Dominaria United was Magic: The Gathering’s return to its home plane for the first time since Dominaria in 2018. The set was the first set of the major Phyrexian story arc’s shift into high gear with the multiversal threat becoming more serious.
The return to a beloved set also marked the return of several great mechanics like Kicker and Sagas, which were featured heavily in 2018’s set. Another solid addition was a cycle of five mono-colored tribal lords. While these cards were pretty ineffective in Limited, they have made a solid impact on Constructed formats and boosted their respective tribes in various eternal formats.
A tribal lord is a type of card that will give creatures of a particular type +1/+1. This archetype of card is named after Lord of Atlantis who, alongside Zombie Master and Goblin King, was the first lord printed in Alpha. Since then the name has stuck. Lord effects extend beyond tribal affiliations. There are lords for color, type, and keywords.
Here is the cycle of five tribal lords in Dominaria United.
All tribal lords in MTG Dominaria United
Valiant Veteran
Valiant Veteran is a mono-White lord that supports the Soldier creature type. It’s a nice spell that can find value when in the graveyard. The teamwide +1/+1 counter is a great way to keep your advantage when Valiant Veteran inevitably gets targeted by removal.
Vodalian Hexcatcher
This card was a major boon to Merfolk lists in Modern and Legacy. Its ability to come down at Instant speed and counter opposing noncreature spells suits the disruptive plan that Merfolk lists excel at.
Shadow-Rite Priest
Clerics are a snowball archetype that can extend a lead better than almost any other archetype. Shadow-Rite Priest is a tribal lord that’s able to tutor any Black creature from your deck. This is a powerful ability that presents some late-game inevitability and combo potential.
Rundvelt Hordemaster
Goblins greatly benefitted from the printing of Rundvelt Hordemaster. It’s a source of impulse card draw for Goblin lists. Roosevelt Hordemaster enables explosive turns where a Goblins player can cast three or more spells in a single turn.
Leaf-Crowned Visionary
There’s an effective Elf deck in every eternal format and Leaf-Crowned Visionary has a spot in many of the meta lists. It’s not the best card, but Leaf-Crowned Visionary is able to be a source of card draw which can be effective out of the sideboard. Main deck applications for this card are tricky because Elf decks already use Collected Company to great effect. However, against slower control lists or a midrange deck with a ton of sweepers, Leaf-Crowned Visionary is a solid comeback tool.
