Mari, The Killing Quill – Outlaws of Thunder Junction
Date Reviewed: April 16, 2024
Ratings:
Constructed: 2.0
Casual: 4.25
Limited: N/A
Multiplayer: 4.13
Commander [EDH]: 4.25
Ratings are based on a 1 to 5 scale. 1 is bad. 3 is average. 5 is great.
Reviews Below:
This card looks kind of like it could have been from New Capenna – a phrase we’ll need to get used to so long as Murders at Karlov Manor is in Standard – but it plays in a pretty unique way. We’re used to rewards for destroying opposing creatures, though it’s usually more direct; we’re used to kindred boost cards, though they’re usually less subtle. The bonuses are very good, if you can set them up; if you can’t, just granting deathtouch to those creature types is not always going to feel worth it by itself. Mari’s the sort of card that really has to be built around, and I think can be fun when you do.
Constructed: 2
Casual: 4
Limited: N/A
Multiplayer: 4
Commander [EDH]: 4
This card is part of the Commander subset.
One part graveyard hate, one part payoff for that hate, Mari, the Killing Quill is an interesting sort of tribal lord and payoff for all sorts of surreptitious strikers. Deathtouch is good at ensuring things die or that your opponent doesn’t want to block them…and them getting through means you can collect on some bunties. Notably, Mari does have deathtouch herself as a result of being an Assassin, and this means she can actually enable this chain by herself. She benefits from support, of course, but I do think that this sort of self-contained engines tend to have pretty high upsides.
I feel like Mari’s going to be the basis for a very potent, annoying deck that will keep creatures dead and collect on bounties. Her only real downside is that she’s a pretty squishy body; 2 toughness isn’t so hard to deal with. I do think Mari’s not going to make waves in Legacy, but not every Commander card makes it there.
Constructed: 2
Casual: 4.5
Limited: N/A
Multiplayer: 4.25
Commander [EDH]: 4.5
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