Full spoiler is out on the main site! Tomb of the Spirit Dragon gives crazy life-gain to artifact token decks (not sure how many of those there are, but...)
Doesn't even have to be artifact tokens. This card is going to do SO much work in my Karn deck... and it's an easy swap. There's so many non-basic lands in my deck that are only there to generate mana- every time I'm able to swap it out for something with an actually relevant ability is a huge boon. An ability on a land that to my deck more frequently than not will be at least 2, Gain 5 life is amazing. Especially since Metalworker just got unbanned. Karn's getting some new toys.
I actually have Progenitus in my Naya slot, mostly because green/red/blue have most/best of my cheat into play effects, but Maelstrom Wanderer is really good in that slot... and Naya's playables aren't earthshattering.
I know some people hate the swinginess of "cheat a giant thing into play", but at 720 it's something that I like having available.
Thankfully, I can support it reasonably well, with each color having a few ways to go about it (in the way those colors do it). Primary in Green, Secondary in Blue, Tertiary in Red, White and Black, though white and black get it most frequently via reanimation. Colorless options like Quicksilver Amulet are added to help round it out.
But, I am at 720. That gives me quite a bit more room for massive giant things TO be cheated in.
This is where the world of difference between a one drop being a 2/1 and a 1/2 makes itself blatantly obvious.
As a 2/1 for W with the ability costing the same, I'd play it. As a 1/2? It's not even going to be considered.
I don't get people that want cubes that are all proxies or a significant number of proxies.
I understand that if you're in a situation where some cards you already know you really want are just too expensive right now, but make your entire design work better- in that case it makes sense to have them included and play with them rather than not play. But when you start getting to the point where more than half of your cube is proxies? Why are you even using that list at that point?
Now, I understand some of the exceptions. Those Space cubes are awesome, and the Booze Cube needs so many unique cards and effects that I get why you'd want to do it.
I also could see the case that some people make- where they print their own art or altered promos onto playing card style stock so they can take the cube to conventions without having to worry about when it's lost or stolen.
But when you read cube forums, or the cube subreddit, that's usually not the case. Usually it's people that are yelling "I want it now!" or "Wizards should reprint it all just so that I can have it!"
It seems so weird to me that there's so many people that will wander into these specialized groups- where people are discussing all types of ways to format their cube, the viability of all sorts of cards in these contexts, and just want to rip off the list and then print up a bunch of proxies to play that list.
There's so many cool designs that AREN'T 360 or 450 Powered/Unpowered that it just boggles my mind that all so many people want is so homogenized.
I'd expect that it's in good part because of the growth of the game as well as the greater diversity of sources from which people are getting their info about Magic.
It was easier to have an evocative but not intuitive deck name when the number of sources the number of sources from which people would consume their info was smaller.
Back when all of your info about Magic came from starcity, mtgthesource, Wizard's own site and coverage, and your local shops, it's a lot more likely that names are going to be consistent because anyone writing articles is going to know enough about the scene that they'll have heard the deck name.
Now, when information about Magic spills across multiple forums, multiple dedicated sites, all over reddit, all over youtube, etc. It's a lot easier for just one person with any significant following to brand a deck with a stupid name and introduce a lot of confusion. Youtube is going to be a big offender for this- to get a big following on youtube, you don't need to be particularly relevant, interesting or knowledgeable. There's SO much bad info, bad tech, and just garbage out there, but thanks to the difficulty of Magic AND the diverse multiple groups with diverse aims for what they want out of Magic, it's sometimes difficult for even a trained ear and skilled player to be able to completely suss out the difference between signal and noise.
Thus it's just safer for most sources to run with color combinations or key interactions as the name of a deck until it's clear where the community as a whole is going to come down on the naming of it- and even then it frequently is just easier to stick to those earlier names,
Stop carrying everything everywhere. You're just begging for things to get damaged/stolen.
If you're primary focus is collecting, set up your binders by set, having only one large set per binder. Two small sets also can happily fit in a binder. Place no more than 4 cards in a sleeve, and put cards that aren't 4 ofs in the sleeves upside down. This will limit the number of times you have to take cards in and out of sleeves, as that's what will ruin the sleeves. 9 pocket sleeves are dirt cheap and if they start to show wear, just replace them.
If your primary focus is play, only keep what you need for your decks. Beyond that make trade binders, putting any rares-commons-uncommons worth $2 or more in it, and sort it by format/color/rarity. This will let you have stock to trade, or know when you should be buylisting stuff off. Keep any bulk rares, playable uncommons and commons in 1000 count or smaller boxes, and then any bulk basic lands, commons and uncommons in 5 row boxes.
If you're to a store/event to play, only take the cards you plan to play with AND any cards you're actively looking to trade.
Don't put any cards you're not willing to trade in your trade binder- you're wasting everyone's time, including your own.
I'm going to run it alongside of Goldmane- but in my case that's going to be mostly because I'm running at 720 and have 37 planeswalkers. With each guild color having a solid planeswalker, and each color having an easy 4-5 to pick from it's actually not that difficult to find yourself with that many!
It's actually the same large number of potential targets that has me wanting to add Garruk, Apex Predator.
While it's costed less, being sorcery speed is a HUGE difference in power.
You can't get extra value off of a block and sac, sac in response to a board wipe, etc.
Minus 2 mana doesn't strike me as a good trade off against Momentous Fall's instant speed and life gain, Greater Good's reusability and instant speed sac, and Disciple of Bolas's lifegain and 2/1 body.
Altar's reap isn't exactly setting the world on fire, and it's instant speed. It'd be an oddball situation that I'd want to sac a 3+ power creature in my main phase just for the card draw.
The cost of certain staples was one of the main reasons that built a peasant cube. It's fun, costs very little to update and maintain, and it's still pimpable! Of course, pimping means different things to different people. For instance, I'd never take a foil Incinerate over the Mirage version. Never ever.
As an aside, another motivator for going peasant was the variety of experiences I had with other cubes prior to building my own. Pauper could often be dull. When it comes to powered cubes though, I came to the realization that if everything is a bomb, nothing is, and that's almost as dull. Peasant seemed like a perfect middle ground.
Yep. Plus you never feel guilty dragging it along even to places you've never been. Though I have a Powered 720 cube that I maintain, I'm very seriously considering building a 360-450 Peasant cube, as I can at least take that with me to local game stores and large events and not feel like I'm taking excessive risks.
The issue I have with the legendary changes is it doesnt make logical sense. There is only one Jace in the multiverse. So you dueling another Player is like a battle of armies/wills. How is there a second jace if only one can exist?
There isn't a second Jace, there's one Jace with varying levels of loyalty to each player. Plus, individuals have different aspects of their personality and moods- which will influence their feelings and behaviors. This is how and why both players could summon Jace in any of his variants, but one person could NOT summon two Jaces.
I just don't think they would put a Theros avatar in a core set immediately following the Theros plane (since they didn't put plane-specific cards in core sets immediately following other blocks).
My guess-
Soul of Mirrodin (White)
Soul of Ravnica (Blue)
Soul of Innistrad (Black)
Soul of Shandalar (Red)
Soul of Zendikar (Green)
I would assume that artificial planes don't have souls.
There is no good reason for Miroddin to have a soul. It's a lump of metal molded into a plane by Karn.
Innistrad was cleansed and avacyne was released, wouldn't it make sense for Innistrad to be white, not black?
Because while Avacyn's Cursemute helped, it did not magically fix everything wrong with Innistrad. ALL of the werewolves were not healed of lycanthropy and return to their human forms- they were transformed to the Wolfir, losing some of their move violent and animalistic nature, but not regaining their humanity. Innistrad is not freed from it's darkness- the zombies, vampires and demons did not just disappear or immediately get routed by Avacyn and her host. In fact, with the Helvault shattered, all of those strong enough to require such binding are also freed again.
Plus, of the colors left, White makes more sense to couple with Theros, because red and black do not play nicely with enchantments, while white does.
That was my impression. I'd like it a lot more if it either cost one less or crewed for one less.
Doesn't even have to be artifact tokens. This card is going to do SO much work in my Karn deck... and it's an easy swap. There's so many non-basic lands in my deck that are only there to generate mana- every time I'm able to swap it out for something with an actually relevant ability is a huge boon. An ability on a land that to my deck more frequently than not will be at least 2, Gain 5 life is amazing. Especially since Metalworker just got unbanned. Karn's getting some new toys.
I actually have Progenitus in my Naya slot, mostly because green/red/blue have most/best of my cheat into play effects, but Maelstrom Wanderer is really good in that slot... and Naya's playables aren't earthshattering.
I know some people hate the swinginess of "cheat a giant thing into play", but at 720 it's something that I like having available.
Thankfully, I can support it reasonably well, with each color having a few ways to go about it (in the way those colors do it). Primary in Green, Secondary in Blue, Tertiary in Red, White and Black, though white and black get it most frequently via reanimation. Colorless options like Quicksilver Amulet are added to help round it out.
But, I am at 720. That gives me quite a bit more room for massive giant things TO be cheated in.
This will immediately replace it.
Though, it does make me want to think if I want Raka to be Ruhan of the Fomori or Lightning Angel.
As a 2/1 for W with the ability costing the same, I'd play it. As a 1/2? It's not even going to be considered.
I understand that if you're in a situation where some cards you already know you really want are just too expensive right now, but make your entire design work better- in that case it makes sense to have them included and play with them rather than not play. But when you start getting to the point where more than half of your cube is proxies? Why are you even using that list at that point?
Now, I understand some of the exceptions. Those Space cubes are awesome, and the Booze Cube needs so many unique cards and effects that I get why you'd want to do it.
I also could see the case that some people make- where they print their own art or altered promos onto playing card style stock so they can take the cube to conventions without having to worry about when it's lost or stolen.
But when you read cube forums, or the cube subreddit, that's usually not the case. Usually it's people that are yelling "I want it now!" or "Wizards should reprint it all just so that I can have it!"
It seems so weird to me that there's so many people that will wander into these specialized groups- where people are discussing all types of ways to format their cube, the viability of all sorts of cards in these contexts, and just want to rip off the list and then print up a bunch of proxies to play that list.
There's so many cool designs that AREN'T 360 or 450 Powered/Unpowered that it just boggles my mind that all so many people want is so homogenized.
It was easier to have an evocative but not intuitive deck name when the number of sources the number of sources from which people would consume their info was smaller.
Back when all of your info about Magic came from starcity, mtgthesource, Wizard's own site and coverage, and your local shops, it's a lot more likely that names are going to be consistent because anyone writing articles is going to know enough about the scene that they'll have heard the deck name.
Now, when information about Magic spills across multiple forums, multiple dedicated sites, all over reddit, all over youtube, etc. It's a lot easier for just one person with any significant following to brand a deck with a stupid name and introduce a lot of confusion. Youtube is going to be a big offender for this- to get a big following on youtube, you don't need to be particularly relevant, interesting or knowledgeable. There's SO much bad info, bad tech, and just garbage out there, but thanks to the difficulty of Magic AND the diverse multiple groups with diverse aims for what they want out of Magic, it's sometimes difficult for even a trained ear and skilled player to be able to completely suss out the difference between signal and noise.
Thus it's just safer for most sources to run with color combinations or key interactions as the name of a deck until it's clear where the community as a whole is going to come down on the naming of it- and even then it frequently is just easier to stick to those earlier names,
If you're primary focus is collecting, set up your binders by set, having only one large set per binder. Two small sets also can happily fit in a binder. Place no more than 4 cards in a sleeve, and put cards that aren't 4 ofs in the sleeves upside down. This will limit the number of times you have to take cards in and out of sleeves, as that's what will ruin the sleeves. 9 pocket sleeves are dirt cheap and if they start to show wear, just replace them.
If your primary focus is play, only keep what you need for your decks. Beyond that make trade binders, putting any rares-commons-uncommons worth $2 or more in it, and sort it by format/color/rarity. This will let you have stock to trade, or know when you should be buylisting stuff off. Keep any bulk rares, playable uncommons and commons in 1000 count or smaller boxes, and then any bulk basic lands, commons and uncommons in 5 row boxes.
If you're to a store/event to play, only take the cards you plan to play with AND any cards you're actively looking to trade.
Don't put any cards you're not willing to trade in your trade binder- you're wasting everyone's time, including your own.
It's actually the same large number of potential targets that has me wanting to add Garruk, Apex Predator.
You can't get extra value off of a block and sac, sac in response to a board wipe, etc.
Minus 2 mana doesn't strike me as a good trade off against Momentous Fall's instant speed and life gain, Greater Good's reusability and instant speed sac, and Disciple of Bolas's lifegain and 2/1 body.
Altar's reap isn't exactly setting the world on fire, and it's instant speed. It'd be an oddball situation that I'd want to sac a 3+ power creature in my main phase just for the card draw.
Yep. Plus you never feel guilty dragging it along even to places you've never been. Though I have a Powered 720 cube that I maintain, I'm very seriously considering building a 360-450 Peasant cube, as I can at least take that with me to local game stores and large events and not feel like I'm taking excessive risks.
There isn't a second Jace, there's one Jace with varying levels of loyalty to each player. Plus, individuals have different aspects of their personality and moods- which will influence their feelings and behaviors. This is how and why both players could summon Jace in any of his variants, but one person could NOT summon two Jaces.
I would assume that artificial planes don't have souls.
There is no good reason for Miroddin to have a soul. It's a lump of metal molded into a plane by Karn.
Because while Avacyn's Cursemute helped, it did not magically fix everything wrong with Innistrad. ALL of the werewolves were not healed of lycanthropy and return to their human forms- they were transformed to the Wolfir, losing some of their move violent and animalistic nature, but not regaining their humanity. Innistrad is not freed from it's darkness- the zombies, vampires and demons did not just disappear or immediately get routed by Avacyn and her host. In fact, with the Helvault shattered, all of those strong enough to require such binding are also freed again.
Plus, of the colors left, White makes more sense to couple with Theros, because red and black do not play nicely with enchantments, while white does.