abhendrix

[abhendrix]

Best Burn Deck in Modern?

So I was thinking about Burn in Modern, and it occurs to me Goblin Guide might suck.  Wait…before you turn my twitter feed into a garbage fire, hear me out.  The Philosophy of Fire dictates the cards that go in a burn deck, right?  So, if I were to compare Goblin Guide to something like Bloodghast, it could be argued that Bloodghast beats it because the Guide increases the likelihood of having a land in your hand, and late game the Bloodghast will also have haste.

“But..” I can hear you say “Bloodghast is a 2 drop, you can’t compare the two!”  Too true, too true, but follow me a bit further out on this limb….

…and watch while I proceed to saw it off.  

What if the best burn deck in Modern isn’t Mono-Red?  What if it isn’t Boros Burn?…What if it’s Rakdos?

“HA! Now you’re just a complete ignoramus!  Everyone knows the best 2 color burn spell is Lightning Helix!  Go die in a fire you noob!”

Ok, ok, I admit it sounds like lunacy but there was a fellow who championed what I would argue is an excellent Burn deck.  A Spikey fellow who used it to  grind the SCG Tour, and who no longer plays much competitively because he now works with he-who-must-not-be-named.  If you haven’t guessed already, I’ll give you a clue, the deck curves into Liliana of the Veil.

Now, my (admittedly unenlightened) beef with Liliana of the Veil is that, from a Philosophy of Fire perspective, she doesn’t really do all that much other than control the board and enable your 1 drops to be Shocks and Lightning Bolts.  Mr. Ross makes a great argument for going mono-colored, but what would happen if you pushed the Philosophy of Fire and gave 8-Rack access to red?  Does that Liliana turn into an Eidolon of the Great Revels?  Perhaps, but I’ll leave that to the experts.

I do know one thing, in a deck that runs a playset of Smallpox, Goblin Guide sucks.

I’m just sayin’…

@andrewbhendrix

[abhendrix]

Very nice! I had no idea there could be so much potential in the MTG/DND crossover thing.

Unusual Planeswalkers: Mordenkainen

In this series of posts we will look at characters depicted in different forms of media connected to Dungeons & Dragons and examine what they would be doing on the plane of Ravnica, how they got there and what their goals would be! This will not be a comprehensive review of the character’s life and backstory, I am just going to try to get you through enough so that you can confidently use this character if you so choose. Now with that is out of the way let us talk about the ninth member of the circle of eight and that groups founder Mordenkainen.

Who is Mordenkainen?

Mordenkainen is powerful Mage from the realm of greyhawk, where he is known as one of the most powerful Mages to ever exist on that plane of existence. He was the creation of Gary Gygax one of the founders of Dungeons & Dragons, but when TSR gained control of the brand they wove him into the settings of Dungeons & Dragons as one of the key iconic characters in their settings.

Mordenkainen is the founder of two different societies, the now-defunct Citadel of Eight a group of Heroes who fell apart due to differences ideologies and the Circle of Eight a group of Mages that were to keep order over the realm of greyhawk. The Circle of Eight was destroyed by the machinations of Vecna, but they were revived by mordenkainen through the use of the clone spell. Over the years members have died or fallen to either the sides of good or evil, when this happens mordenkainen finds a replacement so that the number always remains eight members.

Mordenkainen has a strict philosophy of neutrality, he does not care about good or evil merely that the balance is maintained. He seems to be quite sociable as in addition to the organization he forges he commonly comes to the plane of existence known as Earth speak with Mages from other dimension such as Elminster(from the Forgotten Realms), Dalamar(from dragonlance) and Ed Greenwood(from…….Earth?). He seems to prefer the company of Mages and creative types, seeing others as beneath him. He’s is depicted as stubborn and and being unable to tolerate fools, this makes making allies difficult for him.

During the events of “Curse of Strahd” we learned that after being brought to the cursed realm of Barovia he lost a conflict with the demiplane of dreads owner Strahd Von Zarovich and was thrown from a cliff into a river after his defeat. He was not killed by this, but did lose his staff, spell book and was given a form of insanity induced paranoia. After the dread vampire was defeated it appears that he traveled to Waterdeep(Forgotten Realms) where the Mages Storm Silverhand and Elminster have been taking care of him. If “Volos guide to monsters” can be considered Canon it is possible that while in the Forgotten Realms mordenkainen wrote the book “ mordenkainen’s Tome of foes”.

Over the years he has created many spells such as mordenkainen’s magnificent mansion, mordenkainen’s disjunction and mordenkainen’s faithful Hound. These are key spells in Dungeons & Dragons, if you like in your version of Ravnica perhaps a planeswalker introduce these spells to Ravnica. If you would rather keep the connection to mordenkainen away from your version of Ravnica you can change the spells to mage’s x for example Mage’s magnificent mansion and so on. If looking for stats for mordenkainen I would suggest looking on page 39 of curse of strahd where they suggest a modified archmage stat block for the character.

What colors would mordenkainen be?

Mordenkainen prizes intelligence over all other things and they are a wizard of the highest degree, both of these push the argument towards blue side of the color spectrum. He believes in forming organizations for the betterment of the Multiverse as a whole, but also prefers underhanded tactics and working in the shadows, in addition to being blue is tertiary colors would be white and black.

Esper the name for the color combination of blue, white, and black is all about control magic which also fits the mage.

Why Would Mordenkainen Be on Ravnica?

With mordenkainen obsession with order and the Multiverse he might view Ravnica and it’s guilds as an anomaly, Wondering how these 10 opposing factions have somehow for over a millennia managed to keep balance between each other. His studies on Ravnica might lead him to learning about guildpact which might further his curiosity leading him to learn more about it and its creator and the current living.

One of them mordenkainen obsessions while on Ravnica might be trying to find out more about the creator of the guildpact the mysterious Azor the first. Trying to find Clues in the ancient streets and writings of Ravnica, this might lead him into trouble with the guilds as he would show no regard for Guild property or rules. if he discovers that Azor I was a planeswalker this might lead him to find other world the Sphinx could have interacted with. 

In many of his appearances mordenkainen takes the disguise of a humble Merchant, it would not be too strange for him to do the same on Ravnica. Using this guise he could investigate the guilds and the guildpact more closely and without suspicion. It is possible that he might hire assistance and agents to do some of the investigation for him.

Unfortunately throughout his years of traveling the Multiverse he has attracted many enemies. While distracted on Ravnica one of these enemies might view it as an ideal opportunity to try to remove this neutralist from the battlefield, using the guilds as agents against the mage. If you choose this route some of his enemies you could use include Evard, Vecna, Sir Robilar, Strahd Von Zarovich or another villain of your choice or creation that crossed path the archmage while he travel the Multiverse.

Mordenkainen and the Guilds

It is possible that mordenkainen might join one of the guilds to gain more access to information that he needs or simply to maneuver himself in a position of power, but it is unlikely. he would give up the autonomy of being a free agent in the city if he joined a guild. If you take the story line of him curious about the guilds and their balance he might want research on the more chaotic guilds how they contribute to the guilds. In this section of the post we will look at the key guilds he might interact with on a more personal level.

Azorius Senate

Mordenkainen would use the endless libraries and records of the azorius Senate as a key point in his research. It is possible that he would perhaps side with the azorius due to their strive to keep peace and Order throughout Ravnica. he might also use their records to gain access to what is known about the original GuildPact and perhaps even to reach Jace Beleren, the living Guildpact and learn about the magical contract from a living source of it.

House Dimir

It is not a secret that mordenkainen is not the most moral person, upon learning of house dimir and their secretive operations it would be no surprise if mordenkainen what attempt to infiltrate their ranks. this would be to learn more about this shadowy organization and if they pose threat to Ravnica or the greater Multiverse. Depending on how you run him he could ally himself with the Guild of Secrets or become their greatest enemy.

Izzet League

Mordenkainen respect intelligence above all other things he believes calm level-headedness is the key to overcoming any challenges, this is why he would be conflicted when faced with the Reckless genius of the Izzet. On one hand they are the greatest Minds on Ravnica, on the other hand they are destructive, chaotic and Care little for the rest of the city. It is possible Mordenkainen would seek audience with Niv-mizzet the parun of the Izzet and Bar None most intelligent creature on the plane for advice and information on the subject’s he researches.

How could you use Mordenkainen in your game?

In this section of the post I will be listing ways that perhaps you could use mordenkainen in your game, without further ado…

While exploring on Ravnica mordenkainen has unfortunately drawing the attention of one of his adversaries. If the player characters do not intervene the conflict between these two powerful entities might threaten the balance of power on Ravnica. They must pick a side or find some other solution to end this battle before it begins.

Mordenkainen acts as a patron towards the party as he investigates the city and its Mysteries he will send the PCs out on missions that will help him unravel the information he seeks. If the PCs are aware of his identity is up to the DM themselves, it could be a great reveal later in the game.

The player characters must seek out mordenkainen for information that only he is aware of due to his investigation. Unfortunately he was caught trespassing by the boros legion, who now have him locked away and one of their Sky prisons the PCS must plan a daring jailbreak!

Mordenkainen is looking for new apprentices on Ravnica, he has chosen a member of your party and will now test your group to see if in his eyes the number is Worthy.

Mordenkainen is the antagonist of your campaign through his research he has learned a way to replicate the guildpact and now plans on unleashing his own version which will violently reshape Ravnica to his whims! The PCS must unravel his plot and stop him before he is able to complete the work on his magic contract and unmake the city itself!

This was something fun and different I have a few ideas for other characters I would like to do this with, if you have any idea please send it my way I would love to check it out! Thank you for reading and may your guild prosper!

[abhendrix]

Niv-Mizzet

“Niv-Mizzet, the original parun of the Izzet League and its guildmaster, is a fifteen-thousand-year-old, vain, superintelligent, and increasingly paranoid dragon. Normally he is cagey and aloof, but as tensions in Ravnica have grown, he has focused with manic intensity on a mysterious and private project. Niv-Mizzet has always been fascinated with the physics of magic, and the Firemind has long suspected that some great well of knowledge was just beyond his awareness. If he were to ever discover the nature of the Multiverse, it would spell trouble for Planeswalkers, including Ral Zarek, who has hidden his own nature for years within the guild.” - Guilds of Ravnica Player’s Guide

Art by Svetlin Velinov

[abhendrix]

Mtg Flash Fan Fiction Prompt (Week 8)

Greetings everyone, let me welcome you back to a new prompt! Because of technical difficulties, I’m posting this a day and about an hour later than usual. I apologize! Today’s card is again from Guilds of Ravnica, it’s a card I was very excited to try out when it was spoiled, and, as @vorthos-blue-mage guessed and @askkrenko seconded, it’s Omnispell Adept!

Why did I choose this card? Well, the flavor text really tells you everything! A child prodigy expert in spellcasting and memorization that quizzes sphinxes?? I must know more about this person! Also I thought it would be interesting to choose a card that’s not explicitly aligned to a guild. Thematically she’s closest to Izzet I believe, but nothing in her design or magic confirms this, she is probably guildless (though if you want to affiliate her to a guild in your story that’s perfectly ok!!) Here’s the full art!

Look at that pose! That confidence! That Moana-esque water behind her! What is she doing? Why? What are her goals? Well, my friends, that’s entirely up to you to decide! Make this gal proud!

Reblog this post with your submission and tag it as #mtg flash fan fic so it can be found easily, and remember that this is flash fiction, so your story can’t have more than 1000 words in it! Also, remember to include this note at the beginning or end of your work: “[Title of your Fan Content] is unofficial Fan Content permitted under the Fan Content Policy. Not approved/endorsed by Wizards. Portions of the materials used are property of Wizards of the Coast. ©Wizards of the Coast LLC.”

Please reblog so we can reach as many people as possible!

[abhendrix]

Good Guy : FaceToFace Games, Toronto

When I’m in Toronto, this is a good enough reason (from a leaked eMail) to patronise the store.  Also - the Reddit comments gave us a guffaw …

[abhendrix]

He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named wants to know...

A Couple Questions

I was hoping you guys could help me gather some data to settle a conversation we’ve been having.

1) What is your favorite Magic color?

2) How long have you been playing Magic rounded to the nearest year?

[abhendrix]

Best Burn Deck in Modern?

So I was thinking about Burn in Modern, and it occurs to me Goblin Guide might suck.  Wait...before you turn my twitter feed into a garbage fire, hear me out.  The Philosophy of Fire dictates the cards that go in a burn deck, right?  So, if I were to compare Goblin Guide to something like Bloodghast, it could be argued that Bloodghast beats it because the Guide increases the likelihood of having a land in your hand, and late game the Bloodghast will also have haste.

“But..” I can hear you say “Bloodghast is a 2 drop, you can’t compare the two!”  Too true, too true, but follow me a bit further out on this limb....

...and watch while I proceed to saw it off.  

What if the best burn deck in Modern isn’t Mono-Red?  What if it isn’t Boros Burn?...What if it’s Rakdos?

“HA! Now you’re just a complete ignoramus!  Everyone knows the best 2 color burn spell is Lightning Helix!  Go die in a fire you noob!”

Ok, ok, I admit it sounds like lunacy but there was a fellow who championed what I would argue is an excellent Burn deck.  A Spikey fellow who used it to  grind the SCG Tour, and who no longer plays much competitively because he now works with he-who-must-not-be-named.  If you haven’t guessed already, I’ll give you a clue, the deck curves into Liliana of the Veil.

Now, my (admittedly unenlightened) beef with Liliana of the Veil is that, from a Philosophy of Fire perspective, she doesn’t really do all that much other than control the board and enable your 1 drops to be Shocks and Lightning Bolts.  Mr. Ross makes a great argument for going mono-colored, but what would happen if you pushed the Philosophy of Fire and gave 8-Rack access to red?  Does that Liliana turn into an Eidolon of the Great Revels?  Perhaps, but I’ll leave that to the experts.

I do know one thing, in a deck that runs a playset of Smallpox, Goblin Guide sucks.

I’m just sayin’...

@andrewbhendrix