Whenever a creature you control becomes blocked, you may exile it. You may play that card from exile this turn.
Norin is a cheap, evasion-enabling blink engine: attack with creatures, let them get blocked, then exile and recast them to retrigger ETB effects, dodge combat damage, and reset attack-trigger creatures. You build a wide aggressive board of cheap ETB attackers and grind value every combat while Norin himself ducks danger. Close games by repeatedly flickering impactful bodies or going wide with token/burn finishers.
Free, repeatable blink on a 1-mana commander that's cheap to recast after removal
Turns chump-blocked attackers into card advantage via ETB retriggers
Lets fragile creatures dodge combat damage and survive blocks
Punishes opponents for blocking, warping their combat math in your favor
Mono-red consistency and access to fast mana, rituals, and burn
Relies on opponents actually blocking—nonblocking opponents or sweepers shut it off
Mono-red lacks card draw, ramp, and interaction outside burn
Norin must attack into blockers, exposing your board to combat tricks and removal
No way to blink during the main phase without combat, limiting flexibility
Vulnerable to board wipes since the strategy is creature-dependent
Moves equipment freely each combat, stacking aggression on your attackers.
Add fast mana (Jeska's Will, Mana Crypt, Sol Ring) and impulse-draw engines like Outpost Siege to fight red's card disadvantage. Lean into damage payoffs (Purphoros, Terror of the Peaks, Impact Tremors) and free sacrifice outlets so blinks convert directly to damage. Tighten the curve with cheap, evasive ETB creatures and extra-combat enablers to make Norin's combat blinks lethal faster.
Legendary Creature — Human Coward
