Tarkir: Dragonstorm dropped a huge spoiler this weekend with Rot-Curse Rakshasa, and it is gaining a lot of attention across the Magic: The Gathering community for its innovative design that weaponizes the decayed mechanic in unprecedented ways.
The black Demon offers aggressive stats rarely seen in Magic’s history, a 5/5 body with trample for just two mana. The power to cost ratio comes with the drawback of Decayed; however, it’s not so much a drawback as Rakashasa has an even more powerful ability that can be used from the graveyard. Take a look:
It’s the card’s Renew ability that has players on Reddit calling it “the most creative board wipe in a very long time.” For XBB and exiling the card from your graveyard, you can put a decayed counter on X target creatures. This effectively turns opponents’ creatures into liabilities that can attack only once before being sacrificed.
The Renew mechanic represents one of the first offensive uses of decayed counters, previously limited to zombie tokens. This ability forces opponents to choose between attacking with creatures that will die afterward or keeping them back without being able to block. Giving opponent’s creatures decayed is a particularly effective strategy for aggro decks trying to force through damage and preventing blockers, as well as limiting damage from attackers.
While we don’t know exactly the best deck for this card yet, it does appear to be perfect for the typical aggressive Rakdos deck. The “x target creatures can’t block” being the operative part of the ability.
Since Rot-Curse Rakshasa represents 5 power for only two mana, it also synergizes with cards that care about power, such as The Gitrog, Ravenous Ride and Ghalta, Primal Hunger.
From a flavor and lore perspective, Rot-Curse Rakshasha is also notable for being the first Rakhasha Demon in MTG, which is a demon design influenced by Hinduism and Southeast Asian mythology.
Rot-Curse Rakshasa appears in Tarkir: Dragonstorm, releasing April 11, 2025.
Stay tuned to MTG Insider for more Tarkir: Dragonstorm spoilers, news, and updates!
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