Winternight Stories – Tarkir: Dragonstorm
Date Reviewed: March 25, 2025
Ratings:
Constructed: 4.13
Casual: 4.25
Limited: 4.13
Multiplayer: 4
Commander [EDH]: 4.13
Ratings are based on a 1 to 5 scale. 1 is bad. 3 is average. 5 is great.
Reviews Below:
It might be a little unusual seeing this on a rare, but I actually kind of like that they’re branching out from “lol I draw a billion cards and win” at the most commonly-played blue cards. And also, there’s the whole thing about getting to do it twice. If you were just using Winternight Stories’ harmonize cost as a straight-up flashback cost, it would probably be okay: you’d be ahead in cards even if you had to discard two both times, and maybe even more so if any of the discarded cards have flashback or harmonize themselves. But the discount is very enticing, even if it puts you slightly behind on attacking for a turn. While getting it to below its regular mana cost is not trivial, some blue decks have been finding ways to include cheap big creatures at least since Next Level Blue added Tarmogoyf. They will especially do so when it helps them draw a billion cards and win.
Constructed: 4
Casual: 4
Limited: 4
Multiplayer: 4
Commander [EDH]: 4
I look forward to many confusing states and light-hearted word games involving running this new Temur mechanic in the same deck as the card Harmonize.
Two homages in one card, through a set mechanic and an effect, but we’ll get there. Winternight Stories is the latest take on an effect first seen with Thirst for Knowledge: draw three, then discard two or a card of a given type for three mana. Some are instants, some are sorceries, but most are at least playable. Decks usually run creatures, so this isn’t too big a hurdle to jump over, and you can at least guarantee the best of three cards.
Harmonize is where things get interesting, a take of sorts on flashback. You can use a creature to help cast the spell from your graveyard; five mana can be pulled down to one, but even at five mana, this is an acceptable rate of return for a second cast of the spell. If you do have a big creature, this looks even better, and a light color requirement pair well with Temur’s fondness for creatures. This is hardly the flashiest card, but it’s a good engine and the kind of workhorse you’d expect to see a lot of in a given format.
Constructed: 4.25
Casual: 4.5
Limited: 4.25
Multiplayer: 4
Commander [EDH]: 4.25
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