Correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't Kiora essentially fail to protect Zendikar as she aspired to when she panicked and didn't have the guts to see the Gatewatch's plan through? There's something to build on there, whether it be Kiora dealing with her shame or resenting the Gatewatch for succeeding where her fear made her fail or championing the Zendikari recovery. These are all things WotC can build on as all three are common character motivation tropes.
In a set I designed, I had Kiora as the protagonist dealing with the guilt and shame of her fear causing her to fail where her quest for more power was meant to succeed (ironically, it was a prison plane that allowed planeswalkers in but not out to play into her habit of letting fear get the best of her, thanks a lot Ixalan for taking the wind right out of my sails). I think she's actually a great protagonist because she isn't a typical hero. She's prideful, arrogant, and she very frequently ignores collateral damage. She amasses power for noble goals (saving her sister/Zendikar), but relishes in others respecting her power (even if she's lying). And at a critical moment, her fear overruled her willpower. That makes Kiora a character they can build a story off of, particularly after the cooling reception of the very basic Gatewatch.
Like I said, he's actually a powerful card. I just think he's at his best when you're already winning and doesn't actually impact that win if you're already ahead.
That's kind of in-flavor for Dovin when you think about it; he rewards you for planning ahead like he does. If you've somehow failed to get any creatures, particularly evasive ones, on the battlefield by the time he arrives, then he can lend you a Thopter or two, but you really should deploy some capable officers. If you're short on staff, he'll even search for some personnel to help you if you can be patient. And if you are doing an adequate job of subduing the enemy, he'll reward you with more resources to support your campaign.
That's fully true. I actually like the design, it's a flavorful way to depict Dovin's disdain for ineffective systems and plans.
I had a hearty laugh at that flavor text. The flavor for Gruul and Rakdos this time around is impressing me when in both previous showcases they've fallen flat. Rakdos cards in particular are doing a great job of establishing a particular feel for the guild of anarchic, no-*****s-given, violent entertainment. Like if Lady Gaga were also a Cenobite but also Freddy Kreuger.
I adore this callback to Invasion, and this is a great adaptation of Fires that fills a similar but distinct role. The callback is obvious, but they don't play the same. Jiyor is absolutely correct about how those distinctions will change how you should play Rhythm versus Fires and as well how playing against them is different.
I welcome this card, largely because I have a soft spot for cards that refer to my MtG heyday and present a playable update in their own right.
Practically every deck in standard running U will want this card.
I also love the Idea that mikeyG had of turning lands into creatures. Definitely a fun card.
Another wicked option could be Jolrael, Empress of Beasts if you're more of a political player in multiplayer. Oddly enough, Nature's Revolt is one of the few ways to reliably turn lands you don't control into creatures (even the cards you can Donate largely only affect Forests). It's a cute combo (cuter with Rhystic and taxing effects), but because there is basically no redundancy at all, I'm not sure anyone ought to be relying on it. Maybe one day when we get another useful application of Verity Circle's trigger or a card that reliably animates your opponents' lands, but for now it's a cute interaction for Johnnies that likely won't get to happen much.
For real. Even if it only affected creatures that tap for mana, it would be deceptively powerful - most EDH decks that can run creatures to ramp. The additional potency of getting draws off of utility tapping (particularly off of creatures/commanders that players want to tap every turn like Kiki-Jiki, Vannifar, Yisan, Krenko, Feldon, Ghoulcaller Gisa, Azami, Hanna, Gwafa Hazid, Vona, and so many others) ensures that you're going to get a lot of value. Multiplayer games will inevitably have many creatures tapped for reasons other than for attacking, in my playgroup this card could (with no other investment on my part) draw 4-6 cards each turn around the table.
Also, this with Nature's Revolt is a hilariously janky way of drawing a ton of cards for those with an eye for eccentric combos. (me)
Woah, that is a really cool effect. Both Tamiyos get ridiculous with this. Choking Tethers and Downpour become absolutely beastly swings. Opposition becomes a source of a lot of draws. *****, even Lorthos becomes even more Timmy goodness. Even the Planeswalker Deck Dovin looks more interesting with this card in mind (I mean, not to the point where that Dovin is actually powerful, but still). Mind Over Matter just becomes ... well it was already degenerate and this only amplifies that. Even if you don't have any immediate cards in play to tap things, it'll make your opponent think twice before tapping utility creatures and it has its own innefficient source of tapping to draw you closer to your engine if need be.
I love when new effects like this are designed that tap into space we really haven't gotten into before because it takes a simple mechanic (tapping down opponent's creatures) that we have seen in the game for decades and gives us a reason to view it differently. When Depose//Deploy was spoiled, most of us disregarded the Depose half as good but not typically why you'd run it, Verity Circle gives someone a reason to consider it. Your mileage may vary on that, but I'm just elated that a card design makes players take a look at cards with generally underpowered effects with new appreciation.
Could this be? Could this finally be an Orzhov commander I'm actually interested in playing?
MY PRAYERS HAVE BEEN ANSWERED AT LAST.
Just be wary of how many hoops you're gonna need to jump.
Step 1: Build Aristocrat style deck
Step 2: Add Teysa Karlov to said Aristocrats deck
Step 3: Profit.
You're welcome
My point is an arisocrats deck needs A)
creatures dying, B) Sac Outlets and C) things with death triggers. She only works when the engine already online and does nothing to help turn the engine online. She's kind of win-more. Id rather just play OG Teysa in the zone as she counts for both B) and C). Personally I'm going to make Judith who helps turn the entine on by being a C
I see your point, she doesn't directly contribute to the engine so her value lies in whether she advances the win. I think what keeps Teysa from being win more is when she factors directly into the gameplan. If your path to victory is something like Poison-Tip Archer or Judith (or potentially abusing Afterlife, but jury's still out there), she halves the time it takes to take out an opponent which can be vital. Teysa doubles the value of death triggers, and the mileage you get out of that is whether the triggers she doubles are themselves impactful to winning games.
This actually looks great in a Abzan shell with poison tipped archers and other sack outlets in black/green, plus some recusion to bring them back and do it again.
Hahaha, I have a Ghave EDH deck that cranks out Saprolings and sacrifices them for all manner of good things while triggering a bunch of "when a creature dies, X" effects. Teysa here is going right in. Her Deatharmonicon effect is obviously the big winner, but don't discount her token buffs, if your deck is built right it'll give a lot of opponents pause. Vigilance will make your swarm relevant on offense and defense, and lifelink allows you a life buffer that is not inconsiderable. With even one or two Zulaport Cutthroat derivatives out and a handful of tokens (Saprolings or Spirits), Teysa makes combat a tough challenge. I love that she turns the dinkiest tokens into threats in the right build. Your chump blocks can create havoc for opponents (in my build, Teysa will sap your opponents for 2-4 per token trade and gain you that much plus force two sacrifices off of Grave Pact). And on attack, blocking your token army is a losing proposition. I love it.
I wonder why the Wurm doesn't just say "Destroy target nonbasic land." Would it really have been that degenerate?
Probably to keep the Shocklands all untoouched. Nonbasic land destruction (for the game designers) is mostly meant to solve manlands and utility lands. The more narrow they make the ability the less they will push the cost past the level they want it add.
Six mana is quite reasonable for a mythic creature to destroy a shockland, I think.
They particularly nerf land destruction in multicolor-focused environments, they worry that one card that kills lands too efficiently (or broadly) could discourage players from splashing. One card nullifying a chunk of another player's deck is unfun, so they tend not to risk it. It's not surprising that the wurm has a very specific rider as that means it can't target most of the lands that fix your colors.
All three of these cards are solid. I like the Demon the most, but all three are great.
If serious: he benefits when you already have creatures getting through to the dome (without boosting them, making them easier to swing with, etc) and doesn't actually win the game on his own (well, he makes Thopters, but I'm not sure how commonly Dovin will be game ending on his own). He isn't lacking in power or potential, but he's at his best when you're already on the way to a win. I can't speak to competitive (I play strictly casual), but he helps you refill your hand more quickly when you're already winning. That can be valuable, but it just feels win more to me.
I feel like a "winmore" card is a card that wins thanks to a board that already wins anyway. Dovin doesn't do that :
1- it's not because you ultimate and win with it that your board presence was enough to win, in opposition to what you think. In standard you can be attacking in the early turns, then you get stone-walled by a Drake or a million tokens, and you need to find an answer to a losing position : the ultimate helps with that.
2- its other abilities support a specific strategy and are quite fair.
A win more card is one that, while not a bad card, is one whose effects aren't essential to your gameplan for winning. They don't win games for you, and their effects are such that they are at their best when you're already doing well. They can have effects that are powerful (in fact, most win more cards are powerful) but don't secure you a win that you weren't already achieving with other cards. This Dovin is literally powered through you already swinging with (likely evasive, given his colors) creatures. He doesn't make those swings better, and he isn't a win condition on his own (if your plan B is his second ability to make 1/1 flyers, chances are he's not going to steal you a win without support), and his big ability is potent card draw.
Like I said, he's actually a powerful card. I just think he's at his best when you're already winning and doesn't actually impact that win if you're already ahead.
Without question. Kaya is niche and subpar, Tibalt is actually just bad even if he costs one less. I have yet to see someone make Tibalt useful, but Kaya is at worst meh and conditional (and the conditions to make her useful are more common than many expect, not plentiful by any stretch of the imagination, but more common than nonexistent like Tibalt).
He's interesting. My Bant Superfriends EDH deck probably can't use him, but I do like his design. He's unique for WU but still feels at home in it while also feeling very Dovin and very different from other WU 'walkers.
He does feel very win more, though. Interesting and not lacking for potential, but win more.
Who is your General?
Thrasios and Ishai. They don't support the theme, but they're both useful depending on what I'm up against so I treat them like a mini 'sideboard'.
Actually, right in the rules it states that the rules apply to the Blog section. As the staff member unofficially in charge of Blogs, I tend to keep it fairly loose, but there are lines. Thanks for crossing one.
In a set I designed, I had Kiora as the protagonist dealing with the guilt and shame of her fear causing her to fail where her quest for more power was meant to succeed (ironically, it was a prison plane that allowed planeswalkers in but not out to play into her habit of letting fear get the best of her, thanks a lot Ixalan for taking the wind right out of my sails). I think she's actually a great protagonist because she isn't a typical hero. She's prideful, arrogant, and she very frequently ignores collateral damage. She amasses power for noble goals (saving her sister/Zendikar), but relishes in others respecting her power (even if she's lying). And at a critical moment, her fear overruled her willpower. That makes Kiora a character they can build a story off of, particularly after the cooling reception of the very basic Gatewatch.
That's fully true. I actually like the design, it's a flavorful way to depict Dovin's disdain for ineffective systems and plans.
I welcome this card, largely because I have a soft spot for cards that refer to my MtG heyday and present a playable update in their own right.
Another wicked option could be Jolrael, Empress of Beasts if you're more of a political player in multiplayer. Oddly enough, Nature's Revolt is one of the few ways to reliably turn lands you don't control into creatures (even the cards you can Donate largely only affect Forests). It's a cute combo (cuter with Rhystic and taxing effects), but because there is basically no redundancy at all, I'm not sure anyone ought to be relying on it. Maybe one day when we get another useful application of Verity Circle's trigger or a card that reliably animates your opponents' lands, but for now it's a cute interaction for Johnnies that likely won't get to happen much.
For real. Even if it only affected creatures that tap for mana, it would be deceptively powerful - most EDH decks that can run creatures to ramp. The additional potency of getting draws off of utility tapping (particularly off of creatures/commanders that players want to tap every turn like Kiki-Jiki, Vannifar, Yisan, Krenko, Feldon, Ghoulcaller Gisa, Azami, Hanna, Gwafa Hazid, Vona, and so many others) ensures that you're going to get a lot of value. Multiplayer games will inevitably have many creatures tapped for reasons other than for attacking, in my playgroup this card could (with no other investment on my part) draw 4-6 cards each turn around the table.
Also, this with Nature's Revolt is a hilariously janky way of drawing a ton of cards for those with an eye for eccentric combos. (me)
I love when new effects like this are designed that tap into space we really haven't gotten into before because it takes a simple mechanic (tapping down opponent's creatures) that we have seen in the game for decades and gives us a reason to view it differently. When Depose//Deploy was spoiled, most of us disregarded the Depose half as good but not typically why you'd run it, Verity Circle gives someone a reason to consider it. Your mileage may vary on that, but I'm just elated that a card design makes players take a look at cards with generally underpowered effects with new appreciation.
I see your point, she doesn't directly contribute to the engine so her value lies in whether she advances the win. I think what keeps Teysa from being win more is when she factors directly into the gameplan. If your path to victory is something like Poison-Tip Archer or Judith (or potentially abusing Afterlife, but jury's still out there), she halves the time it takes to take out an opponent which can be vital. Teysa doubles the value of death triggers, and the mileage you get out of that is whether the triggers she doubles are themselves impactful to winning games.
Hahaha, I have a Ghave EDH deck that cranks out Saprolings and sacrifices them for all manner of good things while triggering a bunch of "when a creature dies, X" effects. Teysa here is going right in. Her Deatharmonicon effect is obviously the big winner, but don't discount her token buffs, if your deck is built right it'll give a lot of opponents pause. Vigilance will make your swarm relevant on offense and defense, and lifelink allows you a life buffer that is not inconsiderable. With even one or two Zulaport Cutthroat derivatives out and a handful of tokens (Saprolings or Spirits), Teysa makes combat a tough challenge. I love that she turns the dinkiest tokens into threats in the right build. Your chump blocks can create havoc for opponents (in my build, Teysa will sap your opponents for 2-4 per token trade and gain you that much plus force two sacrifices off of Grave Pact). And on attack, blocking your token army is a losing proposition. I love it.
They particularly nerf land destruction in multicolor-focused environments, they worry that one card that kills lands too efficiently (or broadly) could discourage players from splashing. One card nullifying a chunk of another player's deck is unfun, so they tend not to risk it. It's not surprising that the wurm has a very specific rider as that means it can't target most of the lands that fix your colors.
All three of these cards are solid. I like the Demon the most, but all three are great.
A win more card is one that, while not a bad card, is one whose effects aren't essential to your gameplan for winning. They don't win games for you, and their effects are such that they are at their best when you're already doing well. They can have effects that are powerful (in fact, most win more cards are powerful) but don't secure you a win that you weren't already achieving with other cards. This Dovin is literally powered through you already swinging with (likely evasive, given his colors) creatures. He doesn't make those swings better, and he isn't a win condition on his own (if your plan B is his second ability to make 1/1 flyers, chances are he's not going to steal you a win without support), and his big ability is potent card draw.
Like I said, he's actually a powerful card. I just think he's at his best when you're already winning and doesn't actually impact that win if you're already ahead.
Without question. Kaya is niche and subpar, Tibalt is actually just bad even if he costs one less. I have yet to see someone make Tibalt useful, but Kaya is at worst meh and conditional (and the conditions to make her useful are more common than many expect, not plentiful by any stretch of the imagination, but more common than nonexistent like Tibalt).
Thrasios and Ishai. They don't support the theme, but they're both useful depending on what I'm up against so I treat them like a mini 'sideboard'.