There'll be the odd race you might win with casting this at the opponent, but that will be rare.
Ten cent card within six months.
100% disagree. This is far better because you can target your opponent and mill them out and also use it to fireball them for the last 5-10 damage late in the game.
I don't know if I could go that deep to get a lava axe... I mean, one out of ten games, sure, but... Mill? Burn? What went wrong in that game?
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My favorite flavor text: Time of Heroes
Feel free to tell me yours!
There'll be the odd race you might win with casting this at the opponent, but that will be rare.
Ten cent card within six months.
100% disagree. This is far better because you can target your opponent and mill them out and also use it to fireball them for the last 5-10 damage late in the game.
I don't know if I could go that deep to get a lava axe... I mean, one out of ten games, sure, but... Mill? Burn? What went wrong in that game?
You see some bizarre card evaluations on this site, but this takes the cake.
Rest assured that if you cast this on me for 10 when I'm on 15 life, I will not be countering it even if I have counterspells in hand. I'll draw my ten cards, and kill you before you untap.
Now possibly an "X" cycle? And could there be more?
I don't think this is a very good card. In draft, I would not wanna see this. In sealed, it's marginal. In standard, no thank you. In eternal, No way.
In EDH, I'm slightly unsure. I guess it passes? As others have said, you want to play Skeletal Scrying first before you even consider this. At least this is in the queue for slots.
Absolute murder on wheels in Nekusar. I'm uncertain how good it is in anything else; if you're going to be investing that kind of mana, why not skip the life loss, pay the extra 3, and get Diabolic Revelation instead? That said, I personally think it's better than Skeletal Scrying most of the time, as I see Relic of Progenitus/Bojuka Bog/Rest in Peace constantly and I'd rather overpay a little than be at the mercy of my opponents' graveyard nukes (but I also don't play in a meta where every deck packs a turn 4 combo kill, so what do I know, right?).
I am a Mono-Black Control EDH player, and i am absolutely replacing Skeletal Scrying for Damnable Pact. Without a second thought. I utilize my graveyard a lot for recursion and exiling my trash with Skeletal Scrying always feels awkward. The fact that this acts as draw for me or a drain spell for your opponent in a single card, as well as not requiring exiling from your graveyard, in my opinion, far outweighs that Skeletal Scrying is instant.
To be clear, I can tell you that I will almost always use this to outright kill players. The fact that it could also draw me cards if I need it is a bonus, frankly.
Okay. So, just to be abundantly clear, the playability of a different card, in a different color, from a different format does not, in any way, dictate the application of a card in the current format. Take Doom Blade, just as one of countless examples from the history of Magic. I can remember its first printing and it was a fringe side board card, at best. Fast forward a couple decades and Doom Blade was about the best thing you could be doing for 2 mana. The card never changed. The format that defined the application of the card did.
I don't know how good this card will be. I do, however, know that dredging up the past as a way to define the present is a waste of my time and everyone elses.
Versatility is always one of the most important factors in EDH. In EDH, this is easily a staple. Most black decks have a ton of recursion so Skeletal Scrying has always useful but at the same time a bit iffy. This card on the other hand, can draw you cards, bomb your opponent or even mill them out. For what it costs, it's probably the best we're going to get in terms of X black card draw.
Very cool! I designed this card in the Custom Card Creation forum about 2 years ago. Same mana cost, same wording, same rarity. Only thing different was the name, I called mine Involuntary Education.
It's a compliment to have Wizards come up with so many cards I thought up quite some time ago. I don't have any rumor-milling abilities anymore, but I'm still able to "predict" what they'll print!
Versatility is always one of the most important factors in EDH. In EDH, this is easily a staple. Most black decks have a ton of recursion so Skeletal Scrying has always useful but at the same time a bit iffy. This card on the other hand, can draw you cards, bomb your opponent or even mill them out. For what it costs, it's probably the best we're going to get in terms of X black card draw.
The thing is if you go big, Promise of Power allready offers draw 5 for 5, which should be plenty enough, unless you go "infinited" or super huge on mana (in which case the life lose becomes real).
Skeletal Scrying is so good as its cheap draw and instant speed. Eating graveyard cards will most the time not be an issue, and if it is, you will still get a pretty reasonable amount of cards from it (given you play fetchlands and the like).
The card is "fine" as an X-spell, but its hardly good and totally not efficient at what it does.
Flexiblity only matters if you can truly go for big numbers in X to make this an Fireball at the head.
If you run black in Commander, you run this, no questions.
I don't know if I would
When you have Night's Whisper and Sign in Blood already dropping in a spell that costs 3 to draw a card isn't the most appealing thing I can think of.
I'd run it in my Ghost Council no questions asked. I can use it as a finisher with one of my combos, or I can use it to draw a crap ton of cards. I love the idea of this!
It seems like this could belong in Abzan. There is a lot of life gain in that deck, and for certain matchups it becomes really important to get card advantage. And it is a potential finisher, if nothing else.
Now possibly an "X" cycle? And could there be more?
I don't think this is a very good card. In draft, I would not wanna see this. In sealed, it's marginal. In standard, no thank you. In eternal, No way.
In EDH, I'm slightly unsure. I guess it passes? As others have said, you want to play Skeletal Scrying first before you even consider this. At least this is in the queue for slots.
You forgot the rare multicolored dragon cycle, the mono colored multi-colored rare cycle, the multicolored uncommon dragon cycle, the five color hate cards... I mean, this set is pretty much just Cycles of Tarkir.
I see a lot of people talking about control, but would this have application in a more aggressive deck? The life loss doesn't matter as much if you need it to refuel, and could act as a fireball to the face if you have them down low.
I see all these comparisons to Skeletal Skrying, but I've got to say, I think this is way better. It just might be my EDH play group, but if you play black, expect to get Bojuka Boged. A lot. I've never been happy to draw Skeletal Skrying, and even when I'm top decking and with a dozen mana to spare, I've never been able to draw more than three off it. Removing the graveyard condition seems worth the drop to sorcery speed to me. Being able to turn a draw spell into a conditional kill is gravy.
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A polite player might call my card choices "interesting." At my budget, "interesting" is the only option.
Absolute murder on wheels in Nekusar. I'm uncertain how good it is in anything else; if you're going to be investing that kind of mana, why not skip the life loss, pay the extra 3, and get Diabolic Revelation instead? That said, I personally think it's better than Skeletal Scrying most of the time, as I see Relic of Progenitus/Bojuka Bog/Rest in Peace constantly and I'd rather overpay a little than be at the mercy of my opponents' graveyard nukes (but I also don't play in a meta where every deck packs a turn 4 combo kill, so what do I know, right?).
Yeah, my EDH meta has a ton of graveyard hate as well. Honestly though, skeletal scrying has never made it past round one of cuts when I throw together a deck not because of the need for a graveyard but rather because fireballing myself is seldom something I can afford to do. That said, I can see certain Nekusar lists running this, and possibly even some Oloro lists, but it certainly not an autoinclude staple card drawing spell.
As for standard? Seems pretty meh-tastic to me. Sorcery speed is a huge hit to the playability of this card. The fact that you can kill someone with it is a step in the right direction, but in a format with sign in blood, read the bones, thoughtseize, abzan charm, dig through time, treasure cruise, outpost seige, chandra, pyromaster, etc. there is some pretty stiff competition for card drawing slots.
I see all these comparisons to Skeletal Skrying, but I've got to say, I think this is way better. It just might be my EDH play group, but if you play black, expect to get Bojuka Boged. A lot. I've never been happy to draw Skeletal Skrying, and even when I'm top decking and with a dozen mana to spare, I've never been able to draw more than three off it. Removing the graveyard condition seems worth the drop to sorcery speed to me. Being able to turn a draw spell into a conditional kill is gravy.
The best part about Skeletal Scrying in Standard was the instant speed. You could cast it at the end of your opponent's turn and they'd have to try to counter it, which would leave them tapped out on your turn, so you could resolve a threat. If they don't counter it, you just draw a ton of cards and can out-attrition them.
skeletal scrying is much better, though slightly less versatile.
In EDH/Commander, this is way better than Skeletal Scrying. Black loves to use the graveyard and doesn't want its creatures removed. For example, I run a Karador, Ghost Chieftain deck that wouldn't even consider Skeletal Scrying, but would definitely consider this. Yes, it is sorcery speed which hurts, but otherwise its only 1 mana more and can target an opponent if needed. And if someone plays Bojuka Bog or something against you, then suddenly Skeletal Scrying is useless. Also, they could counter scrying and you would lose your graveyard since it is an additional cost.
I think it is better compared to Diabolic Revelation - a card that is more powerful than this and without the lifeloss, but costs more. Honestly, the cost is what usually keeps me away from it - I would usually rather have 4 cards and 4 less life than 1 card I could choose, unless I was playing a combo deck. Of course, there are always situations where you would want a specific card, but most of the time, I think this would be much better. And lifeloss isn't hard to recover from in black.
Damnable Pact + Underworld Dreams. Hey dog I hear you like cards? Well I have got some cards for you! Best thing is you can also have Curse of Exhaustion to slow them down. Did someone say BW pain deck?
I don't know if I could go that deep to get a lava axe... I mean, one out of ten games, sure, but... Mill? Burn? What went wrong in that game?
Feel free to tell me yours!
You see some bizarre card evaluations on this site, but this takes the cake.
Rest assured that if you cast this on me for 10 when I'm on 15 life, I will not be countering it even if I have counterspells in hand. I'll draw my ten cards, and kill you before you untap.
WUBRGPauper Battle BoxWUBRG ... and why I am not a fan of Wayne Reynolds' Illustrations.
We've the
-Regeant cycle
-Megamorph dragon cycle
-Elder dragon cycle
-command cycle
Now possibly an "X" cycle? And could there be more?
I don't think this is a very good card. In draft, I would not wanna see this. In sealed, it's marginal. In standard, no thank you. In eternal, No way.
In EDH, I'm slightly unsure. I guess it passes? As others have said, you want to play Skeletal Scrying first before you even consider this. At least this is in the queue for slots.
UR Melek, Izzet ParagonUR, B Shirei, Shizo's CaretakerB, R Jaya Ballard, Task MageR,RW Tajic, Blade of the LegionRW, UB Lazav, Dimir MastermindUB, UB Circu, Dimir LobotomistUB, RWU Zedruu the GreatheartedRWU, GUBThe MimeoplasmGUB, UGExperiment Kraj UG, WDarien, King of KjeldorW, BMarrow-GnawerB, WBGKarador, Ghost ChieftainWBG, UTeferi, Temporal ArchmageU, GWUDerevi, Empyrial TacticianGWU, RDaretti, Scrap SavantR, UTalrand, Sky SummonerU, GEzuri, Renegade LeaderG, WUBRGReaper KingWUBRG, RGXenagos, God of RevelsRG, CKozilek, Butcher of TruthC, WUBRGGeneral TazriWUBRG, GTitania, Protector of ArgothG
Rodgerlodge, erhem, RODGERLODGE went full Rush hour Chris Tucker on you. Obey his keyboard, man.
Feel free to tell me yours!
2023 Average Peasant Cube|and Discussion
Because I have more decks than fit in a signature
Useful Resources:
MTGSalvation tags
EDHREC
ManabaseCrafter
UBDragonlord Silumgar WGKarametra, God of Harvests
BRUNekusar, the Mindrazer BGMazirek, Kraul Death Priest
URMelek, Izzet Paragon UGPrime Speaker Zegana
WUHanna, Ship's Navigator BWUSydri, Galvanic Genius
WUBRGSliver Queen RBBladewing the Risen
WBKarlov of the Ghost Council RGXenagos, God of Revels
GFreyalise, Llanowar's Fury RWAurelia, the Warleader
RIb Halfheart, Goblin Tactician BDrana, Liberator of Malakir
UAzami, Lady of Scrolls WNahiri, the Lithomancer
WBGDoran, the Siege Tower CEmrakul, the Promised End
To be clear, I can tell you that I will almost always use this to outright kill players. The fact that it could also draw me cards if I need it is a bonus, frankly.
Theros Block / Anax & Cymede
Return to Ravnica Block / Vorel of the Hull Clade
Khans of Tarkir Block / Shu Yun, the Silent Tempest
Peasant:
Kuldotha Red
Commander:
Maga, Traitor to Mortals
I don't know how good this card will be. I do, however, know that dredging up the past as a way to define the present is a waste of my time and everyone elses.
An enigma as vexing as life itself.
Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth + Cabal Coffers + Crypt Ghast (plus Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx if you are feeling particularly dirty) > Tonnes of life loss on opponent.
It's a compliment to have Wizards come up with so many cards I thought up quite some time ago. I don't have any rumor-milling abilities anymore, but I'm still able to "predict" what they'll print!
.
The thing is if you go big, Promise of Power allready offers draw 5 for 5, which should be plenty enough, unless you go "infinited" or super huge on mana (in which case the life lose becomes real).
Skeletal Scrying is so good as its cheap draw and instant speed. Eating graveyard cards will most the time not be an issue, and if it is, you will still get a pretty reasonable amount of cards from it (given you play fetchlands and the like).
The card is "fine" as an X-spell, but its hardly good and totally not efficient at what it does.
Flexiblity only matters if you can truly go for big numbers in X to make this an Fireball at the head.
WUBRG#BlackLotusMatterWUBRG
👮👮👮 #BlueLivesMatter 👮👮👮
I'd run it in my Ghost Council no questions asked. I can use it as a finisher with one of my combos, or I can use it to draw a crap ton of cards. I love the idea of this!
(Also known as Xenphire)
You forgot the rare multicolored dragon cycle, the mono colored multi-colored rare cycle, the multicolored uncommon dragon cycle, the five color hate cards... I mean, this set is pretty much just Cycles of Tarkir.
Yeah, my EDH meta has a ton of graveyard hate as well. Honestly though, skeletal scrying has never made it past round one of cuts when I throw together a deck not because of the need for a graveyard but rather because fireballing myself is seldom something I can afford to do. That said, I can see certain Nekusar lists running this, and possibly even some Oloro lists, but it certainly not an autoinclude staple card drawing spell.
As for standard? Seems pretty meh-tastic to me. Sorcery speed is a huge hit to the playability of this card. The fact that you can kill someone with it is a step in the right direction, but in a format with sign in blood, read the bones, thoughtseize, abzan charm, dig through time, treasure cruise, outpost seige, chandra, pyromaster, etc. there is some pretty stiff competition for card drawing slots.
The best part about Skeletal Scrying in Standard was the instant speed. You could cast it at the end of your opponent's turn and they'd have to try to counter it, which would leave them tapped out on your turn, so you could resolve a threat. If they don't counter it, you just draw a ton of cards and can out-attrition them.
In EDH this might be better than Scrying, but I'd probably rather play something like Necrologia, Ad Nauseam, Moonlight Bargain, Promise of Power, etc which all draw a large number of cards more efficiently.
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Legacy: Something U/W Controlish
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In EDH/Commander, this is way better than Skeletal Scrying. Black loves to use the graveyard and doesn't want its creatures removed. For example, I run a Karador, Ghost Chieftain deck that wouldn't even consider Skeletal Scrying, but would definitely consider this. Yes, it is sorcery speed which hurts, but otherwise its only 1 mana more and can target an opponent if needed. And if someone plays Bojuka Bog or something against you, then suddenly Skeletal Scrying is useless. Also, they could counter scrying and you would lose your graveyard since it is an additional cost.
I think it is better compared to Diabolic Revelation - a card that is more powerful than this and without the lifeloss, but costs more. Honestly, the cost is what usually keeps me away from it - I would usually rather have 4 cards and 4 less life than 1 card I could choose, unless I was playing a combo deck. Of course, there are always situations where you would want a specific card, but most of the time, I think this would be much better. And lifeloss isn't hard to recover from in black.
Yes, this fits ideally in ye olde Nekusar, the Mindrazer deck with Notion Thief.