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inventors-fair · 3 years ago

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First Name, Last Name, Occupation Commentary

You guys really swung for the fences for this one. I was inspired to run this by fun little cards like Cat Warriors, Goblin Assassin, and Dragon Turtle. Cards that do one type by way of another. You guys, for the most part, tried to get as weird as possible, more akin to Urza’s Saga. I purposefully left it open ended to allow non-creatures, but I did not expect about half the cards to be a type other than creature. Some people in the Discord tried to break the rules even more than that. Personally, I wish there were more simple creatures, but I’m happy with what I got.

So without further ado, here’s the commentary! They’re alphabetical by submitter’s tumblr name or preferred credit.

@alextfish - Fractal Fish

Holy moly that’s some fish, visually and mechanically. So let me try to parse this: the first time, you attack, get two fish, then next time you turn those two fish (which hopefully also got in for damage) into two counters. So every other turn it doubles the number of counters, assuming you get in with it every time. At a minimum, it’s a little Tana/Living Hive that can’t be used moe than once. It feels weird for this effect to be in blue, though I get why from a flavor perspective. This does feel like a fish, though, and it definitely feels like a fractal. This card feels top down, which is fine, but I’m just not super into it. It feels unnecessarily complex for an effect that you probably only want to trigger once, maybe twice. I still think it’s really cool.

Allie - Urza’s Treasure

It’s a bit of a stretch to have a land named “Urza’s Treasure” but it’s less of a stretch than urza’s saga, so you’re good. The idea of a treasure land in general is cool to me: it’s worse than Tendo Ice Bridge and Aether Hub, but the artifact synergy is notable. Then we get to the last ability: this card is a mox opal. Or maybe a glimmer void? There are a lot of comparisons, but I don’t know which is the most appropriate. A land that effectively doesn’t tap for mana unless you have metalcraft seems awful, but I’ve seen enough affinity to know that that won’t slow it down a bit. So this is essentially a card that’s only good for broken decks, and honestly, I don’t think they need the help. I think the fact that it’s so all or nothing is a bit of a deal breaker. Every part of this card is either massive downside, massive upside, or both. You could argue that makes it balanced, but I’d argue it just makes it broken. I also wish the “Urza’s” part of the typeline played into it more, but I realize the type doesn’t have much of a mechanical throughline.

@arixordragc - Warrior Dragon

Ooh, a bold choice. Dragon Warrior and Warrior Dragon send two completely different feels, and this one is definitely the cooler one. Six mana 6/6 flyer is a good rate, but not so good it doesn’t get good abilities. The abilities it gets are a ghostly prison and two circle of flames. I really like how they both have a similar feels: 2 damage and two mana. However, I think the two abilities are att odds. If you need one, you probably don’t need the other. If your opponent has a lot of 1/1 or 2/2 creatures, they won’t be able to pay 2 for each them, and if they do, they’d just die. The damage does have a little bit of meaning, though, because if they attack with a big creature you don’t have to deals as much damage to it. I also just would have expected a warrior dragon to be more offensive than defensive. This feels more like a guard or defender rather than a warrior. So it might be better to have one be offense and one be defensive. Perhaps one ability could affect blockers and one attackers? This is a good card, and a cool set of effects, I just think it needs to work on multiple angles. I also think this could be a rare: it’s not so powerful you wouldn’t want it appearing more often in packs, and it’s not too complex.

@bread-into-toast - Zombie Mole

I like the flavor of a zombie mole, since it’s already in the dirt. I do think this sounds better than your original entry, Graveborn Mole, but I think the old one told a more complete story. The card itself is pretty neat, it’s a classic red black aggro card with a big body and a risk payoff. There’s some stuff I don’t like about it. First, sacrificing a land is one of those things that players don’t realize how bad it is for you, so this could lead to a lot of players screwing themselves over, especially if it’s as uncommon. Second, the fact that it can be recast with it’s own trigger, such as when you attack, sac a land, let it die, and then get it back because you had a land die is a bit too synergistic, especially because it gets him back untapped. This means that you have a 5/5 on turn two that if you somehow get to kill by blocking they can just pay two to save and untap it. Again, at uncommon, this is very strong, even if the downside is also very strong. The design as a whole is pretty cool, but I think it’s going to lead to a lot of unhappy players on one or both sides of the field. As a final note, I really liked that you put some art direction in the submission (for those at home, it said “Mood: a giant undead mole attacks, startling the giant (living) moles and miners around it”). It’s a cool way to get a lot of the benefits of art without having to make your own or go hunting.

@charmera - Giant Golem Knight

I think the name here is pretty close. It feels a little awkward to say, but I’ve seen worse. The card is a little weak and a little poorly templated, but nothing that can’t be fixed. For the templating issue, I think telling a player they can’t do something then telling them they can in a different place doesn’t work. Cards like Manor Gargoyle that do this just remove Defender. Since this also says can’t block, though, you’d need something different. I might suggest just changing it to “~ can’t attack or block unless you sacrificed an artifact this turn.” It would power it up just a little in the process, but I think that’s called for. A 6 mana 6/7 is not really above the curve, and the activated ability is hard enough to activate that it doesn’t really pump up the power level of the card as a whole. Vigilance also seems weird on a card that needs to pay to both attack and block. I could see a specific format being able to break this card, but as something you’d see in a core set, it would need a lot of support to see play. I really like the design and concept, it just needs to be rebalanced a bit.

@col-seaker-of-the-memiest-legion - Arcane Trap

So, this one is interesting to me. The base rate on this card is good. Glimmer of Genius and Glimpse the multiverse are both super playable and both have a little something extra. In this case, the little something extra is the trap text, and the idea of repeating this card with arcane spells is pretty enticing for the decks that would play it. But there’s something missing here: the trap text doesn’t feel trappy. It’s a bonus, sure, but if you look at all of the existing traps in the game, the difference between hard casting and trap casting is usually massive, sometimes the entire cost! This instead reminds me more of “gotcha!” from unhinged, where the punishment for a player doing something is that you get a card back from your graveyard. It also doesn’t feel very trap-like because it doesn’t punish a player doing the trap-thing. Usually if an opponent is drawing cards it’s a good idea to out-draw them, and splicing helps with that, but it’s not like this is the “ha, you fool!” card that most traps are. It’s just a little bonus. Like when your opponent adds to your storm count. Functionally, I think this card is cool and feels unique, but doesn’t quite feel like it’s representing its types well. Also, nice job giving trap card art to a trap card.

@davriel-canes-tea-supplier - Hellion Demon

You did this for the pun and you know it. Demon straight out of hell...ion. I’d love to see what this guy would end up looking like (not gonna dock points for that or anything, just on my mind). So first, the templating. You don’t need to tell them to sacrifice a totla of X, since X is undefined at that point. You can just say “you may sacrifice any number of creatures. If you do, ~ gets +X/+X until end of turn and deals X damage to target creature you don’t control, where X is the total power of creatures sacrificed this way.” I also might suggest swapping it to a reflexive trigger, AKA swapping “if you do” with “when you do,” which means your opponent will be able to respond after knowing what you sacrificed. Right now, you could target one of their creatures on attacking, then they wouldn’t know what you’re sacing to do it until after they decide if they want to protect their creature. Then again, maybe that’s for the best, since it would also mean if they bounce their own creature in response, you don’t have to sacrifice anything because it wouldn’t do anything. And actually the trigger would be stifled anyway because it has no targets, which is awkward if you were planning to just use it as a pump. What I’m trying to say is that this card has an incredibly complex trigger with a lot of pieces going on. I think it might be worth it, though, because this is a cool effect. A mix between a fling and a nantuko shade effect. It’s a really cool concept, but it’s doing so much that it doesn’t do a great job at mimicking either, and in the end I just wish it had two different abilities that were linked or something easier to parse.

@Deg99 - Instant Trap

Okay, this is a silly card, and I’ll judge it as such. The blue = water is flavorfully pretty fun and funny, but color hate is always going to perform a little weird. But traps are famous for that! Usually, though, traps care about colors if they are built to be good against that color, and in this case, maybe? I don’t know if casting a free trap is particularly good against blue, so I’m firmly putting the trap text in trinket text land. The card itself does exactly what you��d expect. It tutors and plays a trap. Instantly. None of the traps in the game are super powerful, so you’re kind of avoiding the usual tutor issue of always searching for the same card / having exactly one tutor target that’s good. This is especially cool because the traps are by design extremely situational, so having this as a toolbox option is actually kind of useful. I think you’d usually end up getting needlebite trap, lavaball trap, or maybe mindbreak trap because it would be good in the matchup anyway. As a whole, this card is both kind of silly and kind of cool. I like it, but I wish there was some way to make this more interesting.

@demimonde-semigoddess - Droning Licid

Wait a second, did you just make licids make sense? Putting bestow on a licid makes it feel just like a licid. Turning drone into droning is pretty clever, though you got the types backwards on the typeline. Granting abilities not on the normal creature is something we saw just the barest amount of bestow cards back in OG Theros block. The eldraziness of it I wish was more relevant. I love the idea of using colorless as the alternate cost, since colorless is sort of treated like a bonus, not a given, especially in limited. But the two abilities need keywords. I played that block a lot, and even I kind of forgot what they did. It’s also weird that it grants devoid, but doesn’t have it itself. You could have even given it a colorless mana cost, since nothing it does is particularly black. Every ability on the card was in every color (yes, even devoid, you know what I mean). If this was a purely colorless card it’d be cool, but it’s fine in black. This card has a lot of things meant to make other things easier (enchantments for constellation, devoid for colorless matters, ingest for processing, bestow for heroic), so I’m super curious what set this would go in! But in a normal set, this is just a really weird card. I still think it’s neat, and again I’ll reiterate I’m happy you made a sensible licid, I’m just a little confused by its existence.

@dimestoretajic - Hag Fish

A hag fish is a real thing, and a hag that is a fish is what we have here. This card seems pretty powerful. It’s somewhere between a thallid and a tendershoot dryad and an ant queen. I wish the slime counters had some other use, like granting hexproof or unblockable or something. It would up the power level, which I don’t think this card needs, but it would make it feel more like it was slime on her rather than slime coming off of here. On a grander design level, I think this card requires a lot of paying attention for very little benefit. You get slime counters quickly enough you’ll rarely run out of them, but you will just often enough that you do. The tokens have evolve, which is a hard trigger to remember some times, especially on tokens that you might not have printed versions of. Plus, putting dice on tokens is also hard, since some players use dice for tokens. So while the card’s flavor and concept is pretty cool, I think it’s too complex for how simple it wants to be.

@fractured-infinity - Treasure Goblin

I’ve been told this is a reference, but sadly I don’t get it. Instead, I get golden goblins. The fail state on this card is still pretty good. A 2/1 haste for two mana ain’t nothing! And just using it as a bad skirk prospector can be useful too. I like the utility of it, too, in that once you are unable to attack with it as a 2/1, you can sacrifice it for mana to power out a flying dragon or something. This card isn’t super exciting, but it certainly gets the job done.

@gollumni - Gold Drake

Gold: the long lost parent of treasure. I didn’t even know that it had been errata'd to be its own artifact type. Anyway, the card itself is a reference to gilded drake. It even got hit by the card Gild! However, gilded drake is a super broken card! This is worse in the sense that it costs one extra mana and you ramp your opponent, but the artifact typing makes it easier to tutor and cheat into play, or to kill. Also, the way the last ability is phrased, I think you can sacrifice it to the gold ability and still get your opponent’s creature. If it said “exchange,” it wouldn’t, because exchanging needs both things in play. So this is a three mana permanent control magic that gives you one mana back immediately. I don’t think that was the intent.

@grornt - Skeleton Samurai

Now that is a skeleton samurai! It reanimates itself like a skeleton, it bushidos like a samurai. Three mana feels pretty good for it, since it fights as a 4/3. Now, normally, skeletons enter the battlefield tapped, but I understand not wanting to do that here. After all, it’s got bushido, blocking is a huge part of that! But the reason cards like this enter tapped is to stop you from blocking with it every turn and stonewalling your opponent. But how often is that? Well, this is where it gets tricky. Depending on the standard format, losing life on your own turn is either something you have to build around or effortless. In formats with shocklands, painlands, fetchlands, or even a single mana confluence, you’ll be casting this essentially for free. So assuming it’s in something like current standard, where it’s a little tough, maybe this guy is okay. I just worry about a 4/3 blocker that can’t be easily killed. But I guess that’s why you put it at rare, which was a good choice, but I think almost every player would be disappointed to find this creature as their rare. I do love the name and effects of this card as a pair, but I think it could lead to frustrating games.

@helloijustreadyourpost - Phyrexian Druid

This card has a lot of style and flair, but I’m a little cautious of it. A good comparison point for this card is Oasis Ritualist. Both can tap for one mana or two mana but at a higher cost. The mana cost and body are an important difference, and I think might balance each other out, as well as the fact that the phyrexian can only tap for green or green black. I do like that it implies that the set leans black, which feels right for return to new phyrexia. I’m having a little bit of difficulty judging power level: the life payment doesn’t really power down the card that much, but we’ve seen double ramp at 3 mana before, albeit never this versatile or at common. Still, maybe it’s fine in 2021 magic? After all, this is new phyrexia we’re talking about. Speaking of, I like how the life payment mimics phyrexian mana, and specifically phyrexian black mana. That’s a cool bonus for experienced players. I think this is a very well designed card, but I’d be very scared to print it unless I was certain there weren’t any green 6 drops at common that would be oppressive to the format when played on turn 3.

@hypexion - Skeleton Knight

Undead in white are something I wish we’d see more of. The idea of duty extending beyond life feels super white, but is only ever represented in spirits. But here we have a skeleton! I like the base body, and it does feel pretty skeletonny, though the knight aspect is a little weak. Vigilance is cool but at 1 toughness I don’t know how often it will be able to attack and still block. The reanimation clause is also a little funky, since it returns it to play on attacks, but doesn’t put it into play attacking as I’d expect. It’s also odd that it comes back tapped, though for gameplay reasons I understand. You don’t want to give players a creature that can block for free every turn. Templating-wise, I should also bring up that there needs to be and “if ~ is in your graveyard” between the words “knights” and “you may.” I’m using cards like Auntie’s Snitch and Master of Death for reference there. My final thoughts on the card is that it’s fine, but the two types don’t mesh as well together as I had hoped.

@i-am-the-one-who-wololoes - Spirit Shade

What a strange little creature. Shades are weird, because their signature ability is incredibly powerful and they need a pretty big downside to make them balanced. In your case, tying them to swamps is pretty clever! They already like swamps because of their heavy black costs, so this is a cool way to reinforce that. I still think this is pretty aggressive for a common, but I might be being a little too cautious. My bigger complaint is how awkwardly the sludge counters feel. This is a creature who’s already going to be tough to track since it’s constantly changing P/T, so having counters on it that change a bunch is a lot of complexity, especially at common. If there were also +1/+1 counters in this set, this card would be impossible to track in paper. I also think I would have preferred the name the other way around, but I’ll admit that’s a preference. I like this card in general, but I wish it were more player-friendly.

@loreholdlesbian - Sand Elemental

Sand is a creature type not a lot of people expected, but I have a friend with a Hazezon Tamar deck so I knew. It’s a really clever answer to the prompt, especially since you’re using the word “sand” as an adjective, but it is still also made out of sand! A colorless 3 mana 3/2 is good power level for a common I think, and the ability on it is tough enough to make work that it doesn’t push the card too hard. The fact that it’s asking you to pay 7 mana also means that, so long as you have at least a few deserts in your deck, you’re probably going to have one in play or in your graveyard. The graveyard clause fits the theme of other desert cards, but I don’t know if you’d need in a theoretical future set with deserts. Their inclusion in Amonkhet block was mostly so players wouldn’t feel bad for cycling their deserts in the early game. But hey, maybe that’s just what deserts are now! So as a whole I think this card is pretty well designed, if a bit bland, but it works well with the theme of the week and possibly the set it's in. Good work!

@morbidlyqueerious - Nightmare Spider

This card has a lot going on. The name feels okay. It’s a little odd, but it works in context. The ability feels creepy and scary, which is both a nightmare thing and a spider thing, but a spider without reach will always feel strange. As the for the ability, it needs a little work. There’s some strangeness with the revealing. It only really matters during a multiplayer game, otherwise just revealing every draw would be simpler and save some text, which I think this card needs. Second is the split payment: you lose 1 life, but you also pay two mana. One is optional, one isn’t, and one is 1 and one is 2. I could see this getting confusing to players. I could see swapping some things around to either make them all optional, all life, and/or all 2’s. Lastly, and this is the important one, this card isn’t fun. WotC is pretty solid on not wanting fateseal effects in the game. It makes what is already a frustrating part of the game (the variance of topdecking) into a more frustrating part. Because of the mana payment, is also means that both players will probably end up doing nothing on their turn. The fact that it can’t hit lands is actually kind of odd. Often that’s what you’ll be doing with this card anyway: forcing them to draw lands. I also sort of wish you would have swapped the P/T. I know spiders usually have higher toughnesses, but I’d like this card if it were easily killable but would end the game quickly if it really did take control of the game. Plus, the fact that you keep losing life regardless of if you pay the two means this kind of has a downside that would be more fitting on an aggro card. So while I think it fits the theme of the contest pretty well, and flavorfully it feels very nightmarish and spidery, I worry that it’s too complex and could lead to frustrating games.

@nicolbolas96 - Urza’s Fortification

This is… a weird one. So, you have made a land that can attach to other lands. I would be much more okay with that if it couldn’t still tap for mana. As is, it performs more like soulbond, since both things can still do the same stuff, they just get a little better. I’d also like it to turn off the original because the ability it’s granting is bonkers. Paying three mana to turn a land into a tolarian academy is an incredibly low cost. The land itself being an artifact also means you don’t even get the normal downside of tolarian academy not tapping for anything if you don’t have another artifact. You can even attach it to a land, tap that land for mana, then use some of that mana to tap another land. This means once you have four other artifacts, each of your lands tap for two mana or more. Being legendary and coming into play tapped isn’t enough of a downside for that. This would be strong even in a modern horizons set. I will say this: I do love the flavor. This really feels like an Urza’s land, which is not easy to do. The idea of a land that moves to other lands and is also a machine somehow feels cool and flavorful, too.

@nine-effing-hells - Constructed Cleric

Remember when they printed an artifact cleric in Guild of Ravnica and no one knows why? Well, here’s a robot cleric that feels more clericy. The name is a great fit, and I love the flavor of it. The twobrid mana symbols are a cool way to make it feel more artifacty, but I think they weren’t particularly necessary. No one is going to play this in a colorless deck, and splashing for it doesn’t seem worth the effort. The difference between 4 and 8 mana for the activated ability is huge. So yes, I think this card would see play almost exclusively in mono-white decks. And how is it there? Pretty good! Granting lifelink to your whole board every turn is very powerful, it makes it nearly impossible to race, but you do need at least a bit of a board. I think this is a solic card in a lot of decks, pretty well balanced, so far as I can tell, and the only real issue I have with it is how weird the twobrid is in it.

@pocketvikings - Hamster Advisor

What a pleasant little fellow. Not something I’d normally expect to see in MtG, but I’ll let it slide. I wish there were some flavor text explaining what he’s advising me on. Is he just telling me not to eat my food? So this card is very similar to the card Tajurur Preserver, what with being two green and preventing sac effects (primarily a counter to annihilator), but this guy has the upside of making a food but the downside of turning off your own food. I might suggest using that card’s templating or Angel of Jubilation’s templating. Maybe “You can’t sacrifice permanents or discard cards to activate abilities,” then on another ability the text from Tajurur preserver but with discard added on. It seems strange to see this card at uncommon, since it feels mostly like it’s protecting you from very specific effects that may or may not be in the format. It’s actually a pretty big downside in some decks, like turning off fetchlands, and of course if you’re playing this in a food deck you won’t want in play for long. That’s cool, and we’ve seen that on some black cards like Priest of the Blood Rite. I think this card feels out of place in a lot of formats and a lot of decks in particular, but I’m interested in the implications of it.

@partly-cloudy-partly-fuckoff - Aetherborn Angel

This is one I didn’t see coming, but not in abad way. This feels like a natural name, and immediately conjures an image in my mind. The fact that both angels and aetherborn are sort of non-natural creatures makes he combination feel fitting, but them being opposites of the color pie and origin intrigues me. The card? It feels alright. Artifact matters seems pretty aetherborn-y, though that’s mostly just because they're in Kaladesh. Counters feel pretty angelly, but that’s usually just because white has +1/+1 counter themes all the time and big white creatures are often angels. What I’m trying to say is that while this does feel like it’s an aetherborn angel, it doesn’t feel like it’s THE aetherborn angel. But I still think the card has a place in whatever set it’s for. It seems powerful, and I like that it’s usually the best place to put your counters, but has some utility, plus I’m sure there are ways to go infinite, but when you’re paying seven mana for it that seems fair. I love powerful commons because there’s nothing saying a common can’t be powerful, just not complex, and while this does add a little strategic complexity, it’s not gonna burn any brains. This is a well made card.

@reaperfromtheabyss - Goblin Knight

It sure is. This feels pretty right on the money, not just because the name feels real and the creature types fit well, but because the text on the card feels like how a goblin would be a knight. They aren’t particularly any better at fighting or better equipped, but it at least can scare some people or keep them at a distance. I very rarely ever say this but I think there was room for flavor text here. I’d like to know how this goblin got in this position, and what they’re doing to stop creatures from blocking. The cost also seems great, perfectly in between fervent cathar and voldaren duelist.

@shootingstarhunter - Island Turtle [the 0/4]

One of two island turtles this week. So it’s a 0 mana 0/4 (or U if you count coming into play tapped as paying a cost). I think with literally no other text, that would be a pretty cool card, if a touch strong. There’s also the issues with land creatures, which there are some weird rules for that mostly just annoys judges more than players. However, you decided to put on some… interesting text. It can turn another land into a creature, one with a little bit more power and toughness. That seems… okay? I think if it had just said something like “Adapt 1: sacrifice a land” it would be almost identical mechanically but far, far easier to understand. I think you made this card to fit a very specific idea you had in your head, but I think you needed to step back and look at the final card and see if there was some way to make it simpler, or if not, what that extra complexity would get you.

@snugz - Island Turtle [the 0/2]

Interesting. I like the simplicity of it on the surface. It’s just a Dryad Arbor but with a little more toughness, and it’s blue. A 0 mana 0/2 is on curve, I think, though I don’t know what kind of deck would want it. It doesn’t block anything but the smallest of creatures, which decks you’d need to block against probably aren’t playing. But it can chump, and doesn’t die to 1 damage from stuff like Chandra Pyromaster or Goblin Chainwhirler, so that’s something. The reminder text is appreciated, though the “isn’t a spell” feels less necessary considering the first line, but reminder text can be there anyway! The first line I feel like is trying to fix something, but most of the issues with land creatures are about integrating them into the comprehensive rules, which Dryad Arbor is already forcing WotC to do. But I guess it has it’s uses here and there. Rules aside, I think this card is fine. Like I said, I’m not sure what decks would want this, but it’s unique enough I think someone could find a use for it.

@starch255 - Enchantment Class Saga

Oh boy, what did I do to deserve this? First, the elephant in the room, no one at wizard’s would ever call this Enchantment Class Saga. Is it supposed to be the story of a class about enchantments? Mechanically I guess it’s at least tied to everything. I don’t think I have to tell you this is too complicated. This has more words on it than a pack of homelands. I also don’t know if it’s phrased right, because we don’t even have the comprehensive rules for classes out yet. Setting X to a certain number at the top of the card also may or may not work? We’ve yet to see a saga with a static effect like that. I also think just playing it and waiting till turn four to level it up gives you a crazy amount of advantage, digging 4 cards deep every turn if you have another saga, plus getting through those sagas even quicker. I’m having an extremely difficult time judging this one, but I can at least say it’s too complicated, and that’s enough to keep it out of the running.

@thedirtside - Treasured Clue

This is a really cute card, but I don’t think it quite hits the mark (pun intended?). One mana for a treasure is kind of weird. We saw a lot of people thinking like that for a while with golden goose, which generated a mana on turn one and rarely did anything else, but let you ramp out a three-drop on turn two, and doing this on a colorless card just feels kind of dangerous, especially because being common means you could crack two on turn three for a 5 drop two turns early. But I also like the combination of the two types, since if you don’t need the treasure then you probably need the card. Reminds me of the Horizon lands. The name is also really close, better than some this week, but feels kind of forced. I wish there were a little more you could do with this guy to make him worth tacking on an extra mana. As is, it’s just a little too swingy to be fun.

@wolkemesser - Orgg Hag

I actually had to double check to see that these were both existing creature types, but lo and behold, they were. And they’re both pretty thematic! Orggs are just like big 4 armed goblins, and hags are I guess like witches? But now witches are warlocks. Anyway, the card. I think it’s alright. Trample feels very Orgg, lifelink feels haggy, but that last ability just seems odd. Orgg itself had an ability that cared about size, and the sort of curse flavor of it feels haggy, but it just feels so out of nowhere. I feels like if you removed the white mana in the cost and the ability it would feel just as appropriate a card. Humility in general also has a lot of rules issues that don’t really make them worth it unless they are on big, swingy cards, which this isn’t quite. Still as a whole I think the card is perfectly fine, but a bit off for this week’s contest.

And that’s everybody! If you want to get a hold of me, you can contact me on the Discord. Thanks again for entering! Good luck next week!

-Mod Mr. ShinyObject

#same name #commentary #custom magic card #mtg #magic the gathering #inventor's fair

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one-leaf-grimoire · 4 years ago

Text

“triad”

Chapter 17: the waning sun

Kind of a sad chapter? I mean that's nothing new tho. But fair warning: the death is of a character that some people like a lot :( Me included.

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My head still pounds as I take flight. My body wobbles, ungainly, as it’s still a little early for me to be moving around so much. Marx was right about that, at least. I squint a little against the bracing wind and bright sunlight. The sun is getting close to the western horizon. Yami and William are over there somewhere, along with the queen of the Heart Kingdom. Our enemy is over there.

No… they aren’t my enemies.

I turn my gaze back south, towards the green of the Heart Kingdom. Two words circle through my mind, again and again, endlessly pounding themselves into my brain along with the dull agony of my quickly approaching fate.

Patri…

Elysia.

A secluded village of elves located in the strong magic region to the southwest of the Heart Kingdom, that is where Patri and the third eye traveled to after the whole reincarnation incident. I can remember now, the request to leave. I was hesitant to agree, but in the end, I convinced myself not to care so much and to move on. Unneeded anger would just make my last hours unpleasant.

But now… that anger is needed. I close my eyes and focus on those moments before, where there was nothing I wanted more than to kill him with my own hands.

He… he killed Julius.

But it wasn’t his fault.

You can’t think about the Devil. Just him.

The memory of that dreadful moment floods back. Pain, searing through my heart as if I had been stabbed through with pure light. I remember how I screamed and writhed, and begged for it to end.

Julius… that pain… it was his.

I open my eyes. All my doubts are gone.

And Patri… you’re the one who gave him that pain.

Those same thoughts circle through my head, stoking a growing flame. A flame I need to burn away all pity and doubt that I might develop later, when the time comes. But even within this vicious spiral, my mind begins to wander.

The baby… it was a girl.

It is a girl.

I clench my fist by my side as I continue to fly. The unforgiving wind blows any evidence of tears away before they can streak down my face.

I had to do it… I had to leave her behind. If I saw that baby, everything would come crashing down around me, I know it. I can’t afford to lose any more time. The fate of the entire world depends on it.

And after all… she would be born again, into a kinder world.

With a resounding whoosh, I fall down into the dense forest, leaves and branches whipping past my body, before landing on my feet on the forest floor. The wind clears, and the bushes rustle as anyone in the area runs to find a place to hide. I close my eyes again, taking in a deep breath. The air here is saturated with mana. It’s familiar on my skin; maybe a memory of Saida’s when she possessed my body. In any case, I’m here, and it’s time to find Patri.

I walk by myself through the forest, not sure of how long my search will be.

“W-What?!”

Pretty short, it turns out. I turn at the sound of the familiar voice, freezing up as I spot a group of people hurrying towards me.

“Noelle?”

The silver haired girl leads the pack. Her eyes light up as she realizes that it is, indeed, me. Behind her runs none other than Mimosa, quickly followed by Nero, Leopold, and Charmy bringing up the rear. For a moment, I let myself smile genuinely. They are truly a sight for sore eyes.

I stay where I am, and let Noelle throw herself into my arms. “Why are you here? And-”

“The baby-” Mimosa asks, worried. “I thought you weren’t due for a couple more months-”

I gulp nervously. “I… I gave birth prematurely. Don’t worry, the baby is fine-”

“Are you here to train us too?!” Leopold cuts in excitedly. “Gadjah and the elves have been helping us for the past few days!”

Nero nods along silently.

His excitement is refreshing; in fact, all of the kids radiate a confidence and determination that I can’t help but feel like I lack. For a brief moment, I forget the morbid reason why I’m here. These kids are the next generation, after all; one of them will be Wizard King one day. I want to answer Yes, I’m here to train you. We’ll defeat the Spade Kingdom together!

But I don’t say it.

“I’m… actually here to see Patri,” I finally respond, watching as Noelle stands back to look at me curiously. “I don’t know how long it’ll take, but I need to talk to him. Can one of you-”

“I’m here.”

My expression drops a little, as I turn around to look at the elf who just emerged from the woods. Patri looks the same as he always has, albeit with a black sclera in one of his eyes, dressed in comfortable robes. I exhale softly, my heart starting to pound at the sight of him. I’m not sure if it’s with apprehension or anger. “Hello… um…” I glance over at the kids. “Can we go somewhere private?”

Patri gives me a long look before answering. “Yeah, of course.” He gestures for me to follow him back into the woods. I turn and flash a quick smile at the kids before proceeding.

Neither of us talk as he leads me down the ancient forest path. The silence is only broken by the soft sounds of our shoes moving over the grass, punctuated by a snapping twig every now and then. I keep my thoughts to myself, my gaze fixed on Patri’s ponytail. Part of me just wants to get it over with as soon as we’re out of earshot of the others; to strike him down and take the key I need.

But I don’t do such a thing. I keep walking, clenching my fists at my sides.

I want to do it properly. Maybe Patri killed Julius, but I still respect him as a warrior. He defeated me in battle, after all… I owe him the last respect of telling him why I have to do this.

“This is the first time we’ve been alone together since we fought.”

Patri finally speaks, turning his head slightly to glance back at me. He slows to a stop in a clearing, at the base of a large tree. Flowers dot the meadow, species that I’m unfamiliar with. A few butterflies and bees flit between the stems. “Do you remember?”

“... of course.” I smile a little, crossing my arms as I walk around to look into his eyes. He seems so calm… and oddly resigned. “It was a humiliating defeat.”

At those words, Patri’s mouth twitches for just a moment, and a sound that could be interpreted as a laugh leaves his lips. “I wouldn’t say that… you fought bravely. And you’ve grown so much since then. I mean… you’re the Wizard King now…”

His voice trails off as he breaches that subject. My breath catches in my throat, and I quickly look away. My inner flame flares up again.

How dare you… even think about him…

But it’s quickly quelled as a bird lets out a call, somewhere far above. The awkwardness is still thick, but not hostile.

“So… what did you need?”

For some odd reason, those words do not form a question. He already knows, doesn’t he?

Summoning a last bastion of courage, I raise my gaze back to his. “We’ll be facing the Dark Triad head on in two days… one of them has a power that I need to take for myself. But his gravity magic will cancel out my time magic, and my flame magic won’t be enough to defeat him.”

Silence.

Slowly, Patri lets out a sigh through his nose, his eyes closing for just a moment before flickering open again.

“...how will you take it? The same way you’ll take my light magic?”

I wince internally, his words confirming that he already knew his fate. “Y-yes… although, I don’t want to take your magic by force.” I reach up and rub my other arm, aches shooting through it again. “I can form a link with anyone with a soul. The link I’ll make with you is called a Triad, a union of three souls. Usually, we’d only be able to share memories and magic, but I need to actually take your magic this time.” I almost look away, but it’s like I said before: I owe him this once last respect. “You will likely die in the process, especially since it’s your first time.”

My words hang in the air between us, and part of me wonders if he really understands it.

“...I see.” Patri finally turns away from me, walking towards the trunk of the mighty tree. “This is why you kept me around, right?”

I raise an eyebrow, wondering what he was going to do next. “Well… I didn’t know I would end up needing your magic back then-”

“No.” Patri reaches out, his palm flattening against the wood. He exhales slowly, calmly…

“You kept me around… because you knew that my death would one day help the kingdom.”

Help the kingdom? I mean… you’re right…

“Either way… I was going to die. I knew it from the start. And I don’t blame you.” Patri lets his hand fall from the tree before facing me again. “Whether it was to unite your people… or to defeat an enemy… or even just to help you feel better, I’ve accepted my death.”

We stare at each other for a moment, the understanding settling in. My heart races still, something I thought would stop once I “convinced” him. But in the end, that wasn’t necessary.

Patri… even you are selfless. To the highest degree.

Thank you.

“Patri...”

He does what I want. Patri slowly falls to his knees, his hands resting in the grass.

I… I wish this could be different.

“For your crimes against the kingdom…”

The words don’t feel as good as I thought they would. I feel like I’ve waited for this moment for years, and yet… I can’t bring myself to feel happy.

But I need to do this.

“...I sentence you to death.”

My hand reaches down, and I feel my mark start to heat up. Patri’s eyes squeeze shut, and I see the same glow start to take shape on his forehead.

Dyad Magic.

He grits his teeth. There’s already blood trickling out of his nose.

Triad Creation.

My hand lands on his head, and the earth shatters around us.

….

It’s dark in here…

There are people screaming.

How dare you… how dare you…

I lived this memory, didn’t I?

I stare up at the dark sky as my life fades away.

No… Patri. This is your memory. Maybe Saida was here too, but this is you.

It hurts… it hurts so much…

The pain in my heart intensifies. Everything fades away, and I float farther into the abyss. All that exists is pain, stabbing through my head and heart.

Please… make this quick…

I’m trying.

I sink deeper and deeper into his mind. The pain gets worse and worse, but for once it’s not mine. Patri’s soul shrinks and contorts in my grasp, like a dying animal that wants nothing more than to be put out of its misery.

A triad… between Patri, Julius, and myself.

The three of us stand there in the darkness. Julius is just an outline, just a memory of a soul.

Do you really think… my love is that weak?

What did you mean by that?

I wish I could have found it, wherever you hid it, Julius. But it’s too late.

You’re… dying?

Patri’s voice echoes through my head, and I turn to look at him. He looks afraid, but there’s pity dwelling within those golden eyes.

… do not pity me. This is my fate.

But-

Don’t you dare look at me like that!

My hands reach out, and I stagger forward. Patri doesn’t even flinch as I grab his collar and shake him once, hard. I feel something building up inside, where there used to be nothing, a glowing ember of rage.

You… you KILLED HIM!

I shake him again, and again. Patri does not struggle. Something snaps, and I ball up my fist.

You’re pathetic… you’re a villain!

I know.

You killed him- TELL ME-

The memory rushes back. Agony, pure agony, my heart stabbed right through, and my life bleeding onto the stone while the sun bled it’s life into the sky.

I felt his pain…

Patri, tell me…

Did he cry? Did he resist? Did he leave this earth writhing and screaming in the same way that he entered it?

… he....

I don’t want to remember.

I grit my teeth, seeing nothing but red. My fist draws back in preparation to punch.

You’re the most evil being on this earth!

I know.

I hit him, hard, in the center of his face. Patri stumbles back, then falls onto the ground.

I… I hate-

I can’t even finish the sentence, because it’s not true.

I can’t hate Patri… maybe I convinced myself to hate him, but I can’t. Because, in the end, it wasn’t his fault. Everything ties back to the devil, to the original sin. And in the end… I would have done the same thing as him. I would have burned the entire world to the ground in my vengeance.

And I will.

Patri shatters into a million pieces, and the world dissolves around me. Light suddenly floods my mind, bright, beautiful light emanating from a new shard of a soul lodged within my own. For a brief moment, our souls were one, sharing all thoughts, all memories, all feelings.

Tears drip down my face as I stare up at the sun. It’s warmth bathes me, but I only feel cold.

For a brief moment… Patri shares something with me. Something I have long forgotten.

Self.

That broken ego, that barrier that once defined who I was, is momentarily restored.

The sun burns the stone around me. The light in my hands concentrates, intensifying into a long lance- no, a sword-

Wait… wait… this memory…

My eyes widen as something drips onto my hand.

Blood.

Slowly, I look up, my gaze travelling up the lance of the sword. Blood drips down it, pooling for a moment on the handle, on my clenched fist, before splattering onto the ground at my feet.

No… no…

Julius stands there, his stature slumped and pained… but he still stands.

His eyes burn into mine, into my soul, but this time it’s like hellfire rather than holy light. With a hollow gasp, I let go of the handle and stumble back away from him. But he doesn’t fall- he continues to stand, and I cannot escape his gaze.

My heart pounds. I’m frozen in this horrifying memory.

He opens his mouth to speak. Blood drips from the corners.

But he doesn’t fall.

Julius…

I can’t breathe.

You… you’re so strong…

I watch the sword dissolve away, leaving only a deep, bleeding gash through his chest, through the heart that I loved with every ounce of my soul.

I… I would have fallen.

And I did. Because here I am… stealing the soul that would give me the power to defeat Gravity. And once I defeat gravity…

I could never be like you, right?

You would have fought until the very end… but I gave up.

I am weak. So weak… as weak as I was the day I was born.

There is no love in his eyes. There is no pity.

Why?

His lips move to form that single word.

My answer does its best to stay lodged in my throat, because I am afraid of what I will say.

Because…. The world is going to end. This all happened because of my weakness.

I want to look away, but I can’t. He’s the sunset at the horizon, and I can’t bring myself to close my eyes.

There is no future for me… and now there is no future for this Kingdom. Not without you.

I clench my fist, my resolve building.

I don’t care if I have to become the most evil person in the world… I will recreate this world!

But with Julius’s next words, the tower of my determination is struck down.

No… you are ensuring its destruction.

With each new word, more blood seeps from his body, down his chin to stain the white fur of his robe.

Either way… the world will end. Because of you.

The scene begins to fade away. The light disappears. All that’s left are Julius’s dead eyes, staring into mine through the darkness. The Self fades away with Patri’s life, dissolving away in my hands. Once again, I am left with a cold, empty soul, the two worst parts of me settling back in.

I… I am nothing.

You are nothing.

I am a monster.

You are a monster.

I will destroy the world.

You will destroy the world. And for what?

For… you.

…

Silence.

Then, the sounds of the forest finally fade back in around me. I breathe in, and something slips out of my hands and falls to the ground with a dull thud.

The air is fresh. Mana hangs around me. I open my eyes to see the sunset finally gasping it’s last breath.

There’s a body at my feet. I don’t know if he’s still alive. But it doesn’t matter. I turn away, then drop to my knees. The grass is cold and wet, but it feels so… refreshing.

My tears soon join the dew clinging to the blades.

Julius…

I ball up my fist, uprooting a bit of the grass in my clutches.

You lied… your love doesn’t still exist on this earth.

I lower my head, until it bumps into the ground. My mark thuds with pain at the impact, but I don’t react.

You would hate me.

My worst fear, finally realized.

My chest heaves as I continue to cry. Everything hurts, every cell in my body. Out of the corner of my eye, I spot something blue flitting towards me. A moth- no

Simulcia.

For a moment, I almost give in and let them land on me.

If Julius hates me… what’s the point? I should just die, right here.

I almost resign myself to the decision, but in the moment before she lands, my hand jerks up. With one quick movement, I swat the bug away. My eyes widen when I realize what I’ve done, and I sit up with a jolt.

It’s not a moth. It’s a butterfly. Just… a normal butterfly. It spins in the air for a moment, confused from the impact, but then it straightens itself out and flies away.

The sounds of bugs and the wind fills the silence around me. The trees rustle on their own, the magic breathing in and out. Slowly but surely, my breath falls into the same rhythm, and I feel myself start to calm down.

Breathe.

Someone once told me to breathe. To inhale and exhale, and think of nothing but that cycle.

Cycle.

I hold up my hand, palm up towards the sky. Almost instinctively, the new soul within me stirs, and a ball of light appears. Good- I clench my fist, and the light slides over my arm like a long glove. I tense up, then punch the air. Once. Then again. And one more time. Each time, the light glows brighter, and I can feel my control already strengthening.

It… it was that easy? I open my palm again, and the light retracts into its ball once more.

All I had to do was take control of a Triad, to reach into Patri’s soul, shatter it into a million pieces, and then take one for myself.

It was that easy.

Patri is powerful. And I know Dante will be even more powerful. But thanks to his sacrifice, I now have a better chance of finding victory.

And that’s what it will be. A victory. Maybe not for myself, but for the world.

There is no such thing as myself anymore, anyway. I am just a memory. A person who was loved, but now hated. A person who once had hope, but now it only exists in my death. A person who was once human… but now has given her humanity up.

I am nothing. I am evil. I am a monster. And I will destroy the world.

I turn to lift off the ground, leaving the body behind. I need to find a place, up high, where the air is clear and I can soak up mana for the time remaining before the invasion. I need to clear my mind and concentrate all the power I have, all for my last fight.

The entire world will hate me for what I do. One more man won’t make a difference.

It is a lie.

#fic #triad #oh boy oh fuck #oc: lisa #bc oc #black clover

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miertje1000 · 6 years ago

Text

Tears of starlight (chapter 3)

Here’s my contribution to the D. Gray-man Big Bang. My partner is @limesicle who made beautiful art for my fic. Enjoy!

I divided my fic in chapters based on the artworks

summary Lavi’s mission is simple: retrieve some books from various cities and bring them back to the agency, called the Black order. Though unneeded in his opinion, the agency decides to assign him a partner with its own mission. Bookman warns him to keep an eye on his partner, but he doesn’t see why this scrawny looking beansprout would be interesting in any way. However, everyone seems to have forgotten to tell him the most important part: Allen is a dragon. Soon his own mission seems dull compared to his partner’s and he ends up getting more involved than he would have wanted. And in the meanwhile his feelings for his partner keep growing. But between a human and a dragon, let alone one born many lightyears away, a relationship can only be doomed.

rating: T

fanfiction.net : https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13056154/1/

chapter 3

art: http://limesicle.tumblr.com/post/177734110106/illustration-3-of-4-for-dgraymanbigbang-this-is

Allen woke up with the heavy scent of flowers in his nose. A little confused he opened his eyes. A light blue sky, framed by high stems with flowers met him. Butterflies flapped around, unaware of the suddenly awake human. Bees zipped past, almost making a race of landing on the next flower faster than their competition. Allen stretched out his hand to touch one of the purple heads above him, surprising a big fluffy bumblebee that buzzed up with deep rumbling wings.

These creatures didn't seem to care they could go so much higher with their wings. They were just happy with flying around between the pretty colors.

Allen pushed himself up, expanding his view. As high as they were he could see the forest on one side, the sea on the other. The waves made the sun's rays dance. Between them, big bodies moved as a group of whales surfaced to spray the water from their airways.

It was incredible how different the world looked under the sunlight. Stars were beautiful, but they weren't capable of bringing out the many colors that attracted the bugs around him. He shifted his eyes back to the flowers. This time more slowly, he brought his finger to one of the petals. The bumblebee that seemed to be searching for the sweet treasure inside stepped around slowly, not paying any attention to the fact that it's little black paws were finding their hold on a pale human finger. Allen smiled at the light, tickling sensation. It was incredible that a creature like this seemed so content with its world.

A soft rumble announced the bug's departure. He followed it with his eyes as it left his finger and went on to the next flower.

He dropped his hand in his lap, then let his eyes dart to the figure next to him. Lavi seemed fast asleep. He was breathing heavily. His face was completely relaxed. The red hair had gotten all messy in their flight earlier, but for some reason Allen wished it would always look like that. With the sun making it light up like flames, he couldn't resist the temptation of touching it.

However much he liked the stars, they didn't do Lavi any justice. Of course the sun was a star too, but it wasn't the same as seeing all of them in the night sky. However, right now, seeing Lavi's face lit brightly, he was kind of glad it was daytime. For the first time, the wonder of everything around him seemed to actually reach his mind completely. The brightness of the colors seemed to outshine his wish for the silver light of the moon. Lavi had been telling him how beautiful the earth was all this time, but he hadn't really paid much attention to it. He'd thought that was what humans said just to soothe themselves with the idea that they were stuck down here. But for the first time he was starting to realize his companion hadn't just been lying to himself to be positive. For the first time he was starting to see himself how pretty everything was around him and how much more there might be on the huge surface the planet had. He'd been looking upwards to the stars so much, he'd never actually taken the effort to open his eyes for what was in front of him all along.

He curled one of the red strands around his finger, inspecting it like he saw it for the first time. The complexity, the bright color of the simple hair seemed breathtaking all of a sudden. Finally he let go of it, so it fell back on the ground. His companion seemed completely unaware. The defenselessness of his partner made a protective feeling rise inside of Allen. Suddenly he wondered if he should turn back into a dragon and curl around him again.

But if he did that, he would become unable to do other things. Like that time in the lake. As a dragon he could never have shared his air. He hadn't really expected it to feel so good though. Everything in him had warmed up, like he had been preparing to breathe out a sea of flames.

Had it just been the heat of the moment? Had it been a coincidence? He'd watched a lot of humans in his long lifetime. He knew how they showed their love to each other. But he wasn't human. Was it still possible to feel things like that as a star and a dragon? He bent down, assured by the fact that the redhead was still deeply unconscious. Carefully he pressed a soft kiss on the closed eyelids of Lavi's only good eye. A new, peaceful glow of warmth started to spread in his chest. Convinced by the growing good feeling he moved downwards, brushing his lips against the other's like before. For a moment he wondered if he should go further. What Lavi would think of it. In the lake he hadn't seemed to mind.

However, his thoughts were broken apart when a set of arms wrapped around him and pulled him to the ground. Allen yelped softly as Lavi pushed him against his chest. "No, don't leave, Al."

For a moment he was sure his companion had woken up, but then he realized the words didn't make any sense. The redhead's breath returned to the same heavy rhythm as before, the arms relaxed.

He was still asleep.

Allen smiled, feeling his cheeks burn up at the thought of what the guy could possibly be dreaming of. Carefully he let his hands slide over the guy's shirt and dug his fingers deep in the folds. He pulled himself closer, burying his face in the fabric. "Don't worry, Lavi," he answered gently, hoping his words would somehow reach his companion in his dreams. "I can't." He sighed softly, caressing the warm emotions that filled his mind like warm, fluffy clouds. It was so much like what he'd felt when he was still with Mana that he felt the desire to start shining like a star. "I won't either."

They were really getting closer to their destination by now. The fuzzy cloud Lavi had been walking on for a few days was starting to dissipate from the moment Allen told him he was starting to actually feel Neah's presence. He hadn't really thought much of their mission anymore. It had seemed unimportant ever since their magical flight. Not to mention the way he had woken up with the boy in his arms the next night. He had to admit it had been kind of embarrassing, but at the same time he couldn't ignore the strong desire it had woken up inside of him. At first he had thought his companion had felt the same, but the past few days the boy had started to avoid him instead. He still wasn't sure how to tell Allen how he felt without making himself look like a fool.

And now they were almost reaching their goal. He had to move fast. No-one knew what would happen as soon as they would reach their destination after all. If Allen would be in time to defeat Neah and if so, if he would be able to return to the stars after all.

If anything, Lavi wanted to at least prevent that with the boy's own free will. He couldn't stand to be separated by such a giant, unimaginable distance.

However, as he lay there on his back next to the campfire with his companion sitting on the other side, he couldn't think of anything. He stared at the stars, hoping they would somehow offer him some answers, but instead they gazed upon him in silent white. His mind wandered in the late night. The light above them turned into people in beautiful white robes, dancing around with ribbons that floated like shining rays.

Suddenly Lavi realized where he had seen that before. He turned his head to see if his companion was still awake. He was. Allen was staring into the flames with his mind just as far, but he wasn't asleep.

"Hey, Al, I just remembered something pretty interesting."

Grey eyes blinked and turned back to bright silver. "You did?"

"Yeah," Lavi worked himself up to his elbows. "You know, I once was in this village where they had this whole religion based on the sky. Just as I got there they were organizing a whole festival and you know what the most awesome thing was? They had this huge dance, where everyone personalized a star. They danced in circles all around the square in the exact arcs the stars also describe in the night sky around that time of year. It was breathtaking."

Allen smiled excitingly. "Yeah, I've been there too! When I was really homesick I stayed there for a while and asked them to teach me." He frowned in thought. "I think I can still remember most of them."

"You mean you can dance?" Lavi pushed himself up entirely now.

Amusement slid over the boy's face. "Well, yes, I guess you could say that."

"Would you…?"

He almost didn't dare to ask further, but Allen laughed like he'd already expected the question.

"Alright then, but don't expect too much of me. It was about a century ago and it's probably much harder with gravity." He rose slowly. For a moment he tilted his head to the stars above them, then he closed his eyes, breathed deeply… and started to dance.

With slow but elegant gestures he moved over the forest floor. Though every step was different, his body shifted in a steady speed, making him circle with just the same continuity as a star. His arms swirled around his head like rays of light. His hair glowed. The moves were all pretty and bright as the fires burning above them, but never caused him to stray from his orbit.

It was exactly as Lavi remembered it. In this role it seemed perfectly clear where Allen belonged.

"You're doing Sirius!"

Allen stopped and smiled so brightly that it almost seemed like he was emitting light himself. Even the little chip in his tooth couldn't dull the perfect radiance. "I did! I didn't expect you to be able to guess it in such detail."

Lavi laughed, rubbing the back of his head in embarrassment. "Well, I've read a lot of books on the stars and I remember most of the dances I saw."

A spark jumped between the silver eyes. "Then what about this one." Suddenly he went back to dancing. However, this time he wasn't as precise as before. He swirled around the clearing in little irregular loops, slowing down every time he started going upstream, and speeding up again as he finished the strange out of arc motion.

Lavi didn't have to think long about that one. "You're Mars now."

Allen laughed as he let his body come to a standstill. "Yeah, though that isn't a star strictly speaking, but it looks like one from down here."

"That was really good though. You looked just as good as the village people there. You're a natural talent."

Allen bowed deeply. "Well, thank you."

Lavi put his finger under his chin and stared at the boy thoughtfully. For a moment he wondered if he should ask it, if it wouldn't open up old wounds inside the still recovering heart. But then he decided to take the risk carefully. "So, Al, since you're a star, what does your dance look like?"

Allen's eyes widened in surprise, then he smiled a little regretfully. "I wasn't visible from here, Lavi, so they never made a dance for me."

That would explain why nobody seemed to have noticed one of the stars had suddenly disappeared when the dragon had descended.

"Then what would it look like? You should know. It's about you after all."

That sparked some thought into the boy. Silver eyes traveled back upwards to the tiny white lights in the darkness. A pale hand traveled to a white strand of hair and started curling it around a finger. Then Allen looked back at Lavi and smiled a little unsurely.

"Well, I guess it would look a bit like this." He closed his eyes, then started moving slowly. The steps were small, the movement of his arms delicate. The whole dance was much more modest than the ones he'd done before. Within the usual arc, that presented his path through the sky seen from the earth, he was describing small perfect circles, like he was going around something that was doing the actual big arc. The boy's face was relaxed and peaceful as he danced. It was clear that his body was basically moving on his own. As Lavi watched him act out the path of the star, he couldn't help but feel that Allen was completely in his element. A strong sensation of alien powers radiating from the boy caught him and suddenly he felt sure that if gravity hadn't taken such a hold on Allen, he would just have started floating right there. The pale skin glowed up and soon enough it was radiating soft silver light like the moon.

After a few circles, Allen let his dance flow to a slow stop. He opened his eyes slowly, looking like he was still waking up from a trance. When he caught sight of Lavi he smiled. Then he froze. "Oh wait, I didn't do that entirely right, I should end it like this." Suddenly he started dancing with rapid steps, flinging himself out of his arc and hurtling himself towards the redhead.

For a moment Lavi thought he would have to catch the boy before they would collide, but then Allen stopped as abruptly as he had started moving. They were so close to each other that he could feel the air of Allen's quick breath brush his skin. Allen's cheeks were flushed from the exercise. His eyes were shining brighter than usual.

"Now I'm on the earth as I'm supposed to be. Together with you."

Lavi laughed, suddenly realizing what the boy had meant to do. "Yeah, I guess that would be the most fitting dance indeed."

"So what about you, Lavi?" It seemed a little more than a joke. Allen was actually interested. "What would your dance look like if you were a star?"

That wasn't a question he had expected. Not really one that was really in his capabilities to answer either, but the boy was looking at him with such brimming expectation that he couldn't possibly deny it.

He closed his eye, thinking about what made him 'him'. What was important for him and how that would express itself in him as a star. There wasn't really much he could think of. Every time he thought of stars he would just see Allen's bright smile, with twinkling silver eyes. Maybe he should just use that.

With a grin he opened his eyes. "Maybe a bit like this." He took one step back to create some distance between him and his companion, then started stepping around randomly. He wasn't really sure how he was supposed to dance as a star, so he let his limbs choose their own path. However, as he circled around the boy, he suddenly grabbed Allen's arms and started swinging him with him.

If he wasn't a real star, he was basically leaning on Allen to be one, right? It didn't seem like an entirely stupid choice of dance to him anyhow.

Allen burst out laughing. At first Lavi tried to keep pulling him along, but he had to stop when the fit was paralyzing his companion.

"Wow, Lavi, you're almost like a twin star."

"A twin star?"

"Yeah," Allen rubbed his eyes with his sleeve, "There are pairs of stars that always circle around each other. They are super clingy, always keeping each other close. Some of them even get so close that they fuse. Almost like what you were doing just now."

Lavi grinned. Actually, that description didn't sound so bad at all, but maybe he'd better not say that. Then he thought back to the dance the boy had done just before. It had confused him a little at the time. "Wait, you were making circles too. You're a twin star!"

Allen smiled, his cheeks darkening. "Yeah, basically. I wasn't very noticeable though. Mana was really big and bright, while I'm just a little dwarf star."

For some reason it felt like Allen was sharing really intimate information. The stories about his time as a star, high up in the sky, were incredibly interesting. They were starting to make him look at Allen with different eyes.

He grinned, pulling a white strand of hair playfully. "A dwarf star, I knew it. You are a beansprout!"

Allen eyes widened in surprise, then narrowed indignantly. "Call me that again and I'll flash you."

"Flash me? That sounds like a very dangerous warning coming from such a little dwarf star."

He shouldn't have underestimated a natural ball of fire, because a second later a pale finger was flicked towards him and a white explosion of light burned straight into his retina.

He cried out and stumbled back in reflex. When he opened his eye again, there was just darkness and a mass of grey spots in his sight. His night sight was completely ruined.

"Aahh, Allen, what did you do? You just blinded me!" He made sure his voice gave away how light hearted his words were.

"That's punishment for belittling a star. I'm still way bigger and heavier and brighter than you, stupid mortal."

Lavi chuckled. "Alright, alright, I'm sorry, mr. bright star."

"Alright then. I'll give you some light to make up for it." As promised the boy lit up again, glowing just enough to show their direct surroundings. It was like a second moon had appeared in the sky.

"Incredible, you can really shine like a star."

"Yeah, I don't do it very often as it can attract unwanted attention and humans tend to get freaked out by it. But even a dwarf star gives light, you know. Just not as much as Mana," he admitted shyly.

"But you still stayed close to him." It was a friendly statement.

Allen smiled brilliantly. "Yeah, it was great. We basically circled around each other. Wait, why don't we try it out together. Dance in the usual arc, then try to let me in too."

Lavi grinned, excited at the idea. He chose an arc and tried to stick close to it. He wasn't really sure about the rest of his moves, but he just decided to go with the flow. Allen didn't even seem to pay much attention to his dance moves. Instead he moved in and started circling around Lavi. Lavi moved backwards a little, offering the boy half of the arc, then mimicked the circling movement. Soon enough they were dancing in perfect arcs through the sky, but always staying close. Allen's face was glowing with happiness.

Still, Lavi couldn't help but frown a little as they kept taking steps around each other, always in the same circles, turning and swirling through the darkness. It was starting to feel all too familiar to him. This was basically the feeling he'd been having these past few days. "This seems all very nice and cozy and all, but still I would be super frustrated if I were that Mana guy."

Allen looked up from his trance in confusion. "What, why?"

Lavi smiled. "Well, if I was him I couldn't take it that you're here all the time, so close, but still out of reach. If I were him, I would do this." Clearly totally outside the expectation of the boy, he grabbed his companion and pulled him to his chest, wrapping his arms around Allen's small body. The boy was even warmer than usual. The glow wasn't just light apparently. The heat spread through the fabric of his shirt and warmed him to the core. When the boy started laughing, he could feel the muscles spasm under his skin, the voice rumble through Allen's chest.

"Lavi, you just made two stars collide. That usually causes mass destruction, you know."

He grinned, tightening his grip on his precious load. "I don't care. As long as you're so close, the whole world can fall apart around me."

Allen pushed them apart just a little. Lavi let it happen reluctantly. Silver eyes stared deep inside his. The thousands of tiny specks in the irises looked like a whole stellar system on its own. For a moment Lavi wondered if the dance they made when Allen laughed would be actable too.

Then he closed his eye, leaned in and pressed his lips on the boy's. Allen reacted by melting into his embrace. White light cut through his eyelids and the heat under his arms intensified. It was like their bodies continued where they had left off last time. Lavi felt his heart accelerate when he felt how Allen responded with the same strong desire that was filling his own mind. He let a hand travel upwards, to the boy's head, tangling his fingers in the soft hair. Their kiss got rougher. Allen's fingers were clashed in his shirt, pulling so hard it might actually rip apart.

But the magic was broken even more roughly then last time. Suddenly every muscle under Lavi's hand tensed. Allen's body froze, then, with all the strength he'd built up in the past few weeks, he pushed them apart.

Lavi opened his eye with shock to see the boy standing in front of him, his arms between them as a barricade. His head was bowed down, so his eyes were hidden behind his hair.

"We can't do this," his voice sounded stifled and he turned his face away. "However much I want this, I'm a star and a dragon. You're just a human, Lavi. This love is doomed. We can't go on with this. It will only lead to meaningless suffering."

All the heat inside him turned to a solid rock that crashed into his heart and collided it with the rest of the organs in his abdomen. "It wouldn't be meaningless." The corners of his mouth curled up desperately as he grabbed Allen's hand with his own. "Think of all the good things that can come out of this." He pulled it up and pressed his cheek against it. "Please, Al, I don't think I can stand seeing you circle around me all the time, always out of reach."

Allen jolted his hand out of his grip and backed away, clenching it with his other. "I'm sorry. I really wish we could be like that too, but I live for hundreds, thousands, maybe even billions of years, while you'll be away in the blink of an eye. As you age and wither, I'll just shine with the same light as always and when you die I'll be left alone. I can't do this. Not to you, to me, or us."

Lavi felt his hands fall next to his body. All hopes for what they had been building up together melted under the light that was starting to die out on Allen's skin. However much he wanted this, he knew the boy was right. All his life he'd spent with his nose in the books trying to find the truth about everything, but this time he wished he'd never had. Of all he'd ever learned, this was the most devastating.

"I'm sorry, Lavi," Allen whispered. A drop glittered in silver on its way down from the boy's face. "I'm really sorry." Then he sprouted two giant wings on his back and launched himself off in the air.

Lavi watched with a blurry vision as the white figure disappeared into the distance, until he seemed like he had returned between his own kind, out of reach forever, so one could only dream about ever getting that high.

#dgmbigbang #fanfic #Laven #hurt/comfort #fantasy #Dragon!Allen #Star!Allen

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childofsolace-write-ups · 4 years ago

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Arc 01: REUNION

::CODY::

I place an arrow to my bowstring and send it flying. I got the animal right on its head. I beam in pride. With Meeko hunting everything in sight, I was happy to take one down on my own. Even if I was just on a blind waiting for game to pass by. I climbed down the tree I was perched on and picked up the dead, fallen raccoon. I went over to the red head sitting on a tree stump.

"Lori, Lori! I got a raccoon!"

Lori smiles at me in a way that seems like I got something better. He's always encouraging like that. "Good job, Code." he ruffles my hair. "and you got it at the head, that's a good shot." He takes it from me and put it and places it inside a burlap sack along with a few of Meeko's other kills.

Lori scrunches up his nose though when he did that. The smile earlier was just for me. He eats meat like the rest of us but he never really liked killing the creatures himself, and mentioned something about how he used to be something called a 'Vegan' or something. I didn't understand it before, but he told me it was something like empathy... I don't really know what that means either, Lori only told me it was like knowing how the animals feel. He said it was the same way we didn't like it when we were attack by Rabids and how these animals must have not wanted to be attacked by us. It was confusing because while we all know Rabids are bad, Lori tells me that it didn't mean we were bad for needing to eat them to survive and something about survival of the fittest, uh, that meant the instinct that drives us to eat any animals we could. It's confusing. But I get it a little bit and also try to kill them instantly so they wouldn't fill pain before they died. Lori understood that it couldn't be helped, we needed meat for food. While we never ran out of food because Kytes did have gardens, it wouldn't be filling. And I don't like veggies much either. So if I only had to eat that forever, I'd go rabid.

I watch Lori take his knife and pull out an apple. He starts to cut it in half so we can share. I stare at his face and start playing this mind game I think to myself, pretending Lorri was his brother and giving him stuff he might say instead. Right now, Lori might say Here, let's share it. While Meeko might say Hehe, wanna see who eats his share the fastest? And he'd give me the slightly bigger share. He would pretend its so he can win, but he would really want me to accept the bigger half without me feeling guilty. I pretend I don't know that because I really like apples. I stop feeling guilty when Corrin explain to me that it's a way of showing how you care.

Whenever I play this game, it makes me realize how identical Lori and Meeko actually are. It was hard to remember that, since whenever you hear them and see how they act, the differences were more obvious that people easily forget the similarities, like the same red hair and the same yellow eyes. Though their hair styles were giveaways too, since Meeko's was usually tousled and sticking out while Lori was much more clean looking, the ends near his neck curving slightly, though their attitudes were more of stand outs so them looking alike wasn't really obvious.

"Here, let's share it Code." Lori gives me my half. "this one's yours."

Nailed it, I smile proudly to myself. "Thanks, Lori!"

"Anytime," Lori chuckles, ruffling my hair.

I liked that feeling a lot, it really helps me relax. Still, no matter how relax we might feel at the moment, our instincts were always sharp, Lori's more so than mine since he's older. He was the one who carried me and got us out of the way just in time as Meeko bursts through some bushes, riding on top of a Rabid Sheep.

An actual sheep is actually not so scary, they're real fluffy and cute, sometimes a little stupid. I was watching over our flocks, the ones we take care of for clothes, with Jonah when a rabid wolf tried to eat one lamb. While Jonah fought back as I watched the flock, I can say I was more rattled than they were. They kept eating grass the entire time!

As for any animal's brain internally affected by radiation, they go Rabid. Unlike people, they don't die instantly though. Well, most don't anyway. Any Rabid creature is potentially bad, even a Rabid Squirrel or Mouse since they usually attack in numbers. On the safe side, we don't eat them. It's easy to tell the difference of a Normal and a Rabid. The Normal types are... Well, normal. While the Rabids are colossal, scary, sometimes deformed and really smart.

But leave it to Meeko to make it look fun to take them on.

"Woo-hoo! I got you now you giant cream puff!" Meeko laugh. "Loreal, Coco Bean, clear the way!"

Meeko duplicates himself. The clone went in front of the sheep. It's kinda funny that was his power when he already has an official look alike, except his actual clone acts way different than he does. The sheep got confused long enough for Meeko to jump down, landing on his feet safely. Then, he took out his double-edged saber, pulling it back like one would with a baseball bat and—

Well, Lori closes my eyes before I can see more. Meeko is pretty brutal when he hunts, and he's got a lot of bravery. I hope I can be as courageous someday like these two, and that's one of their common traits. I really look up to them a lot and I really like them, but I guess that doesn't really say a lot since I like everyone. Trey used to tell me that I would only hate an enemy. So far, I never had a chance to see if that were true.

"Okay, you can look now." Lori pulls his hand back.

I run towards Meeko, "That was awesome! Well... I didn't see all of it, but I bet it was awesome!"

"You know it, Coco Bean!" He ruffles my hair. Lori approaches us and I tell Meeko about my own raccoon. He congratulates me, saying if I keep that up, I could hunt just as hardcore as him.

"Woah, now let me stop you right there." The other Meeko interrupted—and I mean Lori, not a clone. "Let's not get ahead of ourselves or even hope that. I think one hardcore hunter is enough, and sometimes one too many... And I mean that almost literally." He smirks. He crossed his arms and look down at the dead sheep with a grimace. "now that you had your fun, please tell me you at least remembered to hunt actual game we can take home and eat. I'll admit, that sheep is larger than three of us put together even if it were a Normal."

I kick it a bit. "If there were Normals that size. I don't think we can even get a thing that big through the hotel doors."

I guess I should explain the hotel bit.

That's our home base right now. It's not a permanent settlement, though. We have a whole bunch of base because we can't stay in them for more than four months and a half. Actually, the a half part is the longest we can last in any base. Things change around an awful lot where we live. I don't know if it's the same with the rest of the world because we can't travel all over it, and Rhys only has guess that it might not be as bad as ours. And he knows most things. Rhys called our part of the surface, our division, Surface R. In other words, SURFACE RADIOACTIVE. He told me about the radiation triggered something in the atmosphere, something called Mana, in a time before I was even born. He said when something from outer space came crashing down and changed everything, it landed in our division, back then called a country, so the Mutated Mana altered people like us; have spread most around here to the point that it gave us unique abilities. I don't know why it's called unique when everyone up here pretty much has it, but Rhys said it wasn't normal to have these abilities in the time before I was born.

I don't get much with the rest of his explanation, but I do understand that the past must be really different from now. I also know that we are in a location where things always change. It can be perfectly safe one minute then suddenly everything's chaotic a second later. Also, the other things that got loose Mana energy doesn't like us much. So when one area gets too dangerous, we move to another. They never stay dangerous forever, so we can come back later. That's what scouts are for, they visit the bases ahead of time and check which is the safest to move into. Right now, the hotel is perfectly safe. But since things always change... Well, you'll never know when danger will strike. I don't remember if there was a time that we were without risk of being in danger. Because even at night, while we're sleeping, if the sentries sound the alarm, we have to prepare for action. That's why we've gotten used to trusting and relying on each other.

It keeps us all alive.

Meeko waves off Lori's words. "Yeah, did that first." he gives me another burlap sack, and I tip over because of the weight. "Easy kills."

"What do you have in here?" Lori picks up my arrows and places them back inside the quiver before helping me with the sack.

Meeko shrugs. "The usual. Three foxes, five rabbits, some squirrels. A turkey and half a boar for bacon." We stare at him for a full second. "I had to give up the other half so it could fit the bag since this big guy suddenly attacked."

"Wow," Lori whistles, impressed but not all that surprise. This was his brother after all. "that's a new record. Good hunting."

Meeko scowls. "Good? That's excellent hunting!"

"Except you only got a half animal for bacon. Plus, your ego needs deflating." Lori laughs. "Well, it's a Rabid, but since it's a sheep, we can't let the wool go to waste. It's sturdier than a Normal's wool, after all." He takes his knife and approaches the lifeless sheep, getting to work.

We help him out so we can finish faster and head back. Halfway through, though, I hear leaves rustling, feeling a chill down my spine, and then the thumping vibration from the ground.

Lori must've felt it too. "Cody, Meeko, take a flank!"

I take up Lori's left side, notching an arrow and Meeko takes his right, raising his sword. Then other three rabid sheep come bursting into the glade. I send the arrow flying but it didn't get the eye. Not that it'd be an instant kill, but I could've at least partially blind it. Rabids aren't easily taken down like regulars. What Meeko did earlier might've been an extreme. They weren't as big and colossal as the one he took down but still, about seven feet tall and who-knows-wide doesn't fall under small either.

"Uh oh. I think the one I killed was a mommy..."

I look at him. "Oh. But Meeko, I don't think she could tell her kids not to eat us. She'd probably help them."

Meeko gives me a weird look. "Er, that really wasn't my point..." he says.

A sheep charges towards us. We spread out. But I stumble on my feet.

"Cody! Look out!"

I look up, barely able to shoot my arrow right on the sheep's eye. Thankfully, my arrow had already been placed and it was close enough for me to get a good, clear shot. But I'm unable to get a next arrow ready when the sheep jumps over head.

"Cody!" Meeko swoops by and carries me out of the way.

I hug him around the neck. "Thank you, Meeko! That was scary!"

"Meeko," Lori comes over. "three on three isn't a fair fight if it's against Rabids. That's your cue!"

Meeko looks a little embarrassed. "Ehe, about that..." he holds up his watch. "I might've overdone it a bit earlier during the hunt and my POWER GAUGE is on full bars..." suddenly, his watch sparks and the green-lit screen turned black. "...aaand now the battery's dead..."

"Are you serious now?!" Lori looks amazed... but not the good kind.

"Don't be mad!"

"Well, I can't be happy!"

I didn't have time to pay attention to this argument because I realize I was missing something. The lace that kept my pacifier around my neck was gone! I know I'm ten years old and a little sucker is not something I need, but it was the last and only thing I ever got from my parents. I was a baby when I was still with them. I don't know who they were and what parents even were until Corrin explained it to me. I may not have known them, but I do know that if it wasn't for them, I wouldn't be alive and that they must've loved me because that's what they do. So even if a baby item is all I have left as proof that they existed, then I can't lose it!

I scan the area and found it a few meters far and raced to retrieve it.

"You know, you can be so... Wait, what is... CODY?! No, wait!"

"Huh?!"

I pick it up. "Got it!" In the next instant, I'm shoved away and I see Lori being body slammed by one of the sheep. I gasp. "NOO!"

"LORI! No, no, no!" Meeko screams after me, rushing over. But then he is held back to fight off the other two. "GET LOST, DAMN IT!"

I look at the sheep on top of Lori and wait. He doesn't use his powers. He doesn't go through it even as the sheep is tired and doesn't move. It only means he's hurt.

"Lori!"

Then it happened. I felt goosebumps and the sheep floated to the air. But it's hard to keep it there. Meeko got to escape the other two sheep, carrying Lori who looked injured with some scratch marks. But he was still conscious. They were out of the way and I mentally dropped the sheep. My knees buckles up and I collapse. The two sheep went for me. I didn't have the strength to move.

"CODY!"

Then there's fire and I felt the heat. When my vision clears, the animals were burnt and I see our leader stepping into the glade.

"TREY!" I bound up towards him, limping a bit. I wrap my arms around his lower torso. "Lori's hurt!"

Trey pat my head. "I know, I see his wounds. But let's not panic, kiddo." We walk towards the twins. Trey helps Meeko support Lori. Then, he instructs me. "Take the sacks you can carry and get them back to the base. Alert Rhys, Code 4 for A1."

"What's Code 4 and A1 again?" I've just taken up lessons and still get terms mixed up.

"Rabid Animals. A1 is Area 1."

"Got it!"

I take a burlap sack, Meeko's, and run as fast as I can despite the extra weight. The last words I hear behind me are from Lori. I didn't know what it mean so it probably didn't matter.

"Don't tell him anything."

#ChildOfSolace Original

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blogging-phelddagrif · 7 years ago

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My Limited Knowledge: Colour Dilemmas

[you can se every article here]

Hello & welcome to this weekly edition of My Limited Knowledge! This week will be a shorter article where we’ll see how to decide how many colours to play in a Limited setting. This ties in nicely with the past two articles amount deck building and draft signals, but I think it warrants it’s own small article since it’s an important subject. People will tend to either play too many colours or focus too much on only one colour. It’s really important to find a balance while playing Limited so that your deck is as efficient as possible.

Finding Your Primary Colour

As the previous articles talked about, while you’re Drafting or playing Sealed you’ll have to decide which colour will be your primary focus. Wether it’s because you’ve noticed the colour is opened in the Draft pod, or you’ve just opened more decent cards of that colour in Sealed; you need to make a choice and decide which colour is worth being your man focus. This colour will be the one where you have the best cards of all the colours. For a Sealed it’s really more clear cut since you just have to look at your card pool and see which colour has the best cards. In a Draft it’s harder though and I highly recommend you go take a look at the previous two articles which go more in depth the Draft methods and how to pick what colour to play.

Finding Your Secondary Colour

I think the most efficient way to build a Limited deck is to play two colours, though there are exceptions, which we’ll see in a bit. In a general setting, you’ll want to have a colour that you focus a bit more on, and a supporting colour. This colour will be to fill in the gaps mostly, so while you’re building a deck in Sealed for example and you’re looking at your primary colour you should ask yourself “what am I missing”. If you’re light on removal, you should look at your other colours and see which one offers some nice removal. Same goes for bombs or cheap creatures; you have to figure out which colour goes best with your primary one. In a Draft setting you’ll have to decide while Drafting; figure out what other colour than your primary might be open. Let’s say your main colour is Red, but you get a pack that has a pretty solid Green card as well as a couple decent Red cards, you could decide to make Green your secondary and pick the solid card, hoping you’ll get more. It’s good to diversify because if someone decides to switch colours during the draft and ends up taking your main colour you’ll be screwed if you don’t have a secondary one to fall back on. It’s not rare in a Draft to see your initial primary colour become your supporting one. It’s very important to always keep in mind that you need a primary colour and a supporting one, keep an eye out for cards that can signal that any colour might be open and try to branch out to it.

When to Splash?

Splashing a colour is when you’re already playing a two coloured deck but decide to add a couple of cards of a third colour. It’s not rare this will happen but you have to be very careful when doing so. The main reason you’d do this is if your card pool supports 2 colours very well but then you ended up with a very solid bomb from a third colour, but it wouldn’t be worth it to fully embrace that colour since the other cards from it or bad or you just don’t have enough. In a case like that you’ll have to decide if that bomb card is worth making your mana base less stable. If it’s an insanely good card in Limited, such as a planeswalker, odds are you will want to splash a colour for it. You’ll want to be careful with your land distribution though, like if you’re splashing for only 1 card, you’ll want to play 1 or 2 lands of that colour, depending on the mana cost of the card. If you have some mana fixing in your card pool such as coloured-mana producing artifacts and such you might want to play a couple too. You want to make your deck play out as smoothly as possible and not get mana screwed.

Playing 3 Colours

This is a rare sight, but it’s not impossible. In some settings the format will allow you to play 3 colours, usually when there’s a good amount of mana fixing in the set, like with the Tarkir block. In those situations you’ll be able to 3 supporting colours instead of one primary, one supporting and one splash for example. To do so you’ll need a good amount of multicoloured lands and some mana fixing artifacts like guild signets or clan banners. Be very very careful before deciding a dedicated three colour deck because you always have a risk of getting mana screwed. Try to see if a set supports that kind of deck before doing so, you don’t want to overcommit to three colours to then realize you don’t have enough resources to effectively play them. As a general thing this kind of deck is not a great idea and it’s better to play two colours with sometimes a splash of a third; but in some settings it’s possible.

Playing Only One Colour

In some cases you’d actually be better off playing one colour and it’s important to be able to identify those cases. Let’s say that you’re playing Sealed and when you look at your colours and figure out which colour should be your primary; you line up the cards and when you’re looking at what’s missing you realize that you have enough good cards in that colour to not play another one. It’s possible and happens every now and then, though not super common. If that happens you should still look at your other colours to see if there’s any solid bombs that would warrant you splashing a second colour or not. Sometimes you’ll be lucky enough to open 6 rates of the same colour and you’ll have no reason to splash a second one, but in most cases you’ll want to splash another colour just for a couple of bombs. In a Draft, maybe you’ll decide that Black is going to be your main colour and from there you keep getting good Black cards so you keep picking them, again and again and it never stops because somehow no one at the table is playing Black at all. It happens, even though it’s rare. In those cases you’ll end up playing only one colour and that’s fine; don’t try to force adding more colours if there is no reason to do so. That being said, you should always keep an eye out for good cards of other colours to make sure you’re not missing out on something.

Wrap-Up

I think that pretty much covers the topic for this week. I hope this was helpful to any of you. If I missed anything please let me know. While you’re playing Limited it’s very important to always keep an eye open for solid cards in any colour, even the ones you aren’t currently playing since you might want to splash for those colours or make one your secondary colour if the cards are good enough or if your card pool supports it. It’s a lot to think about and it might seem overwhelming at first, because it is, but over time you’ll be able to tell those kind of things more instinctively. I’ll see you guys next week for another article!

#mtg #magic #magic the gathering #magic: the gathering #magic blog #mtg blog #my limited knowledge

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commandtower · 7 years ago

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Ixalan Card Analysis for Commander

Welcome to a new Commander Set Analysis article, this time for Ixalan! I haven't done one of these in a while, but I'm really excited about Ixalan and I've decided that it deserves a solid look. As with the previous times I've done this, I'll be looking at all the rares and mythics as well as any cards in lower rarities that specifically catch my attention. I'll briefly touch on their basic strengths and weaknesses and talk about examples of deck types that might like to make use of them.

As always, please remember that these thoughts are my personal opinion and are based only on first impressions of the cards. I've had only the barest minimum of time with the set as a whole and have not yet had a chance to play with the majority of these cards in Commander games. My thoughts on these cards will likely change as time goes on, and even if I don't personally have high praise for a specific card, that doesn't mean it won't be useful in a specific deck. Your mileage with these cards will inevitably vary from mine, and something I don't have a use for might be the perfect inclusion in your deck, so don't let my opinion stop you from experimenting with anything that catches your eye.

But that's enough of that, because it's time to start digging for treasure! Let's dive right in to Ixalan.

Ashes of the Abhorrent: This first rare in the set has been tailored specifically to deal with a single strategy in the game. I tend to find that cards like this one not worth the include unless your metagame is completely dominated by decks that the card will deal with. A card like this is extremely narrow and when deck slots are at a premium as they are in Commander, this feels like a dud include for most games. I can't think of anything that I'd personally want to take out of a deck to slot this in. I'm sure it will have its uses at specific tables, but it's not something that I think warrants too long a look.

Axis of Mortality: This card is pretty cutesy but it doesn't feel like it packs enough power to warrant an include in most decks. It is worth noting that having your life total set to a certain amount counts as gaining or losing the difference, and there are a dedicated subset of lifegain builds that do exist. I've never really been a fan of the dedicated lifegain strategy unless it's used to power out other abilities, so I'm lukewarm on this card. One place I think it might be funny is in an Archenemy variant deck where you can slide the opposing team's life around and pick off the easy targets, but that's a specific subset of decks and not really a central deck type.

Bishop of Rebirth: There are a few cards in this set that call back to the Titan cycle of M11 fame, and Bishop of Rebirth is doing a fairly decent Sun Titan impression. It has a substantially smaller body and only triggers on attack, and for only one less mana than the Titan it's not a great tradeoff. Sun Titan has had multiple reprints through things like promotional runs and a headlining spot in a Duel Deck, so they're not exactly hard to find either. Still, there is something to be said for redundancy in a singleton format and there are certainly decks that will be happy to see what essentially amounts to Sun Titan number two.

Goring Ceratops: Seven mana for a 3/3 body is a rough trade. The power this creature grants on a swing is definitely impressive, but the small stats are a pretty grim offset. White is pretty decent at protecting its creatures once they're on the field, though, and the fact that the Ceratops has double strike at all times does put a mark in its favor. Overall this is a risky card to play but there are lists that want it, and not just the Dinosaur deck either. Aggressive decks that want a large number of bodies out and swinging can get benefit from a card like this as long as they can protect the investment. If you can get it out there and keep it alive, it'll return the favor very quickly.

Ixalan's Binding: At only a single mana more than similar cards like Oblivion Ring or Banishing Light, the added effect makes this a very desirable upgrade for multiplayer-focused playgroups. This is an example of a card that performs entirely differently in Commander than it does in sixty-card formats. Exiling something as simple as a Sol Ring or a Gilded Lotus will have a profound effect across the entire table. Stapling a Meddling Mage to a Banishing Light would have been pretty good in its own right, but the fact that it only stops your opponents' casts turns this into an all-star of the set. This card is great and will definitely be worth including.

Kinjalli's Sunwing: One of the cheaper and leaner Dinosaurs in the set, the Sunwing is another card that's adding a redundancy option for decks that need multiple copies of the same effect. Dedicated lists that are built on the denying of resources will be happy for another card that causes permanents to enter tapped. The fact that it's also a Dinosaur is a big deal for people that want to dip into that tribe, though -- because so much of that deck will revolve around punching in for huge damage, having a viable utility card like this in the tribe makes for a solid early addition to the deck as it's still in its nascent stages.

Mavren Fein, Dusk Apostle: One of a good number of Legendary Creatures appearing in Ixalan, Mavren Fein is a decent card but not specifically outstanding. The fact that his controller only gets a single Vampire token from his trigger no matter how many creatures they attack with makes him an awkward card to get behind, and in mono-White he's hard to build into as he misses out on the vast majority of Vampires in the game. He's likely better suited to a place inside the ninety-nine, standing in support of a Commander like Edgar Markov that wants to get in and start swinging right away. There will likely be lists brewed for him but he's definitely not my favorite Legend in the set.

Priest of the Wakening Sun: It's no secret that I'm excited for Dinosaurs, but I don't think cards like this are really worth it. The trigger is essentially poop text in Commander; two life is an absolute pittance in a format that starts its players with 40. The second ability is the only thing to even consider this card for, and it's nothing outstanding either. While this card could hypothetically be used to tutor up a specific Dinosaur in a non-tribal build, there are better and more generalized creature tutors that could be included. Beyond that, a dedicated Dinosaur deck has better things to use its card slots on. Really, I don't think Gishath wants to run any creatures that aren't Dinosaurs anyway, as it just dilutes his potential.

Sanguine Sacrament: There is a lot more lifegain in this set than I initially realized, and as far as dedicated lifegain spells go, there are certainly worse ones overall. Probably the most interesting thing about Sanguine Sacrament is that it’s an instant, giving it some flexibility as a safety net. I've said it before, but lifegain is best utilized as a fuel for other results. Having a high life total doesn't win you the game under usual circumstances. To further that thought, though, If you're building an engine that runs on life, you're likely to have Black among your deck's colors. Draining life from your opponents using tools in Black's arsenal is usually more satisfying than just making it appear with cards like this. Overall I think this is a lackluster card for most decks, even builds that want to gain a lot of life.

Settle the Wreckage: This is a very neat card and not something that we see very often. Weirdly enough, this reads most similarly to certain Blue cards like Aetherize or Illusionist's Gambit in that they're all instant-speed attack disruptions at four mana. The closest thing in White is probably Angel of the Dire Hour, which sits well above this card in mana cost. Of course, the value of the lean cost is offset by the Path to Exile rider, turning the creatures it exiles into lands. Some people have looked at this as a sort of "White ramp spell for yourself," turning the player's own creatures into lands to boost mana production. This works but it's not something I can see being terribly viable in most cases. Even if the creatures you're swapping for lands are disposable tokens, having enough creatures out to ramp yourself in any meaningful way would mean you're already doing pretty well in the game. This reads better as a mid-to-late-game mass combat trick, working best when the player you use it on has already established themselves and the extra lands don't add too much in value. It's a fine, strong card that will see play, but I think its use is more straightforward than people are trying to make it.

Tocatli Honor Guard: Overall this is a fairly straightforward card, and another that adds redundancy options similarly to how Kinjalli's Sunwing did. This card offers an additional effect in the vein of Hushwing Gryff and Torpor Orb, both of which have seen their share of play in Commander. Creatures with additional value form the backbone of many decks in the format, as each card in a deck needs to add a certain level of value to warrant the use of the card slot. Shutting off cards like Eternal Witness and Rune-Scarred Demon makes this a powerful include, and beyond that it also stops things like Purphoros and Aura Shards that trigger when creatures come in beside them. As a creature its stats are fairly lean for the format, but effects like this are strong and that means this card will see play.

Wakening Sun's Avatar: The first of the Dinosaur Avatars in the set, Wakening Sun's Avatar is a powerful addition to the Dinosaur tribal build. At eight mana to cast, it's not exactly light on the mana pool, but the 7/7 body and the ability to blow up the board except for Dinosaurs is huge. The Dinosaur deck is going to be about punching at the end of the day, and a card like this that just slams into play and completely clears the path for its tribe is a welcome inclusion. Even though this card's trigger only works when it enters from hand and thus not off of being flipped up with Gishath, it happily goes into that deck anyway just as a bit of extra muscle. Even non-Dinosaur decks might want this as a huge body that clears the way for itself, but it really shines when it stands next to others of its kind.

Arcane Adaptation: The ability to modify your creatures' types en masse was originally in Black when it appeared on the card Conspiracy, and when it moved to Blue on Xenograft it only changed the type of creatures currently on the battlefield. With the printing of this card, Blue now has access to modify creatures that aren't in play as well, which is a massive benefit for decks that want to manipulate their creatures this way. Arcane Adaptation is also decidedly cheaper in mana cost than previous cards like it, which is definitely welcome. Any deck that was previously running Xenograft will be happy to see this, and the ability to use this card to affect things like type-specific tutors adds a ton of extra value. This will definitely be a useful tool for the decks that want it.

Daring Saboteur: I don't think this card will be very useful in most situations. Any value it could give is basically erased by the format's deckbuilding restrictions. The slot this would take is better used by a card like Bident of Thassa or Deepfathom Skulker that offers up similar abilities to its controller's entire team. Specific Pirate builds might want to include this just because it does gain some value when surrounded by others of its type; a deck centered around Admiral Beckett Brass is probably okay with cards like this since she wants multiple Pirates to hit her opponents so she can steal from them. As it is, it's not terrible, but its value is essentially eclipsed by cards we already have. Unless you specifically need the maximum number of Pirates, I'd look elsewhere.

Deadeye Quartermaster: This card is pretty interesting to me. At first blush this card seems like it belongs more in White, as the ability to tutor Equipment cards out of the deck seems more in line with cards like Stoneforge Mystic. Blue is able to find artifacts as well, though, and this card might be better compared to something like Treasure Mage with a different spin on the tutor restriction. Picking up Vehicles as well as Equipment gives this card a bit of added value and makes it read pretty differently from anything else. It's a decent utility creature for the kind of deck that will want it.

Dreamcaller Siren: I’m not really into this one. The tapping of permanents can be relevant but I feel that more prevalent options like Frost Titan or Icefall Regent offer more as a total package. Having on-card flash is a nice boost for this and makes it a bit more useful as a surprise combat trick, but locking the ability behind the need to control additional Pirates undoes whatever benefit this might offer. This seems like it’s going to be an instant-speed Cloud Elemental more often than not. I feel like this is another example of a card that loses value because of the format’s deckbuilding rules. If the Pirate deck gets off the ground, this might be worth another look, but as it is there are just better choices.

Entrancing Melody: I can't see a reason to run this over cards that already exist, like Control Magic or Volition Reins. If you're considering this card but you're not already running at least one of those, I'd point you to those other cards first. This isn't terrible, though -- it's just not ideal. If you're already running those cards and are still looking for additional options to steal other players' cards, this is a decent piece if a little expensive in total. It's fairly straightforward overall, and there's not much to say beyond that.

Fleet Swallower: Mill is a rough strategy when the libraries in the format are ninety-nine stories tall, but it is possible to pull it off with the right suite of cards. This card is solidly large for Blue and although it doesn't have any kind of evasion, it's big enough that average combat math is in its favor. Beyond that, the trigger occurs on attacking, not damage, so it's not required to actually hit the opponent to mill their deck. Even more interesting, the player that mills doesn't have to be the one that was attacked, making for an opportunity to smack one opponent for damage and another for cards, or even mill yourself to set up specific play options for a graveyard-based deck. There's definitely value in this card for certain decks, and I know of a few players that were pretty excited to see this when it was first officially revealed. If your deck functions in a way that can utilize a card like this, it's probably worth testing.

Herald of Secret Streams: Speaking as someone who has a deck that very heavily relies on +1/+1 counter manipulation to win, I think this card looks better than it actually is. It doesn't actively create or otherwise manipulate the counters it needs to function, instead relying on other cards to make it work. Needing additional cards to function doesn't inherently keep a card from being good in this format -- one could technically make the same argument about Doubling Season, which is a card that functions well in the same strategy that the Herald is trying to fit into. Passive-type cards need to have a strong impact on the board when they're played to offset having to sit in hand until the opportune moment, though, and I think the Herald's not ideal in that regard. Plus, the card is sitting at a critical point on the mana curve at four mana, which is already fairly well-stocked with cards in this format. While it's not bad overall and could definitely be playable in the right list, I do think it's a sub-optimal choice for decks that want to play to the +1/+1 counter strategy.

Jace, Cunning Castaway: This card was officially revealed alongside the announcement of the rules change for Planeswalkers, and it makes sense considering this card requires those rules changes to function. This is an interesting take on the suite of abilities Jace is known for as it highlights his abilities as a creator of illusions. Overall I feel this Jace is somewhat lackluster; he was the subject of some hype when it was realized that he can go infinite with Doubling Season, but there are a lot of Planeswalkers that love that card, so that's nothing too crazy in my opinion. In a vacuum I think he's probably the weakest Planeswalker in the set, and his only real highlight is the gimmick of his ultimate which was included to highlight the rules change. There are better uses for the card slot this will take up, in my opinion.

Kopala, Warden of Waves: The second of the monocolor Legends in the set, Kopala follows Mavren Fein in that he's likely to be more useful as a member of the deck than as the headliner. Merfolk as a tribe have a fair number of possible Commander choices in a number of color combinations, which means that Kopala's monocolored identity will be restricting compared to other options. He is the most tribal-oriented among his Legendary peers, but his abilities have an upward limit to their viability in a format where mass removal tends to be the preferred method to deal with creatures. I think he does have a position in a Merfolk tribal build, but it's probably better not to choose him to lead the deck.

Overflowing Insight: Drawing cards is always a good thing, and drawing multiple cards is even better. Let it not be said that cards that do nothing but draw more cards aren't useful in Commander. That said, a card like this feels too clunky to get a lot of use out of. Comparing the effect against the mana cost, the value is good at one card for each mana spent, but the initial investment of seven is still very high for a card draw spell. Requiring seven mana to cast means that this will eat up the bulk of the player's mana on an average turn, and draw spells tend to function better when they leave some room to allow the casting of the drawn cards. Later turns will allow for this, but that makes this card effectively say "Draw seven, then move to end step" until about turn ten or twelve, and that's not ideal. I think it's generally a better idea to go a little leaner on the dedicated draw spells, or else use cards with variable costs like Pull from Tomorrow which allow you to tailor your play to your available mana. Overflowing Insight also reads "target player draws," which could equally be a good or bad thing depending on your playgroup -- it might assist you in killing that player who cycles through their deck really quickly, but it might also be a good Swerve target for your opponent when you're just trying to get back into the game. Overall I think this is less than ideal.

River's Rebuke: I think this card is actually more viable than it might seem. This might look worse at first glance than cards like Cyclonic Rift or Evacuation, as it deals with only a single opponent's field instead of the whole board, and is a sorcery instead of an instant. Truthfully, I think the fact that it targets only a single player actually puts this in a class of its own instead of directly being comparable to other mass-bounce cards. This card allows a way to deal with an individual player’s board before they develop too far and it doesn't cost its caster their own board to play. It could theoretically also be combined with another color's boardwipes to preemptively rescue your own field from destruction, although as a sorcery it's kind of a red flag to cast on yourself. I think the best use for this card is as a political statement during a multiplayer game, as you can use it to quickly shift the balance of a table in the direction you want. It's not going to become a Blue auto-include, but it's something that certain decks might want to try.

Spell Swindle: I find it a bit funny that Ixalan includes this obvious riff on Mana Drain when you consider the upcoming reprint of Mana Drain itself in Iconic Masters. There are actually quite a few cards in this set that are based on previous cards, this card being one of them. That said, this card is pretty good in its own right and I do expect to see it show up at the Commander table. Five mana is on the expensive side for a counterspell, but the return on the investment is definitely a plus when you consider that the Treasure tokens hang around until they’re needed. I think this will be worth trying.

Bloodcrazed Paladin: I dismissed this card as trivial when I first read it, but upon further reflection I think I actually do like it. The addition of flash can make this a viable option for a few different strategies, and the potential for good value is high considering this card costs a very decent two mana. This card might be a decently threatening body for a deck that likes to make large numbers of tokens and then sacrifice them for effects. It can also serve to quickly get a player back into the game after a board wipe, which is difficult for some decks to accomplish. The capacity for a big return is the main draw of this card, and I think it'll see a fair amount play in Commander.

Boneyard Parley: This is a very cool and unique take on the classic Fact or Fiction formula. The ability to grab creatures from any graveyard is always relevant in multiplayer games. I do think that this card is expensive enough that it won't be viable in just any deck, but there is potential for good return on the mana investment if it's played at the right time. A bit of work will be required to get the best value out of this effect, and a card like this is a bit more thought-intensive than the average reanimation spell. It'll take some testing to find out if it's worth the slot, but for decks that can make proper use of it I think it'll be quite valuable.

Deadeye Tracker: This is an example of a very good use for the Explore keyword in a color that can get a good amount of use out if it. Having the Explore action happen as part of the ability's resolution is a great addition for Black, as it helps to ensure land drops and can also add cards to the graveyard. Manipulating specific cards in an opponent’s graveyard is a very useful addition to a deck’s toolbox as Commander has a number of strategy archetypes that involve use of the graveyard. I've seen people forget that Explore can pitch the card it reveals, but throwing cards into the bin can be beneficial in a color like Black that often wants a large pile to sift through. It can help with Delirium, add reanimation targets, or just offer a quick and dirty way to manipulate the top of the deck. There's a lot of value in this card, and it'll definitely be worth trying.

Dire Fleet Ravager: This is a very straightforwardly aggressive card that plays in a somewhat unique space. As of this writing, there are only two cards in the game that deal out life loss by one-third, and this card is one of them. This is a powerful card for combat-based strategies as it quickly reduces the damage that needs to be dealt to win, but it's also a viable piece for control variants that strive for resource deprivation, as it further reduces the options available to opponents. This is a card that's good in different decks for different reasons, and I'd expect to see it at multiplayer tables very quickly.

Fathom Fleet Captain: I'm still not sure what to make of tribal Pirates as a deck. The tribe looks like it has some decent potential, mostly because it has access to a lot of the very good creatures from this set that just happen to also be Pirates. If that deck starts to take off then I can definitely see this card holding a spot there. As it is right now, Pirates looks like it's going to be primarily built around swinging in with multiple low-cost evasive creatures like this one. The ability to create disposable bodies to minimize the loss of the deck's more central creatures is a nice addition to a deck that wants to go wide like this. Outside of Pirate tribal, though, I think this is too parasitic to be of any real value.

Revel in Riches: This card makes an immediate and blatant comparison to Black Market and it might seem at first blush to be worse. Black Market definitely has much more explosive potential in terms of mana production, but the fact that the Treasure tokens from this card stick around until they're needed is a fair exchange in my opinion. The alternate win condition on this card is interesting but I don't think it'll be a realistic goal to work towards in most games; it's better to consider the win trigger as a bit of extra gravy and treat the mana production of the Treasure tokens as the meat and potatoes of the card. A card like this requires a specific list to be good, preferably a black-centered board control list with a number of boardwipes. A hypothetical dedicated Treasure list that really wants to push for the alternate win might have to wait until Rivals of Ixalan, so we can see how the Treasure mechanic evolves.

Sanctum Seeker: At first I was not incredibly excited about this card. I thought it was fine and playable, but nothing incredibly terrifying. My opinion of it has changed since I saw it being tested in a dedicated Edgar Markov list, and now I am a much bigger fan. With Edgar consistently doubling up the number of Vampires from the safety of the command zone, this card has the potential to be extremely scary if it comes in at the right time. The relatively low mana cost of four mana makes this easily playable in a big-mana format like this, and the four points of toughness means it's a solid body to play during the early-to-mid point of the game. I do think that this card's value diminishes quite a bit if there's not a steady, ongoing source of Vampire creatures, so outside of Edgar this might not be the best use of the slot. A card like this one requires specific pieces around it to be worthwhile, but it will certainly shine in the right list.

Sword-Point Diplomacy: There are two very major marks against this card in this format. The first is obviously the increased starting life total which means that most players won't have a problem dropping life into the effect. The second is that multiplayer games are a default state of the format, with three or four players being a common number to sit down at the table. A card like this essentially invites opponents to team up against you, ensuring whatever value you get out of this card is minimized to the point of uselessness. This card is of much better use in other formats, where 3 life is a more serious fraction against the total and there are less opponents to pay the tax. If you’re looking for something that functions similarly to this but with a better return, consider a card like Moonlight Bargain, which lets you pay life for the specific cards you want instead of relying on other players at the table.

Vraska's Contempt: This straightforward variant of Hero's Downfall causes the target to be exiled instead of destroyed for an additional generic mana. It also spits out two life for the extra cost, but I think that addition is mostly superfluous. The value of exiling the target instead of destroying it is absolutely what you're paying for here and it's very much worth the extra single mana in the cost. While spot removal does lose some value over mass boardwipes in this format, I am solidly of the opinion that there's still a need for ways to deal with specific threats, and because this hits multiple card types it's a fine piece to include. Hero's Downfall is still the number one choice at the intersection of playability and cost, but the fact that this is an instant means it probably wins out against the sorcery-speed Ruinous Path in most lists. I'll be playing with it to see how it feels, but I'm pretty optimistic.

Angrath's Marauders: There's more to unpackage with this card than there might seem. Seven mana for a 4/4 is definitely on the more expensive side, but when that four power is stapled to a Gratuitous Violence, it gains some value back for certain. While this card is obviously not at the power level of the comparably-costed Gisela, Blade of Goldnight, the fact that the Marauders has only Red in its color identity makes it available to additional decks. While we do already have a fair number of cards that offer effects like this in mono-Red, it's rare to see it on a body that can make use of the effect itself. Being a creature does make this more easily dealt with, though, and that's a trade of that'll need to be considered.

Burning Sun's Avatar: This Red member of the Dinosaur Avatar subgroup is trying its best to do an impression of Inferno Titan, and while it's not exactly succeeding, there's still a decent card to be had here. Most cards like this one that target a player and a creature usually restrict the creature choice to those controlled by the player that's being hit. Burning Sun's Avatar doesn't have that restriction, though, likely in an effort to expand the synergies between it and other members of its tribe. The Avatar's entry trigger can be used to deal damage to one of your own Dinosaurs with the Enrage mechanic, allowing for additional options and flexibility. Beyond that, it's decent spot removal for utility creatures with small-to-mid sized bodies and is also an impressive attacker at 6/6. It might not quite be at Inferno Titan's level, but it's a fine card and I expect it'll see play beyond its tribal option.

Captain Lannery Storm: I like the idea behind this card, a Pirate with a sort of "Treasure Prowess" that boosts its stats as you spend the loot you have in reserves. Captain Storm's biggest problem right now is that she doesn't really fit anywhere. As a Commander, the fact that she wants to swing in to claim more Treasure makes her base 2/2 stats a bit on the low side. This is helped a bit by her innate haste, but I don't think there's currently enough Treasure support in mono-Red to make her worthwhile as a headliner. Her next best option is to join up with the fleet, but that's not without its own problems. The Pirate tribal list under Admiral Beckett Brass is still fairly shaky since the tribe doesn't currently have a coherent theme to use as a deckbuilding throughline. As with a number of other Pirate cards in the set, I think we need to see what Rivals of Ixalan brings to the table before we can really figure out where to take Captain Storm. I like her in theory, but putting a list together is less than feasible right now.

Captivating Crew: There have been a number of cards over the years that play in the space of temporarily taking control of other permanents, but Captivating Crew is unique in that it's the first mono-Red creature that does it as an activated ability. While other cards such as Zealous Conscripts have better potential for combo exploitation through their passive triggers, this card is most interesting in its reliability, offering an easily repeatable way to get value out of opponents' creatures on the table. Having a repeatable mana sink like this is useful for Red since it's the color most likely to run itself out of options, and a mana sink that steals resources from opponents is definitely a welcome tool for a number of decks. As an aside, I love the fact that this card shares its art cues so blatantly with Magic Origins uncommon Enthralling Victor, and that both were illustrated by the same artist. While obviously intentional, it's great nonetheless, and I hope that artist Winona Nelson has further opportunities to explore this theme in the future.

Rampaging Ferocidon: This smaller-bodied Dinosaur might not be as physically imposing as some of its kin, but it offers one of the more powerful and unique abilities within the tribe right now. The immediate comparison here is to Sulfuric Vortex, and while it's not a perfect resemblance, there's still an obvious parallel to draw. Anyone who plans to use a lifegain-based strategy to pay for abilities will have to tread around either of these cards carefully. Similarly, players of token-based decks will need to deal with the Ferocidon immediately or else be completely shut off from the theme they've built their deck towards. As a creature, the Ferocidon is vulnerable to cards in each of the five colors, but the fact that it so blatantly requires an answer means that it will have value for as long as it can remain on the board. This Dinosaur has undeniable value even beyond the tribal build, and I can see it finding a home in a number of decks that want to aggressively disrupt the flow of play for their opponents. This is absolutely a card to keep an eye out for.

Repeating Barrage: Continuing this set's growing trend of cards based on previously printed ones, Repeating Barrage is a fairly clear callback to Hammer of Bogardan. First printed way back in Mirage, the Hammer is a well-known card to longtime Magic players and was one of the earliest reusable burn spells, offering a solid mana sink to Red decks of the era that would often run out of gas. While it didn't win the game by itself, Hammer of Bogardan gave Red players something to do if things didn't go to plan. That said, the current era of Magic is a very different environment from the time when Hammer went for ten or fifteen bucks, and Commander is even further removed from what the game was then. There are better cards to use as repeatable mana sinks, and Repeating Barrage's best claim to fame now is as a nostalgic nod for the players -- such as myself -- that have been around the block since the Hammer's days.

Rowdy Crew: I'm not generally a fan of cards like this. Some randomization is obviously unavoidable in a game that begins with its players shuffling their game pieces into a massive, uniform stack, but it's usually best to minimize it once the match actually starts. There are lists that want cards like this, and the potential for a 5/5 with trample for four mana is certainly present. Lists that are built around the act of discarding cards for additional value might experiment with this as well. In a vacuum, though, this is not a great use for a card slot.

Star of Extinction: I really like that this set includes a board wipe that's based on damage, so that it triggers the Enrage mechanic on the set's various Dinosaurs. Comparing this to similar options like Blasphemous Act, the things that really set this apart are the fact that it targets and destroys a land and that its damage is dealt to both creatures and Planeswalkers. These are interesting changes but they shouldn't affect too much in an average game. It is important to note that if the land that Star of Extinction targets becomes an illegal target before the spell resolves, the whole thing is countered and the damage isn't dealt. Blasphemous Act is probably the better card overall, but it's nice to have additional options.

Sunbird's Invocation: I'm not as big a fan of this card as some of the other people at my local store, although it does definitely have the potential to be powerful. If you've constructed your deck to take good advantage of it, it basically grants every spell you cast a Cascade analogue, which has the potential to swing the game in your favor pretty far. As an effect, there's no denying that turning every one spell you cast into two is a fine way to make value back on your investment quickly. I think the overall value of this card will depend heavily on what the rest of the deck looks like; a card like this limits the use of things like reactive instants as well as spells with X in their cost. Sunbird's Invocation does have the potential to be powerful in a list built to support it, but I'd need time to experiment with building and playing that list to really get a feel for it.

Tilonalli's Skinshifter: This is a really rough sell for me. The fact that this card is a 0/1 any time except when it's attacking alongside another creature makes this essentially a useless card in all but a few situations. In a format where only one of each card is allowed, a card needs to have lasting long-term value to work well in an average list. Some specific deckbuilding style might have a plan for a card like this, but in most normal situations this card will just not be useful in Commander.

Carnage Tyrant: This card is one of the most expensive cards in Ixalan as of this writing. It's a great no-nonsense facepuncher, a card that’s all about swinging in all day. The card is definitely good and is going to see play but I would expect its value to fall once the set has settled a bit, so if you're looking for one you might want to watch it for a bit to see if it slides into a more affordable price bracket. Its best value in Commander is inside the Dinosaur tribal list headed by Gishath, as outside of that list it finds itself in a rather bloated mana cost range that's filled with a number of other playables.

Deathgorge Scavenger: This is a nice utility piece for the Dinosaur tribe, but in a more generalized list it's hard to get a feel for it. It's definitely not as good as something like Scavenging Ooze when it comes to dealing with cards in graveyards, and having to swing in to trigger the ability can be rough when it’s sitting at 2 toughness. Still, utilizing the graveyard as a resource is a popular strategy in Commander and having more cards that can deal with that zone directly is a good thing. I'd say it's worth trying this one out to see how it performs at your local tables.

Deeproot Champion: I do like this card, but it's definitely outside of Green's normal comfort zone. Cards in this color are normally all about creature spells and interactions with creatures, and giving a Green creature an ability that's basically "super Prowess" feels a little weird to me. That said, I can definitely see a use for it; I've already seen a few Temur Spells lists at tables and they'll enjoy a card like this. Because it's inexpensive and has an ongoing way to add value to itself, I think it's worth trying. It's definitely non-traditional, but there's ways to make it work.

Emperor's Vanguard: Green is probably the color helped the least by the Explore mechanic. The land-finding aspect is minimized by Green's already-superior ability to ramp, and while there is some use for the graveyard in the color, it's less direct than a color like Black and generally only puts cards back in hand to be played again. This isn't a terrible card, but Explore's limited range in this color and the fact that there's only minimal support for it as a mechanic make me less than excited to play a card like this.

Old-Growth Dryads: This card is not for Commander, plain and simple. In a format where only one copy of each card can be run in a deck, this will almost never appear early enough in the game for it to be relevant compared to the card's obvious downside. This adds nothing of value to the deck of the person playing it and actively harms them in the long run. Ramp is exceedingly important in this format, and a card like this that just happily hands your opponents the most valuable resource in the game is of little use. An argument could be made for this card's political value, but I don't think that's a valid line of reasoning to include something like this. It’s best to look elsewhere.

Ranging Raptors: This card's ability is probably one of the best Enrage triggers in the game so far. The fact that the Raptor's body is big enough to survive multiple instances of damage each turn means that the right suite of cards can net multiple lands over and over, which is a big deal for the dedicated Dinosaur deck that's going to have a high mana curve by its very nature. I think there's potential for this card to shine in multiple lists other than just the Dinosaur deck, though, as it's a unique and repeatable way to ramp multiple times. There's a lot to think about with this one but I can definitely see a future for it.

Ripjaw Raptor: Speaking of amazing Enrage triggers, Ripjaw Raptor is another huge mark in the mechanic's favor. There's not really a lot of subtlety or out-of-box thinking in the Dinosaur tribe, and a card like this one is probably the most cerebral the creature type is really going to get, but I think that's fine. There's a lot of value in cards like this that trigger off of a normal aspect of gameplay, and drawing cards is probably one of the best things that something like this can do. It'll be interesting to see how this mechanic develops in Rivals of Ixalan, but as it is right now we have the start of something really strong.

Verdant Sun's Avatar: As I'm sure longtime followers of my blog know by now, I'm not a fan of lifegain just for the sake of gaining life. Decks that run lifegain cards should also be able to use that life to power other cards' abilities and expand the options available to them -- just blindly gaining life doesn't win the game on its own. That said, I'm not opposed to a card like this in the Dinosaur deck. The tribe has a higher-than-average mana curve and it might take some time to start firing properly, and having access to a card like this one allows the deck to take a few lumps in the early game and still stabilize itself in later turns. As a bonus, this card actually runs nicely alongside cards with the Enrage mechanic, as many damage-based boardwipes such as Earthquake and Molten Disaster hit players as well as creatures. Those types of cards are viable in the Dinosaur deck as they trigger all of the Enrage mechanics on the board, and running this card offers a bit of a safety bubble to keep the player from taking too much heat from their own spells. This isn't the most amazing of the new Dinosaurs but it's a decent enough addition in its own right, and with the creature pool still fairly shallow for the tribe, it's a fine inclusion.

Waker of the Wilds: This card feels a bit like a design held over from the Battle for Zendikar era. Its activated ability seems a fairly obvious play on the Awaken keyword featured in that block, which put +1/+1 counters on lands and then turned them into creatures. There were obviously cards that brought lands to life as creatures before the BFZ block, but the way this card uses counters to animate the land makes it feel very connected to that time. I wasn’t personally excited by the Awaken ability as it appeared on cards from the Battle block; I have used cards with the ability in decks, but it's never been a deciding factor in whether a card sees play as far as I'm concerned. As such, I'm not really moved by this card. The fact that this is a space that's already been so thoroughly explored means that it's not really that amazing to me. It's fine, there's nothing specifically bad about it, but it's not something I'm going to be running out to get my hands on.

Admiral Beckett Brass: This is a hard one to read. Tribal Commanders with a static lord ability are nice enough in their own right, so the Admiral will probably see play as a Commander just because she's the best choice for the Pirate tribe at the moment. The end-of-turn trigger is pretty good when it connects but the fact that an opponent has to be hit with three Pirates to actually have it happen is a little rough. Currently, the Pirate tribe have low-to-average combat stats overall and often require other options to help them really push through. There are a decent number of Pirates with some type of evasion, so that's a mark in the Admiral's favor, but I feel like there will be some work involved to help solidify the deck's gameplan. If she's backed up properly, I think there is potential for her in the format, but it's tough to call right now. Just like with a number of other cards in the tribe, I think it'll take the release of the next set to really get an idea of what this card can do.

Gishath, Sun's Avatar: If you've been following my blog in the months leading up to Ixalan's release, you'll know that I've been pretty excited for Dinosaurs for a while now. It's exciting to see my young childhood intersect with a hobby I’ve cultivated through my later youth and into my adulthood. It’s great to watch the tribe starts to establish itself, and a powerful Legendary creature is a welcome inclusion in the first rush of cards. Gishath is a great example of what this tribe is going for and a perfect choice to headline the deck if you're looking to build Dinosaurs for yourself. Because he's so centered in support of his tribe, he's really an all-or-nothing type of card, and his value drops off very quickly as creatures other than Dinosaurs start showing up in the deck around him. Similarly, there's little reason to use a different creature to headline a Dinosaur-centric deck as creatures like Mayael the Anima already have established lines that they can follow and converting them to Dinosaur tribal dilutes what they can already do. Still, Gishath is good at what he does and I've already seen him at a table more than once as of this article's writing. Gishath is confirmed awesome.

Hostage Taker: This card was hit with clarification errata before it became available publicly. Hostage Taker is unable to take itself hostage, despite how the text might read. Even without the potential to lock the game into a draw, though, this is a very strong piece for the average Dimir control shell. The capacity to function as a sort of Faceless Butcher for both artifacts and creatures is good in its own right, but stapling on the Gonti, Lord of Luxury ability to cast the exiled card just makes this a huge presence at the table when it comes down. I honestly think this card has the potential to become an auto-include in decks that have access to Blue and Black, as it offers a ton of value for the card slot it takes. This is just a very good card.

Huatli, Warrior Poet: Huatli's suite of abilities is a little strange on the first read. Her zero-loyalty ability is probably the most interesting in that it creates a token outside of her color identity. This isn't unheard of but is generally unusual. Her plus and minus abilities are connected to each other pretty strongly; Huatli essentially has no "ultimate" ability, and the capacity to repeatedly activate the minus-X ability is the main reason to tick up her loyalty. The ability to gain life is interesting here mostly because it allows the player to chain into damage-based boardwipes like Molten Disaster, which is the Dinosaur deck's preference because it allows their Enrage triggers to happen even on the way to the graveyard. Huatli also offers her own interesting way to trigger the Dinosaur tribe's Enrage abilities through the use of her minus-X, which can be used to target your own creatures for added value. Huatli was obviously made to benefit the Dinosaur tribe and her synergies with those cards does show through, but she's strong in her own right and I think she's worth trying in any aggressive list that includes Red and White and wants options that offer a bit more staying power.

Regisaur Alpha: This is another card that's only real value is as an inclusion in the new Dinosaur deck, but will do a ton of work in that specific build. Dinosaurs seem a bit of an exclusive club in that they want only their own kind at the party to really maximize themselves. Dinosaur tribal as a deck is pretty rough right now and a lot of cards are seeing an inclusion just because they have the right creature type, but this feels like a card that will be relevant to the deck even after more options become available. As a card, this is pretty straightforward, but I think it will have a fairly dedicated slot in Gishath's hunting pack for a long while. Definitely worth the inclusion if you're walking the Dinosaur.

Tishana, Voice of Thunder: The immediate comparison for this card is to Prime Speaker Zegana, another Legendary Green-Blue Merfolk creature that can draw cards and set its stats based on other creatures you have in play. Instead of caring about your one largest creature like Zegana, though, Tishana counts your total number of creatures, making her better suited for things like token decks or other swarm mentality builds like Elves. The initial investment of seven mana is a little high but Tishana will make it worthwhile as long as you have a healthy board. I think there's potential for a card like this both as a Commander or as part of the deck. It'll be exciting to see a deck come together for her.

Vona, Butcher of Magan: I went back and forth on the viability of this card for a bit when I first saw it, but as of now I think Vona is quite good. Five mana for a 4/4 with vigilance and lifelink is already above the baseline by itself, and the capacity to pay life for what's essentially a repeatable Vindicate is certainly a useful ability. Seven life can be a bit high as the game goes on, but this card is in the two colors most likely to regain life either through passive gain effects or draining it from opponents, so that cost should be easily handled. This is a good example of a card that offers the means to an end for lifegain effects, as it's a very straightforward and valuable way to spend that life you're gaining. Vona can be quite powerful if the right suite of tools are present, and I think we'll see multiple lists for her in the near future.

Vraska, Relic Seeker: Of the three Planeswalkers in the set, Vraska is the most openly aggressive. Her plus-2 ability creates a creature with menace, a powerful offensive keyword, and her minus-3 snipes active threats on the board and turns them into disposable mana stones for her controller. Her ultimate is flashy but likely won't see a lot of use, as repeated shots with the second ability seems a better way to spend her loyalty. Still, the ultimate is easy to reach from the starting point, and with two or three menacing Pirates out it does have potential to be a finisher. Six mana is very manageable in Commander and the fact that she comes into play with as much loyalty as the mana she costs is nice. Overall I think she's quite good and will serve well as a versatile removal piece for Golgari decks.

Fell Flagship: There's not a lot to say about this one, really. Giving a vehicle the classical Specter ability is kind of interesting, and I like the idea of a ship that's a Pirate lord. A 3/3 vehicle with crew 3 seems small though, and I'm not sure if Pirate tribal is strong enough yet to be worthwhile. The tribe definitely needs lords like this to make it work, though, so this is definitely a step in the right direction. As with so many other cards in the Pirate camp, I think that this card's worth will be solidified with the reveal of the next set, when we can get a better idea of how the tribe will fit together.

Shadowed Caravel: A card like this that is extremely parasitic to other cards within its own set is usually not very good, and Explore in and of itself is already a hard sell. The Explore mechanic's value is really dependent on the color of the card it appears on. Green cards with it aren't as valuable in my opinion because they already have better options for picking up lands, but in a color like Black that has limited ramp capacity and also wants a full graveyard, Explore is a lot better. Even in that instance, though, there's not enough depth to the mechanic to make a deck centered around it. When a card is locked to a mechanic like this it tends to not be very good because it's a dead end if you draw it without mechanical support already in place. If Explore picks up steam in Rivals of Ixalan this might be worth a second look, but honestly I think it's just a better idea to include something a little more dependable.

Sorcerous Spyglass: This is an interesting take on the Pithing Needle formula that allows players a bit of foresight into the card that they name. The fact that it doesn't specifically lock you to a card that it sees when you look at an opponent's hand means no value is lost in playing this. Hypothetically, you could even look through one player's hand, then choose something that's on another player's board once you're sure the player whose hand you looked at is not a present threat. In terms of Commander, this card might actually be more useful than its predecessor. This is because it offers a distinct upgrade for just a single mana that carries its value further into the late game, but its still-low cost means that there's no substantial loss of playability in the early turns. This type of static effect is a useful and dependable way to deal with specific problems, so I would not be surprised to see this gain some traction at the Commander table.

Vanquisher's Banner: With the most recent set of Commander decks adding multiple tribal options to the format, and the heavy tribal themes present in Ixalan, a card like this is very enticing to a lot of people. While the tribal boost isn't on the level of a card like Coat of Arms, there's still solid value in a static anthem effect for a tribe of the player's choice. Beyond that, the card draw ability is very relevant as it can help to keep the deck fueled up. There's potential to chain together multiple plays using this card by drawing into other creatures of the chosen type, which can be extremely beneficial for decks that would otherwise run out of steam. Obviously this card requires a healthy creature base to be properly successful but there is definitely a lot to like about this if you're building to a tribal theme.

Legion's Landing / Adanto, the First Fort: This card is pretty candid in its abilities, but just because it's straightforward doesn't mean it's not playable. The front side of the card follows a small trend of enchantments that create tokens as they enter, with the most obvious recent example probably being Oath of Gideon. Similarly, the transformation trigger plays on cards like Kytheon, Hero of Akros and Windbrisk Heights, and the reverse side is a reworked take on the classic land card Kjeldoran Outpost. It's a solid, functional tool for token decks that want a consistent source of disposable bodies, and while its ability suite is not exactly earth-shattering to read, I think there is value to be had here.

Search for Azcanta / Azcanta, the Sunken Ruin: After the public reveal of Growing Rites of Itlimoc, I had at least one friend at my local game store who was upset that this card wasn't a Tolarian Academy on its reverse side. Despite that, though, I think the card we got is pretty good in its own right. The front side is interesting in that it can fill the graveyard while also manipulating the top of the library. It's fairly innocuous on its own, but it might be helpful if paired with cards like Jace, Vryn's Prodigy or cards with Threshold or Delirium. The back side is a great utility piece for a number of decks as a repeatable way to pull out cards turn after turn. I like this as an option for artifact-based decks as it allows them to gather up useful permanents, but a deck focused on spell-based control can also get some good value out of this. I think it’s quite good.

Arguel's Blood Fast / Temple of Aclazotz: The Black member of the transforming enchantments cycle is mechanically pretty neat. The front side is a Greed variant and the back face is a take on Diamond Valley, which are interesting cards to connect together like this. The result, though, is too hazardous on the player's life total to be of much use. While it’s true that a player's life total is a resource that can be used and I'm fine with paying life to activate abilities, the fact that this card requires you to be at five life to change into its back face is almost ridiculous in its demand. Not only is that number extremely low, but in a format that starts its players at 40 life, it's also going to take a lot of work to get there. If you're really intent on running lands that allow you to sacrifice creatures, consider cards like Miren, the Moaning Well or High Market instead.

Vance's Blasting Cannons / Spitfire Bastion: I'm not quite sure how to look at this card. The front side is essentially a locked Khans choice for Outpost Siege, which is a fine ability if you're looking for it. Red has been getting a number of cards with the Elkin Bottle ability in recent years so this is more or less expected. The reverse face is a repeatable source of damage that feels like an intersection between Shivan Gorge and Valakut, the Molten Pinnacle. Activating a land and tapping three others for the Bastion ability feels a little expensive since you're essentially tying up four mana sources for three damage, but repeatable sources of damage on permanents is nice for fast Red lists since it gives them a way to ensure they have damage output as turns pass. Like some of the other double-faced cards in Ixalan, the trigger to transform this card is optional, which is a nice benefit for a card like this since both sides offer distinct benefits. Overall I think there is value to be had here, but not every deck will be able to use it.

Growing Rites of Itlimoc / Itlimoc, Cradle of the Sun: Without a doubt, this is the Transform card in the set that turned the most heads when it was revealed. This design is a take on the classic land Gaea's Cradle, and it offers possibly the best value among its peers. Because the transformation trigger happens at the end of the turn instead of the upkeep, this card doesn't have to survive through a full round at the table to become the land side, which is a huge benefit for the card’s controller. Plus, unlike Gaea's Cradle, the transformed Itlimoc can always tap for mana, even if there are no creatures on the field. This is a gigantic card for the format, and it's likely going to become a mainstay in nearly all mono-Green decks and many multicolored creature-based lists that utilize Green as a central color.

Conqueror's Galleon / Conqueror's Foothold: Of all the transform cards in the set, this one is probably the least mechanically connected between its two faces. In terms of flavor, it's a cool idea to have a ship that floats up to a new continent and becomes the first landed settlement there, but I'm honestly less interested in this one as a card just because there's no real intersection of flavor and mechanics compared to the others. Some people are comparing this card’s back face to Trading Post, but I'm not sure if that comparison is entirely apt. I do think it’s a decent draw engine, though, and the fact that you can essentially improve how it functions by giving it more mana is a neat card design. The front is pretty lackluster overall but it's fairly easy to transform, so it's going to come down to whether or not playing the back half is worth including the front. Might be worth a test run, in any event.

Dowsing Dagger / Lost Vale: The Dagger is the only member of the transforming artifacts in this set that's an Equipment, which gives it a bit of a different feel compared to some of the others. I really enjoy the flavor of having to hack through the underbrush to find your way to the land on the other side, even though this is mechanically minimized in multiplayer games by attacking a different player than the one you gave the Plant tokens. Still, it's a cool idea. The land on the reverse side is a callback to Lotus Vale, itself a variant on arguably the most famous Magic card ever, Black Lotus. Three mana from one permanent is always beneficial and welcome in this format where mana costs can run high, and I think this is worth testing out in any deck that wants to swing in but has limited access to mana ramp.

Primal Amulet / Primal Wellspring: This is an amazing card for spell-based decks that want to win outside of combat. Reactive control decks that run a high number of counterspells or other manipulative spell cards will see an immediate return with a card like this one, and aggressive spell-based decks will appreciate the capacity to double down on each spell they cast. The back face plays as a sort of Pyromancer's Goggles analogue but works for any instant or sorcery, making it an upgrade on that card for decks that run more than one color. The transformation trigger is also optional on this card, which is great as it allows players to choose how they want to utilize it. In the earlier parts of the game, the Jace's Sanctum-style cost reduction is more useful, while the reverse side is functionally a finisher in some lists and better suited to the later turns. Giving the player control of when the card transforms allows this to be exactly the card it needs to be as it’s needed. I think this card will see a lot of play as time goes on.

Thaumatic Compass / Spires of Orazca: The front side of this card is a nice piece for decks that don't have a lot of access to land acceleration, essentially acting as a repeatable Expedition Map for basics. It's not terribly exciting, but it's a useful activation that a number of decks will be able to make use of. The land half is a renovated version of Maze of Ith that only works on opponents' creatures. These two cards have little to really do with each other in a mechanical sense, but there is a bit of flavor here in that you have to use the compass to find your way through other places to get to the land on the reverse side. I like to think of these cards similarly to things like modal spells and split cards in that they offer multiple types of value without taking up extra card slots. This card is probably the best example of that thinking. Truthfully, I think the front side is just more useful than the back in most situations, but the fact that it turns into something that has value in the late game earns it points. Overall I think it's quite good.

Treasure Map / Treasure Cove: This is an interesting piece and one of only a handful of transform cards in Ixalan that don’t feel specifically tied to cards from previous sets. In this instance, though, it may be because this is one of the set’s mechanical highlight cards, exemplifying the Treasure token mechanic. The activated ability of the front side is quite useful for a number of decks, and once it flips into the land it offers an alternate way to spend Treasure tokens, which is nice. This is another card that I think will gain more benefit when Rivals of Ixalan releases and additional Treasure-making cards are added to the game. As it is right now, one of the best ways to use this card is in a deck that can flicker or bounce permanents, allowing you to rebuild the Treasure tokens once you've exhausted them. There’s definitely value there but it’ll be interesting to see how this card evolves once there’s more opportunity to find Treasure.

Checkland Reprints: These are great lands that are certainly useful in any deck that can run them, and are often my personal first "go-to" when I start working on a multicolor land base. When building a new deck from scratch, these are an ideal place to start a land suite, and they’re an inexpensive and readily available way to upgrade the land base of a preconstructed deck once changes start being made. There's not much to say about them otherwise, but it's nice to have them that much more available with a new printing.

And that’s Ixalan! Thanks for reading this article. If you have any additional thoughts about any of these cards and want to make your voice heard, feel free to post a comment or send me a message. I hope that this huge, amorphous mass of words helps your deckbuilding endeavors in the future.

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sneakyhomunculous · 5 years ago

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RPT Phoenix Report: Back to Back!

Part 1: Preparation

“How should I begin this? I’m just so offended; how am I even mentioned by all these fucking beginners?”

Let’s back up a bit.

I’m coming into this half season fresh off a 5th place finish in the last MC, which means I’m qualified for RPT1/2 and PTFinal 1.

From what I could make of the shoddy convoluted details at the beginning of this year; I believed I had a serious upper hand in the Rivals race.

Only 4 tournaments count. The 3 I am qualified for and the 2nd PT final which I’ll have multiple chances to que for as well.

Almost everyone else has at most 1 RPT Q and a pipe dream.

With this info, I decide I am going to go for it. I know I am still an underdog, but I believe I am one of the few people in the world in this spot to somewhat reasonably set this goal of top 12 paper rivals for myself.

At the same time, the world we live in is an Arena dominated one.

I hate it of course.

Like most of you reading this; I play the game for mostly 1 big reason [the fierce competition]. Arena is severely lacking in this department.

Only standard, a mindless ladder with the only reward being a single lottery ticket into a ~15k USD 0.5% equity drawing. (that requires you to play standard for 8 hours on a saturday there will assuredly be a GP you want to play.)

A petty, infuriating chore.

Bc standard is so chalked and flooded with players anyway; You are forced to play casual [but ranked] drafts against the bots.

Slamming BO1 games with 15 land decks until your eyes bleed and the mythic achievement is reached!

Then you close the unbearable program down not to be touched again until the next time this chore is required; or the lottery drawing is happening.

Nice system!

All that being said, I’m still not going to handicap myself, and so I decide I will go for Arena as well.

Unfortunately I have no early advantage there, and the spots are obviously unbelievably high variance.

There are only 2 Invys and 2 Mythic point challenges, and if you miss the first invy you are almost drawing dead at a 1-12 spot. Especially with special invites and re-ques for top finishers all factored in.

So far I am failing on the Arena front.

I was too attached to my beautiful Urza Oko deck (I didn’t prepare enough for the first MCQW I would be double queing along side the modern GP in Austin. It cost me as I woke up and played poorly to a swift 2-2 exit with Jetski Fires before heading over to the GP)

I lost a win and in and got 17th there. Never have I played a tournament with a bigger edge over all non mirrors in the field! Unfortunately I played 7 mirrors and managed a lowly 4-2-1 in them.

I can’t make it through these gauntlets on autopilot anymore.

I’m only 27, but my seemingly rapid reduction in processing speed has made me feel like I’m somehow getting too old for this grind.

The way I have dealt with it?

Accepting it.

As much as I hate to admit it; I am not the same 17 year old wunderkind anymore and the young guns have a big edge on me.

I have to take all the necessary steps to take care of myself and do everything in my power to make sure when I’m in the trenches; inside the matches in the important tournaments; I can be as focused on the games as possible. This is just so I can make the playing field close to level.

Otherwise I am going to be reading cards, and playing slow unconfident magic.

This is a big one; I believe.

I think one thing a lot of players are lacking in pushing themselves to higher levels is the confidence in their decisions. I used to struggle with this a lot (still do sometimes) and I would constantly second guess things multiple times every turn.

Over time, I’ve learned that if you put in the work...

You practice;

Play actual games and learn the interactions;

You can really lean on your instincts and exude confidence in yourself that goes a long way in winning matches of Magic the Gathering.

(Look at almost all of the best players. They are confident in their decisions in the games, even when they end up making mistakes.)

But enough with the nonsense; let’s get to the tournament prep so we can blaze through that boring shit and get to the sweet 16 PT rounds

(spoilers: there may be more than 16)

Collin Rountree is torn between testing with Me Ty Will and the Houston Slack, and testing with team 5% captained by Allen “The Process” Wu.

Of course the choice is obvious, but Collin doesn’t want to leave all the local bangers in the dust.

He lobbies on our behalf, and Me Ty Will and Eddie all join team 5%.

I am not a stranger to large testing teams.

I spent four PTs testing with team TCG/SCG and we averaged around 15 people. The difference was that we always met up in person a week or more ahead of time for an intense testing period, and also I guess we had more dueling personalities.

Shoutout to everyone on those squads those were great times.

But when you have Steve Rubin Seth Manfield Corey Burkhart Andrea Mengucii mixed with Brad BBD Martell Kibler mixed with Me Fennell GerryT Josh Cho mixed with Ari Lax trying to organize everything for everyone.....

Anyone who knows these people can see how this led to some logistics issues and some heated arguments about who is not pulling their weight, or who is just showing up late and mooching, or who keeps brewing decks with no mana bases and sideboards and bringing them to Brad telling them they are great and we have to play games with them (another shoutout to Fennell, hope he reads this and fires up a modo draft tonight. And shoutout to Brad for creating the no 75, no games rule. You can’t fucking say you made a deck if you don’t have a manabase or a sideboard, and some brewers out there may need to hear that again.)

Team 5% (7.1673746%) is all online testing.

We use a discord with dedicated channels to all the constructed decks, all the limited topics, logistics, and chalkdiesel/washed bad beat/rant rooms/RIP Rimrock Knight etc. etc. so you can see how it stays pretty clean, organized, and simple.

But no really, having so many people gives us an edge on many fronts.

There is usually always someone available to battle. We can cover a lot of ground really quickly. Multiple people are brewing and many people are tuning the known decks. Lots of different opinions and we end up covering all the limited archetypes quickly as the drafts pile in.

All of this being said, my best two PT results from the past are when I worked alone.

I usually draft infinite (75-100) times (when I lose I drop and draft again. And sometimes I drop when winning just to draft again) and I just try to play the best deck in constructed.

This I have learned is a recipe for success for me.

But I was happy to join this team. My intention was to just do the same thing, but have some people to talk to while I drafted 75-100 times and tuned the best deck.

I worked with a few of these players back in the TCG days (shoutout to Ari and Corey, and again to Corey for winning the PT let’s gooooooo) and everyone that I heard was currently on this 5% team; I liked.

So for my testing I did almost purely magic online.

I did around 60 drafts after all was said and done. In constructed, I played a ton of UW control and small amounts of all the other stock decks, and watched a lot of streams.

I wanted to be familiar with the format but not go too hard until the days leading up to; during; and right after the first 2 RPTs.

What a weird dynamic, having 2 pro tours 5 days before deck submission for your pro tour.

It really worked out in our favor because our team is so big and we were able to quickly attack the new and perceived future metagame.

Nothing at those two tournaments made me waiver from wanting to register UW control.

I was still beating everything, and I predicted the metagame would be 20%ish UB invertor and then spirits, red, black, and sultai delerium/invertor uro decks would be all around 10%.

When I say I was beating everything, I was beating everything.

Granted these were in leagues, but it was mostly all against real decks and my constructed rating was skyrocketing above my limited.

Not a thing I am accustomed to.

I had a 17-1 record against mono red, and no cap. I had a 12-2 record against mono black. I had a 8-1 record against UB invertor.

I crushed Collin so badly with our teams current front running mono white devotion that he decided to add 4 Gideon Ally of Zendikar to the maindeck and try again.

A 4-0 for me later in which he resolved 5 Gideons led to him telling the discord he is off it. “Bursavich just beat me every single game and I resolved gideon in all of them.”

The only deck I ever lost matches to was spirits but I still won more than I lost against it.

Around Monday our team was all piling on to the breach deck realizing how good it was, and I joined in to.

I played a prelim and a league and immediately bought all of the cards from cardkingdom. But after my next few matches I was feeling very conflicted.

I was very worried how bad UW was against breach, but I didn’t think breach would break 7-8% or the metagame anyway. And I can tweak UW some to have a shot I tell myself.

The breach deck is obviously busted, but it’s a combo deck with a weird puzzle-like 3 step combo.

First you have to get 2 lands into play and then play lotus field, then u have to play a thespians stage and copy it, and then u have to kill your opponent with ur huge amounts of mana.

But the deck is so consistent and sort of resilient that I found myself trying to play it like a midrange deck.

I have these faes and grazers and pores and viziers, I can block! And Fae for planeswalkers and grind people out or take all these weird dynamic lines... and then I realized I was fucking up a lot.

The games are not always intuitive to me, and I won’t be able to live with myself if I register this and play horribly to lose games I should win, considering there will likely be some number of games my deck fails and I can’t win (or my opponent is prepared with damping sphere or one of the other 1-2 cards that do anything at all to stop this abomination of a deck)

So a few hours after ordering the breach cards I am going to bed Monday night and I know I’m going to play UW control...

Shoutout to the squad though!

They really crushed it over these few days and perfected the breach list and had all the matchups figured out down to the T.

Our limited meetings were great and I believe they really helped everyone a lot and we had an overall great showing in limited.

I spend all day Tuesday and Wednesday with magic online open and the discord on my other monitor.

I occasionally jam some games with teammates but for many many hours I just stare at my UW decklist while catching up on the latest breach tech.

I just stare at the deck.....

For hours

I went to get lunch and came back and stared some more.

It was perfect and there was just nothing to cut.

I wanted another hard counter in my deck but could not find the space.

I have been moving 1 card around here and there, swapping 3rd field of ruin for the 4th Glacial, swapping back, then swapping back again. going down to 1 absorb and back to the 2/2 split back to 1. Moving around seal away D sphere narset lantern thassas intervention Mystical Dispute elspeth etc. etc. but mostly keeping the same core 73-75 cards the same.

With a few hours left in submission and all the data pouring in, we realize that LSV Huey and a large swath of great players have all been spotted in leagues today playing breach.

I am suddenly panicked bc the matchup is still quite bad.

I have a few good cards, but nothing to swing it past like a 33% matchup at best.

I know damping sphere is my only real option if I want to respect it, and I’m of the mindset that doing so is normally a bit silly.

While the deck is obviously busted, it’s been 5 days and many players are uncomfortable playing decks of this style.

My general guess is that it breaking 6-7% of the field will still be unlikely, and I think it pushing above 10% would be crazy.

So I can expect to play vs it once on average??

Not so fast.

This is a new RPT with a wide open field, but still a lot of goats at the top.

Turns out you almost always have to defeat multiple goats to get the trophy in PT’s...

And I didn’t fly to Phoenix just to have a good ole time and settle for 6th place, so I man up and delete 2 Monastery Mentor for 2 Damping Sphere.

This will hurt me in mirrors and vs Invertor, but I am confident I will be fine anyway.

With 10 minutes left in submission I consider adding a 3rd sphere but am too lazy to open back up my laptop and know I won’t be able to cut any of the beautiful cards in my sideboard for it anyway.

Enough with the boring shit; let’s get to the tournament!!!

Part2 coming tomorrow!

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