I'm not really into TWD or Stranger Things but think it's cool that the crossover stuff exists. Hasbro used to make the ALIEN toys, and that's one that I REALLY want to see. The Dark Tower would be awesome and absolutely fits MtG flavor. Not sure what else I'd be into off the top of my head. But yeah, I say bring it on.
I don't LOVE the print-to-List idea that much, only insofar as it seems to be a forced reason to buy Set Boosters, the existence of which I don't really get. It still seems as sort of an unnecessary product to me. But otherwise I think it's a cool way to ensure we get MtG versions of anything that turns out to be potentially playable, and I don't have a better solution off-hand.
A good way to think of it is less "make people buy set boosters", and more "people are already going to be buying set boosters, so this helps get enough copies in circulation without absolutely flooding the market with them".
One thing one has to think about is weighing attacking vs. being able to react at instant-speed to anything of interest being exiled, which may be necessary, e.g., stealing a big beater at the end of your opponent's turn so it gets pseudo-haste and ends the game the following turn.
(As the card says "you may play it this turn" I don't see any usual timing restrictions apply, you should be able to play sorceries and permanents on your opponent's turn, right? Mayby only if the stack is empty...)
Because it says "this turn", you have to obey all the normal timing restrictions. So you'd only be able to steal instants during your opponent's turn, likely to prevent the shenanigans you're mentioning.
One relevant thing to remember is that a 3/2 Shadow creature is not the same thing as a 3/2 unblockable. Sure, it likely won't be blocked, but it also won't be blocking much either. This is going to be an absolutely awful card to drop when you're behind. Voidwalker will be great when you're ahead and the 3 damage a turn is relevant pressure, but I think people will be disappointed if they think a BB 3/2 shadow creature with no other rules would be playable outside the most aggro of decks.
Sure, if you can storm and win the turn it resolves, fine ... but it simply never produces interesting games and its terrible annoying to topdeck.
I want as less cards i hate to draw in my deck as possible.
Yep. The problem is you want fast mana early. This never lands early. By the time you can cheat this card out, you'd rather cheat out spells that do something rather than mana, so I suspect this will join the Mox Tantalite scrapheap and do nothing.
There is always a chance though that some enabler enables this some day. Basically what is needed is something that enables T1 this, as that is a big game.
Ad Nauseam is currently salvaging Lotus Bloom's chances in Modern. I think Sol Talisman similarly needs to enable something backbreaking on Turn 4 (that Lotus Bloom cannot do) in order to have a chance in Modern.
Could it arguably serve as backup Lotus Bloom, which was something Mox Tantalite couldn't really do? I think, if this does have a shot in modern, it's going to be off the fact that it manages a little from Lotus Bloom (ramping for multiple mana on turn 4), and a little from Mox Tantalite (sticks around rather than sacrificing).
That wording seems weird to me. I guess it's the best way to say it, but there's nowhere else you could return it to your hand from, so the use of "only" feels weird.
Theoretically, they could make it function from Exile, or, if we *really* want to make the rules manager cry, your library. But basically they have to use only because there's a lot of zones it *could* be, and they have to specify if it works in the graveyard for it to be able to function there.
Worth remembering that we just got a bunch of new reanimation/reanimation enablers that specify "non-legendary", and most of the high end competition for this guy is Legendary. Turn 2 Unmarked Grave into turn 3 Persist seems like a solid line of play, and this is probably one of the better targets for that.
Nah, Cursed Totem is appreciated to hose Heliod Ballista and other creature-based combos.
Is there a Protean Hulk combo that dodges both Cursed Totem and one removal spell?
Dodging totem is definitely hard. It's possible you could get there with like, ETB sacrifice creatures? That... might also just solve the removal problem as well, if it's all coming off etb's and death triggers. Sidisi's Faithful works for at least some of them?
Are there any Protean Hulk combos that resist 1 removal spell that this enables? Remember, they can kill your sac outlet with the Karmic Guide trigger on the stack.
Off the top of my head, none that go off immediately, but if you're somehow running Imperial Recruiter, you could use that as a way to reload for next turn? Alternately, if this is already in the graveyard with another sac outlet, grabbing Viscera seer+Reveillark would let you go off regardless of at least one kill spell.
Have a Ruin Crab/Hedron Crab in play, cast Mystic Reflection, then make as many copies as you can and drop a Fable Passage and LOL all the way to the Mill Bank.
'buster
Mystic Reflection will only apply to the *next* crab you make. Each activation only makes one.
Unless you have a means of producing infinite mana this won't have the same level of output. At most it will produce 8 or 9 tokens on turn 4 or 5 with enough ramp.
I'm very confused as to how Iridescent Hornbeetle interacts with this card at all. Hornbeetle gives you extra insects, once per turn, once you've already put +1/+1 counters on something. So while Hornbeetle does synergize with the same stuff that enables this card, it doesn't create an infinite loop, even with a nudge.
This is so many steps above a red Elite Vanguard, I kinda wonder why they haven't just printed the vanilla version yet.
Personally, I think just creating a treasure would have been plenty.
Mark actually broke down why that is a while back. Basically, 2/1's for R are good for constructed (and a vanilla one would kinda just be weak), but would be too strong at common or uncommon for limited because of red's burn. But a plain 2/1 for R is too simple/weak as a rare. So you end up with them making 2/1's with upside at rare and mythic, but none at common or uncommon, which is the only spot where a vanilla one would make sense.
Eh I don't think this gonna be a cycle and more of a planar chaos style card where they color shift a card.
If anything, Urborg is the colorshifted one.
I'd consider it similar to Prodigal Pyromancer: Something where the first printing wasn't in the primary color, so the "color shift" moves it to the primary color for the effect.
Triome into shockland means a 5/5 on turn 2. Not bad though that tempo lost doing that likely won't do too well.
Shockland into shockland does a pretty good job at making this a 4/4 while still letting you play Nactal, and then you play the triome on turn 3. And heck, maybe you drop a Scion of Draco that turn, so you get a 5/5, 3/3, and a 4/4 flyer all with with hexproof, vigilance, first strike, trample, and lifelink. That's... a beefy board.
Most relevantly, as an uncommon, this is intended for Limited. Green/Red is the storm archetype, which this helps with.