Unless WotC lied about the roughly four new sets in the making (their codenames escape me), Time Spiral is not at all the end of magic. Not even close.
Apt are those who understand. The answer isn't covered in sand.
You may notice that I said "Your statement is sort of ridiculous," implying that "yes, I can decode your stupid riddle, but the information therein is likely false"
The only way I could see Phage coming back would be something like this: with Akroma coming back, her opposite so to speak also returns. They both formed Karona, so perhaps that form has been split back into its components.
I wonder though...
Maybe his "source" so to speak is not a picture or a card. Maybe it is from the storyline?
I would suggest you decode your message if you don't want it locked and/or deleted. Your statement is sort of ridiculous, and the manner in which it is posted lends itself to flaming.
I guess it is real, but there is just something weird about the ad. When Kriol scanned the whole thing, it seemed that the Time Spiral ad was extremely blurry compared to the other parts of the magazine.
The ad posted in post 1 was quite crisp and clear, while the one shown in the picture in post #73 is very blurry.
Maybe it's just how it worked out.
OR
Maybe it is a clever photoshop.
In all likelihood, it is probably real, but this blurry bit is rather odd.
It could be real, but there are some huge punctuation problems in the finer print of the ad.
Magic the Gathering (R) Time Spiral (TM) returns to Dominaria , for some more old-school type carnage , and spotlights favorite cards from the past , cast in a new light.
The comma use here is absolutely horrendous. The first comma is just wrong. The second comma follows the trend of the first. The third comma makes the grammatician within me squirm.
I think it is possible that Akroma could be reprinted, and it is possible that this poster is not a fake. However, there are signs that do indicate it is a fake.
I have a question for the poster and/or anyone that has this magazine. Can you scan the ACTUAL page from the mag? The attachment is perfectly cropped and just too small to actually examine under a photoshop microscope. However, it is big enough to see the general idea.
The envelope has been badly pushed on creatures. It started with Spiritmonger, and has been going downhill since there with the creatures being crazily cost efficient. As this has all gotten more powerful, so too should our spells.
counterspell - I know what everyone will say, but it's a staple and I think it will come back.
disenchant - I know we have naturalize, but with terfi's grasp being used so much, why not bring it back?
plowsheer - they want to give white some bite again after it's pitiful appearence in 9th.
armageddon - same idea as plowsheer.
inspiration - blue needs instant draw and this can target as well.
brainstorm - they're already testing the market with it in iceage precons
fireblast - red doesn't have any really strong power right now, and with only incinerate and maybe char, it needs more power
ball lightning - it's good, in flavor, and a classic. nuff said.
elvish archers - its an elf with a good ability. why not?
urza's baubble - hey, with it's mirisha's counterpart being made, this is likely
mind twist and hymn to tourach - black has had the shaft for years on discarding spells, and if they'll reprint hippie, these can be as well. And the X for mindtwist is doable without dark ritural.
pygmy allasaurous - It's a dinosaur.
Counterspell: Possible, but unlikely. Maybe in Time Spiral as a rare to keep Limited sane, but not in a core set.
Disenchant: Perhaps, but with all the current removal, WotC won't want to waste the slot. Still, it is possible.
Swords: No way. Condemn was printed to fulfill this purpose. Plowshares ain't returning anytime soon.
Geddon: Not same idea as plowshares. It might return, but it seems too abuseable with all the current mana acceleration. Too powerful for the core set, but it could well be reprinted.
Inspiration: Who cares really?
Brainstorm: This is a possibility, but not as a common. It is not totally broken, and many decks could run it; it does not make any deck, and doesn't break the format.
Fireblast: Um no? WotC cares about T2 and Extended primarily. This would cause absolute havoc in extended. I never want to see goblins combined with this in a modern, non-vintage or Legacy meta.
Ball Lightning: They have Giant Solifuge AND Lightning Serpent. This is not coming back anytime soon.
Elvish Archers: Why not? It fits the current level of cheap creatures with powerful abilities. R&D might hesitate though because Gruul is already mad as it is. This with Jitte is sort of crazy anyway.
Bauble: No, actually it is less likely. With that many zero cost artifacts around, Storm combos go a little wacky, especially with the potential to draw an additional 2 cards with both of these. Not going to happen
Hymn and Twist: False. Hymn is broken with or without Ritual. Twist is just as bad, especially with all the T2 acceleration up and about.
As to the Dino...sure, why not?
I think most of the rares are good. I have 2 sleeper cards though. Etchings and Sek'Kuar, they don't look so hot now. Etchings is gonna end up like Gifts Ungiven.
...
edit: right Etchings will be considered crap for about 2 -4 months and then jump like mad..
No. Etchings will never reach the level of Gifts Ungiven. Gifts allows you to find exactly what cards you want, and with all the recursion tricks about, often just lets you search your library for two cards. Its an instant, so it can be played at EOT in a control deck. It is vulnerable only to countermagic, unlike the enchantment etchings.
It may be decent, in the correct deck, I will not rule that out. However, comparing it to Gifts is extremely silly.
For Extended, I quite like this card. In decks that cannot afford to go second, lest they lose their fundamental speed advantage, it has numerous applications. The minor loss of card advantage is irrelevant when compared with the benefit of undoing going second (essentially undoing).
This is not a bad card by any means. It is not for every deck, nor is it for every format, but it is quite decent at worst. Its Legendary status is completely irrelevant; Isamaru is a legend, and he sees tons of play.
Do not discount this card. If you want to sell it as a trash rare, please contact me and I will be happy to relieve you of them.
I apologize to any fans of Rakdos Augermage for forgetting him. All the same, i think that the big vote will be between
a) Finkel
b) Meddling Mage
c) Confidant
d) MAYBE Thief
The Invitational cards are renowned for their power. Imagine if wizards had us vote on our favorite one or two Invitational cards. What would people choose from this list of format impacting cards?
1. Sylvan Safekeeper: Olle Rade.
It never really impacted its format too much, but I believe it would have
huge application nowadays. With Standard full of spot removal, Sylvan
Safekeeper could provide a huge protective boost to a players
creatures, effectively stopping all the Mortify, Helix, Putrefy, etc.
threats.
2. Avalanche Riders: Darwin Kastle
This has Echo, so probably not, although maybe it could appear in Time
Spiral. Regardless, this would be a nice addition to Standard Rakdos
decks.
3. Rootwater Thief: Mike Long
This would be absolutely frightening in Standard Simic decks, Skies
decks, and would even help Extended Fish builds out. This would really
be a good card for the format.
4. Meddling Mage: Chris Pikula
I do not even want to think about this in standard. Azorius decks would
go nuts if this guy came around. He would be a strong addition to
standard, although Extended players would hate to see his return even
after Planeshift rotates out.
5. Shadowmage Infiltrator: Jon Finkel
No existing Standard deck would be able to truly abuse this, but I am
sure that Finkel's appearance would prompt a new deck archetype and
a new era of U/B power in T2. Evasion, card drawing, and absolute
wackiness with equipment, Finkel would be a powerhouse.
6. Voidmage Prodigy: Kai Budde
This would probably have minimal standard impact, but it is a decent
card at worse, and he does have his fans. I personally would not like
Kai reprinted.
7. Solemn Simulacrum: Jens Thoren
This vote was already done with Oblivion Stone, but the real question
is how does Jens rate with his other friends? Obviously this would be a
truly powerful addition to T2 for many reasons, but is he better than
other options.
8. Dark Confidant: Bob Maher
The investment vote. If standard players wanted Bob to stick around
for another Standard tour, then this would be the vote for them.
Alright guys so what do you think? This would be quite a tough vote.
You may notice that I said "Your statement is sort of ridiculous," implying that "yes, I can decode your stupid riddle, but the information therein is likely false"
The only way I could see Phage coming back would be something like this: with Akroma coming back, her opposite so to speak also returns. They both formed Karona, so perhaps that form has been split back into its components.
I wonder though...
Maybe his "source" so to speak is not a picture or a card. Maybe it is from the storyline?
Akroma seems to be rolling around, and there is some pretty good proof for that.
What's your source?
The ad posted in post 1 was quite crisp and clear, while the one shown in the picture in post #73 is very blurry.
Maybe it's just how it worked out.
OR
Maybe it is a clever photoshop.
In all likelihood, it is probably real, but this blurry bit is rather odd.
DL
The comma use here is absolutely horrendous. The first comma is just wrong. The second comma follows the trend of the first. The third comma makes the grammatician within me squirm.
I think it is possible that Akroma could be reprinted, and it is possible that this poster is not a fake. However, there are signs that do indicate it is a fake.
I have a question for the poster and/or anyone that has this magazine. Can you scan the ACTUAL page from the mag? The attachment is perfectly cropped and just too small to actually examine under a photoshop microscope. However, it is big enough to see the general idea.
Actual scan please?
-DL
The envelope has been badly pushed on creatures. It started with Spiritmonger, and has been going downhill since there with the creatures being crazily cost efficient. As this has all gotten more powerful, so too should our spells.
Counterspell: Possible, but unlikely. Maybe in Time Spiral as a rare to keep Limited sane, but not in a core set.
Disenchant: Perhaps, but with all the current removal, WotC won't want to waste the slot. Still, it is possible.
Swords: No way. Condemn was printed to fulfill this purpose. Plowshares ain't returning anytime soon.
Geddon: Not same idea as plowshares. It might return, but it seems too abuseable with all the current mana acceleration. Too powerful for the core set, but it could well be reprinted.
Inspiration: Who cares really?
Brainstorm: This is a possibility, but not as a common. It is not totally broken, and many decks could run it; it does not make any deck, and doesn't break the format.
Fireblast: Um no? WotC cares about T2 and Extended primarily. This would cause absolute havoc in extended. I never want to see goblins combined with this in a modern, non-vintage or Legacy meta.
Ball Lightning: They have Giant Solifuge AND Lightning Serpent. This is not coming back anytime soon.
Elvish Archers: Why not? It fits the current level of cheap creatures with powerful abilities. R&D might hesitate though because Gruul is already mad as it is. This with Jitte is sort of crazy anyway.
Bauble: No, actually it is less likely. With that many zero cost artifacts around, Storm combos go a little wacky, especially with the potential to draw an additional 2 cards with both of these. Not going to happen
Hymn and Twist: False. Hymn is broken with or without Ritual. Twist is just as bad, especially with all the T2 acceleration up and about.
As to the Dino...sure, why not?
-DL
I voted:
Platinum Angel
Sketch A
Text B
Logo X
No. Etchings will never reach the level of Gifts Ungiven. Gifts allows you to find exactly what cards you want, and with all the recursion tricks about, often just lets you search your library for two cards. Its an instant, so it can be played at EOT in a control deck. It is vulnerable only to countermagic, unlike the enchantment etchings.
It may be decent, in the correct deck, I will not rule that out. However, comparing it to Gifts is extremely silly.
-DL
This is not a bad card by any means. It is not for every deck, nor is it for every format, but it is quite decent at worst. Its Legendary status is completely irrelevant; Isamaru is a legend, and he sees tons of play.
Do not discount this card. If you want to sell it as a trash rare, please contact me and I will be happy to relieve you of them.
-DL
a) Finkel
b) Meddling Mage
c) Confidant
d) MAYBE Thief
-DL
1. Sylvan Safekeeper: Olle Rade.
It never really impacted its format too much, but I believe it would have
huge application nowadays. With Standard full of spot removal, Sylvan
Safekeeper could provide a huge protective boost to a players
creatures, effectively stopping all the Mortify, Helix, Putrefy, etc.
threats.
2. Avalanche Riders: Darwin Kastle
This has Echo, so probably not, although maybe it could appear in Time
Spiral. Regardless, this would be a nice addition to Standard Rakdos
decks.
3. Rootwater Thief: Mike Long
This would be absolutely frightening in Standard Simic decks, Skies
decks, and would even help Extended Fish builds out. This would really
be a good card for the format.
4. Meddling Mage: Chris Pikula
I do not even want to think about this in standard. Azorius decks would
go nuts if this guy came around. He would be a strong addition to
standard, although Extended players would hate to see his return even
after Planeshift rotates out.
5. Shadowmage Infiltrator: Jon Finkel
No existing Standard deck would be able to truly abuse this, but I am
sure that Finkel's appearance would prompt a new deck archetype and
a new era of U/B power in T2. Evasion, card drawing, and absolute
wackiness with equipment, Finkel would be a powerhouse.
6. Voidmage Prodigy: Kai Budde
This would probably have minimal standard impact, but it is a decent
card at worse, and he does have his fans. I personally would not like
Kai reprinted.
7. Solemn Simulacrum: Jens Thoren
This vote was already done with Oblivion Stone, but the real question
is how does Jens rate with his other friends? Obviously this would be a
truly powerful addition to T2 for many reasons, but is he better than
other options.
8. Dark Confidant: Bob Maher
The investment vote. If standard players wanted Bob to stick around
for another Standard tour, then this would be the vote for them.
Alright guys so what do you think? This would be quite a tough vote.
-DL
-DL