Last updated on April 26, 2024
Delney, Streetwise Lookout | Illustration by Darren Tan
It’s no mystery that every Magic set is a new adventure. Murders at Karlov Manor and Ravnica: Clue Edition take on a murder investigation and whodunnit tale that you and the rest of your pod navigate as you play with new cards that make you feel like a detective investigating for clues.
The official release date of Murders at Karlov Manor and Ravnica: Clue Edition is February 9, 2024, but prerelease weekend is right around the corner. With the new set debuting, you must be wondering which cards are the big hitters to pull from a prerelease kit or booster box.
Here are the 28 most expensive cards from the upcoming new set!
#28. Marvo, Deep Operative
Listed at: $2.00
Marvo, Deep Operative resurrects the clash mechanic. If you win the clash when Marvo attacks, you can cast a spell for free from your hand. You want to load your deck with expensive cards to increase the odds of winning clashes—though you don’t want cards that cost more than 8. Spells that can alter combat in your favor like Deceiver Exarch and Cryptic Command are especially valuable to let Marvo survive to attack again.
#27 Niv-Mizzet, Guildpact
Listed at: $2
Niv-Mizzet, Guildpact boasts a powerful triggered ability that leaves you swimming in cards and damage. To maximize this impactful ability in Commander, you want to fill your deck with as many 2-colored permanents as possible. General Ferrous Rokiric fits as part of the 99 by offering multicolored support with the Golem tokens it creates per multicolored spell cast. 2-color mana dorks like Leyline Prowler and Draconic Disciple get Niv-Mizzet, Guildpact out faster while offering accumulated value for its triggered ability.
#26. Illicit Masquerade
Listed at: $2.50
Illicit Masquerade grants graveyard recursion decks continual access to resources as your strategy transforms throughout a match. Returning any creature from your graveyard to the battlefield after a creature with an impostor counter dies is like a win-win because you still get to keep your value engine running even as your creatures die.
#25. Sophia, Dogged Detective
Listed at: $3.50
Sophia, Dogged Detective creates artifact tokens that can be turned into +1/+1 counters for a dog typal deck. Remember that “hound” has been errata'd to dog, so they also receive the same buff when you sacrifice an artifact to Sophia. Tireless Tracker, Tireless Provisioner, and Academy Manufactor generate tons of Food, Clue, and Treasure tokens to support your pups. Don’t forget to add Pack Leader as a dog typal anthem effect and protection for your army.
#24. Trostani, Three Whispers
Listed at: $3.50
Trostani, Three Whispers works best as part of the 99, especially in Voltron decks, to sway combat in your favor. Heartstone can reduce the cost of its activated ability so you can use Trostani multiple times a turn.
#23. Agrus Kos, Spirit of Justice
Listed at: $3.75
On its own, Agrus Kos, Spirit of Justice takes two turn cycles to exile a creature: one turn to suspect it and then another turn to exile it once suspected. If you fill your deck with spells that suspect opposing creatures like Caught Red-Handed and Convenient Target, you can make it a one-turn cycle.
Nelly Borca, Impulsive Accuser synergizes well with Agrus Kos, Spirit of Justice because they both have abilities that suspect opposing creatures.
#22. Assemble the Players
Listed at: $4.00
Assemble the Players gives creature-centric decks a cheap burst of card advantage. You need to fill your deck with small creatures with power 2 or less to get the most of this enchantment. It plays perfectly in wall decks as many of them have 0 power or as a supporting piece for the new Murders at Karlov Manor commander, Delney, Streetwise Lookout.
#21. Tenth District Hero
Listed at: $4.00
Tenth District Hero has two activated abilities with the new collect evidence mechanic. It uses the template first devised for Figure of Destiny; you must activate the first ability before you can activate the second. Cost reduction from cards like Heartstone or even Training Grounds in an Azorius deck can help you activate both abilities in quick succession.
#20. Intrude on the Mind
Listed at: $8
Intrude on the Mind is an instant that gives you card draw and a flying blocker. This is exceptional at swinging close games of Limited revolving around flyers. The combination of card advantage and pressure provides lots of impact for one card and Fact or Fiction effects always create interesting subgames for you and your opponent.
#19. Alquist Proft, Master Sleuth
Listed at: $5.00
Alquist Proft, Master Sleuth thrives as a commander with plenty of investigate support to enable their activated ability. Ensure you have lots of mana rocks to pump as much mana into Alquist’s ability as possible for maximum life gain and card draw. Don’t forget Wizard Class or Spellbook to achieve infinite hand size so you don’t have to discard any cards.
#18. Conspiracy Unraveler
Listed at: $5.00
While Conspiracy Unraveler is expensive, it pays off in the mid- to late-game if you have a full graveyard from self-milling. Self-mill ensures you have plenty of evidence to collect as an alternative cost for your spells. It works best with expensive, game-warping threats like Atraxa, Grand Unifier and Scourge of Fleets.
#17. Kylox's Voltstrider
Kylox's Voltstrider]Listed at: $5.00
Kylox's Voltstrider is a sweet 4/4 vehicle for 3 with a crew cost of 2 that can alternatively be animated by collecting evidence 6. Additionally, it's attack trigger gives you some incredible value on top of the 4/4 body you're slinging. It also doesn't have the usual effect of exiling the card after use, which is nice.
#16. Aurelia's Vindicator
Listed at: $5.50
Aurelia's Vindicator is your classic big beater angel for 4 mana that comes with some kind of ability. In this case, when it's flipped up, you get to exile a bunch of creatures from the battlefield and graveyard, and then when it leaves the battlefield, those all go back to their owner's hands! Kind of a weird boardwipe/graveyard hate, but it's flexibility means it can be used both defensively to stop combos and to your own advantage synergistically with other cards.
#15. Etrata, Deadly Fugitive
Listed at: $6.50
Cards with the manifest, morph, or cloak mechanic fit perfectly into a build featuring Etrata, Deadly Fugitive. Face-down cards add an intriguing level of suspense as your opponents must navigate a board filled with face-down cards that could be anything. Etrata, the Silencer and Ramses, Assassin Lord are perfect additions to the 99 that support the assassin typal theme and get as many combat triggers as possible.
#14. The Pride of Hull Clade
Listed at: $6.00
The Pride of Hull Clade is making waves as an upcoming commander for Simic defender decks. You can cast cheap walls with high toughness to reduce The Pride of Hull Clade’s cost.
If you cast a Shield Sphere and Vine Trellis by turn 2, you can cast The Pride of Hull Clade on turn 3 for just 1 green mana. This opens the door to drawing 15 cards on turn 4 with the legendary crocodile elk turtle’s activated ability.
Don’t forget cards that remove the hand size restriction like Curiosity Crafter or Decanter of Endless Water so you can keep all those cards after drawing them.
#13. Vannifar, Evolved Enigma
Listed at: $6.50
Vannifar, Evolved Enigma is another legendary creature that uses cloak. Cloaked cards are considered colorless 2/2 creatures until they’re turned face up. This allows Vannifer to pump the cloaked cards it creates, but you can pump any number of colorless creatures.
Cloaking high mana value Eldrazi creatures to surprise your opponents with later is the fun of running this commander! Just think of how shocked your opponents will be when you turn an It That Betrays or Blightsteel Colossus face up.
#12. Kaya, Spirits’ Justice
Listed at: $7.00
Kaya, Spirits' Justice slots well into Orzhov exile decks with Court of Locthwain and Dauthi Voidwalker as thematic spells that guide your gameplan.. Other cards with surveil like Doom Whisperer and Pile On help fill your graveyard to take advantage of Kaya’s static and +1 abilities.
#11. Undergrowth Recon
Listed at: $7.00
Undergrowth Recon is a graveyard recursion effect that’s great for landfall decks. Blossoming Tortoise and Blanchwood Prowler are thematic, powerful self-mill cards that fill your graveyard so you can consistently trigger Undergrowth Recon on your upkeep.
#10. Archdruid's Charm
Listed at: $7
Finally, a new charm! This one boasts a big name, and it has some pretty big effects to follow. It's a classic pick one of three that offers some +1/+1 counters, enchantment/artifact exiling, and… a tutor for any land! That's an incredible and, quite frankly, unprecedented effect at instant-speed.
#9. Incinerator of the Guilty
Listed at: $8
Incinerator of the Guilty is a multi-functional card. It’s just a well-stated flyer but also serves as a powerful red board wipe on a stick. You can fuel the collect evidence cost with self-mill cards like Grindclock, Millstone, and Grindstone.
#8. Leyline of the Guildpact
Listed at: $8.50
Leyline of the Guildpact is a new leyline from the plane that introduced us to the mechanic! Like all leylines, you can put it into play if it’s in your open hand. Even if it’s not, the hybrid mana cost makes it flexible to cast.
Giving your lands all basic land types provides effective fixing for 5-color decks. Making your nonland permanents all colors lets you take advantage of color-based anthem effects like Sylvan Anthem and Deathbringer Liege.
#7. Rakdos, Patron of Chaos
Listed at: $9.00
Rakdos, Patron of Chaos performs best as part of the 99 in a punishment-themed deck. Forcing your opponents to choose between sacrificing permanents or granting you card draw is an ugly choice that leaves you ahead either way. It also plays incredibly well with cards that trigger off your opponents’ permanents getting sacrificed, like Morbid Opportunist or Mayhem Devil.
#6. Vein Ripper
Listed at: $9.75
Vein Ripper should be an automatic inclusion in aristocrat decks. It synergizes well with other archetype staples like Blood Artist and Cruel Celebrant. Cards like Dictate of Erebos and Archfiend of Depravity wrack up the death triggers so Vein Ripper depletes life totals quickly.
#5. Bennie Bracks, Zoologist
Listed at: $14
Any white token deck loves Bennie Bracks, Zoologist as a potent card draw engine. Convoke allows you to tap out to make a bunch of tokens then use them to cast Bennie and reap all the rewards possible.
#4. Massacre Girl, Known Killer
Listed at: $15.00
Massacre Girl, Known Killer thrives off spells that give your opponents’ creatures -1/-1 counters so you can draw cards when they die. Giving your creatures wither makes combat a nightmare for your opponents, letting you trade away creatures and draw cards. Vilis, Broker of Blood synergizes particularly well with Massacre Girl, Known Killer.
#3. Delney, Streetwise Lookout
Listed at: $19.00
Delney, Streetwise Lookout essentially gives creatures with power 2 or less unblockable if your opponents only control creatures power 3 or greater. Creatures with powerful ETB or attack triggers, like Loran of the Third Path or Gary Clone, are amazing with Delney’s ability-doubling effect.
#2. Tomik, Wielder of Law
Listed at: $20.00
Tomik, Wielder of Law is the first card in Magic to have affinity for planeaswalkers. Affinity may seem dull on a creature that costs 3 mana, but it’s great at reducing commander tax, and there's a heartwarming story there too (look it up). Tomik’s triggered ability protects your planeswalkers by deterring attackers and encouraging your opponents to attack one another. It’s even more potent with ability doublers like Roaming Throne or Delney, Streetwise Lookout.
#1. Anzrag, the Quake-Mole
Listed at: $21.00
Anzrag, the Quake-Mole presents a unique means of obtaining additional combats: The more your opponents try to stop it, the more combats you get. The activated ability forces opposing players to give you extra combats, making for an aggressive Gruul deck. You can pile on more combat steps with Combat Celebrant and Karlach, Fury of Avernus.
Promos, Alternate Art, and More
The following are promos from the set across a number of different products/events.
Promo Packs
Buy-a-Box Promo
Bundle Promo
Pre-Release Kit Promos
Players attending a Murders at Karlov Manor prerelease event will receive a themed sticker sheet along with their prerelease kit.
Borderless Cards
MKM's Booster Fun includes 12 borderless cards: the 10 surveil lands as well as Kellan, Inquisitive Prodigy and Kaya, Spirits' Justice. 33 cards have extended arts, including Tenth District Hero and Undergrowth Recon.
Magnified Showcase Frames
30 of the cards in the set have magnified showcases, with art framed through a magnifying glass. Assemble the Players, Reenact the Crime, and Intrude on the Mind are a few examples of the magnified showcases.
Special Guests
The Special Guests segment of Murders at Karlov Manor brings beautiful borderless alternate arts of 10 popular cards in Magic’s history. These cards, like the Special Guests cards in The Lost Caverns of Ixalan, have a higher value because of their special art. The Special Guest cards in this set are:
- Victimize
- Tireless Tracker
- Tragic Slip
- Ghostly Prison
- Show and Tell
- Field of the Dead
- Gamble
- Fabricate
- Drown in the Loch
- Crashing Footfalls
Dossier Showcase Cards
There are 41 dossier showcase cards that look like typewritten case files. Some cards with this treatment style include Aurelia, the Law Above, Delney, Streetwise Lookout, Massacre Girl, Known Killer, and Krenko, Baron of Tin Street
There’s also 14 dossier showcase arts with invisible ink that adds a refined pop of color and animation to distinguish them from other showcase arts. Some cards with this treatment include Anzrag, the Quake-Mole and Etrata, Deadly Fugitive.
Serialized Guild-leaders
One of Ravnica’s best-known elements is its guild leaders, influential figures who command the societal pillars of the plane. Seven guild leaders are featured in MKM. They received a special Ravnica City treatment as well as a double-rainbow serialized treatment. There are only 250 serialized versions of each guild-leader, which come stamped with a number. The Ravnica City treatment can be opened in Play Boosters and Collector Boosters; serialized cards can only get opened in Collector Boosters.
Get Ready for Murders at Karlov Manor Prerelease
Leyline of the Guildpact | Illustration by Daarken
There you have it! The most expensive cards are high-powered commanders like Anzrag, the Quake-Mole and Delney, Streetwise Lookout. A new landfall staple, Undergrowth Recon and a new defender deck staple, The Pride of Hull Clade are also worth keeping an eye on since they may prove valuable to well-established strategies.
Do you need more information to prepare for Murders at Karlov Manor prerelease weekend? You can receive more updates about the set on the Draftsim Facebook page. Be sure to visit the Draftsim blog for the newest content on top Magic cards, deck-building guides, and so much more.
Until then, keep your magnifying glasses at the ready to solve the next Magic mystery!
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