Jesus what a scary card. Rakdos might not suck after all. And to the people bringing up mana costs...ummm hello? We're in Ravnica, the plane of dual lands galore and mana fixing everywhere. Come on. :/
Exactly, we can't forget about Chromatic Lantern and playing that on turn 3. That will help tremendously with the mana issues people keep complaining about.
Rakdos won't see play in BR Zombies, that's for sure. Falkenrath Aristocrat offers that deck so much more.
But who is to say he won't see use in some BR Aggro build? Existing archetypes won't be all that runs around post rotation...
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
My Commander decks:
Chandra, Torch of Defiance - Oops! All Chandras.
Prime Speaker Zegana - Draw for Power.
Pir & Toothy - Counterpalooza.
Arcades, the Strategist - Another Brick in the Wall.
Zacama, Primal Calamity - Calamity of Double Mana.
Edgar Markov - Vampires Don't Die.
Child of Alara - Dreamcrusher.
Lightning Prowess may work on a 1-2 drop, who knows. EDH players are probably happy. I would imagine there could be some possible Standard play, but the life loss in my estimation matters more than the RRBB. R/B control could be a very good possibility
edit: BTW, Lightning Prowess can be used later on to enchant Radkos too for haste.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Any man who reads too much and uses his own brain too little falls into lazy habits of thinking. -Albert Einstein
The fact that Desecrator Demon has negative evasion and can't even block properly, while this has double evasion.
Other than that, dunno? Not that this is a good card anyway. He's decent but being uncastable after a sweeper (or a stalled board) and not having an instant effect on the board when he come into play (no haste, no EtB trigger), not having protection from removal (no Shroud/Hexproof), nor being a card advantage engine (see KotR, or any PW) mean at 4cmc he's pretty bad.
I really wanted Rakdos to be cooler. I really do like his new card, but the Premier B/R deck right now is Zombies, and Falkenrath Aristocrat seems WAY better in that build than Rakdos.
Could a new BR deck emerge from this new Rakdos? I feel like he would make a better General than a Standard finisher. Maybe if Jund becomes a thing post rotation, I'm sure he can find away in that deck. Otherwise, I'm not entirely sold on him just yet.
Why do people seem to think you have to do combat damage to meet his restriction?
Because it's the easiest way to cast Rakdos on turn 4. As soon as you have to use an instant/sorcery burn card, Rakdos will get more expensive mana-wise and you usually don't want that. Obviously, it works nicely with cards like Cunning Sparkmage etc.
Edit: Actually, I could see a deck keeping him back until it can do Lightning Bolt - Rakdos - Something else with 3 mana discount.
I think it's a pretty awesome card and very powerful even though it's kinda hard to cast. I really don't get all the hate in here. Comparisons to Falkenrath Aristocrat are kind of moot in my opinion, these creatures serve completely differen't purposes and shouldn't even compete for the same spot in the same deck tbh.
Because it's the easiest way to cast Rakdos on turn 4. As soon as you have to use an instant/sorcery burn card, Rakdos will get more expensive mana-wise and you usually don't want that. Obviously, it works nicely with cards like Cunning Sparkmage etc.
I think it's a pretty awesome card and very powerful even though it's kinda hard to cast. I really don't get all the hate in here. Comparisons to Falkenrath Aristocrat are kind of moot in my opinion, these creatures serve completely differen't purposes and shouldn't even compete for the same spot in the same deck tbh.
There are things that aren't instants and sorceries that cause life loss. Also, you don't HAVE to cast him turn 6, guys--it's certainly sweet if you can, but his cost reduction mechanic means you may well be able to cast something else after him on turn 5 or 6.
Because it's the easiest way to cast Rakdos on turn 4. As soon as you have to use an instant/sorcery burn card, Rakdos will get more expensive mana-wise and you usually don't want that. Obviously, it works nicely with cards like Cunning Sparkmage etc.
Edit: Actually, I could see a deck keeping him back until it can do Lightning Bolt - Rakdos - Something else with 3 mana discount.
I think it's a pretty awesome card and very powerful even though it's kinda hard to cast. I really don't get all the hate in here. Comparisons to Falkenrath Aristocrat are kind of moot in my opinion, these creatures serve completely differen't purposes and shouldn't even compete for the same spot in the same deck tbh.
Like I posted before, Lightning Prowess can make casting possible without extra mana resources on T4. Bump in the night can also work, and is a great card at any rate, whereas you can cast Chromatic Lantern T3 instead of enchanting to ping for 1. This way you get 3 from your subsequent casting of creatures instead of 1 and you get mana-fixing as well.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Any man who reads too much and uses his own brain too little falls into lazy habits of thinking. -Albert Einstein
Lightning Prowess is slow and super vulnerable to 2-for-1 trades. Don't run that.
I am just throwing out there some non-combat ways to do the damage. Sure, you can Geistflame too, but you only get 1 damage compared to Bump in the Night. Plus, BiN has flash back if needed late game. Lightning Prowess also gives the creature haste, so it is just a thought given you can get the direct damage in T4 and what have you.
If it did not have flashback I could more easily agree with you.
You think 6 damage for 7 mana is a good rate? Not to mention you still have to get to 6 mana in what I assume is an aggro/burn style deck. Those decks never get to 6 mana.
Seems fantastic at first glance. On second glance seems fair or merely good.
Synethesizing people's opinions:
It's harder to cast (mana-wise) than Desecration Demon or Abyssal Persecutor for a similarly sized body and abilities. I look at the second ability on Rakdos as misleading (mana costs are very color intensive now and the deck that this card goes into best has this as a curve topper most likely). It also has a secondary restriction that takes another card to overcome, but BR has the best ways to deal damage. Verdcit: Comparable to Percy. Desecration Demon is still bad. The make or break for this card is if BR can pull through with an aggro shell where this card is invaluable.
Somewhat like Falkenrath Aristocrat in the BR shell. Aristocrat has haste and this does not. By turn five, Aristocrat has dealt more damage if not dealt with. Aristocrat faces unfavorably against Tragic Slip and Lingering Souls, problems mitigated by this card. Verdict: Not worse than Falkenrath Aristocrat, but heavily depends on metagame composition.
Comparable to Phyrexian Obliterator. Both are mana color intensive four drops. Obliterator has the upside of being almost immune to being destroyed by blocks or by red damage. This card is evasive and big so it has a similar affect. So good so far. This card has a more restrictive mana cost, but it's ok because BR already wants to be played together and mana is going to be much better. Why hasn't Obilerator torn up the metagame? It does not face well against the tempo suite of cards. Verdict: If there isn't a tempo deck that runs bounce and counters, this could very well be a great card. If there is, then we have a larger problem.
You think 6 damage for 7 mana is a good rate? Not to mention you still have to get to 6 mana in what I assume is an aggro/burn style deck. Those decks never get to 6 mana.
In the limited context of Radkos, BiN is great IMO. I am not saying in other contexts that it is.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Any man who reads too much and uses his own brain too little falls into lazy habits of thinking. -Albert Einstein
I don't think the casting cost will be as big as a problem in this set, as we have 3 different lands we know of that taps for B/R, plus whatever other mana fixing is in the deck (signets?). Sure, the deal damage is a bit restrictive, but you can cast him T5. Even if you never use his creature costing less ability, a 6/6 flying trampler T4 or 5 is very devastating in the most aggressively colors and needs to be dealt with fast.
Hello, cheat ass zealous Conscripts for even more damage for even cheaper fatties.
Edit: for the people above, thats what evolving wilds is for. I'm sure if u have a solid mana base u can get him out on four. However I think I would save him for a turn or two later for possible shenanigans.
To illustrate I made a sample of 100 opening hands + 3 draws (to simulate T4 on the play) using wizardsfamiliar (a handy website for rough solitaire testing). I also mulliganed all hands, as per mulligan rules, with 0, 1, 6 or 7 lands.
Results:
No 4 lands on turn 4: 32
4 lands but no RRBB available on turn 4: 6
Could cast Rakdos on turn 4: 62
As you can see, if Rakdos ends up seeing no play (which is possible) it won't be due to mana cost.
not so sure you'd be keeping all of your 5 and 2 land hands. and at any rate, this is inside of a B/R deck, and we don't know if he'll end up in that or a three color deck yet. also, you didn't account for the few hands in which you couldn't cast radkos due to no life loss(not sure how you could, but it's still important). while the sample is cool, 100 is a very small number, maybe we could recruit a radkos testing team so we could get a better sample size.
Exactly, we can't forget about Chromatic Lantern and playing that on turn 3. That will help tremendously with the mana issues people keep complaining about.
But who is to say he won't see use in some BR Aggro build? Existing archetypes won't be all that runs around post rotation...
Chandra, Torch of Defiance - Oops! All Chandras.
Prime Speaker Zegana - Draw for Power.
Pir & Toothy - Counterpalooza.
Arcades, the Strategist - Another Brick in the Wall.
Zacama, Primal Calamity - Calamity of Double Mana.
Edgar Markov - Vampires Don't Die.
Child of Alara - Dreamcrusher.
edit: BTW, Lightning Prowess can be used later on to enchant Radkos too for haste.
Deck Building Since 2010
Level 35 Invoker
Phyrexian
:sympw::sympu::sympb::sympr::sympg:
Proud Multicolor Mage
:symw::symu::symb::symr::symg:
What am I missing????
well... based on that logic the one who should angry was Isperia
Well that's not true considering Isperia's new card is more playable than Rakdos's. But that isn't really saying much.
Deck Building Since 2010
Level 35 Invoker
Phyrexian
:sympw::sympu::sympb::sympr::sympg:
Proud Multicolor Mage
:symw::symu::symb::symr::symg:
The fact that Desecrator Demon has negative evasion and can't even block properly, while this has double evasion.
Other than that, dunno? Not that this is a good card anyway. He's decent but being uncastable after a sweeper (or a stalled board) and not having an instant effect on the board when he come into play (no haste, no EtB trigger), not having protection from removal (no Shroud/Hexproof), nor being a card advantage engine (see KotR, or any PW) mean at 4cmc he's pretty bad.
Standard: W/R Aggro
Could a new BR deck emerge from this new Rakdos? I feel like he would make a better General than a Standard finisher. Maybe if Jund becomes a thing post rotation, I'm sure he can find away in that deck. Otherwise, I'm not entirely sold on him just yet.
"There are no two words in the English language more harmful than 'good job'." -Terrance Fletcher, Whiplash (2014)
Because it's the easiest way to cast Rakdos on turn 4. As soon as you have to use an instant/sorcery burn card, Rakdos will get more expensive mana-wise and you usually don't want that. Obviously, it works nicely with cards like Cunning Sparkmage etc.
Edit: Actually, I could see a deck keeping him back until it can do Lightning Bolt - Rakdos - Something else with 3 mana discount.
I think it's a pretty awesome card and very powerful even though it's kinda hard to cast. I really don't get all the hate in here. Comparisons to Falkenrath Aristocrat are kind of moot in my opinion, these creatures serve completely differen't purposes and shouldn't even compete for the same spot in the same deck tbh.
There are things that aren't instants and sorceries that cause life loss. Also, you don't HAVE to cast him turn 6, guys--it's certainly sweet if you can, but his cost reduction mechanic means you may well be able to cast something else after him on turn 5 or 6.
Standard: W/R Aggro
Like I posted before, Lightning Prowess can make casting possible without extra mana resources on T4. Bump in the night can also work, and is a great card at any rate, whereas you can cast Chromatic Lantern T3 instead of enchanting to ping for 1. This way you get 3 from your subsequent casting of creatures instead of 1 and you get mana-fixing as well.
Check out http://www.mtgbrodeals.com/author/john-murphy/ for my EDH articles!
I am just throwing out there some non-combat ways to do the damage. Sure, you can Geistflame too, but you only get 1 damage compared to Bump in the Night. Plus, BiN has flash back if needed late game. Lightning Prowess also gives the creature haste, so it is just a thought given you can get the direct damage in T4 and what have you.
If it did not have flashback I could more easily agree with you.
You think 6 damage for 7 mana is a good rate? Not to mention you still have to get to 6 mana in what I assume is an aggro/burn style deck. Those decks never get to 6 mana.
Check out http://www.mtgbrodeals.com/author/john-murphy/ for my EDH articles!
Synethesizing people's opinions:
It's harder to cast (mana-wise) than Desecration Demon or Abyssal Persecutor for a similarly sized body and abilities. I look at the second ability on Rakdos as misleading (mana costs are very color intensive now and the deck that this card goes into best has this as a curve topper most likely). It also has a secondary restriction that takes another card to overcome, but BR has the best ways to deal damage.
Verdcit: Comparable to Percy. Desecration Demon is still bad. The make or break for this card is if BR can pull through with an aggro shell where this card is invaluable.
Somewhat like Falkenrath Aristocrat in the BR shell. Aristocrat has haste and this does not. By turn five, Aristocrat has dealt more damage if not dealt with. Aristocrat faces unfavorably against Tragic Slip and Lingering Souls, problems mitigated by this card.
Verdict: Not worse than Falkenrath Aristocrat, but heavily depends on metagame composition.
Comparable to Phyrexian Obliterator. Both are mana color intensive four drops. Obliterator has the upside of being almost immune to being destroyed by blocks or by red damage. This card is evasive and big so it has a similar affect. So good so far. This card has a more restrictive mana cost, but it's ok because BR already wants to be played together and mana is going to be much better. Why hasn't Obilerator torn up the metagame? It does not face well against the tempo suite of cards.
Verdict: If there isn't a tempo deck that runs bounce and counters, this could very well be a great card. If there is, then we have a larger problem.
In the limited context of Radkos, BiN is great IMO. I am not saying in other contexts that it is.
Johnny application time. Spikes look away.
Profane Command for X = 4. You get Rakdos (provided you get him in the graveyard) and can play all artifact creatures in hand that cost 4 or less.
Good thing the command is ordered that way. edit. Actually it doesn't matter the order
Edit: for the people above, thats what evolving wilds is for. I'm sure if u have a solid mana base u can get him out on four. However I think I would save him for a turn or two later for possible shenanigans.
You just dropped so much data. I'm so proud. I'm glad to say that the scientific community is on board with Rakdos. Partners in science!
Feel free to tell me yours!
not so sure you'd be keeping all of your 5 and 2 land hands. and at any rate, this is inside of a B/R deck, and we don't know if he'll end up in that or a three color deck yet. also, you didn't account for the few hands in which you couldn't cast radkos due to no life loss(not sure how you could, but it's still important). while the sample is cool, 100 is a very small number, maybe we could recruit a radkos testing team so we could get a better sample size.