Modern Horizons 3 Set Review - Reprints

White | Blue | Black | Red | Green | Colorless | Artifacts & Lands | Allied & Shards | Enemy & Wedges | cEDH | Reprints | Minotaurs

A Monument to Long-Forgotten Gods

When we do these Reprint Reviews for "regular sets," or in other words the sets that are centered around characters wearing a variety of job-specific hats, we don't usually have much to talk about, at least in the set proper. It's the Commander decks, bonus sheets, and other ancillary products that provide the bulk of the retreads. But not Modern Horizons 3. 

With MH3, we've got 53 reprints (counting the five basic lands), and you'll be delighted to learn that a lot of them are pretty dang good. We here at Commander's Herald analyze reprints based on a very scientific rubric of "is it expensive?" and "do Commander players care?", and I'm pleased to report there are a number of reprints that score very high in both categories. Not all of them, of course, as I don't think anyone will argue that we needed another Victimize

Speaking of Commander product, MH3's slate of Commander decks bring us another 260 reprints, plus 10 other cards appearing via Special Guests, so let's get into it. And since there are so many reprints to discuss, we're going to do this a bit more expediently. As usual, all prices quoted below are in USD, and all deck stats are courtesy of EDHREC.

Mythics

Phyrexian Tower

Did we need it?

Phyrexian Tower showing up in MH3 shows me for assuming I knew what was on the Reserved List, I guess.

Legal in Modern for the first time (a phrase you might as well just apply to nearly every card we talk about today), Phyrexian Tower has long been a mainstay in black/x decks that want to treat all creatures like Blood Vassal

Did we want it?

Of the 2 million or so decks that can run a Phyrexian Tower, 8% do so. It's very good, and it's a land, so there's really no downside to running it in a black deck (other than the financial cost). It's a favorite in terms of sheer numbers in Meren of Clan Nel Toth

Recruiter of the Guard

Did we need it?

A good rule of thumb to follow these days is if a non-Standard, supplementary set features an extremely powerful card that will see play in any format in which it's legal, expect to see it reprinted. That was true of Dack Fayden

Reaching its highest price in May of '22 at $35, RotG has been slowly ticking down ever since, and a new version floating around will continue that trend. We even get an old-border variant

Did we want it?

In Commander, it's a great card, albeit a narrow one. It's in 51,767 decks currently, good for 3% of all decks playing white. Some of that might be due to scarcity, as, outside of its original printing, it's only ever seen a reprint on The List. That might also be because only decks with very good creatures with two or less toughness are looking to play Recruiter. Probably 90% of the time I've cast it, it's tutored up Karmic Guide

Across EDHREC, we see Recruiter the most in Winota, Joiner of Forces

Kaalia of the Vast

Did we need it?

Kaalia's been terrorizing the Commander skies for a very long time now, and for a certain generation of players was one of the format's first villains. First appearing in Commander 2011, the card's been above the $40-mark multiple times, but with reprints in Double Masters and Double Masters 2022, we now see Kaalia at a more reasonable $10 for the most basic version.

But we aren't just getting a basic version with Modern Horizons 3 (which has killer art in its own right), we're also getting a Jack Hughes profile treatment

Did we want it?

Maybe due to longevity, or power level, or the consistently great art, but Kaalia's always been extremely popular in Commander. Kaalia is the 14th-ranked Commander on EDHREC with 16,389 decks logged, and has been the linchpin of the Demon/Angel/Dragon triumvirate for more than a decade now. I can't speak to its potential impact on Modern (though I would hazard a guess that that impact will be nonexistent), but with the number of people playing Kaalia in Commander, at least we get three more artistic interpretations of the card to keep it interesting.

Breya, Etherium Shaper

Did we need it?

We'll go from one Commander villain to another, this time with a reprint of Breya, Etherium Shaper. People have been using Breya to do mean things to their friends since Commander 2016, and now they can do mean things while Breya's got a sick squiggle blazer. 

Unlike Kaalia, though, Breya's been relatively affordable throughout its lifetime, peaking at $25 briefly in 2019. Outside a few price spikes, Breya's consistently in the sub-$10 range, and that will remain the case for the regular version here. Its special treatments, another Jack Hughes profile

Did we want it?

Breya's also an extremely popular Commander, with its 12,494 lists logged, ranking it 35th among all legal commanders on EDHREC. Joining tokens, artifacts, and entirely too many abilities with its status as a rare four-color commander, Breya's always going to be lurking around the format. And interestingly, more than half of all Breya players refuse to leave home without Sai, Master Thopterist

Rares

Allied Fetch Lands

Did we need them?

We always need reprints of fetch lands. Their original printings, from Onslaught, are up around the $70-80 mark (except for that nerd Windswept Heath, which is $55), but the versions from their first big reprint in Khans of Tarkir demand a much more reasonable sum, averaging around $30. That's still a lot, but they're auto-includes in any 60-card format in which they're legal, and with the prevalence of Landfall decks in Commander, they're pretty ubiquitous there, too. With this new reprinting, they'll be had for near half of their Khans pricing, if we're lucky. 

Did we want them?

The short answer is yes, of course. The fetch land cycle is one of the best for color fixing, and as long as people are going to be greedy with their decks' color demands, they'll want fetches. The Zendikar Expedition versions

Deserted Temple

Did we need it?

Seeing a reprint but not a slew of new arts and treatments is Deserted Temple. This is the first true reprint since it debuted in Odyssey way back in 2001, though hobbit fans might recognize it as Weathertop

The price of an Odyssey Deserted Temple crept up steadily for two decades, going from a glorified bulk rare to a $20 card, and like many similar cases, COVID-era price dilation saw that $20 briefly turn into $200 before reality set in and it settled at around the $10 mark. The foil from Odyssey is an entirely different story, which is still demanding that $200 pricetag. It showing up in MH3 means that if you've always wanted one to untap your Eldrazi Temple

Did we want it?

A non-colored land can be played in any legal Commander deck, and on EDHREC there are more than 4 million catalogued. Deserted Temple is played in 17,161 of them. It's not a very common sight at Commander tables, but I suspect that'll change thanks to its newfound affordability and its blossoming friendship with Eldrazi.

The Tempest Medallions

Did we need it?

In terms of excitement level for Commander players for reprints of this particular cycle, Commander Masters kind of took the wind out of Modern Horizons 3's sales (that's a pun, not a typo). However, fans of borderless treatments will be thrilled to acquire their favorite non-Mox jewelry with incredible art

The Tempest Medallions were more expensive than they should have been for a long time before they saw that Commander Masters reprint, routinely earning $25+. That's not the case today, as while the original Tempest versions are still $10ish, you can get all of them for around $5 (just double all those numbers for Jet Medallion), so we really didn't need them reprinted here, unless they're going to be a thing in Modern. 

Did we want it?

I've always been a fan of the Medallions, but I've also always been a fan of mono-colored decks, where they do the most work. That's just my opinion, and Dana Roach seems to have a different one.

On EDHREC, Jet Medallion's the most popular, appearing in nearly 90,000 lists, with the rest in the 50-70k range. Those are still respectable numbers, and another round of reprints will probably increase their usage a small bit. However, with the popularity of commanders featuring three or more colors in their identity, the Medallions will never be Arcane Signet

Estrid's Invocation

Did we need it?

Until now only appearing in Commander 2018, Estrid's Invocation was a $10 card. I say was, of course, because with it about to appear in Modern for the first time, speculation surrounding its potential impact has increased the price to $15. The MH3 version is already only a third of that price, however, which is probably where it should have been to begin with. It's a fun card, but it's not a $15 card. I should add the caveat that there's always that chance someone does something crazy with it in Modern (Urza's Saga

This will be the first time you can snag one in foil, as well.

Did we want it?

Anything that copies permanents will have its fans, and Estrid's Invocation certainly has fans. Appearing in 21,512 decks, the Copy Enchantment

Kappa Cannoneer

Did we need it?

The turtle that spawned innumerable references to Blastoise, Kappa Cannoneer returns to us once again after debuting in Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty Commander and its first reprint in Murders at Karlov Manor Commander. That's three printings in a very short time for the well-armed reptile, and, as a result, its price is pretty reasonable (outside of that COVID jump in 2022 where it was briefly $25). If you want the new old-border treatment

Did we want it?

Kappa Cannoneer already made waves in Legacy, and it remains to be seen if people are going to try something with it in Modern. Over here in Commanderland, the turtle's in a hair over 35,000 decks, good for 2% of all decks playing blue. It slots in well in artifact-centric decks that also want to be aggressive (or make use of +1/+1 counters), so naturally it sees plenty of attention from Morska, Undersea Sleuth

Urza's Incubator

Did we need it?

Filed next to Phyrexian Tower under "cards I'm surprised aren't on the Reserved List," Urza's Incubator has seen a few reprints since its debut in Urza's Destiny, including the first one in Commander 2015, followed by a trio of versions from Dominaria Remastered as well as a stint on The List. As we've said many times, its inclusion in MH3 marks the first time it'll be Modern-legal, though I have a feeling that won't matter too much. 

Players today probably know it as a pretty expensive card, but from Urza's Destiny all the way up to around Amonkhet, it was barely $5. That's about 18 years. After 2017, it became much more expensive, and today, pretty much any version will run you $30+, until Modern Horizons 3 hits shelves, at least. 

Did we want it?

We see Urza's Incubator in 107,987 decks, which is a pretty respectable number for a card that requires a certain kind of list to do anything, and as you might have guessed, most decks that play it are some form of creature deck, especially creatures that demand a bit of a mana investment.

Like Eldrazi, for example, which is why we see it frequently in Zhulodok, Void Gorger

Uncommons & Commons

Angel of the Ruins

Did we need it?

Downshifted to an uncommon, Angel of the Ruins first appeared in Commander 2021, and since then, has been printed in four other Commander releases, two different Secret Lair drops, and now MH3. That's eight printings in three years. So...no. We didn't need it, unless you have a no-rares/mythics restriction and are pleased to see the rarity downshift.

Did we want it?

Of all decks playing white, Angel of the Ruins is in 2% of them, or 43,421 total. That's not a bad total, which is understandable because it's not a bad card. It's an Angel, which already attracts a bit of attention, it's also an artifact, and as a plainscycler it not only fetches you a land but gets itself into the graveyard for later reanimation. If you grew up playing Eternal Dragon

Two of the five Odyssey Threshold lands

Did we need them?

It's pretty interesting that only squid square and barb ring saw reprints, while the other three members of the cycle in Nomad Stadium

Of course, the three not reprinted are all around 35 cents, while Barbarian Ring is $2 and Cephalid Coliseum is nearly $20. Neither figure will stay that way for long, as when MH3 hits, both cards' newest versions will be a buck or two.

Did we want them?

They're lands that tap for colored mana but also do something else, so people will always be looking to jam them into Commander decks. While the threshold ability isn't as game-breaking in Commander as it might be in 60-card formats, neither is the cost of taking 1 damage every time you make mana. More than 40,000 decks run the Coliseum, including plenty of cEDH lists, while Barbarian Ring only sees play in 12,349 lists. Trading in a land for a Shock

Decree of Justice

Did we need it?

Here we have another white rare downshifted to uncommon, but this time it's of the Scourge Decree cycle, which since 2003 has been teaching players the value of paying for premium upgrades when available. We're going back to the original Adam Rex art for the latest printing, which has Karona's shadow visible in that rock outcropping to remind us who's making all these decrees in the first place. As for financial value, there's none to speak of.

Did we want it?

Decree of Justice sees play in a shade under 10,000 decks, all of them either token or cycling related, with the plurality of those lists coming in the form of Gavi, Nest Warden

Meltdown

Did we need it?

This is the first reprint of Meltdown since it first showed up in Urza's Saga. That was 1998. We have plenty of options for mass artifact destruction these days, but Meltdown will always hold a special place in my heart. At one point (I'll let you guess when), Meltdown was nearly $30, but before COVID it was barely a quarter. Since, the price stayed inflated, hovering around $7-8 for the past three or so years. That will likely change with the reprint here in MH3, and it's worth noting that it'll also be available in foil for the first time, even in old-border

Did we want it?

Like I said, we have a lot of options for a similar effect. There's Vandalblast

That's probably why we only see Meltdown in 3,794 decks, not even registering as a percentage point in number of decks that can play it. But I play it, for nostalgia's sake, and really isn't that the only metric that matters? [Editor's note: No.]

Reef Worm

Did we need it?

That's "worm" with an O, not a U, with its third reprint courtesy of MH3. Reef Worm is a better illustration of a food chain than Food Chain

Did we want it?

1% of all blue decks include Reef Worm, or 17,967 total. Tokens are the name of the game in that regard, with 59.5% of all Adrix and Nev, Twincasters

Priest of Titania

Did we need it?

Originally appearing way back in Urza's Saga, Priest of Titania has been a premier mana-making Elf for more than two decades. It's probably one of the most "kill-on-sight" Elves there are in Commander, and it'll be interesting to see if it can make any headway into Modern where it'll be legal for the first time. During the COVID price wackiness in 2021, the card hit heights as high as $13 a copy for the Saga version, and nearly $17 for its only widely-available reprint (at the time) in Commander 2014. Then there's the FNM Promo version

Did we want it?

If you're playing an Elf deck, you're playing Priest of Titania. Of all the Elf-based commanders on EDHREC, like Eladamri, Lord of Leaves

A quick look at the rest

Branching Evolution

Cursed Mirror

Flusterstorm

K'rrik, Son of Yawgmoth

Laelia, the Blade Reforged

Ophiomancer

Orim's Chant

Sevinne's Reclamation

Sylvan Safekeeper

Toxic Deluge

Annoyed Altisaur

Buried Alive

Deep Analysis

Distinguished Conjurer

Fledgling Dragon

Junk Diver

Meteoric Mace

Nadier's Nightblade

Nesting Grounds

Shrieking Drake

Victimize

Wirewood Symbiote

Worn Powerstone

Garbage In, Treasure Out

And there we have it. That's a lot of reprints coming to us courtesy of Modern Horizons 3. Sure, many of them are likely more interesting if you're into Modern as a format, but there's still plenty for we Commander players to key in on. Were there any you're happy to see? Anything you can think of that should have been reprinted in MH3 that's conspicuously absent? Let me know!