Myriad in MTG: Rules, History, and Best Cards

Last updated on February 27, 2026

Battle Angels of Tyr | Illustration by Fajareka Setiawan

Today I’m covering the myriad mechanic. This is one of those mechanics specifically created and designed for multiplayer formats.

I’ll cover myriad’s rules, go over some notable cards with myriad, and explain how the mechanic shines with a Commander deck built around it.

Ready? Set? Go!

How Does Myriad Work?

Legion Loyalty | Illustration by Aaron J. Riley

Whenever a creature with myriad attacks an opponent, you create a token copy of the myriad creature that's tapped and attacking each other opponent. This reduces some of the downside of attacking one player in a multiplayer format like Commander.

No one is safe with myriad creatures around, and politics won’t save you from being attacked.

The History of Myriad in MTG

Myriad was created in Commander 2015 where it appeared on a few cards, notably Blade of Selves. The mechanic was liked enough to appear in Commander Legends: Battle for Baldur’s Gate in 2022.

Myriad has since made “guest appearances” in the following sets:

• Bloomburrow Commander
• Modern Horizons 3 Commander
• Ravnica: Clue Edition
• The Lost Caverns of Ixalan Commander
• Doctor Who
• Modern Horizons 3 Commander
• Bloomburrow Commander
• Tarkir: Dragonstorm Commander
• Lorwyn Eclipsed Commander

When Battle for Baldur's Gate was ported to Magic Arena, many of the multiplayer mechanics had to be reworked for Alchemy Horizons: Baldur's Gate. Myriad didn't make sense in a 1v1 environment, so it was repurposed into the digital-only double team mechanic, which captured the feel of myriad well enough.

Since it’s a multiplayer mechanic, myriad won’t appear in every set, just supplementary sets made to play in large groups, like the Conspiracy and Commander sets. Mechanics like encore, which was released with the original Commander Legends and is similar to myriad, show that there’s design space to do these types of mechanics that work best in multiplayer instead of the traditional 1v1.

Do You Have to Attack Everyone with Myriad?

Everything about the myriad mechanic is optional. But since the downside is minimal, you should attack everyone anyway. The reminder text on myriad says you “may” create a token for each opponent.

Sometimes you don’t want to attack a certain opponent because they have (for example) a lifelink blocker that‘ll gain them some life, or a death trigger on a permanent that they can use. There are situations where you don’t want to attack a particular player because you’ll lose life if you do, or they have a creature they'd rather block with and send to the graveyard.

What Happens if You Only Have One Opponent Left?

Myriad states that you create a copy of the creature for each opponent other than the defending player, so if there are no other players than you and the defending player, no copies are created. You can’t just create tokens of creatures based on the starting number of opponents, only how many are still in the game.

Can You Attack a Planeswalker Using Myriad?

You can definitely attack a planeswalker with a myriad creature, as mentioned in the reminder text.

What if There’s Equipment or Counters on Your Myriad Creature?

A myriad copy has all the characteristics of the original creature, including “until end of turn” abilities. But any counters, auras, or equipment the creature may have aren’t copied, only the intrinsic properties of the myriad creature.

Do Myriad Tokens Count as “Declaring Attackers?”

Only the original myriad creature is declared as the attacker during the declare attacker step. The other copies are attacking, but did not declare an attack. Similar rulings apply to Den of the Bugbear, which creates a 1/1 creature that’s also attacking.

Therefore, myriad tokens do not trigger attack triggers.

Do Myriad Tokens Trigger ETB effects?

Since you create tokens that are copies of the attacking creature, relevant ETBs will still happen when the tokens enter the battlefield.

Do Myriad Tokens Trigger Death Triggers?

Myriad tokens are exiled at the end of the turn and, in that case, don’t trigger death triggers.

But if they die in combat, or are killed before the end of turn, then myriad tokens do trigger death triggers.

Does Myriad Trigger “Attacks Alone” or Not?

As long as the creature with myriad is the only creature declared as an attacking creature, “attacks alone” triggers like exalted will trigger. However, that only applies to triggers that happens when you declare an attack. Some cards require that a creature be “attacking alone,” which will no longer be true once the myriad tokens enter the battlefield attacking. So myriad would let exalted trigger, but a Yuan-Ti Malison with myriad wouldn't be unblockable due to its first ability.

Can a Creature Have Myriad Twice?

Yes, multiple instances of myriad stack and trigger separately. If you put a Blade of Selves on a creature that already has myriad, you'll make two copies attacking each other opponent. Scurry of Squirrels even has two instances of myriad printed on the card.

How Does Myriad Work in 1v1 Magic?

Nothing happens with myriad creatures in 1v1 Magic since you only have one opponent. You can just ignore the text on the card. The only exception would be a card with rules text like “each creature with myriad has flying” since it has to do with the myriad keyword, not how many opponents you have. There aren't any cards that interact with myriad in this way.

Myriad vs. Encore

Encore is a mechanic that plays in a very similar space to myriad, with certain differences.

The encore cost can only be paid if the creature is in the graveyard, and the tokens created to attack are sacrificed at the end step. Myriad works from the battlefield, not the graveyard, and the tokens are exiled at the end of combat instead of sacrificed on end step. That means encore copies could participate in extra combats, but myriad tokens could not.

Is Myriad Good?

Myriad does its job well in a multiplayer format like Commander, depending on the incentives you have for attacking. It works well with tokens strategies, ETB and leaves-the-battlefield effects, and generally adds more pressure to all opponents. It also works well with Dimir () style decks that have evasion and do something when dealing combat damage to a player.

Myriad is truly useless in heads-up Magic, which is probably a benefit since the cards were never tested or intended for Constructed 1v1 Magic.

Gallery and List of Myriad Cards

Cards with Myriad:

• Auton Soldier
• Banshee of the Dread Choir
• Battle Angels of Tyr
• Broodbirth Viper
• Caller of the Pack
• Chittering Dispatcher
• Conclave Evangelist
• Cybermen Squadron
• Dalek Squadron
• Elturel Survivors
• Genasi Enforcers
• Gnoll War Band
• Goldlust Triad
• Hammers of Moradin
• Herald of the Host
• Polygofy
• Scion of Calamity
• Scurry of Squirrels
• Sumala Rumblers
• Tabaxi Toucaneers
• The Master, Multiplied
• Tiamat's Fanatics
• Warchief Giant
• Wizards of Thay
• Wyrm's Crossing Patrol

Cards That Grant Myriad to Other Cards

• Auton Soldier
• Blade of Selves
• Corporeal Projection
• Cybermen Squadron
• Duke Ulder Ravengard
• Firbolg Flutist
• Ironwill Forger
• Legion Loyalty
• Mass of Mysteries

Notable Myriad Cards

Blade of Selves

Equipping a creature and giving it myriad is a very nice effect, and it combos with a lot of different stuff. The extra nice thing is that Blade of Selves can go into any Commander deck that needs a myriad card.

Battle Angels of Tyr

Battle Angels of Tyr is a 4/4 creature with flying, which is a good rate for a creature you'd put in your white decks. And it has a “whenever it deals combat damage” ability which goes nicely with myriad. You'll get to draw cards, make Treasure, or gain life, and the three effects can happen all at once.

Legion Loyalty

All your creatures have myriad! Granted, Legion Loyalty costs 8 mana and can be disrupted. But imagine laying this card down and attacking with four or five creatures.

Not to mention that myriad can be copied, so if your creatures already had myriad, the triggers happen twice.

Cybermen Squadron

Legion Loyalty on a stick! Cybermen Squadron‘s 5/5 body matters quite a bit, and is a lot easier to cast than , above all with artifact ramp and tricks like Master Transmuter.

The Master, Multiplied

The Master, Multiplied is sort of like a “myriad commander” since it lets your temporary tokens stick around. It can get out of hand on its own, but it also combines with token-making effects like Flameshadow Conjuring and Heat Shimmer, so there's more you can do with it beyond just myriad.

Scurry of Squirrels

Scurry of Squirrels was the first creature to have multiple instances of myriad in its rules text. The ability stacks, and it was possible to get this going with Blade of Selves and some others before, but it's still a neat game design trick that I'm sure we'll see again in the future.

Decklist: Duke Ulder Ravengard in Commander

Duke Ulder Ravengard | Illustration by Eric Deschamps

I decided to go with a commander that gives everybody out there haste and myriad, which is Duke Ulder Ravengard. The interesting thing about the Duke is that it affects the combat step when it enters, and each creature you cast after that can potentially have haste and myriad (although only one at a time). You want some creatures that are impactful with good ETB triggers, attack triggers, and if possible, LTB triggers to maximize “myriadness.”

Besides everything you’d expect from a Boros () commander (removal, sweepers, mana fixing, etc.), I also put an extra package of creatures that are good with haste and myriad. Another thing to watch out for is that if you grant a creature myriad with cards like Blade of Selves or Legion Loyalty alongside Duke’s myriad granting ability, the creature will have twice the myriad.

The deck’s plan is really simple: Make sure your creatures attack with myriad over and over again. Sometimes there will be extra combats, like when Moraug is involved, or sometimes it'll just rain fire with Inferno Titan, 6 damage per titan, or you’ll draw a bunch of cards with Inspiring Overseer.

Wrap Up

Herald of the Host | Illustration by Nils Hamm

Myriad is one of those mechanics created thanks to the popularity of multiplayer formats. These formats usually don’t encourage you to attack because you’re not winning on the exchange, and you’re benefiting your opponents that aren’t being attacked. Fortunately you can attack everyone equally with myriad.

To maximize myriad you’ll need a clear way to attack to avoid losing your myriad creatures, which can usually be done with a bit of removal and evasion. Creatures that have enters-the-battlefield or attack triggers are extra useful if you’re granting myriad left and right.

I hope you found this useful. Do you have any wild stories about myriad creatures running amok? Let me know in the comments down below or join the discussion in the Draftsim Discord.

Until next time, stay safe!