Spoiler Highlight: Judith, Carnage Connoisseur in Constructed Formats

One of the first Murders at Karlov Manor cards revealed, Judith, Carnage Connoisseur, is a legendary creature that costs and has a considerable body, but what most stands out to us are her abilities.

Every time you cast an instant or sorcery spell, you can choose between the following two options: this spell gains Lifelink and Deathtouch or you create a 2/2 red Imp token that deals 2 damage to each opponent when it dies.

Judith has very interesting abilities that can be well taken advantage of not only in Commander, but in formats like Standard and Pioneer in builds that are more focused on spells that deal damage.

With Judith on the board, any Lightning Bolt turns into a 1 mana Lightning Helix that can destroy any creature - and spells like End the Festivities and Electrickery turn into boardwipes that can generate massive lifegain in certain situations.

Standard is currently dominated by decks like Domain Ramp, which is the most played deck nowadays, and other Midrange decks like Esper and Rakdos. Mono-Red, Bant Poison and Azorius Soldiers remain the most present Aggro options in the meta.

In a format dominated by impactful creatures and powerful spells, and in a format in which Cavern of Souls is used broadly (which makes counter spells weaker), other ways of interacting with your opponent's threats become more interesting.

Judith, Carnage Connoisseur can offer a new approach to some decks like Rakdos Midrange, for instance, or even a new Rakdos build focusing on burn and damage spells. This format has viable options for this strategy and will gain another after Shock is reprinted in the new set.

As for Pioneer, we have even more options of this kind.

In both formats, you'll be able to clear the board for one mana gaining life, which can be completely devastating for certain decks.

Another interesting feature Judith has is that she can be, on her own, a win condition, considering she can fill the board with 2/2 tokens that deal damage to the opponent when they die.

In Commander, the possibilities are even bigger and more interesting. Considering Judith + End the Festivities, you can simply clear your opponents' boards and gain one life point for each creature and opponent cleared. You'll do all of this without having to worry about losing your commander as an answer because, if one of your opponents decides to kill Judith, her ability will already have triggered at the moment this spell was cast, and the Festivities will already have Deathtouch and Lifelink.

Another combo with this commander is Blasphemous Act + Aetherflux Reservoir. If your board is full, you'll deal 13 damage to all creatures, gaining 13 life points for each creature with Judith's ability, possibly gaining enough life to kill your opponents with Aetherflux.

Another interesting synergy with this commander is Command the Dreadhorde, which allows us to Reanimate all creatures right after clearing the board with an End the Festivities, for instance. Considering the damage dealt by Command the Dreadhorde will be annulled by Lifelink, you'll have a board filled with creatures, including your opponents' creatures, and have the victory in your hands.

Madcap Experiment is another card that seems quite interesting with this commander. You can simply play with a list that has a single artifact, such as Aetherflux Reservoir, for instance, or Bolas's Citadel, and use Madcap to search for this artifact and possibly win the game.

Judith can also work really well alongside Magar of the Magic Strings. With Magar's ability, you'll be able to reuse the instants and spells in your graveyard and maximize Judith's effect.

Judith, Carnage Connoisseur is a very interesting card that enables a few interesting strategies in several constructed formats. Being able to kill a Sheoldred with a Shock or clear a Mono-White board with a Blazing Volley certainly seems fun, and I'm quite anxious to test this card.

You can check out all Murders at Karlov Manor spoilers here at Cards Realm. By the end of the spoiler season, as usual, I'll bring you a complete review for Standard.

Another article down; I hope you liked it. Leave your questions or suggestions for future articles in the comment section because I'll try to answer all. See you next time!