I definitely think we'll get a Creature - Bat Demon before the block is over, that's exactly what the camazotz *was* in Aztec mythology. There are all sorts of fun little tidbits like that for people who have studied Mesoamerican history (Anthropology minor over here!)
... And doing anything "for unclear reasons" is very Bolas-esque >_>
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Xantcha, Phyrexian Reject
Jodah, Archmage Eternal
Tovolar, Howlpack Alpha
Pivlic, Orzhov Informant
Crixizix, Master Engineer
Feather, Boros Peacekeeper
Marisi Coilbreaker
O-Kagachi
Gix, Phyrexian Praetor
Karn, Father of Machines
Yawgmoth, Father of Machines
Serra, Mother of All Angels
Tevesh Szat, Doom of Fools
Leshrac the Nightwalker
Jeska, the Thrice-Touched
Elspeth Returned
Crucius the Mad
Taysir the Infinite
Urza's Head (Unglued!)
Where are you guys getting this bat god? I just see a bat imp
Temple of Aclazotz's flavour text literally points out that there's a mythical bat-god of night that's the enemy of the Threefold Sun, and it's the flip side of an enchantment showing a vampire communing with a floating demonic head.
Vampiric Dinosaur anyone?
wasn't there a vampiric dragon back in Odyssey
would be interesting if somehow vampires managed to infect dinosaurs
Mark Rosewater has already stated that there will not be any Vampire Dinosaurs, Dinosaur Pirates, or Pirate Merfolk, or any other iteration of the same, in this blook.
Where are you guys getting this bat god? I just see a bat imp
Temple of Aclazotz's flavour text literally points out that there's a mythical bat-god of night that's the enemy of the Threefold Sun, and it's the flip side of an enchantment showing a vampire communing with a floating demonic head.
TBH honest the 'evil' already present within the Ixalan Continent intrigues me. Blight Keeper, Spreading Rot and Dark Nourishment all suggest the same terrible, dark power.
I wonder if these Vampire Conquistadors really are, compared with most Vamps, Ok, fairly good guys and gals but maybe this evil already upon the land corrupts them?
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Wizards. listen. The Vorthos community will await the consequences of the Eldrazi Titans' deaths/sealing. We will keep the watch.
“The wind whispers, ‘come home,’ but I cannot.”
— Teferi
I understand why they do this, as they want us to know intuitively what planes we're seeing. Also, since we know about Ghirapur already, it makes Huatli's assumption that it's Orazca all the more hilarious. Whether or not that's a good approach is another argument.
I understand what they are doing, however it is the polar opposite of what they should be doing, they should be using these Random walks to show us places we have never been, It gives us a short feel of what the newbie walker feels by making us go "Woah, what is -that- place?", It makes the Multi-verse feel larger because since Origins every first planeswalk we have seen has been to a place we have known except for 1 and we didn't actually see his first planeswalk, and it could foreshadow planes we could be going too in the future, or give us small glimpses of the ones we aren't going to specifically go to like wherever the Vampire Gladiator Lady from this years Commander is from.
It's kind of nit-picky, but I really don't like the pterosaur stand-ins. It's bad enough they're feathered dinosaurs, but most just look like weird drakes or birds than even stereotypical pterodactyls.
Not enough Coatls. In fact, none. I hoped they would play a bigger role in a meso-american world. Well ... got pushed out by Dinos, I guess...
Sirens/pirates and fish, flying snakes seem very U to be and Dinos are GRW.
I can't wait for the art book, this world looks amazing from what we seen on the cards. I love how it all seems to jell together very well and I defiant want to know more bout this bat god who want to hurt my dino babes.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
“There are no weak Jews. I am descended from those who wrestle angels and kill giants. We were chosen by God. You were chosen by a pathetic little man who can't seem to grow a full mustache"
"You can tell how dumb someone is by how they use Mary Sue"
TBH honest the 'evil' already present within the Ixalan Continent intrigues me. Blight Keeper, Spreading Rot and Dark Nourishment all suggest the same terrible, dark power.
All light casts a Shadow, even 3 Eternal Suns can't hit everywhere.
I understand why they do this, as they want us to know intuitively what planes we're seeing. Also, since we know about Ghirapur already, it makes Huatli's assumption that it's Orazca all the more hilarious. Whether or not that's a good approach is another argument.
I understand what they are doing, however it is the polar opposite of what they should be doing, they should be using these Random walks to show us places we have never been, It gives us a short feel of what the newbie walker feels by making us go "Woah, what is -that- place?", It makes the Multi-verse feel larger because since Origins every first planeswalk we have seen has been to a place we have known except for 1 and we didn't actually see his first planeswalk, and it could foreshadow planes we could be going too in the future, or give us small glimpses of the ones we aren't going to specifically go to like wherever the Vampire Gladiator Lady from this years Commander is from.
But then you get stuck in the bind of "Can't make this too interesting, or people will want to know more about that instead of the story we're actually trying to tell right now." Or worse "Here's a cool plane that we didn't have time to do all the logistics for, so we may never see it again, and if we do, it may end up completely different." A la Planechase.
I understand why they do this, as they want us to know intuitively what planes we're seeing. Also, since we know about Ghirapur already, it makes Huatli's assumption that it's Orazca all the more hilarious. Whether or not that's a good approach is another argument.
I understand what they are doing, however it is the polar opposite of what they should be doing, they should be using these Random walks to show us places we have never been, It gives us a short feel of what the newbie walker feels by making us go "Woah, what is -that- place?", It makes the Multi-verse feel larger because since Origins every first planeswalk we have seen has been to a place we have known except for 1 and we didn't actually see his first planeswalk, and it could foreshadow planes we could be going too in the future, or give us small glimpses of the ones we aren't going to specifically go to like wherever the Vampire Gladiator Lady from this years Commander is from.
But then you get stuck in the bind of "Can't make this too interesting, or people will want to know more about that instead of the story we're actually trying to tell right now." Or worse "Here's a cool plane that we didn't have time to do all the logistics for, so we may never see it again, and if we do, it may end up completely different." A la Planechase.
It's not really a good situation either way.
This really seems to be the jist of it. Showing unknown planes creates expectation among the playerbase that we'll someday GO TO that plane. Showing any amount of actual detail about that plane paints them into a corner if they ever decide to do just that, now the development of that plane faces artificial restrictions, or is flat out retconned which pisses off fans.
I think the only way we're realistically going to see planeswalkers walking to unknown planes is if those planes are already in development for near future release, but making a habit of doing that just leads right back to problem #1; creating expectations within the playerbase.
They could have at least chosen a plane we haven't been to just three sets ago, like maybe Rabiah and the City of Brass.
Also, I don't agree with the "new planes would detract from the story" sentiment. And even then they could have still used locations from the planechase planes. People have already seen those, so the hype wouldn't be that great. And to be honest, hype for something new eventually coming in the future is not a bad thing in my eyes. It would give Wizards feedback as to what kinds of worlds the players would love to see. If there never was Muraganda in future sight, how soon would we have gotten dinosaurs?
I understand why they do this, as they want us to know intuitively what planes we're seeing. Also, since we know about Ghirapur already, it makes Huatli's assumption that it's Orazca all the more hilarious. Whether or not that's a good approach is another argument.
I understand what they are doing, however it is the polar opposite of what they should be doing, they should be using these Random walks to show us places we have never been, It gives us a short feel of what the newbie walker feels by making us go "Woah, what is -that- place?", It makes the Multi-verse feel larger because since Origins every first planeswalk we have seen has been to a place we have known except for 1 and we didn't actually see his first planeswalk, and it could foreshadow planes we could be going too in the future, or give us small glimpses of the ones we aren't going to specifically go to like wherever the Vampire Gladiator Lady from this years Commander is from.
But then you get stuck in the bind of "Can't make this too interesting, or people will want to know more about that instead of the story we're actually trying to tell right now." Or worse "Here's a cool plane that we didn't have time to do all the logistics for, so we may never see it again, and if we do, it may end up completely different." A la Planechase.
It's not really a good situation either way.
And the answer to that is. "Well Maybe we will go there some day, keep reading the stories and find out." Us seeing the same planes over and over even in short glimpses makes the "Infinite Multiverse! TM." Seem like something smaller than a normal fantasy world is.
I understand why they do this, as they want us to know intuitively what planes we're seeing. Also, since we know about Ghirapur already, it makes Huatli's assumption that it's Orazca all the more hilarious. Whether or not that's a good approach is another argument.
I understand what they are doing, however it is the polar opposite of what they should be doing, they should be using these Random walks to show us places we have never been, It gives us a short feel of what the newbie walker feels by making us go "Woah, what is -that- place?", It makes the Multi-verse feel larger because since Origins every first planeswalk we have seen has been to a place we have known except for 1 and we didn't actually see his first planeswalk, and it could foreshadow planes we could be going too in the future, or give us small glimpses of the ones we aren't going to specifically go to like wherever the Vampire Gladiator Lady from this years Commander is from.
But then you get stuck in the bind of "Can't make this too interesting, or people will want to know more about that instead of the story we're actually trying to tell right now." Or worse "Here's a cool plane that we didn't have time to do all the logistics for, so we may never see it again, and if we do, it may end up completely different." A la Planechase.
It's not really a good situation either way.
And the answer to that is. "Well Maybe we will go there some day, keep reading the stories and find out." Us seeing the same planes over and over even in short glimpses makes the "Infinite Multiverse! TM." Seem like something smaller than a normal fantasy world is.
As has been discussed elsewhere, there seem to be a) some kind of relative "distance" between planes, with Zendikar, Amonkhet and Equilor especially having been called "backwater" or "at the edge of the multiverse" respectively, Dominaria being its center and Shandalar moving through the blind eternities, meaning that the planes we have seen so far (with the named exceptions) could be relatively close to each other, making random planeswalks between them more probable and b) the first planeswalk seems to have some kind of connection to the planeswalker himself (Liliana jumping to Innistrad, Chandra to Regatha etc.). It was never made explicit, but that might be an actual explanation for the seemingly "small" multiverse.
Do we have any idea who (if anyone) is the villain this time around?
The last time we didn't have a clear block villain was Tarkir. Post-Origins, it's strange that we don't have our antagonist by the first set (even in Shadows, we knew our villain was the big bad force looming over Innistrad, even if we didn't know it's name yet).
Vraska seems to be playing the antihero again--she and Jace appear to be working together. The Legion of Dusk seems suitably villainous, but I don't see any particular character stepping up to fill a main antagonist role.
More than any other character, I'd say Kumena, perhaps? I'm very interested in him, and he seems to have some importance to the story:
I'm sure he is, at the very least, one of the Rivals of Ixalan. And personally I think he would be a fantastic villain--next to marauding pirates, vampire conquistadores, and the Sun Empire, the River Heralds are by far the least obvious tribe for an antagonist to emerge from.
Do we have any idea who (if anyone) is the villain this time around?
The last time we didn't have a clear block villain was Tarkir. Post-Origins, it's strange that we don't have our antagonist by the first set (even in Shadows, we knew our villain was the big bad force looming over Innistrad, even if we didn't know it's name yet).
Vraska seems to be playing the antihero again--she and Jace appear to be working together. The Legion of Dusk seems suitably villainous, but I don't see any particular character stepping up to fill a main antagonist role.
More than any other character, I'd say Kumena, perhaps? I'm very interested in him, and he seems to have some importance to the story:
I'm sure he is, at the very least, one of the Rivals of Ixalan. And personally I think he would be a fantastic villain--next to marauding pirates, vampire conquistadores, and the Sun Empire, the River Heralds are by far the least obvious tribe for an antagonist to emerge from.
So far there's nothing particularly clear. We know that the major players are after Orazca. The River Heralds are trying to protect Orazca. This means that they are the "antagonists" at this point but honestly no one side comes off as particularly villainous.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
To post a comment, please login or register a new account.
... And doing anything "for unclear reasons" is very Bolas-esque >_>
Xantcha, Phyrexian Reject
Jodah, Archmage Eternal
Tovolar, Howlpack Alpha
Pivlic, Orzhov Informant
Crixizix, Master Engineer
Feather, Boros Peacekeeper
Marisi Coilbreaker
O-Kagachi
Gix, Phyrexian Praetor
Karn, Father of Machines
Yawgmoth, Father of Machines
Serra, Mother of All Angels
Tevesh Szat, Doom of Fools
Leshrac the Nightwalker
Jeska, the Thrice-Touched
Elspeth Returned
Crucius the Mad
Taysir the Infinite
Urza's Head (Unglued!)
I'm equal parts confused and excited. Confused and excited.
Temple of Aclazotz's flavour text literally points out that there's a mythical bat-god of night that's the enemy of the Threefold Sun, and it's the flip side of an enchantment showing a vampire communing with a floating demonic head.
wasn't there a vampiric dragon back in Odyssey
would be interesting if somehow vampires managed to infect dinosaurs
TBH honest the 'evil' already present within the Ixalan Continent intrigues me. Blight Keeper, Spreading Rot and Dark Nourishment all suggest the same terrible, dark power.
I wonder if these Vampire Conquistadors really are, compared with most Vamps, Ok, fairly good guys and gals but maybe this evil already upon the land corrupts them?
The Vorthos community will await the consequences of the Eldrazi Titans' deaths/sealing. We will keep the watch.
“The wind whispers, ‘come home,’ but I cannot.”
— Teferi
I understand what they are doing, however it is the polar opposite of what they should be doing, they should be using these Random walks to show us places we have never been, It gives us a short feel of what the newbie walker feels by making us go "Woah, what is -that- place?", It makes the Multi-verse feel larger because since Origins every first planeswalk we have seen has been to a place we have known except for 1 and we didn't actually see his first planeswalk, and it could foreshadow planes we could be going too in the future, or give us small glimpses of the ones we aren't going to specifically go to like wherever the Vampire Gladiator Lady from this years Commander is from.
Dragons of Legend, Lead by Scion of the UR-Dragon
The Gitrog Monster
Gonti, Lord of Luxury
Shogun Saskia
Hive World
Atraxa hates fun
Abzan
Sirens/pirates and fish, flying snakes seem very U to be and Dinos are GRW.
I can't wait for the art book, this world looks amazing from what we seen on the cards. I love how it all seems to jell together very well and I defiant want to know more bout this bat god who want to hurt my dino babes.
"You can tell how dumb someone is by how they use Mary Sue"
All light casts a Shadow, even 3 Eternal Suns can't hit everywhere.
Dragons of Legend, Lead by Scion of the UR-Dragon
The Gitrog Monster
Gonti, Lord of Luxury
Shogun Saskia
Hive World
Atraxa hates fun
Abzan
But then you get stuck in the bind of "Can't make this too interesting, or people will want to know more about that instead of the story we're actually trying to tell right now." Or worse "Here's a cool plane that we didn't have time to do all the logistics for, so we may never see it again, and if we do, it may end up completely different." A la Planechase.
It's not really a good situation either way.
This really seems to be the jist of it. Showing unknown planes creates expectation among the playerbase that we'll someday GO TO that plane. Showing any amount of actual detail about that plane paints them into a corner if they ever decide to do just that, now the development of that plane faces artificial restrictions, or is flat out retconned which pisses off fans.
I think the only way we're realistically going to see planeswalkers walking to unknown planes is if those planes are already in development for near future release, but making a habit of doing that just leads right back to problem #1; creating expectations within the playerbase.
Also, I don't agree with the "new planes would detract from the story" sentiment. And even then they could have still used locations from the planechase planes. People have already seen those, so the hype wouldn't be that great. And to be honest, hype for something new eventually coming in the future is not a bad thing in my eyes. It would give Wizards feedback as to what kinds of worlds the players would love to see. If there never was Muraganda in future sight, how soon would we have gotten dinosaurs?
And the answer to that is. "Well Maybe we will go there some day, keep reading the stories and find out." Us seeing the same planes over and over even in short glimpses makes the "Infinite Multiverse! TM." Seem like something smaller than a normal fantasy world is.
Dragons of Legend, Lead by Scion of the UR-Dragon
The Gitrog Monster
Gonti, Lord of Luxury
Shogun Saskia
Hive World
Atraxa hates fun
Abzan
As has been discussed elsewhere, there seem to be a) some kind of relative "distance" between planes, with Zendikar, Amonkhet and Equilor especially having been called "backwater" or "at the edge of the multiverse" respectively, Dominaria being its center and Shandalar moving through the blind eternities, meaning that the planes we have seen so far (with the named exceptions) could be relatively close to each other, making random planeswalks between them more probable and b) the first planeswalk seems to have some kind of connection to the planeswalker himself (Liliana jumping to Innistrad, Chandra to Regatha etc.). It was never made explicit, but that might be an actual explanation for the seemingly "small" multiverse.
Also, map doesn't feature 4th dimension 2/10.
When I saw Shandalar on your map I almost fell off my chair in hysterical laughter!
If an ADHD 5 year-old were a plane, he/she'd be Shandalar. And I know, I was once that (ADD) little boy!
The Vorthos community will await the consequences of the Eldrazi Titans' deaths/sealing. We will keep the watch.
“The wind whispers, ‘come home,’ but I cannot.”
— Teferi
Shandalar: WEEEEEE DOMY CATCH ME!!!
Dominaria(clearly annoyed): Come on Shandalar leave me alone. Cant you see I'm going through another apocalypse?
S: FINE! *throws slivers at Dominaria before storming off*
The last time we didn't have a clear block villain was Tarkir. Post-Origins, it's strange that we don't have our antagonist by the first set (even in Shadows, we knew our villain was the big bad force looming over Innistrad, even if we didn't know it's name yet).
Vraska seems to be playing the antihero again--she and Jace appear to be working together. The Legion of Dusk seems suitably villainous, but I don't see any particular character stepping up to fill a main antagonist role.
More than any other character, I'd say Kumena, perhaps? I'm very interested in him, and he seems to have some importance to the story:
Overflowing Insight (This one especially)
Spell Pierce
Kumena's Speaker
I'm sure he is, at the very least, one of the Rivals of Ixalan. And personally I think he would be a fantastic villain--next to marauding pirates, vampire conquistadores, and the Sun Empire, the River Heralds are by far the least obvious tribe for an antagonist to emerge from.
So far there's nothing particularly clear. We know that the major players are after Orazca. The River Heralds are trying to protect Orazca. This means that they are the "antagonists" at this point but honestly no one side comes off as particularly villainous.