Necroticah
Note ALL planeswalkers here have two mana symbols.
Lets look at the amount of mana symbols by colour:
:symw:: 3
:symu:: 4
:symb:: 2
:symr:: 4
:symg:: 3
You math is bad.W has 5 not 3.Goldemane has WW Elspeth has WW Vengeant has W.
And when Bolas comes out with a URB in his cost BG will only have 3 and your theroy will still be wrong.
SoronTheBeast Gwafa Hazid, Profiteer; even Dreadwing could be 'walker names.
Could be,but their not gonna be walkers.
Dreadwing is either going to be a dragon from Jund or a flying horror from Grixis.Or in a really strange case a green anti-flyer something.The name is just horribly dumb for a walker.
Gwafa can't be a planeswalker for flavor reasons.Vis is money & power on Grixis.If you have have access to the mutliverse,you have endless access to vis,while everyone else has to deal with a dwindiling supply.So your first stupid move is to come back to Grixis and your second stupid move is to sell vis for vis.And no one would bother trying to conquer Grixis when they can just take life from somewhere else.And since you can planeswalk its not like non walkers can keep items from you,do some recon,walk in,get item,walk out.
Gwafa can't be a planeswalker for flavor reasons.Vis is money & power on Grixis.If you have have access to the mutliverse,you have endless access to vis,while everyone else has to deal with a dwindiling supply.So your first stupid move is to come back to Grixis and your second stupid move is to sell vis for vis.And no one would bother trying to conquer Grixis when they can just take life from somewhere else.And since you can planeswalk its not like non walkers can keep items from you,do some recon,walk in,get item,walk out.
He could just be a merchant 'walker. Goes from plane to plane selling stuff.
A few things I noticed:
1. The artwork is amazing and really shows the scale of the Planeswalker compared to the other Dragons in the background.
2. I think he is in Grixis but I dont think there are dragons in Grixis (except 1 demon mutant dragon)
3. He is wearing a scarf, one that makes him look smarter but at the same time looks odd.
4. His demeanor shows alot and is depicted greatly by the artist, and is the same dragon on the fat pack...hopefully he doesnt suck, the artwork is way to good.
Question: Any Ideas other than the mask as to what is floating between his horns?
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It's difficult to make a good and balanced Nicol Bolas.
The cost needs to be 2UBR or possibly greater since it doesn't work flavorwise to pay the same amount of mana or more for a humanoid planeswalker as a draconian planeswalker. The problem is that planeswalkers are better the cheaper they are since getting out early helps the planeswalker to get under counters and stay alive because of lower numbers of opposing creatures. So for every mana we add over the 5cc version the stronger his immediate abilities(the ones that you can use the turn he's played) have to be.
The abilities are also hard, should there be an ability for each of the colors or should the abilities focus mainly on the black aspect with maybe a bit of a reference to the other colors. Flavorwise i'd like at least one of the abilities to link in with the Nicol Bolas mass discard ability from the original card, however that's very powerful while at the same time not interesting or powerful enough to be the final ability. Also to make him playable the plus or the cheap minus ability needs to be able to protect Nicol Bolas on it's own(otherwise it might become another Sarkhan Vol, ugh!).
My current brainstorm leads me to think he might be something like-
Nicol Bolas, Planeswalker2UBR
Planeswalker- Nicol Bolas {+1} Up to 3 target creatures can't attack during their controller's next attack phase. {-4} Target player discards 3 cards at random from their hand. {-7} Search target player's library, reveal up to 3 creatures from it and put them into play under your control. [5]
It's probably going to be nothing like this but that's about the power level i'd want to see for Nicol Bolas to be playable. The 1st ability is a reference to dragon fear, the 2nd ability is a reference to the legend versions mind destroying breath and the final ability is a triple bribery and shows dominance over the minds of lesser creatures.
We have the art now.
1)Based on the pic, is it possible Nicol Bolas, Planeswalker has anything to do with all the dragon's flying around him? -I doubt it, but may be plausible
2)Also, to extend the question, we know the shards are back together, are dragon's bleeding into Grixis? -This I can believe, moreso than believing it won't happen.
Taking apart the total brokeness of Yawgmoth's Will (I bet Wizards wouldn't print a Will variant even if it would cost 4BBBB, half your life, a virgin's heart and two human eyes), Time Walk, Time Warp and friends are voting for your speculation to be true... broken, anyone?
strong maybe, but no matter how you slice it this is going to take 3 turns to get to, assuming the opponent has no burn, bounce, creatures, etc., not to mention the 5 mana of 3 colors (although that one can be worked around).
Sure, stuff like Snapping Drake and Goblin Piker are for limited. But Null isn't even playable against a 5 year old whose hand consists of a 6 of Clubs, Blue-Eyes White Dragon, Chimney Imp, and a very large cumquat.
If I may put forward a theory, based on the fact that Nico Bolas is an older planeswalker who prefers physical violence and can mindwipe with his touch:
Nico Bolas, Planeswalker [Big Number]UBR
Planeswalker - Nico
+2 : Deal 3 damage to target creature or player.
-4 : Put target permanent on top of its owner's library. Its controller loses 2 life.
-XX : Target player discards X cards and loses life equal to the number of cards discarded this way.
[Same Big Number in Mana Cost]
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You can either predict what WotC is planning or be sane, but you can't be both.
Well this is probably a younger Nicol Bolas. The reasons for my speculation?
Nicol Bolas looks younger in this picture. I know this seems kind of like faulty logic in the world of body-shaping uber-Planeswalkers, but if you look at the "From the Vault: Dragons" explanation of Bolas' "new look", they explained that the image from the "From the Vault: Dragons" version was indeed a younger Nicol Bolas.
Ajani in Alara is a younger planeswalker than his former self. Once again, the lack of "time placement" of the Alara block makes this almost irrelevant other than for those looking for pattern placement. I wouldn't be surprised if each set introduced a planeswalker in his or her "younger" form. I wish I had an Alara Reborn spoiler to confirm another younger Planeswalker or two...
I think Nicol Bolas is stuck in a sealed plane and isolated from the rest of the multiverse. Since Ajani obviously travelled from Alara, this means either Bolas is killed off in Alara (placing the timeline of Alara to pre-Lorwyn) or that this is a newer form. Occum's Razor tells me that its more likely that this is simply a younger Bolas.
HOWEVER, I don't know the details of Bolas' destruction of the Myojin of Night's Reach. If he was "reborn" into a younger form again, that would explain his new (and younger) look. Of course, one could just say "he's younger because of magic", or even "he's younger because an old dragon wouldn't look as appealling and magic art has changed since 'Legends'." To which I staunchly say "get off my lawn!"
EDIT POST SCRIPT: Ignore this. Since we know Lorwyn has to occur after 520 (due to Jace entering Alara for the Aurora) and Bolas was old way before this (if we place his picture in the legend's cycle at pre-Urza). We can assume Ajani (in Goldmane form) is younger than 500 years old. If these assumptions are made, the Bolas in this picture is still over 25,000 years old--probably reborn after the whole Myojin incident? I didn't read those novels so, unfortunately, I have no way of knowing. Can anyone else help me on this quest for knowledge?
Oh, and because I like thinking up weird stuff, and I see Bolas as someone who plays by his own rules enough that he wouldn't bind himself to an alliance with a single planeswalker... (inspired by Wraith's idea of Nicol having no + loyalty, with an added twist).
Nicol Bolas, Planeswalker XRBBU
Planeswalker - Nicol
-1: Target player discards a card from their hand and may choose to give Nicol Bolas 2 loyalty counters if a card was discarded. If they do, they gain control of Nicol Bolas at the end of the turn.
-3: Return target permanent to its owner's hand. Target player discards 2 cards at random from their hand and may choose to give Nicol Bolas 2 loyalty counters if 2 cards were discarded. If they do, they gain control of Nicol Bolas at the end of the turn.
-5: Return three tapped permanents to their owner's hand. Target player discards their hand and may choose to give Nicol Bolas 2 loyalty counters if at least 3 cards were discarded. If they do, they gain control of Nicol Bolas at the end of the turn.
Loyalty Counter: X
Yes, I realize with this wording that you can bounce your opponent's permanents, discard your own cards and keep Bolas for yourself. You can also bounce your opponent's stuff and force them to discard. You can drop Nicol relatively earlier and "build up" his loyalty by letting him eat your cards. You can force him to eat your opponent cards, but then your opponent gets the choice of "bribing" him to help him out for a while. If your opponent keeps control of him, he can feed him until you get control of him again (either out of desperation of your opponent or, in the glory of blue, control magic).
I'm sure there's a better way this could be done--this is just something I whipped up randomly >.>' The odd wording of the discard is to ensure players can't "discard 0" (with no cards in their hand) and still give Bolas the loyalty counters. This card is pretty broken with Brighthearth Rings though, since you could drop him turn 5 and give him 4 loyalty counters by dumping 2 cards to him. You could even force your opponent to discard 1 and you to discard 1...and get all 4 counters and retain control of Bolas if you time it properly. And of course, every planeswalker becomes broken when approached by a silly man in a frog suit who is willing to double his loyalty free of charge.
Nicol Bolas :3mana::symu::symb::symr:
Planeswalker - Nicol Bolas
+2: Each player sacrifices a nonland permanent.
-4: Each player discards their hand.
-9: Choose up to three cards in target player's graveyard. You may play those cards without paying their mana costs. Until end of turn, if a card would be put into it's owner's graveyard, remove that card from the game instead.
[5]
A few things I noticed:
1. The artwork is amazing and really shows the scale of the Planeswalker compared to the other Dragons in the background.
2. I think he is in Grixis but I dont think there are dragons in Grixis (except 1 demon mutant dragon)
3. He is wearing a scarf, one that makes him look smarter but at the same time looks odd.
4. His demeanor shows alot and is depicted greatly by the artist, and is the same dragon on the fat pack...hopefully he doesnt suck, the artwork is way to good.
Question: Any Ideas other than the mask as to what is floating between his horns?
He's Doctor Who in dragon form? I think those dragons in the background could be drakes however I think he's possibly in Jund. Either way is fine wiht me, hell I'd laugh if he was in Bant with Elspeth ridding a horse with an army of her knights. The mask looks more like and egg however I woulnd't be surprised if it is Myojinn of Night's Reach mask and he's using it to keep Szadek in prison. I doubt he's going to suck as a walker in card form, people would probably be highly offended if he did.
flame away, but think this card would be flavourful, powerful and fun.
edit:the thing floating between his horns reminds me of an "ioun stone" from d&d. some kind of floating artifact that boosts his power or abilities.
I like the first two abilities and a time walk or time twister effect would be awesome for Bolas...even better would be a combo effect, it wouldn't surprise me if he had a cruel ultimatum ability.
depends on the cmc i suppose. if you got a higher cmc cost the effects are allowed to be better.
True, but with this sort of deal, there's a point where the CMC is -too- high to justify using a planeswalker. The more expensive a walker, the less likely it'll get used when more instantly-gratifying effects are available.
Let's face it, there's a point where the cost/return makes you think 'naw, I'll just drop Porphery Nodes instead.' Or whatever.
Isn't he in control of Baant ala Knight of the Skyward Eye?
Perhaps he's 5 color, hence the conflux symbol over his head...
No...I think their going to stick to him staying as a RBU walker because of his originial card, however it is possible he knows [the other two colors as well. I was wondering what the etchings on that egg like thing was on his head, someone in another thread speculated that it might be the Mirai which would just suck for the other four walkers because that artifact just basically a mana battery that just needs to be recharged in any plane.
The Mirari was taken to Mirrodin and made into a golem to watch over Argentum while Karn was away. It was corrupted by Phyrexian machinations and began calling itself Memnarch. After the Mirrodin saga Karn polished it clean and set it back on its purpose. I think. Karn made it, so what makes you think Bolas wouldn't be able to make something similar if he wanted to? Simple answer: it's just decoration. Complicated answer: It's the pocket-universe he created in the Time Spiral novels to save himself from the Mending. Off-the-wall answer: It's Nicol Bolas Jr.
On WOTC's youtube page with coverage on Worlds, there's an interview with Aaron Forsythe that talks about planeswalkers and their effect on today's standard. He goes on to talk a bit about Nicol Bolas and says he's the most expensive planeswalker to date (6+ CMC), he's really powerful, and will be the first preview card on the official site once Conflux previews start.
On WOTC's youtube page with coverage on Worlds, there's an interview with Aaron Forsythe that talks about planeswalkers and their effect on today's standard. He goes on to talk a bit about Nicol Bolas and says he's the most expensive planeswalker to date (6+ CMC), he's really powerful, and will be the first preview card on the official site once Conflux previews start.
6+ cmc? isn't that "no go" territory for standard at the moment? unless his plus and ultimate are absolutely stellar and only take a turn at most to set up, I can't see him being played. :/
Take your monoblack deck, then set aside 14 swamps. Add 4 Creeping Tar Pits, 4 Darkslick Shores, 4 Drowned Catacombs, and 2 Jwar isle Refuge and add 4 Jace, the Mindsculptors. Your monoblack deck is instantly better. Better yet, drop those refuges, throw in some islands and some mana leaks, and lo and behold, you're now playing a real deck. Congratulations. Welcome to the world of competitive M:TG.
6+ cmc? isn't that "no go" territory for standard at the moment? unless his plus and ultimate are absolutely stellar and only take a turn at most to set up, I can't see him being played. :/
Well he IS Nicol Bolas...I mean, if they make a bad planeswalker card for him, no one will play this game forever.
lol
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You math is bad.W has 5 not 3.Goldemane has WW Elspeth has WW Vengeant has W.
And when Bolas comes out with a URB in his cost BG will only have 3 and your theroy will still be wrong.
Could be,but their not gonna be walkers.
Dreadwing is either going to be a dragon from Jund or a flying horror from Grixis.Or in a really strange case a green anti-flyer something.The name is just horribly dumb for a walker.
Gwafa can't be a planeswalker for flavor reasons.Vis is money & power on Grixis.If you have have access to the mutliverse,you have endless access to vis,while everyone else has to deal with a dwindiling supply.So your first stupid move is to come back to Grixis and your second stupid move is to sell vis for vis.And no one would bother trying to conquer Grixis when they can just take life from somewhere else.And since you can planeswalk its not like non walkers can keep items from you,do some recon,walk in,get item,walk out.
BAfter the lights go out on you, after your worthless life is through. I will remember how you scream...B
He could just be a merchant 'walker. Goes from plane to plane selling stuff.
Low risk high reward only. U, W and/or B 'walker.
Not saying its likely, only that its possible.
http://cdn4.libsyn.com/themagicsock/Nicol_Bolas_Planeswalker_657x1022.jpg?nvb=20081211123700&nva=20081212124700&t=090960e6b1db9e868e810
A few things I noticed:
1. The artwork is amazing and really shows the scale of the Planeswalker compared to the other Dragons in the background.
2. I think he is in Grixis but I dont think there are dragons in Grixis (except 1 demon mutant dragon)
3. He is wearing a scarf, one that makes him look smarter but at the same time looks odd.
4. His demeanor shows alot and is depicted greatly by the artist, and is the same dragon on the fat pack...hopefully he doesnt suck, the artwork is way to good.
Question: Any Ideas other than the mask as to what is floating between his horns?
Thanks to Mr. Stuff aka Senior Stuff for the Awesome Banner!!:D
The cost needs to be 2UBR or possibly greater since it doesn't work flavorwise to pay the same amount of mana or more for a humanoid planeswalker as a draconian planeswalker. The problem is that planeswalkers are better the cheaper they are since getting out early helps the planeswalker to get under counters and stay alive because of lower numbers of opposing creatures. So for every mana we add over the 5cc version the stronger his immediate abilities(the ones that you can use the turn he's played) have to be.
The abilities are also hard, should there be an ability for each of the colors or should the abilities focus mainly on the black aspect with maybe a bit of a reference to the other colors. Flavorwise i'd like at least one of the abilities to link in with the Nicol Bolas mass discard ability from the original card, however that's very powerful while at the same time not interesting or powerful enough to be the final ability. Also to make him playable the plus or the cheap minus ability needs to be able to protect Nicol Bolas on it's own(otherwise it might become another Sarkhan Vol, ugh!).
My current brainstorm leads me to think he might be something like-
Nicol Bolas, Planeswalker 2UBR
Planeswalker- Nicol Bolas
{+1} Up to 3 target creatures can't attack during their controller's next attack phase.
{-4} Target player discards 3 cards at random from their hand.
{-7} Search target player's library, reveal up to 3 creatures from it and put them into play under your control.
[5]
It's probably going to be nothing like this but that's about the power level i'd want to see for Nicol Bolas to be playable. The 1st ability is a reference to dragon fear, the 2nd ability is a reference to the legend versions mind destroying breath and the final ability is a triple bribery and shows dominance over the minds of lesser creatures.
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1)Based on the pic, is it possible Nicol Bolas, Planeswalker has anything to do with all the dragon's flying around him? -I doubt it, but may be plausible
2)Also, to extend the question, we know the shards are back together, are dragon's bleeding into Grixis? -This I can believe, moreso than believing it won't happen.
strong maybe, but no matter how you slice it this is going to take 3 turns to get to, assuming the opponent has no burn, bounce, creatures, etc., not to mention the 5 mana of 3 colors (although that one can be worked around).
Nico Bolas, Planeswalker [Big Number]UBR
Planeswalker - Nico
+2 : Deal 3 damage to target creature or player.
-4 : Put target permanent on top of its owner's library. Its controller loses 2 life.
-XX : Target player discards X cards and loses life equal to the number of cards discarded this way.
[Same Big Number in Mana Cost]
EDIT POST SCRIPT: Ignore this. Since we know Lorwyn has to occur after 520 (due to Jace entering Alara for the Aurora) and Bolas was old way before this (if we place his picture in the legend's cycle at pre-Urza). We can assume Ajani (in Goldmane form) is younger than 500 years old. If these assumptions are made, the Bolas in this picture is still over 25,000 years old--probably reborn after the whole Myojin incident? I didn't read those novels so, unfortunately, I have no way of knowing. Can anyone else help me on this quest for knowledge?
Oh, and because I like thinking up weird stuff, and I see Bolas as someone who plays by his own rules enough that he wouldn't bind himself to an alliance with a single planeswalker... (inspired by Wraith's idea of Nicol having no + loyalty, with an added twist).
Nicol Bolas, Planeswalker XRBBU
Planeswalker - Nicol
-1: Target player discards a card from their hand and may choose to give Nicol Bolas 2 loyalty counters if a card was discarded. If they do, they gain control of Nicol Bolas at the end of the turn.
-3: Return target permanent to its owner's hand. Target player discards 2 cards at random from their hand and may choose to give Nicol Bolas 2 loyalty counters if 2 cards were discarded. If they do, they gain control of Nicol Bolas at the end of the turn.
-5: Return three tapped permanents to their owner's hand. Target player discards their hand and may choose to give Nicol Bolas 2 loyalty counters if at least 3 cards were discarded. If they do, they gain control of Nicol Bolas at the end of the turn.
Loyalty Counter: X
Yes, I realize with this wording that you can bounce your opponent's permanents, discard your own cards and keep Bolas for yourself. You can also bounce your opponent's stuff and force them to discard. You can drop Nicol relatively earlier and "build up" his loyalty by letting him eat your cards. You can force him to eat your opponent cards, but then your opponent gets the choice of "bribing" him to help him out for a while. If your opponent keeps control of him, he can feed him until you get control of him again (either out of desperation of your opponent or, in the glory of blue, control magic).
I'm sure there's a better way this could be done--this is just something I whipped up randomly >.>' The odd wording of the discard is to ensure players can't "discard 0" (with no cards in their hand) and still give Bolas the loyalty counters. This card is pretty broken with Brighthearth Rings though, since you could drop him turn 5 and give him 4 loyalty counters by dumping 2 cards to him. You could even force your opponent to discard 1 and you to discard 1...and get all 4 counters and retain control of Bolas if you time it properly. And of course, every planeswalker becomes broken when approached by a silly man in a frog suit who is willing to double his loyalty free of charge.
Also, I really like the idea of "X" loyalty...
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Nicol Bolas :3mana::symu::symb::symr:
Planeswalker - Nicol Bolas
+2: Each player sacrifices a nonland permanent.
-4: Each player discards their hand.
-9: Choose up to three cards in target player's graveyard. You may play those cards without paying their mana costs. Until end of turn, if a card would be put into it's owner's graveyard, remove that card from the game instead.
[5]
Planeswalker - Nicol
+1: Each player sacrifices a permanent
-4: Target player discards his or her hand
-9: For the rest of the game, your opponents' maximum hand size becomes 0
[4]
He's Doctor Who in dragon form? I think those dragons in the background could be drakes however I think he's possibly in Jund. Either way is fine wiht me, hell I'd laugh if he was in Bant with Elspeth ridding a horse with an army of her knights. The mask looks more like and egg however I woulnd't be surprised if it is Myojinn of Night's Reach mask and he's using it to keep Szadek in prison. I doubt he's going to suck as a walker in card form, people would probably be highly offended if he did.
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Nicol Bolas, Planeswalker 2UBBR
+1 - Cruel Edict effect
-2 - Char/Psionic Blast effect
-8 - Target opponent discards their hand. Discard your hand, draw 7 cards.
5 loyalty points
the big effect could be a personal Wheel of Fortune, Timetwister, or even a Time Walk effect.
flame away, but think this card would be flavourful, powerful and fun.
edit:the thing floating between his horns reminds me of an "ioun stone" from d&d. some kind of floating artifact that boosts his power or abilities.
There was once [The Pack], but no more.
Char/Blast effect is kind of bad if it is sorcery speed only imo. Maybe the -2 would be: Draw 3 cards and discard 2 cards. Or something to that effect
True, but with this sort of deal, there's a point where the CMC is -too- high to justify using a planeswalker. The more expensive a walker, the less likely it'll get used when more instantly-gratifying effects are available.
Let's face it, there's a point where the cost/return makes you think 'naw, I'll just drop Porphery Nodes instead.' Or whatever.
Perhaps he's 5 color, hence the conflux symbol over his head...
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There was once [The Pack], but no more.
6+ cmc? isn't that "no go" territory for standard at the moment? unless his plus and ultimate are absolutely stellar and only take a turn at most to set up, I can't see him being played. :/
kthnx, kbye <3 <3 <3 <3
Well he IS Nicol Bolas...I mean, if they make a bad planeswalker card for him, no one will play this game forever.
lol
^-- And this is exactly why these forums are for whiny little babies who can't deal with the fact that they are wrong. So they go cry to a mod. Lawl.
+1: target player discards 2 cards
-1: draw 2 cards
-3: target player discards their hand
3
i think that the last ability you expressed is redundant...
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