I like the card in a vacuum. An aggressive WU planeswalker is interesting. My problem is that there is almost no internal consistency between this Dovin and the previous iteration. This is especially concerning because Dovin, Architect of the Law is so similar in playstyle to the original.
EDIT: I suppose you could argue that he gains life and draws cards across two separate abilities, but that is still a bit of a stretch.
If serious: he benefits when you already have creatures getting through to the dome (without boosting them, making them easier to swing with, etc) and doesn't actually win the game on his own (well, he makes Thopters, but I'm not sure how commonly Dovin will be game ending on his own). He isn't lacking in power or potential, but he's at his best when you're already on the way to a win. I can't speak to competitive (I play strictly casual), but he helps you refill your hand more quickly when you're already winning. That can be valuable, but it just feels win more to me.
I feel like a "winmore" card is a card that wins thanks to a board that already wins anyway. Dovin doesn't do that :
1- it's not because you ultimate and win with it that your board presence was enough to win, in opposition to what you think. In standard you can be attacking in the early turns, then you get stone-walled by a Drake or a million tokens, and you need to find an answer to a losing position : the ultimate helps with that.
2- its other abilities support a specific strategy and are quite fair.
A win more card is one that, while not a bad card, is one whose effects aren't essential to your gameplan for winning. They don't win games for you, and their effects are such that they are at their best when you're already doing well. They can have effects that are powerful (in fact, most win more cards are powerful) but don't secure you a win that you weren't already achieving with other cards. This Dovin is literally powered through you already swinging with (likely evasive, given his colors) creatures. He doesn't make those swings better, and he isn't a win condition on his own (if your plan B is his second ability to make 1/1 flyers, chances are he's not going to steal you a win without support), and his big ability is potent card draw.
Like I said, he's actually a powerful card. I just think he's at his best when you're already winning and doesn't actually impact that win if you're already ahead.
So not only is he being manipulated by Tezzeret and Nicol Bolas into their scheme against Ravnica, but apparently he's also being manipulated into being an aggro planeswalker by the threat of being kicked in the throat by a very angry Narset who wants nobody on her blue-white control turf.
As a planeswalker card, I like this. Very cool design. Pretty unusual for UW while still fitting in the color pair.
As an Azorius planeswalker card... Ehhh. It really doesn't fit with the guild at all versus the other Bolas-guild-walkers we've seen so far who fit pretty well with theirs. I'm sure that you could find some story hoops to jump through to have this be in-flavor but if you took off the name and mana cost and asked me which guild walker has these abilities I definitely wouldn't guess Azorius.
Because three out of five of Bolas's stooges are attached to their guilds.
Ral is an Izzet weather mage.
Vraska is a Gorgon who lives in the Golgari tunnels.
Domri is a punk kid born to a Gruul clan.
Kaya's doing the opposite of what the Orzhov do, she's eliminating ghosts instead of putting them to work. But she's also a Ghost Assassin, not a necromancer. And Dovin isn't an Azorius lawmage, he's a Kaladeshian artificer. So he's creating an aggressive spying network. The thing the Kaladeshi government loves. So he wants to be in a WU flyers deck, which I'm sure his Azorius guild will have the tools to make work (in set, as Dovin will make flying things a priority).
That's fine and all but I find it hard to buy when Dovin Baan's original card (ie: the one that introduced him as a character) reads more like an Azorius guild card in mechanics than his actual Azorius guild card does.
Edit: Kaya's card is on-theme for Orzhov and she isn't from Ravnica either.
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"Pop in, find a dragon, roast a dragon."
-Chandra Nalaar
I'm actually pretty salty about how Wedge handled this card.
A few days ago, he referred to this card as "The BEST #MTGRNA exclusive preview card ever in the world ever"
Then earlier today, a bit before the spoiler reveal, he refers to this card as "LITERALLY THE MOST IMPORTANT PREVIEW WE'VE EVER GOTTEN!"
It's awful how much he hyped this card and how it flat out totally underdelivered. I'm not going to call this card downright atrocious, but he's acting like it's Assassin's Trophy level good or the reprint of OG Counterspell for Standard and Modern. It's hard to take the guy seriously at all, especially when he's gotten preview cards much better than this one.
I mean I don't know Wedge is always a hype guy. But to judge how good this card is relative to the field I have to look up what Wedge has gotten before especially recently.
I mean we all knew Dovin Baan would be weak with a pushed Teferi around, I was surprised UW was getting another Walker quite frankly then Maro said Azorius was designed not to be great with Teferi and lets be honest Teferi does UW historically likes to do. Small Fliers and Unblockables is a niche of the color pair not the core.
That's fine and all but I find it hard to buy when Dovin Baan's original card (ie: the one that introduced him as a character) reads more like an Azorius guild card in mechanics than his actual Azorius guild card does.
Edit: Kaya's card is on-theme for Orzhov and she isn't from Ravnica either.
Not... really? Orzhov always have some mechanical use of exiling things (under the flavor that those who rule the dead can make sure some things stay dead) but that's never actually their focus. Kaya flat out is a 'kill the dead to win' card. Which is not what Orzhov is about. Especially next to Teysa who is all about making death matter and doing the Aristocrats deck in full.
The only thing on Kaya that's on theme for the Orzhov is her second ability, as a '1 or less' is a thematic number for the Orzhov.
And if you look at the flavor of the rest of the sets (this and Guilds), Dovin is reshaping the Azorius into this image. So I'm not seeing the flavor disconnect. This feels more like being mad that a storyline card is mechanically on point to the storyline. (Which Dovin Baan wasn't, really. Except for the jokes that Baan prevents having any fun. Which was the through line on Kaladeshi government figures.
Reminder that Dovin Baan's whole sthick is that he's a perfectionist. He's kind of a stuck-up bureaucrat, but his main ability is that he's able to see and correct the flaws in everything.
So he being agressively oriented is basically his way of saying "yyyeah, maybe you guys sould be a bit less of a stuck-up bureaucrat?" to the Azorius.
I am very surprised no one has mention Shape Anew here.
We in Modern haven't been able to get Shape Anew to a competitive level in years, not even when we got Clue tokens at instant speed for cheap. No wonder we'd forget that Shape Anew is a card.
(The only competitive way to cheat in expensive artifacts in Modern right now is Madcap Experiment.)
Like I said, he's actually a powerful card. I just think he's at his best when you're already winning and doesn't actually impact that win if you're already ahead.
That's kind of in-flavor for Dovin when you think about it; he rewards you for planning ahead like he does. If you've somehow failed to get any creatures, particularly evasive ones, on the battlefield by the time he arrives, then he can lend you a Thopter or two, but you really should deploy some capable officers. If you're short on staff, he'll even search for some personnel to help you if you can be patient. And if you are doing an adequate job of subduing the enemy, he'll reward you with more resources to support your campaign.
MTGS Wikia Article about "New World Order"
Every time I read a comment about "Well if this card had card draw/trample/haste/indestructible/hexproof/life gain...", I think "You're missing the point." They're armchair developer comments that fail to take into account the card's role in the greater Limited and Standard environment. No, it may not be as good as whatever card you're comparing it to. There's a reason for that. Not every burn spell is Lightning Bolt, nor does it need to be or should be.
PSA to everyone who keeps forgetting about the Reserved List:
You're on a website dedicated to talking about MtG. You're only a few keystrokes away from finding out what cards are on the Reserved List. You're also only a few keystrokes away from finding out why some cards on the Reserved List got foil printings in FtV, as Judge promos, or whatnot, as well as why that won't happen again. Stop doing this.
Like I said, he's actually a powerful card. I just think he's at his best when you're already winning and doesn't actually impact that win if you're already ahead.
That's kind of in-flavor for Dovin when you think about it; he rewards you for planning ahead like he does. If you've somehow failed to get any creatures, particularly evasive ones, on the battlefield by the time he arrives, then he can lend you a Thopter or two, but you really should deploy some capable officers. If you're short on staff, he'll even search for some personnel to help you if you can be patient. And if you are doing an adequate job of subduing the enemy, he'll reward you with more resources to support your campaign.
That's fully true. I actually like the design, it's a flavorful way to depict Dovin's disdain for ineffective systems and plans.
EDIT: I suppose you could argue that he gains life and draws cards across two separate abilities, but that is still a bit of a stretch.
A win more card is one that, while not a bad card, is one whose effects aren't essential to your gameplan for winning. They don't win games for you, and their effects are such that they are at their best when you're already doing well. They can have effects that are powerful (in fact, most win more cards are powerful) but don't secure you a win that you weren't already achieving with other cards. This Dovin is literally powered through you already swinging with (likely evasive, given his colors) creatures. He doesn't make those swings better, and he isn't a win condition on his own (if your plan B is his second ability to make 1/1 flyers, chances are he's not going to steal you a win without support), and his big ability is potent card draw.
Like I said, he's actually a powerful card. I just think he's at his best when you're already winning and doesn't actually impact that win if you're already ahead.
Archatmos
Excellion
Fracture: Israfiel (WBR), Wujal (URG), Valedon (GUB), Amduat (BGW), Paladris (RWU)
Collision (Set Two of the Fracture Block)
Quest for the Forsaken (Set Two of the Excellion Block)
Katingal: Plane of Chains
Why would you curve that, when you are clearly in an Aggro deck?
Spirits
Edit: Kaya's card is on-theme for Orzhov and she isn't from Ravnica either.
-Chandra Nalaar
It’s an unusual angle for an Azorius walker, for sure. Not my kind of thing, but will see play.
C Long Live Eldrazi C
I mean we all knew Dovin Baan would be weak with a pushed Teferi around, I was surprised UW was getting another Walker quite frankly then Maro said Azorius was designed not to be great with Teferi and lets be honest Teferi does UW historically likes to do. Small Fliers and Unblockables is a niche of the color pair not the core.
Will be getting one or two copies if the price of singles are reasonable.
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The only thing on Kaya that's on theme for the Orzhov is her second ability, as a '1 or less' is a thematic number for the Orzhov.
And if you look at the flavor of the rest of the sets (this and Guilds), Dovin is reshaping the Azorius into this image. So I'm not seeing the flavor disconnect. This feels more like being mad that a storyline card is mechanically on point to the storyline. (Which Dovin Baan wasn't, really. Except for the jokes that Baan prevents having any fun. Which was the through line on Kaladeshi government figures.
So he being agressively oriented is basically his way of saying "yyyeah, maybe you guys sould be a bit less of a stuck-up bureaucrat?" to the Azorius.
BUWGRChilds PlayGRWUB
BUWGR Highlander GRWUB
UBSquee's Shapeshifting PetBU
BW Multiplayer Control WB
RG Changeling GR
UR Mana FlareRU
UMerfolkU
B MBMC B
We in Modern haven't been able to get Shape Anew to a competitive level in years, not even when we got Clue tokens at instant speed for cheap. No wonder we'd forget that Shape Anew is a card.
(The only competitive way to cheat in expensive artifacts in Modern right now is Madcap Experiment.)
That's kind of in-flavor for Dovin when you think about it; he rewards you for planning ahead like he does. If you've somehow failed to get any creatures, particularly evasive ones, on the battlefield by the time he arrives, then he can lend you a Thopter or two, but you really should deploy some capable officers. If you're short on staff, he'll even search for some personnel to help you if you can be patient. And if you are doing an adequate job of subduing the enemy, he'll reward you with more resources to support your campaign.
Every time I read a comment about "Well if this card had card draw/trample/haste/indestructible/hexproof/life gain...", I think "You're missing the point." They're armchair developer comments that fail to take into account the card's role in the greater Limited and Standard environment. No, it may not be as good as whatever card you're comparing it to. There's a reason for that. Not every burn spell is Lightning Bolt, nor does it need to be or should be.
That's fully true. I actually like the design, it's a flavorful way to depict Dovin's disdain for ineffective systems and plans.
Archatmos
Excellion
Fracture: Israfiel (WBR), Wujal (URG), Valedon (GUB), Amduat (BGW), Paladris (RWU)
Collision (Set Two of the Fracture Block)
Quest for the Forsaken (Set Two of the Excellion Block)
Katingal: Plane of Chains