The 42 Best Planeswalker Search and Tutor Cards in Magic

Last updated on November 3, 2023

Arena Rector | Illustration by Ryan Pancoast

Planeswalkers are the face of modern Magic. From Jace, the Mind Sculptor to Tibalt, the Fiend-Blooded, these iconic heroes and villains vary in power level and historical impact. What’s better than finding your planeswalker with one of your draws? Tutoring for your planeswalker, of course!

How can you do that, and which cards give you the best bang for your mana? No need to scour the planes, I’ve got your answers right here!

What Are Planeswalker Tutors in MTG?

Urza's Sylex | Illustration by Joseph Meehan

A “planeswalker search card,” or planeswalker tutor, finds a planeswalker from your library and either puts it into your hand or onto the battlefield. I’m differentiating the cards on this list from generic search effects like Demonic Tutor or Gamble.

This list is populated by objectively weaker planeswalker deck rares that fetch up a specific planeswalker. These cards were intentionally designed to be on the weak side to avoid disrupting any Constructed formats. They make up the bulk of the list, but there’s a few diamonds hiding in the rough.

Best White Planeswalker Tutors

#10. Elspeth’s Devotee

There are two things to look at when evaluating these planeswalker deck rares: how useful is the actual effect of the card you’re casting, and how good is the intro deck planeswalker that it fetches?

Elspeth's Devotee fails the first check being nothing more than a Hill Giant on board. Its companion planeswalker, Elspeth, Undaunted Hero, isn’t too bad, with a +2 ability that grows your board, a -2 that puts a Sunlit Hoplite into play, and a cool -8 that can actually close out a game if you get there.

#9. Goldmane Griffin

Goldmane Griffin doesn’t fare much better, even if it is one of the few white tutors that can dig into the graveyard. Flying and vigilance don’t make up for the underwhelming body, but following up with Ajani, Inspiring Leader isn’t terrible.

This planeswalker can either gain some life and grow a creature or remove a threat from the board. The -10 can end the game, but you probably won’t get that far.

#8. Basri’s Aegis

From this point forward I’ll be brief about the intro deck rares unless they do something unique or interesting. Basri's Aegis is a Gird for Battle for four times the cost, and Basri, Devoted Paladin doesn’t distribute nearly enough counters to justify its mana cost.

#7. Gideon’s Battle Cry

Gideon's Battle Cry costs twice as much as Basri's Solidarity, and Gideon, the Oathsworn isn’t worth the extra mana. It’s a combat-oriented planeswalker with a decent passive and -9 ability, but it does little to protect itself from attackers.

#6. Gideon’s Resolve

Gideon's Resolve leaves behind an anthem while searching for Gideon, Martial Paragon. This planeswalker’s +2 ability is somewhat useful, allowing you to double up on tap abilities.

#5. Call the Gatewatch

Call the Gatewatch is the first generic planeswalker search effect on the list, and it sets a baseline for what to expect from tutors like this. It’s not the most efficient tutor in the world, but it does exactly what you need it to do.

#4. Ignite the Beacon

Why settle for searching up just one planeswalker when Ignite the Beacon lets you search up two? It’s pricey, but it can help find the right walkers for the situation in decks with a toolbox of different planeswalkers.

#3. Djeru, With Eyes Open

Djeru, With Eyes Open combines the effect of Call the Gatewatch with a passive ability that makes it harder to kill your planeswalkers. Keep your eyes open for this one if you’re building a superfriends deck.

#2. Urza’s Sylex

Urza's Sylex is part planeswalker tutor, part Nevinyrral's Disk. It helps to clear the board, punishes the ramp players who are way ahead on lands, and leaves you up a planeswalker in your hand.

#1. Arena Rector

Arena Rector is a planeswalker-focused callback to Academy Rector. It lets you plop a planeswalker of your choice directly into play, you just have to wait for it to die first.

Best Blue Planeswalker Tutors

#6. Teferi’s Wavecaster

Teferi's Wavecaster is a do-nothing creature, and flash doesn’t really add much to the card. It’s hard to be mad at a planeswalker that plusses to draw cards, but Teferi, Timeless Voyager isn’t enough to make me want to put Wavecaster in my deck.

#5. Yanling’s Harbinger

The only thing going for Yanling's Harbinger is flying. The creature has laughably bad stats, and Mu Yanling, Celestial Wind is a flop of a planeswalker.

#4. Ral’s Dispersal

Ral's Dispersal charges you five mana for an Unsummon and then searches up one of the weakest planeswalkers on this list. Ral, Caller of Storms might be worth talking about if it cost three or four mana, but these abilities are embarrassing for a 6-mana walker.

#3. Jace’s Ruse

Jace's Ruse helps you to find Jace, Arcane Strategist on top of bouncing two creatures. It’s another 6-mana planeswalker that draws an extra card each turn, and it gives you extra +1/+1 counters here and there.

#2. Rhythmic Water Vortex

This effect looks awfully familiar. Where have I seen it before?

Rhythmic Water Vortex temporarily removes two threats and then fetches up Mu Yanling. They have a fine set of abilities, but nothing that comes together as a solid game plan.

#1. Grasping Current

Okay, this effect is starting to look very familiar. Grasping Current gets the nod here for being slightly easier to cast than the previous two cards. Jace, Ingenious Mind-Mage is somewhat playable in decks that want extra ways to untap their creatures.

Best Black Planeswalker Tutors

#4. Vraska’s Scorn

Vraska's Scorn has my vote for the worst of the intro deck rares. It has no effect on the board, and it doesn’t even curve into Vraska, Scheming Gorgon. Vraska has one of the weakest +2 abilities you can put on a 6-mana planeswalker, but the other abilities aren’t too bad.

#3. Sorin’s Guide

You don’t need me to tell you that five mana for a 4/2 isn’t a good deal. As bad as Sorin's Guide is, the ultimate on Sorin, Vampire Lord is cool enough that I could see myself jamming this in a super casual vampire tribal deck.

#2. Liliana’s Scorn

The intro deck rares that double up as removal spells are a half-step better than the ones that leave behind under-statted bodies. Liliana's Scorn is still too expensive for what it does, and Liliana, Death Mage is just a mess of boring abilities.

#1. Liliana’s Influence

Liliana's Influence is perhaps the best intro deck rare, shrinking all your opponents’ creatures at once. This and Liliana, Death Wielder have a place in decks focused on -1/-1 counters.

I’ve seen the pair pop up in Hapatra, Vizier of Poisons and Volrath, the Shapestealer decks.

Best Red Planeswalker Tutors

#5. Rowan’s Stalwarts

5/2 for five isn’t much better than 4/2 for five, so I’d say Rowan's Stalwarts is just about as unimpressive as Sorin's Guide. Rowan, Fearless Sparkmage has an Insurrection tied to its ultimate ability, but good luck keeping it alive long enough to use it.

#4. Chandra’s Outburst

They sure loved printing new Chandra cards in these intro decks.

Chandra's Outburst is the first and overall weakest of the bunch since the damage effect can’t hit creatures. I don’t mind Chandra, Bold Pyromancer in decks that can keep the board clear and have a use for extra red mana.

#3. Chandra’s Firemaw

Chandra, Flame's Catalyst is another planeswalker I don’t mind for casual Commander games, but I’m not playing Chandra's Firemaw to search for it.

#2. Liberating Combustion

Liberating Combustion has the same “kill a creature, fetch a walker” design as Liliana's Scorn, but Chandra, Pyrogenius is a lousy card. Neither half is worth the cost, even if you pick up the planeswalker for free.

#1. Chandra’s Flame Wave

Chandra's Flame Wave is the best of the Chandra tutors for two reasons.

First, Pyroclasm effects against one player can be situationally strong. Second, “Chandra’s Flame Wave” sounds like a sweet amusement park ride. Chandra, Flame's Fury can plus to throw around Shocks, but it’s held back by that 6-mana casting cost.

Best Green Planeswalker Tutors

#5. Ethereal Elk

Ethereal Elk continues the trend of weak creatures fetching up weak planeswalkers. Vivien, Nature's Avenger can grow a single threat quickly or find other creatures to play, but it starts off with shockingly low loyalty.

#4. Garruk’s Warsteed

The creature half of Garruk's Warsteed is at least better than Ethereal Elk, which isn’t saying much. Garruk, Savage Herald doesn’t add much to the picture with two main abilities that might have no effect at all.

#3. Verdant Crescendo

Think of Verdant Crescendo as an Explosive Vegetation that replaces one of the lands with Nissa, Nature's Artisan. This is an extremely vulnerable planeswalker that gains some life and maybe ramps.

I’d rather have the second basic land from Vegetation.

#2. Nissa’s Encouragement

Nissa's Encouragement is technically a 3-for-1, but the individual pieces aren’t that exciting. You get a Forest and a Brambleweft Behemoth, which is just Colossal Dreadmaw in disguise. Nissa, Genesis Mage offers a powerful +2 and -10 ability, but seven mana is a steep casting cost.

#1. Journey for the Elixir

The best reason I can think of to play Journey for the Elixir is that you desperately want to make the Mowu token that Jiang Yanggu creates. Journey’s a clean 2-for-1 so it’s hard to be too down on it, but it doesn’t stand a chance compared to the average Cultivate or Kodama's Reach.

Best Multicolored Planeswalker Tutors

#12. Niambi, Faithful Healer

Niambi, Faithful Healer is yet another French vanilla creature that searches up a mediocre Teferi planeswalker. Teferi, Timebender isn’t the worst planeswalker here, but it’s far from the best.

#11. Sun-Blessed Mount

The only reason I like Sun-Blessed Mount is because playing it on turn 5 perfectly sets up Huatli, Dinosaur Knight on turn 6. I played this combo of cards in Brawl when Ixalan was released, but there are enough dinosaurs in Magic that I don’t see it having a place in Commander.

#10. Oko’s Hospitality

Oko is a name that strikes fear in the hearts of Magic players. Of course, that has nothing to do with Oko's Hospitality. It’s a strange Overrun variant that finds Oko, the Trickster.

It’s no Oko, Thief of Crowns, but the 0 ability is at least something unique for an intro deck planeswalker.

#9. Domri’s Nodorog

Domri's Nodorog is trying its hardest to be a relevant creature, but it’s still a miss in Commander. Domri, City Smasher has relevant abilities, but I’m a broken record and must you warn against that initial 6-mana casting cost.

#8. Ashiok’s Forerunner

Ashiok's Forerunner somehow manages to be a worse Teferi's Wavecaster, and that’s not a great place to be. Ashiok, Sculptor of Fears is close being a decent card but it just barely misses.

The +2 to draw a card every turn is fine, but not being able to -5 right away is a huge knock against it.

#7. Ajani’s Aid

I’ve played Ajani, Valiant Protector in a Commander deck before, but I didn’t include Ajani's Aid. The enchantment offers a small amount of utility, but it’s a telegraphed trick that’s easy to play around.

The Ajani planeswalker is nothing special, but it provides repeated card advantage for Selesnya () creature decks that lack card draw.

#6. Vraska’s Stoneglare

Six mana is a hard sell for single-target removal, and the extra life gained by Vraska's Stoneglare hardly makes up for it. Vraska, Regal Gorgon is a fairly generic planeswalker, and it feels like it’s missing the “you win the game” ultimate seen on most other Vraska cards.

#5. Dovin’s Dismissal

Dovin's Dismissal manages to be one of the worst removal spells on this list, targeting only tapped creatures. But I’ve found Dovin, Architect of Law somewhat useful for my personal planeswalker deck, keeping singular threats off my back while keeping my hand full and my life total healthy.

#4. Visage of Bolas

Visage of Bolas is the perfect card for the Nicol Bolas die-hards out there. It’s an over-costed mana rock and Nicol Bolas, the Deceiver is fairly bad. Some players do build Nicol Bolas themed decks, so this a must-have for them.

#3. Tezzeret’s Betrayal

Tezzeret's Betrayal is a multicolor Liliana's Scorn that fetches up Tezzeret, Master of Metal. It’s an artifact payoff planeswalker that’s a step down from nearly every other Tezzeret planeswalker.

#2. Angrath’s Fury

Angrath's Fury clears a creature out of the way and deals three damage, making it the best of the “point-and-click” removal spells on the list. I’d consider Angrath, Minotaur Pirate for only the most dedicated pirate Commander decks, and even there it’s not likely to make the cut.

#1. Samut, the Tested

Samut, the Tested can throw around double strike or Forked Bolts, but the planeswalker tutor effect is tied to a -7 ultimate. Samut’s not great at protecting itself, so it’s unlikely you’ll ever get to the double tutor effect.

Best Planeswalker Tutor Payoffs

Superfriends

Superfriends is the nickname given to decks with a heavy planeswalker theme. It makes sense that your Commander deck full of cool and interesting planeswalkers would want a few ways to tutor for them.

Of course, most of the tutors on this list are tied to specific B-rate planeswalkers. You can consider playing its companion spell if one of them makes the cut.

Vorthos Decks

I’ve played enough Commander to know that some people just really like certain characters, and sometimes that’s enough for them to build an entire deck as an homage to that character.

I’ve seen “Jace tribal” decks featuring both Jace, Arcane Strategist and Jace, Ingenious Mind-Mage. I’ve played against entire Nicol Bolas themed decks running every Bolas planeswalker in existence. I personally have a “Chandra tribal” deck that’s running multiple “bad” planeswalker deck exclusives. They’re not enough to make me want cards like Chandra's Firemaw or Chandra's Outburst in my deck, but I wouldn’t knock someone else for trying them.

Your Search Is Over

Journey for the Elixir | Illustration by Qiu De En

This list ended up being about 90% fluff and filler intro deck cards and about 10% solid generic planeswalker tutors. It’s not an effect that’s been explored very heavily in Magic, so you might need to stick to universal tutors for the time being.

Hopefully you found something useful on the list that you might not have known about. Do you use any of these planeswalker tutors, especially the intro deck rares? Let me know in the comments below or over in the official Draftsim Discord.

Thank you for making Draftsim your #1 stop for all things Magic!