All 7 Rakdos Planeswalkers in Magic Ranked

Ob Nixilis, the Adversary | Illustration by Yongjae Choi

Rakdos is the color pair most tied to its origins in Ravnica and the evocative pain circus motif of that guild. Its few planeswalkers are no exception, embodying the Rakdos ethos regardless of plane or character on the cards.

Rakdos decks often have low curves with the few expensive slots reserved for giant flying demons, usually named “Rakdos”, so a planeswalker has to be pretty special to find a home in Rakdosian strategies.

The good news is that there are some doozies on this list. Let’s dispense with the chaff as we get to the Allure of the Unknown and climb the list of every Rakdos planeswalker!

What Are Rakdos Planeswalkers in MTG?

Angrath, the Flame-Chained | Illustration by Raymond Swanland

Rakdos planeswalkers are cards with a red and black color identity where at least one side is a planeswalker. They specialize in disruptive abilities like discard, removal, and sacrifice.

#7. Angrath, Captain of Chaos

A lowly uncommon walker from War of the Spark, Angrath, Captain of Chaos barely did enough in that Draft format! It finds a thematic home in amass decks like Mauhúr, Uruk-hai Captain, but who actual plays that deck?

#6. Angrath, Minotaur Pirate

Angrath, Minotaur Pirate would be underwhelming if it cost half for what it does. No one wants to pay 6 for a nerfed Blazing Volley, which you have to activate three times to get to the ultimate here. The minus ability to Zombify a pirate is theoretically playable in Admiral Becket Brass decks, but it’s a sad flavor concession.

#5. Sarkhan the Mad

If you never heard of Sarkhan the Mad, it’s because it’s terrible. For 5 mana you get card draw that ticks it down or can convert tokens into a dragon, but you have no way to increase its loyalty. The joke on Sarkhan the Mad is a nice piece of thematic design, as he’s mad and this subverts the ways planeswalkers are designed. This ultimate is possible right away, and it allows you to eliminate one player at an EDH table with enough dragons out.

Except if you have enough dragons out for that, you should win anyway, and the more cards like Sarkhan that aren't dragons or ramp, the harder it is for your Karrthus, Tyrant of Jund deck to go off.

#4. Angrath, the Flame-Chained

Ready for a good card? So am I! But first we’re going to talk about the “best” of the Angrath cards. Angrath, the Flame-Chained is nice in Limited. It comes down and steals and sacs on its own, which is fine as a removal spell that leaves a rectangle. The 2 damage can add up if they don’t have an answer.

But this isn’t where Constructed formats are at unless it’s Budget Commander, which loves the bulk rare price point.

#3. Daretti, Ingenious Iconoclast

Not a great version of Daretti, but Daretti, Ingenious Iconoclast has its uses. Three mana is a great spot for a planeswalker, and Daretti has a home in decks with artifact tokens. You can tick it down for efficient removal or join the token blitz for an awesome ultimate. It takes three turns of upticking for the ultimate, but that’s doable with enough blockers.

So this sees play in Breya, Etherium Shaper decks, especially in Duel Commander. In regular EDH, Shattergang Brothers, Jan Jansen, Chaos Crafter, and Imskir Iron-Eater are all happy homes.

#2. Ob Nixilis, the Adversary

This card was revealed with a splash of attention, with folks trying to figure what it would take to ultimate the Ob Nixilis, the Adversary copy the turn you cast it to get the Griselbrand effect. It went on to a reasonable, but not amazing career in Standard. It largely shows up as a role player, a sideboard card for Pioneer sac decks, a piece of Jundy cEDH decks, an option for every Rakdos sac deck in Commander, and a really nice addition to Mardu energy in Timeless to flip Ajani, Nacatl Pariah.

All of that feels like we could get somewhere with this card. For example, a few bans could get us a playable Pioneer format again, and Ob plus Monoist Sentry seems tempting, if janky and likely terrible.

There is a meta where this card will be amazing. We just don’t have that meta anywhere. But, as with Mulder’s poster, I want to believe.

#1. Valki, God of Lies / Tibalt, Cosmic Impostor

A card so potentially oppressive they changed the rules of cascade for it, Tibalt broke multiple formats so fast it got press in Forbes!

Valki, God of Lies / Tibalt, Cosmic Impostor still shows up in cEDH decks, especially those in Grixis, like Kefka, Court Mage. It’s also a part of Pioneer decks built around Niv-Mizzet Reborn.

As a commander on its own, Valki largely helms a deck built to be the bad guy at the table, with a ton of cards like Gonti, Lord of Luxury. And as an EDH card, it’s fine in many decks.

The story of Valki is largely the story of the card in Cube. This card gets better in a high-powered format, as casting the back side gets more and more reasonable, while the front side is great early disruption, like a Deep-Cavern Bat with the added upside of stealing the identity of Esper Sentinel or Ragavan, Nimble Pilferer pretty easily.

Best Rakdos Planeswalker Payoffs

Almost all of payoffs for these cards are in the sacrifice space. There’s the steal and sac space of Angrath, the Flame-Chained. There’s the sac for value space of Daretti, Ingenious Iconoclast. And there’s the sacrifice for burn and damage space of Ob Nixilis, the Adversary. Each of these spaces can have dedicated decks, but there’s some overlap, and often a Blood Artist effect or two is a common addition as a wincon.

Wrap Up

Daretti, Ingenious Iconoclast | Illustration by Victor Adame Minguez

Few of these cards go in traditional Rakdos style decks, but will instead be utility options in other decks that cross the color pair, like Grixis or Jund or Mardu. Hopefully this is not a list to Bedevil you but aid in thinking through ideas in those spaces.

Which Rakdos planeswalkers do you run, and in which decks and formats? What do you want to see from future Rakdos planeswalkers, and do you want to see returning characters or new ones? Let me know in the comments below or over on the Draftsim Discord. And check out The Daily Upkeep newsletter to stay up to date on the latest Magic news.

Happy brewing!