Dissapointed that they included the Throne in the Rune-Scarred deck, but I'm definitely buying it anyway to get a foil Rune-Scarred for my EDH. And the UW deck is really cool. Lord of the Unreal AND foil Sphinx? Definite buy, too.
All I can say is that i'm really happy that they decided to make the UW foil Sphinx of Uthrun and the UB foil Rune-Scarred Demon meaning that getting foil copies of these 2 new EDH staples will be incredibly easy and affordable.
This. Especially about the sphinx, which I am looking forward to playing.
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[Pr]Jaya | Estrid | A rotating cast of decks built out of my box.
I don't know why people are so anti these things, intro packs, particularly the ones for core sets have never been particularly good.
All I can say is that i'm really happy that they decided to make the UW foil Sphinx of Uthrun and the UB foil Rune-Scarred Demon meaning that getting foil copies of these 2 new EDH staples will be incredibly easy and affordable.
My philosophy on "good" intro packs means they demonstrate some of the mechanics associated with those colors in the new set, and if you jammed two of them together you could have a passable kitchen table deck. They should also include enough value to justify their purchase. All but the UW one IMO fail to do even this. If I squished two of those UWs together, it might fair well at my kitchen table with friends. The rest? Unlikely. Intro pack decks will never be awesome, but they could at least be decent, and leave trashy cards out, or at least minimize them.
In short, I think they could at least be better, and really hoped this would be the case when they finally upped the deck sizes from 40 to 60 cards.
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Decks
Commander
Ezuri, Renegade Leader (Aggro/Combo - Favorite) Skullbriar, the Walking Grave (Sac and Grave hijinks) Azusa, Lost but Seeking (Landfall hijinks) Kaalia of the Vast (Heavily modded)
Those looks better than most precons. I like the W/U, W/G, and Grab for Power. That name is sick, and the concept behind the deck's construction seems fun. These are all actually nicely balanced. Blood and Fire looks fun as well.
Remember when we had precons on power levels like that of the Sliver deck from Tempest? ...Those were the days.
I think it's important to understand that intro packs are not theme decks, and unless there's another seismic shift with regards to their purpose and focus, that isn't going to change. Lest we move too far to despair, though, it also should be noted how intro decks are evolving.
The format came into being for Shards of Alara and was continued through the underwhelming decks of Zendikar, the 'Dark Days.' Some of the characteristics of these decks included a higher proportion of "replace-me" cards (see: Goblin Piker) which guided newer players into the concept of customising decks, and a high number of unique cards. This latter metric I call "U/60," or unique cards per 60, and is a barometer of consistency. If every card is a singleton, your play experience is going to be widely variable. Some variety is good, but the core of the game relies upon an understanding of minimising variance, so too high of a U/60 makes for a bad deck. Alara block had a mean U/60 of a fuzz under 26. Zendikar climbed nearly two points higher, and each of the three sets within it was a bigger offender than the last.
Here's another yardstick to consider: core set percentage. A certain amount of them are useful- they're either good cards on their own, or they fill gaps not covered in the deck's set and warrant inclusion, but too many of them begin to dilute the feel and flavour. One of the primary puposes of precons is to represent and showcase the set they're from. Alara had an average core set content (CSC) of 14.36%. Zendikar block doubledthat.
Although it's a bit silly to speak of 'core set content' when reviewing M12 decks (CSC of 100%- winning!), the point I'm making is that when the theme deck died and the intro pack was born, things from a certain perspective actually got worse before they got better. And they have been getting better. Scars block had a U/60 of 22.70, a big improvement. The CSC dropped to below 12%. Magic 2012's U/60 dropped over a point from there.
It's like you have these decks that are a lot of fun to play, but then you scrap them to make decks that are better angled to introduce and assist new players in learning and mastering the game. And then one day you have an epiphany that says, 'hey, why can't we do both?' We're seeing incremental movement back towards the 'theme deck' approach, trying to find that sweet spot of balance without moving past it, and decks with novel approaches like Entangling Webs are a healthy sign.
Mystical Might at my Pre-release did well. I beat both standard constructed decks I played against, sealed deck draft decks (including a top 8 one) and only lost against the Aura deck (1w 1l). I think I lost twice in 8 matches, but I forget against what.
I lost more with the Blood & Fire deck but I think that was mostly getting used to it - this one was about 3 wins 3 loss.
Are Intro Packs somehow immune to the release date? This is the second time I've seen a local store selling these things at their respective prereleases.
Wizards allows LGS to sell the intro packs at the prerelease. I'm gonna buy the UW and UB one because both the sphinx and the demon are going to be EDH staples.
Are Intro Packs somehow immune to the release date? This is the second time I've seen a local store selling these things at their respective prereleases.
Intro Pack side dueling takes place at Pre-releases. You do 6 games with the pack and you get a promo card - I did it with 2 packs this weekend so I have 2 bloodlords without playing in the sealed deck.
Unlike most Pre-Cons, these are worth getting for the pieces. Not to mention the decks are actually interesting. I would actually like to see some Pre-Con Wars...
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It makes a lot of sense. The tutors give the deck a better chance of assembling the combo.
Is this the first time we've seen a combo-type intro pack?
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maybe because of the neat cards in some decks (as mentioned U/B and U/W)...
nevertheless, they all look fun!
If everything goes fine in our LGS, I might be able to take this guys for a test drive one-by-one...
TBA
Projects under construction:
Standard:
- Werewolves... O_o
Others
- Sliver Overlord EDH
- Riku
This. Especially about the sphinx, which I am looking forward to playing.
Trade List: http://forums.mtgsalvation.com/showthread.php?t=243868
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My philosophy on "good" intro packs means they demonstrate some of the mechanics associated with those colors in the new set, and if you jammed two of them together you could have a passable kitchen table deck. They should also include enough value to justify their purchase. All but the UW one IMO fail to do even this. If I squished two of those UWs together, it might fair well at my kitchen table with friends. The rest? Unlikely. Intro pack decks will never be awesome, but they could at least be decent, and leave trashy cards out, or at least minimize them.
In short, I think they could at least be better, and really hoped this would be the case when they finally upped the deck sizes from 40 to 60 cards.
Commander
Ezuri, Renegade Leader (Aggro/Combo - Favorite)
Skullbriar, the Walking Grave (Sac and Grave hijinks)
Azusa, Lost but Seeking (Landfall hijinks)
Kaalia of the Vast (Heavily modded)
Standard
Waiting for Innistrad...
Extended
Hah!
Modern
Living End Cascade (RGB)
Legacy
Burn
Vintage
None
Casual
WB Aggro-Control
Green Stompy
Pink Floyd (UWr Wall Control)
Lunch Box (Fatty ramp)
D-Bag (White Control)
Level 13 Task Mage
1 Gladecover Scout
2 Auramancer
2 Sacred Wolf
1 Mesa Enchantress
2 Cudgel Troll
2 Thran Golem
1 Lifelink
1 Naturalize
1 Trollhide
1 Lord of the Unreal
1 Aether Adept
2 Aven Fleetwing
2 Phantasmal Dragon
1 Sphinx of Uthuun
2 Elixer of Immortality
2 Oblivion Ring (Even when I already got 4)
1 Levitation
1 Mind Control
2 Merfolk Looter
1 Gravedigger
2 Belltower Sphinx
1 Rune-Scarred Demon
1 Ponder
2 Crown of Empires
3 Doom Blade
2 Scepter of Empires
2 Divination
1 Frost Breath
1 Throne of Empires
1 Diabolic Tutor
1 Buried Ruin
2 Goblin Fireslinger
2 Stormblood Berserker
1 Onyx Mage
1 Manic Vandal
2 Gorehorn Minotaurs
2 Vampire Outcasts
3 Shock
1 Swiftfoot Boots
1 Incinerate
2 Tectonic Rift
2 Acidic Slime
1 Arachnus Spinner
1 Vastwood Gorger
1 Garruk's Horde
3 Arachnus Web
2 Hunter's Insight
1 Overrun
1 Fireball
Remember when we had precons on power levels like that of the Sliver deck from Tempest? ...Those were the days.
The format came into being for Shards of Alara and was continued through the underwhelming decks of Zendikar, the 'Dark Days.' Some of the characteristics of these decks included a higher proportion of "replace-me" cards (see: Goblin Piker) which guided newer players into the concept of customising decks, and a high number of unique cards. This latter metric I call "U/60," or unique cards per 60, and is a barometer of consistency. If every card is a singleton, your play experience is going to be widely variable. Some variety is good, but the core of the game relies upon an understanding of minimising variance, so too high of a U/60 makes for a bad deck. Alara block had a mean U/60 of a fuzz under 26. Zendikar climbed nearly two points higher, and each of the three sets within it was a bigger offender than the last.
Here's another yardstick to consider: core set percentage. A certain amount of them are useful- they're either good cards on their own, or they fill gaps not covered in the deck's set and warrant inclusion, but too many of them begin to dilute the feel and flavour. One of the primary puposes of precons is to represent and showcase the set they're from. Alara had an average core set content (CSC) of 14.36%. Zendikar block doubledthat.
Although it's a bit silly to speak of 'core set content' when reviewing M12 decks (CSC of 100%- winning!), the point I'm making is that when the theme deck died and the intro pack was born, things from a certain perspective actually got worse before they got better. And they have been getting better. Scars block had a U/60 of 22.70, a big improvement. The CSC dropped to below 12%. Magic 2012's U/60 dropped over a point from there.
It's like you have these decks that are a lot of fun to play, but then you scrap them to make decks that are better angled to introduce and assist new players in learning and mastering the game. And then one day you have an epiphany that says, 'hey, why can't we do both?' We're seeing incremental movement back towards the 'theme deck' approach, trying to find that sweet spot of balance without moving past it, and decks with novel approaches like Entangling Webs are a healthy sign.
I lost more with the Blood & Fire deck but I think that was mostly getting used to it - this one was about 3 wins 3 loss.
Intro Pack side dueling takes place at Pre-releases. You do 6 games with the pack and you get a promo card - I did it with 2 packs this weekend so I have 2 bloodlords without playing in the sealed deck.
They have to sell them for this to be possible!