Priest of Forgotten Gods – MTG Ravnica Review

David
Fanany
Player
since
1995

In the context of Ravnica, “forgotten gods” probably means the Nephilim from Guildpact, so it’s unfortunate that this card’s design couldn’t reflect that more. To be fair, four-color creatures like that are hard to reference, even in a block as focused on multicolored cards as Ravnica is. As it is, Priest of Forgotten Gods works especially well with the Orzhov’s afterlife mechanic, which multiplies the number of possible activations due to the ability not requiring non-token creatures. It also gives any black deck with small creatures an interesting weapon to fall back on once Gruul decks start throwing down undercosted 5/5s; while you can’t guarantee you’ll draw anything that specifically helps, you’ll likely be digging towards something that does, and the attrition advantage starts small but can easily snowball.

Note also that you can choose which players are affected in a multiplayer setting – great for political applications, and good when your Battlebond partner is playing Reveillark (it doesn’t even specify opponents!).

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

Priest of Forgotten Gods is an intriguing creature that pairs well with sources of tokens, afterlife creatures, or other recursive creatures, allowing you to bleed your opponents out slowly while you amass an advantage. Two other creatures is not a negligible cost, especially early, and it might take a while to get the engine going. But the idea of it is powerful: extra mana, an extra card, and a life loss + Cruel Edict effect each turn. That’s a good way to get ahead…as long as you can keep paying the price, that is, and this isn’t an irrelevant one. All the same, the synergy with tokens and with afterlife is there, and the Priest might have some things to do if there’s a mid-range Orzhov deck to be had this Standard.

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