Yeah sure, but (1) would you call this story relevant?
Yes. It introduces a new plane, one which has been majorly influenced by a new phenomenon in the story (omenpaths) in a way we haven't seen before. It reveals key details about the Coin Empire, it advances the story of Oko and Kellan, and it establishes that Jace and Vraska are still around doing mysterious things. Rakdos and Tinybones are partners in crime now.
...and (2) it just feels a bit like a betrayal of the character to have him just, I don't know, walking around a saloon and being a part of a bigger (in current story terms) villain's posse.
It's not a betrayal of Kaervek's character, it's a continuation of a story that's literally been frozen in amber for a long time. Zhalfir is entirely separate from Dominaria now, Urborg is radically different, and one of his arch-nemeses (Jolrael) has been establishing a powerbase in Jamuraa for about 600 years. Don't even get him started on Teferi. He's got to start over from nothing now, and he's smart enough to temporarily swallow his pride if it'll get him such a huge leg up in rebuilding all the power he lost. Especially if he finds something that'll let him just kill the rest of the group after they find the treasure. That all seems pretty in-character for him to me.
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I'm finding it really hard to take this set or its story seriously, though. One of Dominaria's greatest villains is now just... wearin' cowboy clothes and joinin' in on a good ol' fashioned heist? What in tarnation?
Kaervek had been in that Amber Prison since the end of Mirage, twenty-eight years ago. They've tossed him some good cards in the meantime, but apart from finally breaking out in MoM, my mans has not been story-relevant this entire century. Let him have a little fun before he sees what happened to Urborg.
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Hm...2-mana, 3-toughness non-legendary with flying and vigilance, that gets beefier as you draw. Good deal! Its ability to beef itself isn't that great, but you pair it up with the right things and you can pack a wallop for cheap.
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Clearly got usurped by the other gods bc Mill is a dead end strategy.
Luckily, filling up your own graveyard to fuel cheap reanimation effects and then whacking opponents in the face with 8/8 fatties has been a viable strategy for decades.
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Calling Cosmium Kiln mid would be generous. But Clay-Fired Bricks is surprisingly solid: mono-white land search, without conditions, plus a little lifegain for 2 mana is a good deal. And if you're running something with blink or bounce effects, well, so much the better.
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My first instinct is to say, "For friggin' out loud, y'all, you already jacked up the price on the packs! Pick something and stick with it," but it occurs to me they probably haven't jiggered around the pack format like this for years. One's sense of timing gets...skewed, after playing this game for a while and not keeping up with these kind of things.
That being said - "Hey, we're putting one less card in the packs, but you have a higher chance of getting a sweet foil or a mythic that's not even in the set!" Tell me again about how this totally isn't gambling, guys; you've been saying the quiet part awful loud lately.
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Even some IPs with card games wouldn't shock me. Wizards just might be able to pull off a "we didn't know" story with Warcraft despite it already having Hearthstone, and I might be the only poster here who remembers the X-Files trading card game.
You are not!
And since we're all reasonably sure there will be a Star Wars UB...the old Decipher game was my first-ever foray into CCG's; it was a direct leap from there to Magic. Sure, it was defunct by the time the prequels rolled around, but I still thought it was fun.
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...but recipes don't have to be something only 5 star restaurant would serve.
Very true, and a good point. Ironically, though, a lot of these dishes are fairly skill- and labor-intensive. I'm sure there are more beginner-level recipes, but I'll put it this way: I'm planning on getting this book as a holiday gift for my friend who's a sous-chef at a resort.
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Man, UB sounds better and better as time moves on.
Creative has, to their credit, been trying to listen to players' critiques of UB (beyond the usual "it stinks") and making it feel distinctly different from regular sets. That's a challenge, but also ends up being good for the sets, because like with Horizons, they get to think outside the box they normally have to design for.
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Yes. It introduces a new plane, one which has been majorly influenced by a new phenomenon in the story (omenpaths) in a way we haven't seen before. It reveals key details about the Coin Empire, it advances the story of Oko and Kellan, and it establishes that Jace and Vraska are still around doing mysterious things. Rakdos and Tinybones are partners in crime now.
It's not a betrayal of Kaervek's character, it's a continuation of a story that's literally been frozen in amber for a long time. Zhalfir is entirely separate from Dominaria now, Urborg is radically different, and one of his arch-nemeses (Jolrael) has been establishing a powerbase in Jamuraa for about 600 years. Don't even get him started on Teferi. He's got to start over from nothing now, and he's smart enough to temporarily swallow his pride if it'll get him such a huge leg up in rebuilding all the power he lost. Especially if he finds something that'll let him just kill the rest of the group after they find the treasure. That all seems pretty in-character for him to me.
I won't lie, I hoped they'd give him deathtouch or something to play into the scorpion thing more, but this is still a really good card.
Kaervek had been in that Amber Prison since the end of Mirage, twenty-eight years ago. They've tossed him some good cards in the meantime, but apart from finally breaking out in MoM, my mans has not been story-relevant this entire century. Let him have a little fun before he sees what happened to Urborg.
Luckily, filling up your own graveyard to fuel cheap reanimation effects and then whacking opponents in the face with 8/8 fatties has been a viable strategy for decades.
And more cards supporting my favorite MtG ship is always nice.
That being said - "Hey, we're putting one less card in the packs, but you have a higher chance of getting a sweet foil or a mythic that's not even in the set!" Tell me again about how this totally isn't gambling, guys; you've been saying the quiet part awful loud lately.
You are not!
And since we're all reasonably sure there will be a Star Wars UB...the old Decipher game was my first-ever foray into CCG's; it was a direct leap from there to Magic. Sure, it was defunct by the time the prequels rolled around, but I still thought it was fun.
Very true, and a good point. Ironically, though, a lot of these dishes are fairly skill- and labor-intensive. I'm sure there are more beginner-level recipes, but I'll put it this way: I'm planning on getting this book as a holiday gift for my friend who's a sous-chef at a resort.
Technically it's "Actually Just Satan From The Bible, But For REALLY Real This Time, Promise," because the Doctor's met like 5 of those.
(The Satan Pit was a good episode though.)
Creative has, to their credit, been trying to listen to players' critiques of UB (beyond the usual "it stinks") and making it feel distinctly different from regular sets. That's a challenge, but also ends up being good for the sets, because like with Horizons, they get to think outside the box they normally have to design for.