Same name here as on those forums, but I didn't really say much. I rolled with the Repeat Offenders every time I came back to the game, either with my Kinetics/Dark/Dark Defender named Null Void, or my KM/SR/Energy Brute named Jax the Armsmaster.
Assuming that translation is right, Counterlash is Counterspell and a free any-creature-in-your-hand-casting (for a Quicksilver Amulet activation).
Again, assuming if the translation is right, it is far greater than a Quicksilver Amulet or Dramatic Entrance activation, since it actually casts the spell.
It's way worse than Spelljack and Desertion. And those cards were never worth a spot, IMO.
Are you sure you've been playing the format called Elder Dragon Highlander/Commander? Because I've played EDH/Commander, and Desertion and Spelljack are both massively worth the spots they're in. I mean I can understand if it's just you having a problem with playing countermagic, but Spelljack and Desertion are probably some of the toppest of tier counterspells for this format (other than the borings like Mana Drain, Force of Will, and Cryptic Command).
But referring to Counterlash, I could see it not being as good as Spelljack and Desertion purely because it requires you to have a card in addition to the Counterlash to make it any good. However, being in blue really makes that not much of a problem.
...And there's still issues with his original idea even today... what happens, for example, when you Meld a Tarmogoyf and a Scion of the Wild? The resulting creature has two different abilities that are each trying to set its power and toughness to different values. I'm sure there are other issues but that's a big one that jumps to my mind.
It gets the power/toughness setting ability of one, with +1/+1 counters equal to the power of the other at the time the ability was resolved? Unless I'm missing something, I don't see what's the big problem with that.
I'd actually think that it would be less useful in EDH because of the prevalence of sweepers. I'd like to try it out, but I don't have any decks that would really benefit from it right now. Someday.
Spellskite is actually hilarious against Uril. They either have to take care of Spellskite or it will forever get all of Uril's enchantments.
I've done this deck before, and good lord was it bad. Like, the type of creature you'll end up running in a Pirate/Sea Creature type deck are so low on the power curve, you'll cry if you ever actually want to win. I found a more solid way to build it is more along the line of spells and creatures that have a little pirate flavor to them, rather than out-and-out pirates. My general is Sygg, River Cutthroat and he's about twenty times better than Ramirez in actually doing something, and he can be pirate flavored as well.
EDIT: How about I provide some actual good suggestions that might fit a pirate theme, durr: Predator, Flagship (Imagine it as a giant ship of the line) Treachery (Because what's more piratey than treachery) Coastal Piracy (I mean, come on.) Greed (Good card, and pirates are greedy) Trade Routes (Yarr, we be sailin' the trade routes, takin' what we please!)
I saw an entirety of six posts dedicated to Trade Routes, but all of them were in relation to obtaining repeated use of ETB effect lands. I would like to just mention the card in general. It gives any land you draw Cycling 1! I had one out in a game where I was drawing way too many lands, and those lands weren't hindering me at all as I could just cycle through them to get to the meat of my deck.
Just a warning to anyone using this list, Recurring Nightmare is banned in EDH. So unless your playgroup specifically unbans it you'll have to use something else.
EDIT: Also, Painter's Servant is banned, so you'll want to ignore that part of the combo's section.
I'm running a R/W Brion Stoutarm equipment deck. Works really well, though I need to add in more enchantment destruction for the jerk who always seems to have March of the Machines when I play it.
EDIT: Which is why you probably can't counter an Elesh Norn, Grand Cenobite to get a Mindslaver.
Again, assuming if the translation is right, it is far greater than a Quicksilver Amulet or Dramatic Entrance activation, since it actually casts the spell.
Are you sure you've been playing the format called Elder Dragon Highlander/Commander? Because I've played EDH/Commander, and Desertion and Spelljack are both massively worth the spots they're in. I mean I can understand if it's just you having a problem with playing countermagic, but Spelljack and Desertion are probably some of the toppest of tier counterspells for this format (other than the borings like Mana Drain, Force of Will, and Cryptic Command).
But referring to Counterlash, I could see it not being as good as Spelljack and Desertion purely because it requires you to have a card in addition to the Counterlash to make it any good. However, being in blue really makes that not much of a problem.
My mistake. Yeah, Meld is a little bit of a cluster-mess where it comes to rules.
It gets the power/toughness setting ability of one, with +1/+1 counters equal to the power of the other at the time the ability was resolved? Unless I'm missing something, I don't see what's the big problem with that.
Spellskite is actually hilarious against Uril. They either have to take care of Spellskite or it will forever get all of Uril's enchantments.
EDIT: How about I provide some actual good suggestions that might fit a pirate theme, durr:
Predator, Flagship (Imagine it as a giant ship of the line)
Treachery (Because what's more piratey than treachery)
Coastal Piracy (I mean, come on.)
Greed (Good card, and pirates are greedy)
Trade Routes (Yarr, we be sailin' the trade routes, takin' what we please!)
Sorry. Had to find something to gripe about from your post.
But seriously, I agree with all your points here.
Speaking of pits and such, how about Mimic Vat?
EDIT: Also, Painter's Servant is banned, so you'll want to ignore that part of the combo's section.