Hello and happiest of days to each of you! Recently, I've been wanting to spend some time looking at Ramp in Multiplayer Magic. So, over the next several weeks I want to talk about all the ways you can ramp and highlight some of the heavy hitters in more casual, multiplayer Magic!

I plan to talk about my Top Mana Dorks, Mana Rocks (I recently made the case for Manaliths which you can check out here), land cyclers like Eternal Dragon, cards that search up lands and put them directly in your hand like Civic Wayfinder or Land Tax. We'll talk about classic ramp spells like Rampant Growth and Harrow, then creatures that enter and put lands into play like Wood Elves!

Things I won't be covering in this series? Things like Treasure tokens and Rituals (Dark Ritual and its ilk) provide temporary boosts of mana, so they don't quite make the cut as ramp spells. I could talk about Lander tokens though, since they do put a land into play. Permanents that make flat out make their own mana, like Eladamri's Vineyard, or cards that let you play multiple lands in a turn could come up as well. Also, I'll want to take a look at great Auras that augment lands for extra mana, like Wild Growth. And I can't forget about Cost Reduction effects!

However, for this article, I want to kick this Ramp series off by looking at the classic fetch lands and several smaller groups of good ramp cards that couldn't fill an article (Top Five or otherwise) on their own!

Let's get started!

Classic Fetch Lands (Fast and Slow)

Fetch lands are by no means unconventional, but they're important to talk about! The 15 two-color fetch lands sac for one of two land types, neither of which needs to be a basic, so you can grab a dual land or triome. The Odyssey/Zendikar pain fetches revolutionized mana bases since the lands they fetched entered untapped (at the cost of 1 life) - but they do cost a pretty penny. You can run them in all Commander decks no matter their color identity, but many consider that a flavor foul. Then the ETB tapped uncommon cycle that came first only does it for allies, but is cheap to acquire and many either prefer the pricier pain ones or just don't know about them.

And we love Terramorphic Expanse and Myriad Landscape. There are also a bunch of fetches that get you one basic land color to fill out what color you need, but just one per. Typically, they'll ETB tapped, but a few don't. Also, a shoutout to one-mana colorless basic landcycler Ash Barrens that feels like this on the first turn.

Mana Accelerators

Next up are these mana-accelerating enchantments! The first costs five, pumps our dorks with a +1 size and then adds a mana when we tap our lands. Then the seven-drop mono-Green one also does the same! Then when we cast dorks here, we'll draw - much better dork support there.

Nissa, Who Shakes the World can make another Green when we tap our Forests! Then she can +1 to animate a land, untap it too. Heartbeat of Spring first debuted in Red as Mana Flare, but was colorshifted to Green with this printing. Also don't sleep on Mana Reflection that doubles our mana from dorks, lands, rocks and everywhere!

Land Tutors

Some decks need to get the right land into their hand for the situation - often with a need for anything, not just basics. This classic duo is next! The two-cost sorcery will grab whatever we most need from Kor Haven to whatever. Then the one-drop artifact can be sacked with to do the same - these can get you one half of Cabal Coffers and Urborg or Gaea's Cradle, Nykthos or an Urzatron piece. Enjoy them much!

Dropping Lands onto the Battlefield

Some creatures like Arboreal Grazer will ETB and drop a land from our hand while others will tap and then drop one too. My favorite to run are this nice-butted defense group. Then the two-drop PuPu UFO in artifact and colorless form has flying and then an 0/4 body, and then taps for dropping and can spend 3 mana to grow its power equal to your Town count. Each of them can swing and block flyers too.

Sac Engines and Mana-Neutral Creatures

Let's not forget mana-making sac things like Ashnod's Altar or this pair first. The three-drop one will sac any of our dorks for 1 mana, but any color! Nice for twice. Then the four-drop artifact will sac one to make 2 mana this time. These tend to be used more in Aristocrat or Combos, but they ain't bad in other places to smooth mana and use something before it dies or is exiled too. Then the five-drop uncommon in Green will sac a dork at instant speed for a mana for a free Rampant Growth!

Next up are dorks that are either mana neutral or mana positive like Priest of Gix that costs three, on a 2/1 body and then ETBs and makes 3 mana! And if you have an ETB ability that makes mana or the sac one you'll be making them. Then there are the Blue dorks that arrive and untap lands equal to their cost! So, if you have lands out that tap for more, you can net mana like Karoo ones. The classic seven-drop flying 4/5 Palinchron will ETB and untap seven, and then costs four to bounce any time at instant speed. Many love this, and I prefer them to Rituals or Elvish Spirit Guide since they'll be around after.

Landfall Mana-Makers

There have been three great on-curve mono-Green dorks that turn landfall into mana making. The first was the Cobra for any mana on a 2/1 two-mana body, and then the next and probably best is the three-drop 3/2 uncommon Elf that turns it into a Treasure to store or Food too if not needed. Then the epic legendary one has landfall for any mana and then turns the second one each turn into digging and drawing an Elf or Elemental.

Mana Smoothing

We also have three Green permanents that aren't making or helping mana in other ways like [card]Chromatic Lantern" href="/p/Magic+The+Gathering/Chromatic Lantern" href="/p/Magic+The+Gathering/[card]Chromatic Lantern">[card]Chromatic Lantern">Chromatic Lantern" href="/p/Magic+The+Gathering/[card]Chromatic Lantern">[card]Chromatic Lantern too that smooth our mana. The two-drop Elf Druid 2/1 dork Joiner Adept will let your lands tap for all of the mana colors! Then the two-drop rare enchantment Prismatic Omen will make your lands all basic land types - so they'll count for Nightmare or Coffers. And then the four-drop all-colors Leyline of the Guildpact can arrive for free in our opening hand, then also does the same like the Omen and then all of our dorks are all of the colors too! Embrace this trio!

A Powerful Land Grabbing Duo

These two dorks put lands into your hand, but in different ways and with restrictions and are classic options in multiplayer too. Weathered Wayfarer taps for to search for land and put it in your hand, but only if someone else has more lands than you. Repeatedly tutoring up any land is a huge boon, so don't overlook this one! Hermit Druid taps for to reveal cards from the top of your library until you hit a basic land. You then put that land in your hand and dump the rest to your graveyard. He's a classic graveyard filler, but don't forget he finds lands too!

A Little Combat Damage Doesn't Hurt

The three-drop common Avenging Druid can turn that damage into digging, dropping your top library's land untapped and then bins the rest. Nasty with a graveyard based and any land can be untapped. Then the two-drop on-curve 2/1 flyer Cartographer's Hawk can turn this ramping a Plains, and any one too - nonbasics. But just if they have more and then bounces to your hand too. Then the one-drop 2/1 Ragavan, Nimble Pilferer turns combat damage into a Treasure and then you can exile and cast their cast spell too. I prefer these in this order.

Group Hug?

Who wants to make friends? At any multiplayer table there are folks that can be mana-hosed, often you! Enter this stuff! Scholarship Sponsor ETBs and everyone with a smaller land base fetches lands until they get there. Then the classic one-drop 1/1 Green Soldier Veteran Explorer has a death trigger to have everyone ramp two basics untapped. Love in all of the places. Then the one-drop rare Green 1/1 Magus of the Vineyard gives everyone two Green mana in their pre-combat main phase, and there are a few of these dorks that let everyone get free land over time.

This is another make all of the friends while helping you too! No one's mana pool empties! You can float mana EOT and then build it up over time! It's an amazing tool to build around too. And then the sorcery will ramp every player basics tapped equal to X! It's also very strong here too! Ditto the join forces 1 mana one that everyone can invest mana and then they all ramp the total invested. Also, if you want to keep the mana just yourself like Upwelling you can toss in some Omnaths for Green or Black or that magecraft Red legendary one instead.

Hate Bear Ramp

Now if you like the Hate Bear ramp, Deep Gnome Terramancer and Yasharn, Implacable Earth is a great duo, but I rarely run the latter. The two-drop White one with flash will turn your foe's dropping lands but not normally you can ramp a Plains tapped. That's any Plains, but just once per turn. It's not punishing them for playing which is why it's here. Then the four-drop Selesnya legendary one at 4/4 arrives and grabs you two basics of a Forest and Plains nature, but too your hand. Then you shut down life payment, or sacking nonlands for stuff which feels unfair.

Everything Taps for Mana!

Next up are things that let all of your dorks tap for mana in Green. The Green-dork rare four-drop 3/2 will let your stuff tap for Green. Then the two-drop uncommon 1/1 Sliver will do it for your tribe, so there's that restriction. You could also get this in Saga form with Song of Freyalise. But my favorite is the four-drop rare enchantment that does it for your stuff for all colors, and then you can cast creatures from the top of your library too.

Great Ramp Creatures

There are some weird Green dorks that weirdly ramp. Fertilid, for instance, arrives with a couple of counters you can pull off for 2 mana each at instant speed to ramp a basic tapped. Love that EOT to drop them and then untap and use them in one go. Then the four-drop rare Hiveheart Shaman has a swing trigger to ramp out a basic that's not what you already control so you'll get domain fast. Then spend six here at sorcery speed to make a dork with size equal to our domain count plus one on an Insect frame. The 5/7 Ape Silverback Elder turns the casting of any of our dorks into a Naturalize, life gain, or dig five and ramp a land tapped and then the rest to our library's bottom.

Ramp Plus Mill

We do have some dorks out there that combine ramp and graveyard milling. Sometimes this is digging, drawing a land and binning the rest or just milling and then choosing one for our hand from it from Satyr Wayfinder and even card draw spells like Bitter Revelation. Add here a Crucible effect to maximize value. The three-drop on-curve trample 3/3 one above has a size boost for everyone that lost and then a combat trigger for that many cards milled and ramped to the battlefield. Then the classic two-drop 1/3 Green one taps with two to self-bounce, reveal four and ramp a land tapped and then the rest to our graveyard and then a great channel here too.

The 5/6 reacher Cavalier of Thorns has an ETB to reveal five and drop one land untapped and ready to be used and then graveyards the rest. Then it's got a death trigger to get exiled and Reclaim a card to our library's top. Then just insert Crucible or Life from the Loam to get the good stuff triggered or out.

Equipment that Ramps

Ah yes, ramp from Equipment is great and next! This two-drop legendary Equipment also equips for two, pumps our dork and then when it swings you can ramp out a basic land tapped. Then the zero-drop, one to equip turns it into a Birds of Paradise tapper. You can move that and basically mana-wash any color to a mana you need for stuff as long as you've got the dorks to tap.

Removal

Did you know that there are a couple of mana ramps that also destroy stuff for four mana? Yup! Binding the Old Gods ETBs, removes an opposing nonland permanent and then on the next turn ramps out a Forest tapped! That's any Forest, not just basics. Then the instant speed Deathsprout will kill something and ramp out any basic tapped.

Good Lands in Multiplayer

Now the first place you'll look for multiplayer land bases are mana-making lands, from Karoos to duals and even tris. Some duals are pretty cheap in case you want to stick clear of Shock or the Surveil ones, although I feel are often worth it. The cycle ones and check ones are good, or the common or Snows too. For Tris you can run Triomes, or if those are too pricey or in addition you can run the ETB tapped taps for 3 manas like Frontier Bivouac. Then once you've added them in? Here we go!

Next up is the ability to use or reuse stuff that died or was countered or was milled too! Just insert one of this cycle of legendary lands that tap for colorless and with two to reload their permanent type on top of library to draw it again!

The next place I love to add to my mana stuff is defense protection from attackers. With Kor Haven and Maze of Ith you can sort of send folks to attack other folks. The legendary White one above taps with two to prevent it from an attacker. Then the land taps for no mana to untap them and then prevent that damage too.

Then after that I like to add in card draw like War Room and Minas Tirith and such. There are tons of other ramp stuff out there too! We have one that turns damage to it with enrage into a ramped land! (Ranging Raptors). We have the two cheap common Green enchantments in Font of Fertility and Omen of the Hunt and Wayfarer's Bauble in artifacts. Then we have a dork in Yedora that turns all of your dying stuff into Forests. Or we have some death trigger rampers out there too like Rampant Rejuvenator. Cheering Crowd? Supportive Parents? Check out what you need and then get your ramp and mana smoothing on! Afterall, if you cannot cast your stuff? You'll die!