The Obelisk is, as some have stated, likely the newest version of Spectral Searchlight / Darksteel Ingot / Coalition Relic. The problem I see is that the Shards Obelisks were 3 CMCs for 3 colors of mana, and a 3 CMC "gold mana" artifact would make the others pointless. At 4 CMC, not many people would be willing to play the Obelisk of Alara for simply "any color mana." Even at 3 CMC, the earlier versions had additonal effects: Spectral Searchlight could mana burn your opponent or help your partner in 2HG; Darksteel Ingot was Indestructible; Coalition Relic could get you two mana.
In order for it to be good/playable/not completely broken, I think the new Obelisk may look something like this:
Obelisk of Alara (Mythic)
Legendary Artifact
Nonbasic lands have no type and produce when tapped for mana.
:symtap:: For each basic land type you control, add one mana to your mana pool of the type that basic land would produce.
This would be a gamechanger. It would fill the slot of Magus of the Moon, and also build on - and reward - WotC's hope of more players using basic lands, instead of paying a premium for duals. Of course, if this is a Mythic (or even just a Rare), they'd still likely end up emptying their wallets for this card.
Also, being able to possibly tap for :1mana::symw::symu::symb::symr::symg: would be interesting, especially if the speculative "sixth basic land" does make an appearance in Conflux.
Have you considered using Mangara of Corondor and a Slide effect, like Turn to Mist to get some extra control mileage? Mangara targets, is removed by Mist, the permanent goes away, he comes back to do it all over again.
It looks like the background artwork might be for the wurm/beast. If you'll take notice, it's the only creature featured without it's full body. Also, except for Ajani, it lacks a white border around it, meaning it may not be PhotoShopped into the picture. It looks like the scrubbing the MTG Staff used washed out everything but it's head, and it may be a guardian of the castle/ruins in the background.
If Sarkhan is RG, does this mean Ajani will be GW?
I'm... really starting to fall in line with the thought process that they are going under. I play a lot of Limited and PreRelease and Release events, but in my area we constantly see stores start and then fail, due to bad management or the fact that our playerbase simply refuses to support the stores when they instead prefer to just buy all their product off the net for cheaper and then screw over the younger kids at the shop for the last cards they need, while standing outside eating fast food for cheaper than the store food. Stores can't support themselves and go under, since you can't keep a business when everyone just wants "a free no money hangout".
One other point of fact regarding the new Play Network that supports the theory of Hasbro slashing the WotC budget: no mention of PTQs for any level of Organizer. None.
Advanced Organizers will have to compete for a limited number of GP Trial slots, and only either A] a store used to running large events, such as Cornermagic in Greenville, SC - the closest store to me while I was living in Clinton, SC (50 miles away) or B] mass tournament organizers, such as Gray Matter Conventions in SE Pennsylvania - which is an even longer haul (60 miles or more, into West Chester or Philly). Even the large stores would need to sign up 20 NEW people a year, and with the "serious tournament players" scaring away neophytes and adolecents, that possibility is going to end fast.
Within a year, MtG may find itself back to the same level of "organized play" as it had in 1994: None. The set "Eventide" was well named - the sun is about to set on the "Golden Age" of Magic.
The deck's name comes from the massive potential for post-rotation play (thus the fall theme), even though it DOES lose the Summoner's Pact. Hardly nothing else lost that couldn't be replaced, though. Plays about the same as a normal mana ramp build, but also carries in a neat little toolbox of creatures that are about as versatile as the game allows in type II.
Okay, I see the idea behind this, but I do have a few questions.
1) For Mono G Ramp, there's a quite a bit of B sideboarded, isn't there?
2) Where's the early game defense in this? You have one 3cc and one 4cc creature maindecked, and everything else is 5cc+. By Turn 4, you could be in deep trouble (or dead).
3) Post-rotation, your deck loses a healthy chunk of its search, its primary card draw, and looks like this:
Where's the replacement search and card draw once Time Spiral Block and Coldsnap rotate out?
The only lost creature is the Harmonic Sliver, but in addition to the three Pacts, you also lose Search for Tomorrow (3 fetch), Hunting Wilds (3 fetch), and Harmonize (3 card draw). The curve on this is so steep that you need gear to climb it, and 6 ramps are now closed. I know this is about running Rogue against Fae-trol, but there's a good chance you'll be Cryptic'd (if not Spellstutter'd) when you try to play your first creature. You also have to watch for Mistbind Cliques tapping down your lands during your upkeep (then swinging for 4+ in the air), and Vendilion Cliques tossing your only creature in hand to the bottom of the library. Post-rotation, you'll have 13 open spots to fill, but I'm not sure where I'd build on the bones here.
I'm not trying to knock your deck (I like the concept), it just seems like - come Halloween - it'll start to give up the ghost.
Okay, as much as I may dislike Turn 3 kills (well, when I'm on the receiving end, anyway), Eventide - um, the set - gives us two enablers to do just that - Bloom Tender and Quillspike. This deck is designed to take advantage of both in a hurry; the drawback is a lack of any mid- or late-game strategy. Just remember: you saw it here first.
This is where the deck is at for now. The idea is to pump up either Bloom Tender via Umbral Mantle (need at least three colors of permanents in play) or Quillspike (with recursive Devoted Druid), then nuke your opponent with Rite of Consumption. Painter's Servant and Scuttlemutt are in for Bloom Tender support. Vexing Shusher and Guttural Response are in case of Faeries (finding 1 extra point of should not be an issue), but what are the odds you'll be playing against that deck? [/sarcasm] The other hybrids are to support BT and help in a "slow" early game.
The sideboard will be determined later after the new metagame starts to take shape.
Ward of Bones: Uh, I have no idea. I'm gonna have to say: not that great. If it cost 4, however, i'd look at it differently. You could neutralize their creatures, not play any of your own, then play this, I guess. I don't know.
{snip}
Invert the Skies: Limited filler, probably. It makes all your guys unblockable, so it's a decent finisher. Also doubles as a combat trick.
Well, Ward of Bones is nice. It keeps them from playing creatures. However, it does not stop token generators... such as Bitterblossom. Or Cenn's Enlistment. Or Savage Conception. Evershrike can still come back from the graveyard. Pyrrhic Revival ignores it. Call the Skybreaker finally has a use. Creakwood Liege is a great single creature to play, and Worm Harvest makes it that much more disturbing. Ward of Bones is overcosted; an inverted Balance at is usually too late to help, though the timing is on par with Restore Balance. Personally, I would have preferred a new version of Equipoise. And how did we go from a theme which is classically White to free-range colorless?
Invert the Skies is fine... unless you're dealing with someone with Reach (don't laugh; how many of you run Cloudthresher). If this card starts showing up in decks, my Slivers will be seeing more play time... or I can always build a Spider deck. Steam Spitter FTW just sounds so wrong.
Phyrexian: Thanks. Hope I can be of service when Clan Events roll around. And I'll try to unearth a few deck ideas based on new and old cards (I used to love running Rogue in Legacy - Vintage is a bit more difficult). Hmmm... I'll have to see if I still have the list for my Richard Kane Ferguson deck.
As far as the Prerelease, the nearest one is about a 90 minute drive for me, and few players I know are going. The ones that are going already have their carpools set, and I'm not exactly a petite individual, so I can't exactly squeeze between two people. I did ride in the trunk once (a hatchback, thankfully); not an experience I'd like to repeat any time soon.
I will be going to the Release at at least one local shop, possibly two. I like Figure of Destiny; it'll be a nice addition to my Kithkin deck, and hopefully I'll be able to get extra copies off of other players. Just remains to be seen whether I prefer the Release or Regular art more (Door of Destinies Prerelease artwork is a good example - I'd much rather have a set of those).
EDIT: Talk about how "Invert the Skies = Win" is making me consider a T2 rG Spider deck. I have 9 creatures to work with (the easy part), plus Swarmyard for Regen shenanigans. Any suggestions on support spells (besides Squall Line)?
Looking over keywords we have yet to use. I note that 1 lifelink is still around.
Maybe Batwing Brume has a fog/holy day and mass lifelink adding effect? Be an excellent combat trick for a lifelink deck.
not sure on wording but maybe something like this?
1:symwb:
Instant
If was spent to pay Batwing Brume, prevent all combat damage that would be dealt to you and creatures you control this turn. If was spent to pay Batwing Brume, attacking creatures gain lifelink until end of turn. Do both if :symw::symb: was spent.
There are two problems with this. First, lifelink on attacking creatures is fine... unless you are blocking, in which case you just let your opponent gain life. Second, if you prevent the combat damage, lifelink is negated. Doing both only does fog... unless you're using activated abilities of some sort.
Eventide: Did you want to join? It didn't say anything...
Although I'd gladly accept an invitation to join, I find it kind of tacky and crass to ask oneself. My momma told me, "If you have to ask your 'friends' if you can join in, they probably didn't want you along in the first place." I didn't get invited to... well, any parties in high school, but I was the go-to guy for help. Go figure.
I think it's cheap not to use Tarmo.
I think Eventide wants to join, and after his/her tagline I think we should let him/her.
Well, unless you yanked them out of a pack, it's definitely cheaper on your wallet not to play with 'Goyf (saw a set of Japanese foils go for $710 about two weeks ago - ridiculous). As far as it being Rogue not to run them, I'd say "Yes" to that as well. When people splash the ability to generate green mana to play it in decks that have no other reason for green (and it shows up in a number of NDs), I'd say it's a little Rogue to have Green and not slot it in.
Considering how many years I've been complaining about NetDecks, this group sounds like kindred spirits.
With that in mind, allow me to present the current incarnation of my Friday Night staple, which has garnered me plenty of 2nds and 3rds (with the occasional 1st):
The theme behind the deck is loss of life (which can't be prevented) and shrinkage, such as from Wither and Sudden Death. Originally, I was trying to put together an Extended deck, but I couldn't find/afford a set of Kokusho. There were enough current cards for me to build it (it used to feature a cadre of Blightspeakers), so I decided to give it a go. And it usually works, which was a nice bonus.
Changes have been made post-Eventide, with a greater focus on Wither, and the advantages it can lend via Necroskitter, Kulrath Knight, and Crumbling Ashes. The Memory Plunder in the sideboard is for all those [insert profanity of choice] Faerie decks and Cryptic Command - now I just borrow the one already in the graveyard. The filter lands are in there until I finish a set of Fetid Heaths to make Batwing Brume more fun for my opponent.
On nights that I'm feeling particularly froggy (or happen to be know I'll likely be facing Faerie decks every round), I like to reach for this deck.
This started out as a $5 deck I built after Planar Chaos. I had decided to start playing FNM again, and through wins and trades it got beefier. Except for the Legacy Weapon, it's a Time Spiral Block deck, and I've swapped in a third Might Sliver if the occasion calls for it.
The Sliver deck will soon be cannibalized for two decks soon - 1 Extended, 1 Sliver Overlord EDH. Speaking of Highlander...
My Blue Highlander has a few Unhinged cards, so I only use it once in a while (R&D's Secret Lair makes all modern basic lands worthless - they don't have a Tap symbol) since it tends to infinite... in multiple directions.
No all the double color costs are used - after checking the orb I realized the remaining ones are for the filter lands, but were never taken off the list.
NNOOOOOOOOOO! And I spent all that time trolling through Gatherer to find that information!
Ah well. With Pyre Charger and Stigma Lasher, I do think WotC might be starting to change things, and Future Sight did bring a good number of 2 color specific CC cards into the light, so perhaps we will see more in Alara Block (or will it be Shards Block? The following set name hasn't been announced... and this sentence should be in Speculation).
I just wish Light from Within had better nonhybrid support for WW/Kithkin.
There's no "attach" in the Orb, so it doesn't have an effect like the Morningtide equipment. It also isn't Legendary, as the Orb only spits out "2," and those are used by Ashling and Sapling, so that can be taken off the list. The abilities could be anything; this is one card where there have been no rumors and barely any speculation. What we can try to narrow down are the two costs and maybe the name.
For CC, we have reasonable options of :2mana:, :3mana:, :4mana:. I can't see it costing like the Runed Stalactite, or since it is nonlegendary. EC would likely be in the same range, just because I don't see quick and easy with the Equipment on the "dark side." But we'll need the other Artifact Creatures spoiled before we can get a better idea. As far as a name, "Emblem" seems like it might fit best... but an Emblem of/for what, I've no idea yet.
Regarding the instances of 2 colored mana (:symw::symw:, :symu::symu:, etc.), I think we might see a cycle of 2cc creatures with matching activation costs (and we know how much MaRo is loving cycles in this block). It struck me as odd that only 2 White creatures spoiled so far fit into WW archetype (the :1mana::symw: Kithkin Zealot and Suture Spirit), not counting hybrids. After all, why would they print Light from Within if the only mono-White creatures that get a better-than-Glorious Anthem effect in this set are at 5cc and 6cc? Where's the hard 2-drop love, especially for White? So far this block we've seen:
It gets worse when you consider that Blue has 4 TimeShifted cards out of its 6 in Standard. Red only had 4 in the entire history of MtG until the color-shifted Blood Knight was printed. And now Pyre Charger and Stigma Lasher show up in the same block? I sense a change in the wind.
With all the speculation about Alara, and the fact that WotC has stated recently they want to make more "rewards" for playing single colors or pseudo-mono hybrids, we haven't seen a lot of nonhybrid creatures that support this idea. I, for one, would like to see this come to pass. It should shift Standard a bit (i.e. more RDW fodder) and it will be a needed improvement to casual play, especially for newcomers to the game.
Who doesn't think that Spellstutter Sprite should have (fittingly) cost :symu::symu:, not :1mana::symu:, to be more appropriate for it's power level? For Knight of Meadowgrain, it's cost would have to be at least :2mana::symw: to have the same stats in order to lose that other in its CC. Players "complain" about wanting better early creatures. The best way I can see WotC complying is by shifting the CCs into extra colored mana.
But, I guess we'll have to wait and see, won't we?
As others have stated, this is a nice boost to WW/Kith, considering I was running a pair of Door of Destinies to help bolster the size of my Kithkin. This goes well with any WW, and can be a solid fit for Kithkin. Let's check some cards for both deck styles that get good benefits.
Wizened Cenn - no longer dies to Nameless Inversion, thus keeping your other Kith boosted. Knight of Meadowgrain - 4/4 First Strike. Lifelink is just icing. Serra Avenger - 5/5 Vigilant Flying. It's an Archangel with a discount. Augury Adept is a lot more playable when it has a better chance of living, and when it's a bigger threat. Kitchen Finks - a 3cc 5/4 (or 4/3 after it dies). Now it's lifegain and a beatstick. Paladin en-Vec - 4/4 First Strike with Pro Red/Black. Good times. Plumeveil - 7/7 Flying Wall that jumps in front of... well, lots of things to eat them. Wilt-Leaf Cavaliers - 6/7 Vigilance. That's before you Aura them into 8/9 Indestructible, Flying, Vigilant beatsticks. Thoughtweft Trio - 7/7 First Strike and able to block any number of creatures. And that's without the bonuses from your Wizened Cenns or Lieges. Thistledown Liege - 4/6 Flash that boosts your other White and/or Blue creatures? That's more like it. Wilt-Leaf Liege - 7/7 GW booster. Ow.
And those are just cards that stay within the 4cc curve of most of the decks. Godhead (9/9 Flying while everything without counters is 1/1) and Oversoul (10/10 with Red/Blue/Black Prot) are ridiculous as Turn 5 drops after Light From Within hits. Going into the Eventide spoiler, we find... hybrids (most of the 4cc or less for White only has 1 :symw:).
Harvest Gwyllion - :2mana::symbw::symbw: - 2/4 Wither kicks to 4/6 Wither. Makes them rethink blocking.
Restless Apparition - :symbw::symbw::symbw: - 2/2 that gets +3/+3 for each :symwb::symwb::symwb: you pump into it... and now it gets a free, semi-permanent pump.
Stillmoon Cavalier - :1mana::symbw::symbw: - 2/1 Knight with White/Black Prot that Jumps, Strikes, and Pumps. Well, starting at 4/3 is much better, especially since most of your Auras are likely not going to work.
Spitemare - :2mana::symrw::symrw: - 3/3 Elemental that causes pain when blocking or blocked... and now it's 5/5 so it can keep doing it longer.
The Mimics would only get +1/+1, so it isn't as useful for them. I didn't include the WB or RW Lieges because they're both at 5cc - like the Avatars, and are out of the "normal" range for WW/Kithkin in Standard. We haven't seen the :symwr::symwr::symwr: Creature yet, and I'm hoping it's playable (and maybe a Kithkin - the Orb gives 16, and we have 13 in the Spoiler). According to the updated Number Crunch, we have 5 2/2s, a 3/1 and a 3/3 remaining, so there's no telling which will fit that creature, but getting a possible +3/+3 bonus from this Enchantment will make it that much sweeter.
And for something completely out of left field: Raven's Crime.
Okay, take the moment you need to scratch your head and say "WTF is he thinking?!"
Now, most of y'all are getting moist over Quillspike, and, I'll admit, he has some appeal (especially since he's an Uncommon in a Common slot). But the 1/1 base for 3cc is where he has problems. Soul Snuffers will kill him just by coming into play, and can hit before you get a chance to swing with Quillspike. In Limited, card advantage is God (or a minor diety, at the minimum), and the Retrace 1 drops are going to make running 18 land a very beneficial call.
The other card I'd be tempted to take would be Soul Snuffers, just given the number of 1/1s in that pack, and the 1/1s and 2/1s in the set overall.
In order for it to be good/playable/not completely broken, I think the new Obelisk may look something like this:
Obelisk of Alara (Mythic)
Legendary Artifact
Nonbasic lands have no type and produce
:symtap:: For each basic land type you control, add one mana to your mana pool of the type that basic land would produce.
This would be a gamechanger. It would fill the slot of Magus of the Moon, and also build on - and reward - WotC's hope of more players using basic lands, instead of paying a premium for duals. Of course, if this is a Mythic (or even just a Rare), they'd still likely end up emptying their wallets for this card.
Also, being able to possibly tap for :1mana::symw::symu::symb::symr::symg: would be interesting, especially if the speculative "sixth basic land" does make an appearance in Conflux.
Okay, next speculator.
Have you considered using Mangara of Corondor and a Slide effect, like Turn to Mist to get some extra control mileage? Mangara targets, is removed by Mist, the permanent goes away, he comes back to do it all over again.
If Sarkhan is RG, does this mean Ajani will be GW?
One other point of fact regarding the new Play Network that supports the theory of Hasbro slashing the WotC budget: no mention of PTQs for any level of Organizer. None.
Advanced Organizers will have to compete for a limited number of GP Trial slots, and only either A] a store used to running large events, such as Cornermagic in Greenville, SC - the closest store to me while I was living in Clinton, SC (50 miles away) or B] mass tournament organizers, such as Gray Matter Conventions in SE Pennsylvania - which is an even longer haul (60 miles or more, into West Chester or Philly). Even the large stores would need to sign up 20 NEW people a year, and with the "serious tournament players" scaring away neophytes and adolecents, that possibility is going to end fast.
Within a year, MtG may find itself back to the same level of "organized play" as it had in 1994: None. The set "Eventide" was well named - the sun is about to set on the "Golden Age" of Magic.
Okay, I see the idea behind this, but I do have a few questions.
1) For Mono G Ramp, there's a quite a bit of B sideboarded, isn't there?
2) Where's the early game defense in this? You have one 3cc and one 4cc creature maindecked, and everything else is 5cc+. By Turn 4, you could be in deep trouble (or dead).
3) Post-rotation, your deck loses a healthy chunk of its search, its primary card draw, and looks like this:
2 Deity of Scars
2 Overbeing of Myth
2 Oversoul of Dusk
3 Cloudthresher
1 Woodfall Primus
1 Avatar of Might
1 Chameleon Colossus
3 Phospherescent Feast
3 Howl of the Night Pack
4 Primal Command
3 Recross the Paths
3 Woodland Guidance
Land
14 Forest
2 Swamp
4 Murmuring Bosk
2 Profane Command
3 Lignify
Where's the replacement search and card draw once Time Spiral Block and Coldsnap rotate out?
The only lost creature is the Harmonic Sliver, but in addition to the three Pacts, you also lose Search for Tomorrow (3 fetch), Hunting Wilds (3 fetch), and Harmonize (3 card draw). The curve on this is so steep that you need gear to climb it, and 6 ramps are now closed. I know this is about running Rogue against Fae-trol, but there's a good chance you'll be Cryptic'd (if not Spellstutter'd) when you try to play your first creature. You also have to watch for Mistbind Cliques tapping down your lands during your upkeep (then swinging for 4+ in the air), and Vendilion Cliques tossing your only creature in hand to the bottom of the library. Post-rotation, you'll have 13 open spots to fill, but I'm not sure where I'd build on the bones here.
I'm not trying to knock your deck (I like the concept), it just seems like - come Halloween - it'll start to give up the ghost.
4 Gilt-Leaf Palace
4 Llanowar Wastes
4 Twilight Mire
6 Forest
4 Swamp
Creatures (28)
3 Llanowar Elves
3 Odious Trow
3 Slippery Bogle
4 Devoted Druid
4 Bloom Tender
2 Painter's Servant
2 Groundling Pouncer
2 Vexing Shusher
4 Quillspike
2 Scuttlemutt
3 Umbral Mantle
4 Rite of Consumption
3 Guttural Response
Well, Ward of Bones is nice. It keeps them from playing creatures. However, it does not stop token generators... such as Bitterblossom. Or Cenn's Enlistment. Or Savage Conception. Evershrike can still come back from the graveyard. Pyrrhic Revival ignores it. Call the Skybreaker finally has a use. Creakwood Liege is a great single creature to play, and Worm Harvest makes it that much more disturbing. Ward of Bones is overcosted; an inverted Balance at
Invert the Skies is fine... unless you're dealing with someone with Reach (don't laugh; how many of you run Cloudthresher). If this card starts showing up in decks, my Slivers will be seeing more play time... or I can always build a Spider deck. Steam Spitter FTW just sounds so wrong.
As far as the Prerelease, the nearest one is about a 90 minute drive for me, and few players I know are going. The ones that are going already have their carpools set, and I'm not exactly a petite individual, so I can't exactly squeeze between two people. I did ride in the trunk once (a hatchback, thankfully); not an experience I'd like to repeat any time soon.
I will be going to the Release at at least one local shop, possibly two. I like Figure of Destiny; it'll be a nice addition to my Kithkin deck, and hopefully I'll be able to get extra copies off of other players. Just remains to be seen whether I prefer the Release or Regular art more (Door of Destinies Prerelease artwork is a good example - I'd much rather have a set of those).
EDIT: Talk about how "Invert the Skies = Win" is making me consider a T2 rG Spider deck. I have 9 creatures to work with (the easy part), plus Swarmyard for Regen shenanigans. Any suggestions on support spells (besides Squall Line)?
There are two problems with this. First, lifelink on attacking creatures is fine... unless you are blocking, in which case you just let your opponent gain life. Second, if you prevent the combat damage, lifelink is negated. Doing both only does fog... unless you're using activated abilities of some sort.
Although I'd gladly accept an invitation to join, I find it kind of tacky and crass to ask oneself. My momma told me, "If you have to ask your 'friends' if you can join in, they probably didn't want you along in the first place." I didn't get invited to... well, any parties in high school, but I was the go-to guy for help.
Well, unless you yanked them out of a pack, it's definitely cheaper on your wallet not to play with 'Goyf (saw a set of Japanese foils go for $710 about two weeks ago - ridiculous). As far as it being Rogue not to run them, I'd say "Yes" to that as well. When people splash the ability to generate green mana to play it in decks that have no other reason for green (and it shows up in a number of NDs), I'd say it's a little Rogue to have Green and not slot it in.
But that's just my 1/50th of a dollar.
With that in mind, allow me to present the current incarnation of my Friday Night staple, which has garnered me plenty of 2nds and 3rds (with the occasional 1st):
Thinner :symwb::symub::symbr::symbg::symb:
18 Swamp
1 Fetid Heath
1 Sunken Ruins
1 Graven Cairns
1 Twilight Mire
Creatures
4 Oona's Gatewarden
3 Dusk Urchins
3 Necroskitter
4 Soot Imp
3 Soul Snuffers
2 Crumbling Ashes
3 Batwing Brume
4 Dash Hopes
3 Profane Command
4 Beseech the Queen
3 Sudden Death
2 Temporal Extortion
2 Everlasting Torment
3 Unmake
2 Memory Plunder
3 Noxious Hatchling
2 Kulrath Knight
Changes have been made post-Eventide, with a greater focus on Wither, and the advantages it can lend via Necroskitter, Kulrath Knight, and Crumbling Ashes. The Memory Plunder in the sideboard is for all those [insert profanity of choice] Faerie decks and Cryptic Command - now I just borrow the one already in the graveyard. The filter lands are in there until I finish a set of Fetid Heaths to make Batwing Brume more fun for my opponent.
Slivers. :symw::symg:
8 Plains
1 Island
1 Swamp
1 Mountain
9 Forest
1 Pendelhaven
Creatures
3 Virulent Sliver
3 Sidewinder Sliver
4 Gemhide Sliver
4 Sinew Sliver
3 Spinneret Sliver
2 Essence Sliver
2 Might Sliver
1 Sliver Legion
3 Strength in Numbers
4 Marshalling Cry
3 Squall Line
4 Search for Tomorrow
1 Akroma's Memorial
1 Legacy Weapon
My Blue Highlander has a few Unhinged cards, so I only use it once in a while (R&D's Secret Lair makes all modern basic lands worthless - they don't have a Tap symbol) since it tends to infinite... in multiple directions.
UN-Believable :symu::symu:
19 Island
1 Academy Ruins
1 R&D's Secret Lair
Creatures
1 Ambassador Laquatus
1 Cemetery Puca
1 Solemn Simulacrum
1 Voidmage Husher
1 Chronozoa
1 Braids, Conjurer Adept
1 Johnny, Combo Player
1 Scalpelexis
1 Belltower Sphinx
1 Serra Sphinx
1 Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir
1 Arcanis the Omnipotent
1 Oona, Queen of the Fae
1 Memnarch
1 Bringer of the Blue Dawn
1 Broodstar
1 Deep-Sea Kraken
1 Darksteel Colossus
1 Ancestral Vision
1 Reminisce
1 Stroke of Genius
1 Jace Beleren
1 Frozen Æther
1 Cryptic Command
Artifacts
1 Sol Ring
1 Sensei's Divining Top
1 Lightning Greaves
1 Whispersilk Cloak
1 Loxodon Warhammer
1 Helm of Kaldra
1 Shield of Kaldra
1 Sword of Kaldra
1 Chimeric Egg
1 Icy Manipulator
1 Gauntlet of Power
1 Pariah's Shield
1 Mindslaver
1 Mox Lotus
1 Gleemax
Kithstrike has been destroyed due to too many stalls, and will be replaced by a yet-unnamed draft pick from Pittsburgh in the fifth round.
Until next time, may your games be chaotic and your decks be rogue.
NNOOOOOOOOOO! And I spent all that time trolling through Gatherer to find that information!
Ah well. With Pyre Charger and Stigma Lasher, I do think WotC might be starting to change things, and Future Sight did bring a good number of 2 color specific CC cards into the light, so perhaps we will see more in Alara Block (or will it be Shards Block? The following set name hasn't been announced... and this sentence should be in Speculation).
I just wish Light from Within had better nonhybrid support for WW/Kithkin.
{Casting Cost}
Artifact - Equipment
Equipped Creature is/has/gets {? ? ?}
Equip {Cost}
There's no "attach" in the Orb, so it doesn't have an effect like the Morningtide equipment. It also isn't Legendary, as the Orb only spits out "2," and those are used by Ashling and Sapling, so that can be taken off the list. The abilities could be anything; this is one card where there have been no rumors and barely any speculation. What we can try to narrow down are the two costs and maybe the name.
For CC, we have reasonable options of :2mana:, :3mana:, :4mana:. I can't see it costing
Regarding the instances of 2 colored mana (:symw::symw:, :symu::symu:, etc.), I think we might see a cycle of 2cc creatures with matching activation costs (and we know how much MaRo is loving cycles in this block). It struck me as odd that only 2 White creatures spoiled so far fit into WW archetype (the :1mana::symw: Kithkin Zealot and Suture Spirit), not counting hybrids. After all, why would they print Light from Within if the only mono-White creatures that get a better-than-Glorious Anthem effect in this set are at 5cc and 6cc? Where's the hard 2-drop love, especially for White? So far this block we've seen:
:symw::symw:: Wizened Cenn and Knight of Meadowgrain {8 total in Standard, 29 historically}
:symu::symu:: Grimoire Thief {6 / 14}
:symb::symb:: Scarblade Elite {7 / 29, plus Frankenstein's Monster}
:symr::symr:: Pyre Charger {2!! / 6!!}
:symg::symg:: Juvenile Gloomwidow and Elvish Warrior {5 / 15}
It gets worse when you consider that Blue has 4 TimeShifted cards out of its 6 in Standard. Red only had 4 in the entire history of MtG until the color-shifted Blood Knight was printed. And now Pyre Charger and Stigma Lasher show up in the same block? I sense a change in the wind.
With all the speculation about Alara, and the fact that WotC has stated recently they want to make more "rewards" for playing single colors or pseudo-mono hybrids, we haven't seen a lot of nonhybrid creatures that support this idea. I, for one, would like to see this come to pass. It should shift Standard a bit (i.e. more RDW fodder) and it will be a needed improvement to casual play, especially for newcomers to the game.
Who doesn't think that Spellstutter Sprite should have (fittingly) cost :symu::symu:, not :1mana::symu:, to be more appropriate for it's power level? For Knight of Meadowgrain, it's cost would have to be at least :2mana::symw: to have the same stats in order to lose that other
But, I guess we'll have to wait and see, won't we?
Wizened Cenn - no longer dies to Nameless Inversion, thus keeping your other Kith boosted.
Knight of Meadowgrain - 4/4 First Strike. Lifelink is just icing.
Serra Avenger - 5/5 Vigilant Flying. It's an Archangel with a
Augury Adept is a lot more playable when it has a better chance of living, and when it's a bigger threat.
Kitchen Finks - a 3cc 5/4 (or 4/3 after it dies). Now it's lifegain and a beatstick.
Paladin en-Vec - 4/4 First Strike with Pro Red/Black. Good times.
Plumeveil - 7/7 Flying Wall that jumps in front of... well, lots of things to eat them.
Wilt-Leaf Cavaliers - 6/7 Vigilance. That's before you Aura them into 8/9 Indestructible, Flying, Vigilant beatsticks.
Thoughtweft Trio - 7/7 First Strike and able to block any number of creatures. And that's without the bonuses from your Wizened Cenns or Lieges.
Thistledown Liege - 4/6 Flash that boosts your other White and/or Blue creatures? That's more like it.
Wilt-Leaf Liege - 7/7 GW booster. Ow.
And those are just cards that stay within the 4cc curve of most of the decks. Godhead (9/9 Flying while everything without counters is 1/1) and Oversoul (10/10 with Red/Blue/Black Prot) are ridiculous as Turn 5 drops after Light From Within hits. Going into the Eventide spoiler, we find... hybrids (most of the 4cc or less for White only has 1 :symw:).
Harvest Gwyllion - :2mana::symbw::symbw: - 2/4 Wither kicks to 4/6 Wither. Makes them rethink blocking.
Restless Apparition - :symbw::symbw::symbw: - 2/2 that gets +3/+3 for each :symwb::symwb::symwb: you pump into it... and now it gets a free, semi-permanent pump.
Stillmoon Cavalier - :1mana::symbw::symbw: - 2/1 Knight with White/Black Prot that Jumps, Strikes, and Pumps. Well, starting at 4/3 is much better, especially since most of your Auras are likely not going to work.
Spitemare - :2mana::symrw::symrw: - 3/3 Elemental that causes pain when blocking or blocked... and now it's 5/5 so it can keep doing it longer.
The Mimics would only get +1/+1, so it isn't as useful for them. I didn't include the WB or RW Lieges because they're both at 5cc - like the Avatars, and are out of the "normal" range for WW/Kithkin in Standard. We haven't seen the :symwr::symwr::symwr: Creature yet, and I'm hoping it's playable (and maybe a Kithkin - the Orb gives 16, and we have 13 in the Spoiler). According to the updated Number Crunch, we have 5 2/2s, a 3/1 and a 3/3 remaining, so there's no telling which will fit that creature, but getting a possible +3/+3 bonus from this Enchantment will make it that much sweeter.
Okay, take the moment you need to scratch your head and say "WTF is he thinking?!"
Now, most of y'all are getting moist over Quillspike, and, I'll admit, he has some appeal (especially since he's an Uncommon in a Common slot). But the 1/1 base for 3cc is where he has problems. Soul Snuffers will kill him just by coming into play, and can hit before you get a chance to swing with Quillspike. In Limited, card advantage is God (or a minor diety, at the minimum), and the Retrace 1 drops are going to make running 18 land a very beneficial call.
The other card I'd be tempted to take would be Soul Snuffers, just given the number of 1/1s in that pack, and the 1/1s and 2/1s in the set overall.