All 17 Leylines in Magic Ranked

Last updated on January 28, 2025

Leyline of Vitality | Illustration by Jim Nelson

Does it ever feel like you’re lost, or on an unfamiliar path? When in doubt, find your Leyline.

Leylines have become popular sideboard cards for many formats, but why? What can these cards do for you? Today I'm going to look at all Leyline cards and rank them based on how useful they can be. Some of them have value in the main deck while others shine in the sideboard, while some are specific to certain formats, so I’ll be ranking them accordingly.

Let’s follow these ancient mana paths and see where they take us!

What Are Leylines in MTG?

Leyline of Sanctity | Illustration by Noah Bradley

Leylines are permanents that depict ancient mana lines or paths that crisscross each other on every plane in Magic. They all cost four mana, and if one of them is in your starting hand then you can place it onto the battlefield before the game begins. This opening hand effect was created to give the impression that Leylines are found, not cast.

The Leylines were first printed in Guildpact, with additions in Magic 2011, Core Set 2020, Duskmourn: House of Horror, and the first multicolor one in Murders at Karlov Manor.

All Leylines were enchantments up until Foundations, which released Leyline Axe as the first artifact leyline.

#17. Leyline of Singularity

Leyline of Singularity has some interesting interactions that come from making all nonland permanents legendary. It stops your opponent from playing copies of the same permanent and allows you to take advantage of legend-only type cards like Mox Amber and Day of Destiny.

It doesn't really do anything though, and feels like a strange meta call against a highly specific kind of deck at best.

#16. Leyline of Lifeforce

Leyline of Lifeforce ensures that your creatures won’t be countered. I believe this is the definition of a sideboard card for creature decks. It doesn’t need to be main decked and therefore won’t be as valuable as some of the other Leylines on this list.

#15. Leyline of the Meek

Leyline of the Meek boosts your creature tokens and so belongs with cards like Bitterblossom and Edgar, Charmed Groom. This Leyline isn’t a must-have for token decks as it can be replaced with cards like King Darien XLVIII and Eldrazi Monument, and it even pumps your opponents' tokens, which is usually a no-go.

#14. Leyline of Mutation

Fist of Suns as a leyline is cool in concept, but outside of Jodah, Archmage Eternal Commander decks, who really wants this? Maybe a rogue brewer can find a way to reliably cheat in Omniscience with the alternate cost here, but this feels like a swing and a miss. Also awkward that the green leyline in the Duskmourn cycle can't be played in mono-green Commander decks.

#13. Leyline of Punishment

Time to get your burn decks ready! Leyline of Punishment stops lifegain and damage prevention. You have one focus when you play this card, and that's to burn your opponent with cards like Firebrand Archer, Brimstone Volley, and Koth of the Hammer.

#12. Leyline of Transformation

I know Magic players whose entire personality is trying to pull off some strange combo with type-changing effects like Maskwood Nexus or Arcane Adaptation. Those people got a new toy to play with in Leyline of Transformation while the rest of the world can simply ignore it. Well, those of you who weren't scorned by opening this in your Duskmourn Sealed pools. The card gets points because it will be played by some EDH players, and will likely be a linchpin card in decks where it shows up.

#11. Leyline of Anticipation

Leyline of Anticipation is a fun Leyline to take advantage of instant-speed casting. Flash is a great keyword, so why not give it to all your spells?

This can turn powerful cards like Clone or Agent of Treachery into momentum-changing, instant-speed plays.

#10. Leyline of Vitality

Leyline of Vitality is great for lifegain decks. As a slight bonus your creatures also get an extra toughness to keep them alive. This Leyline can boost creatures like Essence Channeler and Voice of the Blessed, and works in tandem with soul sisters like Soul Warden.

#9. Leyline of Hope

Lifegain payoffs and anthem effects are oversaturated, and not every lifegain deck even cares about pumping its creatures. Still, this is a cool payoff for all the Ajani's Pridemate lovers out there. We see you.

#8. Leyline of Combustion

The red Leylines are my favorite, but I also tend to lean aggressively. If you’re worried about your opponent targeting you with discard or using spot removal on your creatures, Leyline of Combustion will make them think twice.

Another great card to include in burn decks.

#7. Leyline of Lightning

Leyline of Punishment is great and all, but Leyline of Lightning was reprinted in the Wilds of Eldraine: Enchanting Tales for your next burn deck. It adds a point of burn to all your cards if you can keep extra mana free. I also love that it says “spell,” so this includes all your nonland cards. This Leyline is worth rostering in main decks that want to burn their opponents with every spell.

#6. Leyline of Sanctity

Leyline of Sanctity seems like the least fun of the Leylines in my opinion. It stops all “target player” effects, but it doesn’t give you much else outside of that.

Giving yourself hexproof can actually decide games against decks that must target you in order to win. Think Goblin Charbelcher and Tendrils of Agony decks.

#5. Leyline of the Guildpact

Leyline of the Guildpact looked like a messy “just-for-fun” card when it was released, then went on to enable a meta-defining domain deck in Modern revolving around Scion of Draco. It just goes to show that even the jankiest effects in this category can do something unexpected once players dig up the right interactions.

#4. Leyline Axe

Leyline Axe from Foundations breaks the tradition of all leylines being enchantments, and instead puts the typical leyline text on an equipment artifact. Outside turn-0 implications, this has all the same benefits as Embercleave, though without the surprise factor or the auto-equip. Significantly worse, but having a 4-mana artifact in play on turn 1 has gotten people excited about Metalwork Colossus again.

#3. Leyline of the Void

Some of these Leylines help you, and some of them counter your opponent’s strategies. Leyline of the Void focuses on neutralizing your opponent’s graveyard and dying effects.

This card has such a devastating effect on some decks that it should be in most sideboards.

#2. Leyline of Resonance

Creating leylines always feels like playing with fire. You either create cards that just objectively suck (i.e.: most of this list), or you risk making an actual good leyline that breaks the game by nature of how these cards work. Leyline of Resonance did exactly that in Standard, where it turned Monstrous Rage and dorks like Heartfire Hero and Cacophony Scamp into turn-3 wins. You have to build around it, but doing so isn't hard when they keep pushing the power of 1-mana combat tricks like Rage and Turn Inside Out.

#1. Leyline of Abundance

You know a card is powerful when it’s banned in some formats.

Leyline of Abundance makes your mana-producing creatures even more efficient and has some late-game pump value. This Leyline is banned in Pioneer and Explorer due to its interaction with devotion payoffs like Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx, but it can still be used in Modern, Historic, and other Eternal formats.

Best Leyline Payoffs

The red Leylines are all about burning your opponent, so make sure to include cards like Boros Charm, Monastery Swiftspear, and Searing Blaze.

Some of the green Leylines protect and pump your creatures, so pair them with great creatures like Birds of Paradise, Workshop Warchief, and Kami of Whispered Hopes.

Some of the other Leylines protect you from threats which may give you time to realize some bigger strategies like an Approach of the Second Sun and Memory Deluge combo.

If you don’t want your Leylines to be just lame enchantments, you can turn them into creatures with cards like Opalescence and Starfield of Nyx.

Even if you don’t turn them into creatures, Leylines might help boost enchantment strategies alongside cards like Serra's Sanctum, Enlightened Tutor, and Michiko's Reign of Truth.

Leylines are also easy permanents to get into play if they're in your opening hand, and most of them add to your devotion count, which can supercharge the mana you get from Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx earlier than normal. This interaction was part of the reason Leyline of Abundance was banned.

People have been experimenting with Enigmatic Incarnation since it was released. This “Birthing Pod for enchantments” works best when you already have enchantments in play, and since all leylines have a mana value of 4, Incarnation can turn one into a 5-drop creature the turn it comes down.

What Does Leyline of the Void Do?

Leyline of the Void is a replacement effect that changes where a card goes when they would normally go to the graveyard. Any card put into a graveyard is put into exile instead, including creatures that die, discarded cards, or anything that's milled. The cards never touch the graveyard.

Does Leyline of the Void Stop Death Triggers?

Yes, Leyline of the Void prevents death triggers. Magic defines dying as a permanent moving from the battlefield to the graveyard. Since Leyline of the Void changes the destination to exile, it negates dying effects and triggers. The exception to this rule is tokens, which I’ll talk about next.

Does Leyline of the Void Exile Tokens?

No, Leyline of the Void has no effect on tokens. Leyline specifically mentions that “cards” that go to graveyard are exiled instead, and tokens are not cards. A token creature can still die properly and have a death trigger with Leyline of the Void in play. Of course, the token will “cease to exist” after hitting the graveyard.

What Does Leyline of Sanctity Stop?

Leyline of Sanctity stops any spell from targeting you as a player. Cards like Thoughtseize and Inquisition of Kozilek can target other players in this case, but not you.

Effects that don't specifically target can still affect you though. For example, your opponent couldn't cast Sudden Edict targeting you, but you'd still have to sacrifice a creature if they cast Innocent Blood.

Why is Leyline of Abundance Banned?

Leyline of Abundance was banned in Pioneer and Explorer because the combo of it and Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx created too quick of a ramp effect. You can produce a ton of mana for relatively cheap with the opening hand play of Leyline of Abundance, a mana dork, and Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx.

Wrap Up

Leyline of Combustion | Illustration by Noah Bradley

Hopefully, you’ve found your path through this toward a well of mana and knowledge. The Leyline enchantments (and artifact) are particularly wonderful and popular sideboard additions across a lot of formats. Make sure to understand their worth when considering whether to mulligan and what cards to put in your precious sideboard slots.

That’s it for me today. Feel free to leave a comment below, follow us on Twitter, and keep that competitive edge over your friends and frenemies.

Take care, and remember that our paths are not always shown, but sometimes found!