Faeburrow Elder – MTG Throne of Eldraine Review

David
Fanany
Player
since
1995

It wouldn’t be a true Ravnica Standard season without some cards in adjacent sets which encouraged lots of colors. Faeburrow Elder is potentially a very strong attacker in the right deck, though it’s true that it can be weakened more easily than something that cares about lands or graveyards. Turning that multicolored table presence back into mana is where things start to get really crazy. If you can generate three colors with it even once, you’re already ahead; more than that and you get into the kind of territory that makes infinite combos in casual and Commander type settings.

It’s curious to note that vigilance allows the Elder to activate its mana ability during combat. Perhaps to interact with cards like Horde of Notions, from last week? There are always firebreathing effects and instant-speed damage and pump spells, too.

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

This guy is a bit interesting, a sort of retrained version of Bloom Tender from Eventide. While it’s still a turn two play in green at best, you’re getting a better body (at least a 2/2, given that Faeburrow Elder checks itself for its own power and toughness) that can attempt to end games by attacking in a late-game situation. It still taps for lots and lots of mana (5, at most) while offering other upsides.

I think Faeburrow Elder is a pretty decent card in all; it does a number of good things while not being a strict upgrade on its forebear (Bloom Tender is an Elf as well as being only two mana). As for if it’ll make a splash in Standard, I think Oko will make it a lot harder for most cards to gain traction…outside of the menacing fae planeswalker, though, Faeburrow Elder presents enough reason for optimism, I would say.

Constructed: 3.5
Casual: 3.75
Limited: 4
Multiplayer: 3
Commander: 3.5