Resilient Khenra is one of several aggressive cards covered in this beatdown-oriented episode.
Hour of Devastation brings several aggressive options to Standard. We've mostly talked about powerhouse cards like Hour of Devastation [the card], or big ramp spells like Hour of Promise so far... But the new set can also turn a mean Jackal sideways!
Resilient Khenra: Greater than Grizzly BearsTo start, this card is a 2/2 creature for 1G... Any text on it is going to put it past the classic Grizzly Bears.
As it is, giving a creature +2/+2 one time is comparable to a 2/2 haste creature, according to Patrick.
The question is whether you can afford to play Resilient Khenra in a world that has optimized out Duskwatch Recruiter and Sylvan Advocate. We think... Maybe.
For one thing, Sylvan Advocate has largely lost on the presence of Fatal Push. Later in the game, when Sylvan Advocate is meant to get big, it still has a tiny two in the top-right... Making it a great target for Fatal Push.
Resilient Khenra doesn't have the same problem. It leaves a body, yes, but pushing the tempo with its 187 buff effect is the main reason you choose this card.
Resilient Khenra post-Adorned PouncerOne of the things that makes this creature so attractive is its ability to synergize with Adorned Pouncer.
If you start on an Adorned Pouncer, and follow up with Resilient Khenra, you don't merely get +2/+2... You get to exploit the double strike on Adorned Pouncer. So for only two mana, you get four extra damage (and keep the Jackal Wizard body).
Later in the game, the two creatures' Eternalize abilities curve one into the next. Adorned Pouncer costs five to Eternalize, and Resilient Khenra costs six. In the late-game case, Resilient Khenra provides +4/+4 due to the token's superior size, so the multiplier is that much more dangerous.
Appeal // Authority in Tokens, or AnywhereThe G/W color combination isn't limited to Eternalize guys in Hour of Devastation. What about Appeal // Authority?
In a tokens deck specifically, Appeal can deal a huge amount of extra damage for only one mana, while Authority hearkens back to Alexander Hayne's Block Constructed PT win from a few years back.
Together, they may make a splash. Luckily, they're always together.
Give it all a listen:
