IntroductionGreetings, Legacy community! The Reality Fracture spoiler season has begun. This next set takes a dive into the non-Universes Beyond side of MTG, with alternative versions of several iconic MTG cards and characters. From what we have seen so far, it has plenty to offer to Legacy. Once everything is revealed, we will review the entire set.But until then, let us finish our coverage of The Hobbit set by giving our verdict on its main star and how it impacted Legacy:Great ExpectationsBilbo was revealed well before The Hobbit came out, and it instantly garnered a lot of attention. However, we had to wait a few months before we could play it. There was plenty of reason to expect a lot from it, as it is incredibly similar to Dreadhorde Arcanist, which is currently banned in Legacy.But when Bilbo finally saw the light of day, unlike Arcanist, which essentially only saw play in Tempo decks, it saw play in a wide variety of archetypes. The fact that it is blue rather than red was a major factor, because it means we can play it in any deck with Force of Will without needing to splash an additional color.As a result, during the first few weeks, the format looked like the Shire, with so many Hobbits wandering across game tables. Its varying degrees of success led some players to wonder whether it might not be that good after all. But was that really the right takeaway, or were some decks simply unable to get the most out of Bilbo?Well, as the meta settled and the best decks with this beloved Hobbit proved their worth, we can say that it really was just about seeing who was best prepared to get the most out of the card recursion Bilbo provides.One interesting point is that the Legacy meta right now has made Karakas more efficient even in decks that do not play white mana, and this legendary land is a great way to ruin Bilbo's day.Card Recursion for Fun and ProfitBy far the best card to bring back from the graveyard for 1 mana is Flow State, and consequently, the decks that make the most of this sorcery are also the ones that have performed the best with Bilbo. Another excellent card to bring back is Mishra’s Bauble, as it not only costs 0 (often the main point of contention between Bilbo and Dreadhorde Arcanist, since Arcanist can recast 0-cost cards) but also doesn't get exiled, and, as such, you can use it again.It is no surprise, then, that the two main decks in which Bilbo has shone are Dimir and Izzet Tempo, which naturally use both of these cards really well, as well as the traditional cantrips Brainstorm and Ponder. In these decks, Bilbo creates card advantage in strategies that usually lean on one-for-one trades and often two-for-ones when you use Force of Will. Cheap card-draw engines tend to be so effective in these decks that many of them are now banned.However, it is not just straightforward Tempo decks that have performed well. Archetypes that combine both Tempo and Control elements, such as Azorius Pup, can also get great value from Bilbo, even if they still plan on bringing back Mishra’s Bauble.Some combo decks also use Bilbo, such as Stiflenought. In this deck, Bilbo is particularly interesting because, in addition to doing the obvious (recasting Brainstorm/Ponder/Flow State), it can also grant extra lives to artifact creatures such as Phyrexian Dreadnought and Curie, Emergent Intelligence.Speaking of bringing back artifacts, this ability is also useful in Affinity, even if it is not its main focus and acts more as a reload button when things go wrong.Finally, some decks use "transformational" sideboard plans, such as Doomsday, which uses Bilbo in the sideboard as part of its creature package to turn this deck from all-in Combo into a Combo-Tempo hybrid.So, What Is the Verdict?Bilbo, Thief in the Night has changed Legacy in a way we have not seen for a long time: we now have not just one or two, but three efficient blue cards to create card advantage: Tamiyo, Inquisitive Student, Flow State, and Bilbo. Usually, when cards like these remain free for too long, Tempo decks tend to get out of control: Ragavan, Nimble Pilferer, Dreadhorde Arcanist, and Expressive Iteration were all banned for that reason.But at this exact moment, before Reality Fracture comes out, the Legacy meta is balanced. Although Dimir Tempo remains the most popular deck in the format, supported by the three blue cards above, it is far from dominant, and several of its very challenging opponents have been becoming more popular, such as Boros Energy and Eldrazi Aggro. A wide range of strategies are viable, and decks have gone up and down like ocean tides.Even so, we know that balance in eternal formats is fragile, and minor shifts can make everything collapse like a house of cards. The Fantasticar is a good recent example. Therefore, Reality Fracture could make everything unstable again.If that happens, the spotlight may very well return to these three blue cards in the future. Honestly, out of the three, Bilbo seems like the least concerning to me, especially because much of its value is tied to Flow State. And Tamiyo has been the most influential creature in the format for some time now, a 1-mana Planeswalker that can steal games as early as turn 2 through Brainstorm. As for the battle between Flow State and Bilbo, Thief in the Night, I usually say one is an upgraded version of an already banned card (Expressive Iteration), while the other is, at best, equivalent to its banned counterpart (Dreadhorde Arcanist). Therefore, I expect Flow State to leave the format before Bilbo does. Of course, if we ever reach that point.The verdict, then, is this: Bilbo, Thief in the Night is powerful, one of the best creatures currently available in Legacy, but it is not as format-warping as it threatened to become. It is a broken card in a universe full of broken cards, but it still has a lot to prove before it can be considered a threat to the format. And much of its power is tied to an even more powerful card, so it could be “nerfed” if Flow State leaves the format.ConclusionThat concludes our review of one of the most influential cards Legacy has seen recently. Many of us were anxious to see how it would impact the format, and some of our expectations have been fulfilled: Bilbo is a great card. But we shouldn't go overboard. It is neither the most unbalanced card in the format nor just another ordinary creature, but a threat that must be respected and is difficult to ignore.Now, we turn our attention to Reality Fracture and see what awaits us.What do you think? Tell us your thoughts in our comment section below.Thank you for reading, and see you next time!
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