Battle for Zendikar is the introduction of what we are calling "pivotal events." These are five cards each set that show off key, pivotal moments of the story. We're working with the creative team to design cards that properly capture mechanically what the pivotal event is showing flavor-wise. When we design from a vantage point we don't normally start from, we get interesting designs.
We were told we were going to get an article or something explaining what exactly the five are. I would pretty much agree with the above stated four with the last being up in the air. Though looking through the cards only March and Bring to Light seem like they could fit. However I have no idea what Bring to Light would be depicting and with March I'm not sure how it fits to the story because we only know of the Crypt of Agadeem as a large, tomb-like, structure and since they're focusing on Sea Gate I'm not sure how that's going to work. Then again I don't really know where the two are in relation to one another.
If something like March from the Tomb happens in the story line, then it would make sense for it to get represented on a card. I kind of doubt it does, though; seems kind of random, and nothing so far has set up "Mass return of the dead to fight the Eldrazi" as a thing that could happen. To me the flavor text looks like it's there to add some flavor to a bottom-up, mechanical card.
As for what the five cards are, Nissa's Renewal, Gruesome Slaughter, and Aligned Hedron Network all seem obvious. As for the 4th and 5th, there are a bunch of cards that have very plot-relevant flavor text, including Ugin's Insight, but also Hedron Archive, Dispel, Tightening Coils, Kozilek's Channeler (probably), etc. To me, no two of them obviously stand out from the rest as the remaining "pivotal event cards" (though maybe the Ugin/Jace conversation/confrontation seeming important but getting spread across multiple cards indicates that 5 cards is the target and not a rule?).
"Those cards are Gruesome Slaughter, Nissa’s Renewal, Ugin’s Insight, Outnumber, and Aligned Hedron Network, in that order."
So far all we've seen is Gruesome Slaughter, I believe. I don't see how Outnumber can possibly by that late in the order unless Gideon hasn't even tried to retake Sea Gate yet.
"Those cards are Gruesome Slaughter, Nissa’s Renewal, Ugin’s Insight, Outnumber, and Aligned Hedron Network, in that order."
So far all we've seen is Gruesome Slaughter, I believe. I don't see how Outnumber can possibly by that late in the order unless Gideon hasn't even tried to retake Sea Gate yet.
I suspect that where we're headed is a big, epic battle for Sea Gate, pitting our heroes who are mostly all headed in that direction against Ulamog and his brood. This will probably be some sort of finale of BFZ, with the events of Aligned Hedron Network being the final being the result.
I have to admit...although I enjoy more story representation on the cards, it does kinda suck that the major events are all being spoiled before we can read about them.
In all fairness apart from Aligned Hedron Network (which feels forced and out of place) I can't tell any difference between those cards and normal "not pivotal but still plot relevant" cards.
Heck, Gruesome Slaughter is so incredibly generic, I don't even know which event it references. Infact, isn't it actually something that happens all across Zendikar?
Heck, Gruesome Slaughter is so incredibly generic, I don't even know which event it references. Infact, isn't it actually something that happens all across Zendikar?
That is true, but Kelly did mention that the cards are in order. So looking at the 5 cards in that order, you can basically get the bullet points of story
Zendikar is f'd-up by Eldrazi. Gideon arrives and rallies survivors.
Nissa goes the jungle, acquires Earth powers.
Ugin and Jace have a talk about the Eldrazi, saying it won't be easily solved.
Survivors rally up and fight against Eldrazi. FOOD (or HEDRON) FIGHT
Climax where Ulamog is in a "vulnerable" position (I say this because we don't even know if he's gonna get destroyed or what)
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Modern Decks:
Lantern Control
Bogles (RIP)
Living Belcher (RIP)
In all fairness apart from Aligned Hedron Network (which feels forced and out of place) I can't tell any difference between those cards and normal "not pivotal but still plot relevant" cards.
Heck, Gruesome Slaughter is so incredibly generic, I don't even know which event it references. Infact, isn't it actually something that happens all across Zendikar?
I believe its the flavor text that points to the specific event.
They said the cards are for important pivotal story points, not just the flavour text. As it is, apart from Aligned Hedron Network, I can't tell the difference between this and story-line related cards of the past.
Are you suggesting that Sea Gate was not originally the hilly inland shanty town depicted in the art of Gruesome Slaughter? I assure you Flisch, we have always been at war with Eastasia.
We were told we were going to get an article or something explaining what exactly the five are. I would pretty much agree with the above stated four with the last being up in the air. Though looking through the cards only March and Bring to Light seem like they could fit. However I have no idea what Bring to Light would be depicting and with March I'm not sure how it fits to the story because we only know of the Crypt of Agadeem as a large, tomb-like, structure and since they're focusing on Sea Gate I'm not sure how that's going to work. Then again I don't really know where the two are in relation to one another.
Agadeem is on Ondu, which could be near Tazeem? It's been mentioned that you could reach both by boat, but it's unclear how far apart they are. Almost every distance we know is in relation to Akoum.
We were told we were going to get an article or something explaining what exactly the five are. I would pretty much agree with the above stated four with the last being up in the air. Though looking through the cards only March and Bring to Light seem like they could fit. However I have no idea what Bring to Light would be depicting and with March I'm not sure how it fits to the story because we only know of the Crypt of Agadeem as a large, tomb-like, structure and since they're focusing on Sea Gate I'm not sure how that's going to work. Then again I don't really know where the two are in relation to one another.
Agadeem is on Ondu, which could be near Tazeem? It's been mentioned that you could reach both by boat, but it's unclear how far apart they are. Almost every distance we know is in relation to Akoum.
Gideon arrives near Sea Gate and find everyone slaughtered. He fights his way back and meets Nissa, and they go their separate ways but agree to meet back at Sea Gate.
Nissa finds the Khalni Heart in Bala Ged, uses it to renew her connection to the plane, but also finds Ob Nixilis (not yet a planeswalker) trying to use the power of the Khalni Heart to reignite his spark. Nissa fights Ob Nixilis, wins, and moves the Khalni Heart somewhere safe.
Jace finds Ugin rebuilding the damaged Eye of Ugin. Ugin tells Jace how the network of stone hedrons can trap the Eldrazi titans, but Jace thinks he can use this to destroy the titans outright. Ugin warns Jace (flavor text) but Jace ignores it goes back to tell Gideon about the hedrons.
Ulamog appears. Gideon and Kiora's armies hold Sea Gate while Nissa calls the earth to raise hedrons from the ground and move them into a ring around Ulamog. Jace uses the hedrons to trap Ulamog. But then, Ob Nixilis appears and knocks the hedron network out of alignment, channeling the power to reignite his spark. Gideon thinks the battle can still be won; Ulamog is weakened, and still in reach of his and Kiora's armies. He leaps forward to attack the titan...
So Nissa's Renewal just happened. So it's taken 8 episodes to get through two of the five points.
Better hurry it up or we're going to be way into Oath of the Gatewatch before the AHN happens!
I get the feeling the next three will happen a bit more quickly, mostly because like last year I'm assuming they're going to allocate some weeks to stories about new guys from Commander 2015.
Personally looking forward to Jace and Ugin. I'm still not convinced that Ugin is entirely one of the "good guys", even if in card form he seems like the opposite foil to the mustache-twirling cartoon villain that is Bolas. If anyone is able to critically analyze the motives of an ancient spirit Dragon in this assembled cast of 'walkers, it'd be Jace.
It seems odd that one of these cards is a common while the rest are rare. Doesn't feel like it has enough gravitas I guess, and I'm not even sure who is supposed to be outnumbering who. I guess the art and flavor imply that the allies somehow outnumber the Eldrazi, which seems weird.
Outnumber seems really, really wrong as a 'pivotal moment' card. Compared to say Crux of Fate, which is VERY clear, very few of these 'Pivotal' moments seem like they convey the story at all.
It seems like Altar's Reap should have had Ob Nixilis with Khalni Heart from the story.
Demon's Grasp should have been Nissa (unless that's Munda he's grabbing, which would be great - except it's not, since Munda doesn't have hair).
If I had to pick three other Pivotal Moments, I would have had an Inspired Charge-style art of the retaking of Sea Gate, and the aforementioned Altar's Reap or Demon's Grasp to represent the Nissa/Ob Nixilis fight.
I think they shouldn't try to actively squeeze more meaning into some cards than others. Crux of Fate was perfect as a pivotal card. Even the name is something that hammers home the point. Gruesome Slaughter? Outnumber? Change the art or take away the flavour text and they would be just as generic as any other card in the set. Crux of Fate would stand on its own, even if it was just a playtest mockup.
Its weird to me that Inspired Charge wasn't the card they wanted to represent the retaking of Sea Gate with. The name, art, and abilities make way more sense.
So Nissa's Renewal just happened. So it's taken 8 episodes to get through two of the five points.
Better hurry it up or we're going to be way into Oath of the Gatewatch before the AHN happens!
I get the feeling the next three will happen a bit more quickly, mostly because like last year I'm assuming they're going to allocate some weeks to stories about new guys from Commander 2015.
Personally looking forward to Jace and Ugin. I'm still not convinced that Ugin is entirely one of the "good guys", even if in card form he seems like the opposite foil to the mustache-twirling cartoon villain that is Bolas. If anyone is able to critically analyze the motives of an ancient spirit Dragon in this assembled cast of 'walkers, it'd be Jace.
Well, it's already been established that Ugin sat back and allowed the Eldrazi to completely destroy several planes and kill probably a few billion people before he actually felt bothered enough to to do something about it, and even then he's adamant that the Eldrazi not be killed, just imprisoned.
I think he's the other side of the coin of Bolas- neither takes much stock in the concept of morality. The difference is Bolas uses it as an excuse to do whatever he wants to whoever he wants, so its an extremely selfish viewpoint. Ugin on the other hand has more of a "big picture" mentality, thinking about the enitre multiverse as a whole. The Eldrazi are part of it, and must be allowed to be so, but at the same time you can't have them going around destroying EVERY world. So a balance of sorts- let them take a few (and sucks to be you if you were in that world), but imprison them to keep them from getting too carried away.
IN the end, Magic likes their "big goods" to have somewhat of a jackassy side. Freyalise ended the Ice Age in a second without a second thought as to what ticking up the global temperature 30 degrees or so overnight was going to do to people. Urza did a bunch of terrible things in the name of fighting Phyrexia. Ugin kicks back, relaxes, and drinks Dragon Cola with a paper umbrella while watching planes get turned to dust in the name of research... things go on.
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What five cards is MaRo referering to?
As for what the five cards are, Nissa's Renewal, Gruesome Slaughter, and Aligned Hedron Network all seem obvious. As for the 4th and 5th, there are a bunch of cards that have very plot-relevant flavor text, including Ugin's Insight, but also Hedron Archive, Dispel, Tightening Coils, Kozilek's Channeler (probably), etc. To me, no two of them obviously stand out from the rest as the remaining "pivotal event cards" (though maybe the Ugin/Jace conversation/confrontation seeming important but getting spread across multiple cards indicates that 5 cards is the target and not a rule?).
http://www.gatheringmagic.com/anttessitore-100115-snacks-with-kelly-digges/
"Those cards are Gruesome Slaughter, Nissa’s Renewal, Ugin’s Insight, Outnumber, and Aligned Hedron Network, in that order."
So far all we've seen is Gruesome Slaughter, I believe. I don't see how Outnumber can possibly by that late in the order unless Gideon hasn't even tried to retake Sea Gate yet.
I suspect that where we're headed is a big, epic battle for Sea Gate, pitting our heroes who are mostly all headed in that direction against Ulamog and his brood. This will probably be some sort of finale of BFZ, with the events of Aligned Hedron Network being the final being the result.
I have to admit...although I enjoy more story representation on the cards, it does kinda suck that the major events are all being spoiled before we can read about them.
Heck, Gruesome Slaughter is so incredibly generic, I don't even know which event it references. Infact, isn't it actually something that happens all across Zendikar?
That is true, but Kelly did mention that the cards are in order. So looking at the 5 cards in that order, you can basically get the bullet points of story
Lantern Control
Bogles (RIP)
Living Belcher (RIP)
I believe its the flavor text that points to the specific event.
TerribleBad at Magic since 1998.A Vorthos Guide to Magic Story | Twitter | Tumblr
[Primer] Krenko | Azor | Kess | Zacama | Kumena | Sram | The Ur-Dragon | Edgar Markov | Daretti | Marath
Yeah and Khalni Heart is in Akoum. Oh wait-
Gruesome Slaughter
To be continued in Oath of the Gatewatch...
Better hurry it up or we're going to be way into Oath of the Gatewatch before the AHN happens!
I cheered when I saw that card. I didn't want another New Phyrexia
I get the feeling the next three will happen a bit more quickly, mostly because like last year I'm assuming they're going to allocate some weeks to stories about new guys from Commander 2015.
Personally looking forward to Jace and Ugin. I'm still not convinced that Ugin is entirely one of the "good guys", even if in card form he seems like the opposite foil to the mustache-twirling cartoon villain that is Bolas. If anyone is able to critically analyze the motives of an ancient spirit Dragon in this assembled cast of 'walkers, it'd be Jace.
Aligned Hedron Network and Ugin's Insight both work.
Nissa's Renewal doesn't really convey anything. It isn't distinct from Natural Connection, which actually has flowers in it. Gruesome Slaughter is okay, I guess.
It seems like Altar's Reap should have had Ob Nixilis with Khalni Heart from the story.
Demon's Grasp should have been Nissa (unless that's Munda he's grabbing, which would be great - except it's not, since Munda doesn't have hair).
If I had to pick three other Pivotal Moments, I would have had an Inspired Charge-style art of the retaking of Sea Gate, and the aforementioned Altar's Reap or Demon's Grasp to represent the Nissa/Ob Nixilis fight.
TerribleBad at Magic since 1998.A Vorthos Guide to Magic Story | Twitter | Tumblr
[Primer] Krenko | Azor | Kess | Zacama | Kumena | Sram | The Ur-Dragon | Edgar Markov | Daretti | Marath
Well, it's already been established that Ugin sat back and allowed the Eldrazi to completely destroy several planes and kill probably a few billion people before he actually felt bothered enough to to do something about it, and even then he's adamant that the Eldrazi not be killed, just imprisoned.
I think he's the other side of the coin of Bolas- neither takes much stock in the concept of morality. The difference is Bolas uses it as an excuse to do whatever he wants to whoever he wants, so its an extremely selfish viewpoint. Ugin on the other hand has more of a "big picture" mentality, thinking about the enitre multiverse as a whole. The Eldrazi are part of it, and must be allowed to be so, but at the same time you can't have them going around destroying EVERY world. So a balance of sorts- let them take a few (and sucks to be you if you were in that world), but imprison them to keep them from getting too carried away.
IN the end, Magic likes their "big goods" to have somewhat of a jackassy side. Freyalise ended the Ice Age in a second without a second thought as to what ticking up the global temperature 30 degrees or so overnight was going to do to people. Urza did a bunch of terrible things in the name of fighting Phyrexia. Ugin kicks back, relaxes, and drinks Dragon Cola with a paper umbrella while watching planes get turned to dust in the name of research... things go on.