Chief Engineer also seems like a good companion as you can convoke out artifacts like Myr Battlesphere to help fuel Convoke and Improvise strategies.
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MTGS Wikia Article about "New World Order"
Every time I read a comment about "Well if this card had card draw/trample/haste/indestructible/hexproof/life gain...", I think "You're missing the point." They're armchair developer comments that fail to take into account the card's role in the greater Limited and Standard environment. No, it may not be as good as whatever card you're comparing it to. There's a reason for that. Not every burn spell is Lightning Bolt, nor does it need to be or should be.
PSA to everyone who keeps forgetting about the Reserved List:
You're on a website dedicated to talking about MtG. You're only a few keystrokes away from finding out what cards are on the Reserved List. You're also only a few keystrokes away from finding out why some cards on the Reserved List got foil printings in FtV, as Judge promos, or whatnot, as well as why that won't happen again. Stop doing this.
Momir Vig, Simic Visionary
Melek, Izzet Paragon
Oona, Queen of the Fae
Bruna, Light of Alabaster
Gisela, Blade of Goldnight
Rhys the Redeemed
Jarad, Golgari Lich Lord
Sen Triplets
The Mimeoplasm WUBRGSliver OverlordGRBUW WUBRGSliver Hivelord(Superfriends)GRBUW
As long as Eldrazi are in Standard, there is potential there.
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Card advantage is not the same thing as card draw. Something for 2B cannot be strictly worse than something for BBB or 3BB. If you're taking out Swords to Plowshares for Plummet, you're a fool. Stop doing these things!
To be honest the biggest problem with Inspiring Statuary is it requires a specific deck build to take advantage of it with a mixture of cheap (preferably cantripping) artifacts and pay off spell you are casting ahead of the curve. Then if you don't land your statuary you are just playing pretty far behind. That being said there is the potential for some more combo-y build that I haven't seen yet, but it'll have to show up.
A full set of Dramatic Reversal which can be played for U. Key to the City for some draw. Kiora, Master of the Depths can untap an artifact creature and recover a land. I could can cast her for one mana and one tapped artifact in the end. Pore Over the Pages which can be nearly free by tapping some cheap artifacts. Retreat to Coralhelm helps untap artifact creature to use for further Improvise plays or attack. Tenacity a +1/+1 buff and lifelink on some Thropters and Servos. Could combine with another mass buff spell.
In general a deck running some artifacts could play the more costly walkers out earlier.
Definitely a sleeper card in the set. That it can reduce the cost of planeswalkers is very beneficial as it can make for instance Chandra, Torch of Defiance cost RR if you tap down this and one thopter. Sorin, Grim Nemesis is also a card to consider as by tapping down three thopters and the statuary you can reduce his cost down to WB.
The builds I've seen so far are generally based around Paradoxical Outcome and cheap artifacts like Prism or 0 cost equipment. Starcity games has a video I think of a UW build.
I see this card as most useful in EDH, especially decks with a lot of equipment. I mean, at minimum it is basically a 3-drop mana rock (since it can tap itself), which is slightly below curve, but still certainly a playable fail-case. The best case is that you have 4 or 5 equipments out and Statuary plays like a 5-ramp for 3, which would make it one of the best ramp cards in EDH. A typical case where you'd probably be playing it is if you have 1 other artifact that isn't tapping for mana each turn. In this case, it is a 2-ramp for 3, which is still pretty good.
It's sort of a mana-rock in disguise. The best build I was able to come up with using it was a strange Crush of Tentacles deck using a lot of cheap artifacts and Herald of Anguish. Last week there was a deck at the GP that used Paradoxical Outcome with the card.
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1. (Ravnica Allegiance): You can't keep a good esper control deck down... Or Wilderness Reclamation... or Gates...
2. (War of the Spark): Guys, I know what we need! We need a cycle of really idiotic flavor text victory cards! Jace's Triumph...
3. (War of the Spark): Lets make the format with control have even more control!
I think the best use for it right now (in Standard) is in the Aetherflux Resevoir+Paradoxal Outcome combo( cause u can get a chain of outcomes being played for U only) other than that? I don't see much use for it.
Chief Engineer also seems like a good companion as you can convoke out artifacts like Myr Battlesphere to help fuel Convoke and Improvise strategies.
Every time I read a comment about "Well if this card had card draw/trample/haste/indestructible/hexproof/life gain...", I think "You're missing the point." They're armchair developer comments that fail to take into account the card's role in the greater Limited and Standard environment. No, it may not be as good as whatever card you're comparing it to. There's a reason for that. Not every burn spell is Lightning Bolt, nor does it need to be or should be.
People look and see a "do nothing" the turn it comes down,
but it can help immediately if you build the deck right.
This and Scrap Trawler are my votes for the biggest "sleepers" of this set.
Reprint Stasis!
Control needs more love.
EDH:
Momir Vig, Simic Visionary
Melek, Izzet Paragon
Oona, Queen of the Fae
Bruna, Light of Alabaster
Gisela, Blade of Goldnight
Rhys the Redeemed
Jarad, Golgari Lich Lord
Sen Triplets
The Mimeoplasm
WUBRGSliver OverlordGRBUW
WUBRGSliver Hivelord(Superfriends)GRBUW
On phasing:
|| UW Jace, Vyn's Prodigy UW || UG Kenessos, Priest of Thassa (feat. Arixmethes) UG ||
Cards I still want to see created:
|| Olantin, Lost City || Pavios and Thanasis || Choryu ||
A full set of Dramatic Reversal which can be played for U.
Key to the City for some draw.
Kiora, Master of the Depths can untap an artifact creature and recover a land. I could can cast her for one mana and one tapped artifact in the end.
Pore Over the Pages which can be nearly free by tapping some cheap artifacts.
Retreat to Coralhelm helps untap artifact creature to use for further Improvise plays or attack.
Tenacity a +1/+1 buff and lifelink on some Thropters and Servos. Could combine with another mass buff spell.
In general a deck running some artifacts could play the more costly walkers out earlier.
Another deck choice is build a Clue deck and use Inspiring Statuary for cost reduction.
Trail of Evidence and Metallurgic Summonings for win more.
1. (Ravnica Allegiance): You can't keep a good esper control deck down... Or Wilderness Reclamation... or Gates...
2. (War of the Spark): Guys, I know what we need! We need a cycle of really idiotic flavor text victory cards! Jace's Triumph...
3. (War of the Spark): Lets make the format with control have even more control!
There's probably something dumb that can be done with chaining fabricate creatures.
URW PillowFort Stasis (costruction)
modern:
U Taking Turns combo
pauper:
UB Servitor Control
xenob8 : you know you are going to have a bad time when opponent starts with snow covered island