Ixalan Preview: Primal Amulet

Fulfilling quests is an awesome part of the Magic experience, and nowhere does it seem more appropriate than in a pirate-themed setting like Ixalan. Today’s preview card (cards?) is such a quest, and asks you to do something you very much want to do already.

Here’s the front half, Primal Amulet.

For 4 mana, all your instant and sorcery spells get 1 cheaper. That may not seem like a huge deal, but it drastically changes how the game plays out, and enables some pretty absurd turns. It even starts saving you mana right away, if you can play it and a 2- or 3-mana spell in the same turn. We’ve seen this effect before, and it always has made a splash, but usually costs a little less. What you get for that extra mana here is the ability to transform once you’ve played four spells. Take a look at its final form, Primal Wellspring.

This is a payoff indeed. After you’ve charged up the Amulet enough, you get a rainbow land that offers the ability to copy one spell a turn. That’s huge, and gives you a source of free cards and free mana, which will quickly allow you to overrun your opponent.

Because this effect is more aimed towards incremental card advantage and value than just going off, I see this more as a way to win the game in a control deck than a pure combo enabler. Goblin Electromancer’s job is safe, since this is less of a storm engine and more of a win condition in and of itself. Playing this in a control deck full of removal spells and card draw seems delightful, and it pays for itself very quickly. First, the mana discount means that it doesn’t cost you much, and next, the ability to copy cards gets you the card back. Be aware that flipping it is optional, so there’s a chance you may want to keep it around as the front side if you plan on playing a ton more spells. That’s not very likely, but it could happen.

I like finding buried treasure, and Primal Amulet is like a map that leads right to the fabled Wellspring, which is an adventure I’m excited to go on.