Also, Fumiko/Melee/Avatar of Slaughter can be useful in forcing fights to open up your opponents to either losing their guys in combat or to taking a huge amount on the backswing.
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Assault Suit helps make creatures like this worthwhile, particularly Ruric/Ruhan/Zurgo, as it gives them more chances to build up Commander damage.
Conversely, I imagine that cards giving "must attack" would be good with Karona, False God to ensure that everyone keeps swinging with her (particularly if you've ways of ensuring she doesn't hit you).
In limited, it's kind of meh. You'd think power would've creeped beyond Derpwood Boars for all colors by now. (Seriously, worse than a card from Legends outside of like, a dozen or so?)
I really have no experience using it in EDH, because there is no way I'd use anything that janky in any Constructed format.
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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!
Here's a card I often see when I go to build a deck. Sadly, it is way too weak for me to ever really consider for anything. Cleric tribal maybe, but even then I wouldn't have a good reason for including it. Counterspells on sticks have gotten much better since Ice Age.
I've considered this guy for dedicated sacrifice decks, such as my Ertai necro-control deck, but he's never quite made the cut. If his first ability wasn't a tap ability, I'd definitely run him. Even as is, I won't be surprised if he makes the cut for some deck some day, just because I like to run a variety of cards, and this one does have some potential.
Ertai, the Corrupted does seem like a reasonable deck for him, as having a lite-version of your Commander can be useful when facing tuck/Nevermore. I'd also consider him in something like Dralnu, Lich Lord, where pretty much all of your creatures may want to be an emergency sac-outlet for him.
If you're running tokens anyway then he becomes pretty good. I'm not sure how many U/B decks want him, although I did clean out all the copies in my local bulk bin not too long ago.
I have seen him used to great effect in Oona, Queen of the Fae where you have lots of fodder to use. You basically use it to counter any flyer so that your horde of Faerie Rogues can swing away unimpeded. Other than that, I don't think its powerful enough to really enable any particular strategy.
I have played Brine Shaman a ton. That second ability is money if you have tokens, or creatures whose lives you don't really care about. The first ability is no slouch either, just as a sac outlet.
I think he's got a great mix of "This card looks like a lot of fun" and "I never really make decks where he would be good." I love his handpainted artwork. I still can't afford a copy of Bitterblossom until it becomes a casual only card though, so it'll be awhile until he sees use from me.
Outside of a Salvaging Station package, does anyone actually run this card? Maybe Glissa, the Traitor, but I would still suspect Station would be in the deck.
I've played this card once, and would play again. The first was Erayo, Soratami Ascendant. It's a 0 cost spell, and unlike many other 0 cost spells, it cantrips (well, delayed cantrips), which pretty much makes it a shoe-in.
The second deck I'd play it in is Isperia the Inscrutable, because it can (probably) give you enough intel to hit an Isperia trigger to tutor a guy. Yeah, there's all the Clairvoyance variants out there, but this one is free and will (probably) get the job done.
So, not totally useless, but it's not exactly a staple, either.
0 mana delayed cantripping, and i think kinda prominent part of the brother's war saga? is that supposed to be that shard that urza and mishra got out of the thran heartlands or something?
I don't run it even in my Glissa/Salvaging Station deck. I'm not saying someone else shouldn't run it, and the delayed cantrip effect is not a bad thing, but I do like my decks to have multiple paths to victory, and this seems the sort of card that is more likely to fit if one is going completely all-in with one aspect of a deck.
I feel like most of the time, It's better to play Conjuror's Bauble to get the immediate draw (and occasional graveyard protection/recursion effect) for most cases where you'd consider this card.
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In many ways, running this card is like being allowed to build a deck with only 98 cards. If it drew the card immediately, it would be an autoinclude in almost every single deck. I mean, assuming you are trying to make your decks as tuned as possible. Recurring it is just gravy. If it drew the card instantly and there were 20 functional reprints of it, I would run all twenty.
The only strike I can really see against it is if you are running someone like Grenzo where you need to keep your ratio of a certain non-creature card type up.
EDIT: I suppose null rod would also cause some problems for my 20 bauble deck...
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This was before they printed good warriors, berserkers, etc. Goblin Sky Raider was my key sword holder.
Conversely, I imagine that cards giving "must attack" would be good with Karona, False God to ensure that everyone keeps swinging with her (particularly if you've ways of ensuring she doesn't hit you).
I really have no experience using it in EDH, because there is no way I'd use anything that janky in any Constructed format.
On phasing:
Here's a card I often see when I go to build a deck. Sadly, it is way too weak for me to ever really consider for anything. Cleric tribal maybe, but even then I wouldn't have a good reason for including it. Counterspells on sticks have gotten much better since Ice Age.
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Outside of a Salvaging Station package, does anyone actually run this card? Maybe Glissa, the Traitor, but I would still suspect Station would be in the deck.
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The second deck I'd play it in is Isperia the Inscrutable, because it can (probably) give you enough intel to hit an Isperia trigger to tutor a guy. Yeah, there's all the Clairvoyance variants out there, but this one is free and will (probably) get the job done.
So, not totally useless, but it's not exactly a staple, either.
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0 mana delayed cantripping, and i think kinda prominent part of the brother's war saga? is that supposed to be that shard that urza and mishra got out of the thran heartlands or something?
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The only strike I can really see against it is if you are running someone like Grenzo where you need to keep your ratio of a certain non-creature card type up.
EDIT: I suppose null rod would also cause some problems for my 20 bauble deck...
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