The premise: Mental Misstep has proven good and/or format-warping enough to be banned in both Modern and Legacy. Will this power translate to the Commander format? I don't know, but I think we have reason enough to at least give it some consideration!
Mental Misstep has a few obvious things working against it. We are all well aware that the mana curve of a typical Commander deck is significantly higher than those of many of its 60-card cousins. This means that, on average, Mental Misstep will have fewer targets than it would in more conventional constructed formats. On top of that, the tempo boost from Misstepping a 1-drop (trading 0 mana and a card for 1 mana and a card) is often not as pronounced in the multiplayer environment as it would be in a duel.
To its credit, however, the 1-drops commonly found in Commander are among the most powerful in Magic's history, and Mental Misstep offers an efficient, no-questions-asked solution in those cases. Sol Ring is the most obvious example: When starting a 4-man game with that lucksack Allen* who always wins the die roll, Misstep is a swift kick in the nuts when he runs out his inevitable turn-1 Sol Ring all cocky-like. Heck, you didn't even spend any mana answering the Sol Ring, so now you are free to cast your own when your first turn rolls around. This might be just another adventure in Magical Christmas Land, so let's look at some other scenarios. 1-drops in Commander typically fall into at least one of several of the following categories:
These are just a handful of examples, but even these are very commonplace among most Commander tables. We talk about the necessity of running spot removal in EDH, and it is often profitable to trade 1-for-1 with any of these effects. Besides,any Vampiric Tutor or Skullclamp or Condemn on your general is worth far more than a card anyway, so really you are coming out ahead in the trade in terms of mana and virtual cards.
The edge Mental Misstep has over similar cards like Spell Pierce and Annul is that Mental Misstep never requires you to leave a mana open to have an answer to these threats. This is huge, because unlike Misstep's older cousins, it means you can tap out without the fear of missing an opportunity to put your card to use. Cast Thran Dynamo on turn 4, and still stick it to the guy who decided to pop and recast his Sensei's Divining Top. Tap out for Momir Vig, Simic Visionary, then still laugh at the guy who tries to nail it with Path to Exile. Misstep allows you to curve out like you normally would while still fully retaining its usefulness.
Finally, Phyrexian mana is stronger in Commander than it would be normally. By its very nature, the 40-life format effectively cuts Misstep's and Birthing Pod's painful "drawbacks" in half. This admittedly isn't much, but it's something.
Misstep is probably already good in 1v1 Commander where the decklists and interactions greatly resemble those of Legacy, but I am not yet convinced Misstep is worth playing in multiplayer -- the goal of this post is to provoke thought and analysis on Mental Misstep and the overall nature of advantage in multiplayer. Misstep has no game against the 6-mana bombs of the format, and you could very well topdeck it on turn 15 and sigh because you have no way to filter it. However, it adds some interesting nuances to deck construction and game play, and it can impact the game state in a subtle but powerful manner. It may be unusable chaff, or it may be a decent hidden gem.
What do you think?
-----
*Allen really does have some kind of black magic luck or something.
Well this brings up a vaild argument in the particular 1 drop category that is almost always played in a 1vs1 matchup, PtE, StP and of course the infamous Norin decks are just perhaps the easiest three things to get rid of since they are the most commonly played spells.
Tutors have a different story though against this, same thing as counter magic, Pierce, Annul and all those neat little tricks blue players often use to get a early advantage are pretty null and void thanks to misstep, so if we were to look at it from a potential angle then perhaps Misstep is worth considering, after some considerable testing though because you have to remember though Misstep has played some considerable good position in a 1 vs 1 matchup, it won't always be that same advantage that helps in the long run.
The one thing to note though is since the color rule applies your maybe gonna see it in what 20% of the decks out there, if anything i would have to give a maybe to the Misstep playability for the time being, after some significant results however i believe it may show us whether or not it's good enough for a 4 or 5 man MP match.
I could see the use in certain metas but at my table it wouldn't be worth the slot. Even if you got a first turn Top/Sol Ring our multiplayer games are slow enough the player could recover.
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In multiplayer Id say it isnt worth it most of the time. Yes there are strong cards at 1 cmc but not enough to use a very specific counter. One for one counters are already somewhat of a risk in a multiplayer format. Legacy is a format based almost entirely around 1-3 drops with select few game winning cards at 4 cmc so misstep can counter a huge array of spells youre likely to encounter. In commander you encounter a huge range of CMCs that having it available when a one drop is cast is not overly likely and is otherwise a dead card. Id say it doesnt get played for the same reason we dont see Counterbalance much in this format, it is too likely to do nothing
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Its really awesome in French 1v1 which plays a lot like Legacy where tempo is huge. In multiplayer I don't see it being that great unless your meta is very developed and plays with very low curves much like Legacy/Vintage.
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On Mono Black in Commander:
Quote from BlackJack68 »
But whomever your commander is, Cabal Coffers is really in charge.
The thing about countering tutors is the threat they were going to find is still in their deck. Countering the threat means they now have to use another effect to recur it.
Really, the only reason I would even consider MM is if there's an Ad Nauseam deck or a Arcum deck in my meta (I'm fortunate to have neither).
90% of the time, in an utterly casual or Norin-less meta, MM sucks.
The other 10%, where everyone is basically playing tuned 1v1 decks with curves something close to 1 or 2 total, MM is awesome. Brokenly awesome.
Note: If anyone does actually counter my turn 1 Norin with a Mental Misstep I will scoop on the spot and buy you a drink.
Do I get to pick the drink? If so I'll be sure to mulligan until I get a Mental Misstep if I ever play against you.
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I picked the 2nd option. It's amazing in highly developed (read: vintage level) metagames with lots of fast combos and answers.
Same here. If you know you're going to see Sol Ring cast every game, MM can be good. If you're in a more casual meta it'll have a lesser impact, and the slot would be better used on a less focused counterspell.
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Through me the way to the suffering city; Through me the everlasting pain; Through me the way that runs among the Lost. Justice urged on my exalted Creator: Divine Power made me, The Supreme Wisdom and the Primal Love. Nothing was made before me but eternal things And I endure eternally. Abandon all hope - You Who Enter Here.
I would consider running it in a deck that relies heavily on the graveyard, as the most common graveyard hate spells in edh are both 1cc, running it as a protection spell rather than just playing it in hopes to snag a sol ring or top.
I would consider running it in a deck that relies heavily on the graveyard, as the most common graveyard hate spells in edh are both 1cc, running it as a protection spell rather than just playing it in hopes to snag a sol ring or top.
This is why I would run misstep. Protect my own win cons and gameplan. Sometimes Ill play a graveyard based deck and that player who goes before me just gets a turn 1 relic or nihil spellbomb. Sure wish I had MM then
The problem with defining this format by what is "fun" is that everyone seems to define fun as what they don't lose to. If you keep losing to easily answered cards, that means you should improve your deck. If you don't want to improve your deck, then you should come to peace with the idea that you are going to lose because you chose to not interact with better strategies.
I feel like the community here will not really give an accurate picture of how playable MM is in Multiplayer commander since I think the vast majority of players don't play the unpowered vintage highlander with a general style of decks. In metas where people are playing extremely low curve, Vintage style decks, Mental Misstep is awesome because its essentially free disruption.
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On Mono Black in Commander:
Quote from BlackJack68 »
But whomever your commander is, Cabal Coffers is really in charge.
I know from playing my Skithiryx list that I keep many hands that are really reliant on having that Sol Ring, Mana Vault, Imperial Seal or Vamp Tutor. Imagine this. You have a hand of Sol Ring, Swamp, Swamp Promise of power and some irrelevant stuff. With the Sol Ring this hand is keepable because you can ramp into casting promise. Should that get countered, I'm literally out of the game as I can expect to miss many land drops on the way to that Promise and I won't be in a position to take advantage of my aggressive build.
It can be incredibly good, but the format in which many choose to unleash their inner Timmy naturally poses some difficulty to that assessment. The middle choice is certainly the correct answer - it answers many high-powered cards in decks that are out to win, but less developed metagames will almost definitely prove it useless much of the time (except for the random early Top/Ring).
I think it depends on how many counters your deck wants. If you want 10+ counters, I'd say Misstep would be a welcome addition to the package. If you only want a handful of counters, there are certainly plenty of more flexible options.
I would say never. While there are things that MM can counter and if you draw it you will probably have a use for it by the end of the game, the more likely option is that any other counter spell would work better. One in a singleton format odds are against it being in your opening hand unlike in legacy or vintage where you could reasonably expect one or two every match. Two most decks run a very small number of 1 mana cards compared to other formats. Three in a multiplayer game trading one for one with an opponent isn't as good as in a one on one game.
Basically for every game you nail a turn 1 sol ring that was the only reason a player kept a sketchy hand there's going to be 3 or 4 where you draw it after turn 1 and it sits in your hand looking for a 1 drop that needs countering. Do you burn it on the turn six sol ring? Or at the swords not pointed at your creature? What's more when you do get value its not going to be trading counter-spell for primeval titan its going to be trading 1 mana, or two life, for 1 mana.
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Mental Misstep has a few obvious things working against it. We are all well aware that the mana curve of a typical Commander deck is significantly higher than those of many of its 60-card cousins. This means that, on average, Mental Misstep will have fewer targets than it would in more conventional constructed formats. On top of that, the tempo boost from Misstepping a 1-drop (trading 0 mana and a card for 1 mana and a card) is often not as pronounced in the multiplayer environment as it would be in a duel.
To its credit, however, the 1-drops commonly found in Commander are among the most powerful in Magic's history, and Mental Misstep offers an efficient, no-questions-asked solution in those cases. Sol Ring is the most obvious example: When starting a 4-man game with that lucksack Allen* who always wins the die roll, Misstep is a swift kick in the nuts when he runs out his inevitable turn-1 Sol Ring all cocky-like. Heck, you didn't even spend any mana answering the Sol Ring, so now you are free to cast your own when your first turn rolls around. This might be just another adventure in Magical Christmas Land, so let's look at some other scenarios. 1-drops in Commander typically fall into at least one of several of the following categories:
1. Busted tutors (Vampiric Tutor, Enlightened Tutor, Gamble);
2. Busted artifacts (Sol Ring, Sensei's Divining Top, Skullclamp);
3. Removal spells (Swords to Plowshares, Condemn, Pongify);
4. Silver bullets (Relic of Progenitus, Pithing Needle, Pyroblast);
5. Oddball cantrips and such (Brainstorm, Ponder, Faithless Looting);
6. Norin the Wary (Norin the Wary).
These are just a handful of examples, but even these are very commonplace among most Commander tables. We talk about the necessity of running spot removal in EDH, and it is often profitable to trade 1-for-1 with any of these effects. Besides,any Vampiric Tutor or Skullclamp or Condemn on your general is worth far more than a card anyway, so really you are coming out ahead in the trade in terms of mana and virtual cards.
The edge Mental Misstep has over similar cards like Spell Pierce and Annul is that Mental Misstep never requires you to leave a mana open to have an answer to these threats. This is huge, because unlike Misstep's older cousins, it means you can tap out without the fear of missing an opportunity to put your card to use. Cast Thran Dynamo on turn 4, and still stick it to the guy who decided to pop and recast his Sensei's Divining Top. Tap out for Momir Vig, Simic Visionary, then still laugh at the guy who tries to nail it with Path to Exile. Misstep allows you to curve out like you normally would while still fully retaining its usefulness.
Finally, Phyrexian mana is stronger in Commander than it would be normally. By its very nature, the 40-life format effectively cuts Misstep's and Birthing Pod's painful "drawbacks" in half. This admittedly isn't much, but it's something.
Misstep is probably already good in 1v1 Commander where the decklists and interactions greatly resemble those of Legacy, but I am not yet convinced Misstep is worth playing in multiplayer -- the goal of this post is to provoke thought and analysis on Mental Misstep and the overall nature of advantage in multiplayer. Misstep has no game against the 6-mana bombs of the format, and you could very well topdeck it on turn 15 and sigh because you have no way to filter it. However, it adds some interesting nuances to deck construction and game play, and it can impact the game state in a subtle but powerful manner. It may be unusable chaff, or it may be a decent hidden gem.
What do you think?
-----
*Allen really does have some kind of black magic luck or something.
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Tutors have a different story though against this, same thing as counter magic, Pierce, Annul and all those neat little tricks blue players often use to get a early advantage are pretty null and void thanks to misstep, so if we were to look at it from a potential angle then perhaps Misstep is worth considering, after some considerable testing though because you have to remember though Misstep has played some considerable good position in a 1 vs 1 matchup, it won't always be that same advantage that helps in the long run.
The one thing to note though is since the color rule applies your maybe gonna see it in what 20% of the decks out there, if anything i would have to give a maybe to the Misstep playability for the time being, after some significant results however i believe it may show us whether or not it's good enough for a 4 or 5 man MP match.
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Bear this in mind the next time a powerful mythic rare is spoiled
Thanks to chaostheory90 for finding this quiz for me
Really, the only reason I would even consider MM is if there's an Ad Nauseam deck or a Arcum deck in my meta (I'm fortunate to have neither).
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The other 10%, where everyone is basically playing tuned 1v1 decks with curves something close to 1 or 2 total, MM is awesome. Brokenly awesome.
Note: If anyone does actually counter my turn 1 Norin with a Mental Misstep I will scoop on the spot and buy you a drink.
EDH:
RNorin the WaryR <-Link! (Primer - Mono Red Control)
GUEdric, Spymaster of TrestUG <- Link! (Mini-Primer - Dredge)
Duel Commander:
WUGeist of Saint TraftUW <- Link! (Aggro-Control)
BGSkullbriar, the Walking GraveGB <- Link! (Aggro)
BUGDamia, Sage of StoneGUB <- Link! (Extinction Control)
Church of the Wary
That is definately going in my sig lmfao
And I too have thought of MM, but it just seems too situational.
Do I get to pick the drink? If so I'll be sure to mulligan until I get a Mental Misstep if I ever play against you.
Same here. If you know you're going to see Sol Ring cast every game, MM can be good. If you're in a more casual meta it'll have a lesser impact, and the slot would be better used on a less focused counterspell.
This is why I would run misstep. Protect my own win cons and gameplan. Sometimes Ill play a graveyard based deck and that player who goes before me just gets a turn 1 relic or nihil spellbomb. Sure wish I had MM then
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Would a Mana Tithe from a mono-white aggro deck provide a similar result?
Not as restrictive as Misstep, so no
Why do I feel like I'm going to be shelling out for a lot of drinks soon?
EDH:
RNorin the WaryR <-Link! (Primer - Mono Red Control)
GUEdric, Spymaster of TrestUG <- Link! (Mini-Primer - Dredge)
Duel Commander:
WUGeist of Saint TraftUW <- Link! (Aggro-Control)
BGSkullbriar, the Walking GraveGB <- Link! (Aggro)
BUGDamia, Sage of StoneGUB <- Link! (Extinction Control)
Church of the Wary
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Unless I saw specific cards that MM could answer well I don't think it would make the cut.
It would be fun to run it specifically against Sensei's divining top or Sol Ring though. The look on peoples face
RBUThraximundarUBRRUNiv-Mizzet, the FiremindUR
BWGhost Council of OrzhovaWBWUBRGChild of AlaraGRBUW
WBRKaalia of the VastRBWGBSapling of ColfenorGB
BRRakdos, Lord of RiotsBR
Basically for every game you nail a turn 1 sol ring that was the only reason a player kept a sketchy hand there's going to be 3 or 4 where you draw it after turn 1 and it sits in your hand looking for a 1 drop that needs countering. Do you burn it on the turn six sol ring? Or at the swords not pointed at your creature? What's more when you do get value its not going to be trading counter-spell for primeval titan its going to be trading 1 mana, or two life, for 1 mana.