Jace The Mind Sculptor : The Newest Worldwake Planeswalker

Jace was originally printed as a Planeswalker in the Lorwyn expansion of Magic the Gathering a couple years ago. A well loved and versatile card originally, Jace is back (much like his fellow planeswalker Chandra) in the Zendikar block, and hes bigger and scarier than ever! …

The first thing one notices about Jace, the mind Sculptor is the cards peculiar appearance. This rendition of Jace is the very first MTG planeswalker with more than 3 abilities! Unfortunately his high amount of ability takes away from his normal allotted space for his illustration, also making him the first regular card in MTG to have an off sized illustration (minus a couple friends from Unglued/Unhinged and promotional cards). Keeping in the flavor of his previous form, Jace the Mind Sculptor is still all about hands and libraries… lets break it down and see what this bad boy can really do…

Jace’s first ability starts things off on the right note. For an addition of two loyalty counters, he can really annoy your opponent. With the ability to “Precognition” and so much more (because you have much better control over what you draw as well). Hit a land pocket? no problem, Jace will see you through it…and build up to his final ability in the process!

Ability #2…

Jace’s second ability is another first in the history of Magic the Gathering. He is the first planeswalker to have an ability cost 0 loyalty counters! he neither adds nor subtracts from his total to Brainstorm! That’s right, Jace lets you “brainstorm” once a turn (i.e. search the top three cards of your library and hand for the most useful cards and then put two back). This works particularly well with his first ability. Brainstorm is restricted in Type 1 to boot, so I’d say its a pretty sweet deal! Already, with the first two abilities, this guy is looking mighty useful!

Ability #3…

The third ability is cool, but in my opinion slightly out of place. While it gives a powerful ability unlike the others, it does not stick to the theme of the rest of the card. However, I do believe that this may turn into Jace’s most powerful “final ability”… hear me out… Jace makes himself a target just by being a planeswalker. The constant removal of the largest creature threat to him or his controlling player can prove to be very powerful (especially if the creature has summoning sickness once re-cast). Using this ability every other turn combined with intermittent uses of #1 and #2 will be like using premium gasoline in your car rather than economy when it comes to playing a versatile game, and give you a huge advantage over your opponent!

Ability #4…

Elspeth-esque in its power, Ability #4 makes Jace a downright sexy card. While it may not be the most rational way to win, switching someones hand with their library is downright nasty. This ability only gives opponents a turn or two to win (assuming they’re dumping their hand trying to kill Jace) and locks down the game regardless of what they have up their sleeve (unless they’re packing a Mirror of Fate). I wouldn’t count on this ability winning you the game unless you’re running a good control deck but none the less its fun to try. Jace now has a home in both mill and discard decks and the thought of facing both in the same game is somewhat terrifying (at different times of course).

In conclusion Jace is an awesome new addition to the planeswalker family. I’d rank him in the top few for sure, if not the most versatile we’ve seen so far! I’d reserve my copies now because this guy is going to be popular! From casual to competitive, and EDH to Emperor, Jace the Mind Sculptor will find a place in decks around the world!