Dauthi Voidwalker – Modern Horizons 2
Date Reviewed: June 14, 2021
Ratings:
Constructed: 3.50
Casual: 4.00
Limited: 4.00
Multiplayer: 3.25
Commander [EDH]: 3.50
Ratings are based on a 1 to 5 scale. 1 is bad. 3 is average. 5 is great.
Reviews Below:
David
Fanany
Player
since
1995
You don’t often see an ability this tricky on a card this aggressive. Not that I’m necessarily complaining: even some of the best aggressive creatures run into problems when, by luck or otherwise, they end up on the field late in the game. The Voidwalker’s ability to cast opponents’ spells depends on being in play (or having a previous copy of him in play) earlier on, but I don’t actually feel that’s as big a problem as it might sound. All it really means is that there’s an incentive to get him in play as early and often as possible, but also an incentive to get the later copies in play too. And in the parts of the game between, when you’re dealing damage . . . well, I’ll let you in on a little secret: in 20 years, including one run from the Tempest block and two from Time Spiral, I’ve never seen someone block with a shadow creature. Even if both you and your opponent are playing the Voidwalker, you should follow suit.
Constructed: 3/5
Casual: 4/5
Limited: 4/5
Multiplayer: 3/5
Commander: 3/5
Dauthi Voidwalker is a unique creature: the first creature in printed Magic to receive the Dauthi creature type, as well as a creature with the unusual shadow ability. Shadow renders a creature unable to block or be blocked, unless the other party has shadow, so Dauthi Voidwalker is immediately interesting as a 3/2 that can get through unscathed in most cases.
The other wrinkle is its ability, a sort of weird one that calls to mind a lot of graveyard hate. The twist is that exiled cards can be pulled from exile by Dauthi Voidwalker’s activated ability, which can make for a lot of interesting interactions if you can get rid of something threatening or dangerous otherwise. The wording means that all exiled cards are fair game for other copies of Voidwalker (or recurred copies of the same one), and it can do some rude things when set-up.
The graveyard hate ability, coupled with a passable attacking prowess on its own, gives Dauthi Voidwalker some intrigue. It’s not strict sideboard material (unlike other graveyard-hate options), and being functionally unblockable makes it a nice clock in the main deck. Double black and fairly low toughness are the only other issues this card has, but seeing as how the only other semi-common card with shadow is the 1-power Nether Traitor, that hardly seems like a massive impediment to this card’s chances.
Constructed: 4
Casual: 4
Limited: 4
Multiplayer: 3.5
Commander: 4
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