Eternal Artisan Banned & Watchlist
Ban and Watchlist Philosophy
For the most part, cards that are banned in Eternal Artisan are deemed too efficient, powerful, or lack appropriate answers to remain legal. The goal is to allow players access to as much of the card pool as possible. At times, cards may be banned because their legality directly inhibits access to a large part of the card pool. Our goal with the format's Banlist and Watchlist is not to make every card or niche draft strategy competitive, BUT if a specific card has a heavy influence on an archetype that is otherwise viable in the format, that card may receive a ban.
In 2025, we adopted an additional layer with the format's Watchlist. This provide players a bit more transparency to the cards that we are monitoring. The watch list allows us to communicate cards that are on 'toeing the line' of acceptability in Eternal Artisan. This also should hopefully avoid any sudden blindsiding caused by banning a card seemingly out of nowhere, possibly tanking a player's preferred strategy with no notice. If a card is performing above expectation and has demonstrated an impact that could threaten format health, it would first be added to the Watchlist before banning. If the card continues to present problems with no apparent solution, it could be elevated to a full ban.
Barring emergency situations we aim to never have a card move from legal straight to banned. Instead, the card would first be added to the Watchlist and at least one event cycle would be given to monitor the card's impact before further action would be taken. An emergency situation would likely be due to a card being introduced to the platform with from reprints and quickly proving to create a strategy that the format has few to no answers to. Older cards being added to the platform through ancillary products or bonus sheets that are historically power outliers (i.e. Strip Mine) are the most common examples.
In a similar vein, cards will never go from the ban list to fully legal either. If a card is downgraded from Banned, it would move to the Watchlist. This allows us to allow cards another chance in the format when we believe they are safe to reintroduce while still keeping an eye on their impact. In the situation where reintroducing a card proves to be an issue, it could return to its place on the ban list the following event cycle while adhering to our intent of never moving a card more than one level at a time.
Eternal Artisan Banned List Updates
2026-01-21
Stern Scolding - downgraded from Banned to Watchlist
Stern Scolding was banned due to its incredible efficiency and application in the format. Due to the overall power level of the format, a large portion of the viable spells in Eternal Artisan cost between one and three mana. As a result, Stern Scolding's application is such that it hits nearly all played creatures, often mana-neutral or mana-positive for the caster. This was seen as concerning and Stern Scolding was banned at the time. As the format has grown since this decision, new strategies and deck building options have become available to players. Additionally, Scolding's potential to answer the hyper efficient creatures but fail to work against higher mana value options may further enhance the constructed environment. For these reasons, we are lifting the ban on Stern Scolding, moving it down to the Watchlist.
Basking Broodscale
Eternal Artisan is no stranger to combo decks. There are a number of these strategies that exist in the format. Maintaining the right balance of powerful but interruptible is important. Within the Abzan colors there are a handful of creature-combo decks that can threaten to end the game abruptly. At this time, each of these requires some amount of set up and specific pieces in order to find success. Basking Broodscale pushes the efficiency of the creature combo strategy a bit too far. Further, the pieces needed for combos typically provide a much lower floor when not contributing to the deck's unfair plan, making those decks more balanced game to game. In Broodscales case, the rate of the card and its 'fair' use still offer a lot of value even when the deck's combo is not being threatened. For these reasons, Basking Broodscale is banned in Eternal Artisan.
Channel
Another spicy addition thanks to Strixhaven's Mystical Archive, Channel was initially thought to warrant a ban before every seeing play. However, with very few applications at the time of its printing, Channel was another card in a growing list that had a historical context that was not guaranteed to apply to Eternal Artisan. Channel remained legal for several years, sometimes showing up but often having too few applications and a significant variance problem that often made it more of a mistake to play than to leave it as a legal option. With the expansion of the card pool over time, Channel's applications and efficiency has increased enough to revisit its legality. While it remains a high variance card, the format has too few answers to an early Channel. At this time, Channel is banned in Eternal Artisan.
Demonic Tutor
At the introduction of Demonic Tutor to the format, the card was initially legal. Arguably one of the most powerful tutors ever printed, the efficiency of this spell allows the caster to have access to whichever card in their deck is most applicable in that moment. From the best suited threat or answer in the moment to additional copies of key combo pieces, Demonic Tutor is currently just a little too good at what it does for the environment. At this time, Demonic Tutor is banned in Eternal Artisan.
Golden Sidekick
Digital-Only cards are legal in Eternal Artisan, excluding a few digital-only mechanics deemed problematic. Perpetually provides some contexts that are net-positive, opening up strategies and deck-building ideas that would not be viable in paper Magic. Still, an inherent concern to these mechanics is their ability to permanently alter a card for the remainder of the game, regardless of it changing zones. Further, when cards can be altered without being in play, it protects them from the opponent's counterplay. Traditionally, if a player attempts to buff one of their creatures, the opponent can respond, removing that creature before the buff is applied. But, when these alterations can occur in areas the opponent is not able to disrupt, the situation has the potential to cause unhealthy gameplay patterns. Golden Sidekick's efficiency at increasing the stats of cards in the player's hand is notable here. The ability does not even require the Sidekick itself to be the source of the lifegain. While a presumed limitation of the card's power would be the player having creatures in hand to receive the buff, a prevailing strategy in the format at this time finds the player recalling their creatures back to hand frequently during the game, leading to situations where already deployed creatures can be returned, buffed, and redeployed more powerful than before. Despite a rebalance of the card from a 2/2 to a 1/3, the card's effect remains the same and as such, Golden Sidekick is banned in Eternal Artisan
Lightning Bolt
Strixhaven's Mystical Archive did a lot to enhance the Eternal Artisan format. Spells that often are printed at higher rarities today or have ceased regular printing were suddenly considerations for players. Lightning Bolt present a versatility and efficiency that is mostly unmatched. For its cost, the spells threatens nearly all played creatures of the format while also accelerating the speed of decks with the ability to target the player as well. In order to provide a little more breathing room in the format, Lightning Bolt is banned.
Mana Drain
A variant of Counterspell with a possibly intended drawback (due to mana burn) at the time, Mana Drain is a notable power outlier in the format. While Eternal Artisan is no stranger to powerful cards, there are some that have enough of a negative impact on the format to warrant banning. Mana Drain is at its best when it is denying the opponent a more expensive spell. Simply due to the nature of larger formats, mana efficiency is often a priority, and players need a real reason to look to printed spells with mana values over 4 CMC. Mana Drain further disincentives this consideration. For the health of the format, Mana Drain is banned in Eternal Artisan.
Strip Mine
One of a very few cards to receive a pre-banning, Strip Mine is in a class of its own. Looking to land destruction printed on cards since, no card has been printed to replicate Strip Mine's ability. Often relegated to powered cubes and high powered EDH tables, Stripe Mine is simply too efficient at what it does. Tax effects, destroying non-basic lands with powerful abilities - these are ways that a player might attack someone's mana while avoiding the game play problem of disallowing one player from participating in the game entirely. Counterplay and answers are important pieces to healthy strategy games. Attacking a players basic lands and nearly zero cost is certainly in the realm of power outlier threatening the health of the format. Land destruction, especially at this rate, is currently seen as out of bounds for the Eternal Artisan format. While no card is technically ever permanently banned in Eternal Artisan, it is unlikely that the format would ever reach a point where Stripe Mine would be considered a healthy option. For now and likely for the foreseeable future, Strip Mine is banned in Eternal Artisan.
Swords to Plowshares
Often mentioned in the upper echelon of removal, Swords to Plowshares is one of the most efficient targeted removal spells ever printed. A staple of any format where it is legal, Swords has proven to be too good in the format. Compressing the mana value and speed of the format considerably, the rate here often allows the caster a tempo advantage over the opponent, with the life gained mattering very little in the long run. For these reasons, Swords to Plowshares is banned in Eternal Artisan.
Basking Broodscale
Creature — Eldrazi Lizard
Devoid (This card has no color.)
: Adapt 1. (If this creature has no +1/+1 counters on it, put a +1/+1 counter on it.)
Whenever one or more +1/+1 counters are put on this creature, you may create a 0/1 colorless Eldrazi Spawn creature token with "Sacrifice this token: Add 
."
Arena Printings
Other Printings
Golden Sidekick
Enchantment Creature — Bat Glimmer
Flying, lifelink Whenever you gain life, a random creature card in your hand perpetually gets +X/+X, where X is the amount of life you gained.
Arena Printings
Other Printings
Lightning Bolt
Instant
Lightning Bolt deals 3 damage to any target.
Arena Printings
: Add 
Swords to Plowshares
Instant
Exile target creature. Its controller gains life equal to its power.
Arena Printings
rather than pay this spell's mana cost."
