The Kraul bugdude from C16 comes to mind. He is, yet again, something with sacrifice.
Or Kambal. Yet again WB has something to do with lifegain/lifeloss. They really need to shake things up.
It's getting annoying.
So you go back two years ago to find a BG legend that cares about sacrifice when you could go back one year and find two that don't. You look at the last set to find a WB that drains life, when again you could have gone to last year and found one that was all about reanimation.
So it seems exactly like I said, the problem isn't the color pie or even its execution. The problem is on your end, you look at the most 'popular' focus of a color or color pair and declare the color pie as too restricting regardless of how many other representations are available.
Those are two legends I had lying in front of me. That doesn't mean I can't find more.
New ground desperately needs to be broken.
BG
We just got Gitrog Monster. An interesting blend of Lands and Grave effects.
Ikra Shidiqi focuses on Toughness with no sacrifice mechanics.
Pharika and Reyhan both broke new ground as well.
WB
We got Daxos, an Enchantment-focused Legendary.
Even if Ajani can't find Sarkhan again, Narset is part of the story-circle. She seems like she would help if Tamiyo called for it. And she could maybe pull Sarkhan.
A LOT of her actions are fueled by hotheaded, instinctual and emotion-driven reactions and she often dislikes/hates authority as they tend to take away various freedoms from her.
Chandra is way too much of a rebellious person to be part of Boros or Iroas ( ) . Which is what Gideon is like. Soldiers, martial prowess, order, etc.
She also is not very Rakdos or Mogis ( ). Which is kind of known for sadistic pleasure, brutal maimings, wanton violence, etc.
She is not really an Izzet or Keranos person ( ) . Because she does not have the personality of Dack Fayden or Ral Zarak.
So where does that leave her? She would be right at home among the Gruul or maybe in one of Xenagos's revels if she was into that.
Quote from Gruuls Biggest Strengths and Weaknesses »
Red/Green's greatest strength is the force of its brutality. With nothing making it hold anything back, Red/Green packs a powerful punch. Even colors with answers to Red/Green often fall to the speed and raw power of Red/Green. To paraphrase a famous pro player (Dave Price): "There are wrong answers; there are never wrong threats."
Red/Green's greatest weakness is its complete lack of foresight or preparation. If Red/Green's Plan A doesn't work, Red/Green has problems because it didn't bother to come up with a Plan B. Heck, plan A wasn't that well thought out either. In addition, Red/Green has problems solving things that aren't straight-forward. Once the option of blowing it up and then hitting it are exhausted, Red/Green starts to run out of options.
You are generalizing all colour pairs based on Ravnica guilds. Not all ( ) characters are fans of orgy-massacres. It is also about just enjoying life.
Yeah see I wouldn't have minded the Eldrazi on Innistrad -- would've made the gothic thing be way more Lovecraftian, which is never a complaint! But as you said, Eldrazi were ruined for me. We got to see Zendikar, a plane booming with cool lands and plants, turn into a tiring boring plane overtaken by Eldrazi (a "HUGE THREAT" that were easily taken down by 4 twenty something year olds? what???)
Killing Avacyn was ssuuuuch a huge mistake. I know we'll return to the plane SOMEDAY due to how much people love it and the loose ends they left, so maybe they'll find a way to bring her back..? Maybe..? Hopeful wishes haha.
Also, on topic, how freaking AMAZING was the art for new Emrakul?! I'm still impressed, months later!
Well, Sigarda is still alive, but not as strong as Avacyn. So there's still an Angel around for the "Good Guys" to build their Church around, but she's not gonna be strong enough to keep someone like Emrakul from showing up.
But like 5colors said, apparently there was supposed to be a block between BfZ and SoI that got scrapped or shuffled to a later date, leaving us with two Eldrazi stories back-to-back, which left people feeling bored with the bloody things.
And I'll repeat my argument until I die: the Gatewatch should NOT have been able to kill the Eldrazi. The Titans had recieved too much build-up as a threat for "4 twenty something year olds" to credibly kill them. Defeat, like how the Fantastic Four have defeated or redirected Galactus, certainly, but not outright kill.
(Sorry, off-topic)
The problem with replacing Avacyn with Sigarda, is simply that Sigarda can in no way, shape or form fill Avacyn's shoes. She's nowhere near as powerful, which in and of itself wouldn't necessarily be an insurmountable obstacle, except that the system of enchantments that propped up the Avacynian church is also gone. No more wards, no more Avacynian magic, nothing. Without Avacyn (and the great big ol pyramid of magic she was but the tip of) the entire church is a useless husk offering little more than pointless dogma.
It's not going to take the population long to realize that Sigarda simply CANNOT BE a replacement for Avacyn, and then what would be the point of carrying on the Avacynian tradition? People will HAVE to turn to other sources for protection against all the horrors of the plane. They'll HAVE to turn away from the church, which could only serve to weaken Sigarda's position even farther.
The only way I can see the church continuing to exist is shifting its focus away from the angels and towards the spirits (such as Saint Traft), but Sigarda then becomes a useless figure. She wouldn't even serve a purpose as a figure head, since many people are unlikely to keep putting their faith in an angel after what just happened anyway.
I imagine that will be a major theme for Innistrad 3.0. None of the remaining powers is strong enough any more to dominate. The church is still in a schism in 3 parts: Sigarda, the Order of St Traft, and the corrupt core ruled by Ormandhal. They are essentially in a "Game of Thrones" state with a bunch of powers fighting for dominance. Arlinn and her wolf-pack will protect some people as well. Then there is Olivia in her new position as Queen of the remaining vampires. The world is still filled with horrors, and maybe even some Eldrazi remainder, but no clear power to protect the people. This will definitely benefit the demons who will promise protection to exploit the weak and gain new sacrifices.
Ugin imprisoned the Eldrazi because they were destroying worlds and killing millions. He didn't kill them because he feared even greater catastrophe.
Call me skeptical, but I don't think Ugin really cares about the Eldrazi destroying worlds. Yes, he said he didn't want Tarkir to be next, but I suspect even that was just a "supporting excuse" he used to make Sorin more enthusiastic about the whole imprisonment.
Yes, he ultimately trapped the Eldrazi because he feared greater catastrophe, but that was pretty much the whole and only reason - he probably wanted to see what happens to the multiversal ecosystem without the Eldrazi but didn't want it to be irreversible just in case he couldn't deal with the actual consequences (which has its own loose ends because it's based on the assumption that releasing the Eldrazi would fix the problem in time, but that's another issue). Everything else he said ("for the good of the multiverse" and "let's protect our homeplanes") honestly could have been lies he made up just to convince the other 2 oldwalkers because he needed them to assist him for his actual purpose.
He way less temperamental than Bolas for sure, but the way he expressed his "disappointment" with Jace/The Gatewatch after UlaKozi were killed was literally "You ruined my experiment, I've no choice but to fall back to my last defenses against whatever might have emerged from my experiment now" (of course he put it in a more condescending way, but the point is the same).
While I can understand why people are inclined to believe Ugin, I'm skeptical (and paranoid) enough to not take his words at face value, because other than his words, we know as much of his motives as we know the purpose of the Eldrazi. We (as the readers) have not yet been treated to his internal thought process and that is enough for me to not trust Ugin.
I think it's one thing to say that you don't trust Ugin. (You shouldn't, honestly. We don't know enough about him really.) But it's another thing entirely to imply that you might trust Bolas more. (Unless you just mean that you can always trust in Bolas to be Bolas; load your family into a bus, throw you under that bus, and then set that bus on fire, the second it looks to be in his own best interest.)
While I don't think Ugin was lying, it is a fair point: Bolas is more predictable in that we know he'll do what's best for Bolas, and everyone else can just deal with it - so he's on the Evil spectum of the Alignment Chart. Ugin, however, we don't really know whether he's on the Neutral or Good spectrums yet.
And let's not forget Bolas orchestrated the release of the titans that the GW formed to "defeat." I think something deeper is brewing which is why I'm choosing to remain neutral until I see more of this story method unfold. I do see potential in it. Nissa's home was harmed enough by Nixlis to maim her emotionally, all GW carry some sort of burden and backstory, Nahiri is out there - there's potential.
At this point of time, I'm empathizing more with Bolas than Ugin. We always assume Bolas is doing something "evil", but that may not be true. Sure, he's still solidly in the "evil" side (and probably never leaving) but unlike Ugin, he witnessed the Time Rifts and during that period he has demonstrated his willingness to "help" against something threatening him as well as long as the "helping" itself doesn't affect him negatively (I had to be this specific because I'm sure Bolas is the kind who will go "we'll go down together" if he's forced to the lose-lose corner).
At this point of time Ugin is the morally ambiguous scientist who imprisoned the Eldrazi "For Science!", while Bolas is a known villain who does things for either his benefit or his survival. The Eldrazi, being an unknown factor could very much mean their orchestrated release could still be for survival reasons rather than benefit. Of course, all this hinges on what we don't know about the Eldrazi and how much each Dragon Planeswalker knows about them.
So you're right, there's a lot of hidden potential there and it doesn't even have to be the cliche ones we can see coming. Mainly due to the Eldrazi being so ambiguous (as well as Ugin and Bolas recently), but because of it so many realms of possibilities are open.
Ugin imprisoned the Eldrazi because they were destroying worlds and killing millions. He didn't kill them because he feared even greater catastrophe.
As for Nahiri and the Dragonlords, she wouldn't need to fight them head on. The Broods are already warring, she just has to tip the balance.
She also has little reason to fight Ugin, when she shows up to talk to him he has a valid excuse. Besides the fact that even in new-walker mode he is way above her as a possible Elder Dragon. He would trounce her. It would be like Jace taking Bolas in a straight on fight.
Considering Bolas got tricked and sealed in his own pocket plane by a non-planeswalker before, I wouldn't find it surprising if Nahiri was capable of doing the same with both the repaired Hedron Network (which she should still be capable of repairing) and the knowledge that Ugin can be sealed in it (that she might gain from Tarkir from either Sarkhan or the Dragonlords, mainly because I think Ugin isn't on Tarkir). It fits her concept of "poetic justice" in some way (she wanted Innistrad to pay for Sorin's ignorance, but for Ugin it will be more for the conscious decision to seal the Eldrazi in the first place - Sorin had no real bargaining power against that decision in the first place).
That actually does make sense. She finds out that Ulamog and Kozilek were destroyed and realized Ugin lied to her.
The Gatewatch had numerous advantages including the Oldwalkers' Hedron Network. Without it they couldn't possibly match the Titans. It was a one-time thing that they couldn't duplicate. It took decades to build the network. They also channeled the entire mana of Zendikar and barely made it.
As for Nahiri and the Dragonlords, she wouldn't need to fight them head on. The Broods are already warring, she just has to tip the balance.
She also has little reason to fight Ugin, when she shows up to talk to him he has a valid excuse. Besides the fact that even in new-walker mode he is way above her as a possible Elder Dragon. He would trounce her. It would be like Jace taking Bolas in a straight on fight.
Except one of the fundamental parts of the MtG lore is that the game takes place in a multiverse. Important events should be happening in lots of places. We get two, maybe three, glimpses a year at stories that have nothing to do with the fab five. It's frustrating to know that thousands upon thousands of worlds exist and we're stuck watching Jace and pals stumble into one victory after another.
To be fair, before the Gatewatch we still barely explored the multiverse. There were only a dozen or so planes that had been explored in any detail, with usually 1 or maybe 2 each year. Now we are consistently getting 2 a year plus the small side adventures from Commander and such. And holding a story over multiple disconnected places is hard unless you follow the overlap, which just happens to be Planeswalkers. We used to just follow Urza and the Weatherlight crew. We did it post-mending with 2 main casts: Elspeth and friends, and what eventually became the Gatewatch. The only thing that has changed is who we are focusing on as the main characters. And the Gatewatch lets us see them interact on a regular basis, not just in pairs scattered over the years. There were few situations where more than 2 Planeswalkers were in the same place, only the awakening of the Eldrazi and the Infinite Consortium that one time.
We now have characters who we can see develop. We can follow them and not have to wait 3 years for them to appear again like Elspeth or Sarkhan. They interplay off of each other and grow. Chandra just had a good story last week with Gideon also getting some good moments. We are still getting excellent stories of Plane-bound characters like Tazri and Yahenni, but we get a narrative that transcends blocks.
Further, as user_938036 pointed out, the whole crew of the Weatherlight had quite a bit of plot armor right up until the end of the saga.
Eh, I wouldn't exactly say that. In their first outing, trying to rescue Sisay from Volrath, they took quite a few casualties. Rofellos and Mirri died. Ertai and Crovax were MIA. Starke was struck blind and Tahngarth was mutated. And, technically, Hanna contracted the Phyrexian plague. Also, remember that they got their asses kicked in the first encounter with Greven and the Predator.
Yeah, sure, at the end of the day it was still trite, fantasy pulp. But the story enforced stakes, you felt as though the characters were in some sort of peril. The same can't be said of the Gatewatch. They've been around for three blocks, as many as the Weatherlight crew were in, and have defeated entities billed as threats to oldwalkers while suffering no losses. That's fine for a Saturday morning cartoon, but a lot of folks, WotC creative among them, bristle at this sort of comparison.
Yeah, while I don't dislike the Gatewatch as a concept, I agree with the people claiming that they were poorly introduced; giving them a clean win over the Eldrazi, when they had been built up as a threat that three Oldwalkers couldn't kill? It de-fanged both the Oldwalkers and the Eldrazi as a threat.
I'd have much preferred if they had been forced to release the Eldrazi from Zendikar completely, once their attempt to re-seal the Eldrazi were screwed over irrevocably by Ob Nixilis; pull out the nail keeping them on the Plane, to use Ugin's "Titan's are the TRUE Eldrazi's hands"-metaphor.
Speaking of saturday morning cartoons, I think Wizard's should at least take a note from the DCAU Justice League series - don't have the entire Gatewatch present for every story. Split them up, have them work separate cases, and bring them all together for the big season finale (Bolas, Eldrazi, InJacetus League, etc). Give the characters breathing room.
You're over looking a rather important difference that might be gone soon but is currently an important distinction. Each of those groups is/was significantly larger than the gatewatch currently. As the gatewatch grows expect to see less than the full team on each mission(we already know Ajani isn't going to be on Amonkhet because he thinks its dumb to rush head first into such a threat), though I doubt any block will feature a member going solo.
Fair point, though I still think that Liliana, Chandra and Nissa would be enough of a Gatewatch presence in this story, especially with Ajani and Saheeli joining forces with them against Tezzeret and Dovin (and Ajani formally joining the Gatewatch afterwards) - pulling Jace and Gideon into the current story as well makes it feel... crowded.
Gideon had that good story last week. I think it makes somewhat sense for him to be called in for back-up when things went into revolt.
How is independent thought discouraged? They hold a fair specifically to showcase new ideas and fund inventors.
I'm talking about dissenting opinions. Criticism. A dictatorship does not preclude innovation, especially the kind of innovation that serves the needs of the dictatorship. Some of the greatest leaps in technology of the last century were created in dictatorial regimes.
Example of stamping out dissenting opinions? And enforcing the law against Aether smuggling doesnt really count. We have seen very little evidence of the Consulate being sinister except for Tezzeret and Baral's actions.
BG
We just got Gitrog Monster. An interesting blend of Lands and Grave effects.
Ikra Shidiqi focuses on Toughness with no sacrifice mechanics.
Pharika and Reyhan both broke new ground as well.
WB
We got Daxos, an Enchantment-focused Legendary.
They care about the law when breaking it means they dont get what they want. They care about what they want, but part of that is the ones they love.
You are generalizing all colour pairs based on Ravnica guilds. Not all (
I imagine that will be a major theme for Innistrad 3.0. None of the remaining powers is strong enough any more to dominate. The church is still in a schism in 3 parts: Sigarda, the Order of St Traft, and the corrupt core ruled by Ormandhal. They are essentially in a "Game of Thrones" state with a bunch of powers fighting for dominance. Arlinn and her wolf-pack will protect some people as well. Then there is Olivia in her new position as Queen of the remaining vampires. The world is still filled with horrors, and maybe even some Eldrazi remainder, but no clear power to protect the people. This will definitely benefit the demons who will promise protection to exploit the weak and gain new sacrifices.
He seems firmly on the neutral side to me.
Ugin imprisoned the Eldrazi because they were destroying worlds and killing millions. He didn't kill them because he feared even greater catastrophe.
That actually does make sense. She finds out that Ulamog and Kozilek were destroyed and realized Ugin lied to her.
As for Nahiri and the Dragonlords, she wouldn't need to fight them head on. The Broods are already warring, she just has to tip the balance.
She also has little reason to fight Ugin, when she shows up to talk to him he has a valid excuse. Besides the fact that even in new-walker mode he is way above her as a possible Elder Dragon. He would trounce her. It would be like Jace taking Bolas in a straight on fight.
To be fair, before the Gatewatch we still barely explored the multiverse. There were only a dozen or so planes that had been explored in any detail, with usually 1 or maybe 2 each year. Now we are consistently getting 2 a year plus the small side adventures from Commander and such. And holding a story over multiple disconnected places is hard unless you follow the overlap, which just happens to be Planeswalkers. We used to just follow Urza and the Weatherlight crew. We did it post-mending with 2 main casts: Elspeth and friends, and what eventually became the Gatewatch. The only thing that has changed is who we are focusing on as the main characters. And the Gatewatch lets us see them interact on a regular basis, not just in pairs scattered over the years. There were few situations where more than 2 Planeswalkers were in the same place, only the awakening of the Eldrazi and the Infinite Consortium that one time.
We now have characters who we can see develop. We can follow them and not have to wait 3 years for them to appear again like Elspeth or Sarkhan. They interplay off of each other and grow. Chandra just had a good story last week with Gideon also getting some good moments. We are still getting excellent stories of Plane-bound characters like Tazri and Yahenni, but we get a narrative that transcends blocks.
Gideon had that good story last week. I think it makes somewhat sense for him to be called in for back-up when things went into revolt.
Karlov is positive? He is a decadant and corrupt ghost.
Example of stamping out dissenting opinions? And enforcing the law against Aether smuggling doesnt really count. We have seen very little evidence of the Consulate being sinister except for Tezzeret and Baral's actions.