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Bruce Gray - September 11, 2015

Casual Encounters- Reaction to Battle for Zendikar and Some Hidden Gem...

Gideon

Reaction to Battle for Zendikar and Some Hidden Gems for Your Casual Night

by Bruce Gray – Casual Encounters

Hi folks.  We had a huge weekend at PAX.  I watched a good deal of the coverage and am firmly convinced that at some point I will need to attend one of these events because it looked super cool.  Did you see the GIANT Eldrazi sculpture erected in front of the exhibit hall?!  Wow! That was amazing and looked super cool.  The most impressive part was the detail on the sculpture…but I won’t go too far into that.

In addition to the World Championship and PAX, we got a massive amount of previews from the set that will be hitting the shelves this fall.  That’s right, Battle for Zendikar is just about here and I’m excited. I’m really looking forward to getting a chance to play with all these giant Eldrazi monsters stomping around because it feels amazing to see so many massive creatures.  And they all seem to pack some sort of nasty ability! Talk about spoiling us!

Emrakul, the Aeons TornKozilek, Butcher of TruthUlamog, the Infinite Gyre

The last time we visited Zendikar, during Rise of the Eldrazi, I wasn’t playing and was totally oblivious to these creatures. I have since come to know many of them through things like watching and paying attention to deck lists, reading up on the lore of the plane, and generally paying attention to the happenings in the Magic community.  However, I have seen these guys in isolation.  I have watched Emrakul get cheated into play with a variety of tricks.  I have seen Ulamog in a Modern Masters 2015 draft pack.  I have heard about Kozilek and the destruction he can wreak on a board and the massive card advantage you can draw.  But I have never seen these three beasts in their own element. I have never faced down the wrath of a horde of voracious Eldrazi and I can hardly wait to get my first real Eldrazi experience now that we are heading back to Zendikar.

While the prospect of facing down the Eldrazi is very appealing, there are a few other things that were spoiled that are bound to be of interest to people.  Personally, the most important thing spoiled was the new cycle of dual lands.  Initially I read that there were a lot of people who were disappointed that the Enemy Coloured Fetchlands weren’t going to be reprinted, but it seems unusual for WoTC to have all 10 Fetchlands in standard at the same time.  So, Fetchlands were out but word got out that a new set of Dual Lands was being released and the speculation exploded.  What was revealed Saturday night was a very interesting set of lands.

sunken hollowsmoldering marshprairie streamcinder gladecanopy vista

The lands are allied coloured dual lands.  That’s a fair place to start and not the least bit unusual.  I hope we see the remaining five enemy coloured lands in the second set, but for the time being we have 5 lands.  They also have a drawback of coming into play tapped unless you control 2 basic lands.  That is a very reasonable drawback, but I will come back to that.  The most interesting feature is that they have 2 land types meaning you can fetch them with a Fetchland.  That is exciting because the last time that non-basic lands had two land types was the Ravnica Shocklands, but once again we’ll come back to any comparison with the Shocklands.  On the whole, this is pretty exciting cycle of lands and an interesting variant on dual lands in general.

The reaction has been mixed to say the least.  The initial place that most people started with was that these lands are inferior versions of the Shocklands.  Yes, they share the characteristic of having 2 basic land types on them, but the Shocklands can enter play untapped based on YOUR decision and aren’t conditional to you controling 2 basic lands.  So, we can agree that the Shocklands are a notch better, but there is something to be said for NOT having your land hit you for 2 points of life (or 3 if used in conjunction with a Fetchland) that might make these more appealing.  That extra 2 or 3 points of damage per land is a very real cost and now having the chance to avoid it is appealing and will give players in Modern reason to pause at least to consider their mana base before sleeving up their deck.

As far as Standard is concerned, these will be nice replacements for the Temples and could be seen in many ways as an upgrade because you can actually fetch them.  As nice as the Temples were, you could never fetch them up and that was not optimal. The tradeoff of a Scry in favour of being able to fetch the land is very real, but something that many players will be prepared to make. The new Mulligan rules may prove to be a saving grace to many players because they might be able to get that first turn Scry that they have become accustomed to thanks to the Scry lands.  We’ll need to keep an eye on that trend for sure once all the changes come into effect.

The other piece here is that the clause that allows you to have them come into play untapped is conditional and not a choice.  This feels like a very balanced option and a way to mitigate the relative power that you can harness by having access to two colours of mana in the same card.  In my mind this harkens back to the balancing act that WoTC was trying to get with the “Buddy” lands but with a new twist.  In either case, players who are looking to play their lands untapped will find themselves putting more basic lands in their decks and limit the number of colours that they play, while decks that are prepared to pay the price of playing your land tapped may continue to run three or more and play these happily.

I think that these lands are being unfairly criticized by some members of the community. I think people are looking for a direct and obvious upgrade to the Shocklands that can migrate over to Modern.  Looking at these, I don’t feel like that was ever the intent, but I will not be surprised to see some people opt to play some number of copies of these in their Modern decks.  No, these lands have been designed to be played in Standard and they fit in nicely.  Just as we lose the Temples we get a balanced, interesting, and fun land mechanic that will undoubtedly shake up the sequencing of your land.  If they happen to move to Modern, all the better, but for the time being Standard is a good starting point.

gideon, ally of zendikar

The other major preview was for a new Planeswalker.  In the upcoming set we will be seeing Gideon, Ally of Zendikar as the newest incarnation of our friend Gideon and he’s pretty sweet.  I like that they have retained his ability to become a powerful creature that is difficult to kill, but his other two abilities are extremely relevant and a significant departure for Gideon.  His 0 ability has him make a 2/2 Knight token, which is pretty significant.  This is a new ability for Gideon, and making a 2/2 Knight is pretty awesome.  However, the most interesting thing is the ultimate ability that allows you to IMMEDIATELY remove all the counters from him and for him to become an Anthem effect.  In many aggressive decks Anthem effects are extremely powerful and I’m fairly certain that this will not change. The Zendikar Allies are going to love it.  Plus, this version of Gideon looks to play quite well with the Kytheon/Gideon transform card from Magic Origins further adding to the appeal.  There is no doubt that this card will be one to watch and might be a defining card once Battle for Zendikar arrives. I’m a big fan and can’t wait to see what happens with this new addition to the Planeswalker club.

Some Hidden Gems

One of the things that I am always on the look for are some hidden gems that you can use around the kitchen table to really spice up your casual games and to perhaps get a leg up on your friends.  Sure, you could play all the hottest cards from the newest Standard legal set, but right now, as we approach rotation, you could find yourself some very budget friendly gems that could really add some appeal to your games.

Jace, Architect of ThoughtKiora, the Crashing Wave

Planeswalkers are a fun way to add a new dimension to your game and there are a couple out there that right now that are good value and can pack a pretty good punch. Jace, Architect of Thought and Kiora, the Crashing Wave represent strong cards that you can add to your decks and are extremely affordable right now.  Both of these are hovering around $4 a card right here on Three Kings Loot and would be great value.  Sure, these may not be the best cards ever printed, but they pack strong abilities, can win you a game if left unchecked, and can certainly be a big distraction if your opponents are intent on taking care of them.  If you don’t believe me that they are good value, take a look at some other Planeswalkers that have recently been printed but rarely see eternal play.  Tamiyo is about $19 a card.  Domri and Ral Zarek are around $7.   Garruk, Apex Predator weighs in at $8.  Clearly, these two look to be a little on the inexpensive side right now and with Kiora rotating out shortly you could likely scoop her up quite cheaply.

Reaper of the Wilds

A creature that has been supplanted by the mighty Siege Rhino has been the Reaper of the Wilds and at a mere $0.30 a card this solid 4/5 for 4 mana would be an addition to many a deck.  Besides being a very sizeable body, Reaper packs 3 abilities! This one has clearly been forgotten about, but your kitchen table would be an ideal location for some revitalization.

Chromanticore

 

After a brief foray into a Pro-Tour Chromanticore has largely vanished despite the fact that it is a super fun card that packs way too many abilities…and at less than $1.50 would be steal.

Herald of Torment

Herald of Torment has never really received much love, but I for one think that this little beauty is well worth the pick up.  The casting cost is about right, the Bestow is very powerful, Black devotion LOVES this guy and he costs a mere $0.30.  C’mon.  If you rock Black around the kitchen table this guy needs to be one of your dudes.

Extinguish All Hope

We had been  missing a genuine wrath effect for Black until we hit Khans block and got Crux of Fate and followed up with Languish in Magic Origins.  However, for your Casual game, don’t forget Extinguish All Hope.  In most environments this is good as any wrath you will ever need and while it does cost a little more Mana it’s also $0.25 meaning you could pick up some of these and still have pocket money left over to buy yourself a coffee .  What’s even better, if you build your deck right to abuse this, this could become a beautiful one-sided wrath and really make your opponents curse you and your janky (but hilarious) 6 mana wrath spell.

That’s all for tonight folks, but thanks for stopping in.  I’m super excited to see more of the Battle for Zendikar spoilers and glimpse the landscape of Magic for the upcoming autumn.  Thanks, and have a great MTG day.

 

Bruce Gray
Twitter: @bgray8791