The board wipe card Kozilek’s Return is the latest Magic: The Gathering price spike on our radar. This neat little Instant has gone up in price by 200% over just a couple of weeks. Priced at only $2.50 on January 26, the cheapest copies of this useful spell are now selling for $7.70, and it certainly seems like that price is only rising.
Originally from the 2016 MTG set Oath of the Gatewatch, Kozilek’s Return is a damage dealing spell that can deal two to each creature. It’s even more useful in the graveyard, as when you cast a big Eldrazi it immediately deals five damage to each creature.
Kozilek’s Return has long been a staple in Eldrazi decks, and seems to spike in value whenever they get really popular. Unsurprisingly, that’s what we’re seeing now in early 2025, with Modern Eldrazi Ramp suddenly resurgent in the meta. Ramp decks starring the big noodly boys have been performing well at the highest level, taking second place at RC Prague a few weeks ago, and third at RC Portland on February 8.
Eldrazi Ramp is a deck that comes out the gate with a straightforward gameplan. Step 1: Ramp Step 2: Play big Eldrazi cards. Obviously, it’s a little more complicated than that, but the deck has always relied on playing ramp cards like Kozilek’s Command and using them to cheat out terrifying Eldrazi titans. For now it’s basically replaced Tron in the Modern format, using all the Modern Horizons 3 Eldrazi cards to form a powerful new shell.
The deck seems to be doing so well right now because it has decent answers to the biggest threats in the meta. Eldrazi tokens can double as extra blockers against aggro in a pinch, while a Writhing Chrysalis with reach can stop Abhorrent Oculus in its tracks. The deck also finds room for copies of Karn the Great Creator, a really strong MTG planeswalker that provides access to an endless toolkit of artifact-based answers from your sideboard.
In the current meta, Kozilek’s Return is most helpful against the Energy decks that are still up on top. Two damage is enough to deal with most of the deck’s big threats early on, buying you valuable time to retaliate. You also may not even need to cast the spell as Malevolent Rumble can pop it into your graveyard for you, letting you skip straight to the free five-damage version.
Only time will tell if Eldrazi Ramp (and therefore Kozilek’s Return) will remain popular for long. Right now, it certainly seems well-matched against the top meta decks, and it has plenty of flexibility too. However, Boros players are able to retaliate with four copies of Obsidian Charmaw from the sideboard, which may tip the balance back in their favor.
For more Magic: The Gathering articles, check out our guides to the most expensive MTG cards or the MTG release schedule. And if you mostly play online, these MTG Arena codes may be of use to you.
Source: Wargamer
