Lol. I agree that jace.format is a tough world to be in (if you aren't playing jace- and I do), but I do think it's slightly ironic that your avatar is an image of Metalworker, a card which is only slightly busted.
As for the 300 card set and the shrunken format, it's a way for them to sell more packs per set as people need to open more packs to get playsets of key rares and mythics that now have an even greater rarity. On one hand, I'm glad that I am finally transitioning into Modern so I can de-invest in Standard, but on the other hand, OTG proves that WOTC will figure out ways to make Modern players buy packs of the current set as well.
It's definitely a catch-22 situation.
The joke is that I used to play Metalworker in my janky Bottle Gnomes deck way back in the day before it was ever a busted card.
We all had the chance to invest in Jace before the prices got too out of control. What I'm saying is that it's a bit too late now and I'd rather not play standard if Jace is going to dominate.
If you play aggro you get wiped out by Chandra, Flamecaller sometimes and the rest of the time you win.
Testing Ormendahl against decks without the right removal was always a certain win. I could always stay a token or 2 ahead of To the Slaughter. I think Jace, Unraveler of Secrets might be what control needs to deal with him. Bounce is very effective.
Perhaps me and my friend helping me test were just building decks with too many bombs that weren't cohesive enough. The cards I would lose to in order were Chandra, Kalitas, Ob Nixilis and Arlinn Kord. All big splashy mythic rares.
Feels a bit like the format around the times of RTR, removal is cheap and plentyful so you're just playing the war of attrition until somebody can finally make their huge threat stick on board and start beating down for the win condition.
Seems like a bit of a panic. People have discovered it is a good card? I'm not really sure about standard decks supporting the WWW well.
I've been playing a playset in white aggro splashing blue/green. With 8 fetches it was a good deck and actually won a 4 round FNM on the 2nd try. I then decided to put the cue in the rack and wait for rotation.
Kytheon, Hero of Akros also goes ok. I think when control is relying heavily on Chandra, Flamecaller you need everything you can that doesn't die to 4 sorcery speed damage. I got absolutely wrecked in one game against Mardu green taking out 3 of my Wingmate Roc / bird tokens.
I kept drawing land on the Sorin +1 but I think that was just unfortunate. It's nice having that extra draw engine to go with the Nissa, Sage Animist. Just got 1 Ob Nixilis Reignited in the deck and sometimes I guess you do get that superfriends vibe. Gideon is the only walker not with card draw, who needs blue?
If only there was Siege Rhino to stabilize early. Really unsure of what to play in the 4 drop slot. Thought-Knot Seer seems fine with heaps of painlands and Westvale Abbey for the colorless. Perhaps the upgrade to Reality Smasher is worth it but then it's clashing with Sigarda.
So many powerful cards in these colors that is for sure it's just getting the curve right.
Respectfully I have to disagree about Declaration in stone. Give your opponent a clue so they can get the card back is a horrible idea and defeats the purpose of 1 for 1 removal. Unplayable jank.
The format will be slow. 3 color mana bases will be no problem at all just not as quick as fetching anything you like all the time such as the last 6 months has been.
If you are indeed a control player you need to wake up and smell the removal package. 1 for 1, that's how MTG works. Attrition, you use 1 card to remove 1 card.
The catch all unconditional removal for those tricky to reach things like the pumped up Kalitas or large flyers.
I certainly understand your concerns with the curve which is why I suggest Nissa, Vastwood Seer. Sometimes you have a hand full of gas and you just need that 4th land drop. Nissa is a 2/2 which can be a chump blocker but a lot of the time just baits out removal. The Nissa, Sage Animist ultimate combined with the Arlinn mini overrun would be such a satisfying win sure to make your opponent mega salty.
Green is reduced to a utility color yet again. You have to splash it to run Arlinn Kord or Dromoka's Command or some other powerful gold card but what does green really have left?
I feel like the deck wants more to do on turns 2/3 Draconic Roar is great but needs enablers like maybe a playset of Thunderbreak Regent to keep the board clear early while doing damage. Silkwrap is probably great with Collected Company decks out and about.
Certainly something like a 7/7 vigilance/haste/indestructible Gideon seems very scary but how about a 7/9 flying lifelink Dromoka which can't be killed because once it hits the board your opponent can't cast spells?
Certainly enough removal in RW to get you to the late game then you have the walkers and a bit of haste to give you game against control decks trying to lock you out with what they can do at sorcery speed.
Perhaps you want 3 of each walker. I mean it's nice being able to emblem Gideon first up with the +1 loyalty off his oath. A 1 of Kozilek, the Great Distortion could be a nice finisher especially with that Arlinn emblem.
The sort of deck that wants to build up and make huge splashy plays. Lots of fun.
Might even want Nissa, Vastwood Seer for a bit of mana ramp and late game card advantage. Also fills that 3 drop spot.
People jumping from Jeskai black to Mardu green playing all the best stuff.
The mana base is just too broken for standard.
I'm just glad my local metagame never got infected with too much rally. Horrible goldfish magic.
The first year of KTK was great, Abzan midrange with Elspeth, Sun's Champion was very enjoyable to me. Then came the mana base to run Crackling Doom for free with Jace to flash it back constantly killing every Siege Rhino and Anafenza, the Foremost I could play and I died a little inside skipping many FNMs.
Been amazing for me in bant aggro. Mostly a white deck with small splashes for powerful cards like Dromoka's Command and Reflector Mage.
Having 8 fetchlands certainly helps fix your colour with no Island or Forest required. I don't think it will be possible to play as aggressively with the splash without the fetches.
I love pretending to miss my land drop on the play. I can just keep playing 2 drops all day if they want to miss land drops too
Certainly a good card and has done plenty of work for me helping to get that 5th land towards Wingmate Roc.
Excuse me while I jump off a bridge. Jace.format is not a world I would wish to continue living in.
It rotates with Dragons when the September block (fall set) comes out.
Thinking about it I'm guessing this is part of the reason we're seeing a truly bumper just short of 300 card SOI set. Gotta keep the size of the card pool up.
SCG are setting the prices way too high and all the sheep are only too happy to follow.
They got burnt on the one set they tried to be fair with (Dragons) and it just happened to turn out to be a killer set with insane EV box values even to this day.
I will play prerelease and I will be happy with the expensive new cards I open. I might even trade the new cards for new cards of the same value but I will not trade older cards at current value for the starting prices of the new cards.
My take on the expensive walkers is they need to prove themselves first. You might pay more later but better than paying $30 early for something that isn't playable.
This is the sort of spike that is just hype based and stupidity. Card is worth $2 max.
Focus your money on mythics. Sorin could be a good guy this week.
I might be out of this season.
The joke is that I used to play Metalworker in my janky Bottle Gnomes deck way back in the day before it was ever a busted card.
We all had the chance to invest in Jace before the prices got too out of control. What I'm saying is that it's a bit too late now and I'd rather not play standard if Jace is going to dominate.
It goes to show that there is some shady stuff happening behind the scenes.
http://www.mtgstocks.com/cards/3804
Seems obvious from this graph that people were told it was going to be unbanned they just weren't sure if it was last set or this.
If you play aggro you get wiped out by Chandra, Flamecaller sometimes and the rest of the time you win.
Testing Ormendahl against decks without the right removal was always a certain win. I could always stay a token or 2 ahead of To the Slaughter. I think Jace, Unraveler of Secrets might be what control needs to deal with him. Bounce is very effective.
Perhaps me and my friend helping me test were just building decks with too many bombs that weren't cohesive enough. The cards I would lose to in order were Chandra, Kalitas, Ob Nixilis and Arlinn Kord. All big splashy mythic rares.
Sometimes I would win with Dragonlord Dromoka, Sigarda, Heron's Grace or a massive Secure the Wastes into Ormendahl.
Feels a bit like the format around the times of RTR, removal is cheap and plentyful so you're just playing the war of attrition until somebody can finally make their huge threat stick on board and start beating down for the win condition.
I've been playing a playset in white aggro splashing blue/green. With 8 fetches it was a good deck and actually won a 4 round FNM on the 2nd try. I then decided to put the cue in the rack and wait for rotation.
Kytheon, Hero of Akros also goes ok. I think when control is relying heavily on Chandra, Flamecaller you need everything you can that doesn't die to 4 sorcery speed damage. I got absolutely wrecked in one game against Mardu green taking out 3 of my Wingmate Roc / bird tokens.
Other resilient threats I have my eye on are Dragonlord Ojutai, Dragonlord Dromoka and Sigarda, Heron's Grace.
You can't do that
Sorin, Grim Nemesis did some good work killing Chandra after she had used her +1 to destroy my Gideon, Ally of Zendikar.
I kept drawing land on the Sorin +1 but I think that was just unfortunate. It's nice having that extra draw engine to go with the Nissa, Sage Animist. Just got 1 Ob Nixilis Reignited in the deck and sometimes I guess you do get that superfriends vibe. Gideon is the only walker not with card draw, who needs blue?
With Painful Truths early I'm worried about life totals. Sure I had Ormendahl, Profane Prince as a finisher off Secure the Wastes but in some games I just get hopelessly outgunned to Sylvan Advocate Sin Prodder and Arlinn Kord coming down early.
If only there was Siege Rhino to stabilize early. Really unsure of what to play in the 4 drop slot. Thought-Knot Seer seems fine with heaps of painlands and Westvale Abbey for the colorless. Perhaps the upgrade to Reality Smasher is worth it but then it's clashing with Sigarda.
So many powerful cards in these colors that is for sure it's just getting the curve right.
The format will be slow. 3 color mana bases will be no problem at all just not as quick as fetching anything you like all the time such as the last 6 months has been.
If you are indeed a control player you need to wake up and smell the removal package. 1 for 1, that's how MTG works. Attrition, you use 1 card to remove 1 card.
Draconic Roar / Silkwrap
Deals with most early threats very nicely. Takes care of the early Jace to stop the opponent setting up.
Roast
Deals with the bigger threats that come slighty later, your Thought-Knot Seer type thing.
Stasis Snare
The catch all unconditional removal for those tricky to reach things like the pumped up Kalitas or large flyers.
I certainly understand your concerns with the curve which is why I suggest Nissa, Vastwood Seer. Sometimes you have a hand full of gas and you just need that 4th land drop. Nissa is a 2/2 which can be a chump blocker but a lot of the time just baits out removal. The Nissa, Sage Animist ultimate combined with the Arlinn mini overrun would be such a satisfying win sure to make your opponent mega salty.
Den Protector?
I really liked Warden of the First Tree, good early and late. Not just the 6 drop big dumb monster.
You need something like Dragonlord Dromoka or Dragonlord Atarka. I think these play well with the ultimate of Nahiri, the Harbinger.
I feel like the deck wants more to do on turns 2/3 Draconic Roar is great but needs enablers like maybe a playset of Thunderbreak Regent to keep the board clear early while doing damage. Silkwrap is probably great with Collected Company decks out and about.
Certainly something like a 7/7 vigilance/haste/indestructible Gideon seems very scary but how about a 7/9 flying lifelink Dromoka which can't be killed because once it hits the board your opponent can't cast spells?
Certainly enough removal in RW to get you to the late game then you have the walkers and a bit of haste to give you game against control decks trying to lock you out with what they can do at sorcery speed.
4 Draconic Roar
2 Roast
Enchantment (12)
4 Oath of Nissa
2 Oath of Gideon
4 Silkwrap
2 Stasis Snare
4 Thunderbreak Regent
2 Dragonlord Dromoka
1 Dragonlord Atarka
Planeswalkers (9)
3 Nahiri, the Harbinger
2 Gideon, Ally of Zendikar
4 Arlinn Kord
4 Battlefield Forge
4 Cinder Glade
4 Canopy Vista
Mana base not worked out yet obviously.
Perhaps you want 3 of each walker. I mean it's nice being able to emblem Gideon first up with the +1 loyalty off his oath. A 1 of Kozilek, the Great Distortion could be a nice finisher especially with that Arlinn emblem.
The sort of deck that wants to build up and make huge splashy plays. Lots of fun.
Might even want Nissa, Vastwood Seer for a bit of mana ramp and late game card advantage. Also fills that 3 drop spot.
People jumping from Jeskai black to Mardu green playing all the best stuff.
The mana base is just too broken for standard.
I'm just glad my local metagame never got infected with too much rally. Horrible goldfish magic.
The first year of KTK was great, Abzan midrange with Elspeth, Sun's Champion was very enjoyable to me. Then came the mana base to run Crackling Doom for free with Jace to flash it back constantly killing every Siege Rhino and Anafenza, the Foremost I could play and I died a little inside skipping many FNMs.
Having 8 fetchlands certainly helps fix your colour with no Island or Forest required. I don't think it will be possible to play as aggressively with the splash without the fetches.
I love pretending to miss my land drop on the play. I can just keep playing 2 drops all day if they want to miss land drops too
Certainly a good card and has done plenty of work for me helping to get that 5th land towards Wingmate Roc.
Excuse me while I jump off a bridge. Jace.format is not a world I would wish to continue living in.
It rotates with Dragons when the September block (fall set) comes out.
Thinking about it I'm guessing this is part of the reason we're seeing a truly bumper just short of 300 card SOI set. Gotta keep the size of the card pool up.
They got burnt on the one set they tried to be fair with (Dragons) and it just happened to turn out to be a killer set with insane EV box values even to this day.
I will play prerelease and I will be happy with the expensive new cards I open. I might even trade the new cards for new cards of the same value but I will not trade older cards at current value for the starting prices of the new cards.
My take on the expensive walkers is they need to prove themselves first. You might pay more later but better than paying $30 early for something that isn't playable.
I hope it is worth the wait.