Unfortunately Ojutai's Command is probably worse than Cryptic Command in Modern, but that is to be expected. Hopefully they will push the other nonblue commands enough to see Modern play.
I will be trying Ojutai's Command in modern UW control. Not as good as cryptic, but I think it deserves some testing.
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UUU Merfolk UUU "Above the waves you may be mighty indeed, but down here you belong to me."
-Empress Galina
UBR Cruel Control UBR "The essence of every world, every spell, and every thought is power. Nothing else matters, because nothing else exists."
-Nicol Bolas
Definately gotta collect all the intro packs so I can have all those foil dragons.
Also Ojutai's command looks pretty awesome. A lot of spoiled cards so far are really awesome. This seems to be breaking the trend of the third part of a block being a slight slump.
Not sure anyone looks at this and thinks it's comparable to Cryptic. This card is from an entirely different era.
This card is fine for standard, certainly playable. You wont get a hard counter at anything without double UU in the cost according to their current design philosophy. It's a toolbox of less than ideal but can get the job done modes that does a lot of what you want to be doing in standard. It's not "take 4 and jam them in any UW deck" which is probably where you want this to be. 1-2 in your 75 and that's about it.
Not every card in standard has to or will be a modern staple. There is very little reason to compare them. Different eras, different design philosophy, both fun cards.
Not sure anyone looks at this and thinks it's comparable to Cryptic. This card is from an entirely different era.
This card is fine for standard, certainly playable. You wont get a hard counter at anything without double UU in the cost according to their current design philosophy. It's a toolbox of less than ideal but can get the job done modes that does a lot of what you want to be doing in standard. It's not "take 4 and jam them in any UW deck" which is probably where you want this to be. 1-2 in your 75 and that's about it.
Not every card in standard has to or will be a modern staple. There is very little reason to compare them. Different eras, different design philosophy, both fun cards.
I could potentially see modern play though. Being able to bring back a snapcaster from your GY is nothing to laugh at.
I knew Commands would be good for DTK! And Ojutai's Command is a WU control dream card. Not only do you get the counterspell and card draw, there's a decent number of 2 drops that play well with the Command also, chief among them Snapcaster Mage and Tarmogoyf. Lose your Meddling Mage or Ethersworn Canonist? Ojutai's Command can get them back! You better believe Standard WU is going to play this card, and perhaps Modern WU as well.
And HOLY COW ARE YOU TELLING ME GREEN CAN REDUCE AN OPPONENT'S LIFE TO 0. I am of course referring to the Shaman of Forgotten Ways. Granted, the opponent has to have no creatures and you have to have creatures with total power 8 or greater, so you were probably going to win anyway. I can see a Modern Naya deck running the Shaman with Boros Charm and Wrath of God or similar, ditto for Jund decks swapping white removal for black. The fact that it's a 3 cmc dork that taps for two any by default is a nice cherry on top.
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MTGS Wikia Article about "New World Order"
Every time I read a comment about "Well if this card had card draw/trample/haste/indestructible/hexproof/life gain...", I think "You're missing the point." They're armchair developer comments that fail to take into account the card's role in the greater Limited and Standard environment. No, it may not be as good as whatever card you're comparing it to. There's a reason for that. Not every burn spell is Lightning Bolt, nor does it need to be or should be.
PSA to everyone who keeps forgetting about the Reserved List:
You're on a website dedicated to talking about MtG. You're only a few keystrokes away from finding out what cards are on the Reserved List. You're also only a few keystrokes away from finding out why some cards on the Reserved List got foil printings in FtV, as Judge promos, or whatnot, as well as why that won't happen again. Stop doing this.
Yay for commands! Ojutai's is nowhere near cryptic, but definitely still playable in standard. I hope Silumgar's is viable for modern control, I really, really do, although I fully expect to be disappointed with it.
Not sure anyone looks at this and thinks it's comparable to Cryptic. This card is from an entirely different era.
This card is fine for standard, certainly playable. You wont get a hard counter at anything without double UU in the cost according to their current design philosophy. It's a toolbox of less than ideal but can get the job done modes that does a lot of what you want to be doing in standard. It's not "take 4 and jam them in any UW deck" which is probably where you want this to be. 1-2 in your 75 and that's about it.
Not every card in standard has to or will be a modern staple. There is very little reason to compare them. Different eras, different design philosophy, both fun cards.
I could potentially see modern play though. Being able to bring back a snapcaster from your GY is nothing to laugh at.
7 mana just to get it back, and cast a pierce, bolt, snare, snag, path, dismember, etc isn't awful, but if you have that amount of resource available to you you'd opponent has likely lost already. I could see it as a potential sideboard card, but modern can be fickle to cards which are not at optimal efficiency. I have high hopes for it though don't get me wrong.
Not sure anyone looks at this and thinks it's comparable to Cryptic. This card is from an entirely different era.
This card is fine for standard, certainly playable. You wont get a hard counter at anything without double UU in the cost according to their current design philosophy. It's a toolbox of less than ideal but can get the job done modes that does a lot of what you want to be doing in standard. It's not "take 4 and jam them in any UW deck" which is probably where you want this to be. 1-2 in your 75 and that's about it.
Not every card in standard has to or will be a modern staple. There is very little reason to compare them. Different eras, different design philosophy, both fun cards.
I could potentially see modern play though. Being able to bring back a snapcaster from your GY is nothing to laugh at.
7 mana just to get it back, and cast a pierce, bolt, snare, snag, path, dismember, etc isn't awful, but if you have that amount of resource available to you you'd opponent has likely lost already. I could see it as a potential sideboard card, but modern can be fickle to cards which are not at optimal efficiency. I have high hopes for it though don't get me wrong.
It can also get back tarmogoyf, bob, etc. Plenty of 2 CMC creatures that see tons of modern play.
EDIT: 5 mana. command + bolt would be 5. Command brings snapcaster back into play. You don't have to cast it again.
Not sure anyone looks at this and thinks it's comparable to Cryptic. This card is from an entirely different era.
This card is fine for standard, certainly playable. You wont get a hard counter at anything without double UU in the cost according to their current design philosophy. It's a toolbox of less than ideal but can get the job done modes that does a lot of what you want to be doing in standard. It's not "take 4 and jam them in any UW deck" which is probably where you want this to be. 1-2 in your 75 and that's about it.
Not every card in standard has to or will be a modern staple. There is very little reason to compare them. Different eras, different design philosophy, both fun cards.
I could potentially see modern play though. Being able to bring back a snapcaster from your GY is nothing to laugh at.
7 mana just to get it back, and cast a pierce, bolt, snare, snag, path, dismember, etc isn't awful, but if you have that amount of resource available to you you'd opponent has likely lost already. I could see it as a potential sideboard card, but modern can be fickle to cards which are not at optimal efficiency. I have high hopes for it though don't get me wrong.
I am really excited for the Command Cycle. EDH really needs a solid one for Dromoka's colors.
I am sceptic about that shaman. While it is hard to set up those conditions in standard, or even modern, it is total cake in EDH. 8 total power? Rune-Scarred Demon with Shaman. 11 mana? Please. Tap ability? Plenty of ways to give haste. There is a lot of set up with this guy, so I don't think it will merit a ban hammer. Only time and testing will tell. But it is pretty much an auto win. Whoever doesn't die will get killed with creatures. Hmmmm....
As someone who plays jeskai control in standard I should be excited about the command, but it just seems so underwhelming to me. I can maybe see it in the sideboard for decks with more expensive creatures, but if that's the case I don't see why I wouldn't just use Disdainful Stroke instead.
The more cards I see from this set, the more I want to make B/R tokens a thing. Boltwing Marauder and the Exploit mechanic seem really good. If black gets anything akin to Hordeling Outburst or Goblin Rabblemaster I can see that deck type making some waves.
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As someone who plays jeskai control in standard I should be excited about the command, but it just seems so underwhelming to me. I can maybe see it in the sideboard for decks with more expensive creatures, but if that's the case I don't see why I wouldn't just use Disdainful Stroke instead.
lets see, mb because you trade 0vs1? since your card replaces itself with another card or something from your graveyard?
I don't understand why everyone thinks the Shaman is great.
His mana generation can only be used for creatures which works against any of the good green spells like GSZ and Tooth and Nail.
You need some form of 11 mana on board and if you board wipe you cannot have that since you are killing your creatures, plus you need to give him flash. If you are ever at the point of having 8 power among creatures, you could very likely be winning anyway. If you only have a fatty and a shaman you end at 2 life which is enough for a bolt to the face.
Since he doesn't have haste or flash he has to sit on the board for a whole turn allowing any opponent to kill him if you have the mana to be able to use his ability.
I just don't see where that ability would ever be useful even in commander.
I love the uw command so much, I hope the others are of similar power level. The intro pack dragons are boring, boring uncommons in disguise and the shaman is meh-tastic.
I'm SO SICK of the "too strong for Standard" argument. It's the new "Dies to removal". We can have a two mana 4/4 with a zillion abilities, but we can't just have Accumulated Knowledge. Makes sense.
I don't understand why everyone thinks the Shaman is great.
His mana generation can only be used for creatures which works against any of the good green spells like GSZ and Tooth and Nail.
Considering he can ramp you into a turn three six drop (don't forget the 1-drop dorks like Elvish Mystic) and color fixes while he's at it, that more than makes up for it.
You need some form of 11 mana on board and if you board wipe you cannot have that since you are killing your creatures, plus you need to give him flash. If you are ever at the point of having 8 power among creatures, you could very likely be winning anyway. If you only have a fatty and a shaman you end at 2 life which is enough for a bolt to the face.
The trick is making sure the opponent doesn't have any creatures. They can't bolt you if their life is already at 0. Of course controlling a bunch of creatures still helps; if you're playing a proper ramp deck you should have a few other dorks on the field.
Since he doesn't have haste or flash he has to sit on the board for a whole turn allowing any opponent to kill him if you have the mana to be able to use his ability.
That's true of most mana dorks, and most others don't offer everything the Shaman does. Besides, protection and counterspells exist for a reason.
MTGS Wikia Article about "New World Order"
Every time I read a comment about "Well if this card had card draw/trample/haste/indestructible/hexproof/life gain...", I think "You're missing the point." They're armchair developer comments that fail to take into account the card's role in the greater Limited and Standard environment. No, it may not be as good as whatever card you're comparing it to. There's a reason for that. Not every burn spell is Lightning Bolt, nor does it need to be or should be.
PSA to everyone who keeps forgetting about the Reserved List:
You're on a website dedicated to talking about MtG. You're only a few keystrokes away from finding out what cards are on the Reserved List. You're also only a few keystrokes away from finding out why some cards on the Reserved List got foil printings in FtV, as Judge promos, or whatnot, as well as why that won't happen again. Stop doing this.
Can anyone tell me what will happend if you pull the Shaman off and the opponent doesn´t have any creatures on the battlefield. Will the opponent then die or are they required to have a least one creature on the battlefield in order for the Shaman to work?
Yes, opponent will die in that situation. That's the power of Biorhythm -- it can kill opponent outright, or at the very least put him low enough for your alpha strike to kill him.
About the only thing I'll say is that I'm very surprised we didn't get a 'Tap something' effect in Ojutai's Command.
While you are correct, sleeper, about Pylgrim's 4th ability, you could change one of the abilities (probably Lifelink) to Hexproof, and you're done.
True - I agree with you on both points. A tap-down ability would have fit both colors AND Ojutai's flavor given that we know he likes to freeze things.
Part of me wonders if all the new commands will have a cantrip option, or at least a semi-cantrip (like draw a card and lose one life, or draw a card and discard), since they know that is partly what made cryptic command so powerful and so popular.
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I will be trying Ojutai's Command in modern UW control. Not as good as cryptic, but I think it deserves some testing.
Level 2 in progress...
UUU Merfolk UUU
"Above the waves you may be mighty indeed, but down here you belong to me."
-Empress Galina
UBR Cruel Control UBR
"The essence of every world, every spell, and every thought is power. Nothing else matters, because nothing else exists."
-Nicol Bolas
Also Ojutai's command looks pretty awesome. A lot of spoiled cards so far are really awesome. This seems to be breaking the trend of the third part of a block being a slight slump.
This card is fine for standard, certainly playable. You wont get a hard counter at anything without double UU in the cost according to their current design philosophy. It's a toolbox of less than ideal but can get the job done modes that does a lot of what you want to be doing in standard. It's not "take 4 and jam them in any UW deck" which is probably where you want this to be. 1-2 in your 75 and that's about it.
Not every card in standard has to or will be a modern staple. There is very little reason to compare them. Different eras, different design philosophy, both fun cards.
I could potentially see modern play though. Being able to bring back a snapcaster from your GY is nothing to laugh at.
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The rare Dragon cards are pretty nice too. Arashin Sovereign and Pristine Skywise both look playable for control decks.
And HOLY COW ARE YOU TELLING ME GREEN CAN REDUCE AN OPPONENT'S LIFE TO 0. I am of course referring to the Shaman of Forgotten Ways. Granted, the opponent has to have no creatures and you have to have creatures with total power 8 or greater, so you were probably going to win anyway. I can see a Modern Naya deck running the Shaman with Boros Charm and Wrath of God or similar, ditto for Jund decks swapping white removal for black. The fact that it's a 3 cmc dork that taps for two any by default is a nice cherry on top.
Every time I read a comment about "Well if this card had card draw/trample/haste/indestructible/hexproof/life gain...", I think "You're missing the point." They're armchair developer comments that fail to take into account the card's role in the greater Limited and Standard environment. No, it may not be as good as whatever card you're comparing it to. There's a reason for that. Not every burn spell is Lightning Bolt, nor does it need to be or should be.
My hopes exactly as a modern Esper player.
N/A
Modern:
Grishoalbrand / Grixis Death's Shadow / Jeskai Control / UW Control
7 mana just to get it back, and cast a pierce, bolt, snare, snag, path, dismember, etc isn't awful, but if you have that amount of resource available to you you'd opponent has likely lost already. I could see it as a potential sideboard card, but modern can be fickle to cards which are not at optimal efficiency. I have high hopes for it though don't get me wrong.
It can also get back tarmogoyf, bob, etc. Plenty of 2 CMC creatures that see tons of modern play.
EDIT: 5 mana. command + bolt would be 5. Command brings snapcaster back into play. You don't have to cast it again.
Twitter: twitter.com/axmanonline
Stream: twitch.tv/axman
Current Decks
Modern: Affinity
Standard: BW Control
Legacy: Death and Taxes :symw::symr:
Vintage: NA
I am sceptic about that shaman. While it is hard to set up those conditions in standard, or even modern, it is total cake in EDH. 8 total power? Rune-Scarred Demon with Shaman. 11 mana? Please. Tap ability? Plenty of ways to give haste. There is a lot of set up with this guy, so I don't think it will merit a ban hammer. Only time and testing will tell. But it is pretty much an auto win. Whoever doesn't die will get killed with creatures. Hmmmm....
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I advocate for the elimination of the combo archetype in Modern. I believe it is degenerate and unfun by its very nature and will always limit design space and cause unnecessary bans.
lets see, mb because you trade 0vs1? since your card replaces itself with another card or something from your graveyard?
His mana generation can only be used for creatures which works against any of the good green spells like GSZ and Tooth and Nail.
You need some form of 11 mana on board and if you board wipe you cannot have that since you are killing your creatures, plus you need to give him flash. If you are ever at the point of having 8 power among creatures, you could very likely be winning anyway. If you only have a fatty and a shaman you end at 2 life which is enough for a bolt to the face.
Since he doesn't have haste or flash he has to sit on the board for a whole turn allowing any opponent to kill him if you have the mana to be able to use his ability.
I just don't see where that ability would ever be useful even in commander.
And I can't believe people think it's Modern playable. It isn't.
Stay reasonable, be mindful of your expectations and don't feed the trolls.
Doomsdayin'
Also, really Wizards? You make a UB Dragon, that is playable, but decide "Nah, it still needs to mill."
Considering he can ramp you into a turn three six drop (don't forget the 1-drop dorks like Elvish Mystic) and color fixes while he's at it, that more than makes up for it.
The trick is making sure the opponent doesn't have any creatures. They can't bolt you if their life is already at 0. Of course controlling a bunch of creatures still helps; if you're playing a proper ramp deck you should have a few other dorks on the field.
That's true of most mana dorks, and most others don't offer everything the Shaman does. Besides, protection and counterspells exist for a reason.
Seriously? The format most welcoming to big creatures?
Every time I read a comment about "Well if this card had card draw/trample/haste/indestructible/hexproof/life gain...", I think "You're missing the point." They're armchair developer comments that fail to take into account the card's role in the greater Limited and Standard environment. No, it may not be as good as whatever card you're comparing it to. There's a reason for that. Not every burn spell is Lightning Bolt, nor does it need to be or should be.
That´s pretty neat. Thanks for the answer
True - I agree with you on both points. A tap-down ability would have fit both colors AND Ojutai's flavor given that we know he likes to freeze things.
Part of me wonders if all the new commands will have a cantrip option, or at least a semi-cantrip (like draw a card and lose one life, or draw a card and discard), since they know that is partly what made cryptic command so powerful and so popular.