Rith, the Awakener – Dominaria Remastered
Date Reviewed: January 27, 2023
Ratings:
Constructed: 1.37
Casual: 4.00
Limited: 5.00
Multiplayer: 3.63
Commander [EDH]: 3.50
Ratings are based on a 1 to 5 scale. 1 is bad. 3 is average. 5 is great.
Reviews Below:
It’s hard to imagine now, but the Invasion block’s primeval dragons were the first six-mana creatures to be as efficient as we now expect such creatures to be. As a reward for committing fully to three colors, you get an enormous flying creature and a devastating combat damage trigger. Rith’s ability varies in strength depending on the context, but you’ll always get at least one Saproling out of it (by naming one of her own colors) and it grows exponentially if not stopped. It gives you blockers to help race creature decks, and I hear there are also cards that like having lots of creatures come into play over and over again. In modern times, of course, they managed to push six-mana creatures into places that involve triggered abilities and other stuff, meaning that she’s not a good fit for competitive play any more; but you’ll never be ashamed to cast her, and there’s good reason to fear her at casual tables.
You may remember that she actually got a new card in Dominaria United, which has some pretty serious story implications. The last time she and her siblings were loose was during the Invasion block, when four of the five tried to take over the plane, even in the middle of a full-scale Phyrexian attack. The full implications of this have yet to be revealed, but we may well hear more about this the next time they do a Dominaria set (assuming it’s not still about Phyrexia at that time!).
Constructed: 1.5
Casual: 4
Limited: 5
Multiplayer: 4
Commander [EDH]: 4
Way back before Naya became a thing, Rith, the Awakener was an interesting sort of capstone creature for that three-color shard. In addition to a serviceable body, you got an army-raising trigger whenever it dealt combat damage…without any sort of “nontoken” rider on that effect, so you could potentially just name green repeatedly and turn that into a massive army in a color with things like Impact Tremors. It’s a clever idea, and not a bad one, but Rith has little in the way of protection, and while beating it in combat is unlikely, it’s still six mana for a creature that relies on combat damage triggers to eke out advantages. Definitely way too slow to cut it in Legacy, but Rith is a fan-favorite for just how crazy things can get if you put in a bit of extra legwork.
Constructed: 1.25
Casual: 4
Limited: 5 (if this connects once, things are getting ugly)
Multiplayer: 3.25
Commander [EDH]: 3.75 (may pair well with the other Rith)
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