"I am not made like any of those I have seen. I venture to believe that I am not made like any of those who are in existence. If I am not better, at least I am different."
- Jean-Jacques Rousseau
"Wisdom comes from facing what you do not yet understand."
- Unknown
Down the Less Trodden Path
Magic the Gathering is a game of immense flavor, culture, and knowledge. A player can choose many different routes to achieve winning conditions. There are just like in many situations in life, popular ways to achieve success, both in playing the game, as well as how we approach the game. There are literally, in my honest opinion, tens of thousands of ways to build a deck, if not hundreds of thousands of ways.
Maybe there arent hundreds of thousands of ways to approach the game necessarily, but I do believe there are still many different various mindsets the individual can obtain when approaching the game itself, the metagame, the collecting, and the community.
I remember my original mindset about Magic the Gathering, and the road it has taken from then up until now. Unce upon a day, in Biology class, in 11th grade, I was halfways listening to the teacher, when I noticed a commotion behind me, a quiet one. I turned behind me and saw a very large student, shuffling a large stack of cards. I took a closer look and saw that these cards were unlike any I had ever seen before. I saw blue cards, green cards, black cards, mainly solid colors. To me this was like a slap in the face. I was used to seeing yellow cards (pokemon) or tan cards (Yu-Gi-Oh!), and these strikingly simple colored cards held my attention for a moment. I ventured to ignore the teacher, and ask the student what the cards were.
This fellow, told me they were MTG cards. Ah, MTG, yes I had heard of it before, and has passed it off as some 3rd world game for idiots. But i couldnt hold my curiosity at bay, and he handed me some various cards, while asuring me not to **** them up, as they were high dollar. Again in my mind, I couldnt see anything being more high dollar then my Yu-Gi-Oh cards, or a foil charizard. But I perused the cards he offered me anyways.
The first thing I noticed was the art. It was largly hand drawn, hand painted, or so it seemed. Very intricate and delicate care was put into each image. Even the names seemed like someone hand brainstormed them up to perfectly fit the image. The effects I didnt understand, but the flavor text was quirky, descriptive in a good way, a fitting way. I liked these cards I decided.
But I never started playing the game either. It wasnt until a few months later, in that same Biology class, my idea of Magic the Gathering changed yet again. There was some sort of discussion on collecting items that had started. Now this fellow behind me, who almost never spoke, did. He started telling the class, about how he would spend hundreds of dollars on these cards. People seemed shocked. He explained he would buy out of print cards, for the art. He didnt even play the game, but he loved the art. He simply collected the cards.
This led me to believe that my previous beliefs about the game were in fact correct. The cards might have had cool art on them, but this was obviously a rip off game for imbeciles.
Looking back, that guy had some very expensive alpha/beta cards. I cant tell you the exact cards other than I know he had some various Mox cards in there, and cards similar to it. Knowing this, although I didnt know it back then, this guy was probably a very specific and smart collector, and had achieved some sort of success with the game, in collector terms.
I cant tell you his name, But i vaugely remember a shadowy half filled image of his face. I respect that guy now. He taught me something about money, a little bit about enthusiasm and determination, and something about love, all rolled up into one.
And then from that day up until spring of 2013, I forgot all about Magic the Gathering.
My next change in my views concerning the game, came when a man by the name of Sean, encountered my wife at Fed-Ex Office. He was opening a gaming store called Mana Vault, in Wichita, KS, and was looking to get some various items printed. Well my wife told me about all this, and told me he invited us to come check out the place. At first I was all gung-ho, until she told me it was primarily a MTG store. My excitement immeidiantly left me. MTG? lame.
Course I didnt even play any kind of TCG then, so after alot of coercing, I decided I would go check the store out. Long story short, I ended up buying my first deck that day, and learning how to play the game. After that first day, My beliefs about MTG had been shattered to the core. Everything I thought I knew about the game, had changed into something more meaningful, but little did I realize it would continue to evolve, but I did have some inkling it would evolve in a way less common to the masses.
One thing led to the next, and I was soon building elementary decks, playing in tournaments, building up my knowledge, and losing, A LOT. I mean I lost a LOT of games. I probably lost hundreds of games in my first few months, but I was un aware that It was changing my mentality about approaching the game for the better. In fact I lost so much, that I was known as the Scoop Guy.
I would walk out halfway through tournaments, forfeit games, slam my chair into place, curse, etc. It got to the point I was infamous for a short while as "that guy". This led to my downfall, and my discouragement, both with myself, the game, and those around me. I noticed favoritism in the store, I began to dislike the owner, and it even got personal a few times, and really started to make the whole experience a miserable one. So I quit playing.
A year later I got back into it. I started playing the game again, but I noticed I was leaning towards an unorthodox stand point. I was constantly told not to build certain decks, not to use certain cards. That my ideas were bad, lacked depth etc. Again one thing led to the next, and I had a second bad experience. It seemed to me at this point that MTG was a pay to play game, filled with corruption, favoritism, and rude people. So what do you know? I quit playing for about 2 months.
But those 2 months felt like a decade. I really came down hard on myself about the game. And at some point, I saw the light. It was like an exodus out of egypt for me. And then I came home. I took a good long hard look at myself. Both regarding the game, and outside of the game. I realized only then, I had been throwing sound constructive criticism out the window, and that I let the worst of the bad experiences get the better of me. I began to research the game like you wouldnt believe. I held off on building any decks. I just researched. Listened to what people had to say, and why they believed in the words they said. I read articles, listened to podcasts, watched tournament videos, read up on lore. I did everything I could to better myself in the game. And then I started building decks eventually.
But these decks were different from the rest. Gone were the days of janky, clunky decks. In were the days of smooth, synergistic decks. These new decks worked better. They played better. I started winning against people who I previously had thought were unbeatable. I was winning with 20, 30, or 40$ decks versus people who had 300, 500, 800$ decks. I was winning wierd as hell decks against the popular decks that were said unbeatable. I remember showing up to tournaments running mill, discard, thallid, defender, and other seemingly halfwit decks, and running them against heavy sphinx U/W control, aggro demons, aggro copy, etc. And I was winning.
And it wasnt but after awhile the criticism came yet again, this time in full force. But I took it and shaped it this time, I molded it into advice. And that really helped my game. Yes, I lost a lot of games, but not like I did in the past. And I made an active attempt at not being "that guy" and I succeeded.
Now a days, I cant say that I am popular, or a well known player in the community. I dont have have grand prix wins under my belt, but in the local community, I think those who have been around me from the start of my jouney up until presently, have noticed I have changed, both in the game and in the community. I think for the most part now, while I still might play with some quirky decks, I am ever increasingly achieving an edge to my game. I am becoming a better threat. Now I am like someone swinging an axe at your face. I might miss, but before I was throwing pebbles at you. I think I have achieved some degree of respect, and while no one has ever bluntly said it, I have noticed it in my peers and those in the community at Mana Vault.
All of this had taught me that, even though im that guy who shows up with uncommon decks, and have an unpopular way of looking at cards,or approaching the game, I have taken this unpopular view and shaped it into a well rounded art or skill. Yes Im still learning, and im still making mistakes, but if theres anything Magic has taught me, its that there is always a back door. Theres always another way. Theres always a way to win that you've never heard of. Theres always a combo that you've never heard of. Theres always room for a surprise, both good or bad. And I love that this game has taught me not only the value of knowledge, but also the value of friendship, both more so then I had previously thouht.
So I continue this less trodden path today, and I take what beatings I can, and shape them into valuable information, both about myself, and the game I bring to the table. I am fully aware that my beliefs will not always be popular, and hey half the time Im still undecided, but through all that, both the community in general, the community at my LGS, and the community here on MTGSalvation, has consistently proven itself to be a valuable asset. And you might find me on here in various places, seemingly displaying largly unpopular beliefs, seemingly trolling as some undoubtedly think, and seemingly being "that guy", but being "that guy" in the past has changed how I percieve my peers reactions and asssumptions, and I just want to say that....
how to put this into words...... going about this game in an uncommon fashion, wether people see it or not, ...has really stepped up my A game, and is always challenging me to be a better player and a better person as well. And I thank the community for giving me that.
Ive noticed what the OP says. They do seem to be getting less useful. And harder to work with.
For instance, Torrent Elemental.
Its a 5 cost for a 3/5 flyer. Im sorry but thats nothing to be amazed about. So already we have 1 strike against it.
Now if it was a 3 or 2 cost, you would definitely catch my attention, and it would definitel make it seem mythic, legendary, powerful etc. Isnt that the essence of mythic, omnipotent, etc?
Next whenever you attack, tap all opponents creatures, hey thats not bad. Sounds good. But for 5 mana, and can easily be burned, or bounced....that 5 mana is kinda hurting me now. Maybe if it was again 2 or 3 mana, I would mind as much.
And then not only can I play it as a 3/5 flyer for 5 mana, i can play it tapped at any time as a 3/5 flyer for 5 mana.Eh somewhat good but somewhat bad. Yea its gonna be played as an instant alot during the opponents turn, but I just feel that the main problem with this card is its high mana cost. since mana ramp for blue is nearly non existant, I dont see this card ever becoming very good. It might do ok in some late game scenarios, but the high mana cost has me saying why the hell is this mythic and not a rare?
ok how about Whisperwood Elemental?
again 5 cost for a 4/4. what is with these high mana costs. I can get a 1/1 for 1 mana. a 2/2 for 1 or 2 mana. a 3/3 for 3 mana....etc... maybe not in standard necessarily, but shouldnt a MYTHIC rare stand the tests of time? and go down in history as something MYTHIC? LEGENDARY? something that makes me go yea, that was a good card. Everyone knows JTMS, but will everyone know Whisperwood Elemental in 5 years? I highly doubt that.
Lets break this card down outsite of the high mana cost.
We get to first manifest the top card of our library. I say nay. So i can potentially abuse lands and instants and sorceries as creatures. Great. That does me no good, as I might really need those cards to not be creatures. Or I can basically morph my 2/2 creatures for their mana cost, which might be worse than a 2/2. Manifest has some potential, but Im just not seeing it, unless you run creature heavy conditions for winning.
worh the 5 mana? maybe at this point, but is it worth the 5 mana in a whole? Im just not seeing it, unless again im running creatures heavily.
Or I can sack it and give all my creatures, basically regeneration with 2/2s. Wonderful, you better be hoping you play this in a lame game, with a creature heavy win con, or you just possibly wasted another 3rd or half of your deck as creatures...
worth the 5 mana? im only seeing it for creature heavy win con decks. Truly mythic? No, at best this is a Rare.
Next look at Warden of the First Tree.
All this is is a level up creature. With ok abilities. Nothing Id wanna brag about. Easily burned. Worth the mythic rating? Hell no.
Ghastly Consciption next.
7 mana to abuse your opponents graveyard. Not bad. Heres a card thats more or less worth the mana. but thats 1 card thats faily good out of 4 already.
late in the game, this manifest is one thats actually not a letdown as I dont have to potentially waste my deck, and it helps defeat delve.
Brutal Hordchief next.
here we go again. 4 for a 3/3. ugh. ok so what are the effects, are they worth the extra mana?
Whenever a creature you control attacks, defending player loses a life and you gain a life. Not bad, but your gonna need to have a few of these on the field, to really abuse this power.
Creatures your ooponents control block this turn and you choose how they block. Not bad again. Great though? Im not seeing it. So I can make your beasties block my deathouchers and and your weenies block my tramplers, etc.. or I can make you double or triple+ block my creatures to try and wipe the board.
Not bad. Again though, is it worth the 5 mana? maybe? thats in total a 9 cost affect. Late in the game this card would be good, again for creature heavy decks is what I make of it. Like Ghastly Consciption, this card is somewhat worth the Mythic rating. Though thats pushing it.
Temporal Tresspass
Hey for 3 mana, or 11 if you want, I can take an extra turn. Pretty damn good.
But where does this put us? 3 good mythics out of 6. Can you see why the OP feels the way they do, I sure can.
whats next?
Soulfire Grand Master.
2 mana for a 2/2. Now we are talking, though maybe for a 3/3 would be more mythic sounding. Lifelink, hey look at that. Not bad. lets continue.
Instant and socery spells you control have lifelink, dafuq? I have seen alot of talk and debate about this. If I manifest a instant or sorcery spell as a 2/2 does it have lifelink? but how would that be possible if i dont control an instant or sorcery spell, because I control a 2/2 creature instead?
Maybe I can burn you and get life out of it? Maybe this is a troll card. Hell if I know.
The next time you cast an instant or sorcery spell, when it resolved put it back in to your hand. Now we are talking. This reminds me of buyback, or the Unhinged card Stop That somewhat. But this effect cost 4 mana in addition to the mana of the spell we cast. Similar to buyback. But that will make this card a high target for removal or burn etc. So wouldnt we want to truly make this mythic by bumping it to a 2/4 at the very least, maybe a 2/5?
Good card but the low toughness given its abilities makes me see this card as a Rare, not mythic. Now we have 3 good mythics out of 7 cards.
Next we have Monastery Mentor, which theres been a lot of talk about.
3 mana for a 2/2 prowess. Ok not bad but you could have given me a 3/3 or a 2/3 to emphasize the mythic rarity.
Whenever you cast a noncreature spell, get a 1/1 prowess creature. Not bad.
Id say other than the 2/2 part for 3 mana, this card is deserving of the mythic rarity. now we are back to 4 decent mythics out of 8 reviewed cards. again 50%. again I can agree with the OP's feelings.
Next we have Ugin, the Spirit Dragon. The only dragon ive seen since ive heard about dragons being in F/R
8 for a 7 loyalty counter. Not bad. Lets continue though.
+2 and I get to burn for 3. ok ok.
-X I get to exile each permamanent for a converted mana cost thats 1 or more colors. Again not bad not bad.
-10 I get to buffer my game for the number of 7 cards drawn, 7 life, and 7 permanents onto the battlefield.
All of this last effect is great, other than the lifegain. 7 life? thats it? not 10? not 7 times the amount of cards in my hand?
Ok maybe that last suggestion is pushing it, but I just took 10 counters off and all I get is 7 life? But people say you get to draw 7 cards too!
Now I potentially get to have to discard cards I might need. Its a give and take situation. But you get to put 7 permanents out, and what if I dont have any? What if I just drew into 7 cards not creatures, lands, or artifacts, or the majority arent? Seems underpowered if you ask me.
So out of 9 reviewed cards we have 4 that are decent, not EYE POPPING AMAZING, but decent, and we have an ok planeswalker.
So we are looking at 50%+ cards that deserve the mythic rarity, and 4 that dont. WHY?
Why not all of them? I know that WOTC has to balance the game, and not all mythics have gone down in history, but I do notice a trend in mythic rares ever losing their mythic-ness.
If u r not worried about value you could take it to a print shop and they can put it in a specialty printer and print a bland color over it or scan it and re edit the art, and have someone print that edited part over the card.
This would need real skill though but is an option as well
I've seen this done a few other times and it works....but it is NEAR perfect not perfect.
1
"I am not made like any of those I have seen. I venture to believe that I am not made like any of those who are in existence. If I am not better, at least I am different."
- Jean-Jacques Rousseau
"Wisdom comes from facing what you do not yet understand."
- Unknown
Down the Less Trodden Path
Magic the Gathering is a game of immense flavor, culture, and knowledge. A player can choose many different routes to achieve winning conditions. There are just like in many situations in life, popular ways to achieve success, both in playing the game, as well as how we approach the game. There are literally, in my honest opinion, tens of thousands of ways to build a deck, if not hundreds of thousands of ways.
Maybe there arent hundreds of thousands of ways to approach the game necessarily, but I do believe there are still many different various mindsets the individual can obtain when approaching the game itself, the metagame, the collecting, and the community.
I remember my original mindset about Magic the Gathering, and the road it has taken from then up until now. Unce upon a day, in Biology class, in 11th grade, I was halfways listening to the teacher, when I noticed a commotion behind me, a quiet one. I turned behind me and saw a very large student, shuffling a large stack of cards. I took a closer look and saw that these cards were unlike any I had ever seen before. I saw blue cards, green cards, black cards, mainly solid colors. To me this was like a slap in the face. I was used to seeing yellow cards (pokemon) or tan cards (Yu-Gi-Oh!), and these strikingly simple colored cards held my attention for a moment. I ventured to ignore the teacher, and ask the student what the cards were.
This fellow, told me they were MTG cards. Ah, MTG, yes I had heard of it before, and has passed it off as some 3rd world game for idiots. But i couldnt hold my curiosity at bay, and he handed me some various cards, while asuring me not to **** them up, as they were high dollar. Again in my mind, I couldnt see anything being more high dollar then my Yu-Gi-Oh cards, or a foil charizard. But I perused the cards he offered me anyways.
The first thing I noticed was the art. It was largly hand drawn, hand painted, or so it seemed. Very intricate and delicate care was put into each image. Even the names seemed like someone hand brainstormed them up to perfectly fit the image. The effects I didnt understand, but the flavor text was quirky, descriptive in a good way, a fitting way. I liked these cards I decided.
But I never started playing the game either. It wasnt until a few months later, in that same Biology class, my idea of Magic the Gathering changed yet again. There was some sort of discussion on collecting items that had started. Now this fellow behind me, who almost never spoke, did. He started telling the class, about how he would spend hundreds of dollars on these cards. People seemed shocked. He explained he would buy out of print cards, for the art. He didnt even play the game, but he loved the art. He simply collected the cards.
This led me to believe that my previous beliefs about the game were in fact correct. The cards might have had cool art on them, but this was obviously a rip off game for imbeciles.
Looking back, that guy had some very expensive alpha/beta cards. I cant tell you the exact cards other than I know he had some various Mox cards in there, and cards similar to it. Knowing this, although I didnt know it back then, this guy was probably a very specific and smart collector, and had achieved some sort of success with the game, in collector terms.
I cant tell you his name, But i vaugely remember a shadowy half filled image of his face. I respect that guy now. He taught me something about money, a little bit about enthusiasm and determination, and something about love, all rolled up into one.
And then from that day up until spring of 2013, I forgot all about Magic the Gathering.
My next change in my views concerning the game, came when a man by the name of Sean, encountered my wife at Fed-Ex Office. He was opening a gaming store called Mana Vault, in Wichita, KS, and was looking to get some various items printed. Well my wife told me about all this, and told me he invited us to come check out the place. At first I was all gung-ho, until she told me it was primarily a MTG store. My excitement immeidiantly left me. MTG? lame.
Course I didnt even play any kind of TCG then, so after alot of coercing, I decided I would go check the store out. Long story short, I ended up buying my first deck that day, and learning how to play the game. After that first day, My beliefs about MTG had been shattered to the core. Everything I thought I knew about the game, had changed into something more meaningful, but little did I realize it would continue to evolve, but I did have some inkling it would evolve in a way less common to the masses.
One thing led to the next, and I was soon building elementary decks, playing in tournaments, building up my knowledge, and losing, A LOT. I mean I lost a LOT of games. I probably lost hundreds of games in my first few months, but I was un aware that It was changing my mentality about approaching the game for the better. In fact I lost so much, that I was known as the Scoop Guy.
I would walk out halfway through tournaments, forfeit games, slam my chair into place, curse, etc. It got to the point I was infamous for a short while as "that guy". This led to my downfall, and my discouragement, both with myself, the game, and those around me. I noticed favoritism in the store, I began to dislike the owner, and it even got personal a few times, and really started to make the whole experience a miserable one. So I quit playing.
A year later I got back into it. I started playing the game again, but I noticed I was leaning towards an unorthodox stand point. I was constantly told not to build certain decks, not to use certain cards. That my ideas were bad, lacked depth etc. Again one thing led to the next, and I had a second bad experience. It seemed to me at this point that MTG was a pay to play game, filled with corruption, favoritism, and rude people. So what do you know? I quit playing for about 2 months.
But those 2 months felt like a decade. I really came down hard on myself about the game. And at some point, I saw the light. It was like an exodus out of egypt for me. And then I came home. I took a good long hard look at myself. Both regarding the game, and outside of the game. I realized only then, I had been throwing sound constructive criticism out the window, and that I let the worst of the bad experiences get the better of me. I began to research the game like you wouldnt believe. I held off on building any decks. I just researched. Listened to what people had to say, and why they believed in the words they said. I read articles, listened to podcasts, watched tournament videos, read up on lore. I did everything I could to better myself in the game. And then I started building decks eventually.
But these decks were different from the rest. Gone were the days of janky, clunky decks. In were the days of smooth, synergistic decks. These new decks worked better. They played better. I started winning against people who I previously had thought were unbeatable. I was winning with 20, 30, or 40$ decks versus people who had 300, 500, 800$ decks. I was winning wierd as hell decks against the popular decks that were said unbeatable. I remember showing up to tournaments running mill, discard, thallid, defender, and other seemingly halfwit decks, and running them against heavy sphinx U/W control, aggro demons, aggro copy, etc. And I was winning.
And it wasnt but after awhile the criticism came yet again, this time in full force. But I took it and shaped it this time, I molded it into advice. And that really helped my game. Yes, I lost a lot of games, but not like I did in the past. And I made an active attempt at not being "that guy" and I succeeded.
Now a days, I cant say that I am popular, or a well known player in the community. I dont have have grand prix wins under my belt, but in the local community, I think those who have been around me from the start of my jouney up until presently, have noticed I have changed, both in the game and in the community. I think for the most part now, while I still might play with some quirky decks, I am ever increasingly achieving an edge to my game. I am becoming a better threat. Now I am like someone swinging an axe at your face. I might miss, but before I was throwing pebbles at you. I think I have achieved some degree of respect, and while no one has ever bluntly said it, I have noticed it in my peers and those in the community at Mana Vault.
All of this had taught me that, even though im that guy who shows up with uncommon decks, and have an unpopular way of looking at cards,or approaching the game, I have taken this unpopular view and shaped it into a well rounded art or skill. Yes Im still learning, and im still making mistakes, but if theres anything Magic has taught me, its that there is always a back door. Theres always another way. Theres always a way to win that you've never heard of. Theres always a combo that you've never heard of. Theres always room for a surprise, both good or bad. And I love that this game has taught me not only the value of knowledge, but also the value of friendship, both more so then I had previously thouht.
So I continue this less trodden path today, and I take what beatings I can, and shape them into valuable information, both about myself, and the game I bring to the table. I am fully aware that my beliefs will not always be popular, and hey half the time Im still undecided, but through all that, both the community in general, the community at my LGS, and the community here on MTGSalvation, has consistently proven itself to be a valuable asset. And you might find me on here in various places, seemingly displaying largly unpopular beliefs, seemingly trolling as some undoubtedly think, and seemingly being "that guy", but being "that guy" in the past has changed how I percieve my peers reactions and asssumptions, and I just want to say that....
how to put this into words...... going about this game in an uncommon fashion, wether people see it or not, ...has really stepped up my A game, and is always challenging me to be a better player and a better person as well. And I thank the community for giving me that.
1
For instance, Torrent Elemental.
Its a 5 cost for a 3/5 flyer. Im sorry but thats nothing to be amazed about. So already we have 1 strike against it.
Now if it was a 3 or 2 cost, you would definitely catch my attention, and it would definitel make it seem mythic, legendary, powerful etc. Isnt that the essence of mythic, omnipotent, etc?
Next whenever you attack, tap all opponents creatures, hey thats not bad. Sounds good. But for 5 mana, and can easily be burned, or bounced....that 5 mana is kinda hurting me now. Maybe if it was again 2 or 3 mana, I would mind as much.
And then not only can I play it as a 3/5 flyer for 5 mana, i can play it tapped at any time as a 3/5 flyer for 5 mana.Eh somewhat good but somewhat bad. Yea its gonna be played as an instant alot during the opponents turn, but I just feel that the main problem with this card is its high mana cost. since mana ramp for blue is nearly non existant, I dont see this card ever becoming very good. It might do ok in some late game scenarios, but the high mana cost has me saying why the hell is this mythic and not a rare?
ok how about Whisperwood Elemental?
again 5 cost for a 4/4. what is with these high mana costs. I can get a 1/1 for 1 mana. a 2/2 for 1 or 2 mana. a 3/3 for 3 mana....etc... maybe not in standard necessarily, but shouldnt a MYTHIC rare stand the tests of time? and go down in history as something MYTHIC? LEGENDARY? something that makes me go yea, that was a good card. Everyone knows JTMS, but will everyone know Whisperwood Elemental in 5 years? I highly doubt that.
Lets break this card down outsite of the high mana cost.
We get to first manifest the top card of our library. I say nay. So i can potentially abuse lands and instants and sorceries as creatures. Great. That does me no good, as I might really need those cards to not be creatures. Or I can basically morph my 2/2 creatures for their mana cost, which might be worse than a 2/2. Manifest has some potential, but Im just not seeing it, unless you run creature heavy conditions for winning.
worh the 5 mana? maybe at this point, but is it worth the 5 mana in a whole? Im just not seeing it, unless again im running creatures heavily.
Or I can sack it and give all my creatures, basically regeneration with 2/2s. Wonderful, you better be hoping you play this in a lame game, with a creature heavy win con, or you just possibly wasted another 3rd or half of your deck as creatures...
worth the 5 mana? im only seeing it for creature heavy win con decks. Truly mythic? No, at best this is a Rare.
Next look at Warden of the First Tree.
All this is is a level up creature. With ok abilities. Nothing Id wanna brag about. Easily burned. Worth the mythic rating? Hell no.
Ghastly Consciption next.
7 mana to abuse your opponents graveyard. Not bad. Heres a card thats more or less worth the mana. but thats 1 card thats faily good out of 4 already.
late in the game, this manifest is one thats actually not a letdown as I dont have to potentially waste my deck, and it helps defeat delve.
Brutal Hordchief next.
here we go again. 4 for a 3/3. ugh. ok so what are the effects, are they worth the extra mana?
Whenever a creature you control attacks, defending player loses a life and you gain a life. Not bad, but your gonna need to have a few of these on the field, to really abuse this power.
Creatures your ooponents control block this turn and you choose how they block. Not bad again. Great though? Im not seeing it. So I can make your beasties block my deathouchers and and your weenies block my tramplers, etc.. or I can make you double or triple+ block my creatures to try and wipe the board.
Not bad. Again though, is it worth the 5 mana? maybe? thats in total a 9 cost affect. Late in the game this card would be good, again for creature heavy decks is what I make of it. Like Ghastly Consciption, this card is somewhat worth the Mythic rating. Though thats pushing it.
Temporal Tresspass
Hey for 3 mana, or 11 if you want, I can take an extra turn. Pretty damn good.
But where does this put us? 3 good mythics out of 6. Can you see why the OP feels the way they do, I sure can.
whats next?
Soulfire Grand Master.
2 mana for a 2/2. Now we are talking, though maybe for a 3/3 would be more mythic sounding. Lifelink, hey look at that. Not bad. lets continue.
Instant and socery spells you control have lifelink, dafuq? I have seen alot of talk and debate about this. If I manifest a instant or sorcery spell as a 2/2 does it have lifelink? but how would that be possible if i dont control an instant or sorcery spell, because I control a 2/2 creature instead?
Maybe I can burn you and get life out of it? Maybe this is a troll card. Hell if I know.
The next time you cast an instant or sorcery spell, when it resolved put it back in to your hand. Now we are talking. This reminds me of buyback, or the Unhinged card Stop That somewhat. But this effect cost 4 mana in addition to the mana of the spell we cast. Similar to buyback. But that will make this card a high target for removal or burn etc. So wouldnt we want to truly make this mythic by bumping it to a 2/4 at the very least, maybe a 2/5?
Good card but the low toughness given its abilities makes me see this card as a Rare, not mythic. Now we have 3 good mythics out of 7 cards.
Next we have Monastery Mentor, which theres been a lot of talk about.
3 mana for a 2/2 prowess. Ok not bad but you could have given me a 3/3 or a 2/3 to emphasize the mythic rarity.
Whenever you cast a noncreature spell, get a 1/1 prowess creature. Not bad.
Id say other than the 2/2 part for 3 mana, this card is deserving of the mythic rarity. now we are back to 4 decent mythics out of 8 reviewed cards. again 50%. again I can agree with the OP's feelings.
Next we have Ugin, the Spirit Dragon. The only dragon ive seen since ive heard about dragons being in F/R
8 for a 7 loyalty counter. Not bad. Lets continue though.
+2 and I get to burn for 3. ok ok.
-X I get to exile each permamanent for a converted mana cost thats 1 or more colors. Again not bad not bad.
-10 I get to buffer my game for the number of 7 cards drawn, 7 life, and 7 permanents onto the battlefield.
All of this last effect is great, other than the lifegain. 7 life? thats it? not 10? not 7 times the amount of cards in my hand?
Ok maybe that last suggestion is pushing it, but I just took 10 counters off and all I get is 7 life? But people say you get to draw 7 cards too!
Now I potentially get to have to discard cards I might need. Its a give and take situation. But you get to put 7 permanents out, and what if I dont have any? What if I just drew into 7 cards not creatures, lands, or artifacts, or the majority arent? Seems underpowered if you ask me.
So out of 9 reviewed cards we have 4 that are decent, not EYE POPPING AMAZING, but decent, and we have an ok planeswalker.
So we are looking at 50%+ cards that deserve the mythic rarity, and 4 that dont. WHY?
Why not all of them? I know that WOTC has to balance the game, and not all mythics have gone down in history, but I do notice a trend in mythic rares ever losing their mythic-ness.
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This would need real skill though but is an option as well
I've seen this done a few other times and it works....but it is NEAR perfect not perfect.
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