Some big draws to Magic: The Gathering are the stories and lore that come along with the game. Although it's primarily a tabletop card game, there is lots of extra material that interweaves a story into the world of Magic, which keeps it an exciting and ever-changing world. The card game itself is the basis for the characters in the wider lore, and some Magic: The Gathering card sets make up entire parts of the story by themselves, representing a warlord's army, or a Planeswalker's creation.

Being originally inspired by Dungeons & Dragons, a game steeped in creating and telling stories, and being a part of an ever-changing world, definitely helps in Magic: The Gathering's storytelling ability. Of course with any world whose characters are alive and given full-fledged personalities, and within which the players interact so closely and can unravel their stories for themselves, favorites will form. Some characters are fan favorites because of the incredible stories surrounding them, others become popular because of their attitude in life and how they deal with certain situations, and some are popular simply because of their cool factor.

Urza

Simply known as Urza, a human Planeswalker who originates from Terisiare, this hugely popular character is best known for his struggle with Yawgmoth and the plane of Phyrexia. Urza is an incredibly powerful wizard who is centered in blue mana, but has access all five mana colors, however, he's not an entirely good character. When fighting Phyrexia he employed some questionable methods, but he did what he had to do in order to protect Dominaria, and took steps that no one else was willing to in order to save the plane of existence.

He's not exactly a role model, but he did devote most of his life to saving Dominaria by any means necessary. Despite this, Urza still remains a hugely popular character, and his card is one of the core cards which make up an artificer deck.

Gideon Jura

Known as Gideon Jura, but born by the name Kytheon lora, this hieromancer and Planeswalker is a hugely popular character in the Magic universe because of his core set of morals. He believes that those with power should strive to protect the weak, a belief which he bore with immense pride right up until his death, when he gave up his invulnerability to save Liliana. Characters who are true heroes are rare in Magic, and Gideon was certainly a hero. It makes it easy to see why Gideon is such a hugely popular character then, and why he is supposedly the main focus of the up-and-coming Magic: The Gathering Series on Netflix.

On top of his impressive moral code and compass, Gideon also has several cards for players to choose from, some of them being great picks for any magic player. If you're looking to build a strong deck take a look at these Magic: The Gathering card sets and maybe consider building one dedicated to Gideon.

Liliana Vess

Here's yet another character who lives in the blurred lines between good and evil. Liliana's main goal in life is to grow in power, and she takes little regard for others, seeing them only as stepping stones in her path. However, she's not all bad. After joining the Gatewatch alongside Gideon Jura, initially to acquire her freedom from demonic contracts, it becomes clear that she genuinely cares for her allies despite her attempts to mask her true feelings. When she saw Gideon's sacrifice to save her, she displays genuine sorrow and regret, turning a page in her path to achieve greater power.

She is popular because she demonstrates what a lot of people would do if they gained a significant amount of power, whatever they wanted to do, but she highlights the difficulties and moral dilemma's when taking this course of action. She is a truly conflicted character that many fans have come to love.

Nicol Bolas

There are no blurred lines when it comes to Nicol Bolas. He is a purely evil character, and called himself "the mind-ripper, the deathbringer, the winged dark that terrifies your dreams, the first to witness the sunrise on Dominaria, and the last to watch it set for the final time." Nicol Bolas is probably one of the oldest beings alive in the entire Magic universe. It's quite easy to see why he's still a hugely popular character despite his wickedness, because he's a giant Elder Dragon who is incredibly powerful and has some very cool abilities.

Sometimes when it comes to popular characters, it simply just comes down to sheer coolness rather than what the character is actually like. Especially in Magic, when the characters represent cards which also carry so many cool abilities. One of the cards for Nicol Bolas has an ability that instantly wins the game if your opponent does not control a legendary creature or Planeswalker. What's cooler than that?! Any of the Nicol Bolas cards are an excellent card choice for many types of decks. If you're not sure where to begin, check out some different card sets to get some inspiration on where to start.