/uh/en/131.html relaxing in a hot tub] in the non-canonical ''Unhinged'' expansion.
* [[Luke Nounverber]]: He's occasionally referred to as "Urza Planeswalker." This crosses over with [[Species Surname]] when you take into consideration that before the Mending, "Planeswalker" was less of a job description and more of an actual race.
* [[Mad Scientist]]
* [[Manipulative Bastard]]
* [[Mismatched Eyes]]: He has a red powerstone for one eye, and a green one for the other.
* [[Nice Job Breaking It, Hero]]: A poster boy.
* [[Not So Different]]: From Yawgmoth, after all.
* [[Numerological Motif]]: Major artifacts associated with Urza tend to cost exactly seven mana.
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* [[The Unfettered]]
* [[We Can Rule Together]]: When {{spoiler|Yawgmoth}} asks him what is his greatest desire, Urza answers that {{spoiler|he wants to sit next to him and benefit from his knowledge and power.}}
* [[Well
* [[What the Hell, Hero?]]: Urza gets called out at least [[Once an Episode]].
* [[With Great Power Comes Great Insanity]]
* [[Xanatos Roulette]]
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* [[Author Avatar]]: Uh...see for yourself. From ''Apocalypse'':
{{quote|
“Bother.”
Commodore Guff crouched upon a gnarl of basalt and feverishly applied the massive eraser to the history of the Dominarian Apocalypse. There went a sentence about the death of Eladamri. Just after, Liin Sivi[sic] no longer died, for all the way through she had been paired to him as though she were his gimp leg. And what about this paragraph where Bo Levar lights a cigar in a swamp and is blown to smithereens? Guff didn’t even erase that bit, but crumpled up the whole page and threw it into the lava that seeped from a nearby crack. What else had to go to make this goddamned trilogy work out? How about the legal material, and the dedication and acknowledgments? After all, who gives a goat’s droppings for the editor of an epic? Commodore Guff hurled those pages aside and saw them catch fire. He threw out the teaser too. It had given away the destruction of Dominaria anyway, something that was completely undecided at this point. <br />▼
▲Commodore Guff crouched upon a gnarl of basalt and feverishly applied the massive eraser to the history of the Dominarian Apocalypse. There went a sentence about the death of Eladamri. Just after, Liin Sivi[sic] no longer died, for all the way through she had been paired to him as though she were his gimp leg. And what about this paragraph where Bo Levar lights a cigar in a swamp and is blown to smithereens? Guff didn’t even erase that bit, but crumpled up the whole page and threw it into the lava that seeped from a nearby crack. What else had to go to make this goddamned trilogy work out? How about the legal material, and the dedication and acknowledgments? After all, who gives a goat’s droppings for the editor of an epic? Commodore Guff hurled those pages aside and saw them catch fire. He threw out the teaser too. It had given away the destruction of Dominaria anyway, something that was completely undecided at this point.
Commodore Guff turned his face from the ravaged book in his hand and looked skyward. “This would never have happened when I was in charge of continuity.” }}
:: Funnily enough, [[Word of God]] states that J. Robert King (author of Apocalypse) based him on one of Magic's other authors, Scott McGough. So he's technically an [[Author Avatar]], just the wrong author.
* [[Casual Danger Dialogue]]: He nonchalantly acknowledges the upcoming deaths of all his comrades, and even knows that in the 'original' history, Yawgmoth wins and Dominaria is assimilated into Phyrexia. He only agrees to start erasing things when it's brought to his attention that Yawgmoth's victory {{spoiler|would mean the destruction of his library}}.
* [[Meta Guy]]
* [[No Fourth Wall]]: What [[Deadpool]] is to the [[Marvel Universe]], Guff is to ''Magic''.
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'''Nicol Bolas'''
Nicol Bolas is the oldest--and perhaps the most powerful--planeswalker in the multiverse. He first appeared in the ''Legends'' cycle, where he battled Tetsuo Umezawa (a descendent of the ''Kamigawa'' block's protagonist, Toshiro Umezawa) for control of Madara. He reappeared in the ''Time Spiral'' block for a pair of epic planeswalker duels against Teferi and Leshrac, and then again to serve as an antagonist in the ''Shards of Alara'' block. He's been manipulating ''Magic'''s storyline from behind the scenes ever since. Read more about him [https://web.archive.org/web/20140612053333/http://www.wizards.com/
* [[Back
* [[Badass Boast]]: His entire encounter with Ajani at the end of ''Alara Unbroken'' is basically a long one of these. Trouble is, he really is that good. Best summarized by the quote: "I've survived more apocalypses than you've had ''chest colds.''"
* [[The Bad Guy Wins]]: The stories of Shards of Alara and Zendikar are both cases of Bolas's plans coming to fruition. He encounters some hiccups along the way, but ultimately achieves his goals.
* [[Breakout Character]]: At first, Nicol Bolas was just one part of
* [[Brought Down to Normal]]: And he ''hates'' it!
* [[The Chessmaster]]
* [[Evil Sorcerer]]: [[Up to Eleven]].
* [[Evil Is Petty]]: The first thing Bolas does when becoming freed from the Meditation Realm is hunt down anyone who was descended from the man that put him there. And probably anyone they ever knew or loved for that matter. [[And Your Little Dog, Too|And their pets.]]
* [[How the Mighty Have Fallen]]
* [[Manipulative Bastard]]
* [[Mind Rape]]: Discard effects are standard for him.
* [[Names to Run Away From Really Fast]]: Supposedly he has so many titles he doesn't even care about them anymore, most notably ''The Tyrant of Worlds''
* [[
* [[Not Cheating Unless You Get Caught]]: A life philosophy of Bolas'.
* [[Numerological Motif]]: His final ability does seven damage to a player, makes that player sacrifice seven permanents and discard seven cards.
* [[Olympus Mons]]: The original five Elder Dragons are the ancestors of all dragons.
* [[Our Dragons Are Different]]: Immortal, supremely powerful, masterfully manipulative wizards bent on total omnipotence.
'''Serra'''
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* [[Floating Continent]]: Throughout her realm.
* [[Fluffy Cloud Heaven]]: Her Realm
* [[Have You Seen My God?]]: She hasn't been seen since Urza's first visit to her realm. The second time he shows up, Archangel Radiant is running things in her absence. She did it again to her worshippers on Ulgrotha, except this time {{spoiler|she became suicidal and got herself killed.}}
* [[Light
{{quote|
* [[Light Is Good]]
* [[The Mourning After]]: When her husband Feroz died in a freak lab accident, she lost all will to live.
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* [[Cool Old Guy]]
* [[Fusion Dance]]: A Power Booster example. He originally had five alternate universe counterparts, one for each colour of mana, and became a planeswalker when his Black self pulled this off with all the rest.
* [[Get a Hold of Yourself, Man!]]: Attempts this on Urza after Urza betrays the Nine Titans and turns to Yawgmoth. In response, Urza kills Taysir in self-defense.
* [[Heel Face Revolving Door]]: Back and forth and back and forth... To begin with, his black self was the murderous henchman of an evil wizard. After fusing with the personality and memories of his first alternate-universe-self victim, he had a [[Heel Face Turn]] and fused more peacefully with the others only to save them from said wizard. After centuries as an immortal, he slowly became a total [[Jerkass]] and then a violent villain. After dying and going through Anaba Minotaur purgatory, he came back as a good guy.
* [[Minor Major Character]]: Canonically, he was briefly the most powerful Planeswalker in the multiverse until Urza ascended, due to having five sparks instead of one, and even then he was quite powerful. Most of his time in the limelight is in the time before the Weatherlight saga, where Urza doesn't figure into things much at all, and afterwards he barely even gets mentioned. He comes back for the Invasion block, only to get killed.
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* [[Evil Sorceror]]
* [[Token Evil Teammate]]: Deconstructed. He ''does'' end up backstabbing his teammates, which is exactly what Urza wanted, because he needs an ally to drain the soul out of and use it as a bomb. ([[What the Hell, Hero?]] ensues.)
* [[Was Once a Man]]: Before ascending, he was a human named Tev. Afterwards, he looked like a lizard man's torso on an octopus's tentacles.
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'''Teferi'''
A blue-aligned planeswalker from Zhalfir specializing in time magic and phasing. The events of ''Time Spiral'' caused him to lose his planeswalker spark, [[De
* [[Bald Black Leader Guy]]
* [[Court Mage]]: To the court of Zhalfir, specifically.
* [[Delinquents]]: He apparently was one at the Academy, but he's since grown out of it.
* [[De
* [[Large Ham]]: As a planeswalker, his playfulness manifests in making everything he says and does unnecessarily impressive.
* [[Reasonable Authority Figure]]
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''The'' Task Mage. She started her life as a street urchin until she stumbled upon Jodah, who took her under his wing. She didn't stay long, though, and went on to become a task mage (a term for [[Hired Guns]]). Her spark ignited after fighting a [[Demonic Possession]] by Mairsil The Pretender. She was also a figurehead of a school that Chandra, her future [[Expy]], went to.
* [[Battle in
* [[Black Magician Girl]]
* [[Deadpan Snarker]]
* [[Demonic Possession]]: By Mairsil the Pretender when she unknowingly takes Lim-Dul's ring which contains the Pretender's Spirit.
* [[Glass Cannon]]: Her card's last ability will, unless you give her protection from herself, kill her.
* [[Hell
* [[Hot
* [[Large Ham]]: Really, Jaya would be right at home in ''[[Gurren Lagann]]''.
* [[Playing
* [[Pyromaniac]]: "Of course you should fight fire with fire. You should fight ''everything'' with fire."
* [[Role Called]]: If you see her name, there's a good chance that "Task Mage" will follow it.
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* [[The Man Behind the Man]]: Behind Tevesh Szat and Lim-Dul during the Ice Age.
* [[Mega Manning]]: In ''Future Sight'', he steals the black magic abilities from Nicol Bolas and Jeska/Phage.
* [[Sealed Evil in
'''Arzakon'''
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* [[Awesome but Impractical]]: A five-color deck? Granted, it's stacked with broken cards, but still...
* [[Deal
* [[Rocks Fall Everybody Dies]]: He'll attack when his five minions are defeated.
* [[Sealed Evil in
== Planeswalkers: Post-Mending ==
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'''Ajani Goldmane'''
[http://magiccards.info/m11/en/1.html Ajani Goldmane] is a white-aligned planeswalker. He first appeared in the storyline as a protagonist in the ''Shards of Alara'' block, where his quest to avenge the murder of his brother led him to discover the nefarious machinations of Nicol Bolas. His specialty is [[Soul Power]]: invoking and strengthening the spirits of others. Read more about him [https://web.archive.org/web/20140612053308/http://www.wizards.com/
* [[An Axe to Grind]]: Ajani's weapon of choice is his prized double ended axe, which his axe with his brother's axe head grafted on to the other side.
* [[Anti
* [[Badass]]}
* [[Bash Brothers]]: Both accomplished warriors in their own rights, with Ajani's [[Status Buff]] magic, he and his brother were untouchable. [[Bonus Points]] for being literal brothers as well.
* [[Dude, Where's My Respect?]]: Ajani undertook many dangerous tasks upon himself to win his pride's respect, such as hunting Naya's behemoths alone. None of them worked.
* [[The Empath]]
* [[Good Scars, Evil Scars]]: Good; A simple line over his missing right eye.
* [[Heroic Albino]]: Eventually. Growing up, his tribe (except for his brother) thought he was [[Evil Albino|bad luck]].
* [[Meaningful Name]]: His actual surname is Goldmane, it's just a coincidence that he was born platinum blonde.
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'''Jace Beleren'''
Jace Beleren is a planeswalker who specializes in mental magic: [[Telepathy]], [[Master of Illusion|illusion]], that sort of thing. He's a central character in ''Agents of Artifice''. Read more about him [https://web.archive.org/web/20130308192640/http://www.wizards.com/Magic/Multiverse/planeswalkers.aspx?x=mtg
* [[Anime Hair]]: Seen in Jace's Ingenuity. His M12 card features it directly. Ironically, minimized in the [http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?multiverseid=227476 Japanese Duel Decks version], which has his hood up.
* [[Anti
* [[Red Oni, Blue Oni|Blue Oni]]: To Chandra's Red Oni.
* [[Cowardly Lion]]: A bit, especially when he stands up against Tezzeret because of his repeated abuse and lust for power. This eventually leads Jace to wipe Tezzeret's mind.
* [[Enemy Mine]]: When he's not fighting Chandra, he's teaming up with her.
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* [[Mind Manipulation]]
* [[Mind Rape]]: All of his cards have had some form of this, but it shines the brightest on [http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?multiverseid=195297 Jace, the Mind Sculptor's fourth ability]. He also subjects Tezzeret to this in ''Agents of Artifice.''
* [[Nice Job Breaking It, Hero]]: Many cases of this but his bumbling in Zendikar with Chandra and Sarkhan stand out the most. Of course, for that one, he has no idea [[Xanatos Roulette|somebody named Bolas has planned that]].
* [[
* [[Psychic Powers]]
* [[Sympathy for
* [[Telepathy]]
'''Liliana Vess'''
Liliana Vess is a black-aligned planeswalker whose specialty is [[The Necromancer|necromancy]]. She has several long-running debts with demons after a few [[Deal
* [[Anti
* [[Artifact of Doom]]: The Chain Veil, which is in Vess's possession.
* [[Bare Your Midriff]]
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* [[The Beautiful Elite]]: In every novel she has appeared in, there has been at least one passage describing just how ludicrously attractive she is.
* [[Casting a Shadow]]/[[Combat Tentacles]]: Without corpses for her to animate, most of her fights involve using shadowy tentacles.
* [[Deal
* [[Distracted
* [[Drunk
* [[Eerie Pale
* [[Even Evil Has Loved Ones]]: Her now long-dead brother Josu.
* [[Even Evil Has Standards]]: When she rejected the deal Nicol Bolas made with her.
* [[Fallen Princess]]: She was a daughter of a nobleman, but was disowned after she [[Unwitting Pawn|unwittingly]] fed her beloved brother poison she got from a mysterious ''Raven Man'' who claimed it was a cure.
* [[Fantastic Racism]]
{{quote|
* [[Faustian Rebellion]]: After obtaining the Chained Veil, she decides to oust the demons she made bargains with. Starting from [[Irony|the one who send her]] to [[Fetch Quest|fetch]] the Veil.
* [[Foe Yay]]: "I like your axe. Very manly." and "Allow me to slip into something more powerful."
* [[Hair Decorations]]: Sort of a [[Fridge Brilliance]] when you consider how self-conscious she is about her age.
* [[Hot Gypsy Woman]]/[[Vapor Wear]]: Her wardrobe.
* [[
* [[Jerkass]]: While developing [http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?multiverseid=235597 her second card], Innistrad lead developer Erik Lauer went to the creative department and asked them to give him an overview of her character, so that he could work on some abilities that would be representative of her personality. Their response?
{{quote|
* [[Luck Manipulation Mechanic]]: Her second ability puts any card in your library on top and reshuffles the rest of your library.
* [[Mind Rape]]: One of her abilities.
* [[Necromancer]]
* [[Nice Job Fixing It, Villain]]: {{spoiler|Her efforts to free Griselbrand to kill him also frees Avacyn, Innistrad's Guardian Angel. Although Liliana doesn't live in Innistrad, so she doesn't really care}}.
* [[Opera Gloves]]: In the [http://www.wizards.com/magic/magazine/article.aspx?x=mtg/daily/arcana/666 Innistrad promotional art] and as [http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?multiverseid=235597 Liliana of the Veil].
* [[Power Tattoo]]
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* [[Slouch of Villainy]]: Her promo art in Innistrad.
* [[Soul Power]]: The [[Black Magic]] variant.
* [[Thigh
'''Chandra Nalaar'''
Chandra Nalaar is a red-aligned [[Playing
* [[Best Served Cold]]: Speaking strictly figuratively, of course. {{spoiler|Chandra blows up The Order of Heliud's Regatha outpost. The Order was responsible for executing her village for harboring pyromancers.}}
* [[Cool Big Sis]]: To the children at Keral Keep.
* [[Depending
* [[Enemy Mine]]: When she's not fighting Jace, she's teaming up with him.
* [[Expy]]: Of Jaya Ballard. Chandra was implied to have been ''trained'' by Jaya from an early age, so her acting basically just like Jaya should be no surprise. Jaya is, after all, known to rub off on people who hang around her too long - including Archmage Jodah, who lamented that her influence was making him as reckless as she was.
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* [[Flaming Hair]]
* [[Foe Yay]]: With Jace. Even more so with Gideon.
* [[Hot
* [[Only the Pure of Heart]]: The Purifying Fire. {{spoiler|The Order of Heliud favored executing their more notable prisoners and dissidents in the Purifying Fire, a massive wellspring of white mana on the plane of Regatha, that immolates all the guilty criminals that are thrown into it, as a way of proving their just cause. Chandra survived the experience after confessing her guilty feelings of her village's death to Gideon. [[Exact Words|It immolates the ''guilty''.]]}}
* [[Playing
* [[Pyromaniac]]
* [[Red Oni, Blue Oni|Red Oni]]: To Jace's Blue Oni.
* [[Rose
* [[Unresolved Sexual Tension]]: With Gideon. She likes him, but abhors his worldview of the greater good being more important than personal freedom.
* [[Unskilled but Strong]]: After one of her temper tantrums, the Order of Heliud came down hard on her village, because they believed they were harboring a large number of pyromancers. They didn't believe the amount of damage done was possible from a single person.
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'''Garruk Wildspeaker'''
Garruk Wildspeaker is a [[The Beast Master|Beast Master]] planeswalker who wields green magic. He's a powerful hunter who lives in harmony with nature and aspires to be a true predator. Read more about him [https://web.archive.org/web/20140612051626/http://www.wizards.com/
* [[An Axe to Grind]]
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* [[The Corruption]]: Suffers from one after being defeated by Veil-enhanced Liliana.
* [[Genocide Backfire]]: In Garruk's backstory, the feudal lord who ruled his town tried to recruit [[Child Soldiers]] to fight his war. The young Garruk escaped into the forest, where he trained himself as a [[The Beast Master|Beast Master]]. [[Best Served Cold|Years later]], when he grew strong enough, he returned and killed the tyrant from his childhood.
* [[Hell
* [[Hunting the Most Dangerous Game]]: In the original blurbs that were released when the original post-mending walkers were being spoiled, Garruk was said to enjoy the thrill of hunting fellow Planeswalkers. He is now putting this to practice with Liliana.
* [[Hypocrite]]: One of Garruk's chief problems with civilized society, is how much they lie to one another and how little consequence there is to it. He is not above lying himself in anyway, though considering he's [[Not Good
* [[Make My Monster Grow]]: He does this to his summons when they're not dangerous enough.
* [[Might Makes Right]]
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* [[Nature Hero]]
* [[Noble Savage]]: One of his core beliefs.
* [[Not Good
* [[Papa Wolf]]: His father is implied to be this. Garruk himself also counts as he doesn't take too kindly to people harming his animal buddies.
* [[Raised
* [[Restraining Bolt]]: As a result of the Veil's curse.
* [[Roaring Rampage of Revenge]]: Garruk is coming for Liliana.
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'''Elspeth Tirel'''
Elspeth Tirel is a planeswalker who wields [[White Magic]]. Born on a plane dominated by Phyrexia, she escaped after her spark ignited and roamed the worlds looking for a home. When she found Bant, she believed she'd found her true home; after Alara's Conflux, however, she felt that she no longer belonged, and left to roam the multiverse once more. Read more about her [https://web.archive.org/web/20101220131159/http://www.wizards.com/
* [[Blinded
* [[Changed My Mind, Kid]]: In the "[[Magic The Gathering/Scarred|Scarred]]" comic. She has a [[Heroic BSOD]] after a particularly horrifying encounter with some Phyrexians; after a pep talk with a Vulshok shaman who admonishes her for her cowardice, she returns to rescue Venser and Koth from [[Strapped to An Operating Table|one of Jin-Gitaxias's experiments]].
* [[Cowardly Lion]]: She is a very strong planeswalker and really wants to help, but she finds herself more often running away than actually helping in any way.
* [[Despair Event Horizon]]: Elspeth falls dangerously close to it in [
* [[The Fatalist]]: She thinks her version of paradise, Bant, will fall to the undead of Grixis, even as the fight isn't yet lost and Ajani tries to convince her to help him.
* [[A Father to His Men|A Father to Her Men]]: She is very dedicated to soldiers under her command and takes their well-being very seriously.
* [[Honor Before Reason]]: At first, she refuses to use her magic to defend Bant from the zombie invaders of Grixis, fighting hand-to-hand instead.
* [[I Just Want to Be Normal]]: On Bant, Elspeth decides to abandon her planeswalking and become an ordinary knight. She refuses to reveal her powerful magical abilities for fear that it would set her apart from the others.
* [[Knight Errant]]: Unlike other [[Knight Errant|Knight Errants]], she wants to find a home and settle there. Too bad said home doesn't last forever...
* [[Lady of War]]
* [[Light
* [[Mook Maker]]: Both of her planeswalker cards can summon armies of 1/1 soldier tokens.
* [[Nigh Invulnerability]]: One of her ultimate spells shields her allies from any form of conventional damage.
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'''Sarkhan Vol'''
The dragon shaman planeswalker Sarkhan Vol was first introduced in ''Shards of Alara''. At first, he wielded red and green magic, but under Nicol Bolas's tutelage (as well as [[Sanity Slippage]]), he's moved away from green in favor of black. Read more about him [https://web.archive.org/web/20101228061957/http://www.wizards.com/Magic/Multiverse/planeswalkers.aspx?x=mtg
* [[Ambiguously Brown]]: Sarkhan has a Slavic name, but is distinctly Asian looking.
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* [[The Dragon]]: To Bolas. Pun not intended.
* [[Dragon Rider]]
* [[Hell
* [[Meaningful Name]]: Sarkhan comes from the word "šarkan" which means dragon in the Slovak language. As a bonus, it is a popular name for guard dogs in Slavic countries, which is more or less how Bolas treats Sarkhan.
* [[Might Makes Right]]: The reason for his tribe's dragon worship.
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'''Tezzeret'''
Originally from the Alaran shard of Esper, Tezzeret is a blue-aligned planeswalker (and an agent of Nicol Bolas) who specializes in artifice. Read more about him [https://web.archive.org/web/20140612053353/http://www.wizards.com/
* [[Appropriated Appellation]]: His parents never gave him a name, so he used a nickname given to him by his peers instead.
* [[Artificial Limbs]]: Like all inhabitants of Esper, parts of his body--in this case, his right arm, and later, his torso--have been replaced with etherium metal.
* [[Creative Sterility]]: Prefers to improve on other people's ideas and plans than make his own.
* {{spoiler|[[Despair Event Horizon]]: When he discovers the true nature of Etherium in ''[[Magic:
* [[The Dragon]]: To Bolas, funnily enough.
* [[Freak
{{quote|
'''Tezzeret:''' No! NO! ''NOOOOOO!'' }}
* [[Freudian Excuse]]: Most of the dark parts of his personality are borrowed from other people.
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* [[Smart People Build Robots]]: His card effects lets him turn your artifacts into 5/5 artifact creatures.
* [[Son of a Whore]]: His mother was a prostitute.
* [[Villain Protagonist]]: How he was portrayed in ''[[Magic:
* [[We Can Rebuild Him]]: What Bolas did to him after his fight with Jace.
* [[Weak but Skilled]]: By his own admission, he is not a particularly powerful mage. But he's damned clever.
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'''Sorin Markov'''
Sorin Markov is a black-aligned vampire planeswalker who specializes in [[Blood Magic]]. He was one of the three planeswalkers who created the [[Sealed Evil in
* [[Anti
* [[Big Good]]: His schemes and powerful magics have been instrumental in maintaining the (relative) peace and harmony on not one but two planes. See [[Dark Is Not Evil]] below.
* [[Blood Magic]]
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* [[Deadpan Snarker]]: Being functionally immortal will do that to you.
* [[The Hedonist]]: When he doesn't have any important matters to deal with, he usually just seeks pleasure and excitement. This is apparently a trait of Innistrad vampires.
* [[Hell
* [[Immortality]]: Type II
* [[I Hate You, Vampire Dad|I Hate You Vampire Granddad]]: Possibly, as he was traumatized by being turned into a vampire by his granddad, not to mention that he has yet to be permitted to return to the Markov Manor.
* [[Magic Knight]]: That sword he has isn't just for show.
* [[Mind Control]]: Sorin's ultimate ability, with or without [[Necromancy]].
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* [[Our Vampires Are Different]]
* [[Really Seven Hundred Years Old]]: Sorin is the one of the oldest Planeswalkers in existence, second only to Nicol Bolas.
* [[Screw This, I'm Outta Here]]: {{spoiler|After Nissa screws up his plan to reseal the Eldrazi in Zendikar, he breaks his alliance with her and the Elves, and leaves the realm to its doom.}}
* [[Super Strength]]: Innistrad vampires have physical strength roughly double that of an equivalent human.
* [[Transformation Trauma]]: His planeswalker spark ignited when his grandfather transformed him into one of Innistrad's first vampires.
* [[White
* [[Why Did It Have to Be Snakes?|Why Did It Have To Be Heights?:]]
'''Nissa Revane'''
Nissa Revane wields green magic to muster her people and amplify their might. Recently, she has begun using black mana covertly, believing it a necessary means to move the elves toward their rightful place.
* [[Absolute Cleavage]]
* [[The Beautiful Elite]]
* [[Black Magic]]/[[Green Thumb]]: [[Yin
* [[Holier Than Thou]]
* [[Might Makes Right]]
* [[Nature Hero]]
* {{spoiler|[[Nice Job Breaking It, Hero]]: Due to her distrust of vampires, she sabotages Sorin's attempt to activate a device which turns out to be the final lock to the [[Eldritch Abomination|Eldrazi]]'s prison.}}
* [[Noble Bigot]]: Like all elves of the Joraga tribe, she considers the elves to be the rightful heirs of nature and believes they have the right to tell other races how to live. Unlike her compatriots, she's not above working with the mud races for the greater good, such as preventing the [[Eldritch Abomination]] apocalypse. She is also willing to learn from their respective talents and worldviews.
* [[Our Elves Are Better]]
* [[Summon Magic]]: She has her own personal guards for this.
* [[Why Did It Have to Be Snakes?]]: Actual snakes. Which is quite humorous given that snakes are among the ''least'' harmful things on her [[Death World|home plane.]]
* [[Yin
'''Gideon Jura'''
Gideon Jura is a planeswalker who wields [[White Magic]]. Unlike most planeswalkers, Gideon doesn’t hesitate to enter combat. He also practices hieromancy, the magic of holy justice.
* [[Canon Immigrant]]: Gideon [http://community.wizards.com/go/thread/view/75842/18888530/Purifying_Fire_author_Q38;A&post_num=6#322058014 was originally created by author Laura Resnick as an original character] for ''[[Magic:
* [[Chronic Hero Syndrome]]
* [[Defeat Means Friendship]]: If the intro to ''[[Duels of the Planeswalkers]] 2012'' is any indication, he's rather good at this. On either end.
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* [[To Be Lawful or Good]]: His adventures with the free-spirited Chandra Nalaar cause him to question the righteousness of the organization he's been working for.
* [[Unresolved Sexual Tension]]: With Chandra. He likes her, but doesn't like her chaotic, self-serving nature.
* [[Well
* [[Whip It Good]]: More specifically, his [[Weapon of Choice]] is a whiplike [
'''Koth of the Hammer'''
[http://magiccards.info/som/en/94.html Koth] is a Vulshok planeswalker who wields red magic. His specialty is [[Dishing Out Dirt|geomancy, spells that move mountains, shatter stone and melt iron.]] His earth magic has a special strength in it that allows him to purify metal, which reflects Koth’s own inner desire to bring peace and harmony to his people.
* [[Awesome McCoolname]]: For all intents and purposes "Of the Hammer" is actually Koth's surname. Vulshok take their monikers from their respective tribes.
* [[Dishing Out Dirt]]
* [[Good Is Not Nice]]
* [[Hot
* [[Proud Warrior Race Guy]]
* [[Recursive Acronym]]
* [[Red Oni, Blue Oni]]: Koth is the Red Oni to Venser's Blue Oni in the ''Scars of Mirrodin'' novel.
* [[The Magnificent]]: The Hammer in his name refers to his tribe.
* [[The Penance]]: Koth has carved the Phyrexian emblem into his right wrist so that he will never forget what they've done to his home world.
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* {{spoiler|[[Heroic Sacrifice]]: Sacrifices himself to save Karn at the end of the ''Scars of Mirrodin'' block novel.}}
* [[Heroic Willpower]]: Ignited his Planeswalker spark by working tirelessly to stop temporal distortions around Dominaria and by building new inventions.
* [[Red Oni, Blue Oni]]: Blue Oni to Koth's Red Oni.
* [[The Smart Guy]]: In the ''Scars of Mirrodin'' storyline, Venser is the logical, sciencey member of the lead trio. A telling moment is how in an early encounter with Phyrexian horrors, his instinct is to take samples and study them.
* [[Space Master|Space]] and [[Time Master]]: Following in Teferi's footsteps, he can send things into the future (that is, to the end of your turn), send creatures directly to the enemy (make them unblockable), and [[Ret
* [[Stock Sound Effects]]: The sound he makes when he teleports is "Tpff!"
* [[Teleporters and Transporters]]
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* [[Actual Pacifist]]: He's depicted in the art of the ''Tempest'' edition of [http://magiccards.info/tp/en/246.html Pacifism]. And if he participates in combat, he gets -4/+4, making him a 0/8 unless you've modified him in some way. Until the 'Invasion' cycle, he was such a staunch pacifist that Volrath tortured him by locking him in a flowstone room filled with goblins and then shifting the flowstone to make him crush them with his own weight. But during 'Invasion,' he realizes that remaining pacifist will indirectly harm to those he wishes to protect.
{{quote|
* [[And Then John Was a Zombie]]: The Phyrexians ''attempt'' to do this to him. And everything else. But since he was created to destroy Phyrexia, it's especially symbolic that they tried to do it to him.
* [[Artificial Intelligence]]
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* [[Heart Drive]]: His Heartstone, which originally belonged to Xantcha.
* {{spoiler|[[Literal Change of Heart]]}}: In ''[[Magic The Gathering/Scars Of Mirrodin The Quest For Karn|Scars of Mirrodin: The Quest for Karn]]'', {{spoiler|Venser saves Karn from the Phyrexians by [[Heroic Sacrifice|giving Karn his heart]], and with it, his planeswalker spark.}}
* [[Nice Job Breaking It, Hero]]: Karn's own heartstone drips with the Phyrexian Oil, which can infect entire planes if left unchecked. Most recently this happened with Karn's own plane of Argentum, turning it into Mirrodin and giving way for the rebirth of Phyrexia. It's implied he left this oil on every plane he traveled to, which is many.
* [[The Messiah]]: He's played this role to both the good guys ''and'' [[Dark Messiah|the Phyrexians.]]
* [[Nice Guy]]
* [[Non
* [[Person of Mass Destruction]]: When he became the Legacy Weapon.
* [[Time Master]]/[[Reset Button]]: His last ability is to restart the game, with everything he's exiled with his other abilities sent "back" to the beginning, on your side.
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'''Kiora Atua'''
[
* [[The Beast Master]]
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* [[From Nobody to Nightmare]]
* [[Half
* [[Mad Scientist]]: An unusual example, since he is Red rather than Blue. Then again, he is only in it [[For the Evulz]].
* [[Our Demons Are Different]]: Innistrad devils are Red aligned, wingless, and are basically internet trolls [[Up to Eleven]]. Tibalt is all of those, though he is presumably more intelligent than a regular devil.
* [[Playing
== Phyrexia and Mirrodin ==
{{quote|Life is ephemeral. Phyrexia is eternal.|'''[http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?multiverseid{{=}}221557 Spread the Sickness]'''}}
Perhaps the most iconic, notorious, beloved, and horrifying bad guys of the whole franchise, Phyrexia began in Magic's early days as a flesh hating cult, and since then has been [[Incredibly Lame Pun|fleshed out]] as one of the most disturbing and complex factions of the Multiverse.
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The Ineffable, a.k.a. '''Yawgmoth'''
* [[Affably Evil]]: As a human. A learned, charming man with a penchant for hygiene who [[Bread, Eggs, Milk, Squick|becomes a nearly invincible creature and plans to create a brand new order]]. He's basically Dominaria's [[Buffy the Vampire Slayer|Mayor Wilkins]], only without the [[Morality Pet]].
* [[Agent Scully]]: He provides the snarking quote for [[Black Box]].
* [[A God Am I]]: In fact, he ''actually'' becomes the god of Phyrexia, so he's way less delusional than most of the examples of this trope.
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* [[Big Bad]]
* [[CCG Importance Dissonance]]: Despite being one of the most powerful beings--perhaps ''the most'' powerful--in the whole Multiverse, Yawgmoth never obtained his own card (although, that'd be like printing a card of [[God]] in, say, Top Trumps). He is, however, related to the (in)famous pair of [[Game Breaker|powerful banned/restricted cards]], [http://magiccards.info/us/en/171.html Yawgmoth's Will] and [http://magiccards.info/ud/en/75.html Yawgmoth's Bargain].
* [[Celibate Hero|Celibate]] [[Asexual|Villain]]: Maybe it didn't help that the woman he loved [[Sealed Evil in
* [[The Chessmaster]]
* [[Dark Is Evil]]
* [[Does This Remind You of Anything?]]:
** ''The Thran'' is dedicated to Dmitri Shostakovich, who, the author states, "''survived a [[Josef Stalin|real-life Yawgmoth]]''".
** The structure of Phyrexia is composed of nine progressively smaller hollow planets resting inside one another, with each sphere having a specific function and Yawgmoth residing in the ninth innermost sphere. Replace Phyrexia with [[Hell]] and Yawgmoth with [[Satan]], and you have ''[[The Divine Comedy|Inferno]]''.
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* [[Evil Genius]]/[[Mad Scientist]]/[[Wicked Cultured]]
* [[Evilutionary Biologist]]
* [[Exact Words]]: During ''The Thran'', he vows to cure one of the infected rioters of his disease. He does so, and the cure works...but Yawgmoth then injects him with poison as punishment for his crimes.
* [[Fog of Doom]]: His appearance on Dominaria.
* [[Green
* [[He Who Must Not Be Seen]]: See [[CCG Importance Dissonance]]. Not only does he not have his own card, [[Nothing Is Scarier|he's never depicted in ''any art'' in his true form]], with the sole picture of him being when he was a human. The closest we have is [http://magiccards.info/ud/en/75.html Yawgmoth's Bargain].
* [[I Have Many Names]]: The Ineffable, The Father of the Machines, The Lord of Wastes...
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* [[Machine Worship]]/[[Cybernetics Eat Your Soul]]/[[Mechanical Lifeforms]]/[[Organic Technology]]
* [[Names to Run Away From Really Fast]]
* [[A Nazi
* [[Nigh Invulnerable]]
* [[No Cure for Evil]]: It has been stated very clearly that he was a skilled ''[[For Science!|surgeon]]'', not healer. [[Science Is Bad]], so we still get our villain.
* [[Nothing Is Scarier]]: See [[He Who Must Not Be Seen]].
* [[The Perfectionist]]
* [[Physical God]]
* [[Roaring Rampage of Revenge]]: Caused by being Sealed In A Can.
* [[The Scottish Trope]]: It's generally considered bad luck to speak his true name, hence the various euphemisms. Some fans, particularly [[Rooting for
* [[Sealed Evil in
* [[Start of Darkness]]: ''The Thran''.
* [[Straw Vulcan]]: In ''The Thran''.
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* [[Visionary Villain]]
* [[Was Once a Man]]: Not only Yawgmoth himself, but most of the Phyrexians. Many of which ''[[Body Horror|do not resemble the organisms they were made from. At all.]]''
* [[Well
* [[What Is This Thing You Call Love?]]: He despises Gerrard's request to have Hanna back {{spoiler|if he defeats Urza in the arena}} because he sees love as a weakness.
* [[You Cannot Grasp the True Form]]
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* [[The Dragon]]: Yawgmoth's first.
* [[Holier Than Thou]]: "We decide who is worthy of our works."
* [[Karmic Transformation]]: He is introduced as a remorseless killer, and is eventually transformed to appear as the monster that he is. Unfortunately, for Phyrexians in general this is almost always considered [[Cool and Unusual Punishment]] or [[Cursed
* [[Knight Templar]]
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The original evincar of Rath. Was eventually replaced.
* [[Achilles' Heel]]: Davvol's Phyrexian boss gives him a skullcap which is impenetrable except for a small circular indentation at the back. Davvol correctly suspects that this weak point was deliberately engineered to allow him to be killed once he's outlived his usefulness.
* [[The Chew Toy]]
* [[Doomed
'''Volrath'''
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* [[Pride]]
* [[Shapeshifting]]
* [[You Have Failed Me...]]: Yawgmoth's response to Volrath's twice failure to kill Gerrard and procure the Legacy? Give Rath to Crovax and let him execute Volrath in the most hideous way possible.
'''Crovax'''
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A cursed noble from Urborg who eventually becomes Evincar of Rath and leader of the Phyrexian invasion of Dominaria.
* {{spoiler|[[Death Equals Redemption]]: After his (Crovax's) death, Gerrard sees both his and Selenia's spirits finally reuniting, free of their corruption.}}
* [[The Dragon]]: To Yawgmoth.
* [[Face Heel Turn]]
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* [[Not So Different]]: From Gerrard
* [[Our Vampires Are Different]]: He became one as the final part of a curse.
* [[Tragic Villain]]: When he was forced to kill the love of his life (an angel named Selenia), the corruption that had taken control of her did the same to him. He continues his service to Yawgmoth because he "gave" Selenia back to him, albeit [[Replacement Goldfish|in the form of an artificial copy]].
'''Tsabo Tavoc'''
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* [[Bald Woman]]
* [[The Dragon]]: To Crovax.
* [[Hero
* [[Loves the Sound of Screaming]]
* [[You Have Failed Me...]]: Her eventual end.
'''Xantcha'''
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* [[The Bad Guy Wins]]: Welcome to New Phyrexia, folks.
* [[Body Horror]]
* [[Four
* [[The Perfectionist]]: Each praetor is obsessed by reaching their perfect view of Phyrexia.
* [[Teeth
{{quote|
'''Vorinclex''': "Dead or alive, my creations are stronger than Jin-Gitaxias's septic minions." }}
* [[Utopia Justifies the Means]]: Especially from Elesh Norn and Jin-Gitaxias' point of view.
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The White Praetor. Leads the theocratic faction known as the Machine Orthodoxy.
* [[Assimilation Plot]]: As hinted in the flavor text from [http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?multiverseid=204958 Skinrender].
{{quote|
* [[Beneath the Mask]]: It's unclear how much she really believes in her doctrine and how much she's twisting the teachings for her own benefit. Ironically, she's the only praetor to wear an actual mask.
* [[Faceless Mooks]]: Members of the Machine Orthodoxy cover their faces in the porcelain-like metal that forms their shells.
Line 917 ⟶ 916:
* [[Principles Zealot]]
* [[Religion of Evil]]: The Machine Orthodoxy.
* [[Screw the Rules, I Make Them]]: Secretly twists and subverts her own teachings for personal benefit.
* [[Sinister Minister]]
* [[Undying Loyalty]]: To Karn, so long as he's the Father of Machines.
Line 941 ⟶ 940:
* [[The Starscream]]: He also plots against Karn, although he doesn't mind if someone else takes the throne so long as said person is competent.
* [[Totalitarian Utilitarian]]: While [[Principles Zealot|Elesh Norn]] focuses on the the words of the Argent Etchings, Jin-Gitaxias puts the results, or the "Great Synthesis" first. Strangely enough, the two of them get along well.
* [[Well
'''Sheoldred, the Whispering One'''
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The Red Praetor and leader of the Quiet Furnace.
* [[Anti
* [[Dark Chick]]
* [[Even Evil Has Standards]]
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* [[The Brute]]
* [[Don't Think, Feel]]: He wants to eliminate sentience and turn the whole Mirrodin into a lawless predatory ground.
* [[Dumb Muscle]]: At least, that's how Jin-Gitaxias sees him. Given what Vorinclex's plan is, the blue Praetor couldn't be much wrong.
* [[Evilutionary Biologist]]
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'''Geth, Lord of the Vault'''
Once the mighty lord of the Vault of Whispers, he was overthrown after trying to pull a [[You Have Failed Me...]] on the wrong minion. After spending some time as nothing more than an undead talking head, he became a collaborator with the Phyrexians in exchange for a new body. He is now trying to claw his way back up to the top of the heap, a task complicated by all the other Phyrexians who are also vying for the position.
* [[Hoist
* [[How the Mighty Have Fallen]]
* [[Les Collaborateurs]]: And he brought along the entire Moriok tribe of humans with him.
* [[Losing Your Head]]
* [[Magically
* [[Sickly Green Glow]]: Seen in [http://magiccards.info/mi/en/74.html Promise of Power].
* [[Token Evil Teammate]]: To Glissa, during the time after his overthrow and before the Phyrexian invasion
Line 998 ⟶ 997:
* [[Brought Down to Normal]]: For a while she was a planeswalker, but she lost her spark after nearly dying in a fight against.
* [[The Dragon]]: To Vorinclex.
** [[Dragon
* [[Face Heel Turn]]
* [[Fallen Hero]]
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=== The Mirran Resistance ===
Over time, [[Five
Traditional Mirran mechanics such as imprint and artifact interaction remain, with first strike and double strike being more Mirran than Phyrexian to the end.
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'''Hanna'''
* [[Back
* [[Badass Bookworm]]: She was the daughter of Barrin, master of Tolarian Academy.
* [[Killed Off for Real]]
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* [[The Big Guy]]
* [[Blood Knight]]
* [[Body Horror]]: As a result of mutations done by Volrath
* [[Boisterous Bruiser]]
* [[Hair
* [[Hot
* [[Proud Warrior Race Guy]]
'''Squee, Goblin Nabob'''
* [[Back
* [[Our Goblins Are
* [[Nigh Invulnerability]]: Post-[[Face Heel Turn]] Crovax amuses himself by killing Squee repeatedly and watching him come back to life.
* [[Plucky Comic Relief]]
Line 1,088 ⟶ 1,087:
* [[Body Horror]]: A side effect of his being "healed" by black mana and mutated by Crovax.
* [[Face Heel Turn]]
* [[Small Name, Big Ego]]: Oh, so much.
* [[Smug Snake]]
* [[The Dragon]]: To Crovax.
* [[Took a Level
* [[Took a Level
'''Mirri, Cat Warrior'''
Line 1,114 ⟶ 1,113:
* [[Vast Bureaucracy]]
'''Orzhov Syndicate:''' ''[[Yin
So, what do you get when you combine the equalizers (white) and those who want power at any cost (black)? You get the Orzhov Syndicate, a "religious" organization which resembles a mafia more than a church. They manage business and commerce in the city by means of a protection racket--authorized businesses pay taxes to the Orzhov, and unauthorized businesses risk being shut down or worse. Ability-wise: [http://magiccards.info/query?q=o%3Ahaunt+e%3Aguildpact&v=card&s=cname Haunt] is perfect for either, because it takes black's ability to manipulate the game from the graveyard. Strategy-wise: Bleeding to death; slowly and painfully. The Orzhov takes white's ability to slow down the entire game and let the opponent be chiseled away, bit by bit. Plus you probably owe them money.
Line 1,135 ⟶ 1,134:
* [[The Worm That Walks]]: [http://www.wizards.com/Magic/Magazine/Article.aspx?x=mtgcom/arcana/914 Mindleech Mass is a pile of mind-sucking leeches]. A similar creature features prominently in the ''Ravnica'' novel.
'''Izzet League:''' ''[[Yin
The Izzet are the main researchers in Ravnica. Science, engineering, and other similar topics fall to them. They even have exclusive dominion over something called Meta-magic (or the study of magic itself). Through this, they have the ability called [http://magiccards.info/query?q=o%3Areplicate+e%3Aguildpact&v=card&s=cname Replicate], which allows a spell on the stack to be copied over as many times a player wishes. This combines blue's knowledge of magic and red's love for instant gratification. The guild's leader and founder is the [[Insufferable Genius|vain but brilliant]] Niv-Mizzet the Firemind, the last dragon on Ravnica ([http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?multiverseid=111188 in] [http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?multiverseid=89086 theory]).
* [[Absent
* [[Attention Deficit Ooh Shiny]]: [http://www.wizards.com/Magic/Magazine/Article.aspx?x=mtgcom/daily/mc28 An In-Depth Look At The Izze-Hey, Look At That!]
* [[Cloudcuckoolander]]: All other Guilds have a goal (even Gruul). The Izzet do crazy stuff [http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Discussion.aspx?multiverseid=96907 like this] ''to themselves'' [[It Amused Me|for the lulz]] (and [[For Science!|science]]).
* [[Exact Words]]: [http://magiccards.info/gp/en/132.html This card's flavor].
* [[For Science!]]
* [[Impossible Genius]]: To quote ''An In-Depth Look at The Izze-Hey, Look At That!'':
{{quote|
* [[Insufferable Genius]]: Niv-Mizzet is known for its incredible knowledge as well for its unquenchable vanity.
* [[Mad Scientist]]
* [[Our Dragons Are Different]]: The most intelligent being on the planet is the last dragon, Niv-Mizzet, who is also [[
'''Cult of Rakdos:''' ''Black and Red'' (article [http://www.wizards.com/magic/magazine/Article.aspx?x=mtgcom/daily/mr241 here].)
For the Cult of Rakdos, the whole world is a party. The kind of party where you die. Led and founded by the demon Rakdos the Defiler, this guild is a sadomasochistic cult that thrives on causing pain and chaos just for the thrill of it. Their hedonistic outlook leads them to care very little about how many cards they need to discard or creatures they need to sacrifice to do what they want. This is exemplified in their [http://magiccards.info/query?q=o%3Ahellbent+e%3Adis&v=card&s=cname Hellbent] mechanic--when you've exhausted all the cards in your hand, that's just an excuse to party even harder! And by "party" we mean "kill people". Despite their penchant for causing mayhem, the other guilds tolerate the Rakdos Cultists because they run a useful slave trade that provides the rest of the city with cheap labor.
* [[
* [[Big Red Devil]]: Rakdos himself.
* [[Circus of Fear]]: Their cards have a circus motif.
Line 1,163 ⟶ 1,162:
* [[Too Kinky to Torture]]
'''Golgari Swarm:''' ''[[Yin
The green-black Golgari Swarm has embraced the dichotomy of life and death. Life and death are a natural cycle, and the Golgari see [[Necromancy]] as an extension of that cycle. The graveyard is just another resource to the Golgari, a philosophy which manifests itself in their guild mechanic, [http://magiccards.info/query?q=o%3Adredge+e%3Arav&v=card&s=cname Dredge], which allows them to harvest and re-use spells from their graveyard while simultaneously cultivating that graveyard with new spells to dredge. Of course, their role in Ravnican society is more than just raising zombies: they're also farmers who supply most of the food for the rest of the plane. ([[Mundane Utility|And they always have very good fertilizer.]])
Line 1,176 ⟶ 1,175:
* [[Barbarian Hero]]
* [[Barbarian Tribe]]: And the Burning Tree is merely the largest one.
* [[Don't Think, Feel]]
* [[Meaningful Name]]: Borborygmos is derived from borborygmus, which is the growling and rumbling noises that one's stomach and intestines make.
* [[Proud Warrior Race Guy]]
Line 1,182 ⟶ 1,181:
* [[When All You Have Is a Hammer]]: They are really good at smashing stuff, so that's pretty much how they solve all of their problems.
'''Boros Legion:''' ''[[Yin
The Boros Legion are responsible for much of the law enforcement in Ravnica. They combine white's desire for order with red's passion, creating a passion for justice as they see it. Being of the law, they have to go by the rule "if it affects one, it affects all". And so, like modern law, they will arrest and execute anything they see as a danger, and empower anything they see as helpful (regardless of what that being is fighting for). This is reflected in their guild mechanic, [http://magiccards.info/query?q=o%3Aradiance+e%3Arav&v=card&s=cname Radiance]. Through it, the guild can affect everyone/everything that shares a color with the target.
Line 1,192 ⟶ 1,191:
The Conclave loves to help one another. They all have the ability [http://magiccards.info/query?q=o%3Aconvoke+e%3Arav&v=card&s=cname Convoke]; which uses green's mana acceleration and white's equalizing. With that, a spell can be played much cheaper at the cost of tapping a few creatures.
* [[Assimilation Plot]]: Brainwash people into joining their ranks.
* [[Hive Mind]]: All the members of the Conclave can hear its song in their heads.
* [[The Evils of Free Will]]
* [[The Needs of the Many]]
* [[Well
'''Simic Combine:''' ''[[Yin
The Simic Combine blue's lust for knowledge and "improvement" and green's love of life. Like other green-based guilds, they focus on creatures more than anything else. Their ability, [http://magiccards.info/query?q=o%3Agraft+e%3Adis&v=card&s=cname Graft], allows strength and life to be moved to any incoming creature. Once a creature is complete, they are sellable to the mass market. But, like the Izzet, they aren't satisfied with just one; or rather with just one type. So, they continue to create new and "improved" versions of nature.
Line 1,206 ⟶ 1,205:
* [[Gone Horribly Right]]: Mocked in [http://magiccards.info/di/en/110.html this card].
* [[Genetic Engineering Is the New Nuke]]
* [[Just Think of the Potential]]: As opposed to Izzet's [[For Science!]].
* [[Mad Scientist]]: They're the "obsessive" kind, instead of the Izzet's "[[Played for Laughs|amiable madman]]" kind.
* [[The Medic]]: Their original purpose.
* [[Well
Line 1,226 ⟶ 1,225:
The cenn of the Lorwyn [[Hobbits|kithkin]]. With his cenn threatened by the [[A Nazi By Another Name|elves]], he orchestrated the fall of the protagonists. He was presumably killed, since he never appears again.
* [[Anti
* [[Light Is Not Good]]
* [[Manipulative Bastard]]
Line 1,249 ⟶ 1,248:
[http://magiccards.info/bok/en/89.html Toshiro Umezawa], or "Toshi" for short, is the black-aligned protagonist of the ''Kamigawa'' saga. Toshi's only true loyalty is to himself, and [[Political Hero|he'll never fight when it's possible to bargain]]. Luckily for the rest of Kamigawa, it's currently in his best interest to save the world.
* [[Anti
* [[Badass]]: Makes use of intelligence, strength, kanji magic and more to do things from imprisoning powerful snow spirits to slaughtering onis. {{spoiler|He appearently also does pretty fine without sight, up to travelling for miles following the smell of a swamp}}
* [[Badass Boast]]: See [[To the Pain]].
Line 1,260 ⟶ 1,259:
* [[Political Hero]]: The quintessential example. In an early scene, he joins a group of assassins contracted to kill the ogre Hidetsugu. While the other assassins jump into the fray, Toshi hangs back. After all his companions are dead, he calmly approaches Hidetsugu and offers to become [[Blood Brothers]] instead. (It works.)
* [[Ronin]]
* [[Sealed Badass in
* [[To the Pain]]: Modus operandi of the Hyozan Reckoners. Toshi delivers a particularly [[Badass Boast]] to Kobo's murderer:
{{quote|
We will burn your fields, steal your treasure, destroy your house, and enslave your children. We will murder your spouse, poison your pets, and blaspheme on the graves of your ancestors. We will do all this, and the only way to avoid it is if we cannot find you.
We've already found you. }}
Line 1,286 ⟶ 1,287:
'''That Which Was Taken/The Taken One/Kyodai'''
A fragment of the soul of O-Kagachi, stolen from the spirit realm by Lord Konda in order to perform a ritual that would make him invincible.
* [[Artifact of Attraction]]: Especially pronounced in ''Saviors of Kamigawa'', where Konda and O-Kagachi himself both go on huge-scale rampages chasing after their prize.
Line 1,300 ⟶ 1,301:
Bant is a world where White mana reigns supreme--its own virtues, combined with the absent forces of chaos and selfish ambition, have made this Shard an exemplar of law and order. The architecture is straight out of a [[Medieval European Fantasy]], complete with Knights in Shining Armor, glory and honor in battle, and expansive castles. The planeswalker Elspeth Tirel discovered Bant, and soon made it her adoptive home, never desiring to planeswalk ever again. Because it lacks black and red mana, there is no unnatural death, no disease, no natural disasters and no anarchy. However, there is also no creativity, and almost no offensive magic (there ''is'' nighttime on Bant and the people have enough access to heat and fire to warm their homes, cook their food and forge their weapons, but that's about it). Because of the importance placed on honorable combat, Bant's keyword ability is [http://magiccards.info/query?q=o%3AExalted&v=card&s=cname Exalted], which makes creatures more powerful if they attack alone.
* [[Arcadia]]: The "wilderness" is mostly non-threatening; even the forests resemble well-maintained gardens.
* [[Badass Bookworm]]: The Rhox
* [[Combat
* [[The Chew Toy]]: With the exception of Naya, all of the shards turn their aggressive energies towards Bant after the conflux.
* [[Creative Sterility]]
Line 1,323 ⟶ 1,324:
'''Grixis''': Black, with blue and red
After the Shards developed their mana deficiencies, the people grew desperate and lost hope. With the rise of demon lords and death spreading, one king attempted to [[Deal
* [[Despair Event Horizon]]: Once the last of the human nations fell, that was it.
* [[La Résistance]]: The Vithian holdouts, who use red and blue magic to try to survive.
Line 1,332 ⟶ 1,333:
'''Jund''': Red, with black and green
On Jund, natural selection is the order of the day. On Jund, only the strong survive. The savage Shard of Jund is cruel and merciless, with each other living being acts as a food source for something else. Living to see another day means killing something that was going to kill you first. Civility? Order? Those will not help you (and don't last long on the plane anyway). Getting stronger from consuming prey is the hallmark of Jund's keyword ability,
* [[Blood Knight]]: All over the place.
* [[Let's Meet the Meat]]: The goblins of Jund consider it an honor to be eaten by mighty creatures.
Line 1,350 ⟶ 1,351:
'''Avacyn'''
The guardian archangel of the plane. Created by Sorin Markov, she was tasked with protecting mankind from the many monsters of Innistrad, but she was accidently trapped within a mountain of silver known as Helvaut. The story of Innistrad is about how mankind almost became extinct during her imprisonment, as the holy magic she offered the clergy and the cathars (holy warriors) faded. She returned in the ''Avacyn Restored'' storyline thanks to the machinations of [[Anti
* [[Big Good]]: Of her world
* [[Blade
* [[Celestial Paragons and Archangels]]: The goddess of her world.
* [[Comeback Mechanic]]: A rare [[In
* [[Crystal Dragon Jesus]]
* [[Dark Is Not Evil]]: Sorin created her in his own image, with bleached [[White
* [[Dea Ex Homine]]: She was created by Sorin Markov, after all, even if Sorin was already a planeswalker when he made her.
* [[Flying Brick]]
* [[Hell
* [[Hoist
* [[Holy Hand Grenade]]: Her specialty.
* [[Lunacy]]: She is essentially a [[Solar and Lunar|moon goddess]]. Her whole church is based on lunar worship, her symbol is a stylised heron (which is associated with the Innistrad's moon because its craters look like a heron), and her holy magic is associated with the moon.
* [[Nigh Invulnerable]]: Her special ability projects this unto all creatures you control
* [[Our Angels Are Different]]: Innistrad's angels are usually your typical sort (by that, we mean [[Winged Humanoid|winged women]] with white robes, not the [[Eldritch Abomination|biblical things]]), but she is a gothic woman that governs the plane's [[White Magic]] and all that entails; when she's gone, holy magic becomes weaker, and her servant angels disappear.
* [[Sealed Evil in
* [[Sealed Good in
* [[Thigh
'''Gisa and Geralf'''
Line 1,394 ⟶ 1,395:
* [[Big Bad]]: Creative introduced him as such in commentaries. So far, he has done very little, if anything, to warrant such a reputation.
* [[Deal
* [[Monster Progenitor]]: He is the first vampire in Innistrad. His grandson Sorin is the second.
* [[Our Vampires Are Different]]: They're not undead and they're the result of demonic magic.
Line 1,402 ⟶ 1,403:
A young Cathar rapidly rising in the ranks as humanity's defenses crumble, Thalia has become the new Guardian of Thraben in the wake of her mentor Mikaeus's death, and seems to be the last human to lead the fight against the ever-growing power of Innistrad's monsters.
* [[Badass Normal]]: Thalia's not a mage or divinely empowered, but you have to be a badass to still be fighting with the Cathars at this point in Innistrad's history.
* [[Determinator]]: Steadfastly refuses to give up in the face of increasingly hopeless odds.
* [[Kill It
* [[Lady of War]]: Very pretty, and her First Strike ability and low toughness indicates she fights more with her wits and finesse than brute strength.
* [[Sadistic Choice]]: {{spoiler|Break the Helvault, betraying your final duty and risking whatever disaster Mikaeus wanted to avert, or watch her comrades get eaten alive by Liliana's ghouls? Thankfully giving in to Liliana's demands and destroying the Helvault [[Nice Job Fixing It, Villain|may well have saved humanity from extinction.]]}}
'''Griselbrand'''
Line 1,412 ⟶ 1,413:
One of the demon lords of Innistrad, object of worship by the Skirsdag cult, and one of the demons who claims ownership of Liliana's soul. He is the quarry Liliana has come to the plane to fight against...but nobody can seem to figure out where he is. Griselbrand was trapped in the Helvault along with Avacyn after his gambit to release the demons within and/or trap Avacyn forever went sour. When the Helvault shattered, Griselbrand escaped and quietly retreated to bide his time for future mischief. Unfortunately for him, Liliana followed him.
* {{spoiler|[[Dropped a Bridge
* [[God of Evil]]: As far as the Skirsdag are concerned, anyway.
* [[Sealed Evil in
* [[Smug Snake]]: His arrogance is mentioned repeatedly in the fluff, but things don't really go the way he planned. {{spoiler|It's mentioned he underestimated Liliana quite a lot before she destroyed him easily with the Chain Veil.}}
* [[The Chessmaster]]: He had an elaborate plan to defeat the angels and bring the demons to power. {{spoiler|His death has set the scheme back a bit.}}
* [[Villain Exit Stage Left]]: He knows better than to stick around when Avacyn's heavenly host gathers and divine magic goes into overdrive, but {{spoiler|escaping his doomed plan doesn't save him from Liliana...}}
* [[We Will Meet Again]]: {{spoiler|[[Dropped a Bridge
'''Withengar'''
Line 1,427 ⟶ 1,428:
* [[Dark Is Evil]]: Like all of Innistrad's demons, Withengar is made of pure black mana.
* [[Roaring Rampage of Revenge]]: Take a look at his card art.
* [[Sealed Evil in
==
=== Jodah ===
Also called Archmage Eternal, due to his longevity. He fell into a [[Fountain of Youth]] when he was young, causing him to age [[We Are
{{tropelist|Tropes exhibited by Jodah include:}}
▲Also called Archmage Eternal, due to his longevity. He fell into a [[Fountain of Youth]] when he was young, causing him to age [[We Are As Mayflies|very, very slowly]]. He was also a mentor to Jaya Ballard.
* [[Magic Mirror]]: From Freyalise. This is the same mirror which he uses to ignite Jaya's spark.
* [[My Skull Runneth Over]]: And thus he has a magical trinket that he periodically uses to store some of his memories.
* [[Really Seven Hundred Years Old]]: Of course.
Formerly a colliseum participant in Otaria together with his wife, Nivea. The two of them faced off with Phage in the tournament, resulting in Nivea's death and Ixidor's exile. He later discovered that he could transform his fantasies into reality, and thus used it to create Akroma and wage war against Phage.
{{tropelist|Tropes exhibited by Ixidor include:}}
* [[Reality Warper]]: What do you expect when his title is ''Reality Sculptor''?
* [[Roaring Rampage of Revenge]]: Against Phage, using Akroma.
An angel created by Ixidor in order to avenge his wife's death at the hands of Phage the Untouchable. One of the main characters in ''Onslaught'' block.
{{tropelist|Tropes exhibited by Akroma include:}}
* [[Badass Creed]]: ''"No rest. No mercy. No matter what."''
* [[Determinator]]
Line 1,465 ⟶ 1,462:
* [[We Can Rebuild Him]]: Akroma loses both her legs after a particularly nasty brawl with Phage. Ixidor replaces them with the lower body of a panther.
[http://magiccards.info/roe/en/4.html Emrakul], [http://magiccards.info/roe/en/6.html Kozilek], and [http://magiccards.info/roe/en/12.html Ulamog] are the three [[Cosmic Horror]] progenitors of the [[Eldritch Abomination]] Eldrazi race. They were [[Sealed Evil in
{{tropelist|Tropes exhibited by the Eldrazi Titans include:}}
▲[http://magiccards.info/roe/en/4.html Emrakul], [http://magiccards.info/roe/en/6.html Kozilek], and [http://magiccards.info/roe/en/12.html Ulamog] are the three [[Cosmic Horror]] progenitors of the [[Eldritch Abomination]] Eldrazi race. They were [[Sealed Evil in A Can|sealed away]] in Zendikar for eons, but the events of ''Rise of the Eldrazi'' released them to [[Planet Eater|devour planes]] once more.
* [[Arc Number]]: The number three shows up a lot in their storyline: Three titans, three planeswalkers seal them, and three planeswalkers open that seal.
* [[Bigger Is Better]]: The ''entire'' logic behind ''Rise of the Eldrazi''; the cheapest Eldrazi costs seven mana.
* [[Cursed
** Simultaneously, unlike other "Shuffle back into deck" cards, this one lets you reuse some cards (after some time) and renders mill decks completely powerless against you.
* [[Daylight Horror]]
* [[Eldritch Abomination]]
Line 1,480 ⟶ 1,476:
* [[Mind Rape]]: Their mere presence can cause insanity, if you aren't ripped to shreds by the warped reality around them. And of course, there are always [http://magiccards.info/roe/en/115.html more active methods].
* [[Mother of a Thousand Young]]: They spawn lots of brood lineage.
* [[Nigh Invulnerable]]: Emrakul is [[Anti
* [[Non
* [[Outside Context Villain]]
* [[Planet Eater|Plane Eater]]
* [[Sealed Evil in
* [[Sufficiently Advanced Aliens]]: Worshipped as gods by the natives of Zendikar. [[God Is Evil|Before they knew its true nature of course.]]
* [[Walking Wasteland]]: Their mere presence warps and destroys everything around them, as illustrated quite nicely in [http://magiccards.info/roe/en/1.html All Is Dust] and [http://magiccards.info/roe/en/141.html Disaster Radius]. [https://web.archive.org/web/20130702145422/http://www.wizards.com/Magic/Magazine/Article.aspx?x=mtg
* [[White Mask of Doom]]: Signature of Ulamog and its brood.
* [[World
'''Mishra'''▼
Urza's brother, born on the last day of the year Urza was born (Urza being born on the first day). They fought over possession of a stone.
{{tropelist|Tropes exhibited by Mishra include:}}
* [[And I Must Scream]]: His status in the seventh sphere of Phyrexia. Of course, if Yawgmoth wasn't just tricking Urza.
* [[Cain and Abel]]: With Urza
Line 1,501 ⟶ 1,496:
* [[Tragic Villain]]
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