-
Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.
Magic: the GAFering |OT2|
- Thread starter The Technomancer
- Start date
I would totally go if it was Core Set, but it's going to be Theros and I just hate this format too much to travel to it. Plus, visiting my brother won't be a factor due to summer break.
Also, has anyone ever done a VIP thing for a GP? I was pre-reg for Philly, saw the option, and went into the tank
Looks like it is time for me to cash out my fetches, just keeping my decked playset, what is in my EDH and cube and getting rid of the rest. SCG is at $70 buy price for Blue and $40 for the others. Will have to switch my Misty's back and forth, but WotC has to be getting ready to reprint these.
Was also thinking of going to one Legacy deck, just not sure which one to keep. Prices aren't as crazy for Legacy as modern, but really don't want to leave so much money on the table.
Was also thinking of going to one Legacy deck, just not sure which one to keep. Prices aren't as crazy for Legacy as modern, but really don't want to leave so much money on the table.
Modern is getting more and more popular, but it's also that SCG typically goes above and beyond other TO's for their GP's. It wont get near the cap, but it'll still be an insane number of people.
"God's Beard!"
Member
Here's the list for the WUBR control build I'm working on.
Seems just as consistent as my esper build from testing, but I haven't decided if losing the two mutavaults and basics is worth adding the extra color. The deck is really good at protecting its planeswalkers, and is pretty solid in control mirrors too. It also runs slightly less instant-speed removal, which is worth noting.
The 1 Izzet charm is kind of a filler card that I use as an alternate Syncopate that also gets me out of the occasional rough opening hand. I've considered swapping it out for a Quicken or a Wear // Tear to stop detention sphere(which would also open a slot in the SB for Doom Blade so I can beat haste creatures), but I'm not sure.
Seems just as consistent as my esper build from testing, but I haven't decided if losing the two mutavaults and basics is worth adding the extra color. The deck is really good at protecting its planeswalkers, and is pretty solid in control mirrors too. It also runs slightly less instant-speed removal, which is worth noting.
The 1 Izzet charm is kind of a filler card that I use as an alternate Syncopate that also gets me out of the occasional rough opening hand. I've considered swapping it out for a Quicken or a Wear // Tear to stop detention sphere(which would also open a slot in the SB for Doom Blade so I can beat haste creatures), but I'm not sure.
More info on Clash Packs http://www.wizards.com/Magic/Magazine/Article.aspx?x=mtg/daily/arcana/1443
So it will alternate with Event decks on a set by set basis. I guess they are tired of putting out multiple Red Deck Wins variants every year
So it will alternate with Event decks on a set by set basis. I guess they are tired of putting out multiple Red Deck Wins variants every year
divisionbyzorro
Member
That feeling when your draft goes totally off the rails and you still manage to win two of the matches. It turns out that even when you ended up finding only one mediocre combat trick, UW is still capable of winning games of Magic in Theros. I'm not the kind of guy who normally likes to lean on Ordeals to win games, but they are effective at taking shitty decks and giving them free wins. *shrug*
There was one sweet game. Against a big green deck, I brought in Ashiok and some mana fixing. I won the match by animating my opponent's Staunch-Hearted Warrior via my Ashiok, putting a Hopeful Eidolon on it, and then repeatedly casting Ephara's Enlightenment on it. So that was fun.
There was one sweet game. Against a big green deck, I brought in Ashiok and some mana fixing. I won the match by animating my opponent's Staunch-Hearted Warrior via my Ashiok, putting a Hopeful Eidolon on it, and then repeatedly casting Ephara's Enlightenment on it. So that was fun.
"God's Beard!"
Member
Poor baby, draft went off the rails and you only got Ashiok and ordeals lol
http://www.channelfireball.com/articles/taking-modern-by-storm/
Dat palpable salt.
Though I have no idea what they actually ban from the deck at this point. Past in Flames seems like the only card they can ban that isn't a total embarrassment
Dat palpable salt.
Though I have no idea what they actually ban from the deck at this point. Past in Flames seems like the only card they can ban that isn't a total embarrassment
Fragamemnon
Member
So very much this, and the lack of card selection makes getting to sideboard hate in time very difficult. Keep in mind that that hate is extremely narrow, unlike the gravehate (where they are good options, but maindeckable and efficient answers out of the sideboard) and they deck is designed with extreme redundant parts to make it resilient from discard.
Really, Modern still violates the Knight of the Reliquary maxim, which states that Knight of the Reliquary should be a pretty good card to run in a format with fetchlands. If this isn't the case, ban more cards until it is. That is a pithy statement but it should be at least true in both Legacy and Modern.
It's not, and that sucks. Living End is obnoxious for a lot of the same reasons as Storm.
Now compare those two combo decks to Twin and Scapeshift. Both of those decks have clear weaknesses that can be attacked with normal, versatile cards and while they do combo kill you, you can and should either interact with them or race in G1 and have the option to bring in hate in G2/G3. Decks shouldn't get free wins because they can ignore the way the rest of the format works.
edit: Don't even get me started about Legacy. That format is nearly broke due to ban list neglect.
Twin lists generally can play tempo or threats like Tarmo to draw hate (that's a pretty cool deck BTW) in addition to oops I win T4. I say generally because some lists are all-in with SSG and stuff, but those are a rare sight. Storm can't play tempo and has basically zero disruption, but can oops I win T3 and is resilient because it's a spell combo. I'm okay with that.
Know what just fixes everything?
Ban the Fetchlands. Makes decks play more realistic mana bases, saves lots of time due to less shuffling, and makes the format more affordable. It hurts all the combo decks (who use them to play fewer lands/thin the deck). And it solves WOTC issue of when/how to reprint them buy just making it so they don't have to.
Ban the Fetchlands. Makes decks play more realistic mana bases, saves lots of time due to less shuffling, and makes the format more affordable. It hurts all the combo decks (who use them to play fewer lands/thin the deck). And it solves WOTC issue of when/how to reprint them buy just making it so they don't have to.
Fragamemnon
Member
Fetchlands are to Modern as Brainstorm is to Legacy. Corrosive and overpowered, distorting the true power of a lot of cards, but so loved by the player base there would be a riot if they were banned. Deathrite Shaman will not be the last card to be kicked out of Modern due to fetchlands, for sure.
I don't think combo is really hurt by fetch lands though and the format still needs to address those decks with 30% T3 kills regardless.
The thing is though that the same cards that are good vs. Twin are generally good vs. Tarmogoyf and good versus the format.
Ban the fetchlands in Legacy as well and Brainstorm becomes less of a problem
platypotamus
Member
[QUOTE="God's Beard!";103241717]Poor baby, draft went off the rails and you only got Ashiok and ordeals lol[/QUOTE]
Yeah really!
Yeah really!
"God's Beard!"
Member
Honestly the reason he probably lost the third game was because he wasn't splashing to mainboard Ashiok lol
I've gotten Ashiok three times in drafts, and twice it forced me into three colors, but I won each draft pretty convincingly. He's just too hard to race in limited if you play him turn 3.
platypotamus
Member
[QUOTE="God's Beard!";103267331]Honestly the reason he probably lost the third game was because he wasn't splashing to mainboard Ashiok lol
I've gotten Ashiok three times in drafts, and twice it forced me into three colors, but I won each draft pretty convincingly. He's just too hard to race in limited if you play him turn 3.[/QUOTE]
I've never gotten him. I've had shit luck with planeswalkers this block. I only ever got Elspeth, and then preceded to never have her in my hand a single time the whole event (except for 1 time in a hand I had to mulligan due to no land).
In my current sealed tourney at work I just beat someone who had both Elspeth and Kiora though, so that was nice.
I've gotten Ashiok three times in drafts, and twice it forced me into three colors, but I won each draft pretty convincingly. He's just too hard to race in limited if you play him turn 3.[/QUOTE]
I've never gotten him. I've had shit luck with planeswalkers this block. I only ever got Elspeth, and then preceded to never have her in my hand a single time the whole event (except for 1 time in a hand I had to mulligan due to no land).
In my current sealed tourney at work I just beat someone who had both Elspeth and Kiora though, so that was nice.
I pulled out Brimaz the other day. Played against R/G. Game one I'm on the draw and had Brimaz and God's Willing in hand, but only three lands in play with no lands in hand, so I figured there's no four mana burn spell that can take him out and ran him out. Turns out he has the rare burn spell with scry 2. Groan. In the second game he managed to topdeck his third mountain to kill my 5/5 Wingsteed Rider the turn I could make it 6/6. Brimaz is fairly nutsy though, whining aside.
It's Necropotence vs Dark Ritual all over again. The wrong cards get the ax every time.
Past in Flames v Seething Song and DRS v BBE have been two big ones.
It's a pattern of repeated behavior. No question. I wonder why they do this to us.
Because they're scared of losing players/scales and are afraid to rip the band-aid off. It's dumb.
Fragamemnon
Member
Please keep in mind this is from the same braintrust that didn't think blue decks had enough aggro with Delver of Secrets, so they went and printed True Name Nemesis to make sure that they would be able to outrace anything remotely midrange to control that is not playing sweepers with countermagic backup.
I mean FFS I had a discuss with a D&T player on whether Holy Light or Celestial Flare was a better sideboard option. The minute we start talking about commons from The Dark as being viable SB options , format = fucked.
I mean FFS I had a discuss with a D&T player on whether Holy Light or Celestial Flare was a better sideboard option. The minute we start talking about commons from The Dark as being viable SB options , format = fucked.
The player base has never been bigger, the game will survive if they clean up a couple of things slowly. But every time they have the chance they fail to do so. It's super frustrating.
They don't design for Legacy. They make some cards every year to toss them a bone, but they don't actually playtest for it
The person who had final say on TNN no longer works there. Read into that what you will.
I feel like that person knew exACTly what he was doing when he made that card.
Driving people away from Legacy?
There's no way that card gets out the door without someone understanding how it affects Legacy. I think they wanted to shake it up. And I don't think it's driving people away, is it? I think it's just changing the meta. For the worse, probably, but that's what it has done.
It's a card that actively makes the format less appealing to people by doing even more to push creature decks out.
Fragamemnon
Member
Wizards: We know the people are tired of Delver, Stoneforge, Daze, Spell Pierce, Brainstor and Force of Will in every other deck. We should do something about that. But instead, print TNN.
Everyone else: Wait that doesn't seem like a good idea.
The Delver of Secrets printing into TNN is right up there with Tolarian Academy into Memory Jar and Stoneforge Mystic into Batterskull.
edit: Don't say they don't print eternal cards , either. That's not true, even in standard sets.
They're dialing back the Legacy/Vintage cards in Standard now that Modern's a thing. Expect stuff more in line with Brimaz and Courser.
crimsonspider89
Banned
Until they print an equalizer, Legacy playrate will fall. People don't enjoy facing Delver/lose game 1 combo decks which are what most people are playing along with the random SFM decks.
Look back when Delver was running rampant.
Look back when Delver was running rampant.
Fragamemnon
Member
Swan Song, Young Pyromancer, Spirit of the Labyrinth. Swan Song one of the best eternal format counterspells printed since Spell Pierce. The latter two are very good role players in a couple of decks in Vintage that needed some help (Gush Control/Tempo and white based null rod hatebears).
They are still pumping them out, IMO.
edit: I can beat Delver all day. The problem is that the blue tempo and midrange decks have nothing to fear from non-blue midrange decks, which have always been their natural predators. When Knight of the Reliquary decks can't reliably beat a brainstorm deck that isn't combo, format is busted.
I suspect Swan Song was a mistake.
In what way? It isn't seeing much play, is it?
Fragamemnon
Member
Surely this fair card Swan Song is not broken at all. I mean, giving your opponent a creature is such a disadvantage.
Swan Song is basically a direct upgrade for any decks that want to use Spell Pierce and/or Flusterstorm to push through their combo.
I'm not really a fan of the trend of 0-1 mana hard counters that are there near-exclusively for Combo decks to push their combo through with.
There's a good chance you're right, and it will eventually catch on and become a problem. I'm not huge on combo either. At least it doesn't cost nothing though.
divisionbyzorro
Member
[QUOTE="God's Beard!";103241717]Poor baby, draft went off the rails and you only got Ashiok and ordeals lol[/QUOTE]
One Ordeal. One Eidolon. One combat trick. Only two heroic creatures. What I did get were piles of Chosen by Heliod, Crypsis, etc. I got loads of things to create heroic triggers, but with only two creatures that profited from heroic triggers that didn't do me any good. And with only one instant speed combat trick, I had no way of profitably winning combat - I was playing three Traveling Philosophers and two Snarecasters just to make playables. My deck literally couldn't beat a Centaur unless it drew exactly the right cards.
The about UW Heroic (and aggro decks in general in Theros) is that they're very synergy based - you need ways to create heroic triggers, and creatures that give heroic triggers. If your deck doesn't have the right mix between them, you just have a pile of cards - not a deck. Of course, you can get lucky and draw the right half of your deck in enough games, and your deck looks like its really good - that's what happened to me (in two of the three matches; the deck's low quality eventually caught up to it).
And Ashiok didn't make the main because it doesn't do what you need it to do. My best chance of winning is to get lucky with draws and get in some early beats. He's decent in Limited, bu he's actually not really all that good, and it's not worth corrupting your manabase for a planeswalker that really wants to hit turn three in a deck that wants to be playing out creatures early.
One Ordeal. One Eidolon. One combat trick. Only two heroic creatures. What I did get were piles of Chosen by Heliod, Crypsis, etc. I got loads of things to create heroic triggers, but with only two creatures that profited from heroic triggers that didn't do me any good. And with only one instant speed combat trick, I had no way of profitably winning combat - I was playing three Traveling Philosophers and two Snarecasters just to make playables. My deck literally couldn't beat a Centaur unless it drew exactly the right cards.
The about UW Heroic (and aggro decks in general in Theros) is that they're very synergy based - you need ways to create heroic triggers, and creatures that give heroic triggers. If your deck doesn't have the right mix between them, you just have a pile of cards - not a deck. Of course, you can get lucky and draw the right half of your deck in enough games, and your deck looks like its really good - that's what happened to me (in two of the three matches; the deck's low quality eventually caught up to it).
And Ashiok didn't make the main because it doesn't do what you need it to do. My best chance of winning is to get lucky with draws and get in some early beats. He's decent in Limited, bu he's actually not really all that good, and it's not worth corrupting your manabase for a planeswalker that really wants to hit turn three in a deck that wants to be playing out creatures early.
Angry Grimace
Two cannibals are eating a clown. One turns to the other and says "does something taste funny to you?"
If the Reserve List stopped existing, would Wizards really reprint all that stuff on the list? I mean, there's plenty of cards not on the reserve list that they don't print anyways, right?
No. Not quickly. Something like Mana Drain, for instance, will likely only ever get a single Judge Foil reprint, if anything.
Similar threads
- Locked