Hello, folks! Man, the reserved list and Eternal Masters continue to be the talk of the town. In yesterday’s article, I looked at a new format popping out that is called Eternal, and for now, it’s basically Legacy with all reserved cards banned. That way, there is a financial cap on the format. I built some decks around it.

The reserved list is a list of cards that Wizards of the Coast pledged they would never reprint again. After reprinting a ton of valuable cards in a reprint-only set called Chronicles, there was a lot of pushback. Many early cards were valuable because they were scarce, and that set ended any scarcity they had, as there were a ton of Chronicles cards everywhere. It seemed Wizards had forgotten the first C of the genre’s name—collectible-card gaming means they are collectible. But Chronicles put serious doubt in the minds of countless Magic players. So Wizards responded poorly. They created a list of cards and swore never to print them again. That was a bad call because they really didn’t understand the value of what was going to happen to Magic.

So everything on the reserved list is there forever, and it won’t come off, right? Right? Well, actually, no. It’s happened before. Cards have been taken off before.

Did you know that Wizards of the Coast accidentally printed a card that was on the reserved list? It’s true, they reprinted in in a core set despite the fact that it was reserved. Did anyone flip out? Were there pitchforks in the streets and lobbyists and thoughts of folks suing? Nope!

Of course, the reprinted card wasn’t exactly a world-beater. Well, it was, umm . . . Feroz's Ban. So unless you were holding onto this Homelands winner and hoping for a jack up in value, you wouldn’t really care that much. But the list was broken.

So one of the developers went to the Wizards website and explained why they were interested in pulling these twenty-two cards off, and they then left it up to the public to decide. The overwhelming support of removing these twenty-two cards resulted in many of the better ones seeing a new day in the sun (Clone, Juggernaut, Resurrection, Psionic Blast) while others were reprinted in later sets like Commander decks or Duel Decks (Demonic Tutor and Basalt Monolith).

No one was hurt by this vote. No one lost any sleep with these twenty-two cards coming off the List. And you what?

Magic was better for it.

Magic was better for pulling these twenty-two cards off the reserved list. I think we can see how clearly things would improve if we could remove another set of cards.

Now for all of the press the reserved list has, most of the list is sheer junk that no one cares about. I’ll point that out in today’s article facetiously, as I countdown ten cards that I really want to pull off the reserved list. If I could wave a magic wand, this is my set of ten. (-Ish . . . I cheated a bit and grabbed a few cards in the same oeuvre of cards.)

Here we go!

10 — Zephid . . . Thawing Glaciers

Thawing Glaciers has always been a great tool to fetch stuff out of your deck as you snag multiple basic lands over time. The card advantage might be slow, but it piles up, and the Glaciers is a great way to grab some lands and make some stuff. Its value rises in slower multiplayer formats or control builds, and it’s a classic mana solution for folks. Pulling it off the reserved list and giving it another day in the sun would really help out.

9 — Draconian Cylix . . . Old Man of the Sea

Old Man of the Sea was a classic flavor card—in the original Arabian Nights world of Rabiah, there were Djinn and Efreet, and there was another kind of genie: Marids. Old Man of the Sea was the sole Marid in the set. Then, in the great creature update that shifted every creature type out there, we shifted Marid to the generic Djinn again. That sad loss of flavor (and future Marid potentials in another set) aside, we’ll still have a great card here—it taps and steals smaller creatures. It’s a great, cheap tool to drop early and then to begin the stealage. Shoot, Old Man of the Sea has made the occasional impact in tournaments, so it’s not just a fun steal card for kitchen tables. Its power-based mechanic also plays nicely with various Equipment and stuff today, so it’s improved with age.

8 — Afiya Grove . . . Rofellos, Llanowar Emissary

Rofellos is an odd card and in an odd space. It’s a strong card for tournaments and Spike players who really enjoy the fast mana and potential nastiness of our favorite Emissary. So Rofellos is a strong adjunct to a powerful tournament structure. And casual players certainly have a fondness for the legendary Elf that brings happy looks to faces everywhere. Despite that, Rofellos is so good that he’s banned in Commander. So he’s loved by some casual circles, and banned in others, while also bringing some strong Spikey goodness for others. But baby still wants a reprint!

7 — Avizoa . . . Volrath's Stronghold

If you’ve read my stuff before, the presence of Volrath's Stronghold on this list is not a surprise to anyone. I once named it the best card for multiplayer of all time. (And that’s claim I still hold to, by the by.) So knowing my mega man-love for the Stronghold, it’s an obvious inclusion. The Stronghold is one of the best multiplayer cards of all time by being an ideal choice for slowly pushing the game closer and closer to a game state that will favor folks nicely enough. You restock a creature here and there to place them on libraries, and you have the better draws turn after turn. This ensures you always gain gas for top-decking or to grab the best creature in your graveyard for whatever’s happening out there on the game. Yay for another round of Strongholds!

6 — Worms of the Earth . . . Deranged Hermit

Deranged Hermit is one of the classic all-time greats for casual mages! If you enjoy a creature that owns a strong enters-the-battlefield ability, you’ll find it hard to duplicate the power of the Hermit and what it brings to the table. You also have a serious love of Squirrels going on, as the Deranged Hermit was the second Squirrel-maker in the game after Liege of the Hollows. And this thing? It’s stood the test of time in a major way. When most other early enters-the-battlefield creatures are weaker today (Ghitu Slinger, Uktabi Orangutan, etc.) due to better versions in print, the Hermit just looks better and better. The Hermit’s singlehanded army suits a lot of builds and styles. As a result, it’s a major force, and a removal from the reserved list could be a real hit for everyone.

But it doesn’t make top 5. What does?

5 — Marjhan . . . Academy Rector

There are a handful of classic creatures with great death triggers that can really add something to the game. Some, like Greenwarden of Murasa, will exile but grant you a strong perk for the effort. The Rector is arguably the strongest of those effects of all time. There are a handful of cards printed in the game that will search your library and put a card on the battlefield (other than fetching out lands, obviously). There are very few ways to grab an enchantment from the library or an artifact or creatures. So finding one for free at the tail end of losing this creature is very impactful. Shoot, in that same list above, I named the Rector the twenty-third-best card of all time for multiplayer. You can use it to block, to force attacks, and more. And then you can fetch out that combo piece, that defensive enchantment, that card-draw engine, or whatever. The Rector never disappoints.

4 — Illusionary Presence . . . Gaea's Cradle

The Cradle of Love. The Cradle of Civilization. The Cradle of All Things Green. The Cradle That Adores Untap Effects. The Cradle of Gaea’s Might. This is a great card that has fueled a ton of decks, from casual, ramp-style decks that run a lot of creatures to great and fast tournament decks that hit fast and hot. I’ve personally used any-land spells, like Crop Rotation and Sylvan Scrying, to fetch Cradles to finish out games. You can use it to tap and make a ton of green mana to fuel something like X damage spells or Hydras. I used it as a key component in my Fire Elves and Elfball decks that ended with Priest of Titania or Gaea's Cradle fueling a Fireball or Comet Storm or (insert any X hotness here). It’s earned another dose of sunshine.

3 — Phantasmal Sphere . . . Survival of the Fittest

Survival of the Fittest is one of the greatest, classiest, and strongest cards of all time. It’s a definitive card of virtually any format it’s legal in, and it’s so strong it was banned in Legacy. It was one half of a Standard deck that was so powerful and flexible (along with fellow partner in crime Recurring Nightmare) that you can’t get any of those cards anymore—all are on the reserved list. So you can’t draft the Rec/Sur archetype in Eternal Masters or have a fun Commander deck with the card made by Wizards. Considering how flexible and powerful Survival is (I named it the second-most-powerful card in multiplayer of all time on the same list above). Its inability to be reprinted is sad for everything from toolbox decks to reanimation decks. If your deck has green and creatures, Survival usually makes it better.

2 — Farmstead . . . Angus Mackenzie, Adun Oakenshield, Hazezon Tamar, Tetsuo Umezawa, Rasputin Dreamweaver, Ramses Overdark, and Gwendlyn Di Corci

So I want to apologize for cheating a bit with this one, but there are a number of really flavorful and interesting legendary creatures from Legends that make perfect Commander options. The problem is that many of them aren’t commonly known—or are priced out of contention to those who do. I think it’d be awesome to bring back one or two a year in Commander products or elsewhere (maybe Conspiracy) to give folks a chance to grab some of these cards, to give them a day in a sun at the peak of their popularity and usability due to Commander. A lot of color combinations see multiple color legendary creatures that are often playing the same tune, but these are different. A Ramses Overdark deck looks different from your normal Dimir control deck. A deck built around Tetsuo Umezawa looks different from one around Gwendlyn Di Corci. They all have different zones of control. I’d love to see them pulled off to give them a bit more spotlight.

And what’s the top card I’d pull off the list? If I could just remove one card today, what would it be?

1 — Yare . . . Sliver Queen

There’re my top ten! A quick shout out and Honorable Mention to Tithe, Illusionary Mask, and Gauntlet of Might, which would have been my next three. Rounding out my top twenty would include cards like Recurring Nightmare and Donate, Treachery, and Spirit of the Night. There are a ton of awesome cards that newer players won’t be able to see again, and that saddens me.

After looking at my own choices for cards that I’d pull off the reserved list, what do you think? Anything you’d add? Anything that really pushes you?