Ravnica Lore Unearthed: Cabaretti Ascendancy in Forgotten Novels

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Cabaretti Ascendancy card art

Image courtesy of Scryfall.com

Forgotten Novels, New Capenna, and a Three-Color Beat

In the sprawling saga of Ravnica and its offshoot realms, some factions fade from the main novels but linger in the background of countless side stories—the Cabaretti among them. Cabaretti Ascendancy embodies that lingering vibe: a rare enchantment from Streets of New Capenna that smells like neon, espresso, and embers. The card’s flavor text—"Whatever you're looking for—food, family, Halo—we've got the best in town."—reads like a line you might find in a forgotten novella where the city itself is a character, an extroverted host that invites you to gamble on a dream. 🧙‍♂️🔥💎⚔️🎨🎲

What the card actually does

The enchantment costs {R}{G}{W} and arrives as a three-color embrace on the battlefield. At the start of your upkeep, you look at the top card of your library. If that card happens to be a creature or a planeswalker, you may reveal it and put it into your hand. If you decide not to reveal it, you may put it on the bottom of your library. This is a small, elegant tool that rewards planning and deck-think—two virtues every MTG fan loves regardless of whether you’re chasing a casual win or a deeper lore pull. It’s a way to tutor value, but with a twist: you’re playing a mind game with fate, and fate loves a dramatic entrance. 🧙‍♂️

As a Street of New Capenna card, Cabaretti Ascendancy carries the city’s flair for performance and hospitality. The Cabaretti watermark speaks to a trio faction that blends red’s thrills, green’s growth, and white’s order—an unusual cocktail that asks you to lean into spectacle. The card’s rarity is rare, and you can find both foil and non-foil printings, which makes it a fashionable centerpiece for three-color EDH builds and for collectors chasing a complete set from the set rotation. The vivid art by Kari Christensen captures that sense of an overstuffed party where every card reveals a secret once the top card’s true nature is checked. The flavor text isn’t just window dressing; it hints at Cabaretti’s role in the wider Ravnican tapestry—where a city’s appetite for Halo, for family, and for extravagant entertainment drives a lot of the plot. 🧲🎭

Why it matters in gameplay today

Deck builders who enjoy tri-color engines will gravitate toward Cabaretti Ascendancy for its proactive tax on the top of the library. The upkeep trigger is flexible: you don’t force a draw every turn, but you create a continuity of information. If you love the idea of seeing the next card before you draw it, you can engineer sequences where you hit a creature or planeswalker you want to deploy next, or you quietly accept that a non-creature card goes to the bottom and preserves a critical turn of tempo. It’s not a hard lock like a perpetual tutor, but it rewards savvy management of resources—especially in formats where your opponents bring heavy disruption. In Commander, where three-color identity matters, Ascendancy earns a slot as a value engine that can string together late-game draws with big payoffs. And yes, the trio color identity—G/R/W—also fits the Cabaretti’s identity as showmen who honor both growth and risk. 🔥⚔️

For the lore connoisseur, the card offers a bridge to the narrative world of New Capenna’s neighborhoods. The Cabaretti are renowned for their hospitality, their pageantry, and their intricate networks of influence. Forgotten novels in the MTG canon occasionally nod to these urban myths—the idea that a city’s rhythm can decide a fate, and that a well-timed reveal can alter the course of a game as easily as a protagonist changes a chapter. Cabaretti Ascendancy embodies that vibe: a spell that pays tribute to storytelling as much as it rewards strategic play. It’s a card that invites you to imagine a scene—perhaps a night-market duel where the top card is the star and your plan is to stage its reveal with flourish. 🧙‍♂️🎨

Collector’s glance and a note on value

In terms of price, this card sits around $0.13 USD for non-foil, with foil options slightly higher, reflecting its status as a niche but beloved staple in three-color decks. The “set: Streets of New Capenna (snc)” marks it as a late-2022 release, with its unique watermark and three-color identity making it highly collectible for players who chase not just power but lore-flavored memorabilia. For players who enjoy pairing story moments with mechanical play, Ascendancy offers a compact, meaningful engine that can evoke scenes from forgotten novels while delivering real in-game value. As a piece of the Cabaretti arc, it stands as a reminder that design teams at Wizards of the Coast still weave narrative depth into every color combination, sometimes in small, elegant ways that become memorable to fans years later. 💎🧙‍♂️

Where this card fits in the broader MTG landscape

Beyond the table talk and the fan-fiction swirl, Cabaretti Ascendancy demonstrates the art of balance in card design: an ability that is accessible, yet capable of enabling surprising plays. The choice at upkeep—reveal to draw, or bottom to preserve—offers players a meaningful decision without overloading the board with complexity. It’s a card that appeals to fans who enjoy both the lore-laden flavor and the crisp mechanics. And if you’re a collector with eyes on the art and the print runs, Kari Christensen’s piece stands as a vivid reminder that even a three-color enchantment can glow with personality when placed against SoNC’s neon backdrop. 🎨🎲

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Cabaretti Ascendancy

Cabaretti Ascendancy

{R}{G}{W}
Enchantment

At the beginning of your upkeep, look at the top card of your library. If it's a creature or planeswalker card, you may reveal it and put it into your hand. If you don't put the card into your hand, you may put it on the bottom of your library.

"Whatever you're looking for—food, family, Halo—we've got the best in town."

ID: 9738d616-b38f-4968-89d6-805ae368e2d4

Oracle ID: c35c39be-6db4-4a80-ace1-07932d1bb460

Multiverse IDs: 555373

TCGPlayer ID: 268797

Cardmarket ID: 651854

Colors: G, R, W

Color Identity: G, R, W

Keywords:

Rarity: Rare

Released: 2022-04-29

Artist: Kari Christensen

Frame: 2015

Border: black

EDHRec Rank: 11976

Set: Streets of New Capenna (snc)

Collector #: 172

Legalities

  • Standard — not_legal
  • Future — not_legal
  • Historic — legal
  • Timeless — legal
  • Gladiator — legal
  • Pioneer — legal
  • Modern — legal
  • Legacy — legal
  • Pauper — not_legal
  • Vintage — legal
  • Penny — legal
  • Commander — legal
  • Oathbreaker — legal
  • Standardbrawl — not_legal
  • Brawl — legal
  • Alchemy — not_legal
  • Paupercommander — not_legal
  • Duel — legal
  • Oldschool — not_legal
  • Premodern — not_legal
  • Predh — not_legal

Prices

  • USD: 0.13
  • USD_FOIL: 0.24
  • EUR: 0.12
  • EUR_FOIL: 0.19
  • TIX: 0.02
Last updated: 2025-11-15