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Role tokens are a type of token first introduced inMagic: The Gathering’sWilds of Eldraine set. They are a star of the set’s Limited format, with plenty of strategies attached to them to allow for a range of powerful options.
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Role tokens have no shortage of generators at all rarities and colors, allowing every deck to be able to try them out. Since Role tokensare all Aura enchantments, this lets them take advantage of plenty of enchantment-based strategies, something very common in the game. Even without that, Role tokens offer a ton of powerful abilities you can give your creatures.
How Do Role Tokens Work?
Role tokens areAura enchantments that can only be put on a creature by specific cards. You canonly control one Role on a creatureso if you want to put another Role onto it, you have to send the one currently attached to the graveyard in order to replace it. However,a creature can still have two Role tokens attached to it if one of those is controlled by your opponent.
Effect
Sorcerer Role
Enchanted creature gets +1/+1 and has “Whenever this creature attacks scry 1.”
Enchanted creature gets +1/+1 and has trampe.
Enchanted creature gets +1/+1 and ward one.
Young Hero Role
Enchanted creature has “Whenever this creature attacks, if its toughness is three or less, put a +1/+1 counter on it.”
Wicked Role
Enchanted creature gets +1/+1. When this Aura is put into a graveyard from the battlefield, each opponent loses one life.
Enchanted creature has base power and toughness 1/1.
Virtuous Role
Enchanted creature gets +1/+1 for each enchantment you control.
Once the Role token is created,it acts as any other Aura.If the creature it’s attached to leaves the battlefield, the Role token will be sent to the graveyard. Like every other token, if a Role is moved anywhere off of the battlefield it will not return.
Since Role tokens count as Aura enchantments, any effects that relate to enchantments will count Role tokens for their effects.
How To Use Role Tokens
The best usage of Role tokens isgiving them to your creatures that already have good effects to make them stronger. For example, a Young Hero token can make a small creature you may get onto the battlefield early much more threatening, especially if it has abilities like first strikeor menace.
There aresome Role generators that can create them at instant speed. A very good one against decks winning through combat isAsinine Antics, which can also be cast at instant speed toturn all of your opponents' creatures into 1/1s.
Another instant speed Role creator isRoyal Treatmentwhich can protect a creature by giving ithexproof,but it also gives it aRoyal Role tokento give itextended protectionby giving itward one and a small stat boostas well.
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Some creaturescreate a Role token on a creature you control as a downside.For example,Spiteful Hexmageis a one-mana 3/2 but forces you to put aCursed Role tokenon a creature you control. A way to circumvent this downside is byputting a different Role token on it.
Since you can only control one Role token on a creature, you can get rid of ones that are negative and replace them with a much stronger effect. As such,playing ways to create multiple Role tokens is a solid strategy.
Not Dead After Allis a way tosave a creature from dying,as it will return to the battlefield with aWicked Roletoken on it. A card like this isvery strong in evoke decksas you can get thebenefit of the evoke creature’s enter-the-battlefield effect and use Not Dead After All on it to get that to trigger twiceand come back with a stat boost. Since cards evoked are immediately sacrificed, Not Dead After All makes it so you got to cheat it onto the battlefield much easier - especially good on cards like Grief and Fury.
How Many Cards Use Role Tokens?
As of Wilds of Eldraine,there are currently 38 cards that create a Role token. Of those, five create a Royal Role, five create a Sorcerer Role, eight make a Monster role, five will enchant with a Young Hero Role, six will create a Cursed Role, Wicked has the most options with ten cards that make a Wicked Role, and lastly only one card can create a Virtuous Role.
Of the 38 cards,only Gylwain, Casting Director can create different Roles(Royal, Sorcerer, or Monster). The rest of the cards can only create one specific Role token.
TheRole token generators appear in all colors, with black and red tied for having the most. Currently, the colors are:
