I'd also throw Tyrant's Machine on this list.
I tend to evaluate limited commons by whether or not they would be useful at just about any point in the game.
Generally speaking, the cards above represent cards I think I'd be happy to draw on - or after - their point in the curve.
Uncommons Ensoul Artifact - may be situational, but can be huge depending on what other cards you get. Necrogen Scuddler - 3/3 flyer for 3cmc is a huge advantage, even if you have to pay 3 life. There is very little removal in m15. Ancient Silverback - Cheap regen on a big body is a big deal. He is a bomb. Stab Wound - Some of the better removal in the set, plus bleeds out your opponent which can be a bid deal in the slower limited format.
I will say that I probably missed some things as I am not a great limited player, but these are the commons/uncommons I am looking for.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Current Decks
Modern
No idea because my favorite decks keep getting banned or having the rules changed against them
"A scrupulous writer, in every sentence that he writes, will ask himself at least four questions, thus: 1. What am I trying to say? 2. What words will express it? 3. What image or idiom will make it clearer? 4. Is this image fresh enough to have an effect? And he will probably ask himself two more: 1. Could I put it more shortly? 2. Have I said anything that is avoidably ugly?"
Out of the new cards: really like Generator Servant, as well as Tyrant's Machine - it's like any deck can have an Akroan Mastiff now. Netcaster Spider also seems pretty lol as if I've read the cards right, it eats/trades with any common OR uncommon flyer (and even some rare bombs!) in the set, except the X/X Convoke angel in white if big enough. That's.... a HUGE stop sign, and in a color that can easily make creatures grow via pump/+1/+1 counter.
Cone of Flame has always been completely insane. I expect nothing has changed, and it's probably one of the top 5 cards for limited regardless of rarity.
This isn't Theros, Volton isn't a thing anymore, we're back to reality where Auras are card disadvantage nightmares. Sungrace Pegasus is a fringe playable at best, I certainly wouldn't want it in my main decks.
Nope. Mind Sculpt is as close to a 0.0 rating card as it gets. Not enough mill support, and not enough ways to stay alive while you're pitching 3 or 4 Mind Sculpts just to mill them out.
I'm not trying to attack you, most of your other ratings make sense, but these two are glaringly wrong.
Looking over the strong convoke cards, coupled with the seemingly large number of */1 creatures in the set...
I think my outside bet for surprisingly valuable card will be Festergloom.
Yeah, I probably overrated Circle of Flame there on the first pass. See my previous post for a bit of bias about 1-toughness critters. Should have put Stoke the Flames in there instead.
I'll stand by the Slyblade for now. It should be a defensive wiz, it will beat through 2 creatures unscathed provided they don't have first strike, and basically requires instant-speed removal if someone wants to take it down without paying some additional cost.
Circle of Flame is at best a sideboard card against a Red aggro deck. As a main deck card, it's terrible.
Slyblade is also nothing special. I'd rate it like 2.0 on the Limited point scale. It's base is a 2/1 Hexproof for 3 which is not playable. The ability is expensive, your opponent sees it coming a mile away, and it loses hexproof so they can still disrupt it and kill it the moment it actually matters as a real creature. It's a trap card. It looks fancy but you'll never get real value out of it unless you're playing against an idiot. Saying it "basically requires instant speed removal" to answer is not a big deal, since most of the good removal is instant speed and a smart opponent will hold that removal and make you waste a hopeful activation of 3B first. Even in the best case where your opponent can't deal with it, it's either a 2 power unblockable threat or a Moat depending on the board. That's the best case! No one is throwing a creature in front of a Slyblade without a plan.
I would also argue with the idea of Reclamation Sage as a top card. In most games it will be a vanilla 2/1 for 3. This isn't Theros. There aren't really good enchantments everywhere anymore.
And of course, Dauntless River Marshal is only good in White-Blue so it's specious to include it as one of "White's" top uncommons.
Some of these assessments seem based on a lifetime of Theros. Skyblade isn't close to Necrogen Scudder, largely since Black has practically no playable Auras. Reclamation Sage is a sideboard card, or at very best, filler... there aren't loads of strong enchantments, and few artifacts; to really affect the board, you'll want to cast this later when you might get a Will-Forged Golem out of the deal, but then the body won't be worth much.
Seraph of the Masses will be great once you get it out, but open to blowouts, too... and since 7 CMC is a big deal, I won't rate it above Warden of the Beyond- there are a number of exiling cards in W which will lead to some suprisingly quick turns of events. Also, as Phyrre says, Dauntless River Marshal is a UW card; I'd probably put the Paragon there.
is a far cry from ... not to mention there's no body. A better comparison would be Thassa's Ire, a card that's not very popular even in a format where there is usually one threat that is much more powerful than the others (and in which Constellation/enchantment theme is stronger than the artifact theme in M15 will be.) I don't hate the card, but I think it's probably good filler at best.
EDIT: I missed that Seraph has Convoke, which definitely bumps it up, though I'd still rate the Warden higher... or Constricting Sliver, based on Sene's evaluation.
My helpy helpdesk of helpfulness.
My Decks: EDH: Sygg, River Cutthroat , Road to Scion
Grimgrin, Corpseborn Modern: Polytokes IRL: Progenitus Polymorph , Goblins
White:
Best Common:Triplicate Spirits- One of the linchpins of the convoke archetype, and a very good card in its own right. Best Uncommon:Paragon of New Dawns- White is the most token-centric color, so be sure to prioritize its Paragon accordingly.
Blue:
Best Common:Frost Lynx- Blue is all over the place this draft. Tempo for UW, Self-bounce for UG, artifacts for UR, control for UB. Fortunately, Frost Lynx is good in all of the above and should be prioritized. Best Uncommon:Jace's Ingenuity- Given how much bounce blue has this set, having card advantage to make up for it is essential in any controlling build.
Black:
Best Common:Flesh to Dust- There are some very, very good commons here in Shadowcloak Vampire and Rotfeaster Maggot, but finishers are easy to come by in this set. Unconditional removal is not. Best Uncommon:Stab Wound- Easy first pick in RtR remains so here, benefitting from a minor wall subtheme.
Red:
Best Common:Lightning Strike- Duh. Best Uncommon:Cone of Flame- The presence of convoke and smaller core set creatures makes this even better than usual.
Green:
Best Common:Elvish Mystic- Convoke or no convoke, green has a demanding curve and desperately wants cheap ramp to establish board position before getting run over by the red menace. Satyr Wayfinder should be prioritized as well. Best Uncommon:Ancient Silverback- The kind of card that makes people shudder in core set limited. Difficult to attack through, difficult to race, difficult to kill.
As for the best colors...
1. Black: Deep, so very deep. All but two commons (Festergloom, Eternal Thirst) are maindeckable, and most of them are very good. Only drawback is that the curve is on the high end, so prioritize cheap spells and board stabilizers.
2. Red: Not as ubiquitously playable as black, but the cheap creatures and good burn to support an aggressive deck are abundant. Fear this deck, and be sure yours has enough answers and ways to gum up the board.
3. White: Tons of different directions to go here, but it all comes back to tokens. Having multiple Raise the Alarm and Triplicate Spirits seems like the key to unlocking the color, whether its providing the extra oomph to put a weenie deck over the top, gumming up the board for control, or simply making bodies to convoke with.
4. Green: Features some very streamlined strategies that have a lot of internal synergy and value, but without much flash and a few clunkers. A fine base color easily spruced up by some high-impact cards from the other four.
5. Blue: Strictly a support color. It has some nice options for multiple decktypes, but features too few playables and internal synergy to ever be a base color.
Honorable Mention: Artifacts: It's really hard to say if the UR artifacts deck is much more than a glass cannon. That said, many of the pieces aren't likely to be coveted by other decks, so it may be worth trying if you get passed a strong signal. High priority uncommons should be Juggernaut and Meteorite; don't get sucked into taking worthless crap like the Staffs and Ornithopter.
Ensoul Artifact - may be situational, but can be huge depending on what other cards you get.
I don't see Ensoul Artifact being very playable, if only because there aren't many playable artifacts in the set at common/uncommon. I don't see how you'd be able to consistently cast it without having to put bad artifacts in your deck, and even then it seems sketchy.
These are more my top best commons of each color, IMO, so if a card like Lightning Strike or Frost Lynx didn't make it, that's why.
Overall I think Red has the best commons. Borderland Maurader, Lightning Strike, Crowds Favor, even Blastfire Bolt isn't bad. With Black I had two cards tied because I think either would do if you only had one spot (which is crazy but, hey, IF). Ulcerate hurts a little, but it's one mana and hits a couple possible common threats, Scrapyard Mongrel, Shadowcloak Vampire, Phytotitan, all the Paragons, and opposing Indulgent Tormentors, all for a single black mana. But for 4 mana more you can ensure the destruction of anything so, points.
The only thing in uncommon that I might have to defend putting down is Ensoul Artifact, because it's only good if you have artifacts to equip it with. But I'm still putting it down as my pick because in Blue, that card alone can do so much damage. The threat of a 5/5 on turn 2 (pretty possible when you have 4 uncommon artifacts at 1 mana, and 2 at 0) puts it over the edge. Quickling and Illusory Angel have a similar weakness (you need other cards to make them good) but they'll likely see play. If I had to pick a different card though, then probably Turn to Frog.
Though, as a side note, I think people will be surprised by the White Sliver. As far as Slivers go, a Body and an oblivion ring isn't bad. Though G/R might play theirs if they have both.
is a far cry from ... not to mention there's no body. A better comparison would be Thassa's Ire, a card that's not very popular even in a format where there is usually one threat that is much more powerful than the others (and in which Constellation/enchantment theme is stronger than the artifact theme in M15 will be.) I don't hate the card, but I think it's probably good filler at best.
EDIT: I missed that Seraph has Convoke, which definitely bumps it up, though I'd still rate the Warden higher... or Constricting Sliver, based on Sene's evaluation.
Ew, for some reason I thought it was 4CMC and cost 2 to activate and tap. Yeah, this one definitely makes much more sense. Poor doge impression, then!
I also forgot to add that I'm pretty sure people will be attempting to curve T1 dude into T2 Raise the Alarm into T3 Triplicate Spirits into T4 Paragon. Insane as hell, but, uh, I guess Festergloom ftw?
I won't say he's a top common, but Scrapyard Mongrel is average to very good in a deck with a few artifacts. I had 4 in my sealed pool and he was trampling over for damage left and right. Very good with Rogue's Gloves.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Some facts of magic:
-Terror is an emotion which, when experienced, results in death.
-The pox was a disease notorious for having killed one-third, rounded up, of Europe’s population. Smallpox, on the other hand, killed only a single person.
-A person riding a horse cannot be stopped by foot soldiers, large animals, walls, archers, or even catapults.
I'll also stick to commons for now.
In WHITE, I like (in order by CMC)...
- Oreskos Swiftclaw
- Pillar of Light
- Razorfoot Griffin
- Sanctified Charge
- Triplicate Spirits
In BLUE, I like (in order by CMC)...- Welkin Tern
- Encrust
- Research Assistant
- Amphin Pathmage
- Nimbus of the Isles
In GREEN, I like (in order by CMC)...- Ranger's Guile
- Titanic Growth
- Netcaster Spider
- Hunt the Weak
- Charging Rhino
In BLACK, I like (in order by CMC)...- Sign in Blood
- Necrobite
- Flesh to Dust
- Shadowcloak Vampire
- Unmake the Graves
In RED, I like (in order by CMC)...- Generator Servant
- Lightning Strike
- Rummaging Goblin
- Blastfire Bolt
- Miner's Bane
I'd also throw Tyrant's Machine on this list.I tend to evaluate limited commons by whether or not they would be useful at just about any point in the game.
Generally speaking, the cards above represent cards I think I'd be happy to draw on - or after - their point in the curve.
Here is my list so far:
Commons
Nimbus of the Isle - 3/3 flyer is always good, even for 5 cmc.
Sungrace Pegasus - good voltron target
Amphin Pathmage - Unblock is always good to sneak dmg by
Mind sculpt - Huge mill in limited
Turn to frog - one of the cheapest removal spells in m15
Acursed Spirit - good power and evasion
Generator Servant - great ramp into a bomb.
Lightning Strike - cheap burn is good
Invasive Species - 3/3 for 3CMC is very vanilla, but can combo with other things.
Netcaster Spider - great flyer hate
Living Totem - At worst a 3/4, at best 2/3 with pump for your beater.
Uncommons
Ensoul Artifact - may be situational, but can be huge depending on what other cards you get.
Necrogen Scuddler - 3/3 flyer for 3cmc is a huge advantage, even if you have to pay 3 life. There is very little removal in m15.
Ancient Silverback - Cheap regen on a big body is a big deal. He is a bomb.
Stab Wound - Some of the better removal in the set, plus bleeds out your opponent which can be a bid deal in the slower limited format.
I will say that I probably missed some things as I am not a great limited player, but these are the commons/uncommons I am looking for.
Which is not good.
And I dream of a double Silverback pool at the prerelease.
Turn to Frog is at uncommon.
White:
Blue:
Black:
Red:
Green:
Generator Servant (this is so good i can't believe it's common)
Flesh to Dust
Lightning Strike
Welkin Tern
Pillar of Light
top 5 uncommons:
Stab Wound
Devouring Light
Heat Ray
Reclamation Sage
Juggernaut
no kidding, right?
Plus some stuff we know are good. Welkin Tern (after Theros I'm kinda sick of 2CC flyers now, thanks Vaporkin lol), Lightning Strike. Oppressive Rays can do a good Pacifism impression, but it depends on the context.
This isn't Theros, Volton isn't a thing anymore, we're back to reality where Auras are card disadvantage nightmares. Sungrace Pegasus is a fringe playable at best, I certainly wouldn't want it in my main decks.
Nope. Mind Sculpt is as close to a 0.0 rating card as it gets. Not enough mill support, and not enough ways to stay alive while you're pitching 3 or 4 Mind Sculpts just to mill them out.
I'm not trying to attack you, most of your other ratings make sense, but these two are glaringly wrong.
Sorry but he can't put the counter on himself. So at worst it's a 2/3 for 4 if you have no other creatures.
Uncommons list is below. Stuck with top 3 for each.
In WHITE, by CMC...
- Dauntless River Marshal
- Devouring Light
- Seraph of the Masses
In BLUE, by CMC...In GREEN, by CMC...
In BLACK, by CMC...
In RED, by CMC...
I think my outside bet for surprisingly valuable card will be Festergloom.
I'll stand by the Slyblade for now. It should be a defensive wiz, it will beat through 2 creatures unscathed provided they don't have first strike, and basically requires instant-speed removal if someone wants to take it down without paying some additional cost.
Slyblade is also nothing special. I'd rate it like 2.0 on the Limited point scale. It's base is a 2/1 Hexproof for 3 which is not playable. The ability is expensive, your opponent sees it coming a mile away, and it loses hexproof so they can still disrupt it and kill it the moment it actually matters as a real creature. It's a trap card. It looks fancy but you'll never get real value out of it unless you're playing against an idiot. Saying it "basically requires instant speed removal" to answer is not a big deal, since most of the good removal is instant speed and a smart opponent will hold that removal and make you waste a hopeful activation of 3B first. Even in the best case where your opponent can't deal with it, it's either a 2 power unblockable threat or a Moat depending on the board. That's the best case! No one is throwing a creature in front of a Slyblade without a plan.
I would also argue with the idea of Reclamation Sage as a top card. In most games it will be a vanilla 2/1 for 3. This isn't Theros. There aren't really good enchantments everywhere anymore.
And of course, Dauntless River Marshal is only good in White-Blue so it's specious to include it as one of "White's" top uncommons.
Seraph of the Masses will be great once you get it out, but open to blowouts, too... and since 7 CMC is a big deal, I won't rate it above Warden of the Beyond- there are a number of exiling cards in W which will lead to some suprisingly quick turns of events. Also, as Phyrre says, Dauntless River Marshal is a UW card; I'd probably put the Paragon there.
is a far cry from ... not to mention there's no body. A better comparison would be Thassa's Ire, a card that's not very popular even in a format where there is usually one threat that is much more powerful than the others (and in which Constellation/enchantment theme is stronger than the artifact theme in M15 will be.) I don't hate the card, but I think it's probably good filler at best.
EDIT: I missed that Seraph has Convoke, which definitely bumps it up, though I'd still rate the Warden higher... or Constricting Sliver, based on Sene's evaluation.
My Decks:
EDH: Sygg, River Cutthroat , Road to Scion
Grimgrin, Corpseborn
Modern: Polytokes
IRL: Progenitus Polymorph , Goblins
Just a friendly reminder that I will drive this car off a bridge
Best Common: Triplicate Spirits- One of the linchpins of the convoke archetype, and a very good card in its own right.
Best Uncommon: Paragon of New Dawns- White is the most token-centric color, so be sure to prioritize its Paragon accordingly.
Blue:
Best Common: Frost Lynx- Blue is all over the place this draft. Tempo for UW, Self-bounce for UG, artifacts for UR, control for UB. Fortunately, Frost Lynx is good in all of the above and should be prioritized.
Best Uncommon: Jace's Ingenuity- Given how much bounce blue has this set, having card advantage to make up for it is essential in any controlling build.
Black:
Best Common: Flesh to Dust- There are some very, very good commons here in Shadowcloak Vampire and Rotfeaster Maggot, but finishers are easy to come by in this set. Unconditional removal is not.
Best Uncommon: Stab Wound- Easy first pick in RtR remains so here, benefitting from a minor wall subtheme.
Red:
Best Common: Lightning Strike- Duh.
Best Uncommon: Cone of Flame- The presence of convoke and smaller core set creatures makes this even better than usual.
Green:
Best Common: Elvish Mystic- Convoke or no convoke, green has a demanding curve and desperately wants cheap ramp to establish board position before getting run over by the red menace. Satyr Wayfinder should be prioritized as well.
Best Uncommon: Ancient Silverback- The kind of card that makes people shudder in core set limited. Difficult to attack through, difficult to race, difficult to kill.
As for the best colors...
1. Black: Deep, so very deep. All but two commons (Festergloom, Eternal Thirst) are maindeckable, and most of them are very good. Only drawback is that the curve is on the high end, so prioritize cheap spells and board stabilizers.
2. Red: Not as ubiquitously playable as black, but the cheap creatures and good burn to support an aggressive deck are abundant. Fear this deck, and be sure yours has enough answers and ways to gum up the board.
3. White: Tons of different directions to go here, but it all comes back to tokens. Having multiple Raise the Alarm and Triplicate Spirits seems like the key to unlocking the color, whether its providing the extra oomph to put a weenie deck over the top, gumming up the board for control, or simply making bodies to convoke with.
4. Green: Features some very streamlined strategies that have a lot of internal synergy and value, but without much flash and a few clunkers. A fine base color easily spruced up by some high-impact cards from the other four.
5. Blue: Strictly a support color. It has some nice options for multiple decktypes, but features too few playables and internal synergy to ever be a base color.
Honorable Mention: Artifacts: It's really hard to say if the UR artifacts deck is much more than a glass cannon. That said, many of the pieces aren't likely to be coveted by other decks, so it may be worth trying if you get passed a strong signal. High priority uncommons should be Juggernaut and Meteorite; don't get sucked into taking worthless crap like the Staffs and Ornithopter.
Cubetutor Link
Common:
Encrust
Flesh to Dust
Shadowcloak Vampire
Lightning Strike
Elvish Mystic
Uncommon:
Devouring Light
Turn to Frog
Stab Wound
Necrogen Scudder
Ancient Silverback
I don't see Ensoul Artifact being very playable, if only because there aren't many playable artifacts in the set at common/uncommon. I don't see how you'd be able to consistently cast it without having to put bad artifacts in your deck, and even then it seems sketchy.
Uncommons
These are more my top best commons of each color, IMO, so if a card like Lightning Strike or Frost Lynx didn't make it, that's why.
Overall I think Red has the best commons. Borderland Maurader, Lightning Strike, Crowds Favor, even Blastfire Bolt isn't bad. With Black I had two cards tied because I think either would do if you only had one spot (which is crazy but, hey, IF). Ulcerate hurts a little, but it's one mana and hits a couple possible common threats, Scrapyard Mongrel, Shadowcloak Vampire, Phytotitan, all the Paragons, and opposing Indulgent Tormentors, all for a single black mana. But for 4 mana more you can ensure the destruction of anything so, points.
The only thing in uncommon that I might have to defend putting down is Ensoul Artifact, because it's only good if you have artifacts to equip it with. But I'm still putting it down as my pick because in Blue, that card alone can do so much damage. The threat of a 5/5 on turn 2 (pretty possible when you have 4 uncommon artifacts at 1 mana, and 2 at 0) puts it over the edge. Quickling and Illusory Angel have a similar weakness (you need other cards to make them good) but they'll likely see play. If I had to pick a different card though, then probably Turn to Frog.
Though, as a side note, I think people will be surprised by the White Sliver. As far as Slivers go, a Body and an oblivion ring isn't bad. Though G/R might play theirs if they have both.
CUBE: http://www.cubetutor.com/viewcube/73964;jsessionid=2DE1F5FF41A24820A137448A2FD5CF8F
I LIKE DRAGONS!
Ew, for some reason I thought it was 4CMC and cost 2 to activate and tap. Yeah, this one definitely makes much more sense. Poor doge impression, then!
I also forgot to add that I'm pretty sure people will be attempting to curve T1 dude into T2 Raise the Alarm into T3 Triplicate Spirits into T4 Paragon. Insane as hell, but, uh, I guess Festergloom ftw?
Here is my opinion on order of colors:
Red
White
Green
Blue
Black
I think Black is pretty horrible.
White seems weak overall. Fairly aggressive but bad removal and only a few real role players at common.
Common
Uncommon
Blue seems to have some of the more powerful commons, and some of the absolute worst to its name
Common
Uncommon
Black seems quite good to me. Solid common removal and a decent chunk of good creatures
Common
Uncommon
Red seems like the better of the aggro decks than white at this point. Decent creatures ok removal and some good tricks
Common
Uncommon
Green has far and away the most solid looking common base. While mabye not the most potentially powerful it seems the most reliable
Common
Uncommon
And I guess a last special mention to Will-Forged Golem who I think will be good in just about every deck.
So much white token generation at common and small flyers.
Anthem on a body, yes please.
-Terror is an emotion which, when experienced, results in death.
-The pox was a disease notorious for having killed one-third, rounded up, of Europe’s population. Smallpox, on the other hand, killed only a single person.
-A person riding a horse cannot be stopped by foot soldiers, large animals, walls, archers, or even catapults.
More facts of magic