My favorite part of this card is that it doesn't have to pump your attacking creatures. Even though it doesn't deserve a slot in my dragon deck, I still adore this card.
One of those cards that keep popping up as 'yeah, I kinda want to find a slot for this' when I'm deckbuilding. Often it ends up being that I would like the effect, but don't care that it's on a big semi-expensive flying meat pie... or I want the dragon but don't care for the effect that much, in which case there certainly are hotter stuff to be had.
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X Hope of Ghirapur Swordpile W Ghosty Blinky Anafenza U Nezahal- Big, Blue and HERE! B Gonti Can Afford It R Etali, Primal 'Whatjusthappened?' G Polukranos Wants More Mana WU The Exalted Vizier Temmet WB Home, Athreos WR Basandra, Recursive Aggression WG Karametra, Momma of Lands UB Wrexial Eats Your Brains UR Arjun, the Mad Flame UG The Fable of Prime Speaker BR Hellbent, Malfegor Style BG Jarad, Death is Served RG Running Thromok WUB Varina and ALL the Zombies WUBYennett, the Odd Pain-Train WUR Zedruu the Furyhearted WUG Arcades' Strategy, Shmategy, Sausage and Spam WBR A Case of Mathas' Persistent F*ckery WBRLicia's League of Legendary Lifegain Layabouts WBG The Karador Advantage PackageWRG Gahiji Rattlesnake Collection UBR Jeleva... does... things UBG Damia's Just Deserts URG Yasova's Has More Power Than Sense BRG Wasitora, Bad Kitty WUBRBreya, Eggs, Breya'd Eggs WUBG Tymna and Kydele, Extended Borrowing WURG Kynaios and Tiro, Landfall Impersonations WBRG Saskia Pet Card EnchantressUBRG Yidris of the Chi-Ting Corporation WUBRG Tazri's Amazing Allies
This effect has been printed several times, usually with a balance being struck between the creature's weighted mana cost and activation cost (Purphoros, God of the Forge versus Moonveil Dragon, note that Purph has another effect this kind of deck would want) but it usually pumps your creatures; here, pumping attacking creatures allows for politicking.
Obviously an auto-include in Thantis, the Warweaver, and I do consider the combat step my failure mode even for my combo decks.
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Card advantage is not the same thing as card draw. Something for 2B cannot be strictly worse than something for BBB or 3BB. If you're taking out Swords to Plowshares for Plummet, you're a fool. Stop doing these things!
This is definitely somewhere in my top 10 cards of all time. The sorrow it causes by just waiting for them to cast their first spell is fantastic. And the one time an opponent went turn 1 elf, countered, Summoning Trap is a story worth the backfire.
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Zedruu: "This deck is not only able to go crazy - it also needs to do so."
This is definitely somewhere in my top 10 cards of all time. The sorrow it causes by just waiting for them to cast their first spell is fantastic. And the one time an opponent went turn 1 elf, countered, Summoning Trap is a story worth the backfire.
I know that every tap effect messes with limited and every untap effect goes infinite somehow if you tried hard enough... but they printed this at rare... 4 times. Jeez.
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Zedruu: "This deck is not only able to go crazy - it also needs to do so."
Card advantage is not the same thing as card draw. Something for 2B cannot be strictly worse than something for BBB or 3BB. If you're taking out Swords to Plowshares for Plummet, you're a fool. Stop doing these things!
Green already has the ability to untap lands. At best, this might be used to keep an opponent's card tapped down... But that cost. 4 mana is too much. I suppose if someone really wanted this type of effect in green, they could go for it.
Was just looking at this guy while working on my arixmethes land untap synergy deck. He ain't making the cut.
Weird card all around. 4 for a 2/2 is incredibly bad, and 4 for that ability is baffling. Compare to kiora's follower for the untap part. The tap part is clearly where the price comes from, but 4 is still atrocious and it's very non-green. Clearly a blue or white ability on a green card. Maybe it's in that camp of phyrexian tribute where it's rare and incredibly overpriced because it's so out-of-color. But I kinda thought they stopped doing those by 7th edition.
RKF art is sweet on the non-7th versions, though. I always love a good RKF.
Elder Druid represents one of the major design principles of Magic in general: "having options [on one card] typically will cost you." It also represents another major MTG principle, "Ice Age was trash." Elder Druid doesn't do things that are useful enough to justify the ability costing four, as a general rule. I'd rather just play Stone-Seeder Hierophant, or if I really needed the other things, other specialized cards.
Green already has the ability to untap lands. At best, this might be used to keep an opponent's card tapped down... But that cost. 4 mana is too much. I suppose if someone really wanted this type of effect in green, they could go for it.
Green typically can untap creatures and lands, and back then, green could tap creatures occasionally, e.g. Winter Blast. But artifacts are another thing. However, green has had "any permanent" cards (Seedborn Muse for untapping, plenty of recursion and Genesis Wave-type effects). It's just extremely rare, and it feels really weird that it doesn't just say "Tap or untap target permanent."
The activation cost more than anything is what kills it. Maybe someone was deathly afraid of an infinite combo? When, TBH, under no circumstances would this be the strongest card in Ice Age. (You know which card that is.) It's not even on my list of the top ten strongest cards in Ice Age. All of which proves that Ice Age is an early Magic set, where the power level was all over the place.
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Card advantage is not the same thing as card draw. Something for 2B cannot be strictly worse than something for BBB or 3BB. If you're taking out Swords to Plowshares for Plummet, you're a fool. Stop doing these things!
Aggro: WUBRGHorde of Notions Goodstuff, RUBCheesy Aggro, GR Xenagod Gruul Goodstuff
Control: GWBGhave, Guru of Adaptability, UBWrexial, Milling Deep UAzami, Lady of No Infinite Combos GWU Derevi, Tempo Beats
Other: URGRiku of Too Much Mana, WUBRG Sliver Queen Enchantress
As most folks have said, it is abysmal and I have no clue what they're thinking.
It is "out of color pie" for green, but it's stupidly fragile and expensive compared to Puppet Strings and Icy Manipulator which any mono-green deck can also run.
It's versatile, however, and in my research I actually found that there's only one other card in history that full-on Twiddles repeatedly (Trickster Mage). This card is priced to oblivion, but you are getting the "power" to untap or tap at will. It doesn't have zero use as a result, but I can't imagine any deck except maybe, maybe Druid Tribal wanting it.
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Sufferer of EDHD
Commander - Currently Playing: RCRDaretti: Superfriends Forever RCR WGBDoran: Ent-mootWBG GGGMultani: Group Bear HugGGG GB(B/G)The Gitrog Monster: Dredgefall DurdleGB(B/G) RGWGahiji, the Honored Group Hug MonsterRGW UB(U/B)Yuriko, Ninja Trinket AggroUB(U/B) WUBRGAtogatog: Assembling a OHKOWUBRG
I've played this in EDH before. Flash creatures are great in a vacuum, protecting your things from board wipes is great, reusing other etbs is great, machine-gunning with a Soul of the Harvest is great. Lots of uses for this cat.
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Zedruu: "This deck is not only able to go crazy - it also needs to do so."
I've played this in EDH before. Flash creatures are great in a vacuum, protecting your things from board wipes is great, reusing other etbs is great, machine-gunning with a Soul of the Harvest is great. Lots of uses for this cat.
I've played this in EDH before. Flash creatures are great in a vacuum, protecting your things from board wipes is great, reusing other etbs is great, machine-gunning with a Soul of the Harvest is great. Lots of uses for this cat.
I've played this in EDH before. Flash creatures are great in a vacuum, protecting your things from board wipes is great, reusing other etbs is great, machine-gunning with a Soul of the Harvest is great. Lots of uses for this cat.
This thing is like my little kuriboh (if you watched the old ass cartoon years ago you'll get this reference), it looks like it's never enough on paper but in practice you catch all the sly interactions and while it might not win the game, it'll bring you much closer to that win. Never sad to see.
You forgot Panharmonicon to just bounce creatures as needed. The best comparison I can think of with that is Elvish Visionary but cheaper: Get a 1/1, and you're not down a card.
You can toss in Paradox Engine and your favorite mana rock for an infinite Rube Goldberg machine.
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Card advantage is not the same thing as card draw. Something for 2B cannot be strictly worse than something for BBB or 3BB. If you're taking out Swords to Plowshares for Plummet, you're a fool. Stop doing these things!
I understand that the non-spirit restriction is actually more permissive than a non-token restriction, but the anti-tribal synergy causes feel bad moments for Kamigawa enthusiasts like myself, it leaves me hesitant to play the card despite positive experiences with it. I just wanted to protect my Patron of the Kitsune!
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Zedruu: "This deck is not only able to go crazy - it also needs to do so."
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Obviously an auto-include in Thantis, the Warweaver, and I do consider the combat step my failure mode even for my combo decks.
On phasing:
This is definitely somewhere in my top 10 cards of all time. The sorrow it causes by just waiting for them to cast their first spell is fantastic. And the one time an opponent went turn 1 elf, countered, Summoning Trap is a story worth the backfire.
Pretty sweet Kaalia of the Vast target, honestly.
Steel Sabotage'ng Orbs of Mellowness since 2011.
And this certainly sounds like a story i'd wanna hear.
I know that every tap effect messes with limited and every untap effect goes infinite somehow if you tried hard enough... but they printed this at rare... 4 times. Jeez.
On phasing:
Weird card all around. 4 for a 2/2 is incredibly bad, and 4 for that ability is baffling. Compare to kiora's follower for the untap part. The tap part is clearly where the price comes from, but 4 is still atrocious and it's very non-green. Clearly a blue or white ability on a green card. Maybe it's in that camp of phyrexian tribute where it's rare and incredibly overpriced because it's so out-of-color. But I kinda thought they stopped doing those by 7th edition.
RKF art is sweet on the non-7th versions, though. I always love a good RKF.
EDH Primers
Phelddagrif - Zirilan
EDH
Thrasios+Bruse - Pang - Sasaya - Wydwen - Feather - Rona - Toshiro - Sylvia+Khorvath - Geth - QMarchesa - Firesong - Athreos - Arixmethes - Isperia - Etali - Silas+Sidar - Saskia - Virtus+Gorm - Kynaios - Naban - Aryel - Mizzix - Kazuul - Tymna+Kraum - Sidar+Tymna - Ayli - Gwendlyn - Phelddagrif 4 - Liliana - Kaervek - Phelddagrif 3 - Mairsil - Scarab - Child - Phenax - Shirei - Thada - Depala - Circu - Kytheon - GrenzoHR - Phelddagrif - Reyhan+Kraum - Toshiro - Varolz - Nin - Ojutai - Tasigur - Zedruu - Uril - Edric - Wort - Zurgo - Nahiri - Grenzo - Kozilek - Yisan - Ink-Treader - Yisan - Brago - Sidisi - Toshiro - Alexi - Sygg - Brimaz - Sek'Kuar - Marchesa - Vish Kal - Iroas - Phelddagrif - Ephara - Derevi - Glissa - Wanderer - Saffi - Melek - Xiahou Dun - Lazav - Lin Sivvi - Zirilan - Glissa
PDH - Drake - Graverobber - Izzet GM - Tallowisp - Symbiote Brawl - Feather - Ugin - Jace - Scarab - Angrath - Vraska - Kumena Oathbreaker - Wrenn&6
Green typically can untap creatures and lands, and back then, green could tap creatures occasionally, e.g. Winter Blast. But artifacts are another thing. However, green has had "any permanent" cards (Seedborn Muse for untapping, plenty of recursion and Genesis Wave-type effects). It's just extremely rare, and it feels really weird that it doesn't just say "Tap or untap target permanent."
The activation cost more than anything is what kills it. Maybe someone was deathly afraid of an infinite combo? When, TBH, under no circumstances would this be the strongest card in Ice Age. (You know which card that is.) It's not even on my list of the top ten strongest cards in Ice Age. All of which proves that Ice Age is an early Magic set, where the power level was all over the place.
On phasing:
Aggro: WUBRGHorde of Notions Goodstuff, RUB Cheesy Aggro, GR Xenagod Gruul Goodstuff
Control: GWBGhave, Guru of Adaptability, UBWrexial, Milling Deep UAzami, Lady of No Infinite Combos GWU Derevi, Tempo Beats
Other: URGRiku of Too Much Mana, WUBRG Sliver Queen Enchantress
It is "out of color pie" for green, but it's stupidly fragile and expensive compared to Puppet Strings and Icy Manipulator which any mono-green deck can also run.
It's versatile, however, and in my research I actually found that there's only one other card in history that full-on Twiddles repeatedly (Trickster Mage). This card is priced to oblivion, but you are getting the "power" to untap or tap at will. It doesn't have zero use as a result, but I can't imagine any deck except maybe, maybe Druid Tribal wanting it.
RCRDaretti: Superfriends Forever RCR
WGBDoran: Ent-mootWBG
GGGMultani: Group Bear HugGGG
GB(B/G)The Gitrog Monster: Dredgefall DurdleGB(B/G)
RGWGahiji, the Honored Group Hug MonsterRGW
UB(U/B)Yuriko, Ninja Trinket AggroUB(U/B)
WUBRGAtogatog: Assembling a OHKOWUBRG
I've played this in EDH before. Flash creatures are great in a vacuum, protecting your things from board wipes is great, reusing other etbs is great, machine-gunning with a Soul of the Harvest is great. Lots of uses for this cat.
Ephara, God of the Polis makes use of this card.
Shu Yun, the Silent Tempest WUR Voltron Control
Temmet, Vizier of Naktamun WU Unblockable Mirror Trickery
Ra's al Ghul (Sidar Kondo) and Face-Down Ninjas
Brudiclad, Token Engineer
Vaevictis (VV2) the Dire Lantern
Rona, Disciple of Gix
Tiana the Auror
Hallar
Ulrich the Politician
Zur the Rebel
Scorpion, Locust, Scarab, Egyptian Gods
O-Kagachi, Mathas, Mairsil
"Non-Tribal" Tribal Generals, Eggs
Pair this with Oketra's Monument in a mono white deck.
Esper - Sydri - Alternate take on the Artifacts meta
Orzhov - Regna and Krav - Tokens and Lifegain and +1/+1 counters
Mono Green - Multani, Yavimaya's Avatar - Land Matters
WURG Kynaios and Tiro Grouphug/Fistbump
This thing is like my little kuriboh (if you watched the old ass cartoon years ago you'll get this reference), it looks like it's never enough on paper but in practice you catch all the sly interactions and while it might not win the game, it'll bring you much closer to that win. Never sad to see.
Steel Sabotage'ng Orbs of Mellowness since 2011.
It's funny it's just about as good as Resto Angel, and better even vs a wrath.
Steel Sabotage'ng Orbs of Mellowness since 2011.
You forgot Panharmonicon to just bounce creatures as needed. The best comparison I can think of with that is Elvish Visionary but cheaper: Get a 1/1, and you're not down a card.
You can toss in Paradox Engine and your favorite mana rock for an infinite Rube Goldberg machine.
On phasing:
All of them.
Seriously, this is an all-star in ETB abuse. I’ve cut rarer, more expensive, more flashy cards for this little cat, and have never been disappointed.
I understand that the non-spirit restriction is actually more permissive than a non-token restriction, but the anti-tribal synergy causes feel bad moments for Kamigawa enthusiasts like myself, it leaves me hesitant to play the card despite positive experiences with it. I just wanted to protect my Patron of the Kitsune!