Prismatic Omen – MTG Throwback Thursday (2008)

David
Fanany
Player
since
1995

Depending on your perspective, the “all basic land types” effect can be either more attractive or less attractive when it’s not on a creature (like yesterday’s Card of the Day). Prismatic Omen is also a very clear Johnny card that doesn’t do a whole lot without something else, but you have the possibility of pretty spectacular combinations once you add that second card. There are more purely powerful ways to achieve maximum color fixing, but you should probably think of this card as a combo enabler instead. It’s also worth noting that thanks to Oath of the Gatewatch, your lands will also be Wastes, and if you acknowledge Mystery Booster they can be Clouds too. Both of those may come up some day . . .

Constructed: 3/5
Casual: 3/5
Limited: 1/5
Multiplayer: 3/5
EDH/Commander: 3/5

The effect of Prismatic Omen looks awfully familiar, doesn’t it? It’s half of the effect of Dryad of the Ilysian Grove, namely turning all of your lands into every basic land type and correcting your mana forever in the process. The most obvious bit of synergy with this effect is with Valakut, the Molten Pinnacle, as it turns on the erupting land a lot sooner for more EXPLOSIONS. On a two mana enchantment, it’s a pretty cheap play that can help smooth out a rickety curve, and it’s a key card in the Scapeshift/Prime Time decks that Modern likes.

Prismatic Omen is a card with some downside to it, admittedly. Making every land every basic land type isn’t so hot if you’re staring down landwalk abilities (which are mostly obsolete, though Merfolk do have it at their disposal rather reliably through their lords), and it makes you extremely susceptible to targeted land hate in the form of Boil or Choke (as examples). It’s also a card that doesn’t necessarily do anything; while Prismatic Omen is generally harder to remove than a creature, it also doesn’t really advance your board state much beyond where it is unless you’re in a very specific deck that cares about lands coming into play and being a specific type. It’s not a bad card by any stretch of the imagine, and the high price tag it commands is not just because of its scarcity (only printed in Shadowmoor, a fairly unpopular set), but it can be a trap card where you think it’s going to do more than it actually will.

Constructed: 3 (it sees play in one deck, as a helpful part of that deck, but it’s a very niche card overall)
Casual: 3
Limited: 2 (more harmful than helpful in Shadowmoor Limited, but still worth drafting if you want lots and lots of money)
Multiplayer: 3
Commander: 3.75 (can pull its weight here, but be mindful of its downsides)

Phat
Pack
Magic
YouTube

Hello everyone and welcome back to Pojo’s Card of the Day!

We’re looking back in time to a very curious enchantment that came out in Shadowmoor and has since been on the reprint radar for every player that wants a 5 color commander deck or enjoying some Valakut fun!

Prismatic is a very simple enchantment but with very powerful effects, it doesn’t say that your lands tap for W/U/B/R/G, no it says that they ARE those land types. So for things like Checklands, or the Castle Cycle in Thrones, or for say a very temperamental Volcano this is quite the card that has contributed to the Scapeshift Archetype in Modern in addition to its value as amazing mana fixing.

So where does this very unique enchantment fit in?

Unfortunately in Constructed it’s niche ability is only appealing to 5 color decks and decks that really want to shoot off with mountains, and in modern that’s just one. Valakut Ramp and Stamp. Outside of there it’s not really that useful.

In Commander this card can see a bit more play, with 5 color decks being the norm and mana fixing being a critical part of that gameplan, this 2 mana enchantment can find a home by turning on all your 5 color spells, but outside of that Green has such amazing mana fixing outside of this mostly do-nothing enchantment that it is often cast aside for more favorable options.

In Limited this is … a very hard pass except for a value draft and even then if you’re playing for money in a Shadowmoor draft chances are you don’t want this card as mere trade binder decoration.

In Cube this card is similarly not so great and the only way I could see this being decent is if your cube is so full of 5 color spells that it becomes almost a first pickable draft card.

Constructed 2/5 – A Niche spot in a Modern Deck doesn’t make this card great, but unless you’re really invested in playing Valakut in Modern then.. go for it I guess?

Commander 2/5 – I think there’s much better options for 5 Color Decks (Chromatic Lantern) but this is a fine 99th card if you’re really struggling for fixing.

Limited 1/5 – There are so many better options in this format that you can probably pick this up on a wheel.

Cube 1/5 – Don’t put this in your cube. Don’t make people hate you.

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