Hero
- For other uses, see Hero (disambiguation).
| Hero | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Creature Type | |
| (Subtype for creature/kindred cards) | |
| Introduced | Alpha |
| Last used | Marvel's Spider-Man |
| Scryfall Statistics | |
Hero is a job that depicts characters who, in the face of danger and adversity or from a position of weakness, display courage and the will for self-sacrifice (heroism) for some greater good.
History
The first creature to bear the subtype was Benalish Hero in Limited Edition Alpha, followed by Kjeldoran Warrior (Ice Age) and Beast Walkers (Homelands). Aysen Crusader (Homelands) was powered up by these three heroes but was not a Hero itself. The Hero-class was obsoleted in the 2007 Grand Creature Type Update and, rather than Heroes, the Crusader now gained a bonus from Soldiers and Warriors instead.[1]
The only card remaining with the subtype Hero was Fraction Jackson from Unhinged, as silver-bordered cards were allowed to have creature types not supported by the Comprehensive Rules. In 2013, Hero was reinvented as an unofficial card type as part of the Hero's Path for the Theros block.
Hero returned as an eternal creature type in 2024 for the Universes Beyond Marvel sets.[2][3] However, the type was not officially added to the Comprehensive Rules until Final Fantasy. There are currently no plans for older cards to (re)gain the creature type.[4] As of 2025, the plan is keeping Hero and Villain more for costumed characters and not for anyone doing heroic or villainous things.[5]
Hero tokens, a 
1/1 creature, were first introduced in Final Fantasy to represent the franchise's party system and the player's choice of class for their characters.[6] This is achieved largely by the Job select mechanic.
Caring about Heroes
Aysen Crusader's only paper printing says that its power and toughness are defined by the number of "Heroes" you control. Still, the current errata says it is Soldiers and Warriors. There is currently no plan to revert this.[4]
Notable Heroes
- Gwen Stacy (cards)
- Gwenom (card)
- Ghost-Spider (cards)
- Spider-Gwen (card)
- Iron Spider (card)
- Mary Jane Watson (cards)
- Peni_Parker & SP//dr (card)
- Spider-Byte (card)
- Spider-Ham (cards)
- Spider-Man (cards)
- Spider-Punk (card)
- Spider-Rex (card)
- Starling (card)
Creatures with "Hero" in their name but not bearing the type
- Anthousa, Setessan Hero
- Aragorn, Hornburg Hero
- Brigid, Hero of Kinsbaile
- Changeling Hero
- Crovax, Ascendant Hero
- Devoted Hero
- Fabled Hero
- Frodo, Determined Hero
- Gerrard, Weatherlight Hero
- Goblin Hero
- Heartfire Hero
- Heroes of the Revel
- Hero of Bladehold
- Hero of Bretagard
- Hero of Goma Fada
- Hero of Iroas
- Hero of Leina Tower
- Hero of Oxid Ridge
- Hero of Precinct One
- Hero of the Dunes
- Hero of the Games
- Hero of the Nyxborn
- Hero of the Pride
- Hero of the Winds
- Intrepid Hero
- Kytheon, Hero of Akros
- Lin Sivvi, Defiant Hero
- Minsc & Boo, Timeless Heroes
- Optimus Prime, Hero
- Orthion, Hero of Lavabrink
- Reborn Hero
- Stonebrow, Krosan Hero
- Syr Gwyn, Hero of Ashvale
- Tahngarth, Talruum Hero
- Tenth District Hero
- Thrasios, Triton Hero
- Tormented Hero
- Wylie Duke, Atiin Hero
- Zhang Liao, Hero of Hefei
Tokens
| Token name | Color | Type line | P/T | Text box | Source | Printings |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hero |
|
Creature — Hero | 1/1 |
Trivia
- A cycle of flip cards in Champions of Kamigawa was nicknamed Heroes. They represented the journey from average Joe to Legendary Creature.[7]
References
- ↑ Mark Gottlieb (September 26, 2007). "The Grand Creature Type Update". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on April 11, 2008.
- ↑ Secret Lair Marvel Superdrop. magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast (October 18, 2024).
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (August 30, 2025). "Why are we getting Blue-Black Villians in SPM?". Blogatog. Tumblr.
- ↑ a b Mark Rosewater (September 2, 2025). "Will it be errataed to care about Heroes once again, now that we have the technology?". Blogatog. Tumblr.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (September 8, 2025). "Now that recent sets have added hero and villain as creature types, do you think we should expect them to be used in-universe? Maybe with errata for older cards?". Blogatog. Tumblr.
- ↑ Matt Tabak (May 10, 2025). "Magic: The Gathering®—FINAL FANTASY™ Mechanics". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ Magic Arcana (September 28, 2004). "Building Heroes". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on April 29, 2021.
