Let me start off saying I'm an amateur deck builder for standard. I'm not one of the "pros" that people are claiming will "break so many cards and they'll skyrocket in price". I'm just a casual gamer who derives a lot of enjoyment from building my own decks and winning with something of my own creation. I'm 50/50 Johnny and Timmy, and 0% spike. With that said, here's a list of all the best cards in the set and cards to look forward to in the upcoming standard.
White- Glimmerpoint Stag - Blinking was, is, and will always be relevant. A planeswalker close to an ultimate? Nope. A huge chimeric mass giving you problems? Nope. Semblance anvil or prototype portal has you on the ropes? Nope. And that's not including ETB effects of your own stuff. Kemba, Kha Regent - Better than the Kor lord. WW likes her more than they realize. BFF to stoneforge mystic. Leonin Arbiter - Control might like him, but WW doesn't. Sideboard material most likely. Sunblast Angel - One of the best cards in the set. For all intents and purposes, it's a one sided wrath attached to a decent evasive body. Even at 6 mana, she'll see play. Tempered Steel - That's a no-brainer in heavy artifact creature decks.
Blue - Argent Sphinx - Great card that begs for better, cheaper, non-creature artifacts. Unfortunately, SoM hasn't catered enough to this card for it to truly shine. Look for it to crop up later, though. He'll win you games, I promise. Grand Architect - Duh. I think everyone sees this card's potential. Riddlesmith - Free looter when you cast an artifact. Blue will love this guy. Stoic Rebuttal - Same problem Argent sphinx is in right now. Cheap, decent artifacts are too few and far between right now. Will get better with more sets in the block. Trinket Mage - Always been a fan of this guy. It's a shame the spell bombs suck so hard. Volition Reins - Control any permanent? Yes, please. 6 mana may be too tough to swallow, but maybe not.
Black - Grasp of Darkness - Finally a black removal worth main decking. I hate having Doom blade sit in my hand every time I play against someone running black. Good removal, and one I'm sure to use over the next year. Instill Infection - I'm joking. Scar + cantrip =/= 4 mana. Epic fail of a card. I don't care how much proliferate is in the set. Memoricide - Cranial Extraction is back. It was one of the first cards spoiled, so people are overlooking it, but this card alone will screw with deck's wincons and win you the game in turn. Have 2 MDed and 2 SBed, sit back, and relax. Necrogen Scudder - A 3/3 flier for 3 and a drawback, this is a classic example of what black creatures should look like. It's a splashable 3 mana too, so look for this guy to go into decks easier than Nighthawk. Necrotic Ooze - Build around me. Enough said. Painsmith - If people didn't look at black in scars and say "Infect", they'd realize this is a decent creature. Sadly, this guy will probably be overlooked for quite a while. Psychic Miasma - This won't be fighting duress for any slots in a deck, but this can ruin someone's game plan pretty easily. Either discard a non-land card, or it's coming back to strip your hand. Skinrender - Fantastic card. Not quite Shriekmaw, but I'll take it.
Red- Arc Trail - A slightly bigger Forked bolt. Sorcery speed may be too big a hindrance, but maybe not. Assault Strobe - Double strike for a red mana? Sure, why not? Cerebral Eruption - Since it deals damage to both the player and their creatures, it could be a winner. Better than Chain Reaction, which I tried to use as a sweeper in a Pyromancer deck, so it might be worth checking out. Galvanic Blast - It'll need support that it doesn't quite have yet, but it will be used. 4 damage for a red is pretty nuts. Molten Psyche - Runeflare trap decks will love this. I smell a winner along with Reverberate and temple bell. Just have to figure out what artifacts should go with it to give it metalcraft. Spikeshot Elder - With RDW losing Hellspark and Hell's Thunder, it may turn to goblins. He'll be decent with any amount of pumping.
Green - Bellowing Tanglewurm - I wouldn't overlook giving all your green creatures intimidate. With all the multicolored cards leaving, intimidate is looking a lot better. Ezuri, Renegade Leader - Obviously he's for an elf deck, but those are some nice abilities.
Artifacts - Argentum Armor - Has to be built around, but turns a creature into a pseudo-titan. Great stoneforge mystic target. Chimeric Mass - A wrath-proof hydra that activates for 1. A solid artifact creature that only gets better with proliferate. Contagion Clasp/Contagion Engine - Not as "build around me" as people think. Proliferate engines are nice. Culling Dais - One of the best cards in the set. Hands down. If you run creatures, you'll want to run this. Let's face it, creatures die. This gives you gas late game. Carnage altar wishes it were this good. Darksteel Juggernaut - A house. An absolute house. Golem Foundry - Why is no one mentioning this card? This card is solid and will only get better if more proliferate cards come out in the following sets. Infiltration Lens - Works best on creatures your opponent needs to block. Goblin Guide running into a wall of omens is no longer an issue with this card. Livewire Lash - With pump effects and infect creatures, this could be a game winner. Note that it goes off when anyone targets that creature. Mimic Vat - Everyone can see this thing's potential. Moriok Replica - Night's Whisper on a bear? I'll take 4! Perilous Myr - Trades with a X/3. Sounds good to me. Precursor Golem - His drawback can be an advantage. Yup. Prototype Portal - There's a ton of potential here. You name it, it's got it. Ratchet Bomb - Another one that everybody loves. Steel Hellkite - A one sided pernicious deed if he hits. Problem is, he's 6 mana, and has to survive a turn. Probably not good enough to cut it. Sylvok Replica - It's a 1/3 with naturalize. Multipurpose cards will always see play. Wurmcoil Engine - An outstanding artifact creature that personifies "power creep".
And that's the set's winners. Disagree with me all you want, but there's a metric ass-ton of potential in this set, that will only get better with more sets. Zendikar block was really the odd man out, whose other sets in the block didn't do much to build on the mechanics of the first. This block is back to big-small-small and has nothing but room to grow.
Overall, I'm disappointed with the spellbombs, the trigons, lack of good removal, no planewalker removal, virtually no card draw and how black and green are getting pigeon-holed into infect. I would like to say that my most hated card of the set is Trigon of Thought. Really? 7 mana before you draw your first card? Ugh...
Did you forget all the mythics?? Also, please spell Volition Reins correctly.
Fixed.
The mythics that everyone is already drooling at the mouth for? Since you asked for it:
Elspeth Tirel - I personally don't like her. She's basically a $50 token generator. Indomitable Archangel - Shroud for all your artifacts? That's great, but what's protecting her? Quicksilver Gargantuan - A far too expensive clone? What are you cloning that needs to be a 7/7? Skithiryx, the Blight Dragon - I don't care for infect. Infect made poison just another life total, with far less interactions. There will be a ton of infect decks showing up, but it's not for me. Koth of the Hammer - Great red planeswalker....if you're mono or heavy red. Liege of the Tangle - An 8/8 trampler for 8 with an ability that screams "win more". Venser, the Sojourner - A great planeswalker, but one that needs support. Lux Cannon - Way too slow. A repeatable vindicate is awesome, but it just sort of falls flat on lux cannon. Mindslaver - We all know what it can do. Molten-tail Masticore - People love these cards, but I hate them. I'd rather play the cards in my hand than discard them every turn. Mox Opal - Are you kidding me? You'd need a god hand to have 2 mana on turn 1 and other than that, who cares? I can guarantee this card will be lackluster in practice. Don't buy into the "nostalgia craze" people seem to be having with this. Platinum Emperion - Giant "who cares". Where the hell is trample on this guy? Sword of Body and Mind - Decent equipment. The mill is confusingly bad, but it's still solid. Wurmcoil Engine - I already mentioned it.
I have to say I agree with mostly all of your points. I don't plan to add any that I think you missed, but I was surprised to see how lacking green seems to be in your opinion. Save it for limited, eh? Lol
The only nitpick I'd have is that in terms of Standard (confines inside of which you seem to be dealing), Goblin Guide won't have to worry about any Walls of Denial in a few short days
It's widely known that [EDH] is very broken. Building a superdeck is quite easy. So what defines you as a player is [...] how you show restraint and creativity while still remaining a competitive player and a good sport.
the only problem with urza is that he is an oldwalker, so its abilities would be like:
+3: remove up to ten target permanents from the play
-2: win the game
-8: kick your opponents in the face, then win the game
starting loyalty: 100
I love troll shroud and regenerate. So troll shroud and regenerate for all your creatures should be awesome, but bundle it in a 5 mana package and I'm less than wild about it. I do like the card, though. Another detractor is that people will sideboard and maybe main deck artifact/enchantment hate up the wazoo in the coming months.
I forgot about Geth in my mythic list. He's not bad, but he falls into the "6 mana" trap. If a deck running black wants to get up to 6 mana, I feel they'd prefer using the multi-body Grave Titan, or even Wurmcoil Engine, rather than Geth. That's just my opinion, though, and I'm sure someone might want to play with him.
I kinda disagree with you on not having Koth on your best cards in Scars list. Sure he's great if you are playing mono or heavy red. Mind Sculptor Jace is great if you are playing mono or heavy blue, and yet...
I kinda disagree with you on not having Koth on your best cards in Scars list. Sure he's great if you are playing mono or heavy red. Mind Sculptor Jace is great if you are playing mono or heavy blue, and yet...
any other reason?
There's worlds of difference in the color commitment required for each - hell JTMS doesn't even require basics unlike Koth.
I kinda disagree with you on not having Koth on your best cards in Scars list. Sure he's great if you are playing mono or heavy red. Mind Sculptor Jace is great if you are playing mono or heavy blue, and yet...
any other reason?
Haha, sorry. I left most Mythics off the list because a ton of them are being overblown right now. I was looking down the visual spoiler while I was making my list and glanced right over him. It's the same reason Venser isn't on the list.
The main difference in your comparison to Jace, is that Jace could go into a deck that splashes blue, but if you tried to slide Koth into a deck that splashes red, he'd outright fail. If your main way to get red in a deck is through duals he wouldn't do a damn thing. But if you slide Garruk, Jace, Ajani V., or the old elspeth into a deck that gets those colors through duals, they still work just fine.
With that aside, Koth is a very good 'walker for red and Venser will creep into ETB abusing decks. They're both really good planeswalkers, but won't be slid into every deck running those colors. As for Elspeth Tirel....I have no love for her. I won't even get started on her.
No mention of Tumble Magnet, which personally I feel is really undervalued (in terms of constructed playability)
Got a 4/5 Steppe Lynx? Tapped.
Swinging for lethal with Putrefax? Nope.
Windmill slamming a Myr Battlesphere?! Not doin' ya any good.
...Using Venser? Recharge your magnet every turn.
Look for it in a UW control deck near you.
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Although always playing a deck I think is fun, I'm also always trying to win the tournament.
Currently playing: M13 Draft GGGGG Dungrove................(STANDARD) GWGWG Maverick..................(LEGACY)
Jon Finkel on the PWP System:
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Occasional Player? Hold on, because we're sending a Level 3 judge over to your house to kick you in the balls right now! -With Love, WOTC
Nim Death Mantle so you cant kill my guys any more and they get bigger? This card just locks you in if you are remotely ahead. I think it has potential.
Barbed Battle Gear +4 Power for 2 equip will end the game very fast on an evader.
Palladium Myr Any color can now play Titans on turn 4
Myr Battle Sphere You don't need to play Myr.dec for this to be good
White: (No for Stag and Kemba, Arbiter is ok, Sunblast and Steel are very good) Revoke Existence also gets my vote for white
Stag doesn't have much presence as a 4 drop as Into the Roil is preferred
Kemba is actually very awkward. . . She comes online turn 4 and usually can't attack when a cheaper equipment creature could; then a turn later you have a 2/2 wolf who also can't attack.
Arbiter is making less waves than you think
Sunblast is crazy good with Mimic Vat or [CARD]Leyline of Anticipation
And nobody is doubting tempered steel's power[/CARD]
Blue: (Some of those cards might be good later, but don't work with anything right now) Shape Anew will see a deck
The big problem is they are all combo cards.. .
Nobody is running blue metalcraft because it can't hold the early game like white can with tempered steel
Architect is instant cannon fodder if you don't play creatures turns before him and there are no good ones.
Trinket Mage is good, but is not getting that much play yet because Seagate Oracle and Stoneforge Mystic are stronger cards with regards to tempo.
Reins is too expensive.
Riddlesmith isn't making any waves yet that Fauna Shaman hasn't already done
Black: (No for all except Memorcide and Ooze) Carnifex Demon could go into some decks over Grave Titan
Those are actually all good cards, but black is very good right now and I don't think any of those will see serious play.
Most people have already said they won't drop Doom Blade for Grasp
People really, really want to play Painsmith, but the keyword is "cast", so no synergy with tokens coming into play, making it so you will lose too much card advantage by replacing much of your decks with weaker artifacts.
what a reletively well though out list on speculation of a new sets viability?
Am I really on salvation or is this the bizzare reverse salvation, noitavlas?
I like to add kuldotha phoenix as underrated, everyone likes koth heralding him as the second coming of big red but no love for potentially recurrable 5 mana 4/4 flying haster? I mean I know there has been power creep lately but surely not THAT much power creep.
Agreed with most cards. I disagree with the following though:
Painsmith. It just doesn't scare me. In most cases I'll see it coming, and you have to cast an artifact as well as answer my creature, just so you can deal an extra 2 to me.
Assault Strobe. Something about sorcery-speed combat tricks that target already threatening creatures just make me shudder. And I don't mean when I'm facing them. That's my "answer" to Assault Strobe. *hint hint*
Cerebral Eruption. Requires clairvoyance to really be a "good" card. Jace the Mind Sculptor to the rescue again.
Molten Psyche. Personally, I plan on running a UR deck with this card, Time Reversal and artifact ramp, and mostly just to test the potential ('cause I've got a bit of an experimental side). But it'll rarely be a good card.
Argentum Armor. Too much mana/overly required. Searching for it via Stoneforge Mystic? Your opponents will kill her if they're smart.
Golem Foundry. Sadly, I don't think it's bad, but also think lots of artifacts in this set deserve a higher ranking, and this isn't one of the "best".
Cards I'm glad to see someone appreciate:
Tempered Steel. I'd run this.
Psychic Miasma. Recurring upon discarding lands? Nice.
SpikeshotElder. Casual Goblins make this very powerful. Heck, even Standard Equipment can make this guy a threat.
Culling Dias. What I always wanted Carnage Alter to be, well said.
Perilous Myr. Excellent common, truly one of the best in the set, and a card worth mentioning.
And actually, a lot or cards that I'm shocked you didn't list:
Whether or not it worked does not validate the play. That's hindsight probability. Let's say I offered you a bet -- I'm going to flip a coin and if it's heads, I'll give you 1 dollar but if it's tails, you'll give me 2 dollars. This is obviously a terrible bet for you. Accepting it is a bad decision. You can't justify it afterwards by arguing that you won the flip, therefore you made the right decision.
- Glint Hawk - Decent in white arti arggo
- Myrsmith - See above
- Revoke Existence - SB card
- Sunspear Shikari - meh
- Darkslick Drake - Bad in contructed
- Neurok Invisimancer - see above
- Thrummingbird - Overrated, to fragile/doesn't do enough
- Painful Quandry - to expensive
- Embersmith - decent
- Goblin Gaveleer - decent
- Kuldotha Phoenix - good
- Genesis Wave - bad
- Glint Hawk Idol - meh
- Memnite [/B](Favorite creature in the set)[B] - Good
- Rusted Relic - meh
- Sylvok Lifestaff - may be ok
- Tumble Magnet - decent
- Spellbombs that aren't Flight and Horizon. - The red one sucks too
- Trigon of Mending - terrible terrible terrible terrible. In constructed and limited
- Trigon of Rage - bad in constructed. Decent in limited in infect.dec.
Trigon of Rage is a really good card. No need to play red - check. No need to play proliferate - check. No need to play poison - check. Cheap +x/+0? Check.
It is a good beatdown/midrange card. There are better ones, sure. But it is still good.
Trigon of Rage is a really good card. No need to play red - check. No need to play proliferate - check. No need to play poison - check. Cheap +x/+0? Check.
It is a good beatdown/midrange card. There are better ones, sure. But it is still good.
Cards that cost the same always compete with each other
But really I don't see the issue here. . .
I said in my post that if for your purposes he's better then you should use him.
If you face off against 0/1 tokens I'd still rather use Vapors because after something like Eldrazi Monument gets out Render won't be doing anything after his -3/-3
Render might stall Overwhelming Stampede a turn if your opponent only had 1 big creature, but once again I'd take Vapors because chances are they already have more than one large creature out or will be getting another online soon making pure removal better than having another weakened beast still in play.
Against Garruk's ultimate Vapors will net you a minimum of +3 over Render. . .
The list goes on and I'm sure there are more situations where Render is better like against Ezuri, Renegade Leader, but that deck isn't tokens so maybe once again Vapors?
I personally think grafted exoskeleton is a beast card. I dont even think it needs to go into infect decks simply because it turns a blocker into a neuterer. And it lets you put tanks like darksteel juggernaut into infect decks. Yeah its 4 to play and 2 to equip but i think games are going to run a few turns slower this time around. It is at least a card to look at *that and its dirt cheap right now*
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SonofaBith - Wizards was so excited about making the packaging for Modern Masters 2 recyclable, they decided to make most of the rares and all but 1 of the UC's recycle-bin ready too. Convenient!
...something like Eldrazi Monument gets out Render won't be doing anything after his -3/-3
Quote from chaosof99 »
...reducing a creature's toughness to 0 kills indestructible creatures, so Deathrender DOES something against creatures with an Eldrazi Monument in play.
awkward . . .
I was tempted to not finish reading, but I did and I even rechecked my numbers. . .
Nothing I've said has changed so you can reread my previous reply if you like since I feel like it didn't reach you the first time
I also have nothing further to add, but if you want to continue this argument I'll give you the benefit of the drought, but you'll need to pm me as I will not continue it here. . .
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White-
Glimmerpoint Stag - Blinking was, is, and will always be relevant. A planeswalker close to an ultimate? Nope. A huge chimeric mass giving you problems? Nope. Semblance anvil or prototype portal has you on the ropes? Nope. And that's not including ETB effects of your own stuff.
Kemba, Kha Regent - Better than the Kor lord. WW likes her more than they realize. BFF to stoneforge mystic.
Leonin Arbiter - Control might like him, but WW doesn't. Sideboard material most likely.
Sunblast Angel - One of the best cards in the set. For all intents and purposes, it's a one sided wrath attached to a decent evasive body. Even at 6 mana, she'll see play.
Tempered Steel - That's a no-brainer in heavy artifact creature decks.
Blue -
Argent Sphinx - Great card that begs for better, cheaper, non-creature artifacts. Unfortunately, SoM hasn't catered enough to this card for it to truly shine. Look for it to crop up later, though. He'll win you games, I promise.
Grand Architect - Duh. I think everyone sees this card's potential.
Riddlesmith - Free looter when you cast an artifact. Blue will love this guy.
Stoic Rebuttal - Same problem Argent sphinx is in right now. Cheap, decent artifacts are too few and far between right now. Will get better with more sets in the block.
Trinket Mage - Always been a fan of this guy. It's a shame the spell bombs suck so hard.
Volition Reins - Control any permanent? Yes, please. 6 mana may be too tough to swallow, but maybe not.
Black -
Grasp of Darkness - Finally a black removal worth main decking. I hate having Doom blade sit in my hand every time I play against someone running black. Good removal, and one I'm sure to use over the next year.
Instill Infection - I'm joking. Scar + cantrip =/= 4 mana. Epic fail of a card. I don't care how much proliferate is in the set.
Memoricide - Cranial Extraction is back. It was one of the first cards spoiled, so people are overlooking it, but this card alone will screw with deck's wincons and win you the game in turn. Have 2 MDed and 2 SBed, sit back, and relax.
Necrogen Scudder - A 3/3 flier for 3 and a drawback, this is a classic example of what black creatures should look like. It's a splashable 3 mana too, so look for this guy to go into decks easier than Nighthawk.
Necrotic Ooze - Build around me. Enough said.
Painsmith - If people didn't look at black in scars and say "Infect", they'd realize this is a decent creature. Sadly, this guy will probably be overlooked for quite a while.
Psychic Miasma - This won't be fighting duress for any slots in a deck, but this can ruin someone's game plan pretty easily. Either discard a non-land card, or it's coming back to strip your hand.
Skinrender - Fantastic card. Not quite Shriekmaw, but I'll take it.
Red-
Arc Trail - A slightly bigger Forked bolt. Sorcery speed may be too big a hindrance, but maybe not.
Assault Strobe - Double strike for a red mana? Sure, why not?
Cerebral Eruption - Since it deals damage to both the player and their creatures, it could be a winner. Better than Chain Reaction, which I tried to use as a sweeper in a Pyromancer deck, so it might be worth checking out.
Galvanic Blast - It'll need support that it doesn't quite have yet, but it will be used. 4 damage for a red is pretty nuts.
Molten Psyche - Runeflare trap decks will love this. I smell a winner along with Reverberate and temple bell. Just have to figure out what artifacts should go with it to give it metalcraft.
Spikeshot Elder - With RDW losing Hellspark and Hell's Thunder, it may turn to goblins. He'll be decent with any amount of pumping.
Green -
Bellowing Tanglewurm - I wouldn't overlook giving all your green creatures intimidate. With all the multicolored cards leaving, intimidate is looking a lot better.
Ezuri, Renegade Leader - Obviously he's for an elf deck, but those are some nice abilities.
Artifacts -
Argentum Armor - Has to be built around, but turns a creature into a pseudo-titan. Great stoneforge mystic target.
Chimeric Mass - A wrath-proof hydra that activates for 1. A solid artifact creature that only gets better with proliferate.
Contagion Clasp/Contagion Engine - Not as "build around me" as people think. Proliferate engines are nice.
Culling Dais - One of the best cards in the set. Hands down. If you run creatures, you'll want to run this. Let's face it, creatures die. This gives you gas late game. Carnage altar wishes it were this good.
Darksteel Juggernaut - A house. An absolute house.
Golem Foundry - Why is no one mentioning this card? This card is solid and will only get better if more proliferate cards come out in the following sets.
Infiltration Lens - Works best on creatures your opponent needs to block. Goblin Guide running into a wall of omens is no longer an issue with this card.
Livewire Lash - With pump effects and infect creatures, this could be a game winner. Note that it goes off when anyone targets that creature.
Mimic Vat - Everyone can see this thing's potential.
Moriok Replica - Night's Whisper on a bear? I'll take 4!
Perilous Myr - Trades with a X/3. Sounds good to me.
Precursor Golem - His drawback can be an advantage. Yup.
Prototype Portal - There's a ton of potential here. You name it, it's got it.
Ratchet Bomb - Another one that everybody loves.
Steel Hellkite - A one sided pernicious deed if he hits. Problem is, he's 6 mana, and has to survive a turn. Probably not good enough to cut it.
Sylvok Replica - It's a 1/3 with naturalize. Multipurpose cards will always see play.
Wurmcoil Engine - An outstanding artifact creature that personifies "power creep".
And that's the set's winners. Disagree with me all you want, but there's a metric ass-ton of potential in this set, that will only get better with more sets. Zendikar block was really the odd man out, whose other sets in the block didn't do much to build on the mechanics of the first. This block is back to big-small-small and has nothing but room to grow.
Overall, I'm disappointed with the spellbombs, the trigons, lack of good removal, no planewalker removal, virtually no card draw and how black and green are getting pigeon-holed into infect. I would like to say that my most hated card of the set is Trigon of Thought. Really? 7 mana before you draw your first card? Ugh...
Fixed.
The mythics that everyone is already drooling at the mouth for? Since you asked for it:
Elspeth Tirel - I personally don't like her. She's basically a $50 token generator.
Indomitable Archangel - Shroud for all your artifacts? That's great, but what's protecting her?
Quicksilver Gargantuan - A far too expensive clone? What are you cloning that needs to be a 7/7?
Skithiryx, the Blight Dragon - I don't care for infect. Infect made poison just another life total, with far less interactions. There will be a ton of infect decks showing up, but it's not for me.
Koth of the Hammer - Great red planeswalker....if you're mono or heavy red.
Liege of the Tangle - An 8/8 trampler for 8 with an ability that screams "win more".
Venser, the Sojourner - A great planeswalker, but one that needs support.
Lux Cannon - Way too slow. A repeatable vindicate is awesome, but it just sort of falls flat on lux cannon.
Mindslaver - We all know what it can do.
Molten-tail Masticore - People love these cards, but I hate them. I'd rather play the cards in my hand than discard them every turn.
Mox Opal - Are you kidding me? You'd need a god hand to have 2 mana on turn 1 and other than that, who cares? I can guarantee this card will be lackluster in practice. Don't buy into the "nostalgia craze" people seem to be having with this.
Platinum Emperion - Giant "who cares". Where the hell is trample on this guy?
Sword of Body and Mind - Decent equipment. The mill is confusingly bad, but it's still solid.
Wurmcoil Engine - I already mentioned it.
The only nitpick I'd have is that in terms of Standard (confines inside of which you seem to be dealing), Goblin Guide won't have to worry about any Walls of Denial in a few short days
I love troll shroud and regenerate. So troll shroud and regenerate for all your creatures should be awesome, but bundle it in a 5 mana package and I'm less than wild about it. I do like the card, though. Another detractor is that people will sideboard and maybe main deck artifact/enchantment hate up the wazoo in the coming months.
I forgot about Geth in my mythic list. He's not bad, but he falls into the "6 mana" trap. If a deck running black wants to get up to 6 mana, I feel they'd prefer using the multi-body Grave Titan, or even Wurmcoil Engine, rather than Geth. That's just my opinion, though, and I'm sure someone might want to play with him.
any other reason?
There's worlds of difference in the color commitment required for each - hell JTMS doesn't even require basics unlike Koth.
Re: People misusing the term Vanilla to describe a flying, unleash (sometimes trample) critter.
to be incredibly nitpicky he doesn't require basics, just mountains. Stomping Ground and Badlands play with him just fine
Haha, sorry. I left most Mythics off the list because a ton of them are being overblown right now. I was looking down the visual spoiler while I was making my list and glanced right over him. It's the same reason Venser isn't on the list.
The main difference in your comparison to Jace, is that Jace could go into a deck that splashes blue, but if you tried to slide Koth into a deck that splashes red, he'd outright fail. If your main way to get red in a deck is through duals he wouldn't do a damn thing. But if you slide Garruk, Jace, Ajani V., or the old elspeth into a deck that gets those colors through duals, they still work just fine.
With that aside, Koth is a very good 'walker for red and Venser will creep into ETB abusing decks. They're both really good planeswalkers, but won't be slid into every deck running those colors. As for Elspeth Tirel....I have no love for her. I won't even get started on her.
Got a 4/5 Steppe Lynx? Tapped.
Swinging for lethal with Putrefax? Nope.
Windmill slamming a Myr Battlesphere?! Not doin' ya any good.
...Using Venser? Recharge your magnet every turn.
Look for it in a UW control deck near you.
Currently playing:
M13 Draft
GGGGG Dungrove................(STANDARD)
GWGWG Maverick..................(LEGACY)
Jon Finkel on the PWP System:
Barbed Battle Gear +4 Power for 2 equip will end the game very fast on an evader.
Palladium Myr Any color can now play Titans on turn 4
Myr Battle Sphere You don't need to play Myr.dec for this to be good
White: (No for Stag and Kemba, Arbiter is ok, Sunblast and Steel are very good)
Revoke Existence also gets my vote for white
Kemba is actually very awkward. . . She comes online turn 4 and usually can't attack when a cheaper equipment creature could; then a turn later you have a 2/2 wolf who also can't attack.
Arbiter is making less waves than you think
Sunblast is crazy good with Mimic Vat or [CARD]Leyline of Anticipation
And nobody is doubting tempered steel's power[/CARD]
Shape Anew will see a deck
The big problem is they are all combo cards.. .
Nobody is running blue metalcraft because it can't hold the early game like white can with tempered steel
Architect is instant cannon fodder if you don't play creatures turns before him and there are no good ones.
Trinket Mage is good, but is not getting that much play yet because Seagate Oracle and Stoneforge Mystic are stronger cards with regards to tempo.
Reins is too expensive.
Riddlesmith isn't making any waves yet that Fauna Shaman hasn't already done
Carnifex Demon could go into some decks over Grave Titan
Those are actually all good cards, but black is very good right now and I don't think any of those will see serious play.
Most people have already said they won't drop Doom Blade for Grasp
Scudder is competing heavily with many, many good 3 drops including Gatekeeper of Malakir, Liliana's Specter, Vampire Nighthawk, Royal Assassin, etc.
People really, really want to play Painsmith, but the keyword is "cast", so no synergy with tokens coming into play, making it so you will lose too much card advantage by replacing much of your decks with weaker artifacts.
Miasma is very risky while Obstinate Baloth, Bloodghast, Vengevine, and Necrotic Ooze are common plays. Kuldotha Phoenix might suddenly get position too.
Skinrender needs to be better than Memoricide, Abyssal Persecutor, and Consuming Vapors to make it into a deck.
Didn't want to list Koth?
Furnace Celebration could see a deck too
Do you think anyone would play Day of Judgement if the card asked you to flip a coin for it to work? Cerebral is that card
I've tested against a lot of Red Metalcraft decks and I've yet to get hit by Galvanic Bast for 4
Chain Reaction is from Worldwake I believe. . .
Metalcraft makes Molten Pysche almost impossible to play
Trail, Strobe, and Elder have all won games. . . great cards even if you don't always get them at the right times
2 cards? really?
(You're probably right actually. . .)
I like Tanglewurm's ability, but it doesn't compete with Eldrazi Monument or Overwhelming Stampede
The elf is good obviously. . .
If you can make the others artifacts work more power to you!
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Overall it's a short list and personally I am disappointed with SoM so far because Metalcraft and Infect are too weak to compete.
Pretty much everything besides U/B/W Mimic Vat Control is a holdover deck from Zendikar with M11 rotated in.
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edits:
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oh wow I forgot about Myr Battlesphere. . .
Even if you can't get a reliable deck with him right now I'd scoop up some copies for the next release
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Am I really on salvation or is this the bizzare reverse salvation, noitavlas?
I like to add kuldotha phoenix as underrated, everyone likes koth heralding him as the second coming of big red but no love for potentially recurrable 5 mana 4/4 flying haster? I mean I know there has been power creep lately but surely not THAT much power creep.
We are one or two 1-2 drop artifacts short of even making it playable. When you start seriously considering Iron Myr, it is time to give up.
Agreed with most cards. I disagree with the following though:
Painsmith. It just doesn't scare me. In most cases I'll see it coming, and you have to cast an artifact as well as answer my creature, just so you can deal an extra 2 to me.
Assault Strobe. Something about sorcery-speed combat tricks that target already threatening creatures just make me shudder. And I don't mean when I'm facing them. That's my "answer" to Assault Strobe. *hint hint*
Cerebral Eruption. Requires clairvoyance to really be a "good" card. Jace the Mind Sculptor to the rescue again.
Molten Psyche. Personally, I plan on running a UR deck with this card, Time Reversal and artifact ramp, and mostly just to test the potential ('cause I've got a bit of an experimental side). But it'll rarely be a good card.
Argentum Armor. Too much mana/overly required. Searching for it via Stoneforge Mystic? Your opponents will kill her if they're smart.
Golem Foundry. Sadly, I don't think it's bad, but also think lots of artifacts in this set deserve a higher ranking, and this isn't one of the "best".
Cards I'm glad to see someone appreciate:
Tempered Steel. I'd run this.
Psychic Miasma. Recurring upon discarding lands? Nice.
SpikeshotElder. Casual Goblins make this very powerful. Heck, even Standard Equipment can make this guy a threat.
Culling Dias. What I always wanted Carnage Alter to be, well said.
Perilous Myr. Excellent common, truly one of the best in the set, and a card worth mentioning.
And actually, a lot or cards that I'm shocked you didn't list:
- Dispense Justice
- Glint Hawk
- Myrsmith
- Revoke Existence
- Sunspear Shikari
- Darkslick Drake
- Neurok Invisimancer
- Thrummingbird
- Painful Quandry
- Embersmith
- Goblin Gaveleer
- Kuldotha Phoenix
- Genesis Wave
- Glint Hawk Idol
- Memnite (Favorite creature in the set)
- Rusted Relic
- Sylvok Lifestaff
- Tumble Magnet
- Spellbombs that aren't Flight and Horizon.
- Trigon of Mending
- Trigon of Rage
That is all.
- Glint Hawk - Decent in white arti arggo
- Myrsmith - See above
- Revoke Existence - SB card
- Sunspear Shikari - meh
- Darkslick Drake - Bad in contructed
- Neurok Invisimancer - see above
- Thrummingbird - Overrated, to fragile/doesn't do enough
- Painful Quandry - to expensive
- Embersmith - decent
- Goblin Gaveleer - decent
- Kuldotha Phoenix - good
- Genesis Wave - bad
- Glint Hawk Idol - meh
- Memnite [/B](Favorite creature in the set)[B] - Good
- Rusted Relic - meh
- Sylvok Lifestaff - may be ok
- Tumble Magnet - decent
- Spellbombs that aren't Flight and Horizon. - The red one sucks too
- Trigon of Mending - terrible terrible terrible terrible. In constructed and limited
- Trigon of Rage - bad in constructed. Decent in limited in infect.dec.
It is a good beatdown/midrange card. There are better ones, sure. But it is still good.
Uhhh sure. In limited.
haha I keep forgetting about that card!
Myr tribal is really bad, but if Sphere doesn't plug in well to other decks now I'd still try to scoop up copies to try him again at the next release
Cards that cost the same always compete with each other
But really I don't see the issue here. . .
I said in my post that if for your purposes he's better then you should use him.
If you face off against 0/1 tokens I'd still rather use Vapors because after something like Eldrazi Monument gets out Render won't be doing anything after his -3/-3
Render might stall Overwhelming Stampede a turn if your opponent only had 1 big creature, but once again I'd take Vapors because chances are they already have more than one large creature out or will be getting another online soon making pure removal better than having another weakened beast still in play.
Against Garruk's ultimate Vapors will net you a minimum of +3 over Render. . .
The list goes on and I'm sure there are more situations where Render is better like against Ezuri, Renegade Leader, but that deck isn't tokens so maybe once again Vapors?
GW Rhys the Redeemed EDH
RUGAnimar, Soul of Elements EDH
WBRAlesha, Who Smiles at Death EDH
awkward . . .
I was tempted to not finish reading, but I did and I even rechecked my numbers. . .
Nothing I've said has changed so you can reread my previous reply if you like since I feel like it didn't reach you the first time
I also have nothing further to add, but if you want to continue this argument I'll give you the benefit of the drought, but you'll need to pm me as I will not continue it here. . .