Decks that play this are likely to have another early turn where they'll want to play more than one card, flipping their own waif. That's the part that I don't like.
Yeah that's another reason why I hated it, it restricts you ability to play out your hand.
I mean I used her for over a month in my board and she was terrible other than on the play against control decks (where even then she was merely okay). Card is not good and I quite frankly don't understand why so many people are wasting sideboard slots on them. Personally I side in more Stonewrights for those control matchups as they do the job of the Waif much better and I don't have to rely on my opponent keeping slow hands for them to be good.
i play 4 stonewright MD. if im on the play, which is when I bring her in vs control, she's flipping most of the time on my t2. i find this to be quite good and not a wasted SB slot
^ it's more about guaranteeing a dangerous 1 drop. The games where you can go 1 drop into 2 drop on the play are by far your easiest.
Just looking at Raw output though, it seems like a waste of SB slots to me.
Assuming on the play vs. a t4 wrath, a common occurence against control in this meta, and not getting your waif flipped back:
Reckless Waif:
3+3+3 = 9 dmg
Cackler:
2+2+2 = 6 dmg
Noble:
1+2+3 = 6 dmg
I'm not saying it isn't a better card than cackler/noble against control, but is a potential 3 damage extra in an ideal circumstance worth it vs having other relevant cards for other matchups?
You're not wrong; but you need to consider that having 12 1 drops post board significantly increases your chance of having that opening; which is the bigger concern. I would say that in games where on the play I go 1 drop into 2 drop; I win 75%+.
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I'm not saying it isn't a better card than cackler/noble against control, but is a potential 3 damage extra in an ideal circumstance worth it vs having other relevant cards for other matchups?
Mono-red doesn't have a wide selection of sideboard cards anyway. Would Duress be a better sideboard against slow decks on the play? Yep. Can we cast it? Nope.
Even if she does flip, is the flip side really enough better than cackler/noble to warrant sb space?
To put it simply, yes, the back side is obviously waaaaay better than Cackler. We're playing Cackler because it is more consistent damage overall, but there are some important things to remember when playing with Werewolves. (Any Werewolf, not just Reckless Waif.)
1.) Your opponent is generally determined to not let them flip. Even if it is a vanilla dude on the back, a lot of times they'll play around it regardless. Too many times have I had people play main phase instants just to keep her from flipping. I enjoy this.
2.) Shocklands are a thing. Slow starts are increasingly likely as the meta slows down.
3.) She can block at any stage, if your Cackler sits around for a while with no leash on, and then later you need a blocker, you're SOL.
I've been playing them in place of Rakdos Cackler and they're fine. I can't say I notice a huge difference in early aggression, and if she flips later into the game, hey, that's great, I basically got a Cackler with +1/+1 that can still block.
I've said it before, and I'll say it again. Werewolves in general in mono red are awesome. Especially when you have mana sinks like Stonewright, and have a fist full of instants like Searing Spear or Skullcrack to unleash at other times.
If the board stalls I like the power that they bring to the table if you can't outrace your opponent (which happens even with an aggressive mono red).
Waif has done some good work for me, especially if the opponent does NOT have a 1 drop, that's just even better.
Mono-red doesn't have a wide selection of sideboard cards anyway.
It has a wide enough selection of cards that devoting 4 slots to a card that's only good in a specific matchup (control) and only good in a specific circumstance in that matchup (when you're on the play) isn't a good choice in my opinion. I know I'm always running out of room when I'm designing my Mono-Red sideboards even if the options are limited and devoting nearly a third of my sideboard to such a narrow card is just a poor choice to me. If the control matchup was otherwise terrible then maybe it would be worth the slots to make it better but I've personally never had that much trouble beating control. Like I said I tested the card out of the board for a month and it's just not a good card except in this one narrow circumstance.
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Yeah that's another reason why I hated it, it restricts you ability to play out your hand.
i play 4 stonewright MD. if im on the play, which is when I bring her in vs control, she's flipping most of the time on my t2. i find this to be quite good and not a wasted SB slot
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Just looking at Raw output though, it seems like a waste of SB slots to me.
Assuming on the play vs. a t4 wrath, a common occurence against control in this meta, and not getting your waif flipped back:
Reckless Waif:
3+3+3 = 9 dmg
Cackler:
2+2+2 = 6 dmg
Noble:
1+2+3 = 6 dmg
I'm not saying it isn't a better card than cackler/noble against control, but is a potential 3 damage extra in an ideal circumstance worth it vs having other relevant cards for other matchups?
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Mono-red doesn't have a wide selection of sideboard cards anyway. Would Duress be a better sideboard against slow decks on the play? Yep. Can we cast it? Nope.
To put it simply, yes, the back side is obviously waaaaay better than Cackler. We're playing Cackler because it is more consistent damage overall, but there are some important things to remember when playing with Werewolves. (Any Werewolf, not just Reckless Waif.)
1.) Your opponent is generally determined to not let them flip. Even if it is a vanilla dude on the back, a lot of times they'll play around it regardless. Too many times have I had people play main phase instants just to keep her from flipping. I enjoy this.
2.) Shocklands are a thing. Slow starts are increasingly likely as the meta slows down.
3.) She can block at any stage, if your Cackler sits around for a while with no leash on, and then later you need a blocker, you're SOL.
I've been playing them in place of Rakdos Cackler and they're fine. I can't say I notice a huge difference in early aggression, and if she flips later into the game, hey, that's great, I basically got a Cackler with +1/+1 that can still block.
Because we care about facts.
If the board stalls I like the power that they bring to the table if you can't outrace your opponent (which happens even with an aggressive mono red).
Waif has done some good work for me, especially if the opponent does NOT have a 1 drop, that's just even better.
It has a wide enough selection of cards that devoting 4 slots to a card that's only good in a specific matchup (control) and only good in a specific circumstance in that matchup (when you're on the play) isn't a good choice in my opinion. I know I'm always running out of room when I'm designing my Mono-Red sideboards even if the options are limited and devoting nearly a third of my sideboard to such a narrow card is just a poor choice to me. If the control matchup was otherwise terrible then maybe it would be worth the slots to make it better but I've personally never had that much trouble beating control. Like I said I tested the card out of the board for a month and it's just not a good card except in this one narrow circumstance.