There's a new non-Standard set ready to release this Friday. While it may be more for the Cubers, there's a few new Legendary Creatures on the landscape, which means Wizards didn't totally forget us, which means we have tech to talk about.
THE OLD
I have to say, I'm glad they went with the invasion artwork. This card is kind of a running joke in my metagame, because most of the players who play this have the promo with the world's most horrible foiling.
Perhaps there's now a good way to find a cheap copy of her so we don't have to avert our eyes.
Phage seems fun in a cube format, and I enjoy the artwork and things that go along with her.
This artwork feels a little like a "digitally remastered" version, for some reason. Maybe it is. Everything looks smoother and sleeker. Phage in Blu-Ray. In Stores June 6th.
Still, I don't see the cube value of this card. After spending serious time drafting and picking out cards, HH is put into this Cube pool to make the game go faster?
In my experience with Cube and FNM Draft formats, I understand how it relates to the latter. In cube though, there are a lot of players with 20 life. In Commander, HH's first ability trigger is a big chunk, but it keeps people in the game. The second hit is brutal.
I'm not saying it's wrong to put this card in cube, or that it's unwelcome- I just don't get why you would versus other choices. Especially when the set's mechanics seem to be giving off a more political vibe. From my experience playing HH, he is the equivalent of the Honey Badger (The Meme, not Tyrann Mathieu). He just doesn't give a shit. Everyone takes pain equally, and through all the hurting, you've got to figure out how to stay alive.
However, my assessment of what Basandra does hasn't changed. She's a legend that came out before we started blogging here, so I'll give you a couple pennies worth of knowledge you probably already know.
This card is poorly designed. I continue to die a little inside every time I have to attempt to understand why Wizards prints a card in these colors that with the most counter-intuitive rules text of all time. Were this Time Spiral, I might get it. That was the point in time which Wizards could wear the proverbial "Do-Whatever-I-Want-And-Get-Away-With-It" Badge, and that time has long expired. Were they to have announced another Spiral-esque block in the Fall, I might've even given them a pass too.
But I really can't stand this card. It's just so bad, it's hard for me to look at. I encourage you all to do the same. Just look away, kids.
Case you don't know, this deck is good. This card is good. The deck is aggressive. It's enough to confuse most players, even good ones, into thinking that they shouldn't attack someone with an army of Elves or 1-drops on the board by Turn 5.
What you have to understand about Edric is that when you play against this deck, everything you know is wrong. Welcome to Crazy World, the place where you don't want to draw cards, and there's someone attacking you with a bunch of little guys for lethal before turn 10 with counterspell backup.
There's a reason it's banned in 1v1. Edric's pure value there, and that's apparently too unfair for most people.
THE NEW
While he may be one color short of Roon of the Hidden Realm, the dedication to blink colors and no-nonsense artwork courtesy of Karla Ortiz means those seeking ETB value not have to have a goofy kid's show character at the helm.
Not that there's anything wrong with this- I play silly decks all the time. Still, sometimes being a better player means respecting yourself, so that others respect you. If you're a believer in stuff like this, then the King Eternal is the Blink Deck Commander for you.
What interests me about this card is the way the rules work here. What happens if Omen Machine is in play? What about activating this on an opponent's turn with Spirit of the Labyrinth in play? Where does the card go?
Though I'm not into this card, being a 2/4 for three is pretty appealing. We're seeing this a lot more, and it's clearly a home run in Standard right now. I guess if you love Courser of Kruphix, this is the Commander for you.
If this card was a little more selfish, and by selfish, I mean, wasn't part of the silly Parley mechanic where everyone draws a card, I could really get behind it. The life gain and mana in multiplayer matchups seems like a huge boost. I wouldn't recommend bringing this strangely gender-ambiguous character to the table in 1v1 though.
Dethrone as a mechanic is slightly more political than I'd like it to be, but is totally manageable with access to Black. The key will be to get liberal with Ad Nauseam and Necropotence.
What's silly about this card being printed is that she already has a great dance partner in Black Mike (AKA Mikaeus, the Unhallowed), which gives this deck great value and design space.
My only real criticism of the card is that I think it does "too much." Other than that, I really love it. Matt Stewart's vision of Marchesa is stunning in every sense- colors, form, details. I'm not sure how any of her abilities make her a Wizard (The ability and artwork SCREAM Human Advisor), but this is going to be a hit, and going to be at tables.
I'm surprised the bottom-of-library-to-graveyard mechanic hasn't taken off. In Innistrad, we got the ever flavorful Cellar Door, which was sweet, but something the world seems to have forgotten.
What I'm hoping for with Grenzo is that there will be more of these kinds of cards, and they will be good. Grenzo has a very interesting set of abilities that have been put together, and I'm excited to see what comes of it.
With an X cost in his identity, and a non 0/0 P/T, Grenzo's flexibility makes him aggressive like a Goblin while also giving him the potential to be big, like his Rakdos counterparts.
Combined with other seldomly used tricks like Reito Lantern, Grenzo really feels like a fun deck for the table. Definitely the one I'm most likely to play out of the set.
I hope more people will be saying his name than Arcum's soon. Although he's definitely underpowered in comparison, the lone mono-colored legend is basically giving us a look that says "Break Me."
Now, I don't think it's supposed to, but this artwork makes me laugh. It's so clear that Muzzio's da Vinci inspired by the eccentricities and inventions in the background it hurts. I'm not sure what he's wearing though. Looks like he bought clothes off the Aladdin mannequin at Disney. I guess he really wants to show us a whole new world.
What are your thoughts on Conspiracy? What cards are you interested in? Let us know in the comments down below.
Pass.
-UL
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