I'm really liking the Pirates theme a few have mentioned. I think yes, needs to be broader than just Pirates, but "16th-18th century exploration age" theme seems nice the way Innistrad was kinda of a "1770-1820ish Gothic novel" themed world.
It could be a Innistrad story that Stromkirk vampires and the corpse trader scientist flee Innistrad from the sea. And then find a new continent.
For new planes I voted for a modern art flavor plane.
-Cubist golems, constructs, veldakens, shapeshifters(change shape in point, line, plain style). Cubist cities as well.
-Surreal weirds, elementals, avatars, and landscapes
-Simbolist (not so modernist hahaha) angels, faeries, wraiths, nightmares, spirits, eerie spells.
-Expressionist horrors, beasts, humans, ogres
-Impressionist animals, humans and plants
Loads of imagery to explore
About control in modern.
A lot people say we dont have a good counter and card advantage suite in modern. I think the opposite, we have too good counters and cantrips.
Aggro decks just split blue for remands and cantrips, and voilá we have a tarmo-tempo deck! RUG delver, I saw some blue infects, RUG zoo. Not counting Splitter Twin variations, that can ruin slow combo decks.
Well, I think control just have a different 'face' in modern. We have grixis playing well now for example.
For new card options i think they should reprint and unban JTMS and reprint Force Spike. Force Spike is one more fast soft counter, but is kinda different because you can have a counter for 1 mana that works for every type of card (giving more space in sideboards for example). JTMS can push the 'blue' way of controling, giving us more deck options, and I don't think he will dominate the meta.
Land destruction play an important role in Legacy, but is just weak in modern and don't exist in standard. Again, I think Wizard's choice to nerf LD to unplayable status is just lazy. Thay can make fair land destruction for modern and standard. LD is really interactive and skill intensive, no reason to dump it just because 'it can be unfair, and players don't like'. Yeah, any feature in the game can be unfair, unfair burn, unfair creatures, unfair pump spells; why LD is more unfair that other effects? We don't have a single LD card in modern banlist, and just 2 on legacy banlist. Compare with other effects like ramp, drawing cards and cheating creatures to the battlefield.
I voted for Tangolands.
But I like Latelands. They like to arrive late, but they are not slow cause they enter untapped (unlike the Slowlands from kamigawa)
Cephalids and Djimns should have fixed identites and remove weird effects.
Cephalid: tap, bounce, steal
Djimn: place counters, duplicate spells, drawbacks.
First:
White is not getting 2/2s. White is getting 2/1s!!! 2/1s can be blocked by TOKENS and mana elves!
Who cares about Consul's Lieutenant? He can be blocked by Young Pyromancer tokens lol.
Same with Vryn WingmareHushwing Griff and Aven Mindcensor, can be blocked by Spirit tokens and 2 damage per turn is not so good. Look at Delver of Secrets, it can do 3 damage on turn 2 and don't die for a stupid token, AND ITS BLUE.
Second: Archangel of the Tithes is a great card, but it can't find a deck in modern (in standard it can, the Mastery of the Unseen build is great) because mono white decks are just plain worse than other options, it just can't win, even on kitchen tables. Other colors will just BLOCK, counter, remove, laught at and block again your creatures.
Third: Path to Exiled and 4 mana mass removal are not broken.
Giving a land for a exile is pretty fair. White has access to creature romaval, it doesn't need to be turn 3 removal, or conditional. 2 mana exile target creature sorcery is more than ok IMO.
Red has 2 mana mass removal and 3 mana mass removal. Blue has 4 mana mass bounce. Black has 3 mana mass removal and 4 mana mass removal. White can have 4 mana Wrath of God and cheaper mass removal spells with no problems.
Fourth:
Other color has color pie problems that limit deck options too. Why blue is getting so much good creatures? There is a lot of instant and sorcery effects to explore... I dream with this effect: target opponent's shows his or her hand, choose a nonland card from it, targe opponent put that card on the top of is or her deck. This effect was never explored, even on Dimir cards. Dimir only gets dumb mill creatures. Blue -x/-0 options are poorly explored, they could be used on propaganda-like enchantments, -x/-0 combat tricks are boring.
EDIT: Lieutenant has first strike, thats kinda good, wonder why its so underplayed in standard
Mill, I think, enter's the modern lack of control deck issue. Don't know how to pump control on modern honestly.
For standard i run a Black/Blue control that usually wins by deck out with Ashiok. I think U/B control is a established standard deck now...
Mirran Cruzader seems really well positioned at this meta. But mono white doesnt have any tools to overcome lack of card advantage and it loses its fuel rather quickly.
White should have the most efficient creatures, why we keep getting awkward bodies like Kytheon's Irregulars(could be a good 4 drop, but dont pass the bolt test... white can have a good 3/4 for 4 with all upside... even a 4/4 for 4 maybe), Vryn Wingmare and Hushwing Gryff (why not 3/1? they are rare, are white, white has the most efficient effs on good bodies). Blue has efficient merfork printed every freaking set, why other colors don't get reliable creatures for their mono-color decks?
I'm playing lantern control now, and the results are being awesome. Pretty solid prision deck, it just needs a lot of practice to master the deck and choose the cards the works the better for you. Would say it's a much more reliable deck than R/W prision, easier to set up, can deal great against sideboards if opponend doesn't draw the cards on first turns, has more surprise factor. I think the only thing i would ask is another Lantern of insight effect, to make the deck even more reliable.
Mono white got some love on origins after a long time (Vryn WingmareArchangel of the TithesHallowed Moonlight). But White Weenie is pretty underplayed IMO, and don't see much modern or even standard tournament status (well... there is Soul Sisters ok).
But a deck I really miss is Skies deck, Pride of the Clouds is one of my favourite cards but only sees play on few kitchen table decks. I think white blue fliers could be a nice agroo tempo deck, akin to merfolk.
Stax can be fair. The unfair/players cry reason to Wizards not to print Stax cards is mediocre to me. A Stax deck appeared on the end of Ravnica/Innistrad Standard with Descend into Madness, it's an example. It just need some effort to make Stax a playful deck again.
What do you think people, know some decks that need more love?
For me a heathy meta is a meta with a LOAD of different decks.
Not the worst but a horrible one yesterday on MWS:
I had a Young Pyromancer on play and cast a bolt to his face, my opponent casts a dispel in response.
I put bolt on grave and a Elemental on field. He took the control of my elemental and sacrificed it.
Them i said "look, i still got the token, i casted the spell... do you want to check the net? i know i'm right"
He screamed on capslock "I PLAY MAGIC THE LAST 15 YEARS, I COUNTERED YOUR SPELL YOU COULDN'T CAST IT, N00B" >quits
It was the third turn of the game...
There's no outside of the city walls, the city spans the entire plane.
It could be a Innistrad story that Stromkirk vampires and the corpse trader scientist flee Innistrad from the sea. And then find a new continent.
For new planes I voted for a modern art flavor plane.
-Cubist golems, constructs, veldakens, shapeshifters(change shape in point, line, plain style). Cubist cities as well.
-Surreal weirds, elementals, avatars, and landscapes
-Simbolist (not so modernist hahaha) angels, faeries, wraiths, nightmares, spirits, eerie spells.
-Expressionist horrors, beasts, humans, ogres
-Impressionist animals, humans and plants
Loads of imagery to explore
A lot people say we dont have a good counter and card advantage suite in modern. I think the opposite, we have too good counters and cantrips.
Aggro decks just split blue for remands and cantrips, and voilá we have a tarmo-tempo deck! RUG delver, I saw some blue infects, RUG zoo. Not counting Splitter Twin variations, that can ruin slow combo decks.
Well, I think control just have a different 'face' in modern. We have grixis playing well now for example.
For new card options i think they should reprint and unban JTMS and reprint Force Spike. Force Spike is one more fast soft counter, but is kinda different because you can have a counter for 1 mana that works for every type of card (giving more space in sideboards for example). JTMS can push the 'blue' way of controling, giving us more deck options, and I don't think he will dominate the meta.
Land destruction play an important role in Legacy, but is just weak in modern and don't exist in standard. Again, I think Wizard's choice to nerf LD to unplayable status is just lazy. Thay can make fair land destruction for modern and standard. LD is really interactive and skill intensive, no reason to dump it just because 'it can be unfair, and players don't like'. Yeah, any feature in the game can be unfair, unfair burn, unfair creatures, unfair pump spells; why LD is more unfair that other effects? We don't have a single LD card in modern banlist, and just 2 on legacy banlist. Compare with other effects like ramp, drawing cards and cheating creatures to the battlefield.
But I like Latelands. They like to arrive late, but they are not slow cause they enter untapped (unlike the Slowlands from kamigawa)
Cephalid: tap, bounce, steal
Djimn: place counters, duplicate spells, drawbacks.
White is not getting 2/2s. White is getting 2/1s!!! 2/1s can be blocked by TOKENS and mana elves!
Who cares about Consul's Lieutenant? He can be blocked by Young Pyromancer tokens lol.
Same with Vryn Wingmare Hushwing Griff and Aven Mindcensor, can be blocked by Spirit tokens and 2 damage per turn is not so good. Look at Delver of Secrets, it can do 3 damage on turn 2 and don't die for a stupid token, AND ITS BLUE.
Second:
Archangel of the Tithes is a great card, but it can't find a deck in modern (in standard it can, the Mastery of the Unseen build is great) because mono white decks are just plain worse than other options, it just can't win, even on kitchen tables. Other colors will just BLOCK, counter, remove, laught at and block again your creatures.
Third:
Path to Exiled and 4 mana mass removal are not broken.
Giving a land for a exile is pretty fair. White has access to creature romaval, it doesn't need to be turn 3 removal, or conditional. 2 mana exile target creature sorcery is more than ok IMO.
Red has 2 mana mass removal and 3 mana mass removal. Blue has 4 mana mass bounce. Black has 3 mana mass removal and 4 mana mass removal. White can have 4 mana Wrath of God and cheaper mass removal spells with no problems.
Fourth:
Other color has color pie problems that limit deck options too. Why blue is getting so much good creatures? There is a lot of instant and sorcery effects to explore... I dream with this effect: target opponent's shows his or her hand, choose a nonland card from it, targe opponent put that card on the top of is or her deck. This effect was never explored, even on Dimir cards. Dimir only gets dumb mill creatures. Blue -x/-0 options are poorly explored, they could be used on propaganda-like enchantments, -x/-0 combat tricks are boring.
EDIT: Lieutenant has first strike, thats kinda good, wonder why its so underplayed in standard
For standard i run a Black/Blue control that usually wins by deck out with Ashiok. I think U/B control is a established standard deck now...
White should have the most efficient creatures, why we keep getting awkward bodies like Kytheon's Irregulars(could be a good 4 drop, but dont pass the bolt test... white can have a good 3/4 for 4 with all upside... even a 4/4 for 4 maybe), Vryn Wingmare and Hushwing Gryff (why not 3/1? they are rare, are white, white has the most efficient effs on good bodies). Blue has efficient merfork printed every freaking set, why other colors don't get reliable creatures for their mono-color decks?
I'm playing lantern control now, and the results are being awesome. Pretty solid prision deck, it just needs a lot of practice to master the deck and choose the cards the works the better for you. Would say it's a much more reliable deck than R/W prision, easier to set up, can deal great against sideboards if opponend doesn't draw the cards on first turns, has more surprise factor. I think the only thing i would ask is another Lantern of insight effect, to make the deck even more reliable.
But a deck I really miss is Skies deck, Pride of the Clouds is one of my favourite cards but only sees play on few kitchen table decks. I think white blue fliers could be a nice agroo tempo deck, akin to merfolk.
Stax can be fair. The unfair/players cry reason to Wizards not to print Stax cards is mediocre to me. A Stax deck appeared on the end of Ravnica/Innistrad Standard with Descend into Madness, it's an example. It just need some effort to make Stax a playful deck again.
What do you think people, know some decks that need more love?
For me a heathy meta is a meta with a LOAD of different decks.
I had a Young Pyromancer on play and cast a bolt to his face, my opponent casts a dispel in response.
I put bolt on grave and a Elemental on field. He took the control of my elemental and sacrificed it.
Them i said "look, i still got the token, i casted the spell... do you want to check the net? i know i'm right"
He screamed on capslock "I PLAY MAGIC THE LAST 15 YEARS, I COUNTERED YOUR SPELL YOU COULDN'T CAST IT, N00B" >quits
It was the third turn of the game...