Well looks like we'll have 10 filterlands, 5 Battle lands and 5 meh-put-something-in-this-slot-rarely-played-utility-lands, what would be the 3 others ?
So this confirms what will be the biggest change to the mechanics of the game since the introduction of the stack.
I'm pretty freaking excited about the new design space by the creation of colorless as a pseudo 6th color.
This is of course assuming this is real.
Aside from the rules change necessary to allow Wastes to tap for mana, and adding the option for colorless-only to costs, what exactly does this change that's so drastic? I'm not seeing it.
This adds a pseudo 6th color. It opens up design space beyond any change in recent memory, arguably since the introduction of legendary permanents. You can't underestimate the design space having colorless costs, and being lands and permanents have been making colorless mana for years, there have been generators since the beginning of the game. It's not as much a rule change as it is new design space. The amount of awesome new stuff we can have via colorless mana costs cannot be overstated.
IMO snow mana was much more of a 6th colour than strict colourless will be. Where Savage Lands was the RGB triland, Highland Weald was the RGS triland.
Back on the filter: As I saw it, there were three most likely scenarios for the expeditions in this set.
1) 10 filterlands and 10 manlands
2) 10 manlands, the 5 rarest filterlands (the Eventide ones), and 5 enemy tangolands (under the unproven but plausible scenario that they exist and are in Oath)
3) The 5 WWK manlands, the 5 rarest filterlands, 5 lands that aren't a colour cycle (Reflecting Pool, Gemstone Mine, Grove of the Burnwillows, Horizon Canopy, and one other, maybe Wasteland if they were OK with printing something not in Modern), plus 5 enemy tangos.
If it's one of those three, it's now proven to be scenario 1.
If you allowed unlimited amounts of Guildgates to be added to a deck during construction like you normally do for basic lands (for everyone, not just the person with Maze's End) it could become interesting.
Probably not good, but in a very low powered Cube it might happen enough to be memorable.
They do print playable commons and uncommons. Delver, Young Pyro, Treasure Cruise, Bloodbraid Elf, and Lightning Bolt just to name a few. The problem is they have to design around Limited, so making a lot of strong commons will make the environment something they don't want.
It's a matter of as-fan.
Take Mercadian Masques, a medium-power set that is not remembered overly fondly. Look at the commons there. Many of them were constructed staples or at least niche role players.
The uncommons had a few legitimately good cards and a few cards that never got there but looked playable to many people (Lumbering Satyr, Coastal Piracy, Intimidation)
Then the rares also had actual good cards (Misdirection, Port), cards with apparent but unrealised potential (Clear the Land, Monkey Cage), niche playables (Crumbling Sanctuary) and actual chaff (Corrupt Official).
But the as-fan of Constructed cards in a pack was as high as 5 or 6.
Contrast to BFZ where at a stretch it's 0.5-0.7 and that's including some dubious cards (Rolling Thunder isn't a Spike card in Constructed but it will excite some people into trying it, ditto Desolation Twin, I'm counting both of those cards).
The falling as-fan of Constructed playable cards (including cards that look like they might have Constructed potential but just never get there) has really decreased my interest in Magic.
Why buy a pack when of the 14 cards (not counting the basic), 13.25-13.5 will be of no interest to anyone ever?
Khans is the only exception due to the common lifelands.
Invested players don't need to buy packs because we know it is a waste of money. If there are any commons/uncommons from the set we need it is far cheaper to buy singles rather than a booster. The only reason to buy boosters outside a Sealed environment is the thrill of gambling on that high dollar rare or mythic.
On release day there is often a reasonable value prospect in opening a box, especially if there's a lot of cards in the set that are hyped early but that you are pretty certain are trash.
Even outside of that, in sets with a more reasonable as-fan of playable cards, at times when the EV of opening a pack isn't very high, it doesn't feel as bad to open one and say 'meh, rare sucks, ah well, at least got a Bile Blight'.
The falling as-fan of Constructed playable cards (including cards that look like they might have Constructed potential but just never get there) has really decreased my interest in Magic.
Why buy a pack when of the 14 cards (not counting the basic), 13.25-13.5 will be of no interest to anyone ever?
Khans is the only exception due to the common lifelands.
Hexproof plays terribly - it's just not fun to play against. Hexproof voltron decks feel like old-school land destruction overload decks (Stone Rain + Molten Rain + Plow Under from Onslaught-Mirrodin Standard; or Stone Rain + Pillage + Avalanche Riders from Urza/Masques standard) to play against - when the deck works you just feel helpless; when it doesn't you stomp it.
That keyword needs to be terminated with extreme prejudice.
Shroud, OTOH, is interactive because the creature doesn't share its protection with every aura or pump spell you play.
Storm should be taken out the back of Wizards R&D building, tied to a post and shot. Every card with that mechanic has either been totally useless (Astral Steel) or oppressively good.
I personally think there is no way <> just replace 1. It is too confusing and too weird, and it does not feel right with the blighted lands, the temple of forsaken gods and all in BfZ. (They would have at least put all the manlands in BfZ and the rare lands subject to the new templating in Oath).
The <> has probably an easy and understandable meaning like Phyrexian mana. I personally think that it being able to pay for color in colorless spells (cards with devoid and such) makes sense.
which would make it a parasitic mechanic in a small set
werent they going away from such design decisions?
BFZ was the most parasitic set since Kamigawa block, and they haven't had time to assess the mistakes there.
I don't believe Interdict ever had the ability to counter a mana ability.
The wording I'd give Interdict to restore its original functionality is:
"Counter target activated ability if its source was an artifact, creature, enchantment or land. Until end of turn, and while Interdict is on the stack, activated abilities of that permanent cannot be played. (Mana abilities cannot be targetted.)
Draw a card."
I think the following wording captures the printed intention perfectly while allowing Stifle shenanigans.
Lotus Vale
Land
When ~ ETB, sacrifice it unless you sacrifice two untapped lands. While this ability is on the stack, mana abilities of ~ cannot be played.
T: Add 3 mana of any colour to your mana pool.
A variant of this wording would also work for Interdict, which would get considerably better with its original functionality restored.
Uhh... You still can't respond to mana abilities, so I'm not sure what you're looking for...
The game rules allow effects that prevent mana abilities being played. Phyrexian Revoker can shut down a Mox.
With this wording there is no time to play the mana ability before the drawback goes on the stack.
Trying to copy paste a reply here - bear with me - something technical is going on with the quote.
716.2a At any point in the game, the player with priority may suggest a shortcut by describing a series of game choices, for all players, that may be legally taken based on the current game state and the predictable results of those choices. ... The outcome can't include conditional actions, where the outcome of a game event determines the next action a player takes.
Your opponent has an effect which is involuntary, and your reaching your desired game state occurs only if the opponent could order his library such that at the start of the shortcut, Ermakul is the bottom card in the library.
In OP - the correct proposed shortcut would be to "mill 30" presuming Ermakul is the bottom card in my opponent's deck.Denying you this opportunity is requiring the active player to presume Ermakul is in a position OTHER than the bottom of the deck after shuffling when deciding to mill 30.
If Ermakul is, AP's desired game state will be reached.
If Ermakul's position in the deck is anywhere else, resolution of ermakul's trigger will do nothing but return the game to a state where AP can simply mill 30 again.
Because Magic decks inherently follow a hypergeometric distribution, your result occurs if and only if Ermakul is the bottom card(s) post-shuffle. It also MUST occur unless your opponent always shuffles in such a way as to have Ermakul in a position OTHER than being the bottom card.
If the judge is called for "slow play", simply state that my opponent is always shuffling in such a manner that ermakul is NEVER the bottom card in his deck, because the moment it is and he mills 30 - I have all but won the game.
This is wrong.
The actions you describe fit the Magic Tournament Rules description of slow play. No ifs, no buts, no maybes, this is why the deck is not viable in tournaments. This is an official ruling from level 4 or 5 judges.
Additionally "Mill 30" can leave the game in several states other than the desired one or the starting state, for instance, if Emrakul is the 26th card, 'mill 30' describes an attempted loop which is interrupted after the 9th of 10 iterations, resulting in a shuffle, then a 'mill 3' trigger, which is not the desired state nor the initial state.
I have a feeling this printing of Edge will hold some serious value.
The card sees a lot of Modern play after all.
That card will never again be Standard legal, nor made Modern legal.
It's the sound of someone getting fired.
Both of these lands are among the most played cards in their respective formats (Legacy for the Tomb, Vintage for the Orchard).
IIRC Orchard was responsible for Oath of Druids being banned in Legacy.
IMO snow mana was much more of a 6th colour than strict colourless will be. Where Savage Lands was the RGB triland, Highland Weald was the RGS triland.
Back on the filter: As I saw it, there were three most likely scenarios for the expeditions in this set.
1) 10 filterlands and 10 manlands
2) 10 manlands, the 5 rarest filterlands (the Eventide ones), and 5 enemy tangolands (under the unproven but plausible scenario that they exist and are in Oath)
3) The 5 WWK manlands, the 5 rarest filterlands, 5 lands that aren't a colour cycle (Reflecting Pool, Gemstone Mine, Grove of the Burnwillows, Horizon Canopy, and one other, maybe Wasteland if they were OK with printing something not in Modern), plus 5 enemy tangos.
If it's one of those three, it's now proven to be scenario 1.
Probably not good, but in a very low powered Cube it might happen enough to be memorable.
It's a matter of as-fan.
Take Mercadian Masques, a medium-power set that is not remembered overly fondly. Look at the commons there. Many of them were constructed staples or at least niche role players.
The uncommons had a few legitimately good cards and a few cards that never got there but looked playable to many people (Lumbering Satyr, Coastal Piracy, Intimidation)
Then the rares also had actual good cards (Misdirection, Port), cards with apparent but unrealised potential (Clear the Land, Monkey Cage), niche playables (Crumbling Sanctuary) and actual chaff (Corrupt Official).
But the as-fan of Constructed cards in a pack was as high as 5 or 6.
Contrast to BFZ where at a stretch it's 0.5-0.7 and that's including some dubious cards (Rolling Thunder isn't a Spike card in Constructed but it will excite some people into trying it, ditto Desolation Twin, I'm counting both of those cards).
On release day there is often a reasonable value prospect in opening a box, especially if there's a lot of cards in the set that are hyped early but that you are pretty certain are trash.
Even outside of that, in sets with a more reasonable as-fan of playable cards, at times when the EV of opening a pack isn't very high, it doesn't feel as bad to open one and say 'meh, rare sucks, ah well, at least got a Bile Blight'.
Why buy a pack when of the 14 cards (not counting the basic), 13.25-13.5 will be of no interest to anyone ever?
Khans is the only exception due to the common lifelands.
Hexproof plays terribly - it's just not fun to play against. Hexproof voltron decks feel like old-school land destruction overload decks (Stone Rain + Molten Rain + Plow Under from Onslaught-Mirrodin Standard; or Stone Rain + Pillage + Avalanche Riders from Urza/Masques standard) to play against - when the deck works you just feel helpless; when it doesn't you stomp it.
That keyword needs to be terminated with extreme prejudice.
Shroud, OTOH, is interactive because the creature doesn't share its protection with every aura or pump spell you play.
Storm should be taken out the back of Wizards R&D building, tied to a post and shot. Every card with that mechanic has either been totally useless (Astral Steel) or oppressively good.
Battle for Zendikar contains 7 dual lands.
There are two that actually can 'battle' because they can turn into a creature.
If someone didn't know the Worldwake manlands existed, they'd assume you were referring to the WB and UG lands.
BFZ was the most parasitic set since Kamigawa block, and they haven't had time to assess the mistakes there.
I don't believe Interdict ever had the ability to counter a mana ability.
The wording I'd give Interdict to restore its original functionality is:
"Counter target activated ability if its source was an artifact, creature, enchantment or land. Until end of turn, and while Interdict is on the stack, activated abilities of that permanent cannot be played. (Mana abilities cannot be targetted.)
Draw a card."
The game rules allow effects that prevent mana abilities being played. Phyrexian Revoker can shut down a Mox.
With this wording there is no time to play the mana ability before the drawback goes on the stack.
This is wrong.
The actions you describe fit the Magic Tournament Rules description of slow play. No ifs, no buts, no maybes, this is why the deck is not viable in tournaments. This is an official ruling from level 4 or 5 judges.
Additionally "Mill 30" can leave the game in several states other than the desired one or the starting state, for instance, if Emrakul is the 26th card, 'mill 30' describes an attempted loop which is interrupted after the 9th of 10 iterations, resulting in a shuffle, then a 'mill 3' trigger, which is not the desired state nor the initial state.