Support NeoGAF

[Lucario]

Legacy leagues announced on MTGO, will start after downtime next week.

Now's a good time to buy in if you're interested in online legacy. Prices have been deflating recently due to the lack of decent events.

http://magic.wizards.com/en/MTGO/ar...online/february-2016-event-updates-2016-02-10

 

[Angry Grimace]

I don't think the Legacy challenges or the Power 9 challenges make any sense. You win prizes that are cards you already have.

You should win the Power 9 for the Legacy Challenge and sets of Wasteland and Port for the Vintage challenge. It makes sense, trust me.

 

[Angry Grimace]

Apparently that thing where Kiora planeswalks away was a lie because Kiora is hanging out with the Power Rangers helping them out.

 

[FeD.nL]

Should I be holding on to Chandra, Flamecaller with madness in the new set?

 

[y2dvd]

Should I be holding on to Chandra, Flamecaller with madness in the new set?

I don't see why not. Prices seems stable while Madness is around the corner.

I see Kozilek's Return pricing continuing to drop. Called that it was gonna be overrated. Too many creatures gets out of the 2dmg range early on.

 

[Infinite Stars]

They created the magical Christmas land of 4 colour decks being a thing in Standard. They're Santa Lands*

 

[divisionbyzorro]

I thought they were Santa lands because they checked it twice.

 

[Infinite Stars]

I thought they were Santa lands because they checked it twice.

That too, but Tango checks twice as well. The 4 colour decks existing helps with the Santa name though.

 

[pelicansurf]

I don't see why not. Prices seems stable while Madness is around the corner.

I see Kozilek's Return pricing continuing to drop. Called that it was gonna be overrated. Too many creatures gets out of the 2dmg range early on.

Yeah, I was running G/R eldrazi last FNM and it really sucked. Nobody was playing aggrieved either, but lots of rally, which made it way worse.

 

["God's Beard!"]

They probably decided the deck that the average person probably doesn't know how to play was a bad inclusion no matter how well it did unless it actually top 8'd

http://magic.wizards.com/en/MTGO/ar...ur-gauntlet-oath-gatewatch-details-2016-02-09 - MTGO Gauntlet event (the one where you play with Pro Tour decks)

ZERO LANTERN CONTROL

God's Beard T R I G G E R E D

Yeah, I knew Lantern wouldn't make it because it's so complicated to play, especially with all the extra stuff you have to do to get it to work online. First-time players aren't going to set the stops correctly etc.

That said, I think Lantern is significantly better online because you don't get fucked over by salty opponents deliberately playing slow.

 

[Angry Grimace]

Yeah, I was running G/R eldrazi last FNM and it really sucked. Nobody was playing aggrieved either, but lots of rally, which made it way worse.

If I went to a store and everyone was playing Rally at FNM I would just leave lol

Reflector Mage has really made it a miserable match to play unless you're just playing Abzan or something.

 

[blackflag]

Eldrazi did a number on my MTGO collection. Value dropped over 400 dollars since the PT. From 5,900 to a bit over 5,400.

And then things like Painter's Servant Spiked huge. I kept meaning to buy them for vintage but of course I forgot until they spiked to 14

 

[Angry Grimace]

MTGO collection . . . 5,900 to a bit over 5,400.

Holy balls how can you have that much in stuff that's all digital

I had a full powered Vintage deck, a modern Jund deck and a standard deck at the same time for a while and it wasn't nearly that much. (I converted into cash and paper cards)

 

[SigmasonicX]

Magic the Storying - Brink of Extinction
* Like Grimace mentioned, contrary to the story summary, Kiora is still around and is perfectly willing to help fight. Nothing suggests that she's about to leave.
* Good news, bad news. Good news, the Eldrazi titans being defeated makes way more sense now. Bad news, it looks like they may really be dead.
* As it turns out, while the hedrons help seal the titans, they also have the role of holding back Zendikar itself. The plane desperately wants to drag the whole bodies of the titans in and devour them, but the hedrons stop it once it absorbs enough energy and it's forced to release the energy as the Roil. Ugin was intentionally preventing the titans from being killed by the prison.
* Jace's plan with Nissa is to use Zendikar's leylines to directly seal the titans. This will only last a minute, so it won't imprison them, but it gives them the opportunity to kill them.
* Since the leylines are being used directly, Zendikar itself will join in on killing the titans, draining more energy from them than it could before.
* Gideon, Chandra, Tazri, and random soldiers will act as bait to keep the titans in place, while Jace coordinates everyone and Nissa will align the leylines. Kiora will fend off spawn coming from the outside, and drain the battle site of water.
* Jace mentions that as this plan goes into motion, the titans will become bigger due to more of their true forms being drawn into the plane.
* Jace has a bunch of troops under his command, and he isn't sure what to do, so he says, "For Zendikar," and that seems to work.

I thought this was decent enough.

 

[Angry Grimace]

Jace and Nissa having erotic mind melds again

I didn't understand how Jace figured he'd be able to pull their full forms into Zendikar at all.

 

[bigkrev]

Well, got Suicide Zoo in the Modern Gauntlet

0-1 so far, loosing to Through the Breach. Won game one easily, game 2 I misclicked on Mulligan with a turn 3 kill hand, and didn't see a single land till my mull to 3, and then lost game, and then lost game 3 on turn 3 because I forgot that Simian Spirit Guide was in the deck, which allowed him to kill me with Creeping Tar Pit because I was at 2 life

 

[Giant Panda]

Magic the Storying - Brink of Extinction
* Like Grimace mentioned, contrary to the story summary, Kiora is still around and is perfectly willing to help fight. Nothing suggests that she's about to leave.
* Good news, bad news. Good news, the Eldrazi titans being defeated makes way more sense now. Bad news, it looks like they may really be dead.
* As it turns out, while the hedrons help seal the titans, they also have the role of holding back Zendikar itself. The plane desperately wants to drag the whole bodies of the titans in and devour them, but the hedrons stop it once it absorbs enough energy and it's forced to release the energy as the Roil. Ugin was intentionally preventing the titans from being killed by the prison.
* Jace's plan with Nissa is to use Zendikar's leylines to directly seal the titans. This will only last a minute, so it won't imprison them, but it gives them the opportunity to kill them.
* Since the leylines are being used directly, Zendikar itself will join in on killing the titans, draining more energy from them than it could before.
* Gideon, Chandra, Tazri, and random soldiers will act as bait to keep the titans in place, while Jace coordinates everyone and Nissa will align the leylines. Kiora will fend off spawn coming from the outside, and drain the battle site of water.
* Jace mentions that as this plan goes into motion, the titans will become bigger due to more of their true forms being drawn into the plane.
* Jace has a bunch of troops under his command, and he isn't sure what to do, so he says, "For Zendikar," and that seems to work.

I thought this was decent enough.

Yeah, between the hedrons, the leylines, and this alternate Eldrazi form stuff I don't understand how this all works.

I haven't read the stories though only summaries.

 

[charlequin]

* Good news, bad news. Good news, the Eldrazi titans being defeated makes way more sense now. Bad news, it looks like they may really be dead.

This story was actually pretty decent since it makes some of the dumbest stuff about the OGW story less dumb. The plan as described makes vaguely more sense in dramatic terms than what we get on the cards. Also I can kind of almost believe they have a plan when they hammer home so hard that Jace heard Ugin tell him not to kill the titans and then just decided not to listen because reasons. It at least makes Ugin sound less like a chump and more like the guy who's gonna smack Jace upside the head a couple blocks from now.

(This probably means not killing Emrakul when she shows up next, too.)

 

[blackflag]

Holy balls how can you have that much in stuff that's all digital

I had a full powered Vintage deck, a modern Jund deck and a standard deck at the same time for a while and it wasn't nearly that much. (I converted into cash and paper cards)

Yeah I don't have time to play in paper so I have nothing except digital now. I can play pretty much any deck in any format except things that run wastelands and rishidans because I refuse to pay that much for them. I figure they'll be reprinted if eternal masters is a thing.

 

[OnPoint]

I'm still betting Kiora loses her sister in battle and bolts before things are done.

 

[Ashodin]

I think Zendikar eating Eldrazi Titans could have disasterous effects on the plane, which is probably what Ugin thinks will happen.

It's possible that planes "birth" Eldrazi this way, utterly destroying the plane and releasing them like a cracked egg.

I feel like with this, Wizards is either

• Cutting down the titans to just Emrakul for simplicity's sake
• Creating a scenario where Zendikar becomes "sick" in the future

 

[kirblar]

I think Zendikar eating Eldrazi Titans could have disasterous effects on the plane, which is probably what Ugin thinks will happen.

It's possible that planes "birth" Eldrazi this way, utterly destroying the plane and releasing them like a cracked egg.

I feel like with this, Wizards is either

• Cutting down the titans to just Emrakul for simplicity's sake
• Creating a scenario where Zendikar becomes "sick" in the future

The latter would explain the focus w/ Nissa and her elemental land stuff.

 

[Angry Grimace]

0-1 with Breach. Misplayed a block in game 1 because I had no idea what the fuck this guy was playing. The opposing player had turn 3 kills all three games, he only lost game 2 because I had Emrakul swinging turn 3.

 

[bigkrev]

0-2, lost to Mardu. Lost game 1 because I couldn't draw creatures, won game 2 with a Temur Battle Raged Deaths shadow (and 11 cards in the graveyard, lol), lost a hard fought game 3 where he had more 1-for-1 removal than I had creatures, and he managed to topdeck a Disfigure (I was playing around Bolt) to shrink my Wild Nacatl that I was counting on at least trading with his Goyf, and he flipped lands 2 turns in a row with a Confidant when he was at 2 life.

 

[Lazy vs Crazy]

Currently playing a Gauntlet, got Infect. Lost round 1 to burn, beat through the breach round 2. I've only punted a couple times.

 

[bigkrev]

1-2, Beat Chord. That deck seems wayyyyyyyy too slow for this current meta, especially if you can kill their T1 mana creature.

 

[Angry Grimace]

0-2 with Through the Breach. Cast Faithless Looting and Izzet Charm on Turns 2 through 3 against Jund, and drew the following cards:

1) Jace, Vryn's Prodigy

2) Jace, Vryn's Prodigy

3) Jace, Vryn's Prodigy

4) Jace, Vryn's Prodigy

 

[Firemind]

I'm on Team Jace. Would you rather kill the titans forever with the possibility that it'll destroy Zendikar? Or would you rather want to seal them with a not so sophisticated release mechanism and the chance they can break the seal and hop to other planes and wreak havoc there?

Ugin is a fool.

 

[Ashodin]

You're just mad they give more time to him than Niv-Mizzet, the inferior dragon

 

[Firemind]

No, I don't want sets that are half colorless cards ever again.

Anyway, did Zendikar get obliterated or not? Seems a bit vague from you guys' posts.

 

[Ashodin]

I mean, we know Chandra blasts the titans from Fat Pack book spoilers (and Art guide).

However, this is how I think it goes down:

• Jace helps Nissa use the leylines of Zendikar to pull Ulamog and Kozilek fully onto Zendikar
• They both get super huge but super stuck in the leylines like mud
• Zendikar starts nomming on them as Gideon and crew hold back huge waves of Eldrazi spawn
• They still attempt to break away, Chandra blasts them to knock them off-balance and Zendikar eats em
• Leaving behind the Gatewatch leyline symbol on the game day pad

 

[Haines]

Im constantly impressed that you guys care about magics story.

I fixed my fmn draft deck this morning with about 4 changes that took it from a b- to a b and had some great games vs a buddy today

Kitchen table magic is just so awesome. It makes me want to go draft fmn but than i remember i really dont care about playing strangers in real life.

 

[SigmasonicX]

No, I don't want sets that are half colorless cards ever again.

Anyway, did Zendikar get obliterated or not? Seems a bit vague from you guys' posts.

The land is in the process of being turned into Wastes, but it isn't destroyed yet.

We already know from the story summary that Zendikar comes out of this fine. When the titans are killed, greenery starts blooming in the place where they died, like you'd expect from Fern Gully.

 

[Firemind]

Ha! In your face, Ugin!

 

[Ashodin]

The land is in the process of being turned into Wastes, but it isn't destroyed yet.

We already know from the story summary that Zendikar comes out of this fine. When the titans are killed, greenery starts blooming in the place where they died, like you'd expect from Fern Gully.

The '90s just won't let us go, will it

 

[LaserBuddha]

This story was actually pretty decent since it makes some of the dumbest stuff about the OGW story less dumb. The plan as described makes vaguely more sense in dramatic terms than what we get on the cards. Also I can kind of almost believe they have a plan when they hammer home so hard that Jace heard Ugin tell him not to kill the titans and then just decided not to listen because reasons. It at least makes Ugin sound less like a chump and more like the guy who's gonna smack Jace upside the head a couple blocks from now.

(This probably means not killing Emrakul when she shows up next, too.)

I bet some new Eldrazi titan comes into being whenever one is killed, to fill the void left by it or whatever. So Jace and friends will have different titans to fight the next time Wizards wants to do an Eldrazi set.

 

[Angry Grimace]

Actually I'm thinking the Pro Tour Gauntlet was a fucking horrible idea.

I have:

Died Turn 3 four times (Death's Shadow turn 3 twice, opponent had it the other time, but I lived due to having Turn 3 Emrakul, also Faithless Looting, Goryo's Vengeance, Emrakul )
Died Turn 2 twice (SSG, Faithless Looting, Goryo's Vengeance)

This is not going to make people think the format is fun.

 

[Horatorobor]

So today I opened 2 boosters from prizes and I got a General Tazri and an Inverter of truth, they're both so mythic at least.

 

[Angry Grimace]

lmao Owen with the saltiest article in the history of Modern, even though he's right about a ton of things.

http://www.channelfireball.com/articles/modern-shouldnt-be-a-pro-tour-format/

 

[divisionbyzorro]

lmao Owen with the saltiest article in the history of Modern, even though he's right about a ton of things.

http://www.channelfireball.com/articles/modern-shouldnt-be-a-pro-tour-format/

I agree with everything he said in that article.

 

[kirblar]

Avaricious Dragon - dollar copies still on Amazon vendors, with Madness coming next set, it may be a thing.

 

[Angry Grimace]

For some reason the sentence "Mox Opal is an unreasonable Magic card. It should be banned, but it’s not like Affinity is an overpowered deck—it’s just a really good deck with one overpowered card in it." makes me laugh.

But he's right that the problem with modern is that it takes cards that are not all that broken in their intended limited/standard contexts and makes them busted such that having that card by itself makes you so much more likely to win.

Avaricious Dragon - dollar copies still on Amazon vendors, with Madness coming next set, it may be a thing.

It depends if they have undercosted Madness creatures or not. They'd have to be *really* cheap to be worth discarding your hand right after paying 2RR.

 

[kirblar]

The problem with the modern PT is that they're making the format suffer w/ the ban timing, and they're also removing people's faith in WotC's judgement on the ban list. Twin wasn't done "just to shake up the PT", but the timing makes people think that. At the same time, Summer Bloom stayed around way too long because they were saving the ban for the PT.

The big issue with dropping the Modern PT is that having a Modern PTQ season is really attractive to the playerbase. Also, I think the Modern PT gets the highest viewer #s.

 

[Ashodin]

lmao Owen with the saltiest article in the history of Modern, even though he's right about a ton of things.

http://www.channelfireball.com/articles/modern-shouldnt-be-a-pro-tour-format/

Dude ended up with a shit record after Friday. People like him aren't satisfied unless they're consistently in the top of everything they do.

 

[Haines]

This might sound crazy, but everytime i consider trying a magic online draft, i end up just watching a draft video, or stream instead and saving myself 15 bucks.

Anyone else do that

 

[Angry Grimace]

Dude ended up with a shit record after Friday. People like him aren't satisfied unless they're consistently in the top of everything they do.

He finished 18th in the tournament and he's No. 1 in the world and he went 7-3 in Modern, I don't think he's salty about that. It is kind of a shitty format.

 

[Ashodin]

He finished 18th in the tournament and he's No. 1 in the world, I don't think he's salty about that.

That's what I'm trying to say. He probably figured he could walk in and make Top 8.

 

[kirblar]

"I want the pro tour to be about X" - it not always being about X is a good thing.

 

[Haines]

i imagine its his job to write articles, and the more clicks the better he does his job. Thats why magic has so many sites with articles. People make there money on page views, compared to hearthstone where its stream views.

I would take most stuff that screams look at what i have to say with a pinch of salt

 

[Angry Grimace]

I can see why the arrogant players don't like Modern: because they think they win on in-game skill and Modern is a lot about lucksacking and metagaming.

Brian Braun-Duin has an article on the same site that kinda made me sad. He sounds lonely and seems like he beats himself up a lot, e.g. he's like "I suck at limited and everyone knows it so I tried to be better but then I still lost."