But seriously, though, I tend to run him in "sac matters" decks. Though he is rarely as useful as Yosei or Kokusho, he has his value. Obviously dragon tribal prefers Ryusei.
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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!
It's useful to get a good upgrade to a weak creature if all the counters are placed on one or two creatures but distributed to four or five might as well play Ridgescale Tusker instead.
He's got so many techy uses, but he just isn't as reliably swingy as the rest of the cycle. Being a mono green flyer sort of helps, and there are plenty of ways to abuse his counters. And, of course, there's combos. Add Immortality to him and sage of hours, with a sac outlet, and you have an infinite turns combo that you at least had to work for.
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The Meaning of Life: "M-hmm. Well, it's nothing very special. Uh, try and be nice to people, avoid eating fat, read a good book every now and then, get some walking in, and try and live together in peace and harmony with people of all creeds and nations"
Onering's 4 simple steps that let you solve any problem with Magic's gameplay
Whether its blue players countering your spells, red players burning you out, or combo, if you have a problem with an aspect of Magic's gameplay, you can fix it!
Step 1: Identify the problem. What aspect of Magic don't you like? Step 2: Find out how others deal with the problem. How do players deal with this aspect of the game when they run into it? Step 3: Do what those players do. Step 4: No more problem. Bonus: You are now better at Magic. Enjoy those extra wins!
He's niche. I like him as a mono green flier (which basically no one expects) and you could put some of the very large green auras that occasionally pop up on him for a unique voltron strategy.
I personally felt that Jugan had the best art among the original 5 arts. Didn't like the positioning of Kokusho or Ryusei (where they were facing and probably moving away from you, might have been a conscious decision considering the two of them were the ones with "ending/negative" titles, but I still didn't like the "ignoring you completely" aspect of the arts).
In a vacuum it's obviously worst of the lot, but once you have a +1/+1 counter theme (which got minor support in recentyears) he starts to stand out better (definitely better than Ryusei and perhaps maybe even Keiga depending on the support). Too bad my (partial) +1/+1 theme is with Animar and with that GGG cost Jugan isn't winning that coveted 6-drop slot plenty of other cards are fighting for.
I think the only one of the 5 that I prefer the Kamigawa art over the iconic masters. The card itself is not as universally useful as the others but in a deck that is looking to manipulate +1+1's its power increases significantly.
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EDH BRGKresh the BloodbraidedBRG, A box of lands and ideas.
Modern: RG Titanshift. A deck made of cards too stupid for EDH.
Retired: Lots. More than I feel you should suffer through or I should type out.
How this guy can make a train fly I don't know, but as far as MTG Weird Flavor Things go, that one doesn't even scratch the top 1000.
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My Commander decks:
Chandra, Torch of Defiance - Oops! All Chandras.
Prime Speaker Zegana - Draw for Power.
Pir & Toothy - Counterpalooza.
Arcades, the Strategist - Another Brick in the Wall.
Zacama, Primal Calamity - Calamity of Double Mana.
Edgar Markov - Vampires Don't Die.
Child of Alara - Dreamcrusher.
I'm sure there's a Galaxy Express 999 reference in there. Or that ******* train level from Shadows of the Empire.
I'm sure this guy is useful in a dedicated deck, but I don't think vehicles are quite there yet.
As an aside, I do wish Beleren had an italic version for Heart of Kiran and Skysovereign.
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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!
How this guy can make a train fly I don't know, but as far as MTG Weird Flavor Things go, that one doesn't even scratch the top 1000.
What makes this guy's flavor even more weird is that its weirdness is front and center, really the whole point of his flavor. Sure, a hawk swinging a legendary sword is weird, as is a leviathan wearing lightning greaves, but those a cards designed from a flavor standpoint with humanoids in mind, and their weirdness comes from the fact that there are a whole bunch of non-humanoids that can use them. Basically, they get weird because the game gets in the way of the flavor. The whole flavor behind this guy, though, is an extreme example of that, as the only vehicles affected by his ability are ones that don't normally fly. Playing him on flavor, in a deck filled with airships and thopters, does nothing. His supposed 1337 pilot skills don't make any difference compared to any other creature that can crew a vehicle. Its only when you have trains, cars, boats, tanks, walkers, and other land and sea based vehicles that his ability comes into play. The flavor of him being a 1337 pilot ONLY shows up when he's flying trains or pirate ships. His flavor only works when its bizarre, and never when it makes sense.
As for play-ability, he is useless outside of a vehicles deck and fairly playable inside of one. I'd say better in Sram vehicles than Depala because Sram doesn't care that he isn't a dwarf.
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The Meaning of Life: "M-hmm. Well, it's nothing very special. Uh, try and be nice to people, avoid eating fat, read a good book every now and then, get some walking in, and try and live together in peace and harmony with people of all creeds and nations"
Onering's 4 simple steps that let you solve any problem with Magic's gameplay
Whether its blue players countering your spells, red players burning you out, or combo, if you have a problem with an aspect of Magic's gameplay, you can fix it!
Step 1: Identify the problem. What aspect of Magic don't you like? Step 2: Find out how others deal with the problem. How do players deal with this aspect of the game when they run into it? Step 3: Do what those players do. Step 4: No more problem. Bonus: You are now better at Magic. Enjoy those extra wins!
If they had flavored him as an artificer instead of a pilot I would've given him a pass, as it makes sense for a aeronautical expert to be able to convert just about any vehicle into a flying machine given the right resources.
As-is, a flavor fail on top of just being a meh card.
I love the idea of this card. However, it is bad. Even worse for not being a dwarf.
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"Whatever style you wish to play, be it fast and frenzied or slow and tactical, the surest way to defeat your opponent consistently is by dominating him or her in the war of card advantage." - Brian Wiseman, April 1996
Fair enough. Most of the time you pay actually more, but it gives you something else as well (e.g., Akroma's Memorial, Eldrazi Monument).
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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!
So for a big massive protector of a plane, Avacyn's judgment seems rather piddly, doesn't it?
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My Commander decks:
Chandra, Torch of Defiance - Oops! All Chandras.
Prime Speaker Zegana - Draw for Power.
Pir & Toothy - Counterpalooza.
Arcades, the Strategist - Another Brick in the Wall.
Zacama, Primal Calamity - Calamity of Double Mana.
Edgar Markov - Vampires Don't Die.
Child of Alara - Dreamcrusher.
You really want this for the madness cost. And I know more than one spellshaper I could use this with. Or looters.
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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!
This is a card that seems like it ought to get paid more, since Forked Bolt isn't a BAD card and the upshot of madnessing this out for a billion is high. Despite that, it isn't in my Daretti or Rakdos decks. I imagine it's because the truth is that you would have to spend ungodly amounts of mana to get value out of this, and at that point Rolling Earthquake, Blasphemous Act, Starstorm, Comet Storm, etc are just better investments. Most players (like me) are also paranoid about running a spell that is "removal" but not super broad since you have to be ready for anything - I don't run Flame Slash or Lightning Bolt in many of my red decks even though intellectually I know they'll do work, so this has a much higher hill to climb.
Super good in Jaya Ballard, Task Mage or any commander that can both reliably pitch it AND wants the synergy of pitching it.
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Sufferer of EDHD
Commander - Currently Playing: RCRDaretti: Superfriends Forever RCR WGBDoran: Ent-mootWBG GGGMultani: Group Bear HugGGG GB(B/G)The Gitrog Monster: Dredgefall DurdleGB(B/G) RGWGahiji, the Honored Group Hug MonsterRGW UB(U/B)Yuriko, Ninja Trinket AggroUB(U/B) WUBRGAtogatog: Assembling a OHKOWUBRG
I was thinking Fathom Mage for a similar effect.
But seriously, though, I tend to run him in "sac matters" decks. Though he is rarely as useful as Yosei or Kokusho, he has his value. Obviously dragon tribal prefers Ryusei.
On phasing:
Dragons of Legend, Lead by Scion of the UR-Dragon
The Gitrog Monster
Gonti, Lord of Luxury
Shogun Saskia
Hive World
Atraxa hates fun
Abzan
Doubling Season, Winding Constrictor, and Hardened Scales can give out some extra counters.
It's useful to get a good upgrade to a weak creature if all the counters are placed on one or two creatures but distributed to four or five might as well play Ridgescale Tusker instead.
EDH decks: 1. RGWMayael's Big BeatsRETIRED!
2. BUWMerieke Ri Berit and the 40 Thieves
3. URNiv's Wheeling and Dealing!
4. BURThe Walking Dead
5. GWSisay's Legends of Tomorrow
6. RWBRise of Markov
7. GElvez and stuffz(W)
8. RCrush your enemies(W)
9. BSign right here...(W)
Onering's 4 simple steps that let you solve any problem with Magic's gameplay
Step 1: Identify the problem. What aspect of Magic don't you like? Step 2: Find out how others deal with the problem. How do players deal with this aspect of the game when they run into it? Step 3: Do what those players do. Step 4: No more problem. Bonus: You are now better at Magic. Enjoy those extra wins!
Credit to DolZero for this awesome sig!
In a vacuum it's obviously worst of the lot, but once you have a +1/+1 counter theme (which got minor support in recent years) he starts to stand out better (definitely better than Ryusei and perhaps maybe even Keiga depending on the support). Too bad my (partial) +1/+1 theme is with Animar and with that GGG cost Jugan isn't winning that coveted 6-drop slot plenty of other cards are fighting for.
BRGKresh the BloodbraidedBRG, A box of lands and ideas.
Modern:
RG Titanshift. A deck made of cards too stupid for EDH.
Retired: Lots. More than I feel you should suffer through or I should type out.
How this guy can make a train fly I don't know, but as far as MTG Weird Flavor Things go, that one doesn't even scratch the top 1000.
Chandra, Torch of Defiance - Oops! All Chandras.
Prime Speaker Zegana - Draw for Power.
Pir & Toothy - Counterpalooza.
Arcades, the Strategist - Another Brick in the Wall.
Zacama, Primal Calamity - Calamity of Double Mana.
Edgar Markov - Vampires Don't Die.
Child of Alara - Dreamcrusher.
I'm sure this guy is useful in a dedicated deck, but I don't think vehicles are quite there yet.
As an aside, I do wish Beleren had an italic version for Heart of Kiran and Skysovereign.
On phasing:
Dragons of Legend, Lead by Scion of the UR-Dragon
The Gitrog Monster
Gonti, Lord of Luxury
Shogun Saskia
Hive World
Atraxa hates fun
Abzan
What makes this guy's flavor even more weird is that its weirdness is front and center, really the whole point of his flavor. Sure, a hawk swinging a legendary sword is weird, as is a leviathan wearing lightning greaves, but those a cards designed from a flavor standpoint with humanoids in mind, and their weirdness comes from the fact that there are a whole bunch of non-humanoids that can use them. Basically, they get weird because the game gets in the way of the flavor. The whole flavor behind this guy, though, is an extreme example of that, as the only vehicles affected by his ability are ones that don't normally fly. Playing him on flavor, in a deck filled with airships and thopters, does nothing. His supposed 1337 pilot skills don't make any difference compared to any other creature that can crew a vehicle. Its only when you have trains, cars, boats, tanks, walkers, and other land and sea based vehicles that his ability comes into play. The flavor of him being a 1337 pilot ONLY shows up when he's flying trains or pirate ships. His flavor only works when its bizarre, and never when it makes sense.
As for play-ability, he is useless outside of a vehicles deck and fairly playable inside of one. I'd say better in Sram vehicles than Depala because Sram doesn't care that he isn't a dwarf.
Onering's 4 simple steps that let you solve any problem with Magic's gameplay
Step 1: Identify the problem. What aspect of Magic don't you like? Step 2: Find out how others deal with the problem. How do players deal with this aspect of the game when they run into it? Step 3: Do what those players do. Step 4: No more problem. Bonus: You are now better at Magic. Enjoy those extra wins!
It was playable in limited, that's about it.
EDH Primers
Phelddagrif - Zirilan
EDH
Thrasios+Bruse - Pang - Sasaya - Wydwen - Feather - Rona - Toshiro - Sylvia+Khorvath - Geth - QMarchesa - Firesong - Athreos - Arixmethes - Isperia - Etali - Silas+Sidar - Saskia - Virtus+Gorm - Kynaios - Naban - Aryel - Mizzix - Kazuul - Tymna+Kraum - Sidar+Tymna - Ayli - Gwendlyn - Phelddagrif 4 - Liliana - Kaervek - Phelddagrif 3 - Mairsil - Scarab - Child - Phenax - Shirei - Thada - Depala - Circu - Kytheon - GrenzoHR - Phelddagrif - Reyhan+Kraum - Toshiro - Varolz - Nin - Ojutai - Tasigur - Zedruu - Uril - Edric - Wort - Zurgo - Nahiri - Grenzo - Kozilek - Yisan - Ink-Treader - Yisan - Brago - Sidisi - Toshiro - Alexi - Sygg - Brimaz - Sek'Kuar - Marchesa - Vish Kal - Iroas - Phelddagrif - Ephara - Derevi - Glissa - Wanderer - Saffi - Melek - Xiahou Dun - Lazav - Lin Sivvi - Zirilan - Glissa
PDH - Drake - Graverobber - Izzet GM - Tallowisp - Symbiote Brawl - Feather - Ugin - Jace - Scarab - Angrath - Vraska - Kumena Oathbreaker - Wrenn&6
As-is, a flavor fail on top of just being a meh card.
Two Score, Minus Two or: A Stargate Tail
(Image by totallynotabrony)
Fair enough. Most of the time you pay actually more, but it gives you something else as well (e.g., Akroma's Memorial, Eldrazi Monument).
On phasing:
Soooo yea sorry about missing yesterday's update. Queen concert > this.
So for a big massive protector of a plane, Avacyn's judgment seems rather piddly, doesn't it?
Chandra, Torch of Defiance - Oops! All Chandras.
Prime Speaker Zegana - Draw for Power.
Pir & Toothy - Counterpalooza.
Arcades, the Strategist - Another Brick in the Wall.
Zacama, Primal Calamity - Calamity of Double Mana.
Edgar Markov - Vampires Don't Die.
Child of Alara - Dreamcrusher.
On phasing:
Only when she isn't mad about it.
http://www.commandercast.com/category/articles/generally-speaking
Follow me on Twitter: @generalspeak
Super good in Jaya Ballard, Task Mage or any commander that can both reliably pitch it AND wants the synergy of pitching it.
RCRDaretti: Superfriends Forever RCR
WGBDoran: Ent-mootWBG
GGGMultani: Group Bear HugGGG
GB(B/G)The Gitrog Monster: Dredgefall DurdleGB(B/G)
RGWGahiji, the Honored Group Hug MonsterRGW
UB(U/B)Yuriko, Ninja Trinket AggroUB(U/B)
WUBRGAtogatog: Assembling a OHKOWUBRG
Edit: wrong Neheb lol.