Back in April of last year, Wizards unbanned five Commander cards and added them to the Game Changers list. While many players were initially eager to give these newly unlocked tools a chance, some of them are surprisingly underplayed. Curiously, this is the case for Panoptic Mirror, despite its game-breaking potential.
MTG Panoptic Mirror
On the surface, Panoptic Mirror is a very high-risk, high-reward design. In order to get your money’s worth, you ideally need to resolve multiple copies of your Imprinted spells. Not only does this process take time and require a lot of mana, but Panoptic Mirror is vulnerable to artifact destruction in the interim.
Luckily, there are ways to ensure that if you do reach your next upkeep unscathed, you can pull ahead immediately. The simplest way to get more bang for your buck is to copy the upkeep trigger with Strionic Resonator or Lithoform Engine. Cards like Obeka, Splitter of Seconds provide similar value by providing multiple upkeep steps.
Once these bolstering effects are ready to go, you’ll just need an impactful spell to Imprint and copy repeatedly. Card advantage engines like Sea Gate Restoration are always great, while massive damage sources like Sorin’s Vengeance help close games. Notably, Imprinting and copying Paradigm staples like Improvisation Capstone still enable the mechanic just fine, making them worthwhile inclusions.
Obviously, these spells do cost a lot of mana to Imprint, but cost reduction effects like Zirda, the Dawnwaker can make things more manageable. If you want to go an even cheaper route, Panoptic Mirror has the capability of Imprinting some powerful Suspend spells like Inevitable Betrayal for free.
Infinite Turns, Mana, and Storm
As strong as Panoptic Mirror is as a value engine that grants inevitability, it’s at its best as a combo piece. The simplest way to abuse the artifact is to Imprint an extra turn spell. If uninterrupted, you’ll get to keep making copies and take infinite extra turns, making winning trivial.
Additionally, Panoptic Mirror synergizes perfectly with Dramatic Reversal. With the help of Strionic Resonator and mana rocks that collectively tap for at least two mana, you have the potential to cast Reversal infinite times. All you have to do is copy Panoptic Mirror’s upkeep trigger once and float two mana, then cast Dramatic Reversal to untap your permanents and copy the upkeep trigger again.
This helps enable win conditions like Aetherflux Reservoir or lets you draw your deck with Archmage Emeritus. Plus, if your mana rocks happen to tap for three or more mana, you’ll also net infinite mana in the process. From there, any number of win conditions, including Walking Ballista, can close things out.
An Interesting Case
Considering how strong Panoptic Mirror is when it gets going and how easy the path to infinite turns is, it’s a bit surprising that the artifact doesn’t see more play. Appearing in just 10,300 Commander decks according to EDHREC, it’s hard to fathom that this card was once banned to begin with.
Yet, while the setup cost is undeniably high, Panoptic Mirror’s scarcity may have even more to do with its low play rate than its power level. This artifact has unfortunately not received a reprint since it debuted in Darksteel in 2004, contributing to its hefty $26 price tag. Nonetheless, there’s no doubt that this card can take over games, making it an interesting consideration for higher-bracket Commander nights.
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