I'm pretty sure I have about 300+ (maybe 500+) cards in there. I don't have that much spare time on my hands. : P
Looking back at the cards though it's startling to see the effect of the change in frame so clearly. Pre-Eight Edition cards pretty much look like they're from an entirely different card game altogether. And, boy, was that old gold frame ugly.
I agree with the dissatisfaction with the God cards as they're revealed. I think a big problem with the design is that, once you've put the "Bestow" text on them there's not a lot of room for anything else. Maybe this will change in the second and third blocks.
Its an interesting thing. On the one hand, I think I like the decision to cost them low instead of making them like these enormous 6CC bodies. Its not what was expected. And honestly, a 5/5 Indestructible for 4 is pretty great, even if the way it switches off means it won't see much competitive play.
But the passive and active boosts so far are underwhelming.
I think it would have been a mistake to try to replicate the feel of the Eldrazi for a couple of main reasons:
1. It would miscapture the nature of the Greek gods - they were not some harbingers of doom that fucked shit up as soon as they appeared, but rather omnipresent (and only occasionally intervening) beings. Them being enchantment creatures actually captures that flavour quite well.
2. It would also unbalance the focus of the theme. As MaRo correctly points out in today's article, Greek mythology isn't solely about gods, but about gods, heroes and monsters collectively. Subsequently the Gods shouldn't get all the attention in the set.
On a different note, is this the first development team that includes a woman?
I think it would have been a mistake to try to replicate the feel of the Eldrazi for a couple of main reasons:
1. It would miscapture the nature of the Greek gods - they were not some harbingers of doom that fucked shit up as soon as they appeared, but rather omnipresent (and only occasionally intervening) beings. Them being enchantment creatures actually captures that flavour quite well.
2. It would also unbalance the emphasis of the theme. As MaRo correctly points out in today's article, Greek mythology isn't solely about gods, but about gods, heroes and monsters.
The gods so far don't look constructed-viable, but I'd mucha rather have quirky mythics than expensive format staples at that rarity.
The cards so far look interesting, even if most mechanics look a bit too geared towards limited play (other than the scry mechanic, I guess). I'm finally going to be able to use my pair of Thoughseizes in standard now, since I barely used them back when Lorwyn block was standard-legal.
The Gods have been crazy-awesome EDH bait so far. I don't understand the hate. Cool card design, Thassa is good for control mirrors, the white god makes a fuckload of tokens and is a silly commander.
Keening Apparition has the potential to get so freakin' good after this block tho. I think a Brave the Elements deck will do well post-rotation, if only to punish U/W Jace decks for being 2slow.
We need more 1-drops. The entire set can't be midrangey creatures, can it?
Also I cannot fucking wait to draft this. Boards are going to be clogged, confusing, and AWESOME.
3 and 5 are sweetspots for toughness. 3 dodges shock/magma jet, 5 dodges Mizzium Mortars which will be a huge card post-rotation. This means that Amex and Cyanide probably won't make waves, but Boros Reckoner remains awesome. 5 toughness creatures.... Haven't a clue.
Cerberus is damn good -- especially now that we have a removal-dodging 4-drop in the footstomp cyclops -- but we still need a competent 4-drop that serves as a sac outlet. I wouldn't mind him as the top end of an aristocrats deck at all, but I don't see Nimbus Mazes and Shocks supporting a three color deck very well.
Also I cannot fucking wait to draft this. Boards are going to be clogged, confusing, and AWESOME.
3 and 5 are sweetspots for toughness. 3 dodges shock/magma jet, 5 dodges Mizzium Mortars which will be a huge card post-rotation. This means that Amex and Cyanide probably won't make waves, but Boros Reckoner remains awesome. 5 toughness creatures.... Haven't a clue.
Cerberus is damn good -- especially now that we have a removal-dodging 4-drop in the footstomp cyclops -- but we still need a competent 4-drop that serves as a sac outlet. I wouldn't mind him as the top end of an aristocrats deck at all, but I don't see Nimbus Mazes and Shocks supporting a three color deck very well.
This deck is a little closer to a 'Big Jund' archtype than basic Jund midrange. Your creatures aren't all 2-for-1s -- quite a few do more than that, but we'll get there soon -- they exist to have evasion, counter the best removal in the format, and generally hit hard. Once this deck gets going, it is incredibly hard to stop. Even Supreme Verdict kind of has to hit early to make a real impact, as Cerberus doesn't give a shit about it and Varolz straight up dodges it.
sylvan caryatid -- it's a farseek that dies to Supreme Verdict. Do I like it? Naw. Is it necessary? Yes. Pollis Crusher coming out on turn 3 means it could even get to swing before you're 2-for-1ed by wraths!
scavenging ooze -- miracle-gro bear. Helps even out aggro matchups where Cerberus might backfire on us -- exile all their dead shit, get some extra life, drop Cerberus, win.
Cerberus -- this is a fucking titan. 6/6 nearly unblockable creature with a death trigger. Supreme Verdict won't even get them advantage. Azorius charm screws you a bit, but, well, you can't win 'em all.
Varolz -- has great synergy -and- reverse synergy with Cerb. At the same time! Still, exiling lifebane zombies for +1/+1 counters is sweet, as is using the sac ability on Cerb in response to something like Detention Sphere. Can enable some fast wins against control, dodges supreme verdict, is generally pretty awesome.
Lifebane Zombie -- Your 2-for-1s start at 3 now. Enjoy. Aside from being insane, it's a hard to block three power creature that does crazy shit with its best buddy Varolz. Enjoy.
Polis Crusher -- This is not Huntmaster. It is, however, a 4 drop with evasion that eventually turns into a Trygon Predator. It even spits in the face of Chained tt Rocks and D. Sphere! Our 4-drop not being a 2-for-1 shows the difference between this deck and old jund, however -- it beats much harder, dodges different removal, and doesn't get a crushing amount of advantage against aggro matchups anymore.
Thoughtseize -- Costs life. Is duress. Is good. Play.
Magma Jet -- Best removal we have access to.
Mizzium Mortars -- Second best removal. Will occasionally overload into a wrath, although our manabase doesn't exactly support that.
Rakdos' Return -- 1: wait for bad control players to tap out against you 2: cast this 3: win. This and Cerberus are our "x-for-1s". We don't nickle and dime our card advantage anymore -- we get a whole fuckload of it at once while beating our opponent's face in.
Vraska -- For mirrors. Planeswalkers are also notoriously good against control. This is not one of those planeswalkers.
SIDEBOARD CHOICES:
1 Shock -- aggro. Should probably have more of these.
3 Slaughter Games -- Is your only win condition Aetherling? Sucks, man.
4 Golgari Charm -- An enchantment block. C'mon, dude. Also helps against aggro decks full of X/1s.
1 Vraska -- Mirror.
2 Underworld Connections -- more incremental advantage. Control is surprisingly bad at dealing with these, and if you have too many threats for them to counter, the game kind of ends.
2 Rakdos' Return -- for control
2 Abrupt D. -- alt removal
So I'm looking at Scrolls and Hearthstone and they look very fun but it got me thinking, why is Magic The Gathering Online so archaic? I downloaded it but the ui is uninviting and complicated. It's just old. Why don't they update it?
So I'm looking at Scrolls and Hearthstone and they look very fun but it got me thinking, why is Magic The Gathering Online so archaic? I downloaded it but the ui is uninviting and complicated. It's just old. Why don't they update it?
Because the wizards digital team is unfathomably incompetent and they refuse to hire someone better suited to do it for them.
It's sad really, Magic Online could be far *far* bigger then the paper game, could take over their business really, if it wasn't such a festering shit pile.
Because the wizards digital team is unfathomably incompetent and they refuse to hire someone better suited to do it for them.
It's sad really, Magic Online could be far *far* bigger then the paper game, could take over their business really, if it wasn't such a festering shit pile.
Because the wizards digital team is unfathomably incompetent and they refuse to hire someone better suited to do it for them.
It's sad really, Magic Online could be far *far* bigger then the paper game, could take over their business really, if it wasn't such a festering shit pile.
The main problem is that the people spending the most money on MTGO want it to stay the way it is because its functional. They HATE the beta because while it's prettier, it's harder to use.
Because the wizards digital team is unfathomably incompetent and they refuse to hire someone better suited to do it for them.
It's sad really, Magic Online could be far *far* bigger then the paper game, could take over their business really, if it wasn't such a festering shit pile.
So Theros is looking interesting. The Gods all look like EDH fun, Thassa maybe will see constructed (Merfolk as a two of maybe, could help set your draws late game).
The main thing I don't like is the new card frame. It just looks goofy and doesn't seem intuitive as to what it signifies. The miracle border was noticeably different to look out for when drawing, Eldrazi were colorless, so made since. This is looking at the state of a card, but you would still have to mark what state it is probably, creature or enchantment, so the border just reminds you to look at your cards? Just seems dumb to me.
So I'm looking at Scrolls and Hearthstone and they look very fun but it got me thinking, why is Magic The Gathering Online so archaic? I downloaded it but the ui is uninviting and complicated. It's just old. Why don't they update it?
I just realized that Ember Swallower dodges Mizzium Mortars and Warleader's Helix like a champ.
Would be hilarious if that otherwise-unassuming card ended up seeing constructed play due to its favorable stats. The monstrosity ability could be easier to pull off with Nykthos in a mono-red 'big red' list, with him and chandra as closers. Another way to tell control to fuck off.
Not as more than a one or two of, mind you, but it's definitely something to consider.
Deck ideas:
Mono red splash black. Early beats with Chandra's Phoenix, Ash Zealot, Ember Swallower, Reckoner. Chandra as card advantage w/ Magma Jet so I don't fuck myself over. Nykthos as a 2-of to ramp into Rakdos' Return. The splash is for Return, maybe a Cerberus, and Thoughtseize.
Some sort of Brave the Elements list with Precinct Captain. Needs a 1-drop.
RW Midrange using Boros Reckoner and Nykthos to ramp into Angel of Serenity, Aurelia's Fury.
My second biggest gripe with the online client is this:
I absolutely adore the art of MtG. It should be much bigger. I think the whole card ui should be changed (bigger art, card text should be hidden unless you mouse over it) But I doubt that would ever happen because tradition.
Same here. I'm not that disappointed because there are so many more gods than I expected, but I really thought they would be a lot more huge in terms of power.
My second biggest gripe with the online client is this:
I absolutely adore the art of MtG. It should be much bigger. I think the whole card ui should be changed (bigger art, card text should be hidden unless you mouse over it) But I doubt that would ever happen because tradition.
He had this neat combo that once he built up to it with all of his lands, he would play Epic Experiment:
And since he had over a dozen lands he was able to play a bunch of stuff... and get more of the same card to play it again... it was pretty nuts and quite an "epic" win for him.
Thankfully it was only one win out of the three that we played.
I bought a deck builder box so my wife could play and the Avacyn booster had two mythic rares in it: one foil, one regular. Neither of them are valuable but I take it its not exactly common to get two mythics in a pack?
I bought a deck builder box so my wife could play and the Avacyn booster had two mythic rares in it: one foil, one regular. Neither of them are valuable but I take it its not exactly common to get two mythics in a pack?
Legendary Enchantment Creature - God Mythic Rare
Indestructible
As long as your devotion to red is less than five, Purphoros isn't a creature.
Whenever another creature enters the battlefield under your control, Purphoros deals 2 damage to each opponent.
2{R}: Creatures you control get +1/+0 until end of turn.
Legendary Enchantment Creature - God Mythic Rare
Indestructible
As long as your devotion to red is less than five, Purphoros isn't a creature.
Whenever another creature enters the battlefield under your control, Purphoros deals 2 damage to each opponent.
2{R}: Creatures you control get +1/+0 until end of turn.
Purphoros might be playable in an empty the warrens storm variant. All the good token makers are leaving standard though, so unless some good things come in to replace lingering souls, gather the townsfolk and increasing devotion then I don't see him being played overly much in standard.
purphorus is playable in standard with red aggro, shock to the face and make a guy, shock again. Its also playable in modern. This card is amazing! holy shit. Im expecting 30 dollar card.
What the hell? All this needs to be decent is the removal of the "green" qualifier. As it is this is absolutely useless in...actually, basically all formats. I can't even justify this as anything more then sideboard material in limited.
What the hell? All this needs to be decent is the removal of the "green" qualifier. As it is this is absolutely useless in...actually, basically all formats. I can't even justify this as anything more then sideboard material in limited.
What the hell? All this needs to be decent is the removal of the "green" qualifier. As it is this is absolutely useless in...actually, basically all formats. I can't even justify this as anything more then sideboard material in limited.
They've said fight is their solution to green's lack of access to creature removal, which makes total sense. But green still doesn't get a lot of it, which also makes sense, but I wish what little fight removal there was was actually something I might want to maindeck
At first I read it as "+2/+2. Two creatures fight" and I was thinking it was awesome.
Then, I spotted the first mention of "green creature", and though "Okay, it's still quite nice in a green-based deck".
...Finally, I realized both creatures have to be green. What?! Seriously, the card's so bad you can't even play it for its pump effect if your opponents have no green creatures! What were they thinking when they let this card make it to print?
At first I read it as "+2/+2. Two creatures fight" and I was thinking it was awesome.
Then, I spotted the first mention of "green creature", and though "Okay, it's still quite nice in a green-based deck".
...Finally, I realized both creatures have to be green. What?! Seriously, the card's so bad you can't even play it for its pump effect if your opponents have no green creatures! What were they thinking when they let this card make it to print?
Hello MagicGaf I dont post very often more of a lurker but I thought I would share my quite successful standard deck I have been playing at my LGS. Inspired by Brad Nelsons Aristocrats Act ll (a deck that I played for a bit before becoming annoyed with its flaws) I had heard one of the starcity games casters explain aristocrats as a great 10 card hand, drop all your dudes act win fail to get the right cards or get picked apart by removal and lose cause that deck couldnt top deck to save its life. So on seeing Dark prophecy spoiled in core set I saw the solution to this problem.
Aristocrats the Final Act
4 Doomed Traveler
4 Falkenrath Aristocrat
4 Blood Artist
4 Cartel Aristocrat
3 Dark Prophecy
2 Barrage of Expendables
4 Mark of Mutiny
2 Archangel of Thune
2 Vizkopa Guildmage
2 Undying Evil
2 Nearheath Pilgrim
4 Lingering Souls
4 Blood Crypt
4 Dragonskull Summit
4 Godless Shrine
4 Isolated Chapel
4 Orzhov Guildgate
4 Swamp
Sideboard
2 Tragic Slip
3 Orzhov Charm
3 Sin Collecter
2 War Priest of Thune
2 Wear/Tear
2 Sorin Lord of Innistrad
1 Undying Evil
A little about every card and why its in the deck
Doomed Traveler- This is your best turn 1 protecting Cartel Aristocrat from removal, 2 morbid triggers for blood artist, a human to sac to Falkenrath Aristocrat, 2 draws off Dark prophecy for one mana with a sac outlet. Never in standard have I been so happy to draw this 1/1 at any stage in the game.
Falkenrath Aristocrat- This is the heavy lifter it comes in sideways and delivers the punches and will single handedly win you games, many decks cant even interact with it with a stock of humans to sac it also can grow quite large.
Blood Artist- nickel and dime this card is great for that all those chump blocks. turn into value paired with dark prophecy can you say value. Lingering souls 5 mana draw 4 deal 4, doomed traveler one mana draw 2 deal 2, if this card sits on the board the game is pretty much over.
Cartel Aristocrat- The main sac outlet of the deck due to its resilience to removal used very aggressively to force through damage the more damage you get through the less blood artist triggers you need later.
Dark prophecy- just adds value to everything you deck wants to be doing and keeps fueling your hand I wish I had more to say about it but its just amazing.
Barrage of expendables- against decks with mana dorks, huntsmaster of the fells, lots of removal it was nice to have another sac outlet that sat in the enchantment slot and dealt with creatures at times more useful than just sacrificing for 4 pro colors on my cartel in 1 turn.
Mark of mutiny- Thragtusk slayer pretty much great against any midrange deck still a kill spell with a sac outlet against agro, really mopey against control an upside to mark is it kills undying in 1 go and doesnt let a Restoration Angel block a Restoration Angel. You will find yourself siding them out a lot but against some decks you will be dying to draw them. Not really sure if 4 is where I want to be but I cant complain considering the amount of Thragtusks desecration demons thundermaws I have sacrificed with it.
Archangel of Thune- Not sure where I stand on this card its synergy with blood artist is there but sometimes only have 1 or 2 other creatures on the board when I cast it and it seems lack luster other times I have 2 cartels a blood artist and a bunch of souls and its crazy good.
Vizkopa Guildmage- yes this card should be unplayable in standard but when you activate its When you gain life You opponent loses that much life 2 times and sacrifice your board for the win with blood artist its really sick. I have even had games where it just lifelinks my Falkenrath every turn or does both abilities and forces through the damage riding the indestructible vampire. Did I mention its a Human.
Nearheath Pilgrim- Due to how much life can be a resource with dark prophecy I needed something to gain it back but wasnt too much of a mana sink also with a neat syngery with Vizkopa Guildmage needing less mana to use the 2nd ability for value on a falkenrath . I tested Tithe drinker in this slot not only was it wasting to much mana it could rarely attack due to its 1 toughness whereas Nearheath lets something else do the work and can swing in for free when the coast is clear. Did I mention its a human.
Lingering Souls pretty much used as chump blocks sacrifices to protect other cards blood artist triggers and dark prophecy fodder just a solid draw most of the time.
Undying Evil- this deals with all the pesky removal for the aristocrats mutilate supreme tragic slip ect, even Detention sphere as you can undying evil it then sacrifice it in response to the targeting. I have literally cast undying evil on every creature in my deck at least once even doomed traveler to get 4 blood artist triggers or a cartel to make it a faster clock.
Some sort of mana base- everything makes black because dark prophecy needs to be cast on turn 3 and should never interrupt your falkenrath turn if you get both.
Sideboard
Tragic slip- go to removal against agro
Orzhoz charm- multi tool protects aristocrats with bounce kills agro creatures or mid-range threats like Olivia Volderan can also return doomed traveler for 2 blood artist triggers or surprise protect a lone falkenrath on the board.
Sin Collecter- mostly used against control or removal heavy decks where you also bring in undying evil and can control their hand quite nicely. Also a human
War priest of Thune- enchant hate good with undying evil also a human.
Wear/Tear- versatile deals with witch bane orb detention sphere keyrunes ect.
2 Sorin Lord of Innistrad- This is mainly to counter Jace Architect of Thought because I find I have to commit way too many cards on board to deal damage and overextend into wraths. Also it can gain some life for dark prophecy and things to sacrifice.
1 Undying evil- sometimes I just want more of this card nice to have it.
This Deck has 2 Draws the Aristocrats beat down draw where you just get them with Cartel and Falkenrath. Or the other draw in which you get a bunch of chump blockers dark prophecy blood artist and slowly count to 20 rapidly if you play more than 1. As the amount of choices you can make it takes a lot of practice to get max value out of the deck but it is definitely worth it.
Side note- Rest in peace is very good against this deck and those war priests need to come in.
Hopefully my little ( ok maybe not little) deck tech wasnt boring or poorly written and might even convince someone to play this at one of the few remaining FNMS before it rotates I myself had a lot of fun playing it in the last 5 FNMs coming first 3 times and 3rd 2 times thanks for reading this is you did.
yea Dark Prophecy is amazing, The angel I'm not very sure on but its sort of nice to have a couple good 5 drops to look forward to also if you thought a 2/2 cartel was annoying try fighting like a 5/5 one.
