Planeswalkers in Grand Melee, part 30: Ajani, Caller of the Pride

We last saw Ajani Goldmane way back in part 8, as the red/white Ajani Vengeant. The third version of this planeswalker returns to his mono-white roots, and brings an army of cats with him!

Ajani, Caller of the Pride costs three mana to cast, two of which must be white. He enters the battlefield with 4 loyalty counters and has three abilities.

The relatively low mana cost means you should be able to get this Ajani out early, and start building up his loyalty quickly. HIs loyalty is already a pretty good four, considering his mana cost, and you need to get to eight to activate his inal ability, but it’s worth it as you will see.

Ajani’s first ability adds a loyalty counter and puts a +1/+1 counter on a target creature. Of course in a multiplayer game this doesn’t have to be one of your creatures, but the best target would be one of your creatures that has lifelink. You’ll find out why.

The second ability costs three loyalty counters. A hefty price but you can use it the turn you cast Ajani, Caller of the Pride and still have him available in your next turn. This ability gives double strike and flying to a target creature. A powerful combo, doubling the hitting power of your attacker, and giving it the ability to fly past an opponent’s defences.

The final ability is the one you have been waiting for. For the cost of eight loyalty counters, you put x 2/2 white cat creature token onto the battlefield, where x is your life total. That should make everyone sit up and take notice! 10 life would give you 20 power worth of creatures, 20 life gives you 40, and so on. An army summoned and ready to attack… next turn.

Verdict: Marginal. Ajani, Caller of the Pride has three useful abilitties, but this plaeswalkers is best lending assistance to an existing white deck of yours. A deck built around this Ajani will do okay, but his best use is as a supporting card.

Connections:
Like Ajani, Caller of the Pride? You may also like [Elspeth, Knight-Errant] [Sarkhan Vol] [Sorin, Lord of Innistrad]
Don’t like Ajani? You may prefer [Nicol Bolas, Planeswalker] [Jace, Memory Adept] [Liliana of the Dark Realms]

See all articles in the series.

Planeswalkers in Grand Melee part 1: Ajani Goldmane

Welcome to our new series looking at the Planeswalkers of Magic:The Gathering, with specific reference to their role in the Grand Melee play variant, our popular club feature.

This series assumes you know all about Planeswalkers in magic. If you don’t, read the official article first.

Ajani costs four mana to cast, and this is often considered the sweet spot for Planeswalkers. High enough to be effective in their abilities, but not so high that you can’t cast them until it is too late.

Four mana gives you a white Planeswalker with four loyalty counters. Not a bad deal. Ajani Goldmane has three abilities, as most (but not all!) Planeswalkers do.

The first ability adds a loyalty counter and you gain two life. Not so spectacular, but this first ability plays into Ajani Goldmane’s third ability, to both give you the loyalty counters to use it, and make it more effective when you do. However if you do decide the third ability is where you want to be, you’re going to have to gain some life first.

The second ability is in my opinion the strongest and is what makes Ajani Goldmane a worthy card for inclusion in your white deck. White is the colour of cooperation and a ‘together we are strong’ theme. White decks will typically play lots of small creature that get larger thanks to effects that work on all of them.

Ajani’s second ability fits this perfectly. At a cost of removing a loyalty counter, every creature you control receives a +1/+1 counter, and gains Vigilance until the end of the turn. In a typical white deck with say five creatures in play at the time, this is five extra points of power, and the ability to attack without tapping. Being untapped at the end of your turn is great in a melee. Ajani’s middle ability grows your attacking power while also leaving your creatures free to block. Great stuff. The icing on this cake is that these are counters, not a temporary boost, your creatures are stronger for as long as they remain on the battlefield. The Vigilance is temporary though and only lasts for the turn in which you use the ability.

The third ability puts a white Avatar creature token onto the battlefield. This creature’s power and toughness are each equal to your life total. As you gain life it gets stronger, as you lose life it grows weaker. This costs a whopping 6 loyalty points and in my opinion is not worth it. If you have that much life you’re not really worried about being attacked, and Ajani’s second ability allows your existing creatures to defend you anyway. The Avatar has no abilities such as Flying, that would make him worth having. Better to take white’s usual supply of Flying, Lifelink and First Strike creature and make them bigger and better with the second ability.

In summary, Ajani Goldmane is a solid Planeswalker who works best in decks with lots of creatures. White or White/Green decks that play with a lot of creatures will particularly enjoy what Ajani Goldmane can bring.

Connections
Like Ajani Goldmane? You may also like [Elspeth, Knight-Errant] [Elspeth Tirel] [Sorin, Lord of Innistrad]
Don’t like Ajani Goldmane? You may prefer [Jace Beleren] [Tezzeret the Seeker] [Sarkhan Vol]

See all articles in this series