The 16 Best Prismari Cards in Secrets of Strixhaven Ranked

Spectacular Skywhale | Illustration by Serena Malyon

The new year at Strixhaven has started and things are getting a little secretive. But a little pressure could be just what it takes to make your artistic talents bloom, so the Prismari school is doing just fine.

Prismari got a bunch of splashy new spells in Secrets of Strixhaven. Some of them use the new opus mechanic, and others are just great, with the potential to shake up Standard, Commander, and more.

What Are Prismari Cards in Secrets of Strixhaven?

Vibrant Outburst | Illustration by Eelis Kyttanen

Prismari cards have a blue-red or Izzet () color identity and generally focus on big, flashy spells. The new cards express this with the opus mechanic, which rewards you for casting big spells. In addition to the big instants and sorceries, Prismari has a handful of strong spellslinger payoffs and some promisingly flexible cards.

Best Reprints and Bonus Sheet Cards

#3. Prismari Command

Prismari Command might be the best of the flexible Commands—it’s certainly the strongest from Strixhaven. There are no bad options on a card that destroys your opponents’ stuff while improving your hand.

#2. Veyran, Voice of Duality

Veyran, Voice of Duality is both a popular spellslinger commander and one of the strongest spellslinger support cards in the game. The archetype often leans on permanents that trigger when you cast instants and sorceries like Third Path Iconoclast, Thousand-Year Storm, and Archmage Emeritus. Getting those triggers twice provides overwhelming value, and the effective double prowess text means Veyran is no slouch alone.

#1. Expressive Iteration

One of the strongest draw spells in the game, Expressive Iteration might have the perfect flavor text to express what it means to be an Izzet mage. It’s also very strong as a 2-mana draw two, an incredible rate made even better since you get the best two of three, a choice that’s always better than two random cards. It’s so strong that several formats have banned it.

Best New Cards

#13. Abstract Paintmage

Abstract Paintmage produces mana for instants and sorceries, but only during your main phase. Two mana is a lot, but the timing restriction is very real—this can’t help you to cast countermagic or draw spells on your opponents’ turn, which probably makes it worse than a generic rock. Still, jumping from 3 mana to 6 on the following turn is a large enough advantage to keep an eye on.

#12. Resonating Lute

Resonating Lute has potential as an explosive mana rock in instant and sorcery decks, though its high cost makes it a fundamentally casual card. It faces stiff competition in cards like Thran Dynamo and Relic of Sauron which have a smaller floor but… you know, they can help cast your commander.

#11. Sanar, Unfinished Genius

While prepared is a super cool mechanic, I only have eyes for the creature on Sanar, Unfinished Genius. Tap to make a Treasure accumulates incredible value over a long Commander game, but it also opens the door to infinite combos. Pair it with a Freed from the Real, for example, to generate infinite artifactfall triggers.

#10. Prismari, the Inspiration

Prismari, the Inspiration is an extremely impressive card but also rather expensive; bordering on too expensive, in fact. As a commander, it screams: “Hold a removal spell or just hit me before I win.” At 7 mana, you’re almost certainly casting this and hoping for it to survive a turn cycle; with a ward cost that doesn’t cost mana, that seems awfully ambitious.

#9. Zaffai and the Tempests

It’s impossible to look at Zaffai and the Tempests and not at least consider extra turn spells. You could theoretically take endless turns when it drops since you get a free spell right away. Looking past that, Izzet has ample big instants and sorceries worth casting for free—Aminatou's Augury, Rise of the Eldrazi, and Blatant Thievery come to mind. Since Zaffai lets you cast the big spell for free, it’s easier to hold up countermagic or cast a Fork effect. Zaffai’s high cost makes it a hard sell for high-powered Commander, but it’s pretty cool.

#8. Colorstorm Stallion

Scute Swarm was an unfettered designed mistake, but it has inspired pretty cool cards like Colorstorm Stallion. It’s a great way for a big instant or sorcery deck to establish a strong board presence without distracting much from the core gameplan; a threat in a single card at just 3 mana is worth considering.

#7. Inspired Skypainter

Inspired Skypainter has one of the easier prepared costs to meet and one of the more exciting prepared spells. Between the sorcery speed restriction and the requirement of creature tokens dealing damage to prepare this card, it probably doesn’t go infinite often like other red token makers, but it offers decent value and flare for the cost.

#6. Rapturous Moment

Rapturous Moment looks perfect for decks that cheat instants and sorceries into play with cards like Mizzix's Mastery or Omnispell Adept. If you can finagle a way to cast the spell at a reduced cost, it serves as an explosive ritual—not to mention a wonderful spell to copy.

#5. Splatter Technique

Splatter Technique is another fabulously flexible spell. The option of a draw four or small sweeper looks pretty enticing, though I worry it might be a little slow at 5 mana. Still, one of these in a control deck looks good. It’s also worth noting this damages planeswalkers as well as creatures, which is very useful—board wipes rarely hit the ‘walkers.

#4. Muddle, the Ever-Changing

Muddle, the Ever-Changing has remarkable potential as a commander. Copying creatures and giving myriad offers lots of enters value—I can’t wait to copy Mulldrifter—but Muddle can be a pretty nasty threat when it copies Izzet’s biggest creatures, like Ancient Copper Dragon and Bloodthirster. And there’s always the dream of Blightsteel Colossus….

#3. Rootha, Mastering the Moment

Rootha, Mastering the Moment looks like a stunning instant and sorcery commander that rewards you with aggressive power. It plays best with extra turns and combats to extract as many elemental tokens as possible, but I appreciate the idea of a commander that spits out threats alongside a ramp plan for Aminatou's Augury to overwhelm your opponents with multiple threats.

#2. Traumatic Critique

I love a flexible removal spell, and Traumatic Critique fits that perfectly. The removal portion is sketchy—3 mana to pop an X/1—but the card draw gives it just enough oomph. Since X can always be 0, the floor is a 2-mana draw two, discard one. That’s a playable card, if unexciting outside specific contexts, and the scaling gives it some teeth—literally since it can burn your opponent.

#1. Prismari Charm

Prismari Charm is a tidy little removal spell. The two removal modes cover for each other: The bounce mode handles anything the burn can’t deal with, including noncreature permanents. Should those modes become irrelevant, the cantrip mode digs for a more relevant card while incidentally filling the graveyard.

Wrap Up

Inspired Skypainter | Illustration by April Prime

Prismari fared pretty well this set. The ceiling looks much lower than it was in Strixhaven: School of Mages—none of the cards stand out as impressive staples on par with Prismari Command or Expressive Iteration, though maybe Magic doesn’t need a redux of those. Still, I love what Wizards has done with opus and look forward to jamming Prismari Charm in Standard, Cube, and probably more formats.

What do you think of the Prismari cards? Are you happy with how Wizards treated them? Let me know in the comments below! For more Secrets of Strixhaven coverage, check out The Daily Upkeep, Draftsim’s YouTube Channel!

Stay safe, and thanks for reading!