Great quote.
Edgelords can be funny sometimes, but I tend to feel like I need a shower if I listen to them too much. Ultimately, I believe that going the Shapiro route is better and more productive than going the Milo route.
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Nov 30, 2017Pollaski posted a message on If You Can't Take Criticism of Jeremy Hambly, You're Part of the ProblemPosted in: Articles
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Nov 30, 2017Pollaski posted a message on If You Can't Take Criticism of Jeremy Hambly, You're Part of the ProblemBeing a fellow conservative, I agree with a lot of what you said... and disagree with a bit.Posted in: Articles
1. There are American (neo-)Nazi's, and they're reprehensible. But you're dead on in that too many people are subjectively defining anyone they disagree with as a Nazi. So when there's talk of punching Nazis in the face... and they pretty much call anyone who voted for Trump a Nazi... well... yeah, that is reason to be concerned.
2. Ding!
3. The fact that this article advocates violence against other human beings (up to shooting them!) is concerning. I've been in plenty of discussions with left-leaning individuals who seem to think they have the right to be violent towards what they perceive as hate speech. The first amendment (which is the FIRST amendment for a reason), protects all forms of speech, even reprehensible ones.
4. Sorry, gotta side with saprolings here. There's nothing provocative about with Sprankle does. In fact, I think she should be praised for the attention to detail she seems to put into faithfully representing the characters.
5. I agree that censorship is wrong, but being a jerk is still being a jerk. Its okay To call people out for being a jerk. In fact, I wish more people would be willing to just say to someone "you're a jerk" instead of trying to shut them down.
6. If Jeremy was actively encouraging his supporters to harass Christine, that's not okay. It's no different than those DJ's in Kentucky who had their listeners attack the referee in Nebraska because they didn't like his calls in an NCAA tournament game. The problem is, we (intentionally) blur the lines on what actually is harassment and isn't. The big difference is whether the medium used is public or private. If its public... its not harassment. That's why I'm VERY skeptical on people claiming harassment on Twitter or Facebook over general tweets and posts. Now, if you're going into DM's, that's a different story. And if you're resorting to more personal means, like texting, emails, and phone calls, then that is definitely harassment.
7. Agreed completely with this. I appreciate that MTGS is at least honest and upfront that they are not interested in free speech and allowing for open debate, but it is still concerning that they are unwilling to open up the debate.
8. The only issue I have with here is that you immediately glomp "conservative' and
"white male" in together. There's plenty of non-white, non-male conservative voices out there, and there's plenty of white males who aren't conservatives. Identity politics is a terrible thing, no matter what side you're on. Don't fall into the trap.
9. 100% in agreement. Especially because Magic is a commercially purchased game that literally anyone can enjoy. What right does anyone have to tell me I can or can't play?
Ultimately, I don't think there's much debate that Jeremy is a jerk. Whether he's an abusive harasser- part of me is leaning yes, but at the same time, the complete inability of anyone covering this story to provide anything resembling evidence and facts (not to mention the entirely terrible claim in the OP that demanding evidence "makes you part of the problem") is concerning. -
Nov 30, 2017Pollaski posted a message on If You Can't Take Criticism of Jeremy Hambly, You're Part of the ProblemFor as involved an issue as its become, and its certainly been a firestorm over the past week, I have to say, the reporting on the matter has been nothing short of abysmal. Generally when a story like this breaks, you get a detailed look at the evidence- what was said, who was saying it, how was it being driven. Screenshots. Videos. Nobody has gone through the effort of doing that.Posted in: Articles
This isn't me saying she's been harassed. This isn't me saying she hasn't been. This is me simply asking that the so-called gaming journalists out there lay out the facts, and let us decide for ourselves. -
Nov 22, 2017Pollaski posted a message on Jaya Ballard ReturnsGod I can't wait for Dominaria, and I can only dream that Wizards actually was this careful and concise with the lore that you're hypothesizing.Posted in: Articles
If Luti = Jaya, it makes sense that this is the perfect time for her to get back involved. Chandra got her butt whipped badly by Bolas, and is pretty much on the verge of death when she flees Amonkhet. There's four possibilities of where Chandra ran to after the Hour of Devastation- Khaladesh (home), Regatha (home #2), Dominaria (rendezvous), and Ravnica (Gatewatch HQ). Going by eliminations
- No way she goes to Dominaria, a plane she's not familiar with, in her condition
- Doubtful she goes to Ravnica, without Jace, she's really got no connection there, and I doubt she'd be cool with hanging out with Lavinia
- She probably doesn't want her Mom to see her in the condition she's in, so Kaladesh is out.
Regatha it is. Chandra probably crash lands there, gets nursed back to health by the monastery, realizes Luti's true identity, and convinces Jaya (maybe with Gideon and Nissa's help, if they go looking for her) that she could be a valuable ally against Bolas (and Marisil, if the entire Raven Man thing pans out- does Chandra even know about him?)
Its a great thoery. - To post a comment, please login or register a new account.
Made the following swaps.
All three Hedron Archive out for Surrak the Hunt Caller
All four Beastcaller Savant out for Leaf Gilder
All three Hedron Archive out for Explosive Vegetation
One Eldrazi Devastator out for Terra Stomper
Another Devastator out for [Ulamog, the Ceaseless Hunger[/card]
So, heading into the tournament, my deck was
4 Endless One
4 Leaf Gilder
3 Hangarback Walker
3 Surrak, the Hunt Caller
3 Kozilek's Channeler
2 Lifespring Druid
2 Desolation Twin
2 Breaker of Armies
1 Void Winnower
1 Eldrazi Devastator
1 Ulamog, the Ceaseless Hunger
1 Nissa, Vastwood Seer
1 Terra Stomper
1 Gaea's Revenge
1 Ob Nixilis Reignited
Sorceries
4 Explosive Vegetation
3 Nissa's Renewal
Lands
4 Junge Hollow
3 Llanowar Wastes
2 Sanctum of Ugin
1 Shrine of the Forsaken Gods
13 Forest
Results
ROUND 1 vs. Abzan Warriors
Complete disaster. Was dead before fifth turn each game and was just completely overwhelmed. Just ugly. 2-0 loss.
ROUND 2 vs. Esper Control Dragons
Dominant win. Broke through the lockdowns, survived board sweeps each game, and overwhelmed the control. Worked exactly how I envisioned. On a side note, it is impossible to have three 10/10 creatures in play and not look smug. 2-0 win
ROUND 3 vs. Monored Landfall
2-0 loss, but boht games were competitive. Flipping Dragonmaster Outcast wrecked me the first- even Eldrazi giants can't fend off 5/5 dragons coming into play every turn. Second game had to deal with 2 Retreat to Hagra early, and opponent kept cracking fetchlands to double up the damage. By the time I got Ulamog in to sweep them out, it was too late.
ROUND 4 vs. Black/Green Elves
Not quite the disaster as the first round, but still pretty bad. Managorger Hydra on turn two became bad news, and his elves came in too hard and too fast to get anything done. 2-0 loss.
WHAT I LOVED
ULAMOG THE CEASELESS HUNGER Oh so awesome. Showed up, popped permanents, and then shredded libraries. Once he's in play, your opponent literally has two turns to live if they're lucky, even with blockers. That milling to exile does it automatically.
Restless One Loved how versatile it proved to be. Need a 3/3 blocker? Check. Need a 9/9 stomper? Check! Its a creature that adapts to the state of the board.
Desolation Twin Ended up being a decoy against the control deck- she used all her resources up trying to keep the twins from attacking, so she was screwed when I brought Ulamog in. Still, they're two big 10/10's for the price of one.
WHAT I DIDNT LOVE
Ob Nixilis Reignited Never even got a chance to play him. At this point I think its time to scrub him and black- if I'm gonna splash, I need to splash something more versatile and cheaper.
Hangarback Walker Don't get me wrong, I love this card, but it just doesnt work in this deck. In the early game, I'm focusing more on ramping the deck up instead of growing him to a good size to be an effective defense, and by the time the mana's there, there's too many better options. Just not the right deck for it.
Lifespring Druid Just didn't work. Too pricy, and the domain capability is utterly unneeded. I'd be better off bringing the Savants back in, or finding another creature ramp)
So after a problematic, yet highly instructive FNM, I'm definitely into From Beyond now (thanks to lajube for the suggestion). Jaddi Ofshoot for the sideboard- I'm bringing a ton of lands in, so that'd be a life gain, plus 0/3 defense in the early game. And also Animist's Awakening for bringing land in even faster, which would likely replace Nissa's Renewal.
Thoughts?
I do have a splash of black for Ob Nixilis. Maybe go that route?
Well, it's already been established that Ugin sat back and allowed the Eldrazi to completely destroy several planes and kill probably a few billion people before he actually felt bothered enough to to do something about it, and even then he's adamant that the Eldrazi not be killed, just imprisoned.
I think he's the other side of the coin of Bolas- neither takes much stock in the concept of morality. The difference is Bolas uses it as an excuse to do whatever he wants to whoever he wants, so its an extremely selfish viewpoint. Ugin on the other hand has more of a "big picture" mentality, thinking about the enitre multiverse as a whole. The Eldrazi are part of it, and must be allowed to be so, but at the same time you can't have them going around destroying EVERY world. So a balance of sorts- let them take a few (and sucks to be you if you were in that world), but imprison them to keep them from getting too carried away.
IN the end, Magic likes their "big goods" to have somewhat of a jackassy side. Freyalise ended the Ice Age in a second without a second thought as to what ticking up the global temperature 30 degrees or so overnight was going to do to people. Urza did a bunch of terrible things in the name of fighting Phyrexia. Ugin kicks back, relaxes, and drinks Dragon Cola with a paper umbrella while watching planes get turned to dust in the name of research... things go on.
Although creature defense is kinda the idea with the Hangarbacks and Endlesses. Get the Hangarbacks growing early, and pop in a 3/3 or 4/4 Endless One for defense if I have to. I do like creature ramp for that reason though, but I'm also concerned that I might be dealing with removal spells on my Savants from the getgo, trying to cripple the ramp before it gets going.
I've done some playtesting, and found with a good draw, I can get the Twins out by Turn 6.
Better hurry it up or we're going to be way into Oath of the Gatewatch before the AHN happens!
I cheered when I saw that card. I didn't want another New Phyrexia
As far as current storytelling, I kind of miss the books, and the ability to get the entire main plot all at once, and maybe online stories for various offshoots, since most sets contain a world that expands just beyond the main plot. That said, I'm really enjoying the Battle for Zendikar stories. And yes, there's spoilers, but at the same time, how many movies do we go into knowing what's going to happen? Sometimes its watching it all play out that's the fun part, and I really enjoyed reading Nissa's fight with Ob Nixilis today.
I've followed the flavor and story the whole time though.
Anyways, kinda digging the game now- everythings much more fun to play with. I look at my old cards with sadness.
Heck, on a lark I just bought the Ice Age and Homelands complete sets cause they're cheap, and they're what I played when I was a kid. Almost cried at how pathetic the cards were. But still, plenty of good memories. Worth the buy.
Thanks for the advice. I only have a few Tarkir cards, so I'm not nearly as familiar with the block as I am with Origins, or even B4Z. I like that Surrak though, will have to look into picking up a few copies.
I toyed with From Beyond, but ultimately decided against using all the spawns (I also toyed with the idea of putting in Spawning Bed) And my thing with Vegetation is that I already have the Pilgrimage, which is cheaper, and I'm fine with being more limited since I'm only running forests. Would you suggest I maybe put them in in lieu of some of the creature ramps like the Druid?
And I love that Unravel. Way cheaper than the Scour.
4 Endless One
3 Hangarback Walker
4 Beastcaller Savant
1 Nissa, Vastwood Seer
3 Lifespring Druid
3 Kozilek's Channeler
1 Gaea's Revenge
2 Breaker of Armies
3 Eldrazi Devastator
1 Void Winnower
2 Desolation Twin
3 Nissa's Pilgrimage
3 Nissa's Renewal
Artifacts
3 Hedron Archive
Planeswalkers
1 Ob Nixilis Reignited
Lands
1 Shrine of the Forsaken Gods
2 Sanctum of Ugin
3 Llanowar Wastes
4 Jungle Hollow
13 Forest
For sideboard I'm thinking of Scour from Existence and Gruesome Slaughter, along with maybe a few more big Green creatures, or even more Eldrazi.
Ultimately, my biggest worries are early creature removal and Aligned Hedron Network (in which case I'll still have the Channelers, and can just keep my X creatures small- or better yet bring in the scour.
It's not the most complex deck in the world, but I've always been more of an aggro guy.