Lukka is a Planeswalker from the Plane of Ikoria, introduced in the set of the same name in Magic: The Gathering. He has been on the side of both good and bad, often falling into these situations due to circumstance.
Lukka is primarily aligned in red mana and later due to bonding with a Phyrexian gained green mana as well. Caple of bonding with animals, Lukka was originally a military man and member of the Coppercoats, who worked to keep Ikoria safe from the plethora of monsters that lived across the plane. He became an outcast for his abilities to bond with animals and stayed an outcast across his ventures through Planes.
Updated January 31, 2023 by Johnny Garcia: Lukka has bonded one time too many, and now finds himself on the wrong side of the war for the multiverse. This article has been updated to include his role in the story for Phyrexia: All Will Be One.
Powered By The Ozolith
Not much is known about Lukka's past, and we first see him as a captain of the Coppercoats. This lasts until he and his men come across a winged tiger that he was summoned to kill. It managed to kill the men he came with but spares Lukka when he suddenly bonds with the monster. Bonding refers to humans who establish eludha with a monster, which binds the spirit of a human and monster together, allowing the humans to command the monster and grow with them. After bonding with the winged tiger, Lukka saw a vision and blacks out.
Upon waking up in the hospital, Lukka's bond with the tiger was discovered, and General Kudro, the ruler of his home Drannith, was to have Lukka imprisoned. Lukka's fiancee Jirina helps him to escape, and Lukka flees the city. While escaping, he crossed paths with the Planeswalker Vivien Reid, who is on the Plane investigating bonding.
Together, they find the Ozolith, an artifact being used by an unknown Planeswalker. It was discovered to be the source of the sudden influx of bonders in Ikoria and the monster attacks against Drannith. They are ambushed by the hunters tracking Lukka, led by Jirina, but are able to flee with help from the winged tiger Lukka had bonded with earlier. Lukka and Vivien come across other bonders, and they all travel back to the Ozolith for a confrontation.
At the Ozolith, Nightmares appear, leading to a fight between the bonders, Jirina's forces, and the Nightmares. In the scuffle, Lukka connects to the Ozolith, communicating with the Planeswalker who was taking advantage of it. Though he does not reveal himself, he tells Lukka that the crystals are not from Ikoria but a different Plane, and allows Lukka to tap into the Ozolith's power. With that, Lukka turns the Nightmares against Jirina's army and forces them to flee.
It was then that Lukka decided he wants to use the newfound power to use the animals to protect Drannith, a plan that Vivien and the bonders vehemently disagree with. Vivien cut ties with him and fights Lukka, but is forced to flee along with the bonders after Lukka turned the animals against them.
Lukka marched with his army of monsters to Drannith, getting a vision of the winged tiger he bonded with, saving Jirina from the wreckage of her ship. He saw the winged tiger being executed by Kudro in a heartless act after Jirina refuses to do so. Though he marches in on Drannith, he does not wish to destroy it but to use the monsters to defend Drannith in hopes of returning to his old life.
Lukka managed to convince General Kudro to a meeting, but this turns out to be a setup for Kudro to have Lukka assassinated, with Jirina the one meant to do it. However, Jirina refuses and told Lukka the truth. This enraged Lukka, and he ordered his monster army to kill everyone in the meeting but Jirina, leading to the death of General Kudro. Lukka believed he could still work his way back into Drannith's leadership but is attacked by Jirina. He is slightly injured and runs away, Lukka calling her a traitor and ending their relationship.
Jirina set up defenses against Lukka, and Vivien and the bonders agree to help in the incoming battle with Lukka and his army. He began the attack, but desperate in his losing position; he tried to take control of all the monsters by channeling the immense power of the Ozolith to do so. However, this overloads the Ozolith as it explodes, and causes his Planeswalker spark to ignite as he Planeswalks away. He woke up on another Plane with much less power, vowing to return home one day.
Allied With The Oriq
Lukka found himself on the Plane Arcavios, home of the magical school Strixhaven. However, due to how different he looked, he was met with hostility, believing him to be a part of a group of mage hunters named the Oriq. On the Plane, Lukka bonded with a gray fox that later saved him in a fight where he was mistaken for an Oriq. When the fox was keen on following him around, Lukka decided to give it a name; Mila.
Lukka agreed to work with the Oriq after his treatment by the locals, believing that Strixhaven taught people to fear outsiders, reminding him of how Drannith treated him back home on Ikoria. He worked closely with the Oriq leader Extus Narr and assisted in an assault against Strixhaven itself. Extus Narr promised a trade to Lukka in exchange for his assistance, though it is never revealed what that was. He acted as a distraction for the Planeswalker Kasmina, who was helping to protect Strixhaven.
In the fight, Lukka told her that he did not care what happens after Extus Narr destroys Strixhaven after she tried to reason with him. Though she bested him in combat, Lukka provided enough time for the mage hunters to attack Strixhaven.
However, during the assault, the elder dragons and founders of Strixhaven arrive to help protect the school and its inhabitants. Mila helped Lukka to take shelter from an incoming attack from a dragon, and he stops Mila before she can get back to the battlefield, telling her that the fight is not theirs to fight anymore. He flees and is absent from the last act of the fight at Strixhaven. Strixhaven is victorious in defeating Extus Naar, and Lukka, Mila, and a few Oriq are seen wandering the Plane. Kasmina saw this and deemed Lukka no longer worth watching and no longer a threat.
Working With The Gatewatch
Though Lukka had often acted as more of a villain since his introduction, he arrived on Dominaria with fellow Planeswalkers to assist The Gatewatch, a group of Planeswalkers who vow to protect the Multiverse, who were preparing to assault New Phyrexia. With the Sylex in tow, they planned to destroy New Phyrexia, ending the Phyrexian threat once and for all.
Lukka was sought after due to his military background on Ikoria, where he had experience fighting large monsters. He was recruited by the Planeswalker Jace Beleren, and Lukka agreed to help since Phyrexia could put Drannith in trouble. Despite his treatment after becoming a bonder, and his own actions towards the city, he still cared for Drannith.
Lukka did not communicate much with his fellow Planeswalkers, offering only a grunt when introduced to the Planeswalker Nissa Revane. He remained distant from the rest of them, and Mila was nowhere to be found, likely left behind on Arcavios.
When the strike team Lukka was a part of arrived on New Phyerxia, they were all split up due to a planar interruption set up by the Phyrexian Praetor Elesh Norn; who already knew they were coming. He found himself on the Hunter's Maze layer of New Phyrexia, with Nissa and the Wanderer. The Wanderer was pulled away by her wayward spark, leaving Lukka and Nissa to traverse through the maze alone.
Lukka bonded with a Phyrexian centaur hulk before it could attack them, to use it as a protector against the other Phyrexians. While Nissa advised against staying bonded with it, Lukka insisted they should keep it around to help them through New Phyrexia. They continued through the Hunter's Maze until they were attacked, putting him at risk of falling from one of the Hunter's Maze's gargantuan trees.
Lukka commanded the Phyrexian to secure him, which caused the Phyrexian to shoot out tentacles and pierce Lukka's body. Though this saved him from falling, this caused him to be infected with phyresis - the infection that turns beings into Phyrexians.
Lukka found himself less and less willing to undo his bond with the Phyrexian, as the corruption spread throughout his body. Upon fighting the Phyrexian Praetor Vorniclex and Phyrexian Glissa, Lukka's body became one with the Phyrexian beast. He had completely turned, becoming compleated as his mind was fully corrupted by Phyrexia.
Though Nissa managed to injure Vorinclex, she had to flee when Lukka was instructed to capture Nissa. While it is not shown, Lukka was likely successful, as the next time Nissa, is seen she had been compleated as well.