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Hey, all! Welcome back again!
Today we're going to go over the Top 5 Outlaws. For those that don't know, the outlaw creature type was defined in...well, Outlaws of Thunder Junction. Fitting, no? An Outlaw in Magic is defined as an Assassin, a Mercenary, a Pirate, a Rogue, or a Warlock. So any of those creature types are also considered outlaws.
According to Scryfall, there are 1,012 creatures that are one of the aforementioned five types, so we had a bit of a slog to go through them all. Once I had, though, I realized there are a lot of good creatures that fall into one of those five types, especially creatures who have had a ton of impact on Magic's history.
As usual, the list is going to be comprised of a combination of cards I like, cards that are popular and powerful, and cards that are or have been historically important to the game.
#5 - True-Name Nemesis
This card is kind of a headache, amirite? It doesn't see a ton of Constructed play anymore, which makes sense, and I don't even know if it sees any play in Commander, but for a time, this guy dominated Legacy, and was a beating in Vintage Cubes. This was as pushed a creature as you could get when it first premiered in Commander 2013, and I remember formats basically being warped around it and figuring out the best ways to kill an opposing True-Name Nemesis. Protection from an entire player was unheard of!
Thankfully, Toxic Deluge was printed in the same set (coincidence?) and ended up being a great way to take care of the merfolk.
#4 - Dauthi Voidwalker
This guy has been one of my favorite creatures printed in a long time, and it's heavily played in both Legacy and Modern. He sneaks by players. He steals stuff. He's the perfect rogue, especially for cubes! Additionally, any time you're able to cast a spell that costs four or more for free with the Voidwalker, you're likely having a good time.
#3 - Brazen Borrower
Ol' Brazey B. While Brazen Borrower doesn't see that much play in Modern these days, it was a Standard all-star when it was legal, it sees a ton of play in Pioneer, and it's currently the second most-played creature in Legacy. The second! (The first is Psychic Frog, which also seems wild.) That's kind of insane, right? Brazen Borrower was one of the creatures that almost single-handedly defined the Adventure archetype in Standard. Apparently getting a bounce spell and a 3/1 flier on the same card is a popular combination.
#2 - Ragavan, Nimble Pilferer
While Ragavan doesn't see the same amount of play in Modern as he used to since the release of Modern Horizons 3, he was still a revolutionary creature that has had a commanding price tag since it was printed. And as a matter of fact, Ragavan is still the 26th most-played creature in Modern. In a format with over 10,000 creatures, that's a pretty impressive stat.
It just does...so many things. It attempts to "draw" you cards, it makes treasures, it's a 2/1 for one-mana, but you can also dash him if you want the haste. Ragavan is just such a disrupting creature that he's seen play in nearly every format he's been legal in, including Legacy and Vintage. I'm sure he's also in a ton of Cubes as well.
#1 - Dockside Extortionist
Okay, look. I don't even really play Commander, but I know a broken card when I see one, and Dockside Extortionist is pretty busted. The card came out in 2019, has five different versions currently, and is still going for nearly $100 thanks solely to Commander. And this is a card that has seen nearly zero serious play in sanctioned formats like Legacy or Vintage.
In terms of his ability, even if each opponent has only played a single artifact, this is a two-mana creature that's giving you three free treasures! If you're a Commander player, you definitely know what the ceiling is for this guy, and in the words of Larry David, it's...pretty, pretty, pretty good.
Just like last time, I want to list some honorable mentions, but this time there are going to be a few more. I was surprised at how many great outlaws have had an impact on the game, but I guess we are talking about five different creature types.
- Notion Thief, who has denied hundreds of thousands of draws in Magic's history.
- Agent of Treachery, who dominated Standard for the longest time, and who is banned in both Historic and Brawl on MTG Arena.
- Vein Ripper! What a breakout assassin. However, right now he only sees play in Pioneer and he's quite a new card.
- Murderous Redcap. Not only was this guy a pivotal part of the Boat Brew archetype from 2008, but it was a great combo piece in Modern decks and with Reveillark.
- Shardless Agent. Rhinos. Need I say more?
- Merfolk Looter was a staple in a ton of madness decks from the early 2000s.
- Rogue Refiner. Card ended up being banned in Standard.
- Pestermite. Surely you guys know why this guy is on here.
So that's that! As always, I hope you guys enjoyed the thoughts. I would love to hear what you think and have you shoot me your own Top 5 Outlaws in the comments, or over on social media! Thanks a ton for reading!
Frank Lepore
