During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic came a little product called Jumpstart. No one knew what it was all about until players began getting their hands on it and it quickly spread just how awesome it was. Despite the ongoing pandemic hindering it, it was clear that the product was great for new players, a good pick up and play option at local events, and also a great source for reprints. This set was jam packed with powerful, popular, and impactful cards, and today we're going to be going through and ranking all of the mythics!
Let's dive in, starting with the short list of cards that rank lower than 10th place.
- 17. Immolating Gyre
- 16. Towering Titan
- 15. Primeval Bounty
- 14. Ulvenwald Hydra
- 13. Maelstrom Archangel
- 12. Drana, Liberator of Malakir
- 11. Mikaeus, the Lunarch
Number Ten
Rise of the Dark Realms wasn't exactly the biggest card back when Magic 2014 came out, but as time went on, the popularity of Commander exploded and completely shot demand through the roof. Players loved Liliana Vess thanks to her utility with tutoring as well as the potential for self-discard in the right deck. More importantly was her ultimate which Rise of the Dark Realms just lets you pull off with the casting of a single spell. This has proven super popular since with games featuring four graveyards to pull from, meaning the card has been hurting for a reprint for quite some time leading up to this release.
Number Nine
Much like her rankings when I covered her in Rise of the Eldrazi and Modern Masters 2017, Linvala continues to be a powerhouse across a myriad of formats. At this time, her play in Constructed formats was on a downturn, but this was offset by the rise of Commander. Creatures having activated abilities online is an important gameplay angle for many decks, and Linvala shuts them down handily, giving you a much greater opportunity to take over the game. This made her pretty expensive and even now with this being her most recent true reprint, she still continues to command a modest price tag for all the players that want her.
Number Eight
When talking about a more beginner friendly product, I'll admit I was quite surprised to see the Phyrexians on such full display in one of the packs. Sheoldred led the charge for that pack, and it was a great showcase for one of Magic's biggest villains. Once again, this was another popular Commander card that was dying for a reprint, and this provided a fun and flavorful way to put new copies in players' hands.
Number Seven
Nowadays, Gisa isn't worth all that much thanks to a number of accessible reprints. However, Jumpstart was the legendary necromancer's first reprint ever and by this point she was commanding quite a price tag. Gisa is tremendously popular in Commander, especially in - as you can probably imagine - zombie decks. This put more copies of the card into players' hands and made her that much more affordable for zombie fans everywhere. Are we seeing a pattern here yet, folks?
Number Six
Every time a card shows up that allows you to have any number of copies of it in your deck, players will try making the card work over and over until the end of time. This was particularly the case with Ravnica Allegiance's Persistent Petitioners, as players loved trying to make the card's mill strategy to be viable in various scenarios. Bruvac the Grandiloquent is a very clear attempt at paying this strategy off, allowing players even greater opportunities at milling in Commander that made Bruvac an instant hit among Commander players from this set.
Number Five
At any other point in time, Selvala might've been even higher on this list. However, shortly before her reprint here in Jumpstart, this powerful mana dork and card draw engine had just seen a reprint in Mystery Booster 1. Because of this, hype was a fair bit cooler, but nevertheless demand was still quite high for the card, making a second reprint tremendously welcome among players.
Number Four
Turns out that even nearly a decade on from Avacyn Restored, players still really love telling their opponents to get hoofed! Craterhoof Behemoth is one of the best game-enders in Green decks, primarily in Commander but also in Cube and sometimes even Legacy thanks to Elves being a deck. The high casual appeal behind the card has made it continuously maintain a high price tag, making it a prime reprint option for a set like Jumpstart.
Number Three
For a game so dripping in high fantasy, unicorns have surprisingly proven to be somewhat of a rarity. Only 31 exist in total across the entirety of Magic's history, and players flocked to Emiel when the card provided a legendary option to helm their Commander decks. Even if you weren't looking to play a dedicated unicorn deck, however, Emiel still provides a potent way to helm a Selesnya colored Blink deck, making for an all-around popular option.
Number Two
If there was one card from this set that instantly captured the hearts of players everywhere, it was Tinybones, Trinket Thief. Not only was the card adorable to look at, but it seemed quite powerful for discard focused strategies in Commander. While this proved a bit obnoxious for some players to fight against in practice, few could argue with the character's amazing design, which has led to him showing up more and more frequently over the last few years.
Number One
While there may have been many great reprints in this set as well as awesome new legends like Tinybones, no card had as substantial an impact as Allosaurus Shepherd. Not only did this card make a major impact in Commander, but it also immediately saw play all the way through to Legacy, providing a way for Elves decks to push back against counter magic. This turned Elves into one of the best decks for a time and made copies of Allosaurus Shepherd command a price upwards of $70 for some time.