Emrakul

Emrakul
Details
Race	Eldrazi
Birthplace	Blind Eternities
Lifetime	Unknown

Emrakul, the "Aeons Torn," known as Keening Mother by some on Innistrad, is one of the three Eldrazi titans and the inspiration for the Zendikari merfolk god Emeria.

Description

Emrakul is the Titan of Corruption, the largest and most fearsome of the Eldrazi. She does not affect inorganic matter - rocks, water, etc. - but twists all things living, be they plants, animals, or other sentient beings. She causes silent terror wherever she soars, embodying desolation, emotional and physical distance, the chill of the void, and the terror of being alone. According to Gideon Jura, she is 150 feet tall.

The Emrakul lineage is characterized by flesh-like lattice structures, uneasy bilateral symmetry, and tentacles that end in knobby, vestigial digits. Looking like spongy, alien baleen, the lattice respires independent of the Eldrazi herself, supporting a host of unseen mite-creatures within. Some within this lineage, including Emrakul herself, float above the ground, using unknown powers to alter the surrounding gravity.

History

Emrakul, the Aeons Torn

After the release of Kozilek, Ulamog, and Emrakul by Nissa Revane, Emrakul vanished. After the death of Kozilek and Ulamog, Ugin confirmed that Emrakul had been absent from Zendikar for some time. She was drawn through the Blind Eternities to the plane of Innistrad by the planeswalker Nahiri, who was summoning Emrakul to enact her revenge on Sorin Markov. On Innistrad, her influence corrupted the people of the plane into tentacled monstrosities. The archangel Avacyn kept Emrakul at bay, but once she was unmade by Sorin, the titan physically entered Innistrad and her influence over the plane magnified. Jace Beleren returned to Zendikar to call the remaining planeswalkers of the Gatewatch: Gideon Jura, Nissa Revane, and Chandra Nalaar, in order to combat Emrakul, like they had Ulamog and Kozilek on Zendikar.

Emrakul's gravitational distortion

After destroying much of the city of Thraben, Emrakul is confronted by the Gatewatch and Liliana Vess, who are nearly brought down by her mental assaults. Jace communicates with a figment of her that manifests as Emeria, which tells him that she is "incomplete, unfulfilled, inchoate" and that Innistrad should welcome her, not reject her. When the Gatewatch performs the ritual to trap her, she willingly lets herself be sealed in Innistrad's moon. She possesses Tamiyo and has her read a scroll she has vowed to never read, after telling Jace, "I just no longer want to play" and "There should be blossoms, not barren resentment. The soil was not receptive. It is not my time. Not yet."

Emeria also appeared at the end of Nissa's vision of Nicol Bolas' plan while she was taking the Trial of Knowledge on Amonkhet. It is unknown if this communication really originated from Emrakul.

Once Emrakul was banished to the moon, the great sigil on its face formed by the imprisonment spell eventually faded from view. However, the Eldrazi still resides inside, slumbering quietly. Prominent astronomancers and the Dawnhart Coven of witches believe that the cosmic titan's residency in the moon might be related to the coming of the Eternal Night.

Story appearances

Title	Author	Publishing date	Set	Setting (plane)	Featuring
The Lithomancer	Kelly Digges	2014-10-29	Commander 2014 / Prologue to Battle for Zendikar	Unknown destroyed plane, Zendikar	Nahiri, Sorin Markov, Ugin, Eldrazi, Emrakul, Kozilek, Ulamog
Emrakul Rises	Kimberly J. Kreines	2016-06-22	Eldritch Moon	Innistrad	Nahiri, Emrakul, Alena, Brisela, Jace Beleren, Tamiyo
Campaign of Vengeance	Ari Levitch	2016-07-06	Eldritch Moon	Innistrad	Nahiri, Sorin Markov, Olivia Voldaren, Emrakul
Battle of Thraben	Nik Davidson	2016-07-20	Eldritch Moon	Innistrad	Jace Beleren, Gideon Jura, Chandra Nalaar, Nissa Revane, Liliana Vess, Gared, Emrakul
The Promised End	Ken Troop	2016-07-27	Eldritch Moon	Innistrad	Liliana Vess, Jace Beleren, Gideon Jura, Nissa Revane, Tamiyo, Chandra Nalaar, Emrakul

Trivia

• Emrakul, the Aeons Torn was also featured as a card in the Japanese TCG Duel Masters, which was likewise published by Wizards of the Coast.

In-game references

Represented in:

• Emrakul, the Aeons Torn
• Emrakul, the Promised End

Associated cards:

• Aurora of Emrakul
• Boon of Emrakul
• Conduit of Emrakul
• Emrakul's Evangel
• Emrakul's Hatcher
• Emrakul's Influence
• Hand of Emrakul
• Vestige of Emrakul
• Whispers of Emrakul

Depicted in:

• All Is Dust
• Consume the Meek (Rise of the Eldrazi)
• Eldrazi Conscription
• Geier Reach Sanitarium
• Gravitational Shift
• Hanweir Battlements
• Hanweir Garrison
• Imprisoned in the Moon
• Near-Death Experience
• Nissa's Revelation
• Prize Wall (Unfinity)
• Shrine of the Forsaken Gods
• Tamiyo, the Moon Sage (Secret Lair, #396)
• Through the Breach (Ultimate Masters)
• Time of Heroes

Referred to:

• Bruna, the Fading Light
• Cloud Manta
• Coax from the Blind Eternities
• Exultant Cultist
• Gisela, the Broken Blade
• Gnarlwood Dryad
• Grapple with the Past
• Guardian of Pilgrims
• Kessig Prowler
• Otherworldly Outburst
• Permeating Mass
• Prey Upon (Eldritch Moon)
• Somberwald Stag
• Squirrel Mob
• Unruly Mob (Innistrad: Midnight Hunt)
• Weirded Vampire

Emrakul's Brood:

• Eldrazi Spawn (Emrakul)
• Emrakul's Hatcher
• Eternal Scourge
• Hand of Emrakul
• Nest Invader
• Vestige of Emrakul

Emrakul's Conscription:

• Abolisher of Bloodlines
• Abundant Maw
• Brisela, Voice of Nightmares
• Chittering Host
• Conduit of Emrakul
• Decimator of the Provinces
• Distended Mindbender
• Dronepack Kindred
• Drownyard Behemoth
• Elder Deep-Fiend
• Eldrazi Horror
• Erupting Dreadwolf
• Extricator of Flesh
• Fibrous Entangler
• Final Iteration
• Grisly Anglerfish
• Hanweir, the Writhing Township
• Howling Chorus
• It of the Horrid Swarm
• It That Rides as One
• Lashweed Lurker
• Mockery of Nature
• Sinuous Predator
• Ulvenwald Abomination
• Vexing Scuttler
• Voracious Reader
• Wretched Gryff

Sources

• Doug Beyer (March 17, 2010). "Gods and Monsters". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
• Doug Beyer (March 29, 2010). "The Eldrazi Arisen". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
• Magic Arcana (April 12, 2010). "Sketches: Consume the Meek". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
• Monty Ashley (May 18, 2010). "Just Out of Shot". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
• Kelly Digges (May 14, 2015). "Know Your Spawn!". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.