The 21 Best Black Cards in Reality Fracture Ranked

Way of the Deathbringer | Illustration by Joshua Raphael

Hello planeswalkers! It’s time again for a new set, and this one aims to flip things on their head. Reality Fracture is a kind of “what if” universe, and the climax of the Echoverse Arc. This alternate universe is created by Jace Beleren as an escape from the suffering that came from the Eldrazi, Phyrexians, and even Nicol Bolas. This set and its Commander deck will mix up color strategies for many iconic characters and play styles.

There are going to be a ton of interesting new cards, interactions, and strategies when mixing up color identities. Today, let’s look at just one of those identities: black cards in Reality Fracture. What kind of reprints will this set bring back, and what direction are they going to take the color? Let’s find out about this new reality.

What Are Black Cards in Reality Fracture?

Mabel, Bitter Recluse | Illustration by Matt Stewart

We are going to be looking at cards with the mono-black color identity in the Reality Fracture set and its Commander precon. These rankings won’t include multicolor cards that contain black, only mono-black cards.

Best Reprints and Bonus Sheet Cards

#3. Archfiend of Despair

Not as good of a reanimation target as Archon of Cruelty below, but Archfiend of Despair is still a big demon that limits some strategies. Restricting lifegain while taking life is a potent combo that can round out some games. This Archfiend can put a ton of pressure on a table in a multiplayer game, as is the case with most Wound Reflection effects.

#2. Dreadhorde Invasion

Enchantments that give you little upsides each turn can turn into massive payoffs over the course of a game. Dreadhorde Invasion is a classic black enchantment from War of the Spark that amasses a zombie army (one token, not a go-wide board presence) each turn and gives you a great payoff for having big zombie tokens. Build them up with this enchantment or boost a zombie-token strategy around other cards like Necroduality.

#1. Archon of Cruelty

One of the top-tier reanimator targets is Archon of Cruelty. The list of interactions that happen when this card enters makes it an excellent target for reanimation and flicker effects. Get this Archon into the graveyard quickly, and with some Zombify effects, you can rack up the advantages.

Best New Cards

#18. Extrapolate the Impossible

Any card that lets you look outside the game can have incredible value. Extrapolate the Impossible is a 2-mana spell that lets you choose two cards, and an opponent chooses which is the most threatening to them. The cards have to have different names (so no doubling up to get what you want), but you can load your sideboard with cards that create massive advantages and let your opponent sweat their decision.

#17. Terminal Criticism

You have to love a great sideboard card that can create a ton of upside. Terminal Criticism is a blue or red creature/planeswalker removal spell for 2 mana. Slot this in a sideboard and bring it out to remove those pesky Izzet threats!

#16. Darklight Phoenix

Many phoenix cards are great for their self-reanimation anad aggresion. Darklight Phoenix is another addition to this creature type and theme. If you can sacrifice at least two creatures before combat, you can bring this card back and continue to swing on opponents. This is a great card for discarding, and its requirement to reanimate is quite reasonable.

#15. Jhoira, Weatherlight Corsair

Jhoira, Weatherlight Corsair is a historic permanent theft card. With its text-heavy ETB and attack trigger, you can steal a historic permanent (artifact, legendary, or saga) from the top of an opponent’s library. Seeing as historic cards are quite common, it’s a great gamble for a huge payoff. The only real downsides are the lack of historic cards in certain decks and the lost life points. Worth the upside, I think.

#14. Way of the Deathbringer

The “Way of the…” legendary enchantments are all quite good and should make immediate splashes. Way of the Deathbringer can add a sacrifice outlet for your planeswalkers that produces a 4/4 beast token on top of any aristocratic interactions. This can be killer with a creature like Infestation Sage to make two beast tokens eventually, repeatable sacrifices with a card like Forsaken Miner, or with token doublers like Anointed Procession.

#13. Winter, Tormented Loner

Winter, Tormented Loner can create a nice asymmetrical sacrifice and become a massive threat based on your graveyard. At 3 mana, you can establish a weenie creature token or sacrificable creature like Stitcher's Supplier to force each opponent to hopefully make a tough decision. After the ETB effect, graveyard fillers and general gameplay will make this edict creature a large threat.

#12. Avacyn, Angel of Horror

Avacyn, Angel of Horror is a large angel of horror! This version of Avacyn brings back all of your creatures that die at the beginning of the next end step. The effect also protects this card, ensuring that your creatures are returned each turn after combat damage and nonexile removal. The cost is large, but once on the battlefield, this angel can make combat, aristocratic triggers, and ETB triggers quite difficult for your opponents.

#11. Vraska’s Final Mercy

Vraska's Final Mercy is not the best black removal out there, but it will definitely have value, especially in singleton formats. Removal for any creature or planeswalker is especially valuable. Forget the loss of life and look at the upsides of removing a major threat or creating an empowered Jace planeswalker token for an effective price.

#10. Garruk, Veiled Butcher

Garruk, Veiled Butcher is the black echoed pair planeswalker to Garruk, Curse Breaker. This darker version looks to exile dying creatures, cripple an opponent’s blocker, and tie into sacrifice and discard. A planeswalker that can use any loyalty ability right out of the gate will usually change a game in a variety of ways.

#9. Rise of the Deathbringer

Rise of the Deathbringer has a ton of potential to alter games in an instant. And that’s the huge upside of this card: its instant speed. You can get a massive card draw, or seriously remove a ton of creature threats all on an opponent’s end step. This card is limited by interaction and bigger creatures on the board, but the versatility of its speed makes it so enticing.

#8. Gideon the Oathless

Gideon the Oathless is a great new black card for the noncreature decks that splash black. It constantly pings opponents for casting creatures or activating loyalty abilities of planeswalkers. You can gain a serious advantage by asymmetrically pinging opponents while letting your noncreature, nonplaneswalker strategies control games.

#7. Rewrite Regrets

Rewrite Regrets is a great reanimation sorcery that only has a slightly annoying restriction. You can’t return the absolute game breakers like Atraxa, Grand Unifier or Ardyn, the Usurper, but even getting a Sire of Insanity two turns ahead of schedule is a killer strategy. The Jace planeswalker token adds a bit of value to weigh out the restriction.

#6. Liliana the Repentant

Liliana the Repentant is an interesting graveyard engine, especially to support planeswalkers. You get a ton of self-mill through creatures and planeswalkers entering, and an ability to reanimate one of those creatures or planeswalkers with this card’s exhaust ability. This can be an interesting support card for planeswalkers like Grist, the Hunger Tide, Liliana, Death's Majesty, or Tezzeret, Master of the Bridge.

#5. Tinybones, Pocket Nuisance

Tinybones, Pocket Nuisance is a nice new addition to the discard theme. One of the big downsides of discard is that it loses its teeth sometimes when card draw outruns it. You need some Megrim effects, and Tinybones can bring that to multiple players. This can be a great payoff for multiplayer discard cards like Junji, the Midnight Sky.

#4. Sanctum Lurker

Sanctum Lurker should have an insane result immediately! This cheap creature makes it so planeswalkers don’t die when their loyalty points hit zero. Essentially removing the threat of combat damage to your planeswalkers should unlock all the interactions and combos for your greatest heroes/villians. Add a +2 loyalty ability to siphon life and gain loyalty points for your planeswalkers, and you have a crazy good card for superfriend decks.

#3. Overwrite the Multiverse

Overwrite the Multiverse is an exiling board wipe that gives you a Jace planeswalker token on the back end. I love that you can clear the board of creatures and have some surveil or card draw through the Jace planeswalker token to recover faster than opponents. Six mana for an exile board wipe and a planeswalker token is a great price for this level of control.

#2. Bloodline Recollector

Another vampiric addition to aristocrat decks. Bloodline Recollector gives a huge Insatiable Avarice-like draw advantage when three or more creatures die in a turn. This all could be done through removal, aggressive combat swings, or aristocratic effects. Heck, it can even be a final stroke if an opponent has 3 or fewer life.

#1. Way of the Necromancer

A way to create a planeswalker token and an incredibly easy way to pump all planeswalkers: Way of the Necromancer, holy smokes. It is a bonkers idea to think you can pump the loyalty points of each of your planeswalkers whenever a creature you control dies. You have sacrifice, removal, and combat upsides every turn. Incredible!

Wrap Up

Vraska's Final Mercy | Illustration by Magali Villeneuve

That's all for this quick look at a single color identity in the Reality Fracture releases. Overall, I thought black did quite well here. The power level and upsides of many of these black cards compare well to the other color identities in the sets. They'll find themselves in some superfriend decks for sure, and they should make for a good color in Limited events.

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Stay safe, and mix up your strategies in Reality Fracture.