Murders at Karlov Manor (MKM) is finally here! I don’t know about y’all, but I am beyond excited for this set to finally hit our local game stores. While some people scoff at the murder mystery theme, personally I find it to be extremely camp. I live for it. The vibes of this set are immaculate, especially the art. This then prompted me to take a look at what really matters: scrunkly little critters. I decided to take it upon myself to look for the scrunkliest little critters in the set!
Definition
Before we really dive into my five scrunkly choices, first we need to define what it means to be scrunkly. Scrunkly is a combination of the words “scrunched” and “crinkly” and is often used to describe animals or creatures that are weird or odd but are still deemed cute. [Copy Editor’s Note: I love a good portmanteau.] In the world of Magic, there are tons of scrunkly little critters, but Ravnica seems to have an unusually high concentration. Let’s explore what this plane has to offer in terms of scrunkle.
Doorkeeper Thrull
Let’s start out strong with Doorkeeper Thrull, specifically the “Dossier” variant with the paper-case-file border and theming. This adorable little critter is Magic’s new hatebear, but there isn’t anything to hate about it. It has a low mana value and flash, making it a strong piece to run in any of your hateful decks. With a cute little wink, this card is one strong yet scrunkly little critter.
Magnetic Snuffler
Next up, we have one of the cutest critters around, Magnetic Snuffler. While this little Construct is an uncommon, there is nothing uncommon about it. It’s literally a metal detector anteater. You can’t get much scrunklier than that. While Magnetic Snuffler isn’t exactly a powerhouse of a creature, I think it is a fun card for Limited. At the very least, it offers a big body with a cute little face to help balance out the top-end of your Prerelease deck.
Tunnel Tipster
Out of all the scrunkles in this set, Tunnel Tipster is by far the scrunkliest. It’s a tiny Mole Scout! I just can’t with the Tipster. It tries so hard at its job! Just look at its flavor text! Tunnel Tipster is a mana creature that gets counters at your end step if a face-down creature entered the battlefield under your control. While that is definitely a niche ability, and Tunnel Tipster isn’t exactly the best mana creature around, I love it nonetheless. The Tipster is perfect and can do no wrong.
Private Eye
I know that this Homunculus is a full-grown creature. It probably even stands at normal height. That doesn’t make it any less scrunkly. The funny thing is, I love this card. I love unblockable things and I love the fact that Private Eye is a Detective lord. The sad thing is, I don’t know when we are going to see the creature type Detective anytime soon past this set. I’m all for this creature type and the fact that it gets kindred synergies has me even more excited. This is definitely the world’s scrunkliest Detective.
Frantic Scapegoat
Lastly, we have Frantic Scapegoat. This is probably the scrunkliest critter in all of Ravnica. The low mana value and haste makes it a Limited all-star (in my opinion, as someone who sucks at Limited). But that’s not why you will run Frantic Scapegoat. Oh, no no no. You will run it because it is scrunkly, and in reality, that’s all that matters.
Stay Scrunkly
At the end of the day, no matter what plane we are on, or what happens, the only thing that truly matters is how scrunkly our Magic cards are. Sure, we could pay attention to the rich lore and cutting-edge card designs…but why do that when we can pay attention to the weird little critters in the art? That’s what it’s really all about. Stay scrunkly, deckbuilders.
