Ajani, Mentor of Heroes (Original Sketch)

Ajani, Mentor of Heroes is a five-mana, 4 loyalty Ajani-Planeswalker, first printed in Journey into Nyx (2014). It has seen real competitive play, especially shortly after his release. Today, he sees play mostly in casual formats and Commander. Ajani was a multi-format Standard staple during the Theros / Khans of Tarkir Standard era. He mainly appeared in G/W Midrange, Abzan Midrange, and occasionally Junk Planeswalkers shells. This card was played because it was excellent in board-centric midrange mirrors, generating long-term advantage without requiring specific synergies. Ajani’s +1 counter ability allowed creatures to punch through Courser of Kruphix, Polukranos, World Eater and Siege Rhino – which were top threats at that time in the format. It’s card selection mode let you dig for threats and avoid running out of gas. Ajani is hard to remove profitably in a format with few fast answers to 4+ loyalty walkers. Ajani, Mentor of Heroes had multiple Grand Prix Top 8 appearances – GP Chicago 2014 (Abzan Midrange), GP Miami 2014 (GW Aggro splashing Ajani), and GP Manila 2014 (Abzan Control/Midrange variants). Ajani, Mentor of Heroes is not a Modern staple, but he has popped up occasionally in Bant Midrange (2014-2016 era), Naya Superfriends, and Abzan Midrange. Ajani is far more popular in Commander than in competitive formats. It’s mostly played in G/W +1/+1 counter decks (e.g. Kyler, Sigardian Emissary), Superfriends strategies (e.g. Atraxa, Praetor’s Voice), and in Life-gain decks (e.g. Trostani, Selesnya’s Voice). It is a solid but not broken EDH planeswalker – valued for flexibility rather than raw power. Ajani, Mentor of Heroes is not on the Reserved List.