Here is another M15 Coreset card preview discussion and for this post, we have the latest version of Ajani planeswalker. He is named as Ajani, the Steadfast and the source of this spoiler was from a Japanese website. Here is the card preview in the Japanese language.

Here is the translation of what the card does:

Ajani, the Steadfast
3W (Three colorless, one White)
Planeswalker – Ajani (Mythic Rare)

[+1]: Up to one target creature gets +1/+1, lifelink, first strike, and vigilance until end of turn.
[-2]: Put a +1/+1 counter on all creatures you control, and put one loyalty counter on each other planeswalker you control.
[-7]: You get an emblem with, “If damage would be dealt to you or a planeswalker you control, reduce that damage to one.”
4 Starting loyalty

Let me ponder some of the cards applications for the Standard format.
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Okay, here it goes. His first ability has similarity with that of Elspeth, the Knight Errant, boosting up your early creature drop. It can’t make the creature evade finishing off opposing walkers or your opponent, but the Lifelink and Vigilance makes the life race difficult and at the same time lets you protect Ajani.

His -2 Ability is an upgrade of his first planeswalker card version on creature pump, this time together with the other planeswalker loyalty counters. This definitely gets the walker a slot in the Naya Superfriends deck.

I don’t really focus much on getting the ultimate ability activated of most planeswalkers but his version of an emblem is just too good to deny. It really shows his nature of protecting his friends and subordinates. The current Burn decks will surely focus on removing this walker on the battlefield as it will spell game over once its emblem is activated.

Possible Standard Decks of this Card

As mentioned earlier, Naya Walkers is the first deck archetype that came in mind at the time I saw this card while I scrolled through the Magic TCG Player FB page. The build may look like to curve from a second turn caryatid into a Xenagos and then Ajani to pump the satyr tokens. The five-mana Ajani from Journey into Nyx can also do this sequence though you might have to play at the right timing and not to walk into a removal or a card like Planar Cleansing. My initial Naya Walkers build may look like this:

4 Sylvan Caryatid
3 Brimaz
3 Courser of Kruphix

2 Ajani, Mentor of Heroes
2 Ajani, the Steadfast
1 Chandra Pyromaster
4 Elspeth
3 Xenagos the Reveler

X Removals and stuff..

Another Standard deck that’s suited for Ajani, the Steadfast is obviously on Mono White Aggro. Here is an elementary list:

4 Soldier of the Pantheon
4 Boros Elite
4 Daring Skyjek
4 Dryad Militant
4 Precint Captain
3 Judge’s Familiar
3 Imposing Sovereign
3 Brimaz, King of Oreskos
2 Banisher Priest

2 Ajani, the Steadfast
4 Brave the Elements
2 Spear of Heliod

21 Plains

Easy peasy, straightforward, aggro beatdown. Not that much to discuss. The deck reminded me of Ajani Goldmane in the Kithkins’ list during the Lorwyn days.

To conclude, Ajani, the Steadfast overall score would be 9/10 so as not to give him that much hype. Expect him on the coming aggro decks in Standard after M15, either on the mono White version above or on the Selesnya version with that new one-drop Elf that relies on Plains to pump.

Until the next M15 card discussion.