Image courtesy of Scryfall.com

A closer look at Ian Chesterton’s mechanical identity in the Doctor Who MTG crossover

Across the Doctor Who crossover set, Ian Chesterton doesn’t just stand on the battlefield as a white-aligned 2/3 with a clean mustache and a steady gaze; he embodies a design philosophy that blends lore with mechanics in a way that feels delightfully nerdy and utterly MTG. This Legendary Creature — Human Scientist costs {2}{W}, a neat package that signals his role as a principled educator and a calculator of consequences. 🧙‍♂️ The card’s power is in its text, where “Science Teacher” is more than a name—it's a mechanic invitation: Saga spells you cast come with replicate. The replicate cost is equal to the Saga’s mana cost, and when you cast that Saga, you copy it for each time you paid its replicate cost. Copies of Saga spells become tokens. It’s a clever fuse of storytelling and resource management, turning a simple white tempo plan into a potential engine of perpetual value. 🔥

In practice, Ian Chesterton nudges a Saga-centric deck toward exponential growth—without ever tipping too far into chaos. If your game plan features a collection of Sagas, Ian’s ability invites you to think multi-dimensionally: pay the Saga’s cost once, then pay replicates to generate extra copies that become tokens. This layering can create a board state that swells with each passing chapter of a story, echoing the way a well-told Doctor Who season unfolds its mysteries one episode at a time. The replicated copies are not merely duplicates; they become a tangible, strategic resource you can leverage to pressure life totals, fuel more Saga activations, or set up board states that threaten to spiral out of control for your opponents. It’s a crunchy, memorable mechanic that perfectly suits a white-centric, order-driven approach. ⚔️

Flavourfully, Ian Chesterton is tagged as “Doctor’s companion,” a nod to the classic Doctor Who dynamic: the Doctor’s presence is the anchor, and Ian serves as the pragmatic counterbalance—curious, principled, and relentlessly analytical. The line about “You can have two commanders if the other is the Doctor” adds a playful commander-design twist. In EDH terms, this means Ian can anchor a two-Commander deck when paired with the Doctor as the other commander, opening up unusual strategic avenues and interesting political dynamics at the table. It’s a design choice that mirrors the way companions anchor the Doctor’s adventures in the show—always alongside, never overshadowing the central figure. 🎨

The card’s artwork by Kim Sokol, within the Doctor Who frame from 2015, emphasizes a crisp, almost analog-era science vibe that contrasts neatly with the need for high-speed spell replication. The rarity is rare, and it’s printed in both foil and nonfoil finishes, which matters to collectors and flavor-first players alike. Its legality footprint is broad in older formats like Legacy and Vintage, while remaining firmly in the EDH space as a Commander-legal piece. The collector’s value is modest but real, with listed prices hovering around the low single digits for non-foil and a little more for foil—but the real draw is the mechanical identity and the lore it evokes more than raw price. 💎

Card profile

• Name: Ian Chesterton
• Type: Legendary Creature — Human Scientist
• Mana Cost: {2}{W}
• Power/Toughness: 2/3
• Colors: White
• Rarity: Rare
• Set: Doctor Who (Who)
• Abilities: Science Teacher — Each Saga spell you cast has replicate. The replicate cost is equal to its mana cost. (When you cast that Saga, copy it for each time you paid its replicate cost. Copies of Saga spells become tokens.) Doctor's companion (You can have two commanders if the other is the Doctor.)
• Legalities: Commander, Legacy, Duel, Vintage (and more in various formats as noted by Scryfall)
• Artist: Kim Sokol
• Notes: A notable cross-format, cross-universe bridge that rewards careful planning around Saga density and replicate timing.

From a gameplay perspective, the interaction between Ian Chesterton and Saga-heavy decks invites a teaching moment: Sagas reward players who pace their reveals and manage their resources, and Ian provides a reliable engine to push that pacing into a crescendo. The replicated Sagas can snowball in ways that feel thematic—the Doctor’s adventures growing richer with each chapter, each proxy of destiny unfolding on the battlefield. For players who love the flavor of discovery, Ian Chesterton offers both a narrative hook and a functional plan. 🧙‍♂️💥

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