These embalm creatures play VERY well with Gisa & Geralf
Roar of the Wurm! Zombie Snake Hydra lol
PW removal! (Why the hell is Return 4 mana?)
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Magic: the Gathering |OT11| Amonkhet - Have you ever had decks with a Pharaoh?
- Thread starter SigmasonicX
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Joe Molotov
Member
PW removal! (Why the hell is Return 4 mana?)
Ugh, that's worse than Ruinous Path.
So there is this card called Gisa & Geralf that makes you mill 4 and lets you cast zombies from graveyard.......
Imperfected
Member
Embalm cards aren't zombies unless it's in the original card's typeline. The tokens they create are zombies, but Gisa & Geralf have to hit zombie targets, not spells that create zombies (which is what Embalm as an effect essentially is).
So, they can hit a Mummy with Embalm because it's already a zombie, but not a non-zombie that becomes a zombie when it becomes an Embalm token.
Seems pretty nice. I'm so playing a Drake Haven deck.
Shit, that's a very good draw spell. Seems playable in Modern even.
divisionbyzorro
Member
That card is gooooooooooooooooooood.
Imperfected
Member
If you're putting any real amount of mana into it you're probably going to pull a land you won't mind discarding, anyway. Most of the time it's going to be an equal or better Stroke of Genius.
divisionbyzorro
Member
Shuffle clause aside, it's definitely a better Blue Sun's Zenith. A seven mana BSZ gives me +4 cards. A seven mana Pull from Tomorrow gives me the best 4 of the top 5. This card is really good.
EDIT: Shit it's even better than that, because of course you can discard a card you already had.
Honestly, I think I'd've preferred Vigilance. Being able to both attack and block with your Indestructible beatstick sounds great. Obviously I'd want her to be at least a 5/X without doublestrike...
I mean, really, a 3/X doublestrike has two advantages over a 6/X normal. Buffs are better and it's harder to trade with them in combat (including multiblocks) since you get some first strike damage in there.
But the second part doesn't matter, because you're Indestructible, so nobody's going to trade with you anyway (outside of Wither, but I don't play any format that old). And the first part... is fun in theory, but in practice I don't play buffs that often.
Plus doublestrike makes debuffs more potent on your guy as well, so if -1/-1 counters are a thing...
Just play Always Watching and have both.
Infinite Stars
Member
Eh, I'm hesitant if that's going to see Modern Play. Yeah, it's cheaper then BSZ, but I still think if you pay the one more you get either a strictly better when in top deck mode BSZ or a strictly better for Stabilizing Sphinx's Rev.
I can totally see Mono Blue Tron adapting it though.
I can totally see Mono Blue Tron adapting it though.
The power level is there, it just needs to find a home.
It's only card disadvantage if X is 2 or less.
Imperfected
Member
If you're playing a white weenies deck you probably are buffing up somewhat, though admittedly a lot of the good buffs available right now are human-centric.
The main disadvantage of being a 3/6 instead of a 6/6 non-DS is in crewing vehicles, though admittedly people aren't exactly flocking to 6-crew vehicles, anyway.
-1/-1 counters might be a small problem, but we haven't really seen a serious engine for them so far, even if that Scarab Nest card suggests one's coming.
If only there were cards that you wanted to discard....
ThLunarian
Member
It's not "discard X-1 cards," it's "Discard one card."
Roar of the Wurm! Zombie Snake Hydra lol
PW removal! (Why the hell is Return 4 mana?)
Have tokens always had white backgrounds regardless of color or are all embalm tokens white due to being mummified?
Does it hurt to make a Hero's Downfall variant? I'm fine with Aftermath being over costed though. You are already getting a decent card with the first cast. It would be too unbalanced otherwise.
Seems pretty nice. I'm so playing a Drake Haven deck.
Card is amazing. I don't know about modern, but standard definitely wants this.
Speaking of fun in theory, we're getting a two mana instant that gives +2/+2, Lifelink, and untaps a dude, so I can see blowing someone out with that and Oketra really easily.
"Oh, you want to attack into me? Let me just untap my God, eat one of your dudes, and gain 10 life."
Embalm tokens are white.
Angry Grimace
Two cannibals are eating a clown. One turns to the other and says "does something taste funny to you?"
It seriously makes me laugh knowing they were still in the development cycle of believing Hero's Downfall was "too powerful for Standard" when this set was finalized. None of these people on the development team should still have jobs if they leave Gideon, AOZ unbanned.
Fun story: I was listening to the owner of the LGS yesterday and they said Magic basically runs all gaming stores based on its release cycles and that a shitty standard legit threatens the ability of the store to stay open.
Fun story: I was listening to the owner of the LGS yesterday and they said Magic basically runs all gaming stores based on its release cycles and that a shitty standard legit threatens the ability of the store to stay open.
Imperfected
Member
I mean, it's just a more reasonable condition that makes sense in her color. White likes making creatures. There are already good white cards that make creatures (hi Gid). A white deck can, with a single card, bring her online with benefits on top (hi Kaladesh angel that brings in two tokens and gives +1/+1).
Red doesn't really want to have an empty hand. I mean, it happens, but it's kind of an unfortunate side-effect of being Magic's garbage color, rather than something a Red player is particularly jazzed about. A Red player isn't really saying, "Man, I wish I had no cards right now" most of the time, and while there may be Red cards that can support you on your mission to not have a hand, they aren't played for a reason.
Blue does want to have a full hand, but it's not usually a very attainable goal. I mean, yes, blue generates card advantage, but it also expends that card advantage to protect itself from the fact that it generally doesn't produce a very strong board otherwise. A blue deck shouldn't be sitting on seven cards unless the opponent's fallen asleep. Though, with the introduction of Pull from Tomorrow, Blue at least now has a one-card answer (albeit at likely a very high enough mana cost) to bring their god online, so that's better.
I guess we'll have to wait and see with Black and Green. I get the feeling Black's going to be asking for graveyard stuffing, which is pretty reasonable and well-supported in format. I guess Green probably wants either lands on the field or a fatty in play? Either way, they're conditions that should be very attainable in Green.
I suppose if we're evaluating them seriously, probably the easiest way is asking, "How likely are these to come online the turn/turn after they're played via cards deck archetypes in these colors want to cast?"
White: Very likely with cards already favored by the color.
Blue: Unlikely but with cards likely favored by the color.
Red: Unlikely and almost certainly requiring cards the color doesn't even want to run.
Black will probably be somewhere at "likely with cards favored by the color" (Delirium enablers) and Green at "likely with cards heavily favored by the color" (dat Gearhulk), if I'm guessing right.
Red doesn't really want to have an empty hand. I mean, it happens, but it's kind of an unfortunate side-effect of being Magic's garbage color, rather than something a Red player is particularly jazzed about. A Red player isn't really saying, "Man, I wish I had no cards right now" most of the time, and while there may be Red cards that can support you on your mission to not have a hand, they aren't played for a reason.
Blue does want to have a full hand, but it's not usually a very attainable goal. I mean, yes, blue generates card advantage, but it also expends that card advantage to protect itself from the fact that it generally doesn't produce a very strong board otherwise. A blue deck shouldn't be sitting on seven cards unless the opponent's fallen asleep. Though, with the introduction of Pull from Tomorrow, Blue at least now has a one-card answer (albeit at likely a very high enough mana cost) to bring their god online, so that's better.
I guess we'll have to wait and see with Black and Green. I get the feeling Black's going to be asking for graveyard stuffing, which is pretty reasonable and well-supported in format. I guess Green probably wants either lands on the field or a fatty in play? Either way, they're conditions that should be very attainable in Green.
I suppose if we're evaluating them seriously, probably the easiest way is asking, "How likely are these to come online the turn/turn after they're played via cards deck archetypes in these colors want to cast?"
White: Very likely with cards already favored by the color.
Blue: Unlikely but with cards likely favored by the color.
Red: Unlikely and almost certainly requiring cards the color doesn't even want to run.
Black will probably be somewhere at "likely with cards favored by the color" (Delirium enablers) and Green at "likely with cards heavily favored by the color" (dat Gearhulk), if I'm guessing right.
Angry Grimace
Two cannibals are eating a clown. One turns to the other and says "does something taste funny to you?"
White god isn't great. Similar problem with Heliod and every other god other than the blue one, which is that they generally don't change the board state unless you have either a stalemate or are winning.
All these cards are just random stuff that will get blown away by Mardu Vehicles and 4C Cat anyways.
All these cards are just random stuff that will get blown away by Mardu Vehicles and 4C Cat anyways.
I might be in the minority but I think the Red God is the best one so far. It's really not that hard to turn on and that ability is powerful. And people underestimate haste. It feels impossible to always stay at 7 cards with the blue one and your opponent can always interact with your board state easily(regarding the white one).
I'm with you, I think the white one is the worst one yet. Of course, I might be wrong and then the white one sees play everywhere, but so far I'd rank them red>blue>white.
Imperfected
Member
I mean, you'd damn well better kill with it if you get it online, because otherwise you've got a God and no hand to back it up.
The white one might be a shade on the "win more" side, but at least there's a "win" somewhere in its paradigm, rather than "turn it on and then probably lose anyway".
SigmasonicX
Member
Some details from MaRo's article
* Embalm is in blue to tie into Innistrad's zombie tribal.
* Brick counters appear on one card each at common, uncommon, and rare.
* Desert the land was considered too powerful, but Desert the subtype is in Amonkhet. It plays a larger role in Hour of Devastation.
* There was originally a mechanic that was basically cycling from the graveyard, but it was too close to investigate.
* There are a few curses other than Cruel Reality.
* Embalm is in blue to tie into Innistrad's zombie tribal.
* Brick counters appear on one card each at common, uncommon, and rare.
* Desert the land was considered too powerful, but Desert the subtype is in Amonkhet. It plays a larger role in Hour of Devastation.
* There was originally a mechanic that was basically cycling from the graveyard, but it was too close to investigate.
* There are a few curses other than Cruel Reality.
Imperfected
Member
Cycling from the graveyard?
That's not really cycling anymore. That's just cantrips on an installment plan.
That's not really cycling anymore. That's just cantrips on an installment plan.
Angry Grimace
Two cannibals are eating a clown. One turns to the other and says "does something taste funny to you?"
The blue one is an indestructible Azure Mage that randomly turns into a 5/5 flier. The reason I think its good is becasue the investment is so low to keep it on the battlefield and if your opponent can't quickly kill you you're almost assuredly going to run them over in card advantage.
SigmasonicX
Member
MaRo didn't refer to it as cycling, that was just me being concise, FYI.
Familienoberhauptvogel
Banned
With curses as well aren't there quite a few mechanics in amonkhet? I thought they weren't gonna do that anymore.
Imperfected
Member
I mean, curses are a pretty mild mechanical overhead. They're not really any more complex than global enchantments that effect opponents.
Angry Grimace
Two cannibals are eating a clown. One turns to the other and says "does something taste funny to you?"
Curses are such a minor mechanic they don't even consider them real mechanics. Maro said something along those lines the other day. They're just generic enchantments most of the time and the subtype has barely any rules meaning.
SigmasonicX
Member
He probably just got them mixed up with Traps.
Not much to comment on other than lots of neat cards being revealed for my Graveyard Cube. I wonder if Never//to//Return is better than Ruinous Path? As an aside, I feel like I need to be convinced Miscalculation is too good for Standard rather than accept it as fact. I know many still have bad memories of Mana Leak but I feel Miscalculation is a card that leaves people on both sides less frustrated because it's never dead (due to cycling) but its less oppressive against your opponent's game plan (hitting for 2 mana rather than 3 mana).
Unless things drastically change I don't see this being amazing in standard. Gearhulk can't flash this back. I don't see it replacing glimmer of genius.
Seems pretty nice. I'm so playing a Drake Haven deck.
I came from a standard where lingering souls, Liliana of the veil, snapcaster mage, resto angel, thragtusk, griselbrand, unburial rites, detention sphere, sphinxes revvelation, Geist of Saint traft, deathrite shaman, and Jace architect of thought all existed and things were great! Miscalculation can exist if they plan around it. Wizards currently philsophy is to have midrange the gathering for most sets with some light midrange combo/fringe control deck thrown in once in awhile.
Imperfected
Member
I know this is actually a super relevant concern, but the fact that people basically just use Torrential Gearhulk to recycle Glimmer of Genius is like the single most disappointing thing to me about current Standard.
Why it's just a power card abusing card advantage. Are you just as disappointed about tireless tracker's card adv or with Gideon ally's card adv?
Infinite Stars
Member
He asked for proof, not a dismissal of his question.
I don't think it's too strong for Standard considering it would hypothetically be in the same rotation as Green "Fuck Counters" Snake.
Yup, Standard being shitty for the past 3 seasons has been one hell of a downturn for a few LGS' I know. Like, "FNM going down to 4 people for Standard since December when we had 12+ 8 months ago" bad
Imperfected
Member
No, because a big body with Flash and a Snapcaster effect has the potential for the most absurdly one-sided blowouts in the format, and it's rarely if ever actually doing that because the decks that run it right now don't actually have much else worth flashing back with it.
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