MTG fans won’t be fooled by Murders at Karlov Manor’s Red Herring

This aquatic artifact is one of MTG Murders at Karlov Manor’s most imaginative creations and a good early-game play to boot.

MTG Murders at Karlov Manor is deploying many hallmarks of the Murder Mystery genre, and the recently-revealed Red Herring is getting its time in the spotlight.

Usually a misleading element of a mystery that at first appears to be an important clue, in Magic: The Gathering, Red Herring is somewhat more literal.

MTG Red Herring could be a great game opener

WOTC

As far as combat utility goes, Red Herring is a 2/2 with haste that can be cast for just 1R (one red and one generic mana.) An early beater that can chip away at opponents for two damage per turn is nothing to sniff at, making the most of red’s legendary speed and aggression.

The only downside to Red Herring is that this creature is compelled to attack every combat if it is able to, negating potential utility as a blocker and making it likely to run into an opponent’s block it can’t handle before too long.

Fulfilling its nature as a mystery trope, Red Herring can be sacrificed by paying 2 generic mana to draw a card. This is the exact same effect as MTG’s Clue Tokens, making Red Herring an effective Clue all by itself.

Funnily enough, Red Herring has appeared as an MTG card concept before, as a comedy-focused Mystery Booster pull. While it’s unusual for a card to reappear in this way, Red Herring deserves a legitimate chance to shine.

MTG players getting into Murders at Karlov Manor – especially those drawn to the Izzet guild – will find Red Herring to be a great early-game opener. Attack with this creature for as long as it’s likely to be a nuisance to opponents, and sacrifice it when it’s about to die to restock your hand with new options.

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