So that was quite a story. I really, really loved the parts on Kamigawa. I must say I was disappointed whenever I reached the end of the Kamigawa parts, because then I had to deal with the boring Gatewatch story again. (In itself the gatewatch is not a terrible idea, but it's way overdone at this point. I think I've reached the saturation point mid SOI. Magic storytelling really doesn't work when focusing on just a handful of characters.)
I internally squealed (okay, I actually did it externally, but don't tell anyone) when I learned that Tamiyo has a story circle and that Narset and Ajani are part of it. The more I read about Tamiyo the more I love her. Also this story really sold Ajani for me.
Now, while this story was really really good and ranks somewhere in my top ten easily, I think that the deliberate mysteriousness about the person's identity at the beginning was a mistake. Not only was it confusing by providing us information that seemingly pointed away from the obvious choice (Since when was Ajani using mechanical gauntlets and how can his grandmother be on Kaladesh?!), but it also pulled me out of the narrative at every single turn. Mysteries are fine if the missing information is naturally hidden and not forced. Don't sell me a secret by witholding information I should have access to if I were a witness. This is the "THE 'CREATURE' WAS HIS MECHANICAL ARM ALL ALONG WHAT A TWEEST" thing again from a while back. Urgh.
Either that or they lock him up in magical chains and start capturing villainous planeswalkers and imprisoning them on Ravnica in their base of operations(a la The Raft in Avengers). Mainly because Ajani doesn't want to kill anybody anymore - I see this as potential "plot-armour" to the ongoing story.
Imprisonment is indeed a way to remove characters temporarily without killing them, and everyone except Liliana (or to a certain degree, Jace and Chandra) would probably vote for keeping villains alive. It's cliche, but reasonable within the characters of Gatewatch. Now, if the team was made of Garruk, Liliana, Sorin, Kiora, and Sarkhan... (i.e., the team of questionable morality)
Honestly I wouldn't mind the Gatewatch setting up a "prison world" where they dump all those evildoers. It sounds a bit silly in concept but could potentially be nice if done right. I just don't know how to pull it off cosndiering the logistics behind planeswalkers etc.
Plus side is, this way we could get some "prison break" block in the future featuring most of the past villains, somewhat like a Time Spiral lite.
Honestly I wouldn't mind the Gatewatch setting up a "prison world" where they dump all those evildoers. It sounds a bit silly in concept but could potentially be nice if done right. I just don't know how to pull it off cosndiering the logistics behind planeswalkers etc.
Plus side is, this way we could get some "prison break" block in the future featuring most of the past villains, somewhat like a Time Spiral lite.
One way they could have a prison, is Jace being the Guildpact can probably make into law on Ravnica that a certain room or area cannot be planes walked out of, or even that planeswalkers cannot use any sort of magic so Lavinia or whoever else would be up to it could guard the cells without a lot of retaliation.
Now for my take, this is the first story in a while that made me cry like a little girl, but also at the same time make me giddy with excitement about all the timeline confirmation and references to past stories (being an avid timeline theorist). I agree that leaving Ajani a mystery at the beginning was a mistake, I ended up being confused thinking Nashi was somehow the mystery person on Kaladesh. Otherwise I fully enjoyed the story and can't wait for more Ajani.
Also, as a side note, in my prerelease packs I went with Black/Green Fabricate-Artificers (x3 Inventor's Goggles) and had Oviya Pashiri in my deck, and I've been calling her Grandma Pashiri ever since, one of my favorite Kaladesh characters for sure.
I like the parts where the rat does not like meat, hell I think the Tamiyo Family were all vegetarians. But they served meat to their carnivore guest.and the rare sight of cooked meat really disgusted the rat child because it reminds him of his burning mother. So are kamigawans vegetarians? Because Japan?
Oh, by no means. Meat is eaten by several kamigawan cultures, human or otherwise.
I wonder if Tamiyo's family stopped eating meat because of Nashi or if the Soratami in general are not very fond of meat, because they're (very loosely) based on rabbits. (Or it could just be a cultural thing. I suppose it's really hard raising animals up there in the clouds. Then again, birds should still work.)
If Soratami in general don't eat meat it raises the question how Tamiyo had such quick access to meat. Can mages summon animals to slaughter them?
I wonder if Tamiyo's family stopped eating meat because of Nashi or if the Soratami in general are not very fond of meat, because they're (very loosely) based on rabbits. (Or it could just be a cultural thing. I suppose it's really hard raising animals up there in the clouds. Then again, birds should still work.)
If Soratami in general don't eat meat it raises the question how Tamiyo had such quick access to meat. Can mages summon animals to slaughter them?
The soratami already pretty much could trade for any item on Kamigawa, and are now established as being more tolerant of other races, so it stands to reason she could acquire meat for such an occasion.
I wonder if Tamiyo's family stopped eating meat because of Nashi or if the Soratami in general are not very fond of meat, because they're (very loosely) based on rabbits. (Or it could just be a cultural thing. I suppose it's really hard raising animals up there in the clouds. Then again, birds should still work.)
If Soratami in general don't eat meat it raises the question how Tamiyo had such quick access to meat. Can mages summon animals to slaughter them?
I would imagine given her hosting these Planeswalker book clubs that she has a small supply of meats she can access for the members of her story circle that would eat it more happily than vegetarian meals. It would make sense than Soratami do not eat meat for dietary or custom reasons, but as hosts it would also make sense to provide what their guests would need. (Diplomatically minded folks cannot be 'that vegan that is sure you are wrong for not being vegan.')
Speaking of Vatti/Shadowblayde, I'm thinking that the girl-with-mech-arm art we see in the AER ad in KLD boosters might be just her. There's blade there (and in her name), and she looks important enough.
Speaking of Vatti/Shadowblayde, I'm thinking that the girl-with-mech-arm art we see in the AER ad in KLD boosters might be just her. There's blade there (and in her name), and she looks important enough.
i think the girl's Saheeli Rai that lost her spark, becoming just a legendary creature in Aether Revolt.
I'm late to this discussion, but it's always great to see Kamigawa featured. They keep writing stories like this and maybe we'll somehow convince MaRo that his market research a decade ago from a "planeswalker-less" era was less accurate than he thought and I can finally get my return to Kamigawa... sorry I digress.
Well, one of the other better points of the article was simply the establishment of "Tamiyo's Book Club/Intel Network", it's good to see planeswalkers actually capable of just "being friends with common interests" without some tragedy happening or requiring an Oath to cooperate with each other. Ajani and Narset being part of the network makes perfect sense and I already like this club better than the Gatewatch honestly (and probably partially because they're in the background, so I'm not pushing them into action, although more exposure would be nice). I mean Chandra and Nissa were just trying to understand each other better and over at Kamigawa we have a rather solid foundation already built (to be fair Narset was only mentioned).
Well, we had Kaseto, Orochi Archmage as a prelude of sorts (and there's no confirmation where Kaseto got his U skills from - Minamo or Oboro), but seeing Tamiyo having a Nezumi adopted child really shows how much the Soratami changed since Mochi was gone (I'll take a generous assumption he had a rather large hand in Soratami culture then in some way). A thousand plus years ago Soratami were (somewhat) covertly ridding of Nezumi by manipulating them and outright waged war on the Orochi and now they look like they get along quite fine.
Well, admittedly all that Kamigawa excitement overshadowed it, but I don't really have much to say on the Kaladesh portion on the article... even Shadowblayde seems unimportant because of the planeswalker focus. I would say the same of Mrs. Pashiri and Nashi, but the irony is when you play the role of an ally, you do a better job as a "secondary/background character" and that makes you shine better than being an adversary and fighting for the attention of importance we know you aren't going to get anyway...
That was okay, I guess? The interesting things happened before and after the big showdown. Apparently Vraska was eaten by the Blind Eternities.
Or she might have walked to a plane that is being hidden by something or someone. My money is either on Bolas or Ob. Hell this coukd even be how they find Amonkhet.
That was okay, I guess? The interesting things happened before and after the big showdown. Apparently Vraska was eaten by the Blind Eternities.
Or she might have walked to a plane that is being hidden by something or someone. My money is either on Bolas or Ob. Hell this coukd even be how they find Amonkhet.
Yeah I doubt they'd have Vraska just die like that. A plane hidden sounds like a cool idea.
A lot of interesting tidbits in this story. Jace and Ral are frenemies now? Bolas is somehow hiding Amonkhet from other planeswalkers and has recruited Vraska into his Legion of Doom? Ajani is well on his way to joining the Gatewatch.
The story was written well enough. The passage of time was a bit abrupt, but not too distracting. The final showdown was short, but made its point. Overall, a nice way to advance to the next key point of the plot. B for the story today.
An alright story, it hit all the notes we expected it to, and it played out as expected as well. Not nearly as good as last week's "Release" story, but that's not to say there weren't some interesting moments here. Some notable highlights for me include:
- Ral mentally cursing out Jace as a sort of secret handshake
- Ral's planeswalker tracking
- Mention of Vraska disappearing to....???
- Liliana showing genuine concern about Tezzeret
- Explicit mention of Rashmi's invention
I really like where things are headed, I have high hopes for Amonkhet.
(As a side note, why does no one answer Ajani's questions? "What are gids"? "What's a Gatewatch?" I feel bad for the guy, lol)
The story wasn't bad, I liked how various side characters showed up, even Kambal getting a quick nod.
I feel like the Guildpact magic will be transferred to Ral at some point, as Jace just cannot help leaving Ravnica.
They def are building up to something with Vraska, first with her growing underworld base, now planeswalking to an untraceable location.
The Kaladesh parts were fine, and I do like how we still cannot figure out what Tezz's ultimate plans are. Hope next week we get to see at least some part of his POV.
If I remember correctly, Bolas retreated somewhere after he used Leshrac to seal the Madaran Rift, somewhere he was confidant would survive the end of the multiverse. I wonder of this hidden location is where Bolas went, be it his meditation realm or Amonket.
For like two seconds I imagined Jace chasing after Ral to stop him and have a cute moment.
I have some questions regarding Project Lightning Bug. So it allows Ral to see where planeswalkers are 'walking to, but can he only see planes he's aware of, which would mean planes that he has visited himself right? Or is the known-multiverse mapped out? Because that seems like a powerful tool. And that would make sense that Amonkhet, an uncharted realm, wouldn't show up.
Ah, all these years and the primary mode of travel between stories is still shrouded in mystery.
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I internally squealed (okay, I actually did it externally, but don't tell anyone) when I learned that Tamiyo has a story circle and that Narset and Ajani are part of it. The more I read about Tamiyo the more I love her. Also this story really sold Ajani for me.
Now, while this story was really really good and ranks somewhere in my top ten easily, I think that the deliberate mysteriousness about the person's identity at the beginning was a mistake. Not only was it confusing by providing us information that seemingly pointed away from the obvious choice (Since when was Ajani using mechanical gauntlets and how can his grandmother be on Kaladesh?!), but it also pulled me out of the narrative at every single turn. Mysteries are fine if the missing information is naturally hidden and not forced. Don't sell me a secret by witholding information I should have access to if I were a witness. This is the "THE 'CREATURE' WAS HIS MECHANICAL ARM ALL ALONG WHAT A TWEEST" thing again from a while back. Urgh.
Honestly I wouldn't mind the Gatewatch setting up a "prison world" where they dump all those evildoers. It sounds a bit silly in concept but could potentially be nice if done right. I just don't know how to pull it off cosndiering the logistics behind planeswalkers etc.
Plus side is, this way we could get some "prison break" block in the future featuring most of the past villains, somewhat like a Time Spiral lite.
One way they could have a prison, is Jace being the Guildpact can probably make into law on Ravnica that a certain room or area cannot be planes walked out of, or even that planeswalkers cannot use any sort of magic so Lavinia or whoever else would be up to it could guard the cells without a lot of retaliation.
Now for my take, this is the first story in a while that made me cry like a little girl, but also at the same time make me giddy with excitement about all the timeline confirmation and references to past stories (being an avid timeline theorist). I agree that leaving Ajani a mystery at the beginning was a mistake, I ended up being confused thinking Nashi was somehow the mystery person on Kaladesh. Otherwise I fully enjoyed the story and can't wait for more Ajani.
Also, as a side note, in my prerelease packs I went with Black/Green Fabricate-Artificers (x3 Inventor's Goggles) and had Oviya Pashiri in my deck, and I've been calling her Grandma Pashiri ever since, one of my favorite Kaladesh characters for sure.
Would that make Elspeth Jason Todd?
Storm Crow is strictly worse than Seacoast Drake.
well, maybe if Tamiyo eventually ends in a wheelchair...
only if she gets revived and is not in the right mind.
Oh, by no means. Meat is eaten by several kamigawan cultures, human or otherwise.
If Soratami in general don't eat meat it raises the question how Tamiyo had such quick access to meat. Can mages summon animals to slaughter them?
The soratami already pretty much could trade for any item on Kamigawa, and are now established as being more tolerant of other races, so it stands to reason she could acquire meat for such an occasion.
i think the girl's Saheeli Rai that lost her spark, becoming just a legendary creature in Aether Revolt.
Well, one of the other better points of the article was simply the establishment of "Tamiyo's Book Club/Intel Network", it's good to see planeswalkers actually capable of just "being friends with common interests" without some tragedy happening or requiring an Oath to cooperate with each other. Ajani and Narset being part of the network makes perfect sense and I already like this club better than the Gatewatch honestly (and probably partially because they're in the background, so I'm not pushing them into action, although more exposure would be nice). I mean Chandra and Nissa were just trying to understand each other better and over at Kamigawa we have a rather solid foundation already built (to be fair Narset was only mentioned).
Well, we had Kaseto, Orochi Archmage as a prelude of sorts (and there's no confirmation where Kaseto got his U skills from - Minamo or Oboro), but seeing Tamiyo having a Nezumi adopted child really shows how much the Soratami changed since Mochi was gone (I'll take a generous assumption he had a rather large hand in Soratami culture then in some way). A thousand plus years ago Soratami were (somewhat) covertly ridding of Nezumi by manipulating them and outright waged war on the Orochi and now they look like they get along quite fine.
Well, admittedly all that Kamigawa excitement overshadowed it, but I don't really have much to say on the Kaladesh portion on the article... even Shadowblayde seems unimportant because of the planeswalker focus. I would say the same of Mrs. Pashiri and Nashi, but the irony is when you play the role of an ally, you do a better job as a "secondary/background character" and that makes you shine better than being an adversary and fighting for the attention of importance we know you aren't going to get anyway...
|| UW Jace, Vyn's Prodigy UW || UG Kenessos, Priest of Thassa (feat. Arixmethes) UG ||
Cards I still want to see created:
|| Olantin, Lost City || Pavios and Thanasis || Choryu ||
New story is up.
Or she might have walked to a plane that is being hidden by something or someone. My money is either on Bolas or Ob. Hell this coukd even be how they find Amonkhet.
UBarrin, Master WizardU
USticher GeralfU
UIxidor, Reality SculptorU
UWNoyan Dar, Roil ShaperUW
Yeah I doubt they'd have Vraska just die like that. A plane hidden sounds like a cool idea.
The story was written well enough. The passage of time was a bit abrupt, but not too distracting. The final showdown was short, but made its point. Overall, a nice way to advance to the next key point of the plot. B for the story today.
- Ral mentally cursing out Jace as a sort of secret handshake
- Ral's planeswalker tracking
- Mention of Vraska disappearing to....???
- Liliana showing genuine concern about Tezzeret
- Explicit mention of Rashmi's invention
I really like where things are headed, I have high hopes for Amonkhet.
(As a side note, why does no one answer Ajani's questions? "What are gids"? "What's a Gatewatch?" I feel bad for the guy, lol)
Modern - Cheeri0s (building), Belcher (building), Lantern (building), UW Control (building)
RIP Magic Duels. Wizards will regret what they did to you.
I feel like the Guildpact magic will be transferred to Ral at some point, as Jace just cannot help leaving Ravnica.
They def are building up to something with Vraska, first with her growing underworld base, now planeswalking to an untraceable location.
The Kaladesh parts were fine, and I do like how we still cannot figure out what Tezz's ultimate plans are. Hope next week we get to see at least some part of his POV.
|| UW Jace, Vyn's Prodigy UW || UG Kenessos, Priest of Thassa (feat. Arixmethes) UG ||
Cards I still want to see created:
|| Olantin, Lost City || Pavios and Thanasis || Choryu ||
OK Wizards you peeked my interest as tezzeret's plans seems more mysteriour then Emmrakull on Innistrad
I have some questions regarding Project Lightning Bug. So it allows Ral to see where planeswalkers are 'walking to, but can he only see planes he's aware of, which would mean planes that he has visited himself right? Or is the known-multiverse mapped out? Because that seems like a powerful tool. And that would make sense that Amonkhet, an uncharted realm, wouldn't show up.
Ah, all these years and the primary mode of travel between stories is still shrouded in mystery.