Chromatic Lantern
Artifact
Lands you control have "
: Add one mana of any color."
: Add one mana of any color.
*Dimir mages put the lanterns to good use, creating shapeshifters and sleeper agents from mana foreign to them.*
Why Play Chromatic Lantern
Multicolored decks running three or more colors benefit enormously from the perfect mana fixing this artifact provides, eliminating color screw and enabling consistent casting of demanding spells. The effect transforms even basic lands into rainbow producers, making it especially valuable in budget builds that can't afford expensive mana bases. Play it early when facing aggressive decks to stabilize your mana, or hold it until turn 4-5 in slower matchups where you can immediately utilize the extra colored mana it provides.Format Notes
Commander represents the primary home for Chromatic Lantern, where it appears in countless three-color and five-color decks as essential mana fixing infrastructure. Pioneer and Modern occasionally see it in ambitious multicolor strategies, though faster formats often prefer cheaper alternatives like Treasures or two-mana rocks. The card has never faced bans and maintains steady play in casual circles, though competitive constructed formats have largely moved beyond three-mana mana rocks.Combos & Synergies
Five-color commanders like Jodah, Archmage Eternal and The Ur-Dragon showcase the lantern at its best, enabling consistent access to WUBRG costs and demanding multicolor spells. Cards that generate additional land drops like Azusa, Lost but Seeking multiply the value by creating more mana sources to benefit from the color-fixing effect. Utility lands become significantly more powerful when they can tap for any color while retaining their special abilities.Featured in These Decks
- Tricky Terrain Commander
- The Ruinous Powers Commander
- Living Energy Commander
- From Cute to Brute Commander
- Food and Fellowship Commander
- Entropic Uprising Commander
