Tag: triplicate-spirits

comments
Bruce Gray - September 7, 2014

Crack a Pack MTG Magic 2015 with Bruce (4th)

Magic 2015 core set Booster Packs - Crack a Pack MTG

Crack a Pack MTG Magic 2015 with Bruce

 by Bruce Gray – Casual Encounters

Welcome back to yet another Crack a Pack MTG with Bruce.  Believe it or not, this is our 10th Crack a Pack!  I can hardly believe it because that means we’ve been at this for 10 weeks now! We’ve seen everything from all three sets from Theros block, some Conspiracy, a little Return to Ravnica, and of course plenty of M15.  It’s been fun and I can hardly wait to get started on the next 10 weeks!  A big thank you goes out to the readers who take the time to stop and take a quick read at what I’ve written.  Thanks very much and I hope to keep it up for all of you in the coming weeks and months. So, without further delay, let’s see what we’ve got in this pack!

 

Rare

 

Uncommon

 

Common

 

 

On the whole, I’m pretty excited about this pack because there are a number of quality cards in this pack.  There are also some HUGE duds, but I think the premium cards in this pack outweigh the bad ones by a fair margin.

 

Let’s start with our Rare, Life’s Legacy.  This is an interesting card that might have some interesting ramifications because it can enable mass card draw in Green, meaning it could be useful.  However, I need to ask myself, in exactly what scenario do I want to play this card?  If i’m losing? No…because I’m likely needing to sacrifice one of my blockers, and that won’t help me win the war.  If I’m just starting the game?  No…not likely…because the creature is likely to be smallish, and I would rather get off to fast start than try to draw a few extra cards by sacrificing a creature.  What if we’re in a stalled board state or one with no clear leader?  Doubtful, although I won’t rule it out.  I might like the extra cards if the blocker that is holding them back is reasonably safe and I can spare a creature to sacrifice in order to eek out a little more advantage.  However, sacrificing my creature is likely going to set me back in real terms on the board and run the risk of me breaking the board stall…but in the wrong direction meaning I’ll soundly get thrashed.  Lastly, if I’m leading, this might be a reasonable card so that I don’t run out of gas.  Basically, it is a bad card in a number of scenarios, and marginally playable in a number more meaning that I probably don’t want to take this first.  If it comes around the table, and in this pack it just might because the relative strength of the pack, THEN I might take a chance on it, otherwise I’ll go in a different direction for my first pick.

 

Kird Chieftain grabs my attention as being a very solid creature.  If you are prepared to play Red/Green this is a can’t miss BOMB.  A 4/4 for 4 mana is already very good, but the extra activated ability makes this guy a real menace.  The sheer strength of this card makes it very appealing and can make your team tough to deal with. In most packs this is a slam dunk, but there are a number of other interesting cards in this pack.

 

Triplicate Spirits is in this pack and you can’t overlook it.  Draft results are showing that Triplicate Spirits just crushes games because the three fliers just break open almost any board state.  The synergy with Selfless Cathar or Sanctified Charge is unmistakable and the net result is an absolute beat down of pretty significant proportions.  This was routinely picked first at the Pro Tour and with good reason, and so I would need to look at it.  The drawback with this card is that I get the sense that White is over drafted because EVERYONE wants in on the Triplicate Spirits/Sanctified Charge game plan and so you might be in competition for the same cards.  However, to pass the Spirits means you are FOR SURE going to see it played against you, so you might be well served just to grab it and try to make White happen, but be 100% prepared to switch colours in you sense that you are being cut from White pretty hard.

 

Sanctified Charge is the other half of the combo, and it is also in this pack.  It isn’t a first pick, but I’d love to grab both cards out of this pack and ensure that I’m on the game plan.

 

A few weeks ago I raved about Quickling, and I’m still a big fan. Flying “bears” are awesome threats, and if I can recur something, ANYTHING, by bringing it back to my hand, well, I’m pretty sold on this card.  It isn’t the flashiest of cards but it is reliable, packs evasion, and is efficient for my mana investment.  This is a first pick in some packs, but not this one, although it would get some serious attention.

 

Caustic Tar seems like a lousy card because it enchants a land for 6 mana.  However, it is a great way to break a stalemate by ensuring you have a safe and sure method of delivering 3 damage a turn.  That puts your opponent on a relatively quick clock and can help you to salt away those grindy games that seem to have no obvious way to wind up.

 

Blastfire Bolt is super expensive removal, but later in the round you will need removal and this just might be something you have to grab.  You won’t be excited, but you’ll do it and you’ll be thankful you did when you can BBQ some threat on your opponent’s side of the board.

 

Zof Shade, Glacial Crasher, and Soulmender are reasonable creatures, but none of them get me excited.  They are role players and interchangeable so I won’t be overly concerned if I grab one much later.

 

Invisibility, Clear a Path, and Hunter’s Ambush are all very narrow cards and not overly useful.  These would be the last cards in this pack that I’d be looking at and would be hoping an opponent would mistakenly grab one of these useless cards in this pack allowing me a second chance at something better once it wheels around.

 

Top 5 cards

  1. Kird Chieftain
  2. Triplicate Spirits
  3. Quickling
  4. Sanctified Charge
  5. Life’s Legacy

 

First Pick

In the end, it comes down to 2 cards, namely Kird Chieftain and Triplicate Spirits.  In this instance I am going to have to side with Ben Stark who first picked this at the Pro Tour over a number of very good cards.  The reason is simple: I can’t let my opponent get a hold of this.  I don’t want to spend first pick hate drafting, but the fact remains this card is exceptionally powerful and if you can grab a Sanctified Charge to pair along with it you are going to steal a number of games.  Now, IF I can make White work, I’ll be very happy and my first pick is not just about hate drafting, but the competition for White is often stiff so I will need to be prepared to move colours quickly if I’m cut off from White. If I move colours I will not be sad to have the Spirits in my pile ensuring that I will not need to face it down the road in the deck of one of my opponents. I would very much like to be in White and then pair it with something else, but if I can’t I won’t force it too much. I’ll be sad to let the Chieftain go because it is a bomb, but I almost feel like it is easier to cope with even though it is much larger…it dies to a single removal spell…while the Spirits become a nightmare once the spell resolves.

 

There we have it…week 10 in the books! What do you think? Should I have rolled the dice on the Life’s Legacy?  The Chieftain?  The Quickling? Or am I well served grabbing the Spirits and moving on?  Let me know what you think, I’d love to hear all about it.

 

Next week I’m not sure what I’ll open…M15 is cool and all, but it feels like it is starting to get a little stale.  Maybe I’ll get back in my “Way Back” machine and see if I can find a retro pack of some sort, just to liven things up a little.  I don’t know…let me think on it and I’ll let you know.

 

Once again, thanks for reading and until next time, may you open nothing by Mythic bombs.

 

 by Bruce Gray – Casual Encounters
@bgray8791 on Twitter

 

 

comments
Bruce Gray - August 12, 2014

Deep Thoughts… on Drafting M15

2015 core set logo - Drafting M15

Deep Thoughts… on Drafting M15

by Bruce Gray – Casual Encounters

 

So, a couple of weeks ago I wrote about my impressions on M15 based on my experience playing Sealed at a Pre-release.  This week I was fortunate enough to get out to a local game shop and draft on what we call “Cheap Night”.  Usually entrance fees for a draft event is $15 or so…but on “Cheap Night” it is only $10, but does not have any prize support.  It is a perfect spot to get out and draft and really feel what the environment is like and is pretty friendly for newer players because there aren’t any prizes on the line.  I have to say, I really enjoyed drafting M15 and it felt very healthy and diverse with a number of very interesting decks.  Today I wanted to share some of those experiences with you before you head out to your next Draft and to see if they confirmed what I have grown to believe from playing M15 limited.

 

First off, I went 3-1 and was in contention to go 4-0 right up to the very end, but in my final match I made a couple of major mistakes that ruined all that hard work.  With that said, I felt like I drafted a very solid deck that gave many of my opponents absolute fits because they couldn’t really deal with my deck. My selections were a little more helter skelter than I would have liked, but with a variety of less experienced players at the table I was having a hard time reading the signs coming around the table.  My first pick was a Hushwing Gryff as a very serviceable 2/1 flier for 3 and a solid ability.  My next several picks were all Blue and I looked like I was going on the U/W plan. However, I was a little disappointed that I was being cut off from White so I started to explore Black and Green  a little bit and picked a couple of nice cards from both of those colours.  Pack 2 landed me a Caves of Koilos and then a Preeminent Captain in back to back picks and yielded some more White.  Pack 3 saw me open up Jace, the Living Guildpact and really locked me into Blue.  A couple of more decent White cards came my way including my boy Boonweaver Giant as a finisher and I was well and truly on the U/W Flier plan for sure.  Here’s my deck list.

 

 

Some highlights of the games were totally beating down an opponent with Welkin Tern over and over again.  Tern just did good work and brought a huge smile to my face when I’d see it in my opening hand because I really felt I had a solid chance to win.  In Round 2 I was able to live the dream with Jace.  I cast Jace relatively early in the game and immediately started ticking him up to filter my card draw.  I had just enough to run interference and give Jace some breathing room and tied up a few more of his creatures.  When Jace got to the point where I could ultimate him I did and shuffled my hand and graveyard, including Jace, back into my library.  I shuffled my deck up and offered to let my opponent cut the deck and then drew my next 7 cards while my opponent just looked on in dismay.  You would not imagine his look of disgust when I drew, and subsequently cast, Jace all over again.  Needless to say, the game was over in short order with the ridiculous card advantage I had just developed.  Lastly, Triplicate Spirits and Selfless Cathar make for a terrific combination that can quickly bring down the pain.  I finished off my opponent in Game 3 with a trio of Spirits who all got a boost from the Cathar and brought the hammer down.

 

The low light was in Round 4 where in game 1 I mulled to 6 cards and kept a 1 lander because I had a hand full of gas.  I should have had the sense to toss it back and try again because when I missed my 2nd land drop I knew I was on the ropes…and sure enough I was dead in short order. In Game 2 I did a little better but misplayed Jace when I cast him.  I should have bounced the Paragon my opponent was playing and then used the opening to force combat creating a situation where I had a profitable attack instead of sitting still and passing back the turn.  My hesitation opened the door for my opponent once again and left me reeling and trying to catch up. Needless to say, I never did and I was a little disheartened that I had misplayed those games so badly.

 

On the whole, I felt I had a pretty good showing and was relatively pleased with my performance. Going 3-0 against some pretty decent players was a good feeling and even if I did blow game 4 it just further re-enforced that I can’t get greedy and should be prepared to mulligan me regularly.  All in all, a fun evening with some solid results and few sweet finds in my draft pool.

 

Some other deep Thoughts and Observations

Jace, the Living Guildpact

This guy has got a bit of a bad rap since everyone has seen him, but I have to admit, he’s a very solid Planeswalker.  Is he crazy busted and overpowered?  No, but he is pretty versatile and reasonably skill intensive and will make a good piece in many decks when other versions of him rotate out of Standard.  His +1 is an acceptable way to filter your cards, particularly later in the game and he really helped set up some solid draws for me.  I can imagine that in Standard, where your deck is more finely tuned, ensuring that you draw into that perfect card will be pretty crucial.  However, it is timing that -3 ability that is truly vital.  You can really set your opponent back by bouncing something with Jace and I found that more often than not it was this ability that was the most powerful.  It may not say “Kill target creature/planeswalker” but sometimes bouncing it will be just as relevant.  The ultimate, like any ultimate on a Planeswalker, is totally back breaking.  To make your opponent lose his hand and only YOU draw 7 is bananas.  He’s not the best Jace, heck, he’s not even the best Jace in Standard right now, but he’s very solid and will be useful later on, I promise.

 

The speed of this format feels slow.  There is not an overwhelming number of aggressive 1 and 2 drops running around the format and the beat down plan really only begins when people hit 3 land…and can attack on turn 4.  Even then, there are lots of the 3 drop creatures that really aren’t that scary meaning that you need to get a little creative with your attacks to get early pressure on your opponent or you need to be ready to play a little more of a control route because you can’t get out the gates as quickly.  However, it is important to get creatures down on board because the removal is lousy and you will need to block to buy yourself time.

 

Invisibility

This is a terrible card.  This was just a dead card for me all night.  When I had it in my hand, I hated seeing it, and if I cast it on a creature I wished it was something else.  Don’t waste your time…it’s a pretty poor aura and not worth the card slot in your draft deck.

 

Triplicate Spirits

It’s a very good card!  This card did terrific work for me and I was impressed.  I was initially a little down on this card because it’s 6 mana for three 1/1 flying spirits.  However, with the Convoke ability these guys can be cast much sooner and make the casting cost feel much more like 4 mana…and gives you 3 bodies.  This is very useful and they proved to be just terrific for me all evening long.

 

Paragon of Gathering Mist

Of all the Paragons I think I like this guy the best.  Don’t get me wrong, they are all very good, but the ability to give something flying is just tremendous.  Nothing makes combat feel bad for an opponent than being ambushed by a creature who is suddenly flying and able to handle their flier.  He did good work for me all night and I’ll be sure to look for him again the next time I draft.

 

Aeronaut Tinkerer

This guy is a trap.  He is a very reasonable 2/3 for 3 mana and can get flying if you have an artifact.  I watched numerous players run this guy with a bunch of Ornithopters and other bad artifacts to try and trigger the Flying ability.  Yes, Yes, I know I ran one too, but I was looking at him as a 2/3 body on the ground because I only had 1 artifact, so if he could fly it was all the better.  However, to purposefully skew your deck to try and live the Ornithopter/Aeronaut Tinkerer game plan seems a bit wonky and not the best line of play.  Draft the Tinkerer, heck, play the Tinkerer and if you have an artifact or two all the better, but don’t go all in on that game plan because the reward just isn’t there.

 

I have to ask the question, do people actually say the word “Ratchet” outside of a Home Depot?  While I was playing my games they had the radio playing in the back ground and there was a song that came on by the Chain Smokers (“Let me take a Selfie”) which has been playing for months.  However, every time I listen to the girl in the song talk about  “That’s so Ratchet” I’m just left shaking my head.  First off, do people ACTUALLY sound like her?  I hope not…for all of our sakes.  Second, a ratchet is a TOOL…it’s a noun used to describe something to help repair your car or your bike…not an adjective used to describe lord knows what! C’mon…I’m not the language police, but even I have to admit that it sounds ridiculous.  Or maybe I’m just getting old.  One way or the other it sound ridiculous and should probably be stricken from the English language.  Rant over…thank you. [Editor’s Note: Sorry Bruce, but you’re getting old. Pop stars are always using the latest urban slang.  -Greg]

 

Thanks everyone for reading again this week.  If you have had your experiences drafting M15, let me hear about them.  What did you draft?  Any cool cards?  What did you deck look like?  If we are going to improve at this sort of thing we all need to be prepared to share and learn from our experiences.  I hope some of mine will help you the next time out and help you to steer clear of a few of my pitfalls.

 

Until Next time keep it fun, keep it safe…keep it casual.

 

by Bruce Gray – Casual Encounters
@bgray8791 on Twitter
 

 

 

comments
Three Kings Loot - January 7, 2014

M15 Core set spoiler- Card Gallery, Release notes and Artwork

Garruk M15 Core Set  Art 2M15 Core set spoiler- M15 Logo

Set Name Magic 2015—Core Set
Number of Cards 269
Prerelease Events July 12-13, 2014
Release Date July 18, 2014
Launch Weekend July 18-20, 2014
Game Day August 9-10, 2014
Magic Online Prerelease Events July 25-27, 2014
Magic Online Release Date July 28, 2014
Pro Tour Magic 2015 August 1-3, 2014
Pro Tour Magic 2015Location Portland, Oregon, USA
Pro Tour Magic 2015Formats Swiss:

  • Standard
  • Magic 2015 Draft

Top 8:

  • Standard
Official Three-Letter Code M15
Twitter Hashtag #MTGM15
Initial Concept and Game Design Aaron Forsythe (lead)
Max McCall
Shawn Main
Mike Gills
Jenna Helland
Final Game Design and Development Billy Moreno (lead)
Shawn Main
Adam Lee
Tom LaPille
Sam Stoddard
Languages English, Chinese Simplified, Chinese Traditional, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish
Available in Booster Packs, Intro Packs*, Clash Pack*, Fat Pack*

(* – Not available in all languages)

M15 Core set spoiler-  M15 symbol

[Set Review click here]

M15 Core set spoiler

White

 

Aegis AngelAjani's pridemateAjani the SteadfastAvacyn, Guardian Angelbattle masteryBoonweaver GiantcongregateDauntless River MarshalM15 Core set spoiler- Devouring LightM15 Core set spoiler- Divine FavorDivine VerdictEphemeral Shieldsfirst Responsegeist of the moorsHeliod's PilgrimHushwing GryffM15 Core set spoiler- Inspired ChargeKinsbaile SkirmisherMass CalcifyMarked by HonorMeditation PuzzleMidnight Guardoppressive raysoreskos swift clawParagon of New Dawnspillar of lightPreeminent CaptainPrismatic RuneguardRaise the AlarmRazorfoot GriffinResolute ArchangelReturn to the Rankssanctified chargeSelfless CatharSeraph of the MassesSerra AngelSolemn OfferingSoulmenderSoul of TherosSpirit Bondssungrace pegasusTriplicate SpiritsWall of EssenceWarden of the Beyond

Blue

Aeronaut TinkererAetherspoutsAmphin pathmageCancelChasm SkulkerChief EngineerChronostutterCoral BarrierdissipatedivinationEncrustEnsoul ArtifactFrost LynxFugitive Wizardglacial crasherhydrosurgeIllusory AngelInto the VoidinvisibilityJace, the Living GuildpactJace's IngenuityJalira, Master PolymorphistJorubai Murk LurkerKapsho KitefinsM15 Core set spoiler- Nimbus of the IslesMahamoti DjinnMaster of PredicamentsMercurial PretenderMilitary Intelligencemind sculptNegateParagon of Gathering MistsPeel from RealityQuicklingResearch AssistantSoul of Ravnicastatute of denialStormtide LeviathanM15 Core set spoiler- Turn to FrogVoid SnareM15 Core set spoiler- Wall of FrostWelkin Tern

Black

Accursed SpiritBlack Catblood hostcarrion crowCaustic TarChild of NightCovenant of BloodCrippling BlightEndless Obedienceeternal thirstfeast on the fallenFestergloomFlesh to DustGravediggerIndulgent TormentorLeeching SliverLiliana Vessnecrobitenecrogen scudderNecromancer's AssistantNecromancer's StockpileNightfire GiantOb Nixilis, Unshackledparagon of open gravesRotfeaster MaggotSengir VampireShadowcloak VampireSign in BloodSoul of InnistradStab WoundUlcerateunmake the graveswall of limbsWaste NotWitch's FamiliarXathrid Slyblade

Red

Act on ImpulseAggressive Miningaltac bloodseekerbelligerent sliverblastfire boltBorderland MarauderBrood KeeperBurning AngerChandra, Pyromastercircle of flameClear a PathCone of Flamecrowds favorCrucible of Fireforge devilFoundry Street Denizenfrenzied goblinFurnace WhelpGenerator ServantGoblin KaboomistGoblin RabblemasterGoblin RoughriderhammerhandHeat RayHoarding DragonInferno FistKird ChieftainKurkesh, Onakke AncientLava AxeLightning StrikeMiner's BaneRummagin GoblinParagaon of Fierce Defiancescrapyard mongrelSeismic StrikeShrapnel BlastShivan DragonSiege DragonSoul of ShandalarStoke the FlamesThundering GiantMight of the TyrantsTorch Fiend

Green

carnivorous moss-beastCentaur CourserCharginf RhinoChord of CallingElvish mysticferal incarnationGarruk's PackleaderGather CourageGenesis HydraHornet NestHornet QueenHunter's AmbushHunt the weakInvasive SpeciesKalonian TwingroveLife's Legacyliving totemNaturalizenetcaster spiderNissa, Worldwakernissa's expeditionOverwhelmPlummetParagon of Eternal WildsPhytotitanranger's guileReclamation SageRestocksatyr wayfinderShaman of the SpringSoul of ZendikarSunblade Elfundergrowth scavengervenom sliververdant havenvineweftYisan, the Wanderer Bard

Artifact

Avarice AmuletBrawler's PlateBronze SableConstricting SliverGargoyle SentinelGrindclockhaunted plate mailJuggernautOrnithopterObelisk of UrdHot SoupMeteoritePerilous VaultPhyrexian Revokerprofane mementorogue's glovessacred armoryScuttling Doom EngineShield of the AvatarSoul of New PhyrexiaStaff of the Death MagusStaff of the Flame MagusStaff of the Mind MagusStaff of the Sun MagusStaff of the Wild MagusThe Chain Veiltormod's crypttyrant's machinewill forged golem

Multicolored

Garruk, Apex PredatorSliver Hivelord

Lands

Battlefield ForgeCaves of KoilosLlanowar WastesShivan ReefYavimaya CoastDarksteel CitadelEvolving WildsForest 1Forest 2Forest 3Forest 4Island 1Island 2Island 3Island 4Mountain  2Mountain 1Mountain 3Mountain 4Plains 1Plains 2Plains 3Plains 4Radiant FountainSliver HiveSwamp 1Swamp 2Swamp 3Swamp 4Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth

Tokens

Beast (Green) Token Beast Token Dragon Token Emblem Ajani Token Emblem Garruk Token Goblin Token Insect Token Land Mine Token Sliver Token Soldier Token Spirit Token Squid Token Treefolk Warrior Token Zombie Token

Duels of the Planeswalkers 2015 Promo pack

Soul of ZendikarSoul of Ravnica - Promo

M15 Core set Artwork

 m15 core set spoiler- Garruk the slayer m15 core set spoiler- Hot Soup m15 core set spoiler Art 2 m15 core set spoiler Art 3 m15 core set spoiler - Peel from Reality M15 core set spoiler- Soul of Shandalar

Spectra WardSoul of new phyrexiaGarruk M15 Artwork

M15 Core set spoiler-  Three Kings Loot M15 pre-Orders