While everyone is talking about how this card affects Eternal formats, let me just point out that this is the perfect card for some Selesnya fluff. Bonus points there for not hitting your average token.
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Planar Chaos was not a mistake neither was it random. You might want to look at it again.
[thread=239793][Game] Level Up - Creature[/thread]
Yeah, uh... I don´t understand where this is supposed to see play at all. In all non-standard formats you´d rather have Path or Plow, and in Standard I don´t see what 1 CMC permanents you need to get rid of this efficiently at the cost of running such a narrow card. Maybe it´s a safety valve for some incredibly powerful 1 CMC permanent that we haven´t seen yet.
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When I hit my 3000 post mark, I'm gone for good.
Stay reasonable, be mindful of your expectations and don't feed the trolls.
I really don't understand why they just didn't make it exile a permanent of converted mana cost 1 or less. Surely it would have been a damn sight more useful and could at worst be used to kill tokens.
Wow, seems a White Fatal Push/Spell Snare is too complex and has the ability to warp Limited now. Can't way for the typical fanboys trying to defend this as "I don't want to open a crap useless Uncommon in Draft" :^)
Wow, seems a White Fatal Push/Spell Snare is too complex and has the ability to warp Limited now. Can't way for the typical fanboys trying to defend this as "I don't want to open a crap useless Uncommon in Draft" :^)
Wow, you pop up and do this in every thread about a rare/mythic card, huh? I guess you really do just hate limited.
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When I hit my 3000 post mark, I'm gone for good.
Stay reasonable, be mindful of your expectations and don't feed the trolls.
Wow, seems a White Fatal Push/Spell Snare is too complex and has the ability to warp Limited now. Can't way for the typical fanboys trying to defend this as "I don't want to open a crap useless Uncommon in Draft" :^)
Wow, you pop up and do this in every thread about a rare/mythic card they absurdly upshift without reason, huh? I guess you really do just hate limited.
ftfy
Also not an argument. Push is still in Standard and was Uncommon, and is miles better than this. Spell Snare just got reprinted at Uncommon in Battlebond. My point still stands. You're the one who argued about not wanting crap at Rare, right? Or have you changed your narrative?
Wow, seems a White Fatal Push/Spell Snare is too complex and has the ability to warp Limited now. Can't way for the typical fanboys trying to defend this as "I don't want to open a crap useless Uncommon in Draft" :^)
Wow, you pop up and do this in every thread about a rare/mythic card they absurdly upshift without reason, huh? I guess you really do just hate limited.
ftfy
Also not an argument
This isn´t going to be some multi format staple, it will be a $0.50 card at best. What´s your problem with its rarity, really? You don´t like the gold color symbol? You´re were going to crack packs hoping to get this? $2 for a playset is too expensive compared to the $0.50/playset it would be at uncommon?
And you know, coming out swinging saying that everyone that disagrees with you is a "fanboy" and their arguments are not valid really isn´t a nice or useful way to discuss on a forum. (These are my last words on this, I don´t want to spam/derail.)
@Zephir:
I do agree that such a niche card should've been an uncommon, I definitely wouldn't see this warping limited because there's basically nothing substantial you could kill there, and therefore you wouldn't start with this in your main.
You´re missing something. It is true that cards that are so powerful that they would warp limited at lower rarities, are best delegated to the rare slot for limited purposes. But this is also true for cards that are completely unplayable bricks in limited. Putting lots of super narrow stuff like this and Alpine Moon and Infernal Reckoning and Crucible of Worlds and Amulet of Safekeeping at common or uncommon would significantly lower the number of playable cards in packs, which is very bad for the limited format.
As a primarily limited player, I'm not thrilled about how many of the rares in this set are clearly modern/legacy sideboard stuff that will be utterly unplayable in limited. Never fun to crack this sort of thing in a draft. I don't mind a low-power format, but a lot of the other rares are very strong, so opening this will just always make me sad.
Wow, seems a White Fatal Push/Spell Snare is too complex and has the ability to warp Limited now. Can't way for the typical fanboys trying to defend this as "I don't want to open a crap useless Uncommon in Draft" :^)
Wow, you pop up and do this in every thread about a rare/mythic card they absurdly upshift without reason, huh? I guess you really do just hate limited.
ftfy
Also not an argument
This isn´t going to be some multi format staple, it will be a $0.50 card at best. What´s your problem with its rarity, really? You don´t like the gold color symbol? You´re were going to crack packs hoping to get this? $2 for a playset is too expensive compared to the $0.50/playset it would be at uncommon?
And you know, coming out swinging saying that everyone that disagrees with you is a "fanboy" and their arguments are not valid really isn´t a nice or useful way to discuss on a forum. (These are my last words on this, I don´t want to spam/derail.)
Both you and I (and let's not kid ourselves, WotC too) know very well that this is a sideboard card at best. If you know it won't fetch that high of a price, and you know it's as good as opening a saproling token as your rare in Limited, why not just put it at Uncommon in the first place? Same goes for the Black exile card. I just can't fathom how anybody can defend this behaviour. I'd rather open whatever 5/5 bomb Angel this set card, or a money card like Crucible or Scapeshift, than this. I don't crack packs for value, nor I don't complain about every card in the set. That's just hyperbole. I complain because I want to open cards that are either good in Limited, cards that have value, or at least acceptable cards that while they won't pay for the pack they're still playable and acceptable (Goblin lord for example). That's what the Rare slot is for. I don't want to open some uncommon sideboard card they upshifted to rare to get a little extra cash. Imagine opening your pack and getting something like Flashfreeze as your rare, because that's certainly how I will feel when I open pack 1 and see this.
As a primarily limited player, I'm not thrilled about how many of the rares in this set are clearly modern/legacy sideboard stuff that will be utterly unplayable in limited. Never fun to crack this sort of thing in a draft. I don't mind a low-power format, but a lot of the other rares are very strong, so opening this will just always make me sad.
As a primary limited player, I would have expected you to realize that, often, it's important to take a strong, non-rare card from your pack P1P1, unless that rare actually is a bomb, and even then, the contents of the pack might hint that this isn't the best option.
Drafting the rare first every single time, or getting upset when your rare is a card not designed for limited, is a sign of a new drafter, or a drafter who just hasn't taken the time to learn how to draft.
Also, are people not realizing that WotC has stated multiple times in their articles that they fully expect core sets to be drafted less than the other Standard legal sets? The number one priority of core sets is going to be too introduce newer players to the game. The average new player will be exposed to more common/uncommon cards than rares/mythics, so Wizards is keeping a majority of the aimed-at-invested-players cards at rare or higher. It's a new philosophy for core sets, so I get it if you haven't read their articles explaining why they're doing what they're doing, but I'd recommend you at least educate yourself on why the things you're complaining about are happening. There is a method to the rarities of these cards.
why not just put it at Uncommon in the first place?
Because putting lots of bricks in common/uncommon slots reduce the number of playables in limited, which makes the limited format bad. I´m not going to repeat this again.
I complain because I want to open cards that are either good in Limited, cards that have value, or at least acceptable cards that while they won't pay for the pack they're still playable and acceptable (Goblin lord for example). That's what the Rare slot is for. I don't want to open some uncommon sideboard card they upshifted to rare to get a little extra cash. Imagine opening your pack and getting something like Flashfreeze as your rare, because that's certainly how I will feel when I open pack 1 and see this.
As a drafter, I´m a lot more concerned about putting together a good draft deck than I am about opening a cool/playable/valuable rare. If this piece of junk is my rare, I don´t care about it at all if there´s also something like a Horizon Scholar or a Murder in the same pack. Maybe we´re different here, and that´s completely fine, but I object to you talking as if my view on this is less valid than yours.
I guess we could agree that this card completely sucks, won´t see play anywhere and therefore shouldn´t be in packs at all? Because that I can definitely get behind.
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When I hit my 3000 post mark, I'm gone for good.
Stay reasonable, be mindful of your expectations and don't feed the trolls.
What baffles me is how many of you care about limited for a core set. In my opinion Core sets should NEVER be designed with limited in mind. The whole point of a core set is to allow the format to have a ton of non-plane related answers to threats. It's the opportunity to print cards that they cannot print in other sets. Limited should be at the bottom of the design list for this sort of thing.
It's rare because otherwise too many would be opened in "limited". It's not a great card for that format, but this thing is a powerhouse. It hoses a ton of problematic cards in older formats.
Short list of cards this answers:
Aether vial
Goblin Guide
Swiftspear
Sol Ring
Top
Pithing Needle
1 mana planeswalkers *ahem*
Almost all of the problematic enchantments in bogles
It's a super versatile removal that requires very little investment, has no drawback and it's an instant to boot.
I think a lot of you need to step out of your bubble for a minute and appreciate what this does.
Do you know many people complained about how much a "crap rare" Stony Silence was when it was spoiled? Can you imagine a world without it now?
What baffles me is how many of you care about limited for a core set. In my opinion Core sets should NEVER be designed with limited in mind. The whole point of a core set is to allow the format to have a ton of non-plane related answers to threats. It's the opportunity to print cards that they cannot print in other sets. Limited should be at the bottom of the design list for this sort of thing.
You´re not seeing the bigger picture. Booster draft is one of the most popular formats of Magic, if not the most popular format. You need to realize that a huge amount of all packs that are sold, probably an overwhelming majority, are either used to play limited with or given out as prize packs for limited events. Every 8-man pod at every LGS all over the world is one booster box sold and one booster box worth of cards entering the secondary market. This dwarfs the number of packs and boxes that people buy just to rip them open and hope to get good stuff.
So who, then, profit from sets being good draft formats?
It is in WotC's interest to make every set draftable because that´s what sells packs like crazy, which is their main source of income.
It is in the draft players' interest that every Standard set is draftable because if not, they can´t play Magic for a quarter of the year.
It is in the constructed players' interest that sets are draftable because that means the set gets bought and opened in obscene quantities, which brings down card prices and helps the game survive year after year.
Sets being limited playable is the glue that holds this whole ecosystem together. Saying that a Standard set shouldn´t be designed with limited in mind reveals a lack of understanding of how everything is tied together.
Now, designing a set that functions for limited does come at a price. Some constructed staples will have to be rare because they are too good for limited, and it really does suck to pay lots of money for something like removal spells or staple creatures. It really does. Paying serious money for the set of Vraska's Contempt you need to play your black Standard deck just blows. Other cards have to be rare because they are bricks in limited, and putting these cards at common or uncommon would make the format significantly worse because you end up with too few playables in packs, which makes your decks less functional. Now, I understand that it really does suck to buy a booster pack and open something super narrow and barely playable anywhere, like Isolate. It does. But I assure you, if they made Core 2019 a set that can barely or not at all be played as limited, it would be disastrous. The set would barely sell, draft players might leave the game behind, WotC would take a big financial hit and any Standard staples in the set would cost a fortune - uncommons in such a set could easily reach the price levels of rares in draftable sets - which again might drive people away from Standard.
TL;DR: Limited isn´t unimportant just because you don´t play it.
I really don't understand why they just didn't make it exile a permanent of converted mana cost 1 or less. Surely it would have been a damn sight more useful and could at worst be used to kill tokens.
Because 1 mana instant Stone Rains are, how do i put it, BROKEN
My phone apparently ate the non-land part. Hell no, 1 mana instant land destruction would be pretty game-breaking
Gotta agree that this is too limited to be in the main deck, and I don’t think there’s enough in the meta of any of the eternal formats to warrant sideboard play.
Maybe in a few years something utterly broken will come out, but right now I don’t even think it’s worth a slot in the sideboard. Unique and powerful design, but not worth playing yet imo.
So for those of you unwilling to read WotC's explanations for why you're all getting your panties in a bunch, they have the data that proves that the eighth set in Standard always has the toughest time standing on its own in Standard. It has the lowest chance of impacting already-solidified Standard decks, and it has the shortest shelf-life in Standard. There is not a fix to this in the current model of Standard timings. So, they've decided to use Core Sets for something else: two something's, in fact. As a way to introduce newer players to booster packs, and as a way to give enfranchised players access to generic/too-specific cards that otherwise wouldn't fit into other Standard sets. The first goal supercedes the second, in that if a card endangers the first goal to fullfill the second, it has a greater chance of being cut.
Because, according to Wizards, new players are exposed to more commons and uncommons than rares/mythics, they have decided to focus those cards on the new players, and for enfranchised-focused cards to end up more in the rare/mythic slots. Note that this is for Core Sets only. Your comments about opening a Terra Stomper can still happen once the newer players starts opening non-Core Set packs, but the philosophy of Core Sets is now different from that of non-Core Sets.
Hopefully now everyone at least has some idea of Wizard's thinking.
I think this is good for taking out those pesky bird variants like Birds of Paradise and Noble Hierarch. Right now Path to exile is the best answer for them, but that still nets your opponent a land, so you're not really "removing" anything by pathing a bird.
What baffles me is how many of you care about limited for a core set. In my opinion Core sets should NEVER be designed with limited in mind. The whole point of a core set is to allow the format to have a ton of non-plane related answers to threats. It's the opportunity to print cards that they cannot print in other sets. Limited should be at the bottom of the design list for this sort of thing.
You´re not seeing the bigger picture. Booster draft is one of the most popular formats of Magic, if not the most popular format. You need to realize that a huge amount of all packs that are sold, probably an overwhelming majority, are either used to play limited with or given out as prize packs for limited events. Every 8-man pod at every LGS all over the world is one booster box sold and one booster box worth of cards entering the secondary market. This dwarfs the number of packs and boxes that people buy just to rip them open and hope to get good stuff.
So who, then, profit from sets being good draft formats?
It is in WotC's interest to make every set draftable because that´s what sells packs like crazy, which is their main source of income.
It is in the draft players' interest that every Standard set is draftable because if not, they can´t play Magic for a quarter of the year.
It is in the constructed players' interest that sets are draftable because that means the set gets bought and opened in obscene quantities, which brings down card prices and helps the game survive year after year.
Sets being limited playable is the glue that holds this whole ecosystem together. Saying that a Standard set shouldn´t be designed with limited in mind reveals a lack of understanding of how everything is tied together.
Now, designing a set that functions for limited does come at a price. Some constructed staples will have to be rare because they are too good for limited, and it really does suck to pay lots of money for something like removal spells or staple creatures. It really does. Paying serious money for the set of Vraska's Contempt you need to play your black Standard deck just blows. Other cards have to be rare because they are bricks in limited, and putting these cards at common or uncommon would make the format significantly worse because you end up with too few playables in packs, which makes your decks less functional. Now, I understand that it really does suck to buy a booster pack and open something super narrow and barely playable anywhere, like Isolate. It does. But I assure you, if they made Core 2019 a set that can barely or not at all be played as limited, it would be disastrous. The set would barely sell, draft players might leave the game behind, WotC would take a big financial hit and any Standard staples in the set would cost a fortune - uncommons in such a set could easily reach the price levels of rares in draftable sets - which again might drive people away from Standard.
TL;DR: Limited isn´t unimportant just because you don´t play it.
I disagree with you partially.
CORE SETS (who are generally aimed at newer players, who generally don't draft) are aimed at newer players and ALSO to put non-plane related cards in the format. This is THE set that helps put answers in the format for potentially problematic cards and to put reprints on the market.
I have a fairly decent amount of disposable income and plan on buying around 3 boxes of this (for the promos). I know MANY others who are like me and who don't really draft unless they have to. Draft is something I play only if I have to.
I get what you're saying when it comes to selling a block or whatever, but the purpose of a core set is different. I think wotc conceded that this was a necessary safety valve for potentially problematic cards. I think it's wise to say that they could make this set sell "less" to make the others sell more.
Look at it this way: If a core set existed during Kaledesh's horror months, do you think that there might have been as many bans, if things like pithing needle and tormod's crypt were legal? The bannings HURT their bottom line as it caused a ton of people to lose faith in the game and how it was handled. I imagine that they calculated the potential loss based on historical data. I know it turned me off for some time and I didn't buy much. But after the bans and with Dominaria, I bought back in.
You think I'm in the minority here? I'm part of the community of magic players who spend a TON per set. I'm not strictly a spike. I'm the kind of guy they WANT business from. When I say that I would prefer them making a set that creates a healthy playing environment at the expense of limited, it means i'll spend more money. It's pretty basic, really.
^ I'm going to keep it short: I didn't say that creating a limited formay is the only thing a set must accomplish. I basically agree with everything you wrote, the core sets should do all the things you said, and this one actually seems to check most the boxes. In ADDITION to that, they MUST be draftable, and fun/interesting enough to draft that people want to draft it for three whole months. They can't kill off a whole branch of Magic play for three months.
Let's dial my estimate from my previous post unrealistically far back and say that limited accounts for half the sales, or screw it, let's even make it a ridiculously low 25%. That's still a lot more lost sales and fewer cards entering the secondary marked than what's acceptable for both WotC's bottom line and single card prices for Standard.
They need to satisfy your camp and my camp at the same time with the same set to make it a successful set. This means some compromises has to be made on both sides. You will have to deal with some awkemward narrow cards in the rare slot and some upshifted rarities for powerful constructed staples, and I will have to lose some limited games to unbeatable bombs that are made solely for constructed, and open some rares that do absolutely nothing. They usually pull this balancing act off pretty well, and this set looks good in that aspect too. But one camp saying "screw the other camp, make this set as good as possible for me and people like me only at the cost of the other half of the player base" is just completely unrealistic and devoid of real perspective.
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When I hit my 3000 post mark, I'm gone for good.
Stay reasonable, be mindful of your expectations and don't feed the trolls.
The most hilarious thing I find about people who b**** about rarity is that they offer no suggestion on what should have taken its place. Which basically equates to “they shouldn’t have printed it at all”. Good argument, makes a ton of sense.
“IT SHOULD HAVE BEEN UNCOMMON”
Ok, what uncommon should have been upshifted?
“WHY WAS IT UPSHIFTED”
Ok, what should be downshifted? Lol. It’s the equivalent to “I don’t know what they are doing, but I know it’s wrong”. Strange, though, that I don’t ever hear complaints about Blood Moon being rare... Hoser, limited brick, like Isolate. Oh, it costs money that’s why.
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Instant (Rare)
Exile target permanent with converted mana cost 1.
Threefold were his crimes, doubled were his pleas, singular was his fate.
Standard: BG Golgari Midrange
Modern: U Merfolk GWUBR 5 Color Humans UBW Esper Gifts GW Bogles
I want to use it on Aether Vial and Champion of the Parish just to be cheeky. Also going to try it against Monored and Wizard Burn in Standard.
Pardon my ignorance, what are some of the 1cc permanents in modern format that’d fear this new card?
Shu Yun, the Silent Tempest WUR Voltron Control
Temmet, Vizier of Naktamun WU Unblockable Mirror Trickery
Ra's al Ghul (Sidar Kondo) and Face-Down Ninjas
Brudiclad, Token Engineer
Vaevictis (VV2) the Dire Lantern
Rona, Disciple of Gix
Tiana the Auror
Hallar
Ulrich the Politician
Zur the Rebel
Scorpion, Locust, Scarab, Egyptian Gods
O-Kagachi, Mathas, Mairsil
"Non-Tribal" Tribal Generals, Eggs
Finally a good white villain quote: "So, do I ever re-evaluate my life choices? Never, because I know what I'm doing is a righteous cause."
Factions: Sleeping
Remnants: Valheim
Legendary Journey: Heroes & Planeswalkers
Saga: Shards of Rabiah
Legends: The Elder Dragons
Read up on Red Flags & NWO
Stay reasonable, be mindful of your expectations and don't feed the trolls.
Doomsdayin'
Thanks to DNC from Heroes of the Plane Studios for the sig
Check my Pauper Cube!
Stay reasonable, be mindful of your expectations and don't feed the trolls.
Doomsdayin'
ftfy
Also not an argument. Push is still in Standard and was Uncommon, and is miles better than this. Spell Snare just got reprinted at Uncommon in Battlebond. My point still stands. You're the one who argued about not wanting crap at Rare, right? Or have you changed your narrative?
Thanks to DNC from Heroes of the Plane Studios for the sig
Check my Pauper Cube!
And you know, coming out swinging saying that everyone that disagrees with you is a "fanboy" and their arguments are not valid really isn´t a nice or useful way to discuss on a forum. (These are my last words on this, I don´t want to spam/derail.)
You´re missing something. It is true that cards that are so powerful that they would warp limited at lower rarities, are best delegated to the rare slot for limited purposes. But this is also true for cards that are completely unplayable bricks in limited. Putting lots of super narrow stuff like this and Alpine Moon and Infernal Reckoning and Crucible of Worlds and Amulet of Safekeeping at common or uncommon would significantly lower the number of playable cards in packs, which is very bad for the limited format.
Stay reasonable, be mindful of your expectations and don't feed the trolls.
Doomsdayin'
EDH Primers
Phelddagrif - Zirilan
EDH
Thrasios+Bruse - Pang - Sasaya - Wydwen - Feather - Rona - Toshiro - Sylvia+Khorvath - Geth - QMarchesa - Firesong - Athreos - Arixmethes - Isperia - Etali - Silas+Sidar - Saskia - Virtus+Gorm - Kynaios - Naban - Aryel - Mizzix - Kazuul - Tymna+Kraum - Sidar+Tymna - Ayli - Gwendlyn - Phelddagrif 4 - Liliana - Kaervek - Phelddagrif 3 - Mairsil - Scarab - Child - Phenax - Shirei - Thada - Depala - Circu - Kytheon - GrenzoHR - Phelddagrif - Reyhan+Kraum - Toshiro - Varolz - Nin - Ojutai - Tasigur - Zedruu - Uril - Edric - Wort - Zurgo - Nahiri - Grenzo - Kozilek - Yisan - Ink-Treader - Yisan - Brago - Sidisi - Toshiro - Alexi - Sygg - Brimaz - Sek'Kuar - Marchesa - Vish Kal - Iroas - Phelddagrif - Ephara - Derevi - Glissa - Wanderer - Saffi - Melek - Xiahou Dun - Lazav - Lin Sivvi - Zirilan - Glissa
PDH - Drake - Graverobber - Izzet GM - Tallowisp - Symbiote Brawl - Feather - Ugin - Jace - Scarab - Angrath - Vraska - Kumena Oathbreaker - Wrenn&6
Both you and I (and let's not kid ourselves, WotC too) know very well that this is a sideboard card at best. If you know it won't fetch that high of a price, and you know it's as good as opening a saproling token as your rare in Limited, why not just put it at Uncommon in the first place? Same goes for the Black exile card. I just can't fathom how anybody can defend this behaviour. I'd rather open whatever 5/5 bomb Angel this set card, or a money card like Crucible or Scapeshift, than this. I don't crack packs for value, nor I don't complain about every card in the set. That's just hyperbole. I complain because I want to open cards that are either good in Limited, cards that have value, or at least acceptable cards that while they won't pay for the pack they're still playable and acceptable (Goblin lord for example). That's what the Rare slot is for. I don't want to open some uncommon sideboard card they upshifted to rare to get a little extra cash. Imagine opening your pack and getting something like Flashfreeze as your rare, because that's certainly how I will feel when I open pack 1 and see this.
This guy has it right
Thanks to DNC from Heroes of the Plane Studios for the sig
Check my Pauper Cube!
Drafting the rare first every single time, or getting upset when your rare is a card not designed for limited, is a sign of a new drafter, or a drafter who just hasn't taken the time to learn how to draft.
Also, are people not realizing that WotC has stated multiple times in their articles that they fully expect core sets to be drafted less than the other Standard legal sets? The number one priority of core sets is going to be too introduce newer players to the game. The average new player will be exposed to more common/uncommon cards than rares/mythics, so Wizards is keeping a majority of the aimed-at-invested-players cards at rare or higher. It's a new philosophy for core sets, so I get it if you haven't read their articles explaining why they're doing what they're doing, but I'd recommend you at least educate yourself on why the things you're complaining about are happening. There is a method to the rarities of these cards.
As a drafter, I´m a lot more concerned about putting together a good draft deck than I am about opening a cool/playable/valuable rare. If this piece of junk is my rare, I don´t care about it at all if there´s also something like a Horizon Scholar or a Murder in the same pack. Maybe we´re different here, and that´s completely fine, but I object to you talking as if my view on this is less valid than yours.
I guess we could agree that this card completely sucks, won´t see play anywhere and therefore shouldn´t be in packs at all? Because that I can definitely get behind.
Stay reasonable, be mindful of your expectations and don't feed the trolls.
Doomsdayin'
It's rare because otherwise too many would be opened in "limited". It's not a great card for that format, but this thing is a powerhouse. It hoses a ton of problematic cards in older formats.
Short list of cards this answers:
Aether vial
Goblin Guide
Swiftspear
Sol Ring
Top
Pithing Needle
1 mana planeswalkers *ahem*
Almost all of the problematic enchantments in bogles
It's a super versatile removal that requires very little investment, has no drawback and it's an instant to boot.
I think a lot of you need to step out of your bubble for a minute and appreciate what this does.
Do you know many people complained about how much a "crap rare" Stony Silence was when it was spoiled? Can you imagine a world without it now?
So who, then, profit from sets being good draft formats?
Now, designing a set that functions for limited does come at a price. Some constructed staples will have to be rare because they are too good for limited, and it really does suck to pay lots of money for something like removal spells or staple creatures. It really does. Paying serious money for the set of Vraska's Contempt you need to play your black Standard deck just blows. Other cards have to be rare because they are bricks in limited, and putting these cards at common or uncommon would make the format significantly worse because you end up with too few playables in packs, which makes your decks less functional. Now, I understand that it really does suck to buy a booster pack and open something super narrow and barely playable anywhere, like Isolate. It does. But I assure you, if they made Core 2019 a set that can barely or not at all be played as limited, it would be disastrous. The set would barely sell, draft players might leave the game behind, WotC would take a big financial hit and any Standard staples in the set would cost a fortune - uncommons in such a set could easily reach the price levels of rares in draftable sets - which again might drive people away from Standard.
TL;DR: Limited isn´t unimportant just because you don´t play it.
Stay reasonable, be mindful of your expectations and don't feed the trolls.
Doomsdayin'
My phone apparently ate the non-land part. Hell no, 1 mana instant land destruction would be pretty game-breaking
Maybe in a few years something utterly broken will come out, but right now I don’t even think it’s worth a slot in the sideboard. Unique and powerful design, but not worth playing yet imo.
Because, according to Wizards, new players are exposed to more commons and uncommons than rares/mythics, they have decided to focus those cards on the new players, and for enfranchised-focused cards to end up more in the rare/mythic slots. Note that this is for Core Sets only. Your comments about opening a Terra Stomper can still happen once the newer players starts opening non-Core Set packs, but the philosophy of Core Sets is now different from that of non-Core Sets.
Hopefully now everyone at least has some idea of Wizard's thinking.
N/A
Modern:
Grishoalbrand / Grixis Death's Shadow / Jeskai Control / UW Control
GWUBRDraft my Old Border Nostalgia Cube! and/or The Little Pauper Cube That Could!RBUWG
Modern:WDeath & TaxesW | RUGRUG DelverRUG
I disagree with you partially.
CORE SETS (who are generally aimed at newer players, who generally don't draft) are aimed at newer players and ALSO to put non-plane related cards in the format. This is THE set that helps put answers in the format for potentially problematic cards and to put reprints on the market.
I have a fairly decent amount of disposable income and plan on buying around 3 boxes of this (for the promos). I know MANY others who are like me and who don't really draft unless they have to. Draft is something I play only if I have to.
I get what you're saying when it comes to selling a block or whatever, but the purpose of a core set is different. I think wotc conceded that this was a necessary safety valve for potentially problematic cards. I think it's wise to say that they could make this set sell "less" to make the others sell more.
Look at it this way: If a core set existed during Kaledesh's horror months, do you think that there might have been as many bans, if things like pithing needle and tormod's crypt were legal? The bannings HURT their bottom line as it caused a ton of people to lose faith in the game and how it was handled. I imagine that they calculated the potential loss based on historical data. I know it turned me off for some time and I didn't buy much. But after the bans and with Dominaria, I bought back in.
You think I'm in the minority here? I'm part of the community of magic players who spend a TON per set. I'm not strictly a spike. I'm the kind of guy they WANT business from. When I say that I would prefer them making a set that creates a healthy playing environment at the expense of limited, it means i'll spend more money. It's pretty basic, really.
Let's dial my estimate from my previous post unrealistically far back and say that limited accounts for half the sales, or screw it, let's even make it a ridiculously low 25%. That's still a lot more lost sales and fewer cards entering the secondary marked than what's acceptable for both WotC's bottom line and single card prices for Standard.
They need to satisfy your camp and my camp at the same time with the same set to make it a successful set. This means some compromises has to be made on both sides. You will have to deal with some awkemward narrow cards in the rare slot and some upshifted rarities for powerful constructed staples, and I will have to lose some limited games to unbeatable bombs that are made solely for constructed, and open some rares that do absolutely nothing. They usually pull this balancing act off pretty well, and this set looks good in that aspect too. But one camp saying "screw the other camp, make this set as good as possible for me and people like me only at the cost of the other half of the player base" is just completely unrealistic and devoid of real perspective.
Stay reasonable, be mindful of your expectations and don't feed the trolls.
Doomsdayin'
“IT SHOULD HAVE BEEN UNCOMMON”
Ok, what uncommon should have been upshifted?
“WHY WAS IT UPSHIFTED”
Ok, what should be downshifted? Lol. It’s the equivalent to “I don’t know what they are doing, but I know it’s wrong”. Strange, though, that I don’t ever hear complaints about Blood Moon being rare... Hoser, limited brick, like Isolate. Oh, it costs money that’s why.