Our secondUB signpost uncommon means at least one of your creatures can attack with pseudo-vigilance and deathtouch. That's one method to get blockers out of the way.
To be fair, Duskmourn was a relatively technologically advanced plane. Considering the other factions I think this is borderline acceptable. It looks like Valgavoth's followers just picked up any vehicle they found and repurposed it into a "hellride". Being a tractor plays into that idea. It's not streamlined and hyperdesigned like the Kylem vehicles. It even plays a little into the idea that they do not win through speed (tractors aren't very fast) but through cheating.
Personally I have more problems with Amonkhet using friggin hippos (or cobras) for racing. Yes, hippos are fast, but not as fast as friggin motorized wheels. The alacrian beasts at least have the excuse that they're infused with aether or whatever. They're not ordinary animals.
Mixing mounts and vehicles was weird in my opinion and I can't recall an example from pop culture where drawn and motorized vehicles competed against each other. The two categories are pre-motor races like Ben Hur and post-motor ones like The Fast and the Furious, Mad Max or Podracing from Star Wars.
It is a bit lazy. Such an exact replica except the front face is replaced by a skull.
The worse bit for me is how this set is a lose-lose proposition for me. On one hand, if I buy into it, then I'm implicitly telling Wizards that it is okay to have these in-universe but frankly non-fantasy sets, just like Duskmourn. But if I don't buy cards and product, then I will feed into the argument that universe beyond sets sell better than in-universe. (Or at least risk it, if Spiderman, FF and the other mystery one sell well.)
I think I'll reluctantly buy into Aetherdrift since it is the least of two evils. And, to be honest, the set has been less distasteful than I expected in that outside of the idiotic vehicles, there have been good, properly flavored magic cards, like the gods, for example.
At first I thought it was a rat to but you guys talking about tractors made me do a double take and then it hit me - it's kind of perfect.
It's the haunted hay-ride that you see at Halloween attractions just repurposed for cheating at racing. This vehicle is not intended to win, if it were they'd have at least ditched the hoes. It's definitely intended to F up the competition.
It may be my favorite bit of Duskmourn at the race so far.
Personally I have more problems with Amonkhet using friggin hippos (or cobras) for racing. Yes, hippos are fast, but not as fast as friggin motorized wheels. The alacrian beasts at least have the excuse that they're infused with aether or whatever. They're not ordinary animals.
I think most of the Amonkheti animals are zombies/undead, the hippos I ~think~ have bones sticking out of them and the cobras have huge chunks of flesh missing off them.
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“There are no weak Jews. I am descended from those who wrestle angels and kill giants. We were chosen by God. You were chosen by a pathetic little man who can't seem to grow a full mustache"
"You can tell how dumb someone is by how they use Mary Sue"
It is a bit lazy. Such an exact replica except the front face is replaced by a skull.
The worse bit for me is how this set is a lose-lose proposition for me. On one hand, if I buy into it, then I'm implicitly telling Wizards that it is okay to have these in-universe but frankly non-fantasy sets, just like Duskmourn. But if I don't buy cards and product, then I will feed into the argument that universe beyond sets sell better than in-universe. (Or at least risk it, if Spiderman, FF and the other mystery one sell well.)
I think I'll reluctantly buy into Aetherdrift since it is the least of two evils. And, to be honest, the set has been less distasteful than I expected in that outside of the idiotic vehicles, there have been good, properly flavored magic cards, like the gods, for example.
Still, that obviously-John-Deere design... uck.
******* Magic players man...
"Phyrexian cybergarbage, Urza made mage powered mechsuits, bull***** espermetal prosthesis, and *ornithopters* that's all been around for decades is perfectly fine... But I draw the line at ghost cars. That just ain't fantasy."
Magic has always been like 80% unoriginal genre pastiche ripoffs from the first pack ever cracked. No one is forcing you to like it dude, aesthetics don't always jam for everyone... but just say you don't like it and tone down the bad take justifications. Its okay to just not like a thing. It's an opinion. You can't be right or wrong about what Fantasy is. You're doing the card game equivalent of Rock and Roll isn't real music, but that Mozart is great.
It is a bit lazy. Such an exact replica except the front face is replaced by a skull.
The worse bit for me is how this set is a lose-lose proposition for me. On one hand, if I buy into it, then I'm implicitly telling Wizards that it is okay to have these in-universe but frankly non-fantasy sets, just like Duskmourn. But if I don't buy cards and product, then I will feed into the argument that universe beyond sets sell better than in-universe. (Or at least risk it, if Spiderman, FF and the other mystery one sell well.)
I think I'll reluctantly buy into Aetherdrift since it is the least of two evils. And, to be honest, the set has been less distasteful than I expected in that outside of the idiotic vehicles, there have been good, properly flavored magic cards, like the gods, for example.
Still, that obviously-John-Deere design... uck.
******* Magic players man...
"Phyrexian cybergarbage, Urza made mage powered mechsuits, bull***** espermetal prosthesis, and *ornithopters* that's all been around for decades is perfectly fine... But I draw the line at ghost cars. That just ain't fantasy."
Magic has always been like 80% unoriginal genre pastiche ripoffs from the first pack ever cracked. No one is forcing you to like it dude, aesthetics don't always jam for everyone... but just say you don't like it and tone down the bad take justifications. Its okay to just not like a thing. It's an opinion. You can't be right or wrong about what Fantasy is. You're doing the card game equivalent of Rock and Roll isn't real music, but that Mozart is great.
To a lot of players, "high fantasy" is just medieval Europe but with Magic. I've seen people call Tarkir non-high fantasy because of it.
Mixing mounts and vehicles was weird in my opinion and I can't recall an example from pop culture where drawn and motorized vehicles competed against each other. The two categories are pre-motor races like Ben Hur and post-motor ones like The Fast and the Furious, Mad Max or Podracing from Star Wars.
I remember that the race in Steel Ball Run allowed both... but since it was in 1880's, the only vehicle racer was some rich European guy in a car, and he wiped right at the beginning because he somehow didn't realize that in a cross-country race across America there are no roads... and no gas stations, for that matter.
It is a bit lazy. Such an exact replica except the front face is replaced by a skull.
The worse bit for me is how this set is a lose-lose proposition for me. On one hand, if I buy into it, then I'm implicitly telling Wizards that it is okay to have these in-universe but frankly non-fantasy sets, just like Duskmourn. But if I don't buy cards and product, then I will feed into the argument that universe beyond sets sell better than in-universe. (Or at least risk it, if Spiderman, FF and the other mystery one sell well.)
I think I'll reluctantly buy into Aetherdrift since it is the least of two evils. And, to be honest, the set has been less distasteful than I expected in that outside of the idiotic vehicles, there have been good, properly flavored magic cards, like the gods, for example.
Still, that obviously-John-Deere design... uck.
I'm not spending a single penny on sets like this. It's got a very small handful of Amonkhet and Avishkar/Kaladesh cards that look normal, but I'm not getting any of those either. It's just ******* too much
"Phyrexian cybergarbage, Urza made mage powered mechsuits, bull***** espermetal prosthesis, and *ornithopters* that's all been around for decades is perfectly fine... But I draw the line at ghost cars. That just ain't fantasy."
Magic has always been like 80% unoriginal genre pastiche ripoffs from the first pack ever cracked. No one is forcing you to like it dude, aesthetics don't always jam for everyone... but just say you don't like it and tone down the bad take justifications. Its okay to just not like a thing. It's an opinion. You can't be right or wrong about what Fantasy is. You're doing the card game equivalent of Rock and Roll isn't real music, but that Mozart is great.
Psychologists all around the world stopped suggesting seeing the great Pagliacci's show and started suggesting reading this comment instead.
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How i feel about competitive players and casual players in EDH: The competitive are german tourists, the casual are italian tourists, both in a italian beach. The italians asking themselves "why are the germans here?" make a legitimate question, the answer is because the beach is beautiful, no matter the country you came from. The italians wanting to ban the germans are dumb, because if the germans pay for their stay and follow the rules like everyone else, they have the right to be in the beach. Hovewer, if the germans started to ask themselves "why are the italians here?"... they would be dumb as hell.
It is a bit lazy. Such an exact replica except the front face is replaced by a skull.
The worse bit for me is how this set is a lose-lose proposition for me. On one hand, if I buy into it, then I'm implicitly telling Wizards that it is okay to have these in-universe but frankly non-fantasy sets, just like Duskmourn. But if I don't buy cards and product, then I will feed into the argument that universe beyond sets sell better than in-universe. (Or at least risk it, if Spiderman, FF and the other mystery one sell well.)
I think I'll reluctantly buy into Aetherdrift since it is the least of two evils. And, to be honest, the set has been less distasteful than I expected in that outside of the idiotic vehicles, there have been good, properly flavored magic cards, like the gods, for example.
Still, that obviously-John-Deere design... uck.
But I draw the line at ghost cars. That just ain't fantasy."
Yes, it ain't fantasy, and if you can't see the massive difference (and general direction they're taking the game) then I don't know what to tell you man
It is a bit lazy. Such an exact replica except the front face is replaced by a skull.
The worse bit for me is how this set is a lose-lose proposition for me. On one hand, if I buy into it, then I'm implicitly telling Wizards that it is okay to have these in-universe but frankly non-fantasy sets, just like Duskmourn. But if I don't buy cards and product, then I will feed into the argument that universe beyond sets sell better than in-universe. (Or at least risk it, if Spiderman, FF and the other mystery one sell well.)
I think I'll reluctantly buy into Aetherdrift since it is the least of two evils. And, to be honest, the set has been less distasteful than I expected in that outside of the idiotic vehicles, there have been good, properly flavored magic cards, like the gods, for example.
Still, that obviously-John-Deere design... uck.
But I draw the line at ghost cars. That just ain't fantasy."
Yes, it ain't fantasy, and if you can't see the massive difference (and general direction they're taking the game) then I don't know what to tell you man
You can dislike the aesthetic, but that doesn't make it not fantasy. The genre is not solely defined by Lord of the Rings. There's magic, there's adventure, that's fantasy.
It is a bit lazy. Such an exact replica except the front face is replaced by a skull.
The worse bit for me is how this set is a lose-lose proposition for me. On one hand, if I buy into it, then I'm implicitly telling Wizards that it is okay to have these in-universe but frankly non-fantasy sets, just like Duskmourn. But if I don't buy cards and product, then I will feed into the argument that universe beyond sets sell better than in-universe. (Or at least risk it, if Spiderman, FF and the other mystery one sell well.)
I think I'll reluctantly buy into Aetherdrift since it is the least of two evils. And, to be honest, the set has been less distasteful than I expected in that outside of the idiotic vehicles, there have been good, properly flavored magic cards, like the gods, for example.
Still, that obviously-John-Deere design... uck.
But I draw the line at ghost cars. That just ain't fantasy."
Yes, it ain't fantasy, and if you can't see the massive difference (and general direction they're taking the game) then I don't know what to tell you man
You can dislike the aesthetic, but that doesn't make it not fantasy. The genre is not solely defined by Lord of the Rings. There's magic, there's adventure, that's fantasy.
That's true. I'm not saying I don't like variety, which Magic has always had in spades, a ******* hot rod skull tractor just isn't magic in the slightest. I mean I keep coming back to example of seeing Gandalf driving a Tesla truck with Spiderman and Jace. I mean can't you see how that's not "magic"? It's Fortnite for ****s sake
Oh ***** Luke Skywalker used Captain America's shield to defeat Bolas! Come on man
It is a bit lazy. Such an exact replica except the front face is replaced by a skull.
The worse bit for me is how this set is a lose-lose proposition for me. On one hand, if I buy into it, then I'm implicitly telling Wizards that it is okay to have these in-universe but frankly non-fantasy sets, just like Duskmourn. But if I don't buy cards and product, then I will feed into the argument that universe beyond sets sell better than in-universe. (Or at least risk it, if Spiderman, FF and the other mystery one sell well.)
I think I'll reluctantly buy into Aetherdrift since it is the least of two evils. And, to be honest, the set has been less distasteful than I expected in that outside of the idiotic vehicles, there have been good, properly flavored magic cards, like the gods, for example.
Still, that obviously-John-Deere design... uck.
But I draw the line at ghost cars. That just ain't fantasy."
Yes, it ain't fantasy, and if you can't see the massive difference (and general direction they're taking the game) then I don't know what to tell you man
You can dislike the aesthetic, but that doesn't make it not fantasy. The genre is not solely defined by Lord of the Rings. There's magic, there's adventure, that's fantasy.
That's true. I'm not saying I don't like variety, which Magic has always had in spades, a ******* hot rod skull tractor just isn't magic in the slightest. I mean I keep coming back to example of seeing Gandalf driving a Tesla truck with Spiderman and Jace. I mean can't you see how that's not "magic"? It's Fortnite for ****s sake
Oh ***** Luke Skywalker used Captain America's shield to defeat Bolas! Come on man
UB's another matter, as it does include several decidedly sci fi properties. Here, however, there's nothing stopping a tractor from being magic. It's glowing blue and surrounded by blue spirits, for goodness' sake. A good thing to remember in these conversations: there was a Rocket Launcher in Antiquities and it wasn't even a noticeably magical one.
The two categories are pre-motor races like Ben Hur and post-motor ones like The Fast and the Furious, Mad Max or Podracing from Star Wars.
HEY! Where is my Podracer?! Cloudspire, Rocketeers, Endriders and even Guidelight seem like they'd like a vehicle that's basically two stripped down engines and a seat.
"Phyrexian cybergarbage, Urza made mage powered mechsuits, bull***** espermetal prosthesis, and *ornithopters* that's all been around for decades is perfectly fine... But I draw the line at ghost cars. That just ain't fantasy."
Magic has always been like 80% unoriginal genre pastiche ripoffs from the first pack ever cracked. No one is forcing you to like it dude, aesthetics don't always jam for everyone... but just say you don't like it and tone down the bad take justifications. Its okay to just not like a thing. It's an opinion. You can't be right or wrong about what Fantasy is. You're doing the card game equivalent of Rock and Roll isn't real music, but that Mozart is great.
Ever thought about addressing what people say instead of setting up a strawman? Try it, it could make you sound less like condescending holier-than-thou foot gunner. If you can't see a difference between a John Deere tractor and an ornithopter, well, that's on you isn't it?
"Phyrexian cybergarbage, Urza made mage powered mechsuits, bull***** espermetal prosthesis, and *ornithopters* that's all been around for decades is perfectly fine... But I draw the line at ghost cars. That just ain't fantasy."
Magic has always been like 80% unoriginal genre pastiche ripoffs from the first pack ever cracked. No one is forcing you to like it dude, aesthetics don't always jam for everyone... but just say you don't like it and tone down the bad take justifications. Its okay to just not like a thing. It's an opinion. You can't be right or wrong about what Fantasy is. You're doing the card game equivalent of Rock and Roll isn't real music, but that Mozart is great.
Ever thought about addressing what people say instead of setting up a strawman? Try it, it could make you sound less like condescending holier-than-thou foot gunner. If you can't see a difference between a John Deere tractor and an ornithopter, well, that's on you isn't it?
Reading this thread is so weird. I'm honestly not sure whether you've nade RagnaRockers point while insulting him or what. Goblin Glider is exactly a paraglider as it exists today made by a goblin, this is exactly a Tractor as made by the residents of Duskmourn. Duskmourn is (now) an established part of the multiverse.
So I get the frustration on the dislike for the wider net that Wizards is using these days. MtG has always been a blend of high fantasy and science fiction and always will.
Reading this thread is so weird. I'm honestly not sure whether you've nade RagnaRockers point while insulting him or what. Goblin Glider is exactly a paraglider as it exists today made by a goblin, this is exactly a Tractor as made by the residents of Duskmourn.
Are talking about the glider made of skin / leather and wood vs a colorized John Deere truck? My point is *exactly* that one is a lazy knock-off and the other is not. Not even counting that glider were conceptualized way back in time before the modern era while tractors... not so much. The whole point is that there are grey areas, sure, but then there are things that can anyone with a modicum of intellectual honesty has to acknowledge as being in a different category.
Sure sure, go ahead, say that it is *all* opinions. Whatever. Then people can make their own opinions about those opinions.
The mere fact that only some cards elicit those reactions is a dead give-away that for most people, it is easy to identify which is which.
Reading this thread is so weird. I'm honestly not sure whether you've nade RagnaRockers point while insulting him or what. Goblin Glider is exactly a paraglider as it exists today made by a goblin, this is exactly a Tractor as made by the residents of Duskmourn.
Are talking about the glider made of skin / leather and wood vs a colorized John Deere truck? My point is *exactly* that one is a lazy knock-off and the other is not. Not even counting that glider were conceptualized way back in time before the modern era while tractors... not so much. The whole point is that there are grey areas, sure, but then there are things that can anyone with a modicum of intellectual honesty has to acknowledge as being in a different category.
Sure sure, go ahead, say that it is *all* opinions. Whatever. Then people can make their own opinions about those opinions.
The mere fact that only some cards elicit those reactions is a dead give-away that for most people, it is easy to identify which is which.
I disagree with laziness, we can agree to like/dislike for our own reasons. However, I suspect Wizards knew full well that exploring this idea would be controversial amongst their fan base and some would hate it. That's not laziness, it's courage and buy-in to the brief (same caveat re opinions stands and I see where you're coming from, it's just a different place than where I am).
People who actually read, write and study fantasy will tell you all that Magic has done with its own IP is fantasy. Fantasy has no solid definition outside of media that has supernatural and/or magical elements, which has lead some to even say fantasy isnt genre and more of an umbrella term for all the fantasy subgenres and subsubgenre.
People who look into fantasy will also tell you Magic shifting more into urban and space/sci fi fantasy isn't random. The genre as a whole is moving away from high fantasy. There are a lot of reasons; Harry Potter (which is set in the 90's and has urban fantasy elements, like a magic car) is an now a major touchstone taking away some of Lord of the Rings spotlight, the rapid change in what technology can do in the real world, and many starting to see high fantasy as getting tired and cliche (among others). Even why (as seen in magic) a lot of high fantasy now will based it self more in a certain mythology or culture; Greek, Norse and fairy tale retelling are the huge atm as well as people moving away from European cultures to try and stand out as something new or trying to subvert or redo tropes. And while its died down some I felt like there was a time (which is why we got Avishkar) that steampunk and gaslamp fantasy was EVERYWHERE.
As for if it fits Magic? As said ad nauseam Magic always had Sci fi elements in it. Now they are pushing the limits and boundaries of that but something Maro has said; they can not tell what works or won't until they try it. And if Magic wants to keep going it can not just keep doing high fantasy settings and needs to experiment, which we have seen with nearly every new plane since Kamigawa/Capenna.
And personally I can't really call a lot of what wizard does lazy, at least not any more "lazy" than stuff they always done. There are certainly questionable executions at times, but I also think there is still a lot of creative stuff and (as far as magic goes) good world building with Thunder Junction being what I consider the one outliner and that had nothing to do with the theme or it being a Fantasy Western/Weird West setting.
“There are no weak Jews. I am descended from those who wrestle angels and kill giants. We were chosen by God. You were chosen by a pathetic little man who can't seem to grow a full mustache"
"You can tell how dumb someone is by how they use Mary Sue"
"You're not allowed to dislike it, because it's technically still fantasy."
Newsflash, nobody cares about technicalities. People are allowed to like some aesthetics and not others regardless of definitions. And to say that Urza level technology (like ornithopters) is in any way comparable to literal tractors is just plain dishonest.
As for laziness, I think that statement comes form people who don't understand the creative process. Worldbuilding isn't about how weird stuff looks but by how well it fits together, and quite frankly, inhabitants of a world with modern technology but no surviving infrastructure (Duskmourn) retrofitting agrarian vehicles kinda... makes sense. It makes way more sense than whatever Amonkhet is doing, at least.
The problem here isn't individual designs as much as that the entire premise is just broken on a fundamental level. The technology gradient is all over across the participants. It is impossible to give each an equal fighting chance. Realistically Avishkar would be beating all the other teams easily, maybe tied with Kylem depending on how developed Kylem is technologically and how much racing experience it has as a society. The rest? Nah. It's hilarious that in the story Amonkhet only won because all the other teams got boobytrapped right before the finish line.
Anyway, none of this matters. Wizards killed worldbuilding a couple sets ago because what the people truly need is shallow tropes.
Who needs worldbuilding if you can just slap Mario Cart on your artworks.
I think most of the Amonkheti animals are zombies/undead, the hippos I ~think~ have bones sticking out of them and the cobras have huge chunks of flesh missing off them.
I'm aware. I didn't mean these are mundane hippos you'd see in real life, but they are -as far as we know- not additionally magically enhanced (beyond being undead). There's only so fast muscle and sinew can go. The cheetah is the fastest running animal on the planet and a regular car outruns it both in raw speed and endurance.
Also, bones sticking out? How is a body that badly mangled going to be particularly fast? The body would be falling apart at this point. Sinew and muscle wouldn't have proper places to attach. It just wouldn't work if speed is the goal. Why didn't they keep the linen-wrapped look for the mummies. Like not only would it look better (objectively speaking, of course , no but seriously the modern Amonkhet mummies are hardly recognizable as either mummies or even zombies) but it'd also solve so many worldbuilding issues.
I'm aware. I didn't mean these are mundane hippos you'd see in real life, but they are -as far as we know- not additionally magically enhanced (beyond being undead). There's only so fast muscle and sinew can go. The cheetah is the fastest running animal on the planet and a regular car outruns it both in raw speed and endurance.
Also, bones sticking out? How is a body that badly mangled going to be particularly fast? The body would be falling apart at this point. Sinew and muscle wouldn't have proper places to attach. It just wouldn't work if speed is the goal. Why didn't they keep the linen-wrapped look for the mummies. Like not only would it look better (objectively speaking, of course , no but seriously the modern Amonkhet mummies are hardly recognizable as either mummies or even zombies) but it'd also solve so many worldbuilding issues.
IIRC the curse of wandering makes the dead just keep going no matter what so even raw meat cuts will wiggle and move around until its fully cook. Zombies in general are typical held together some by magic just cuz in general most corpse couldn't move around with the amount of decay they end up having. In theory I see the zombie mounts as being able to move without rest, likely not very fast, but unless they got really messed up they likely wouldn't ever tire or need maintenance.
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“There are no weak Jews. I am descended from those who wrestle angels and kill giants. We were chosen by God. You were chosen by a pathetic little man who can't seem to grow a full mustache"
"You can tell how dumb someone is by how they use Mary Sue"
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Why even use a tractor? A riding lawnmower can beat those.
attack trigger is nice though
To be fair, Duskmourn was a relatively technologically advanced plane. Considering the other factions I think this is borderline acceptable. It looks like Valgavoth's followers just picked up any vehicle they found and repurposed it into a "hellride". Being a tractor plays into that idea. It's not streamlined and hyperdesigned like the Kylem vehicles. It even plays a little into the idea that they do not win through speed (tractors aren't very fast) but through cheating.
Personally I have more problems with Amonkhet using friggin hippos (or cobras) for racing. Yes, hippos are fast, but not as fast as friggin motorized wheels. The alacrian beasts at least have the excuse that they're infused with aether or whatever. They're not ordinary animals.
Mixing mounts and vehicles was weird in my opinion and I can't recall an example from pop culture where drawn and motorized vehicles competed against each other. The two categories are pre-motor races like Ben Hur and post-motor ones like The Fast and the Furious, Mad Max or Podracing from Star Wars.
The worse bit for me is how this set is a lose-lose proposition for me. On one hand, if I buy into it, then I'm implicitly telling Wizards that it is okay to have these in-universe but frankly non-fantasy sets, just like Duskmourn. But if I don't buy cards and product, then I will feed into the argument that universe beyond sets sell better than in-universe. (Or at least risk it, if Spiderman, FF and the other mystery one sell well.)
I think I'll reluctantly buy into Aetherdrift since it is the least of two evils. And, to be honest, the set has been less distasteful than I expected in that outside of the idiotic vehicles, there have been good, properly flavored magic cards, like the gods, for example.
Still, that obviously-John-Deere design... uck.
It's the haunted hay-ride that you see at Halloween attractions just repurposed for cheating at racing. This vehicle is not intended to win, if it were they'd have at least ditched the hoes. It's definitely intended to F up the competition.
It may be my favorite bit of Duskmourn at the race so far.
I think most of the Amonkheti animals are zombies/undead, the hippos I ~think~ have bones sticking out of them and the cobras have huge chunks of flesh missing off them.
"You can tell how dumb someone is by how they use Mary Sue"
******* Magic players man...
"Phyrexian cybergarbage, Urza made mage powered mechsuits, bull***** espermetal prosthesis, and *ornithopters* that's all been around for decades is perfectly fine... But I draw the line at ghost cars. That just ain't fantasy."
Magic has always been like 80% unoriginal genre pastiche ripoffs from the first pack ever cracked. No one is forcing you to like it dude, aesthetics don't always jam for everyone... but just say you don't like it and tone down the bad take justifications. Its okay to just not like a thing. It's an opinion. You can't be right or wrong about what Fantasy is. You're doing the card game equivalent of Rock and Roll isn't real music, but that Mozart is great.
I remember that the race in Steel Ball Run allowed both... but since it was in 1880's, the only vehicle racer was some rich European guy in a car, and he wiped right at the beginning because he somehow didn't realize that in a cross-country race across America there are no roads... and no gas stations, for that matter.
I'm not spending a single penny on sets like this. It's got a very small handful of Amonkhet and Avishkar/Kaladesh cards that look normal, but I'm not getting any of those either. It's just ******* too much
Psychologists all around the world stopped suggesting seeing the great Pagliacci's show and started suggesting reading this comment instead.
Yes, it ain't fantasy, and if you can't see the massive difference (and general direction they're taking the game) then I don't know what to tell you man
You can dislike the aesthetic, but that doesn't make it not fantasy. The genre is not solely defined by Lord of the Rings. There's magic, there's adventure, that's fantasy.
That's true. I'm not saying I don't like variety, which Magic has always had in spades, a ******* hot rod skull tractor just isn't magic in the slightest. I mean I keep coming back to example of seeing Gandalf driving a Tesla truck with Spiderman and Jace. I mean can't you see how that's not "magic"? It's Fortnite for ****s sake
Oh ***** Luke Skywalker used Captain America's shield to defeat Bolas! Come on man
UB's another matter, as it does include several decidedly sci fi properties. Here, however, there's nothing stopping a tractor from being magic. It's glowing blue and surrounded by blue spirits, for goodness' sake. A good thing to remember in these conversations: there was a Rocket Launcher in Antiquities and it wasn't even a noticeably magical one.
HEY! Where is my Podracer?! Cloudspire, Rocketeers, Endriders and even Guidelight seem like they'd like a vehicle that's basically two stripped down engines and a seat.
Ever thought about addressing what people say instead of setting up a strawman? Try it, it could make you sound less like condescending holier-than-thou foot gunner. If you can't see a difference between a John Deere tractor and an ornithopter, well, that's on you isn't it?
As contrast: goblin glider, goblin war wagon, orcish lumberjack all take modern concept and integrate it into MtG.
Reading this thread is so weird. I'm honestly not sure whether you've nade RagnaRockers point while insulting him or what. Goblin Glider is exactly a paraglider as it exists today made by a goblin, this is exactly a Tractor as made by the residents of Duskmourn. Duskmourn is (now) an established part of the multiverse.
So I get the frustration on the dislike for the wider net that Wizards is using these days. MtG has always been a blend of high fantasy and science fiction and always will.
Are talking about the glider made of skin / leather and wood vs a colorized John Deere truck? My point is *exactly* that one is a lazy knock-off and the other is not. Not even counting that glider were conceptualized way back in time before the modern era while tractors... not so much. The whole point is that there are grey areas, sure, but then there are things that can anyone with a modicum of intellectual honesty has to acknowledge as being in a different category.
Sure sure, go ahead, say that it is *all* opinions. Whatever. Then people can make their own opinions about those opinions.
The mere fact that only some cards elicit those reactions is a dead give-away that for most people, it is easy to identify which is which.
I disagree with laziness, we can agree to like/dislike for our own reasons. However, I suspect Wizards knew full well that exploring this idea would be controversial amongst their fan base and some would hate it. That's not laziness, it's courage and buy-in to the brief (same caveat re opinions stands and I see where you're coming from, it's just a different place than where I am).
People who look into fantasy will also tell you Magic shifting more into urban and space/sci fi fantasy isn't random. The genre as a whole is moving away from high fantasy. There are a lot of reasons; Harry Potter (which is set in the 90's and has urban fantasy elements, like a magic car) is an now a major touchstone taking away some of Lord of the Rings spotlight, the rapid change in what technology can do in the real world, and many starting to see high fantasy as getting tired and cliche (among others). Even why (as seen in magic) a lot of high fantasy now will based it self more in a certain mythology or culture; Greek, Norse and fairy tale retelling are the huge atm as well as people moving away from European cultures to try and stand out as something new or trying to subvert or redo tropes. And while its died down some I felt like there was a time (which is why we got Avishkar) that steampunk and gaslamp fantasy was EVERYWHERE.
As for if it fits Magic? As said ad nauseam Magic always had Sci fi elements in it. Now they are pushing the limits and boundaries of that but something Maro has said; they can not tell what works or won't until they try it. And if Magic wants to keep going it can not just keep doing high fantasy settings and needs to experiment, which we have seen with nearly every new plane since Kamigawa/Capenna.
And personally I can't really call a lot of what wizard does lazy, at least not any more "lazy" than stuff they always done. There are certainly questionable executions at times, but I also think there is still a lot of creative stuff and (as far as magic goes) good world building with Thunder Junction being what I consider the one outliner and that had nothing to do with the theme or it being a Fantasy Western/Weird West setting.
"You can tell how dumb someone is by how they use Mary Sue"
"You're not allowed to dislike it, because it's technically still fantasy."
Newsflash, nobody cares about technicalities. People are allowed to like some aesthetics and not others regardless of definitions. And to say that Urza level technology (like ornithopters) is in any way comparable to literal tractors is just plain dishonest.
As for laziness, I think that statement comes form people who don't understand the creative process. Worldbuilding isn't about how weird stuff looks but by how well it fits together, and quite frankly, inhabitants of a world with modern technology but no surviving infrastructure (Duskmourn) retrofitting agrarian vehicles kinda... makes sense. It makes way more sense than whatever Amonkhet is doing, at least.
The problem here isn't individual designs as much as that the entire premise is just broken on a fundamental level. The technology gradient is all over across the participants. It is impossible to give each an equal fighting chance. Realistically Avishkar would be beating all the other teams easily, maybe tied with Kylem depending on how developed Kylem is technologically and how much racing experience it has as a society. The rest? Nah. It's hilarious that in the story Amonkhet only won because all the other teams got boobytrapped right before the finish line.
Anyway, none of this matters. Wizards killed worldbuilding a couple sets ago because what the people truly need is shallow tropes.
Who needs worldbuilding if you can just slap Mario Cart on your artworks.
More cowboy hats!
I'm aware. I didn't mean these are mundane hippos you'd see in real life, but they are -as far as we know- not additionally magically enhanced (beyond being undead). There's only so fast muscle and sinew can go. The cheetah is the fastest running animal on the planet and a regular car outruns it both in raw speed and endurance.
Also, bones sticking out? How is a body that badly mangled going to be particularly fast? The body would be falling apart at this point. Sinew and muscle wouldn't have proper places to attach. It just wouldn't work if speed is the goal. Why didn't they keep the linen-wrapped look for the mummies. Like not only would it look better (objectively speaking, of course
IIRC the curse of wandering makes the dead just keep going no matter what so even raw meat cuts will wiggle and move around until its fully cook. Zombies in general are typical held together some by magic just cuz in general most corpse couldn't move around with the amount of decay they end up having. In theory I see the zombie mounts as being able to move without rest, likely not very fast, but unless they got really messed up they likely wouldn't ever tire or need maintenance.
"You can tell how dumb someone is by how they use Mary Sue"