Magic: The Gathering’sRavnica, as evidenced by the diversity of the ten Guilds that populate it, is a city that contains multitudes. You’ll find towering, ornate buildings here, yes, but also darkened backstreets, and dank, twisting passages running beneath them. It’s in these places, those where the searching lights of the Azorius don’t reach, that the majority of the Plane’s black cards lurk.
From elite Assassins to depraved Cultists, from swarms of Rats to soul-devouring Demons, the underside of Ravnica writhes with some of the foulest creations in the multiverse. If you wish to tap into this darkness for yourself, then these are the cards you’ll want to pick up. Though, of course, you didn’t hear about them from us.
10Infernal Tutor
Access The Dark Secrets Of Your Deck
It’s a well-known fact thatTutor effects are extremely powerful, particularly in singleton formats like Commander, so it’s no surprise that Infernal Tutor is one of the best black cards in the set. Despite being significantly worse than the original Demonic Tutor, it’s still more than good enough to see play in both Commander and Legacy.
Becoming hellbent so you can use the card as a straight-up Tutor is, naturally, very good, but the first effect here can also be useful in Combo decks, where it can grab extra copies of key pieces you need. However you use it, Infernal Tutor will certainly never lead you astray.
9Dark Confidant
Pssst! You Want Some Card Draw?
Once a defining card of the Modern format, and a must-include in any deck playing black, Dark Confidant has seen its influence wane over the years as the power level of new sets has ramped up. Don’t let that fool you, however: it’s still a card well worth playing in the majority of black decks in the Commander format.
Drawing an extra card every turn is just as good in Commander as it is everywhere else, and the life cost of doing so means far less when you start with a beefy 40 life. It may have lost some of its luster, but Dark Confidant still shines brighter than the majority of black cards printed today.
8Pack Rat
The Rats Start Coming And They Don’t Stop Coming
Cards that can single-handedly take over games if left unchecked tend to be among the most powerful in the game, and Pack Rat is nestled firmly within that category. Alone, it’s a simple Rat that scales up based on your total Rats in play, but the real power comes with its activated ability.
This lets you create an exact copy of Pack Rat, copy ability included, for just three mana and a card from your hand, turning any late-game dead draws into more Rats for your swarm. It’s naturally an auto-include in all Rat Typal decks, but it’s also a self-contained win condition that can be slotted into most black decks easily.
7Massacre Girl
Look How They Massacred My Girl!
Massacre Girl’s reputation as an iconic Rakdos Assassin preceded her by several expansions, but her ultimate arrival in War of the Spark more than lived up to the hype. Not only does she provide apotentially devastating board wipe effecton a 4/4 body, but she’s also legendary, meaning you can use said effect from the command zone whenever you need it.
Naturally, this makes her very popular in Commander, particularly in more controlling Mono-Black brews. She goes great at the helm or in the 99, and also comes with stellar art and flavor to boot. An all-round all-star.
6Crypt Ghast
Shake Your Opponents Down For All They’re Worth
The Orzhov Syndicate’s extort mechanic was too mana-hungry to have much of an impact in Return to Ravnica Standard, but in Commander it’s a different beast entirely. Draining each of your opponents means that extort’s value is multiplied exponentially in a multiplayer setting, giving powerful extort cards like Crypt Ghast room to shine.
Not only does the Ghast give you a solid extort creature itself, it also helps you pay for it via its mana-doubling passive ability. Whether you’re ramping into a huge Demon or slowly grinding the rest of the table down, Crypt Ghast is a Spirit for all seasons.
5Liliana, Dreadhorde General
A Commanding Presence On The Battlefield
Lilianahas had many incarnationsover the years, with her three-mana variants commanding the most notoriety, but Dreadhorde General is just behind those in terms of power level. Six mana is a big investment, but the sheer value she can generate in exchange can be enough to turn the tide of a long Commander game.
Drawing a card each time one of your creatures dies is almost worth the price of admission alone, but when combined with her -4 double Edict effect it creates a devastating table-wide tempo swing. Her other abilities are solid too, especially her game-winning ultimate, but you don’t even need to hit Liliana’s ceiling to make her well worth playing.
4Creeping Chill
Can You Feel It In The Air?
Four mana to drain three life from your opponent is not a good rate even in Limited, so you’d be forgiven for dismissing Creeping Chill at first sight. The key to this card’s power lies in the fact that it actually costs zero mana, however, provided you’re able to Mill it out of your deck.
Decks like Dredge and Crab Vine Mill so many cards so fast that Creeping Chill is a no-brainer inclusion, giving you additional damage and lifegain at a very low opportunity cost. It may never see play in traditional decks, but it’ll have a place in offbeat graveyard strategies until the end of time.
3Balustrade Spy
A Surprisingly Potent Combo Enabler
Balustrade Spy may look like no more than draft chaff, an underpowered common for an underwhelming Limited Mill archetype, but in reality, it’s one of the bestmulti-format Combo enablersthat Magic has ever seen. By exploiting the card’s ‘until they reveal a land card’ clause, players can easily Mill their entire decks into the graveyard.
Once this is done, you can win the game in a variety of ways, whether it’s reanimating a Lotleth Giant in Pauper or dropping a Thassa’s Oracle in Legacy. It’s rare for a common to serve as such a crucial card in multiple strategies, making the Spy’s inclusion in Ravnica Remastered more than well-deserved.
2Priest Of Forgotten Gods
Make Offerings To An Older, Darker Power
As long as creatures have dies triggers, there will be demand for good sacrifice outlets in Magic. And as long as that’s the case, Priest of Forgotten Gods will be one of the best options for filling that role. Though she demands two sacrifices rather than the usual one, Priest gives you a veritable banquet of benefits in exchange.
Two mana, a card, burn damage, and an Edict effect: not a bad deal at all for two creatures. And since you can choose the players affected by her negative effects, it’s great for political scheming too, adding another string to its already-stacked bow.
1Midnight Reaper
The Stroke Of Midnight Comes For Us All
Drawing additional cards is one of the most reliably powerful actions in any card game, meaning cards that allow you to do so tend to perform well regardless of other factors. Midnight Reaper may only be a 3/2 for three, but the fact that it can draw you multiple extra cards a turn in the right deck makes that almost irrelevant.
Whether you’re sacrificing your creatures or just sending them into combat, it’s not hard to get your mana’s worth out of Reaper the turn you play it, with any value on subsequent turns just serving as gravy on top. In addition, it’s also a Zombie: anextremely relevant creature typethat loves to see its creatures die.
