MTG Wiki
Register
Advertisement

Lazav
Lazav
Details
Race Shapeshifter
Birthplace Ravnica
Lifetime Mending Era

Lazav is the current guildmaster of House Dimir on Ravnica.[1]

Description[ | ]

Apart from him being a mindmage[2] and a shapeshifter, details about Lazav are scarce. He (or she, or they[3]) claims to take orders from some greater power. Lazav has a regal bearing and wears a flowing leather cloak, made from the hide of some beast that had gone extinct ages ago. He can warp reality and seems to attract all of the magic in his surroundings toward him.[4]

Lazav's flickering cloak of illusion makes him appear as a blurred, shifting humanoid figure with an ever-changing arrangement of clothes and features. His voice is made harsh and anonymous by a strange buzz, as though heard on the other side of a thick wall.[5]

History[ | ]

After Szadek was killed and gained control over Agyrem, Lazav managed to gather what was left of the Dimir and bring them together. A ritual was supposed to allow them to commune with the previous guildmaster's spirit, however, it is unknown whether that was true or just a ruse. Since the Dimir guildhall was lost to all, they built a new Duskmantle, which replaced the old structure. Lazav continued to use most of Szadek's methods, giving both their agents and mercenaries (one of whom is Krenko[6]) as little information as is required to further their goals.

Lazav suspected that an invader had taken over several guilds, and was actively working against them.[7] He discovered that Bolas represented a direct threat to House Dimir's existence by rendering all its scheming obsolete.[2][3] Although his greatest wish was to mount a coup and seize power over Ravnica, his greatest fear was that he would have to settle for preventing one.[3]

The shapeshifter cleansed his guild of the agents of Bolas. Afterward, he attended the guild summit where he pledged his guild to the alliance that planned to oppose Bolas.[5]

War of the Spark[ | ]

LazavDovinManga

Lazav, in disguise as Chandra Nalaar, blinds Dovin Baan.

During the War of the Spark Lazav assisted Chandra, Saheeli, and Lavinia with shutting off the Immortal Sun. He disguised himself as Chandra in the fight against Dovin Baan, using illusions and an Izzet League flamethrower to replicate the effects of her pyromancy. This deception allowed the real Chandra to sneak into Baan's facility and disable the Immortal Sun, allowing many planeswalkers to leave Ravnica. Lazav subsequently defeated Baan, blinding him with throwing stars made of a strange metal that sliced through Baan's protective spell. Blinded and bleeding, Baan planeswalked away.[8]

Along with the other guildmasters, Lazav participated in a ritual led by Nissa to resurrect Niv-Mizzet and grant him the power of the Living Guildpact.[9] He later also impersonated Saheeli, and survived the War.[8]

Forsaken[ | ]

After the War of the Spark, Lazav began his plans to subvert the other guilds.[10] He formed a partnership with Teysa Karlov that led to Tomik Vrona becoming the “permanent” acting guildmaster of the Orzhov, allowing Teysa to control the guild indirectly but allowing Lazav to exploit their leadership. With his secret assassin Atkos Tarr, Lazav had Dovin Baan killed which allowed the shapeshifter to blackmail Vraska. Lazav also partnered with Tezzeret who defeated Ral Zarek and gave up his damaged etherium arm for Ral to show proof of a kill. As a minor setback, Ral had unexpectedly told the truth about his defeat and that Tezzeret lived. Lazav revealed to Tezzeret that he had also infiltrated the Simic.

Phyrexian invasion and aftermath[ | ]

Since New Phyrexia's Invasion of the Multiverse, Lazav is laying low.[11] Many Dimir guild members have spread the lie that he died during the invasion.[12] Unbeknownst to anyone, even his guild members, Lazav has been assuming the faces and roles of low-rank Dimir agents and, from there, continues to draw the guild out of the public eye gradually, even as he rebuilds his secret networks. The only people who have contact with Lazav are his necrosages, and even then, they never interact with him directly, instead receiving instructions through deaddrops and coded messages.[13]

Gallery[ | ]

Story appearances[ | ]

Title Author Publishing date Set Setting (plane) Featuring
Krenko, Mob Boss Jenna Helland 2012-07-18 Magic 2013 Ravnica Krenko, Lazav, Feather
Under the Cover of Fog Nicky Drayden 2018-10-10 Guilds of Ravnica Ravnica House Dimir, Lazav
War of the Spark: Ravnica—Operation Desperation Greg Weisman 2019-06-05 War of the Spark Ravnica Rat, Teyo Verada, Kaya, Ral Zarek, Vraska, Exava, Rakdos, Tomik Vrona, Hekara, Nissa Revane, Lavinia, Borborygmos, Emmara Tandris, Vannifar, Vorel, Aurelia, Lazav, Kefnet, Niv-Mizzet
War of the Spark: Ravnica—Ashes Greg Weisman 2019-06-12 War of the Spark Ravnica Rat, Gideon Jura, Tomik Vrona, Lavinia, Ral Zarek, Jace Beleren, Chandra Nalaar, Teferi, Ajani Goldmane, Nissa Revane, Jaya Ballard, Karn, Kaya, Teyo Verada, Isperia, Dack Fayden, Saheeli Rai, Hekara, Vraska, Nicol Bolas, Borborygmos, Samut, Vorel, Sorin Markov, Nahiri, Arlinn Kord, Feather, Liliana Vess, Oketra, Rakdos, Bontu, Niv-Mizzet, Angrath, The Wanderer, Mu Yanling, Jiang Yanggu, Mowu, Vivien Reid, Aurelia, Exava, Lazav
The Gathering Storm: Chapter Four Django Wexler 2019-06-26 Guilds of Ravnica / Ravnica Allegiance Ravnica Ral Zarek, Vraska, Hekara, Lazav, Storrev, Tomik Vrona, Xeddick
The Gathering Storm: Chapter Ten Django Wexler 2019-08-14 Guilds of Ravnica / Ravnica Allegiance Ravnica Ral Zarek, Isperia, Dovin Baan, Hekara, Borborygmos, Aurelia, Lazav, Emmara Tandris, Kaya, Teysa Karlov, Vraska, Niv-Mizzet

Trivia[ | ]

In-game references[ | ]

Represented in:
Depicted in:
Quoted or referred to:

References[ | ]

  1. The Magic Creative Team (December 05, 2012). "Planeswalker’s Guide to Gatecrash: Part 1". Magicthegathering.com.
  2. a b Django Wexler (June 26, 2019), The Gathering Storm, Chapter Four.
  3. a b c James Wyatt (January 2019). "The Art of Magic: The Gathering - Ravnica". Wizards of the Coast
  4. Nicky Drayden (October 10, 2018). "Under the Cover of Fog". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
  5. a b Django Wexler (August 14, 2019), The Gathering Storm, Chapter Ten.
  6. Jenna Helland (October 29, 2012). "The Azorius Ten Most Wanted". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
  7. Flavor text for Sinister Sabotage
  8. a b Greg Weisman (April 2019). "War of the Spark: Ravnica". Del Rey
  9. Greg Weisman (June 5, 2019). "War of the Spark: Ravnica – Operation Desperation". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
  10. Greg Weisman (November 2019). "War of the Spark: Forsaken." Del Rey.
  11. Seanan McGuire (December 5, 2023). "Murders at Karlov Manor - Episode 1: Ghosts of Our Past". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
  12. Emily Teng (February 6, 2024). "The Legends (and characters) of Murders at Karlov Manor". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
  13. Emily Teng (February 1, 2024). "Planeswalker's Guide to Murders at Karlov Manor". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
  14. Gatecrash Trailer (Video). Magic: The Gathering. YouTube (December 30, 2012).
  15. EverythingIsContent - Magic: The Gathering Arena (Video). Critical Role. YouTube (September 28, 2019).
  16. Crispin Freeman as Lazav, Sorin Markov. IMDB.
Advertisement