Demonic Embrace – Core Set 2021 MTG Review

David
Fanany
Player
since
1995

It’s not quite at the match-breaking level of Loxodon Warhammer, but Demonic Embrace does change the complexion of combat once you cast it. It even has a degree of reusability, albeit at a higher cost than many equipment cards do. This might not be quite enough to get it to top tiers in tournament constructed as auras have a lot of baggage, not least in people’s mindsets; then again, it looks quite similar to famous exceptions like Griffin Guide and does just as good a job at boosting creatures past opposing blockers. I’d also be looking at it for casual decks that care about demons or discarding cards, as it’s a very aggressively-oriented enabler for both of those themes.

Constructed: 2/5
Casual: 3/5
Limited: 4/5
Multiplayer: 3/5
Commander: 3/5

While Auras are usually sub-optimal because of the ability for them to get 2-for-1’d all too easily, Demonic Embrace offers a bit of an offset by being able to come back from your graveyard. The stats it gives are solid enough out of the gate (evasion and power), and even a small creature can become a nice threat in a long game. And even when it dies, you can turn extra chaff into more demonic aid. I think this is definitely brutal in Limited and maybe fringe-playable in Standard, though it merely sidesteps Aura disadvantages instead of mitigating them.

Constructed: 3
Casual: 4
Limited: 4.75 (evasion is great, and recursive evasion is even better)
Multiplayer: 3
Commander: 3.25