I'm guessing W Cleric, U Wizard, B Rogue and G Ranger for the base cycle? W could also be Paladin and G could be Druid but if we're getting a second cycle would make sense to make some classes multicolored and WR Paladin and UG Druid seem appropriate.
I think it's neat. Reminder that Wily Goblin saw play, and while yeah it being a red Goblin is definitely part of it the baseline here is an one-time ramp and a +1/+1 counter on a 1/2.
Also this is like what, third or fourth Rakdos Legend that ISN'T all "hedonism death kill rage pain"? That's also cool.
Unless the term Bard isn't restricted to "telling stories via song", of course.
'^^
In D&D Bards are all-rounders really. They are talented in music and prose, sure, but also deft with both hands and speech, skilled with artistry in general and even apt with magic.
• A card with the number words “four” and “fourteen”.
Fourteen seems like such an oddly specific number. Maybe it's a 2/2 that grows to a 6/6 using four +1/+1s due to some specific condition, then can trigger in even more specific conditions to become a 20/20. Another possibility could be a reference to a sonnet.
• a fan favorite animal character finally becomes a legendary creature
I can't recall, is Squee's Toy sentient? For me it sounds like the most likely candidate, unless we go in "well technically" territory - like Ajani and Voja - or "just plain memes" territory - like Kenrith-as-Elk or The Bear Punched by Surrak.
• Legendary Creature – Squirrel Warrior
Assuming this one is another teaser for the Unnamed Aesop/Anthro plane, home of Archelos and Kwain. If so, it's interesting just how many teasers for this we're getting. Maybe this means we'll be going there soon?
A mechanic where you can choose good-neutral-evil would be nice.
That's a cool idea and very possible, Character Alignments are some of the most resonant aspects of D&D in the sense even those that never played it recognize it from those popular fan-made 3x3 alignment charts and fictional characters.
Don't think there's enough design space for an entire mechanic though, but I could see a cycle akin to the Siege cycle of Khans/Dragons choices. Maybe Sorceries with 3 effects with 1 that benefits everyone a lot, 1 "normal" effect that affects only you and 1 "boosted" effect with a hefty drawback.
I hope they have all of The Companions i.e. being Drizzt Do'Urden, Bruenor Battlehammer, Regis, Catti-brie, and Wulfgar as legendary creatures. Also Acererak the Demi-Lich would be fantastic. Mechanics that i could see in the set are party, traps, level up.
IIRC Party is already confirmed not in. Don't remember who (probably MaRo) but someone mentioned that Zendikar Rising's design team offered party to the Forgotten Realms design team a few times but they refused. As for the others, all possible but I assume there was a conscious effort to make sure Forgotten Realms didn't felt like Zendikar since D&D was a core inspiration for Zendikar.
As for potential legends, I'll be okay with anything as long as we get Lolth. I'll die happy as long as we get the typeline "Spider God" in a card.
Love the Commanders included and really good reprints but at least imo this has the biggest number of duds so far. Guardian Archon is pretty terrible in any deck that isn't centered around blinking and even then it's just fine, Promise of Loyalty is really fun but underwhelming unless you're going Voltron (which could be a direction to take Breena since she's evasive and grows very fast but the deck doesn't really supports it), Bold Plagiarist relies on your opponents and even when it gets rolling it's just a beeg/huge creature without inherent evasion, Cunning Rhetoric is one of those cards that is much better in 1v1 and will probably be a fun card for Cubes but pretty crappy in Commander itself and Tempting Contract is way overpriced for a card that does nothing if either your opponents don't assist you or if the game has entered the 1v1 stage.
With that said, boy I do love those Commanders. Fain seems lowkey busted, Nils is a cool design and a very powerful political/pillowforting Commander and Felisa is both new space for WB and really fun to build around. Shame she doesn't combos with Rootha, Mercurial Artist, but then again, maybe it's extra flavorful if they don't?
Damn, great stuff all around. Fantastic reprints, exciting new cards, cool new Commanders. The only real misses for me here are Triplicate Titan, both because it's just a big dumb idiot that imitates Wurmcoil Engine and because it's not a Chimera when it totally should be, and the land which is... pretty damn unexciting even as far as Common utility lands goes.
So can multiple of them revive off of a Lesson or just one?
It's a replacement effect. Just like you can't bring back all cards with Dredge off a single replaced draw, you can replace a learned Lesson with only one Phoenix.
A turn 2 , 5/4 can probably be quite annoying in Limited.
Outside of that, its asking for removal right away.
Shame too, since if it was a 5 mana 5/4 that gets a 3 discount at sac, it would be much better and could see play in some Constructed decks. As is, it's Fatal Push / Bloodchief's Thirst fodder.
Cool design. On one hand, 7 mana isn't as much as one would think, as Sultai Ultimatum can attest, and if you have 11+ life when she drops, doubling your mana instantly means you can Alrund's Epiphany or Emergent Ultimatum or just protect her with counterspells and that's probably GG right there.
On the other hand, she's pretty vulnerable, your opponent can respond to the untap trigger with a kill spell and if she ever drops while you have less than 10 life... well she's just a big dumb Verdant Force on wings.
Seems like a powerful card for a specific niche that requires more support than it first seems. And honestly, I think that's a good thing. The fact she's very powerful in Commander and a Golgari card that isn't about filling your graveyard for profit is also great.
God I hate those equipments whose equip cost is the same as the casting cost. Makes it so awkward to fit it into your earlygame curve that the Quill might as well be a 4-drop. Don't think there's any B deck that wants an equipment either, so despite it being a fine card, it feels like the perfect blend of awkwardness to be unplayable in Constructed imo.
Hunt for Specimens, on the other hand, might be playable. Think of it as a Dusk Legion Zealot that gains you life instead of losing 1. Zealot was very much playable, though mostly in Vampire decks. Are the lifegain and Magecraft triggers enough to make it playable?
Also this is like what, third or fourth Rakdos Legend that ISN'T all "hedonism death kill rage pain"? That's also cool.
In D&D Bards are all-rounders really. They are talented in music and prose, sure, but also deft with both hands and speech, skilled with artistry in general and even apt with magic.
I can't recall, is Squee's Toy sentient? For me it sounds like the most likely candidate, unless we go in "well technically" territory - like Ajani and Voja - or "just plain memes" territory - like Kenrith-as-Elk or The Bear Punched by Surrak.
Assuming this one is another teaser for the Unnamed Aesop/Anthro plane, home of Archelos and Kwain. If so, it's interesting just how many teasers for this we're getting. Maybe this means we'll be going there soon?
Don't think there's enough design space for an entire mechanic though, but I could see a cycle akin to the Siege cycle of Khans/Dragons choices. Maybe Sorceries with 3 effects with 1 that benefits everyone a lot, 1 "normal" effect that affects only you and 1 "boosted" effect with a hefty drawback.
As for potential legends, I'll be okay with anything as long as we get Lolth. I'll die happy as long as we get the typeline "Spider God" in a card.
With that said, boy I do love those Commanders. Fain seems lowkey busted, Nils is a cool design and a very powerful political/pillowforting Commander and Felisa is both new space for WB and really fun to build around. Shame she doesn't combos with Rootha, Mercurial Artist, but then again, maybe it's extra flavorful if they don't?
On the other hand, she's pretty vulnerable, your opponent can respond to the untap trigger with a kill spell and if she ever drops while you have less than 10 life... well she's just a big dumb Verdant Force on wings.
Seems like a powerful card for a specific niche that requires more support than it first seems. And honestly, I think that's a good thing. The fact she's very powerful in Commander and a Golgari card that isn't about filling your graveyard for profit is also great.
Hunt for Specimens, on the other hand, might be playable. Think of it as a Dusk Legion Zealot that gains you life instead of losing 1. Zealot was very much playable, though mostly in Vampire decks. Are the lifegain and Magecraft triggers enough to make it playable?