With Commander Legends set to release in mid November, Gavin Verhey used today’s episode of Good Morning Magic to break down one of the sets most interesting cards.
The Prismatic Piper is an odd card from first glance, so Verhey explains why the card was needed and how it was created. As the creator of the idea of Commander Legends and the leader of vision design for the set, Verhey wanted to have a catchall legend for players who draft the set, but worry about switching colors or fear finding a legend for their deck. While the set has 40 mono-colored legends (eight for each color), Verhey’s team didn’t think players would end up without a commander very often, but wanted to be on the safe side.
Verhey originally had the idea of the card with the playtest name “Florm, the Formless.” It was functionally The Prismatic Piper and created so players would always have a legend for their drafts of Commander Legends. The card would be available after drafts like basic lands, so players wouldn’t even have to spend a draft pick on the card. With it showing up in one out of every six packs, it would also be widely available. And the card has partner, so in draft a player could even use two copies of it for a two-color deck that somehow ended up without a legend. Verhey even noted that the card was rarely needed in playtest drafts when creating the set.
Commander Legends is meant to be drafted with eight players then have the players split into two pods of four. With social distancing going on from COVID-19, Verhey said players can draft with four players for a single pod or even played sealed. With smaller drafts happening, the likeliness of using The Prismatic Piper is slightly higher, so the inclusion of the card appears to be even more important now.