Overview

The Storm Scale is a rating system Mark Rosewater uses to rate the chances of a mechanic coming back to Magic. You can see a detailed explanation of the scale on the Wizards website. The key things to know are:

Mark also uses the Rabiah Scale for returning to planes, the Venser Scale for returning planeswalkers, and the Beeble Scale for returning creature types, though they all work they same.

A portion of the data behind this site came from the wonderful Storm Scale Database.

The site was last updated on April 25, 2020.

Timeline
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
Now
Mechanics
-1/-1 counters
1
2
Absorb
8
Adamant
5
Adventure
5
Affinity
3
4
6
Affinity for artifacts
7
9
8
Affinity for basic lands
6
Afflict
7
Aftermath
7
Ally mechanic
7
Alternate win conditions
3
Annihilator
Ante
9
10
Arcane
7
9
Artifact lands
10
Augment/Host
8
Aura swap
6
Auras that tap
10
Awaken
4
Banding
Bands with other
Barry's land
10
Basic lands
0
Batching
Battalion
5
4
Battle cry
3
5
4
Bestow
7
Bloodrush
6
Bloodthirst
3
Bolster
4
5
Bushido
Bushido (new name)
Buyback
Cantrips
Cartouches
4
Cartouches and trials
8
Cascade
Champion
6
Changeling
5
5
6
Chroma
6
10
Cipher
9
Clash
Cohort
8
Coin flip
1
2
Collatz Conjecture hydra
10
Colored artifacts
2
Colorless mana costs
Colorless spells
1
Conspire
7
6
Constellation
5
6
5
Contraptions
9
8
Converge
6
Convoke
2
2.5
4
Creature lands
2
5
Creatures that transform into planeswalkers
Creatures with abilities usable by any player
10
Cumulative Upkeep
9
Curses
5
3
4
Cycling
Dash
3
Deathtouch
Delirium
7
Delve
Detain
5
3
Devoid
6
2
5
Devotion
2
5
4
4
Devour
Die rolling (black border)
10
Die rolling (silver border)
1
Domain
Double-faced cards
Dredge
Echo
Edge mechanic
5
Embalm
8
Embalm on Amonkhet
5
Emerge
6
Empire (mechanic)
10
Enchant cards in graveyards
9
Enchantment creatures
4
Energy
5
7
6
Entwine
4
5
6
Epic
7
8
9
Equipment
2
Escalate
5
Eternalize
8
Evoke
2
4
5.5
5
Evolve
Exalted
Exert
3
4
Exploit
6
Extort
6
Extra combat phase
4
Extra turn
1
4
Fabricate
Face down mechanics
6
Fading
8
Fateful hour
8
Fateseal
8
Fear
9
10
Ferocious
7
Flanking
9
7
Flanking (tweaked)
7
5
7
6
Flashback
Flicker effects
1
Flip cards
10
Flying
Forecast
8
Formidable
9
Fortify
8
Fractions
9.5
Free spell mechanic
10
Frenzy
8
Fuse
4
Gotcha
Graft
8
Grandeur
4
5
Gravestorm
8
Graveyard order matters
Grind
5
Haunt
Hellbent
5
Heroic
5
4
5
Hiding cards
5
Historic
5
Horsemanship
9
8
9
Host and augment
7
Hybrid mana
Hybrid mana with colored mana
9
Imprint
Improvise
5
Indestructible
1
Infect
Ingest
9
Inspired
7
Instant speed discard
1
Instant speed lands
10
Intimidate
9
10
Investigate
4
5
Kicker
Kinship
7
Laces
8
Land creature
Landfall
Landhome
9
Landwalk
9
Legendary sorceries
7
6
Level up
Lhurgoyf mechanic
3
Licids
10
9
Living weapon
Locus
8
Lotuses
8
Madness
Manifest
6
Megamorph
9
Meld
5
Mercenary mechanic
8
Metalcraft
7
6
Miracle
4.5
5
8
9
Modular
8
Monarch
6
7
Monocolored hybrid mana
2
3
5
6
Monstrosity
Monstrous
Morbid
Morph
Moxen
Multikicker
5
Negative power or toughness
4
Ninjutsu
Ninjutsu (new name)
6
Nonbasic landwalk
9
Nonland Typecycling
8
Not-color mana
9
Outlast
7
Outside assistance
3
Overload
6
Pacts
7
Panglacial Wurm mechanic
9
Partner with
9
Persist
6
Phasing
Phasing (tweaked)
Phyrexian mana
7
8
Phyrexian mana (new name)
5
Physical dexterity
2
Pitch cards
6
4
6
Poison
2
6
5
Poisonous
8
Populate
Processors
9
Proliferate
2
3
5
6
Protection
Provoke
Prowess
Prowl
6
Punch-out counters
3
Punisher effects
6
Purple
9.5
Putting cards in opponent's deck
10
Quests
6
5
Radiance
8
9
Raid
4
3
Rally
6
Rampage
9
Rebel mechanic
8
9
Rebound
3
4
3
Recover
7
Referencing the stack
8
Regenerate
10
Remove counters
3
Renown
4
Replicate
4
5
Retrace
Revolt
6
Rhystic mechanic
9
Ripple
8
Rituals
5
Sagas
Scavenge
4
Scratch-off cards
9
Scry
Shadow
6.5
7
Shroud
9
Sixth color
9
Skulk
Snow
Sorceries castable with flash (like Rout)
5
Soulbound
5
6
Spellshaper mechanic
4
6
Splice
Split second
Squirrellink
9
Squirrellink (silver border)
7
Static abilities on planeswalkers
2
Storm
Structures
9.5
Subgames (silver border)
3
Substance
10
Sunburst
9
Support
6
Surge
4
Suspend
Suspend (tweaked)
8
Threshold
Totem armor
4
3
5
Transfigure
9
Transform
3
Transmute
9
Traps
6
Treasure
Trials
6
Tribal
Two cards spells
7
Uncommon legendary creatures
2
Undying
5
Unearth
2
4
3
5
Unleash
4
Untap symbol
Vanishing
7
Vehicles
Wither
3
4
5
Wordy
5
World
8
9
8
Cards
1-mana planeswalker
9.5
1/1 vanilla creature
1
Angelic Destiny
4
Banana-themed card
6
Baneslayer Angel
3
Bear lord
3
Birds of Paradise
6
Dark Ritual
10
Dark Ritual (in red)
10
Dead planeswalker card
10
Disenchant
8
Donate
10
Double-faced card with Morph which is a flip card on both sides
11
Doubling Season
10
Fetch lands
3
6
Giant Growth
2
Goblin planeswalker
5
Healing Salve
6
Jace, the Mind Sculptor
10
Lightning Bolt
Mark Rosewater card
9
Maro
3.5
Mishra's Factory
9
Mother of Runes
8
Naughty & Nice
10
Nonbasic lands with basic land types
2
Ooze lord
4
Pain lands
5
Path to Exile
Phyrexian planeswalker
10
Planeswalker with banding
12
Samite Healer
7
Shichifukujin Dragon
10
Skullclamp
10
Storm Crow
1
Swords to Plowshares
Sylvan Library
10
Sylvan Library (different colors)
5
Timeshifted legendary creatures
10
Vanilla creature at rare or mythic rare
1
Volcanic Hammer
3
Wall without defender
10
Wasteland
10
Winter Orb
9
Planes
Alara
Amonkhet
5
Bablovia
10
Dominaria
Eldraine
4.5
4
Fiora
5
6
Gobakhan
9
Innistrad
Ixalan
Kaladesh
3
5
Kamigawa
Kylem
Lorwyn/Shadowmoor
Mercadia
Muraganda
8
7
New Phyrexia
5
5
Phyrexia
9
Portal: Three Kingdoms plane
10
Rabiah
Rath
Ravnica
Regatha
Segovia
8
Serra's Realm
Shandalar
Tarkir
5
4.5
Theros
Tolvada
10
Ulgothra
Vryn
4
6
Zendikar
Planeswalkers
Ajani
Angrath
Arlinn Kord
6
7
Ashiok
4
Bolas
3
Chandra
Elspeth
3
Englebert
11
Garruk
3
Gideon
2
Jace
Kiora
4
Koth
6
7
Leshrac
10
Liliana
2
1
Nahiri
4
Narset
6
5
Nissa
4
Rowan
4
Sarkhan
4
Sorin
5
Sorin (if not trapped in wall)
3
Tamiyo
5
Tibalt
Ugin
7
Urza
Venser
Vraska
3
Will
4
Themes
All-creature set
8
Artifact-themed block
1
Block set in the past
6
Colorless matters
5
Dwarves (theme)
5
Enchantment-themed block
Goblins (theme)
2
Graveyard-themed set
1
Human tribal
1
Legendary matters
5
No-creature set
10
Nostalgia-themed set
5.5
Other IP-based set
10
Pirate world
9
7
6
Planar Chaos-like set
9
Planeswalker-less set
10
Planeswalker-themed set
10
Prequel set
6
Time Spiral-like set
9.5
Tribal set (all classes)
7
Tribal set (some classes)
5
Unbalanced color set
Tribes
Aetherborn
6
Allies
3
Angels
1
Atog
7
Azra
6
Basilisks
5
Bats
3
Bears
3
Beebles
8
10
Big aquatic creatures
1
Bringers
9
Brushwaggs
Cats
2
Dauthi
6
Demons
1
Dinosaurs
3
Djinn
4
Dogs (not Hounds)
8
Dragons
1
Dreadnoughts
8.5
Dwarves
Elders
5
Eldrazi
4
6
Elementals
1
Elves
1
Eyes
7
Faeries
3
Ferrets
8.5
Gnomes
7
Goats
2
Goblins
1
Gods
3
4
Homarids
8
Horrors
2
Horses
2
Humans
1
Hydras
1
Kavu
4
Kirin
7
Kithkin
Lamias
8.5
Lhurgoyfs
Mercenaries
7
Merfolk
1
Mice
5
Minotaurs
2
Moles
8.5
Moonfolk
8
Myr
6
Nephilim
9
8
Ninjas
6
Noggles
8
Orcs
4
3
Orggs
8
6
Ouphes
9
Oysters
8.5
Pests
8.5
Phelddagriffs
9
9.5
Phyrexians
Pirates
5
Rats
3
Rebels
5
7
Reflections
8.5
Sables
8.5
Scarecrows
2
1
2
Slivers
Slivers (old-style)
10
Snakes
5
Spawn
8.5
Spellshapers
4
8
Sphinxes
1
Spikes
Spirits
3
Squirrels
Titans
4
Titans (powerful as M11 titans)
7
Treefolk
3
2
Vampires
1
Walls
2
Werewolves
3
Werewolves (non-Innistrad)
6
Wombats
8.5
Zombies
1
Other
Absolutely-removed-from-the-freaking-game-forever zone
10
Alternate card frames
2
Banana daiquiri scale
10
Black Forest ham
1
Commas in names
1
Crab legs
1
Creatures bigger than Eldrazi
8
Cross-block keywords
8
Exclamation point in a card name
4
Full art lands
1
Full art vanilla creatures
5
Grilled cheese
3
Ham and cheese sandwich
1
Long card names
8
Magic puzzles
1
Magic puzzles by Mark Rosewater
9
Mark Rosewater art
10
Mauve scale
9
New Ravnica guilds
9
Noncreature tokens
2
Oranges
10
Pizza
1
Planechase
5
Pretzels
4
Purple (on Mauve Scale)
1
Resized cards
11
Six planeswalkers in a block
3
Storm Scale articles
1
Un-set
4
Unique promotional cards
12
White bordered cards
10
World Championship Decks
9
You Make the Card
3
4
3
6