The Consulate is no typical dictatorship. It is more of an Oligarchy akin to the Roman Republic. The problem is that Tezzeret has hijacked it for his own ends.
How is independent thought discouraged? They hold a fair specifically to showcase new ideas and fund inventors. They control Aether because it is frankly dangerous, and very valuable. There is also a black market in any society that has anything regulated.
The fact that he is supposed to be a player analogue is the worst part. I don't see anything remotely similar about him and myself. He's just some guy with psychic powers he did not earn, with no initiative and no passion for what he does. He's also a smarmy jerk and acknowledges as much when trapped in his own mind by Emrakul. He got the highest position in all of Ravinca and not only does nothing with that, he takes every excuse to leave the place (again, the place he considers his true home) and his responsibilities behind him in favor of traipsing about pretending to be the hero of the story. Sooner or later, if the story was more grounded and consequences mattered more, he would eventually prove Tamyio correct about heroes being mere tragedies waiting to happen. I find him no more enjoyable to read about than watching Tidus from Final Fantasy X claiming to be the main protagonist when for better or for worse that's actually Yuna's role in the game. The only good thing is that Jace does less whining.
That's exactly why he is so popular. He is the generic young adult novel/Light novel protagonist in a nutshell. A handsome and inteligent, yet strangely isolated teen. Cheap victimizing backstory, trying to make him sympathetic. Passive with no real motivations. Suddenly discoveres new powers/that he is the chosen one. Goes on adventures saving the world from evil, because he is just so goddamn special. Notice how the poster above says ''charming Harry Potter vibe''. Jace was made to be HP, a generic protagonist in these kinds of stories. I agree when someone earlier said you either love him or hate him. And as someone who dislikes Harry Potter, the character and the book series, I also dislike Jace.
OT: I don't like the GW. Not that I dislike the concept. But what we have in our story is not a natural development, but the guys at wizards deciding this would be cool and popular. I don't think the original 5 are characters which would team up for such a thing. Much less care about the whole multiverse. And yet when you read Jace's oath flavortext it says he cares precisely about that. Since when? Also lol at Lilianas oath. ''Happy now?''. This is bad. Just so so bad. What I wanted to say is that (like always) it all depends on the execution. And wotc failed miserably.
He isn't strangely isolated, he is clearly socially inept. He can read minds, but he doesn't understand them. He has some motivations, he is obsessive about solving mysteries and problems. Often at the expense of others. He used to ignore the consequences of his actions: Eldrazi, Infinite Consortium, etc. Now he is a lot about taking responsibility for his actions, yet is still blinded by this obsession to the growing powder keg that is Ravnica. He is incapable of physical combat and barely survived a couple of werewolves. There is very little that is "special" about him compared to any other Planeswalker.
Given the 25th anniversary is coming up, I really hope this storyline comes full circle with Bolas introducing the Gatewatch to New Phyrexia. Using Tezzerat as the bridge, he could bring Phyexia to Dominica again leading to the Gatewatch teaming with the older planeswalkers to defeat Phyexia once and for all. Karn vs Bolas would be something else to see.
I think that is rushing it a bit. More likely for the 30th anniversary.
I like them. The story hasn't changed too much, and characters dying has little to do with the existence of the Gatewatch.
As for the members, the writing team has started to hit their stride. The characterization is good, and each character has clear traits with a bit of complexity. There havent been any bad stories since Kaladesh started.
I like that we get to see the walkers interact on a larger scale than just 1 on 1 encounters. There is carry-over in the story and much more character inter-play.
Ugin would definitely not join the Gatewatch. Maybe use them for a bit, but he is very ancient and cunning. Just as cunning as Bolas perhaps. He definitely wouldn't join their organization.
I also don't think the Gatewatch will swell that big. 10 members seems about a right soft cap, with others leaving when others join.
But that's in Modern in a tournament. I'm fine with that (although I know how annoying and un-fun that is to play against ... but still, it's a competitive environment and if someone builds a deck like that and I can't beat it, then so be it).
I'm just saying people shouldn't play cards like that in casual formats.
But EDH isn't a casual format, it's a social format where a lot of players like to play casually. Nothing wrong with playing competitive EDH decks and having a blast with it, except when you mix decks with vastly different powerlevels in a game. A lot of the time it is okay since it turns into Archenemy without the schemes but a good stax-deck can easily lock down 3 weak casual decks.
I guess my point is that this thread in my opinion should be more along the lines off "This opponent acted like a douche and his rudeness was so hilariously arrogant" rather than "There was this guy who played a card I don't like playing against, how rude!".
Dude, EDH is a casual format. It was created by judges in their off time to have fun. The banlist isn't run by Wizards and they take a hands-off approach except for releasing product.
Not a group of selfish, sadistic, cliche evil dudes doing evil thing because...umm...they're evil. No. A group of Planeswalkers controlled, brainwashed, manipulated, enslaved, or extorted by Bolas or maybe even Ob Nixilis. It would be framed as the "good guys" vs. the "bad guys", but just like real life, it's seldom that simple. I'd even love to see one of the traditionally "good" planeswalkers turn to the dark side. I mean, how cool would it be if Chandra truly breaks in this set? With all the little evil nothings that Liliana keeps whispering in her ear, the imprisonment (possibly death) of her Mother, and whatever Aether Revolt brings, she may just snap and then be easily influenced by an manipulative outside force: see Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader and Emperor Palpatine.
Yeah that is how I always imagined it. I think Nixilis would be the nominal leader, he is charismatic as well as the Gatewatch's first villain. But Bolas is behind the scenes dealing with him. He has a deal with Nixilis and has the upper hand, so Nixilis does his bidding while trying to get out from under his thumb. So he assembles a group of walkers as the new Infinite Consortium. Some know about Bolas, most don't. You could have other walkers join temporarily, and then leave like Garruk. He joins to get at Liliana, but is enough of a loose cannon to turn on them. Liliana would inevitably betray the Gatewatch to Bolas, only to have "pretending" and save them.
My roster: Ob Nixilis, Tibalt, Vraska, Tezzeret, Domri Rade, and maybe one other. Domri would quickly realize they are bad news and get out.
Modern and Eternal Masters have different focuses. It affects the limited environment they build and which cards they include. Cause if you combine them, what you have really done is just cut Modern Masters.
EDIT: With regard to Ral Zarek (and Domri Rade), he may be older than he looks. We know that Agrus Kos was over 120 when he died and his apparent age was only somewhere in his 60s. It appears that Ravnican humans may have considerably prolonged lifespans.
You are correct. Teysa is currently 120 years old. So they could both be older than they look. But I think Domri is still rather immature and is stated to be the youngest.
I agree. The Hydra can be useful but most Energy creatures seem to lack removal. Might be useful in sideboard against control.
Cruiser seems pretty good to me, but the Dragon seems slightly better. Depends on what kind of removal there is, how many flyers, along with the metagame. The Cruiser is faster initially, but Stalker is a better top-deck with lots of mana.
Urza was born ~4500 years before the Mending, so 4500-4600 depending on how long it has been since the Mending. This places him (along with Karn) as younger than Sorin, Nahiri, and Ugin who were all around ~6000 years ago to seal the Eldrazi. Freyalise was born sometime in the Ice Age around ~2000 years ago. Teferi was born around 1300 years ago, while Karn was forged a few decades later. Ob Nixilis is a wildcard but was born at least 1000 years ago when Nahiri sealed him in his demonic form. Sorin is definitely older than Nahiri as he was her mentor when she sparked. Ugin and Bolas are probably older than Sorin, but since their exact origins is unknown we aren't sure which of them is older.
Venser definitely come next and may have used some Youth water or something to live 100 years post-Mending.
New walkers ages are unknown but some can be infered. Tezzeret and Arlinn both appear to be late 30's to early 40's. Garruk and Ajani are both in their 30's. Chandra appears to be 20 as her sparking occurred 12 years ago when she was 8. Jace is ~4 years older than her, with Gideon a year older than him. Elspeth is a year older than Gideon, making her ~26 when she died. Nissa is unknown as she is an Elf. Sarkhan appears to be in his 30's but he did have a harsh living condition before sparking, so he may have aged poorly. Domri is probably the youngest current walker. And all the others are either ~20's or ~30's based on appearance. They are either in Jace's generation or Ajani's. Few seem to older than that.
Yeah the good cheating is taking a couple of the good uncommons and solid commons to back it up with synergy. A good synergistic deck had a huge advantage over usual sealed decks.
How is independent thought discouraged? They hold a fair specifically to showcase new ideas and fund inventors. They control Aether because it is frankly dangerous, and very valuable. There is also a black market in any society that has anything regulated.
He isn't strangely isolated, he is clearly socially inept. He can read minds, but he doesn't understand them. He has some motivations, he is obsessive about solving mysteries and problems. Often at the expense of others. He used to ignore the consequences of his actions: Eldrazi, Infinite Consortium, etc. Now he is a lot about taking responsibility for his actions, yet is still blinded by this obsession to the growing powder keg that is Ravnica. He is incapable of physical combat and barely survived a couple of werewolves. There is very little that is "special" about him compared to any other Planeswalker.
I think that is rushing it a bit. More likely for the 30th anniversary.
As for the members, the writing team has started to hit their stride. The characterization is good, and each character has clear traits with a bit of complexity. There havent been any bad stories since Kaladesh started.
I like that we get to see the walkers interact on a larger scale than just 1 on 1 encounters. There is carry-over in the story and much more character inter-play.
I also don't think the Gatewatch will swell that big. 10 members seems about a right soft cap, with others leaving when others join.
Dude, EDH is a casual format. It was created by judges in their off time to have fun. The banlist isn't run by Wizards and they take a hands-off approach except for releasing product.
Yeah that is how I always imagined it. I think Nixilis would be the nominal leader, he is charismatic as well as the Gatewatch's first villain. But Bolas is behind the scenes dealing with him. He has a deal with Nixilis and has the upper hand, so Nixilis does his bidding while trying to get out from under his thumb. So he assembles a group of walkers as the new Infinite Consortium. Some know about Bolas, most don't. You could have other walkers join temporarily, and then leave like Garruk. He joins to get at Liliana, but is enough of a loose cannon to turn on them. Liliana would inevitably betray the Gatewatch to Bolas, only to have "pretending" and save them.
My roster: Ob Nixilis, Tibalt, Vraska, Tezzeret, Domri Rade, and maybe one other. Domri would quickly realize they are bad news and get out.
Also Ajani is only 30 or so. Garruk is a few years older than him.
You are correct. Teysa is currently 120 years old. So they could both be older than they look. But I think Domri is still rather immature and is stated to be the youngest.
Cruiser seems pretty good to me, but the Dragon seems slightly better. Depends on what kind of removal there is, how many flyers, along with the metagame. The Cruiser is faster initially, but Stalker is a better top-deck with lots of mana.
Pre-Mending Order:
1/2- Nicol Bolas, Ugin
3- Sorin Markov
4- Nahiri
5- Freyalise
6- Teferi
7- Karn
8?- Ob Nixilis
9- Liliana
Venser definitely come next and may have used some Youth water or something to live 100 years post-Mending.
New walkers ages are unknown but some can be infered. Tezzeret and Arlinn both appear to be late 30's to early 40's. Garruk and Ajani are both in their 30's. Chandra appears to be 20 as her sparking occurred 12 years ago when she was 8. Jace is ~4 years older than her, with Gideon a year older than him. Elspeth is a year older than Gideon, making her ~26 when she died. Nissa is unknown as she is an Elf. Sarkhan appears to be in his 30's but he did have a harsh living condition before sparking, so he may have aged poorly. Domri is probably the youngest current walker. And all the others are either ~20's or ~30's based on appearance. They are either in Jace's generation or Ajani's. Few seem to older than that.