MTG SCARS OF MIRRODIN REGULAR MOL FACTORY SET

Scars of Mirrodin contains 249 cards (101 Common, 60 Uncommon, 53 Rare, 15 Mythic, 20 Basic Lands). The expansion symbol of the set is a corroding hexplate from the Glimmervoid. Scars of Mirrodin returns to the plane of Mirrodin, previously the setting of the block and the set of the same name. As Mirrodin is an artificial plane, the number of artifacts and cards relating to that permanent type is larger than in other sets and mechanically reflects the themes already explored in the previous sets.

The set describes the conflict between two major factions - one being Mirrodin, and the other being the invading forces of Phyrexia. Cards aligned with these two factions are watermarked, as previously seen with the guild aligned cards in Ravnica block. The two factions are also mechanically separated, with the Phyrexians dealing largely with poison counters, Infect and Proliferate, as well as sacrifice or leaves play effects, while the native Mirrans use mechanics already introduced or similar to those of the original Mirrodin set - Imprint, Indestructible, charge counters the new Metalcraft mechanic, as well as Mana Myr and Spellbombs. Only 40 cards of the set have the Phyrexian symbol on them. All other cards except Basic Lands and Planeswalker cards have a Mirran watermark.

Mechanics

Infect is a new keyword that causes creatures to deal damage to other creatures in the form of -1/-1 counters, similar to Wither. However, in addition to this, cards with Infect deal damage to players in the form of poison counters. The poison mechanic was introduced in Legends but has never been strongly supported. The mechanic resurfaced in Time Spiral block with a reprint of Swamp Mosquito and the Poisonous keyword (which does not appear in Scars of Mirrodin). Poison counters would be a major theme of the entire block.

A new keyword action in Proliferate works in combination with Infect. When a player proliferates, he or she chooses any number of permanents and/or players with counters on them, and puts another counter of a kind it has on it. E.g. a player proliferates and chooses an opponent with a poison counter, a creature with a -1/-1 counter, a Planeswalker with loyalty counters, and an artifact with a charge counter. Every one of these entities gets another of these respective counters.

The ability word Metalcraft gives a card a bonus if its controller controls three or more artifacts. Scars of Mirrodin features a new Mox named Mox Opal that has Metalcraft. The Indestructible mechanic returns with new "Darksteel"-themed cards, as does the Imprint mechanic from Mirrodin.

The only returning keyword from the original Mirrodin block was imprint, this keyword allows a player to "imprint" some card on the artifact (removing that card from the game). That artifact's effect depends on the card imprinted (for example you can imprint a creature on Semblance Anvil to reduce the costs of spells that share a card type with that card).

Notable cards

• The Fast land cycle of lands (such as Darkslick Shores) have seen large amounts of play in Standard, Pioneer, and Modern, where they are some of the best mana-fixing lands for aggro or combo decks that seek to end the game early. Their power in addition to the largely plane-specific name made them awkward reprints, the confluence of which happened near at the end of the Phyrexian Arc in Phyrexia: All Will Be One.
• Memnite is one of only a few creatures in the game to cost no mana and is the only one of two that has power. It is often used in artifact combo decks and in creature decks that seek to flood the board with small creatures.
• Venser, the Sojourner is the only multicolored card in the set. It also marks the return of Venser after his original appearance (pre-ascension), as Venser, Shaper Savant in Future Sight.
• Steady Progress's flavor text is memetic, especially with the leadup to the "New Phyrexia's Invasion of the Multiverse" storyline. Given the storyline in this set, the Vedalken quoted already sounded woefully ignorant even then.

Competitive play

• Steel Hellkite is a powerful artifact creature that was once ramped into in Vintage MUD decks, as it is particularly effective at destroying the opponent's Moxen and other mana rocks. It is also heavily played in the casual Commander format for similar purposes.
• Wurmcoil Engine is one of the most powerful artifact creatures in the game, letting big mana decks stabilize against aggressive decks and is resilient to removal. It was played fairly by control decks in Standard but was also a great creature to search up with Birthing Pod, and it has been ramped into formats like Modern Urzatron, Legacy, and even Vintage, where it can also be put into play with Tinker.
• Nihil Spellbomb is a powerful graveyard hate spell that can replace itself and works especially well in artifact decks, seeing play in Modern, Legacy, and Pauper sideboards.
• Liquimetal Coating is a seemingly innocuous artifact that began seeing substantial play in Modern after the printing of Karn, the Great Creator. The new Planeswalker enables a play pattern of fetching the Coating out of the sideboard, using it to turn an opponent's land into an artifact, and then using Karn's ability to turn that land into a creature with 0 toughness to destroy it.
• Leonin Arbiter has been played in numerous "hatebear" and tax decks in Modern, Legacy, and Vintage, where its ability can slow down opponents seeking to tutor powerful combo pieces. It is particularly effective at disabling the opponent's mana base, as it can prevent them from using fetchlands and limits the downside from lands like Ghost Quarter.
• Revoke Existence is a simple but strong variant of Disenchant that has seen sideboard play in every format where it is legal.
• Galvanic Blast is among the strongest burn spells ever printed, at times being stronger than Lightning Bolt in artifact decks. It is a staple in red artifact decks in Modern and Pauper, especially those with a focus on direct damage.
• Ratchet Bomb is a versatile answer used by numerous midrange decks across Pioneer, Modern, Legacy, and Vintage. It is particularly strong against decks that have lots of free artifacts or tokens, which can destroy the turn it comes into play.
• Kuldotha Rebirth is one of the most efficient token-producing spells in the game, especially in artifact decks, and has led to an eponymous aggro deck in Pauper.
• Mimic Vat is a powerful value engine that was played heavily across many different types of Standard decks that could abuse creatures with valuable abilities.
• Grand Architect was the face of numerous Standard decks that combined it with other blue creatures to ramp out large artifacts and/or attack aggressively.
• Tempered Steel formed the basis of an eponymous aggro deck in Standard built around artifact creatures and other payoffs like Steel Overseer.

Banned and restricted cards

• Mox Opal is yet another installment of the famous Moxen: zero-mana artifacts that produce colored mana. After nearly a decade of high-level play, it was banned in Modern in January 2020, as it would only continue being powerful regardless of shell. In December 2024, it was unbanned in an attempt to revitalize artifact strategies and fight the perception that Modern had become solely about decks created in the Horizons series.