Cool flavourful card. Can't see a huge use in any current decks I run. Would be of use if there were a commander which had a mechanic where 'number of cards revealed this turn' mattered.
You can get a pretty decent damage per mana rate on each player if you stack your deck right. Hell, with a couple doublers you can even kill the table with it. Unfortunately, that's a lotta work when there are other cards that will just reveal the top card and damage everyone based on that, which is much easier.
Works with Grenzo to turn those top of the library tutors into bottom of the library tutors, where they are more effective.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
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!
I've always loved these, and it's a good reason to run Draco in your deck. Also Gleemax when it was legal. It's like Erratic Explosion three times, so it's decent value in multiplayer. You might find more consistency from something like Breath of Malfegor, though.
Could be used to eliminate that one troublesome player if you can first play Vampiric Tutor or friends. The obvious best option is Ancestral Knowledge, of course. Chaos decks love it for this reason, and I'm sure you could put it in a Vial Smasher deck.
I suppose I could run it in Animar, since I'm almost never paying full price for my creatures anyway, but I really have several win conditions already available at six mana.
Kaboom! is fun, but it's not really a win-more card as much as it's you-could've-won.
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!
Could be used to eliminate that one troublesome player if you can first play Vampiric Tutor or friends. The obvious best option is Ancestral Knowledge, of course. Chaos decks love it for this reason, and I'm sure you could put it in a Vial Smasher deck.
I suppose I could run it in Animar, since I'm almost never paying full price for my creatures anyway, but I really have several win conditions already available at six mana.
Kaboom! is fun, but it's not really a win-more card as much as it's you-could've-won.
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!
I mean you basically have to be sitting across from three Kess decks for this to be good, yeah? Even at that cost and with the draw its still to narrow.
Riku of Two Reflections - Copy, then copy again | Shattergang Brothers - Token Sac&Recur | Gahiji, Honored One - Multiple attack steps | Karametra, God of Harvests - Landfall, Creaturefall, Shroud | Ruhan of the Fomori - Stop hitting yourself | Zurgo Helmsmasher - Equipment&Wraths | Crosis, the Purger - Dragon Tribal Reanimator | Derevi, Empyrial Tactician - No stax, just tap and untap fun | Anafenza, the Foremost - Enduring Ideal Enchantress | Sharuum, the Hegemon - Sphinx Tribal Control | Noyan Dar - Spellslinger | The Mimeoplasm - Counterpalooza
Lists can be found here.
Still convinced the guy on Beseech the Queen is wearing a Mitra-type hat. Wake up sheeple!
I mean you basically have to be sitting across from three Kess decks for this to be good, yeah? Even at that cost and with the draw its still to narrow.
Well, I feel like Muldrotha is about to become very popular. New Squee, too, although that's much less impressive since they can just cast him again.
Why did Laquatus look so different in his Tenth Edition art? The Tenth Edition version was a great image of a merfolk, any merfolk...but his block art has a distinct look, and I'm not sure why they strayed from that. He's the only downgraded art in the Tenth Edition reprinted legends, I think.
Anyway. Maybe your meta has a UR storm deck with lots of flashback, Muldrotha, Karador, Kess, Dralnu, Gisa and Geralf, Wrex, Silas Renn, Toshiro...look, I'm not saying this is the best counterspell in the world, but I think there's someone who could find a use for it. (He probably could just run more direct GY hate, though.)
The thing is: anything you can counter with this, you can also counter with any regular counterspell. And the 2 cmc plus cantrip upside is not necessarily that much better than what some other counterspells offer in terms of additional value, while also allowing you to counter not just Muldrotha shenanigans, but also all other spells.
Riku of Two Reflections - Copy, then copy again | Shattergang Brothers - Token Sac&Recur | Gahiji, Honored One - Multiple attack steps | Karametra, God of Harvests - Landfall, Creaturefall, Shroud | Ruhan of the Fomori - Stop hitting yourself | Zurgo Helmsmasher - Equipment&Wraths | Crosis, the Purger - Dragon Tribal Reanimator | Derevi, Empyrial Tactician - No stax, just tap and untap fun | Anafenza, the Foremost - Enduring Ideal Enchantress | Sharuum, the Hegemon - Sphinx Tribal Control | Noyan Dar - Spellslinger | The Mimeoplasm - Counterpalooza
Lists can be found here.
Still convinced the guy on Beseech the Queen is wearing a Mitra-type hat. Wake up sheeple!
Well it's no Hisoka's Defiance. You're at least being rewarded for your narrow card through a cheap cantrip. Flashback spells will go to exile after being Remanded though, and that works against this card. Teferi's Response is a good example of rewarding sideboard counters, and you can give it more chances to work by running some manlands.
Well it's no Hisoka's Defiance. You're at least being rewarded for your narrow card through a cheap cantrip. Flashback spells will go to exile after being Remanded though, and that works against this card. Teferi's Response is a good example of rewarding sideboard counters, and you can give it more chances to work by running some manlands.
I actually first thought of Ertai's Trickery, which features the same issue: Yeah, it's cheap, but it's so overly narrow, I can think of a dozen counterspells I'd prefer first.
I prefer block-mechanic hosers to be something that has at least some value otherwise. Double Negative, for instance, is basically a URCancel, but it's more useful against cascade. Flusterstorm and Mindbreak Trap are actually where I like to see storm hosers. At worst, Flusterstorm is a better Force Spike and Mindbreak Trap is a worse Dissipate.
This one gets close to that. There are plenty of ways to cast a spell from the graveyard other than flashback and now aftermath, and this'll be played in Commander more against Yawgmoth's Will and Muldrotha, the Gravetide and all the various other cards that let you play cards from graveyards. But there's still something missing.
Private Mod Note
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Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
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!
Well it's no Hisoka's Defiance. You're at least being rewarded for your narrow card through a cheap cantrip. Flashback spells will go to exile after being Remanded though, and that works against this card. Teferi's Response is a good example of rewarding sideboard counters, and you can give it more chances to work by running some manlands.
I actually first thought of Ertai's Trickery, which features the same issue: Yeah, it's cheap, but it's so overly narrow, I can think of a dozen counterspells I'd prefer first.
I prefer block-mechanic hosers to be something that has at least some value otherwise. Double Negative, for instance, is basically a URCancel, but it's more useful against cascade. Flusterstorm and Mindbreak Trap are actually where I like to see storm hosers. At worst, Flusterstorm is a better Force Spike and Mindbreak Trap is a worse Dissipate.
This one gets close to that. There are plenty of ways to cast a spell from the graveyard other than flashback and now aftermath, and this'll be played in Commander more against Yawgmoth's Will and Muldrotha, the Gravetide and all the various other cards that let you play cards from graveyards. But there's still something missing.
I wouldn't call mindbreak trap, even when hardcast against a single target, a worse dissipate, because it doesn't counter spells, it exiles the directly, enabling it to answer uncounterable spells. It can stop a key Abrupt Decay.
As for this card, if certain strategies rampant in your meta it can be worth it. You will be running certain other cards ahead of it, but I think in the right meta its worth reaching for for redundancy.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
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!
I've made a good many decks where the spell shuffling itself into your library is more a drawback than otherwise, when I could easily re-access it from the graveyard. Beacon of Unrest is a fairly expensive reanimation spell but comes with no strings attached and extends its targets to artifacts and other graveyards. I'd really like to see a similar card to this that brings back a creature or an enchantment in white, preferably at instant speed.
I still play Beacon in my big mana Black deck. 5 mana is a lot for a reanimate but having it get artifacts from any grave makes it worth it to me. It may be worth noting that the deck I am playing it in is pretty laid back so janky stuff like this is right at home. For me Beacon is what Commander is all about, using big splashy spells to make big crazy plays that just can't happen in other formats.
2.5/5 just barely playable and fun, but outclassed by too many cards to shine.
I've made a good many decks where the spell shuffling itself into your library is more a drawback than otherwise, when I could easily re-access it from the graveyard. Beacon of Unrest is a fairly expensive reanimation spell but comes with no strings attached and extends its targets to artifacts and other graveyards. I'd really like to see a similar card to this that brings back a creature or an enchantment in white, preferably at instant speed.
I'm pretty sure reanimator is never instant speed. You can actually divide things into instants (because the rules require it), sorceries (because balance requires it), and wobblers (effects that can be printed as either). And a small number of instants (I think there are like, three instant land destruction spells: Fissure, Scour from Existence, and Beast Within. There are also a small number of instant discard spells.) does not a wobbler make: A true wobbler would be like Divination versus Inspiration.
The fact that this can hit artifacts, and there is like one other black artifact recursion card from Kaladesh and one black land recursion card from Zendikar, does give it a place. And it can hit any graveyard.
And since cycles mean the rest of the cycle can be discussed:
Beacon of Unrest: Good removal, though if you're playing black, you can do better. I actually think this might only be playable in monored these days. Beacon of Creation: This is actually something I might consider. The big problem is that the real reason to play it is for the triggers, and many of those are multicolor. Beacon of Immortality: Only for lifegain decks. Or some really hilarious False Kavu deck. Beacon of Tomorrows: This can loop with an active Archmage Ascension, but that's the definition of winmoar, and I never got why infinite turn players feel the need to get flashier than just a Time Warp recursion loop or Sage of Hours getting five +1/+1 counters every turn or Magistrate's Scepter getting proliferated and doubled.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
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!
The fact that this can hit artifacts, and there is like one other black artifact recursion card from Kaladesh and one black land recursion card from Zendikar, does give it a place. And it can hit any graveyard.
Basically this.
I slammed it into my Gonti, Lord of Luxury deck, because it was sitting in a binder unplayed. Despite several overhauls it is still set to stay. It is a mana heavy creature reanimation tool, but heck, it is a great artifact steal piece. In a format with Paradox Engines, Caged Suns, Phyrexian Altars, Oblivion Stones and so many other juicy things it will only very rarely be able to hit all bulk.
One day i'll cast it with Mycosynth Lattice in play...
I'm pretty sure reanimator is never instant speed. You can actually divide things into instants (because the rules require it), sorceries (because balance requires it), and wobblers (effects that can be printed as either). And a small number of instants (I think there are like, three instant land destruction spells: Fissure, Scour from Existence, and Beast Within. There are also a small number of instant discard spells.) does not a wobbler make: A true wobbler would be like Divination versus Inspiration.
It's not unexplored territory, and it certainly makes combat much more interesting when you can Flash a creature into play to block, be it from your hand or the graveyard. I don't know, there are fundamental game-breaking reasons why instant speed discard is really not a thing, and I don't think reanimation spells are printed often enough to really fully explore the territory of instant speed res.
Works with Grenzo to turn those top of the library tutors into bottom of the library tutors, where they are more effective.
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!
I suppose I could run it in Animar, since I'm almost never paying full price for my creatures anyway, but I really have several win conditions already available at six mana.
Kaboom! is fun, but it's not really a win-more card as much as it's you-could've-won.
All that said, it can break through a Brainstorm or Sylvan Library; Alhammarret's Archive does it better, costs one less, and is colorless.
On phasing:
Kaboom! Costs 5
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!
The old "I don't even have to look at you" art.
Tamanoa - Welcome to the Jungle
Lists can be found here.
There are also some flashback cards that see a bunch of play, like Deep Analysis and Faithless Looting.
It's still probably too narrow to maindeck, though.
Two Score, Minus Two or: A Stargate Tail
(Image by totallynotabrony)
Anyway. Maybe your meta has a UR storm deck with lots of flashback, Muldrotha, Karador, Kess, Dralnu, Gisa and Geralf, Wrex, Silas Renn, Toshiro...look, I'm not saying this is the best counterspell in the world, but I think there's someone who could find a use for it. (He probably could just run more direct GY hate, though.)
(U/B)(U/B)(U/B) JUMP IN THE LINE, ROCK YOUR BODY IN TIME
(R/W)(R/W)(R/W) RISING FROM THE NEON GLOOM, SHINING LIKE A CRAZY MOON
(U/R)(R/G)(G/U) STEALIN' WHEN I SHOULD HAVE BEEN BUYIN'
Tamanoa - Welcome to the Jungle
Lists can be found here.
I actually first thought of Ertai's Trickery, which features the same issue: Yeah, it's cheap, but it's so overly narrow, I can think of a dozen counterspells I'd prefer first.
I prefer block-mechanic hosers to be something that has at least some value otherwise. Double Negative, for instance, is basically a UR Cancel, but it's more useful against cascade. Flusterstorm and Mindbreak Trap are actually where I like to see storm hosers. At worst, Flusterstorm is a better Force Spike and Mindbreak Trap is a worse Dissipate.
This one gets close to that. There are plenty of ways to cast a spell from the graveyard other than flashback and now aftermath, and this'll be played in Commander more against Yawgmoth's Will and Muldrotha, the Gravetide and all the various other cards that let you play cards from graveyards. But there's still something missing.
On phasing:
I wouldn't call mindbreak trap, even when hardcast against a single target, a worse dissipate, because it doesn't counter spells, it exiles the directly, enabling it to answer uncounterable spells. It can stop a key Abrupt Decay.
As for this card, if certain strategies rampant in your meta it can be worth it. You will be running certain other cards ahead of it, but I think in the right meta its worth reaching for for redundancy.
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!
The super secret tech on this card is bringing back artifacts as well, which is pretty unique for a black card.
All-star in most black decks. The fact that it's easily reusable is something to acknowledge as well, even at 5 CMC.
Theft decks would love this card as well...I know Merieke Ri Berit does.
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)
The Unidentified Fantastic Flying Girl.
EDH
Xenagos, the God of Stompy
The Gitrog Monster: Oppressive Value.
Marchesa, Marionette Master - Undying Robots
Yuriko, the Hydra Omnivore
I make dolls as a hobby.
2.5/5 just barely playable and fun, but outclassed by too many cards to shine.
amazingly epic sig courtesy of DarkNightCavalier at Heroes of the Planes.
I'm pretty sure reanimator is never instant speed. You can actually divide things into instants (because the rules require it), sorceries (because balance requires it), and wobblers (effects that can be printed as either). And a small number of instants (I think there are like, three instant land destruction spells: Fissure, Scour from Existence, and Beast Within. There are also a small number of instant discard spells.) does not a wobbler make: A true wobbler would be like Divination versus Inspiration.
The fact that this can hit artifacts, and there is like one other black artifact recursion card from Kaladesh and one black land recursion card from Zendikar, does give it a place. And it can hit any graveyard.
And since cycles mean the rest of the cycle can be discussed:
Beacon of Unrest: Good removal, though if you're playing black, you can do better. I actually think this might only be playable in monored these days.
Beacon of Creation: This is actually something I might consider. The big problem is that the real reason to play it is for the triggers, and many of those are multicolor.
Beacon of Immortality: Only for lifegain decks. Or some really hilarious False Kavu deck.
Beacon of Tomorrows: This can loop with an active Archmage Ascension, but that's the definition of winmoar, and I never got why infinite turn players feel the need to get flashier than just a Time Warp recursion loop or Sage of Hours getting five +1/+1 counters every turn or Magistrate's Scepter getting proliferated and doubled.
On phasing:
I slammed it into my Gonti, Lord of Luxury deck, because it was sitting in a binder unplayed. Despite several overhauls it is still set to stay. It is a mana heavy creature reanimation tool, but heck, it is a great artifact steal piece. In a format with Paradox Engines, Caged Suns, Phyrexian Altars, Oblivion Stones and so many other juicy things it will only very rarely be able to hit all bulk.
One day i'll cast it with Mycosynth Lattice in play...
Miraculous Recovery was the one I was thinking of just stapling Enchantment onto (instead of +1/+1,) but we've also got Betrayal of Flesh, Makeshift Mannequin, Rally the Ancestors, Wake the Dead, Fated Return, Corpse Dance, Shallow Grave, Cauldron Dance...
It's not unexplored territory, and it certainly makes combat much more interesting when you can Flash a creature into play to block, be it from your hand or the graveyard. I don't know, there are fundamental game-breaking reasons why instant speed discard is really not a thing, and I don't think reanimation spells are printed often enough to really fully explore the territory of instant speed res.
*squealing giggle*
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)