This set contains some pretty cool cards such as Thwart and the well-known Squee! Below are the ratings for Mercadian Masques and the best of the best cards that you should look out for. You can click the links on TOP to get to the part you want to see on this page faster. Enjoy!!

Overall this set is okay, there aren't any new abilities such as "buyback" or "echo"; it does however have some interesting cards. The Mercenaries and Rebels are creature that can help you fish out other of its kind. The one on the right, the Cateran Overlord, is a Mercenary but it takes 6 mana to get another one of his kind out. That's a little too much to pay. Also this ability is put to its maximum use only if you're playing a deck full of Mercenaries and Rebels. These creatures do have potential though

Shapeshifters are another kind of creature. Those cards can duplicate cool abilities such as Dark Banishing and others. The Notorious Assassin is a black creature that reads "2B Tap, Discard a card from your hand: Destroy target nonblack creature. It can't be regenerated." Cool huh? Who needs the real Dark Banishing? And since this is a creature ability, it can't be countered! These are probably one of the coolest abilities a creature could have. The idea is good but the abilities are old and they show that the creators are running out of ideas.

There are other powerful cards such as Soothsaying, Power Matrix, Thwart, and Mercadian Atlas, just to name a few. For the full listing of powerful cards look at the list below the rating. Although there are some cool cards the whole set is a dissapointment. There isn't any originality. All the abilities that the cards done have been done before in older sets. If you have any comments, email me. This set isn't bad and has a lot of good cards, overall I'll give it a

A.

1.Mercadian Atlas

RARE-5: At the end of your turn, if you didn't play a land this turn, you may draw a card.

Free cards for you! Hell with this baby you'll dominate the table. Sure it cost 5 mana but after that it's free!!! So what if you can't play a land, if you have five mana on the table you don't really need all that extra man!!

2.Monkey Cage

RARE-5: When a creature comes into play, sacrifice Monkey Cage and put into play the number of 2/2 green Ape creature tokens equal to that creature's converted mana cost.

When monkeys attack! That's what happen when the monkeys breaks loose. Put in, say a Masticore, and since Masticore's casting cost is 4 you get 4 2/2s. That enough monkey to make someone get bananas!

3.Power Matrix

RARE-4: Target creature gets +1/+1 and gains flying, first strike, and trample until end of the turn

Flying, first strike, and trample!?!? Hell, it even pumps up you creature! All this with the tap of a card. It just makes me feel all warm and cozy inside.

Black

MANA SOURCE-COMMON-: Add to your mana pool.

This one is one of my old time favorites. It has been around since the early times and those guys at Wizards are still reproducing it. I have included this cads everytime I play a black deck. Who wouldn't?!? For a mere black mana you can get two more. That's quite a bargain if you ask me.

2.Haunted Crossroad

ENCHANTMENT-UNCOMMON-2: :Put target creature card from your graveyard on top of your library.

For one freaking mana you can take a creature from your library on top of your library!! With this card, you'll never run out of creatures to use. You got a Masticore who just got killed, just pop him back on top of your library for a second chance

3.Notorious Assassin

CREATURE-RARE-3: 2 Discard a card from your hand. Destroy target nonblack creature. It can't be regenrated. 2/2

Who needs a Dark Banishing when you got this guy? The brother of the Royal Assassin, this guy lives up to his name. The discarding drawback is such a loss when you got the Squee to handle it.(For Squee, look at RED section)

4.Snuff Out

INSTANT-COMMON 3: If you control a swamp, you may pay 4 life instead of paying Snuffed Out's mana cost. Bury target nonblack creature.

Just when your opponent thought you're all tapped out and his humongous creature is safe and ready to attack, you suprise him with a Snuff Out. Pretty cruel eh? At first glance, this may seem like a sucky card right? Pay four life just to bury a creature? If you think about it, black is a fast color and paying four lives isn't such a big deal.

Blue

SORCERY-RARE-3: Search target opponent's library for a creature card and put that card into play under your control.

Holy shit! This card can search through your opponents library and put it into play under your control. Think of the possibilities! Masticore and the Two-Headed Dragon just to name a few. You can take his best creature and turn it against his own master. Ha ha ha ha ha!! Heh heh, I just can't control myself.

2.Counterspell

INSTANT-COMMON- : Counter target spell as long as it is being cast.

This one is another classic. Decks have revolved this card. If you've even been alive you'll know why this cards is so good.

3.Gush

INSTANT-COMMON-4: You may return two islands to owner's hand instead of paying Gush's mana cost. Draw two cards.

Free spells are a good thing. Especially one that lets you draw cards. So what if you have to return two islands, you can always put them back into play. Every single good Magic player knows that the more cards you have, your chance of winning goes up.

4.Misdirection

INSTANT-RARE-3 : You may remove a blue card from your hand instead of paying Misdirection's cost. Target spell with a single target targets another target instead.

Remember the days of Deflection? Well this is his little brother and he's not half bad. Misdirection is another one of those free cards that will leave your opponent in shock.

5.Overtaker

CREATURE-RARE-1: 3, Discard a card: Untap target creature and gain control of it until end of turn. That creature gains haste until end of turn. 1/1

Ever wish that you had that creature your opponent had in play? Ever thought "If I had that creature I could of won the game." Well wish no more because the Overtaker is here. For only four mana you can take control of that mega-powerful creature. And that's not all, we'll even throw in haste so you can turn that creature against his master! You could even send it on a suicide run to slowly destroy your opponent's army!!

6.Soothsaying

ENCHANTMENT-UNCOMMON-: 3: Shuffle your library. X: Look at the top X cards of your library and put them back in any order.

This card is pretty self explanitory. Looking at X top cards is good. Rearranging the cards are even better. Ever had mana problem? We all had one time or another. Now you can shuffle your library to avoid those problems. And this enchantment only cost one blue mana to cast.

7.Thwart

INSTANT-UNCOMMON-2: You may return three islands you control instead of paying Thwart's mana cost. Counter target spell.

As I said before, free cards are a good thing, and this card puts it to the limit. Remember Force of Will? The drawback may be a bit steeper than Force of Will but it's still a good card. Picture this, you're all tapped out, your opponent takes advantage of this and does a 15 point Fireballs. He thinks you're dead but the flash of the Thwart wipes that smile off his face. Cruel eh? Maybe. Effective? Hell, yeah!!

8.Waterfront Bouncer

CREATURE-COMMON-1: ,, Discard a card: Return target creature to its owner's hand. 1/1

Mega combo card man!! With this and a Squee your creature will probably never be able to hurt you with a creature. Just discard the Squee and make that creature return back to your opponent's hand. The Squee will return back to your hand the next turn!! You can use it over and over again!!

Green

SORCERY-RARE-4 Draw a card for each creature you control.

If you've played green before you'll know why this card is so good. Green is known for its speed. It can get creatures onto the table faster than you can say "forest". With this card you'll get a handful of cards. The 6 mana is a bit high but green is known for getting tons of mana in play, so 6 mana isn't such a big price to pay.

2.Invigorate

INSTANT-COMMON-2: If you control a forest, you may have a opponent gain 3 life instead of paying Invigorate's casting cost. Target creature gains +4/+4 until end of turn.

Three mana to pump up a creature +4/+4 is okay. What makes this card good is the fact that if you don't have three mana your opponent can still take another point of damage. It may not be as much damage but you still deal damage.

3.Rushwood Elemental

CREATURE-RARE-: Trample. At the beginning of your upkeep, you may put a +1/+1 counter on Elemental. 4/4

Talk about a fast growing tree. This one pumps up 1 every single turn! By the time he's on the table the second turn, he'll be a 6/6! Five mana for a 4/4 is pretty good already. The only drawback is that it takes five forest to cast. That means the majority of your deck has to be green.

Red

CREATURE-RARE-3: 2 , Discard a card: Destoy target land. 1/1

Land destruction decks have just become more dangerous. With this baby in play your opponent can say bye-bye to his lands. You can always dicard the Squee because it'll pop right back into your hand.

2.Squee, Goblin Nabob

CREATURE LEGEND-RARE-2: At the beginning of your upkeep, if Squee is in your graveyard, you may return Squee to your hand. 1/1

Possibly the most useful card in the entire set. Squee can do a lot of things such as blocking creatures or sacrificing it to creatures. Masticore, Notorious Assisin, and Seismic Mage, just to name a few. Since it pops right back to your hand you'll never lose it!!

3.Two-Headed Dragon

CREATURE-RARE-4: Flying. 1: Gain +2/+0 until end of turn. Dragon can't be blocked except by two or more creatures. It may block one additional creature. 4/4

The new dragon is twice as powerful. Two mana to pump up +2/+0 is pretty good but it can only be blocked by two or more creatures is what makes it extrodinary! It could also act as a good defense because it could block a extra creature!

White

ENCHANT CREATURE-UNCOMMON- 2: Enchanted creature can't attack or block, and it's activated abilities can't be played.

You all know why Pacifism is so powerful so you'll also know why I picked this one too. It does the same as Pacifism except it also stops the activated abilities for one extra mana!

2.Cho-Manno, Revolutionary

CREATURE LEGEND-RARE-2: Prevent all damage that would be dealt to Cho-Manno. 2/2

Talk about good creature. This guy has to one of them. No damage can be dealt to him at all! This guy can hold offf any creature without even flinching!

3.Devout Witness

CREATURE-COMMON-2: 1, Discard a card: Destroy target enchantment or artifact. 2/2

All of you should know what Disenchant does, right? Well this creature can produce the same effect any time you need it!

4.Disenchant

INSTANT-COMMON-1: Destroy target enchantment or artifact.

If you've ever played white, you'll know why this card is so good. You can destroy a enchantment or a artifact for only 2 mana! Very little cards give you that much for so little.

5.Ivory Mask

ENCHANTMENT-RARE-2 : You can't be the target of spells or abilities.

This one is a first. YOU CAN'T BE A TARGET OF SPELLS OR ABILITIES!! No Fireball, Corrupt, or Drain Life can hurt you!! Ever been annoyed by those discard decks, well this card is their worst nightmare!!