In Theros, we have been blessed with five singularly-powerful cards representing the five main Gods of Theros. These cards are not only useful with fantastic abilities, but work in a unique way that is so full of flavour it tastes like chicken.
All five gods share a Devotion ability. They are all indestructible, which helps keep them around. They are all Enchantments unless you Devotion to their colour is five or greater, which is when they become creatures. This fits their flavour so well. They float about behind the scenes granting favours (they each have an activated ability) until their followers are devoted enough that they deign to appear as creatures. Right, let’s look at each of them in order.
Heliod enters the battlefield as an Enchantment for 3W. He gives all other creatures you control Vigilance and, for 2WW, he creates a 2/1 White Cleric, Enchantment Creature token. When you have 5 Devotion to white, he becomes a 5/6 Creature to boot. So he’s big, heavy and spawns creatures to help expand your board. He is the epitome of the white-token deck but a very powerful card in his own right.
Flavour-wise, Heliod is the leader of the Theros Gods. He is the god of the sun and keeps his position by placing his devout followers amongst the populace. He is proud yet convivial, having no trouble making friends, but his loyalty can be fickle.
Purphoros casts as an Enchantment for 3R. He has the “normal” god rules (Indestructible, Enchantment until Devotion is five or more) and whenever a creature enters the battlefield under your control he deals two damage to each opponent. You can also pay 2R to give each creature you control +1/+0 until the end of the turn. He’s big, he burns people whenever you summon a creature and he can increase the power of your entire board, When you do have the devotion, he also then becomes a 6/5. He is the pinacle of burn decks. At only four to cast, he isn’t even too slow for most RDW decks.
In the Theros background, Purphoros is the god of the Forge, he crafted the weapons that the gods wield and knows smithing in a way no mortal ever could. He is reasonable, but unrestrained and he crafts the landscape as well as metal, creating the cycle of Destruction and Re-birth vital to Theros’ survival.
Nylea casts as an enchantment for 3G, she has the usual God abilities and gives all creatures you control Trample. For 3G, she grants Target Creature +2/+2 until end of the turn. When your devotion is high enough, she becomes a 6/6. So for those green decks, all your big creatures have trample, and your small and medium sized creatures can be made bigger, and have trample. Again the very definition of the mono-green decks, Nylea has already proven popular in the Pro Tour.
In the Theros world, She is the Goddess of the hunt, representing nature and the seasons. She hates agriculture, seeing it as a travesty against nature and defends her groves against any attempt at logging.
Erebos casts for 3B as an Enchantment. He stops opponents from gaining life and, if you pay 1B and two life, you can draw a card. Whilst not being the most effective of the god cards, stopping your opponent gaining life can cripple those mono-white, or white-green life-gain decks. And being able to draw a card has helped me out of a few sticky situations in several games.
Flavour-wise, Erebos is the god of the dead, in charge of the under-world (banished there by Heliod) he is the only god not connected to their home of Nyx. He is most closely associated with Death, Misfortune, Ill Fate and Envy.
Thassa casts for 2U, making her the cheapest god, she lets you Scry one at the beginning of your upkeep. You can pay 1U to make target creature unblockable until the end of the turn. She plays very well into the blue-evasive decks, letting you control your draw every turn and avoid blockers, no matter what size they are. Thassa has been the most popular god at the recent pro-tour, appearing in several decks, including the winning deck.
In the Theros Background, she is the goddess of the sea. She is associated with Hidden Knowledge, Long Voyages, Vast Distances and The Passage of Time.
So there we have it, the Gods of Theros. They are powerful, useful and each one epitomizes their respective mono-coloured tactics. I love these cards, I have even started work on a mono-black devotion deck with Erebos.
But, what are the gods without their weapons? More about these Artifacts of the Gods in the next Article.
Right guys, keep playing and Remember, Have Fun!
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Right guys, keep playing and, Remember,
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