MTG Salvation

Zzzz... You're really into this topic too much. And constantly whining about every card, every deck. Am I the only one being bored by your constant flow of reactions ?

The Pioneer forum is dead in terms of deckbuilding, the only thing I see when I come check out over here is you complaining. This is a sad statement.

Just need to reprint Tectonic Edge or Ghost Quarter.

Field of Ruin is in the format, no need to reprint a land with a worse effect. Alpine Moon is also available, and anti-tokens cards, and anti-search cards, etc...

Plus the card is less represented than Nykthos, didn't put up incredible results (at least nothing overwhelming), it's a 2-of in ramp archetypes... I assume it's miserable to play against. Maybe we have to gear up against it, dedicate slots in the SB more than we'd like ?

You describe yourself and your choices as "weird" and set your opinion as irrefutable (you "won't be responding").

You're right, those 2 cards are undercosted, but that's not an argument that turns an answer into a threat. It makes absolutely no sense ! If you want to convince / makes sense to anybody, you better say those spells are too powerful & lead to a more stale metagame - exactly as you did - and stop there. No need to confuse people with a new definition that states "white is black". Especially when you eventually use that wrong definition to support the need for a ban. I read your post as "Today's scoop ! Those answers are actually threats, and since Wizards need to ban threats and not answers, Verdict and TS are definitely worth a ban regarding their power level !"

What is my opinion are my arguments against these bans, I explained them in my previous post, and we can indeed disagree on them.

aggressive threat concealed as an answer

This is your interpretation of the card, not reality. A threat can win a game. An answer helps you not lose a game.

Wraths are cards aggro decks are prepared and equipped to fight. It's there since Magic's inception. Verdict is only uncounterable, so you can make your creatures indestructible, exile it with Spell Queller, bounce it with Unsubstantiate, play 4 Smuggler's Copters in your creature deck, or do as we always do : don't overextend to the BF. There's absolutely no reason to ban the card !

Thoughtseize is another story : it's a proactive play, not a reactive one. It can see play in the same decks you play Gitaxian Probe : in aggro and combo decks.
The bad thing I see with this card is that it destroys glass-canon decks game 1, it's a bit sad for the sake of variety. However, blitz aggro decks laugh at the card, decks that play Once upon a Time and various card selection spells too. As long as those decks are viable, TS doesn't seem too obnoxious.

I mean, how many times in pioneer has Veil been cast to stop an actual threat instead of an answer?

That's not the role of the card anyway. Blossoming Defense, Gods Willing, those cards are great and have never been too criticized or in a ban discussion ever. Not a threat nor an answer card, Veil is a protection / pump spell like you said, that happens to cantrip. End of story.

The reason of its banning is not what it does (not directly at least), but what decks it helps, i.e. some green decks at the top of the metagame. I personnally have no clue whether this ban is good or not though. I don't really care, it's one SB card in the pool to me.

I imagine you are probably right... but that ain't gonna stop players from despising combo and demanding it be categorically banned.

Opponents hate playing against combo, opponents hate playing against control, opponents hate playing against tempo... good thing God gave us midrange, amirite? Nobody could ever hate midrange...

Isn't this stereotypical flaming 201X style ?
You are very disrespectful to players and Wizards staff, but I guess you know better... amirite ?

This format is not meant to be Modern bis, nor Modern "watered down". It's meant to be its own thing, and Felidar doesn't belong here from W's perspectvive. So be it.
It'd be more accurate to say opponents hate to play in a narrow 3-deck metagame, hate to play matches that last 90+ minutes, they hate to watch their opponent durdle and combo off for 5 minutes, they hate to pack SB cards in their maindeck. All of this is justified !

I personally don't care to see cards banned, I'm only impatient to see the format settle down so I can really taste what Pioneer is supposed to be.

I mean why would you want to have all the answers in your deck in game 1, are control players now a days that greedy?

It's not about control. UWx Control has D Sphere & Verdict, they have all the answers game 1...
I didn't mean you need enchant hate maindeck, only that naturally, that kind of hate doesn't belong in main decks, which makes Leyline a very specific permanent type that steals game 1 too many times.

think its too early for them to sack abundance right away, people will eventually put enchantment/artifact hate in their SB.

Players already do that and still fail at beating the deck. Because hate happens too late or is too narrow. I don't think it's a matter of players adapting their SBs, the main decks are already too weak right now. Once the decks will be built optimally, once we see the power level / potential of the format, Wizards can discuss that card again.

I like their approach, they give a chance for decks to rise without a wrench or two in the gears, wrenches that happened to warp the meta in a snap.

I mean Abundance can be answered by a lot of cards.

Not really. Turn 0 Leyline maindeck. Possibly multiple on the BF Turn 1. That card doesn't belong in the format. You can't thoughtseize it, Oko can't Elk-en it, enchant hate maindeck is non-existent.

Good start. Now let's see how DTT & TC play out. Izzet Phoenix and G Ramp decks play those cards, let's hope they find good competition amongst decks that don't play the blue delves.

I don't think it's Nissa herself, the G devotion decks are good also because of Leyline and Nykthos. A 5-mana PW in this format is not a problem, the same applies for Big Teferi.

It's rather a matter of where Wizards wants to establish the power level of the format. If Dig (and TC) are banned, then Once Upon and Oath of Nissa can go too. Good card selection is one of the most powerful thing in these Pioneer decks. Imo, If they ban the blue, they ban the green.

I could see Oath of Nissa. It's ~Ponder + mana fixing for Copycat and other green decks. It makes playing 8-12 PWs in a deck too easy in the format.
I'd like to see Felidar banned first though, only this card, and see what happens.