What ARE Roles?!

Roles – MTG Mechanics Explained

Card KingdomStrategy

Role tokens, new to Wilds of Eldraine, are seven predefined tokens, each one of which is an Aura that enchants a creature. Six of the roles appear in the main set of WOE, with the final one coming from the Commander decks linked to the set. The seven roles are:

  • Cursed — Enchanted creature has base power and toughness 1/1.
  • Monster — Enchanted creature gets +1/+1 and has trample.
  • Royal — Enchanted creature gets +1/+1 and has ward 1.
  • Sorcerer — Enchanted creature gets +1/+1 and has “Whenever this creature attacks, scry 1.”
  • Wicked — Enchanted creature gets +1/+1 and “When this Aura is put into a graveyard from the battlefield, each opponent loses 1 life.”
  • Young Hero — Enchanted creature has “Whenever this creature attacks, if its toughness is 3 or less, put a +1/+1 counter on it.”
  • Virtuous — Enchanted creature gets +1/+1 for each enchantment you control. This is the Role from the Commander deck.

A creature can only have one Role that is controlled by a given player at a time. So if you control a creature that was given the Sorcerer Role by an effect you control, and then you give it the Royal Role, the Sorcerer Role will be sacrificed. But if that now Royal creature is given the Cursed Role by an opponent, both Roles can exist on the creature at the same time, as two different players control the roles.

Predefined tokens are catching on in Magic, with Roles now joining Food, Treasure, and Clues in the growing well that Wizards has to dip into. This first set of Roles is opening the door to token Auras, something not really done much before in the game. Roles could be added to later, with planes having entirely different Roles to choose from, but that may be getting a little ahead of ourselves. Roles seem made to fit in Enchantment-heavy environments, so if they’re popular and well-received enough, you can perhaps expect to see them in those planes in the future.

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