Secrets of Strixhaven (SOS) Limited Overview: Red

Note: This article was translated from Chinese by AI and may contain errors. Read the original Chinese version.

Secrets of Strixhaven (SOS) prerelease events take place on April 17, 2026, with the official release a week later on April 24, 2026. Want to know more about individual card ratings and advice for Limited? Then check out this series of SOS Limited overviews!

• For the mechanics, see this article: Secrets of Strixhaven Mechanics Breakdown

Rating Scale

5.0: Unconditional first pick, brings an almost game-winning advantage
4.5: Unconditional first pick if you are in the right colors, brings a huge advantage
4.0: Worth a first pick, great synergy with the color pair’s theme, can be the deciding card to splash/switch colors or to move into the colors
3.5: Top uncommon/common of the set and other cards of sufficient power, good synergy with the color pair’s theme, a key card for moving into the colors
3.0: An important card for the color pair’s theme, and other above-average cards; you will want it in your final deck
2.5: Average, usually a decent curve filler
2.0 to 1.0: Below average, generally not played, can be used as filler when necessary but not in excess
0.5 to 0.0: Unplayable, basically don’t play it, it will only help you lose

Ratings

Rating: 3.0
Comment: Basically +1/+0, trample and draw a card, but if you can play multiple copies it can get stronger, and this set’s blue-red emphasizes playing more instants and sorceries, so more aggressive decks can play more copies.

Rating: 1.0
Comment: A five-mana sorcery that averages three damage, and probably deals two most of the time, and the extra effect requires you to deal excess damage. I don’t understand what this card was designed to do.

Rating: 3.0
Comment: A decent card. Its strength is that it’s a multiple-choice card, but each effect taken on its own isn’t impressive enough.

Rating: 2.5
Comment: You can cast a five-mana creature on turn four, which may be good… right?

Rating: 3.5
Comment: The evolution of red three-mana uncommon creatures: a 3/3 with haste is no longer enough, it can also discard a card to draw a card.

Rating: 3.0
Comment: A very profitable card, but whether you have enough mana is a big question.

Rating: 2.0
Comment: Personally I think the strength lies in making creatures unable to block: for three mana, two of the opponent’s creatures can’t block, which may work wonders in the late game when creatures are lined up.

Rating: 3.0
Comment: This 3 is for the two-mana 2/2 with first strike; anyone who has used first strike in Limited knows how strong it is. As for the right side, just consider it a gift. If you can do three modes in one turn and have a bit of red to cast Lightning Bolt, I believe that when you can do that, mana and cards are surely no problem for you.

Rating: 2.5
Comment: Opus lets it temporarily become stronger, but only if you have that much mana and enough instants and sorceries.

Rating: 2.5
Comment: It gives you a chance to cast removal or loot spells in the graveyard again. Not a bad card, but in Limited it’s no more than that.

Rating: 3.0
Comment: A 3/4 menace body is acceptable, and the other effect, whether combined with Flashback or graveyard digging, is a decent way to spread across the board.

Rating: 3.0
Comment: An important creature that lets red splash other colors; Treasure producing mana of any color can also support the Converge theme in this set.

Rating: 2.5
Comment: Normally a six-damage spell costs four, this one costs one more, but it gets instant speed so it has more room for interaction. I personally find it acceptable, and with this set’s Opus effects, the five mana is an advantage.

Rating: 3.0
Comment: Three damage to a creature or planeswalker for one mana is quite a good removal spell for red. This card can also nullify these two cards in SOA:

1. Akroma's Will‘s protection from red;
2. Deflecting Palm‘s damage prevention

Rating: 4.0
Comment: You can expect to gain 1 to 2 extra cards each turn, even more if you flip a land. A very strong card advantage engine; the only drawback is that you have to survive to seven mana.

Rating: 2.5
Comment: A two-mana 2/2 is no problem, but the other effect isn’t very tempting either, so it’s a bit meh.

Rating: 2.5
Comment: A three-mana 3/2 with haste is a bit weak, but since this set should be mainly multicolor, being able to spend two mana to destroy the opponent’s multicolor land at no cost may make this creature work wonders.

Rating: 3.5
Comment: A fairly flexible creature. Cast with three red mana it’s a 3/3 trample reach, and at best, cast with all five colors, white-blue-black-red-green, it’s a five-mana 7/7. The other effect makes your board more aggressive when you cast multicolor spells. Overall it’s pretty good if you play three or more colors.

Rating: 2.5
Comment: A four-mana 4/4 is a standard body, and with artifacts it makes instants and sorceries a bit more profitable. The ceiling is quite high and the floor is very low; I recommend investing in it only with a steady source of artifacts (such as creating Treasures).

Rating: 3.5
Comment: A powerful creature with growth; paired with instants and sorceries it becomes a super strong attacker and a source of free mana.

Rating: 3.5
Comment: A five-mana 4/4 flier is a great body, and it can also let removal or loot spells be cast twice.

Rating: 3.0
Comment: A good cost and body for red, and reach also makes up for red’s usual lack of anti-air defense.

Rating: 3.0
Comment: Loot on entering, move cards to the graveyard, and produce mana, and producing mana also deals damage. Just thinking about it makes it sound strong!

Rating: 3.0
Comment: Red’s three-mana sorcery that draws two. You usually discard cards you can’t use right now in exchange for lands or better spells; it also gives a Treasure that helps produce an extra color to strengthen Converge effects or ramp. A very good loot effect.

Rating: 3.0
Comment: Looking at either effect alone is only decent, but now they’re bundled together and given to you, so all I can say is that it’s truly powerful.

Rating: 3.0
Comment: A normal tempo creature early, a sorcery that builds the board late. A creature that serves two purposes is really strong.

Rating: 3.0
Comment: Red ramp, and if cast later you might get to use one more card.

Rating: 3.0
Comment: Opus makes it quite strong; after it comes down, casting a five-mana spell makes it a 6/5 trampler.

Rating: 3.0
Comment: A strong creature that Opus makes easier to win with; casting instants and sorceries puts life-total pressure on the opponent, and you really need one or two of these creatures.

Rating: 2.5
Comment: A Firebolt with one more mana; if you don’t have enough spell removal, you should still bring one.

Rating: 3.0
Comment: Four damage for three mana is a good red removal spell.

Rating: 3.0
Comment: It can return an instant or sorcery to hand, which is also a scarce means for red, so you can play one.

Conclusion

Like black, here is a B-tier rating table for your reference.

In this set, red looks like it works well in red-white or red-blue, but I basically think red should have a hard time running Converge.
Cards that serve multiple purposes are still very powerful, but on average the mono-red cards in this set don’t seem as strong as the other colors.