The Morphling cycle has slowly been completed over the years, with each color gradually getting its own version of the iconic card. Blue has Aetherling, Red has Torchling, Green has Thornling, and White has Brightling. However, up until now, Black has been left out of the cycle. Modern Horizons changes all of that by completing the cycle. Enter Endling!
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Endling breakdown
Endling is the second cheapest of the cycle, only costing 4 mana. Unlike the rest of the cycle (save Brightling), it only has 4 abilities. The first three abilities reflect Black’s creature abilities, giving menace, deathtouch, and undying, respectively. The final ability is the standard +1/-1 and -1/+1 abilities all Morphlings have just combined together. It’s also on the smaller side for a creature in the cycle, being a 3/3.
So where does Endling fit in Modern? Its abilities let it serve as a very versatile blocker and attacker. However, they also necessitate a heavy commitment to the color Black. Therefore, the most likely home could be in a mono-Black devotion deck. It gives you 2 Black pips and a fantastic way to protect your life total while you set up. It could also be a finisher for a control deck that heavily leans into Black. Aetherling has served this role for mono-Blue control decks, so it’s possible for Endling to do the same.
As for Legacy, Endling is probably a bit too expensive for the format. Brightling was only 3 mana, and that was barely cheap enough to see some play. 4 mana is probably too much. Unfortunately, I don’t see it making too much of an impact there.
What are your thoughts on Endling? Is it a brand new staple for Black decks, or are there cards that just do Endling’s job better? Let us know down in the comments below. And make sure to keep up with all our coverage of Modern Horizons spoilers on our Magic: The Gathering page!
Published: May 28, 2019 12:59 pm