it's also a cheap wurm, so it enables decedants' path shenanigans... there are some nice big worms out there. Fear the wurm Tribe!
Armada Wurm
Elderscale Wurm
Worldspine Wurm
... actually, I think the rest of the wurm's suck. so much for that idea.
No it isn't. In the decks it could be played in (yet to be determined if there will be one) its a Watchwolf at minimum, and possibly larger.
Is it bad because it also dies to removal perhaps?
While I don't want to stiffle anyone's creativity, I would like to point out that this is NOT Watchwolf, as Watchwolf is always a 3/3 for two and was at it's best played on turn 2.
I've yet to think of a way to make this guy a 3/3 on turn two without investing in a mana dork (when you might as well as play Smiter instead) and another card purely designed to gain life.
I would also like to point out that Call of the Conclave has not exactly been an all-star so far.
Kidding aside, card is reasonable. It's got huge potential and very decent "worst case". The drawback is that it will more often than not be closer to worst case.
It's not there now (post rotation), but who knows what kind of life-gain permanents Theros will bring.
It's so bad when you don't get to use the trigger that I expect it will never be played.
A 2/2 is worth a card and one mana in the most aggressive of decks. (And really that's a stretch - Champion of the Parish and Experiment One are much better than 2/2 vanilla creatures, and even Cloudfin Raptor is arguably on-par with a 2/2 vanilla and sees no play at all).
But that's in an aggressive deck. In a deck that's not aggressive, a 2/2 for 1 is unplayable. Dedicating cards to lifegain doesn't happen in aggressive decks, incidental lifegain (Nearheath Pilgrim, Thragtusk) isn't outstanding at the moment and what there is doesn't synergize with this card, and the decks that play those effects cannot risk a terrible 2/2 for 2 in their draws.
Ajani's Pridemate: Aggressive. Always ticks up with life gain. Likely to grow with additional draws. Voracious Wurm: Encourages passive play. Only ticks up once with life gain. Not likely to grow with additional draws.
Voracious Wurm, I've played with Ajani's Pridemate. I've swung with Ajani's pridemate. Ajani's Pridemate was a card I used to win matches. Voracious Wurm, you are no Ajani's Pridemate.
Voracious Wurm is a poor card for aggro. Aggro doesn't care about gaining life, and it doesn't want to jump through hoops to make a creature worth playing.
However, V.Wurm is an excellent card for a midrange deck. Midrange decks often have lifegain to survive in the early game, and they can always use an efficient beater on turn 5-6.
I think the differing opinions in this thread reflect the different decktypes people play. Aggro players are going to think the Wurm is junk; Midrange players are going to think it has definite potential.
(Control players, of course, couldn't care less unless it was blue. )
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It's definitely not a good aggro card, simply because there is no passive way of gaining the life and dropping this early without playing bad cards to accompany it.
So then fine, it could maybe be cheap beef on turns 4 or 5 with some decent lifelink creatures. But even if it is, it's still vanilla beef. You could have just spent a couple more mana and gotten something either harder to get rid of, that can make an impact in other ways, or that can continue to grow.
Why it's not great and not even in the realm of a Scute Mob type creature is because nothing changes after you drop it, unless you blink it with something on a turn you gain a lot of life. That would seem like a rather convoluted way to get value out of it.
There are a lot of cards that sound better than they really are, and this is one of them. I'm sure it can be amazing in limited if you get some lifegain cards, but I just don't see a solid seamless way to take advantage of him early without using a bad extra card to do it, and in a way you get 2 for 1'd in that circumstance if he's killed before he can attack.
Could be good in a weird Junk Lifegain deck. But I guess I'm having issues figuring out why you'd really want to play it. It's unlikely to be a game winner itself, and if you're gaining life already wouldn't you just want to be winning with your 4/4 flying angels?
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Cyme we inne frið, fram the grip of deaþ to lif inne ðis smylte land.
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Armada Wurm
Elderscale Wurm
Worldspine Wurm
... actually, I think the rest of the wurm's suck. so much for that idea.
UW Ephara Hatebears [Primer], GB Gitrog Lands, BRU Inalla Combo-Control, URG Maelstrom Wanderer Landfall
Yeah but by the same token there's a chimney imp/storm crow aggro deck somewhere.
Actually that sounds kinda fun...
Brb, building best deck evarrrr.
While I don't want to stiffle anyone's creativity, I would like to point out that this is NOT Watchwolf, as Watchwolf is always a 3/3 for two and was at it's best played on turn 2.
I've yet to think of a way to make this guy a 3/3 on turn two without investing in a mana dork (when you might as well as play Smiter instead) and another card purely designed to gain life.
I would also like to point out that Call of the Conclave has not exactly been an all-star so far.
Kidding aside, card is reasonable. It's got huge potential and very decent "worst case". The drawback is that it will more often than not be closer to worst case.
It's not there now (post rotation), but who knows what kind of life-gain permanents Theros will bring.
Tablet of the guilds g/w, heroes' reunion, 11/11 wurm. That's the play right there
Doom blade, tears. Or sideboarded skullcrack, more tears. Ugh.
UW Ephara Hatebears [Primer], GB Gitrog Lands, BRU Inalla Combo-Control, URG Maelstrom Wanderer Landfall
if this card sees competitive standard play i will eat a box of thumbtacks.
what planet are you on?
A 2/2 is worth a card and one mana in the most aggressive of decks. (And really that's a stretch - Champion of the Parish and Experiment One are much better than 2/2 vanilla creatures, and even Cloudfin Raptor is arguably on-par with a 2/2 vanilla and sees no play at all).
But that's in an aggressive deck. In a deck that's not aggressive, a 2/2 for 1 is unplayable. Dedicating cards to lifegain doesn't happen in aggressive decks, incidental lifegain (Nearheath Pilgrim, Thragtusk) isn't outstanding at the moment and what there is doesn't synergize with this card, and the decks that play those effects cannot risk a terrible 2/2 for 2 in their draws.
Voracious Wurm: Encourages passive play. Only ticks up once with life gain. Not likely to grow with additional draws.
Voracious Wurm, I've played with Ajani's Pridemate. I've swung with Ajani's pridemate. Ajani's Pridemate was a card I used to win matches. Voracious Wurm, you are no Ajani's Pridemate.
However, V.Wurm is an excellent card for a midrange deck. Midrange decks often have lifegain to survive in the early game, and they can always use an efficient beater on turn 5-6.
I think the differing opinions in this thread reflect the different decktypes people play. Aggro players are going to think the Wurm is junk; Midrange players are going to think it has definite potential.
(Control players, of course, couldn't care less unless it was blue. )
Life is funny. Death is funnier. Mass slaughter can be hilarious.
So then fine, it could maybe be cheap beef on turns 4 or 5 with some decent lifelink creatures. But even if it is, it's still vanilla beef. You could have just spent a couple more mana and gotten something either harder to get rid of, that can make an impact in other ways, or that can continue to grow.
Why it's not great and not even in the realm of a Scute Mob type creature is because nothing changes after you drop it, unless you blink it with something on a turn you gain a lot of life. That would seem like a rather convoluted way to get value out of it.
There are a lot of cards that sound better than they really are, and this is one of them. I'm sure it can be amazing in limited if you get some lifegain cards, but I just don't see a solid seamless way to take advantage of him early without using a bad extra card to do it, and in a way you get 2 for 1'd in that circumstance if he's killed before he can attack.