MTG Salvation

Pithing Needle
Phyrexian Revoker

Are they worth running? My meta is equipment heavy with a lot of toolbox esque decks. It can also hit several powerful generals. Or would it be better to just run draw or spot removal?

Pithing Needle is a decent part of a Trinket Mage package. It's got some utility if you repeatedly see your opponents playing especially ubiquitous permanents (Top, Swords of X&Y) or heinous generals (Azami, Ghave). Revoker is less desirable as it dies easily and can't stomp on lands, but if you're part of one of those staxy metas then a cheap creature that can hold a sword and shut off a problem permanent may be worth looking into.

If you really want to stick it to equipment, though, Null Rod/Stony Silence and/or Tower of the Magistrate is the real deal. People will think twice about trying to put their Voltron machines together when they know you run any of these.

Quote from Steamsteam

Pithing Needle
Phyrexian Revoker

Are they worth running? My meta is equipment heavy with a lot of toolbox esque decks. It can also hit several powerful generals. Or would it be better to just run draw or spot removal?

Both can be answers, even if it is temporary. They are similar to O-ring and D-sphere.

I believe Revoker can name lands? As in swamp to stop Underworld Connections.

It's a silver bullet, and really powerful against some generals (ex; Azami, Lady of Scrolls). If you can make use of the 2/1 body (equipment) then by all means use the revoker over the needle, as it hits mana abilties where the needle doesnt.

However, the needle is Trinket Mage compadible, so it gets style points, costs less, and is much less fragile so it'll stick longer. If you're using the "needle effect" only for a bit, use revoker, otherwise, needle is objectively stronger just for being harder to remove. Revoker hits mana abilities, but it's rarely relevant for too long.

Quote from ajprokos

I believe Revoker can name lands? As in swamp to stop Underworld Connections.

Can't hit lands, but can stop mana abilities.

I love them both. They provide a temporary solution until you can find a real answer or someone else removes it.

I'm definitely considering Phyrexian Revoker and Meddling Mage in a Roon of the Hidden Realm list I'm brewing up. Having the ability to change them up on the fly makes them that much better.

Huge fan of both. Pithing Needle goes into almost all of my decks. It can almost always find a target in a game, and it's so cheep to cast, you can put it down at any point in the game (during your own turn of course). If you have a Trinket Mage package, this should definitely be a part of it. If you only have a few tutors in the deck, it's still probably worth it just for its versatility.

If you are looking at these as just an answer for equipment, I'd suggest looking at Tower of the Magistrate. Give their guy protection from artifacts, and the equips just fall right off.

Needle is GREAT if you can tutor it with trinket mage and/or Tezzeret the Seeker.

It hoses the strategies of entire decks that revolve around generals like Jhoira of the Ghitu, Capitan Sisay, Zedruu the Greathearted etc. It's also a pseudo-removal spell for planeswalkers. It's totally worth it.

Though if you're trying to hose a variety of equipments, I suggest animating them (which makes them fall off of a creature) with Karn, Silver Golem or march of the machines / titania's song.

I'd prefer to play them in a 1vs1 deck based on artifacts, otherwise they don't get played in my decks. Good toolbox hate, though.

I love me some Pithing Needle, but Revoker never made the cut because it is too fragile.

Quote from cryogen

I love me some Pithing Needle, but Revoker never made the cut because it is too fragile.

Yea, I have had this issue with Revoker too. Pithing Needle has done a lot in just a few tries. Though, it always absorbs spot removal, but one less I have to worry about. The Tower of Magistrate is a great idea! Thanks guys!

I run both in my Glissa, the traitor deck.

My meta used to consist of a bunch of activated abilities generals.. but my decks stopped that.

It is not at hard to find a target for them and if they are wasting removal on them I am perfectly happy with that. They are good combo protection stops things like sac outlets and spell doubling abilties. I can't interact with the stack I have to find other ways to stop combo's.

I like naming Sol ring and Sensi's divining top with them... often hits multiple people.

Plus they are both artifacts I can use them for all sorts of other things in my deck as well as recuring them when I need to.

While Pithing Needle is a Trinket Mage target, remember that tutoring up Phyrexian Revoker is really easy as well.

Muddle the Mixture and Shred Memory are both great toolbox tutors in their respective colors. Green has creature tutors, and in a pinch, Eye of Ugin can get it.

I play revoker in a Zo-Zu duel commanders deck. Otherwise I can't really think of many applications where you'd prefer it over needle unless you need artifact creatures on the field