This can be seen as a boon. Now you get to use the planeswalker cards in standard for a few months rather than right before they rotate.
Venser has to be the most generic looking guy ever. You can name tons of people he looks like. Nice art, but I can't see him rocking the sideburns as much on this one.
As Caranthir and Tezzeret posted, I am surprised we went "back" in time (but again, as others have noted, the same happened with Coalition versus Phyrexia and Ajani versus Bolas). I would be much more interested in a teaser (like the Elspeth versus Tezzeret--of course, they two didn't actually fight on Mirrodin, but they did bump into each other). Also, though, we also had Liliana in a Duel Deck, so perhaps that threw them off as far as options seeing as Liliana appears to be our leading lady for Innistrad?
And poor Venser gets a little more attention since, after Quest for Karn, he won't be printed any more. This does allow us to see him again (albeit the same incarnation).
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Dominian Scholar of the Old Guard, specializing in pre-revisionist (Armada comics) and revisionist (Brothers' War through Apocalypse)history
Honestly it seems more appropriate if this was there instead of Dragons vs Knights. As of now a lil late. Don't really like a duel deck where one of the characters is already dead.
Shouldn't the set be called, if it's Venser and Koth facing the world of Scars, duel decks: Venser and Koth? They don't want to stop each other, thy're allies for god sake. It's not a duel deck, it's the duet deck they were making fun of an April fools day ago. Except instead of love, it's a buddy cop movie.
hahaha, I now have the image of Nick Nolte as Venser and Eddie Murphy as Koth forever burned in my retina. You can't unsee it!
I like the new arts. Venser looking sexy as always, and Koth actually emoting.
Strange, though how they shifted the planeswalker/faction Duel Deck schedule to make the Fall one more topical while making the VVK one LESS topical.
On the other hand, looking forward to Boros vs Simic (or whatever). With shockland reprints? Maybe?
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Level 2 Judge
Currently playing:
Standard: Superfriends!
Legacy: Nic Fit / Pod
Pauper: Delvar; Tron; Flicker Stuff
Commander: Riku ("Some weird doubple spell thing happened"); Keranos ("I did a Gatherer search for 'random' and 'flip a coin.'"); Superfriends!
I like it. Alt art versions of both PWs that will be standard-legal. I'm cool with that. Neither arts are the best I've seen from Deschamps, but they're still pretty good.
And yeah, Venser is definitely looking a bit like Michael C. Hall in this art.
So far we got Timothy Olyphant, David Tennant, and Michael C. Hall as the Venser alt art model, my vote is Stephen Dorff.
David Beckham was also mentioned.
Thor,
Yes, sure, we've time-jumped a bit, but that doesn't seem the direction Continuity is heading in, now that we only see about two novels a year and a handful of web-comics. I could be wrong, of course, but we also couldn't jump back too far and must stay post-Mending. Although this is more a discussion for the Storyline forum, Venser is probably better off left alone so continuity doesn't get any more screwy. If he wants to show up in flashback web-comic to answer all our plot holes on his age, longevity, training, and blinkmoth serum, that could be partially entertaining (similar to Garruk's "Wild Son" comic).
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Dominian Scholar of the Old Guard, specializing in pre-revisionist (Armada comics) and revisionist (Brothers' War through Apocalypse)history
I for one am looking forward to getting the foil Koth and Venser as "random extra bonus cards" in those repacks they sell at Target(2 booster packs and 15 "random" bonus cards). I got an elspeth and a tezzeret from their duel deck that way. Of course I'll probably also buy this deck, here's hoping they throw in some random good cards(path to exile in vensers deck maybe?).
This makes me really happy, but presents a bit of a dilemma -- I was just planning to purchase a Venser for cube/casual, and I really don't need two... but I also don't know if I want to wait until March. Decisions!
Can we speculate about what cards will be included here? The basic plan for Venser is pretty obvious, so we can guess a lot of inclusions. Momentary Blink as his alt-art "signature" spell would be very cool. And Reveillark as one of his rares would be epic. As for Koth, what do we think they'll do to differentiate his mono red aggro deck from Chandra's?
I'm not sure what the gameplan for Koth would be...I guess some type of Big-Red deck with your usual "cares about Mountains" spells like Jaws of Stone and its ilk.
Once again, I'll just be looking out for any possible decent reprints that get first-time modern frames treatment (Capsize, anyone?).
Wow, the art is amazing! My only problem is that Venser no longer looks like David Tennant. Still, a chance to get my hands on copies of these two guys? With awesome new art? Count me in!
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Someday, I will own all of the dragons. All of them. 43/111, approximately 39% complete. Over a third done.
(calling it now; there will be a cycle of Legendary dual lands with Basic Land types in Theros block)
... AAAAAAAAND I was wrong
As others have said, there is tremendous value in these Planeswalker Duel Decks for those of us that can't just go out and buy a playset of, say, Vensers. Heck, Venser and Koth alone are worth twice the MSRP of this particular Duel Deck. Anything else they throw in is just gravy.
I already plan to buy the Ajani vs. Bolas one (Nicol is worth the MSRP by himself), but Venser vs. Koth seems like the best value yet, at least for its two stars.
I like this a lot. It's a shame that I already have a play set of Venser, the Sojourner... eh I'll work it out like my playset of Grave Titans: use my original four in my standard/Legacy decks and the promo in EDHC.
Koth... I've never been big on red, but I could use one for collector purposes... or when I change my mind about playing red.
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Vive, vale. Siquid novisti rectius istis,
candidus inperti; si nil, his utere mecum.
~~~~~
As others have said, there is tremendous value in these Planeswalker Duel Decks for those of us that can't just go out and buy a playset of, say, Vensers. Heck, Venser and Koth alone are worth twice the MSRP of this particular Duel Deck. Anything else they throw in is just gravy.
I already plan to buy the Ajani vs. Bolas one (Nicol is worth the MSRP by himself), but Venser vs. Koth seems like the best value yet, at least for its two stars.
This. Very budget-friendly way to get some decent PW's.
I hadn't even considered the possible new-frame reprints..I always forget about those for some reason. Tezz vs Elspeth StP's & Factories were really nice..
Don't these msrp at 19.99 at walmart? I could actually afford some planeswalkers that are decent? Huh. Koth sits at over 20 right now at 15ish. Granted they'll probably rotate out of standard quickly, koth is great for cube even then. Interesting. (spoiling already? seems weird since avn isn't even released).
most honest shops will sell them for20$ so you don't have to shop at someplace that is evil like wal-mart
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Arrest this man he talks in math
The Tea Party is the working class fighting against the man fighting for the working class.
It's called EDH kids, there is no such thing as commander.
Implications of Koth's deck having an Echo subtheme: - Paying for echo costs will busy your land, so Koth's second ability becomes more relevant.
- Untapping the mountain with Koth's first ability becomes more useful, as you would usually be paying for spells.
- All the blink effects in Venser's deck become more powerful, and much more annoying. However, enough ETB effects on creatures with echo would counterbalance this. Your opponent won't want to use Venser's ability on Volcano Hellion, knowing you'll just kill his best creature with it as soon as it comes back. Same goes with Avalanche Riders, Keldon Champion or Hammerheim Deadeye. HOWEVER, your opponent will be able to deal with Tectonic Fiends or Flamecore Elementals, so it's not all bad for him either.
PS: After this gets released, Koth/Venser will be in standard for another 7 months, so that's not too shabby.
How do these duel decks usually affect the prices of the planeswalkers? I have some Koths I'm not using and I'm wondering if I should get rid of them now.
Awesome. I wouldn't have thought they'd put this out just after ajani v bolas, but there you go. Also, the new art on Koth is just ridiculously awesome.
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I wanna rock and roll all night... and part of every day.
The price will go down the drain. Halfed Price is a save bet I guess.
August 2010: Price $50
Elspeth vs Tezzeret was announced on 27th May: Price droped to $40
Elspeth vs Tezzeret was released on 3rd September 2010: Price droped to $15
I agree the price will drop a decent amount for Venser and Koth, but another big reason Elspeth's price fell is that less than a month after the duel deck was out she was out of standard. Rotation usually has a decent impact on most card prices.
Venser has to be the most generic looking guy ever. You can name tons of people he looks like. Nice art, but I can't see him rocking the sideburns as much on this one.
And poor Venser gets a little more attention since, after Quest for Karn, he won't be printed any more. This does allow us to see him again (albeit the same incarnation).
I'm more excited for the next faction duel deck.
hahaha, I now have the image of Nick Nolte as Venser and Eddie Murphy as Koth forever burned in my retina. You can't unsee it!
Strange, though how they shifted the planeswalker/faction Duel Deck schedule to make the Fall one more topical while making the VVK one LESS topical.
On the other hand, looking forward to Boros vs Simic (or whatever). With shockland reprints? Maybe?
Currently playing:
Standard: Superfriends!
Legacy: Nic Fit / Pod
Pauper: Delvar; Tron; Flicker Stuff
Commander: Riku ("Some weird doubple spell thing happened"); Keranos ("I did a Gatherer search for 'random' and 'flip a coin.'"); Superfriends!
And yeah, Venser is definitely looking a bit like Michael C. Hall in this art.
meat's Trade Corner
MOD::symw::symu::symb: Gifts
LEG::symg::symb: Infect
David Beckham was also mentioned.
Thor,
Yes, sure, we've time-jumped a bit, but that doesn't seem the direction Continuity is heading in, now that we only see about two novels a year and a handful of web-comics. I could be wrong, of course, but we also couldn't jump back too far and must stay post-Mending. Although this is more a discussion for the Storyline forum, Venser is probably better off left alone so continuity doesn't get any more screwy. If he wants to show up in flashback web-comic to answer all our plot holes on his age, longevity, training, and blinkmoth serum, that could be partially entertaining (similar to Garruk's "Wild Son" comic).
Yeah, I was thinking the same thing...I would not be shocked to see Momentary Blink, Mulldrifter, Reveillark, Sky Hussar, Sower of Temptation (OK, I'd be a little surprised, but it would be great for Modern), and perhaps Venser, Shaper Savant (can that happen? That would be ridiculous).
I'm not sure what the gameplan for Koth would be...I guess some type of Big-Red deck with your usual "cares about Mountains" spells like Jaws of Stone and its ilk.
Once again, I'll just be looking out for any possible decent reprints that get first-time modern frames treatment (Capsize, anyone?).
43/111, approximately 39% complete. Over a third done.
(calling it now; there will be a cycle of Legendary dual lands with Basic Land types in Theros block)
... AAAAAAAAND I was wrong
The Attention Deficit Guy URGU
Capsize would be the best reprint possible, I think. It's almost too good.
Both of the new arts are excellent, and here's hoping Koth's isn't just a slow red deck wins knock off.
I already plan to buy the Ajani vs. Bolas one (Nicol is worth the MSRP by himself), but Venser vs. Koth seems like the best value yet, at least for its two stars.
Koth... I've never been big on red, but I could use one for collector purposes... or when I change my mind about playing red.
candidus inperti; si nil, his utere mecum.
~~~~~
This. Very budget-friendly way to get some decent PW's.
I hadn't even considered the possible new-frame reprints..I always forget about those for some reason. Tezz vs Elspeth StP's & Factories were really nice..
Do we have decklists for Ajani vs Bolas yet?
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most honest shops will sell them for20$ so you don't have to shop at someplace that is evil like wal-mart
Well, Chandra's deck was about fire, basically. Fast flamekin, firebreathers, and burn.
I think Koth's deck could be more about a mix of land destruction, land focus, and ROCK.
Here are my guesses for cards in Koth's deck:
- Jaws of Stone and Seismic Strike are perfect for this deck, but they were on the recent Dragons vs. Knights. I don't think that rules them out though.
- Claws of Valakut and Valakut itself are contenders. It would be odd of them to add a card banned in Modern to one of these decks, though.
- VOLCANOES MATTER: Volcanic Dragon, Volcanic Fallout, Skirk Volcanist, Volcano Hellion.
- HAMMERS MATTER: Hammerheim Deadeye, Goblin Gaveleer, Hammer of Ruin.
- VOLCANIC HAMMERS MATTER: Volcanic Hammer.
- I think we will see Echo in Koth's deck. It is synergistic with Koth's abilities, and relevant in the previously mentioned Hammerheim Deadeye (which is really good vs. UW) and Volcanic Hellion (which is a terribly fun card). Other relevant cards (i.e. fitting with the elementals/brute force theme) with Echo that fit Koth's theme are: Avalanche Riders, Basalt Gargoyle, Crater Hellion, Firemaw Kavu, Flamecore Elemental, Ghitu Slinger, Shivan Raptor, Keldon Champion, Subterranean Shambler and Tectonic Fiend. Of course, Thick-skinned Goblin if they go this way.
Implications of Koth's deck having an Echo subtheme:
- Paying for echo costs will busy your land, so Koth's second ability becomes more relevant.
- Untapping the mountain with Koth's first ability becomes more useful, as you would usually be paying for spells.
- All the blink effects in Venser's deck become more powerful, and much more annoying. However, enough ETB effects on creatures with echo would counterbalance this. Your opponent won't want to use Venser's ability on Volcano Hellion, knowing you'll just kill his best creature with it as soon as it comes back. Same goes with Avalanche Riders, Keldon Champion or Hammerheim Deadeye. HOWEVER, your opponent will be able to deal with Tectonic Fiends or Flamecore Elementals, so it's not all bad for him either.
PS: After this gets released, Koth/Venser will be in standard for another 7 months, so that's not too shabby.
Cannot unsee.
SPAM
http://cubetutor.com/viewcube/1959
I agree the price will drop a decent amount for Venser and Koth, but another big reason Elspeth's price fell is that less than a month after the duel deck was out she was out of standard. Rotation usually has a decent impact on most card prices.
RGW Rith, the Awakener
BRG Prossh, Skyraider of Kher
UBR Nicol Bolas
GWU Treva, the Renewer
RWU Numot, the Devastator