It’s Christmas, the season of goodwill, so today we’ll kick off with a little sing-along.
All together now…
On the first day of Christmas, Star City sent to me…
A partridge in a pear tree.
On the second day of Christmas, Star City sent to me…Â
Two turtle doves, and a partridge in a pear tree.
On the third day of Christmas, Star City sent to me…
Three French hens, two turtle doves, and a partridge in a pear tree.
On the fourth day of Christmas, Star City sent to me…
Four calling birds, three French hens, two turtle doves, and a partridge in a pear tree.
On the fifth day of Christmas, Star City sent to me…
FIIIIIIIIIVE GOOOOOO-OOOOOOOLLLLD RIIIIIIIIIINGS!
Four calling birds, three French hens, two turtle doves, and a partridge in a pear tree.
On the sixth day of Christmas, Star City sent to me…
Six geese a-laying…
FIIIIIIIIIVE GOOOOOO-OOOOOOOLLLLD RIIIIIIIIIINGS!
Four calling birds, three French hens, two turtle doves, and a partridge in a pear tree.
On the seventh day of Christmas, Star City sent to me…
Seven swans a-swimming, six geese a-laying…
FIIIIIIIIIVE GOOOOOO-OOOOOOOLLLLD RIIIIIIIIIINGS!
Four calling birds, three French hens, two turtle doves, and a partridge in a pear tree.
On the eighth day of Christmas, Star City sent to me…
Eight maids a-milking, seven swans a-swimming, six geese a-laying…
FIIIIIIIIIVE GOOOOOO-OOOOOOOLLLLD RIIIIIIIIIINGS!
Four calling birds, three French hens, two turtle doves, and a partridge in a pear tree.
On the ninth day of Christmas, Star City sent to me…
Nine ladies dancing, eight maids a-milking, seven swans a-swimming, six geese a-laying…
FIIIIIIIIIVE GOOOOOO-OOOOOOOLLLLD RIIIIIIIIIINGS!
Four calling birds, three French hens, two turtle doves, and a partridge in a pear tree.
On the tenth day of Christmas, Star City sent to me…
Ten lords a-leaping, nine ladies dancing, eight maids a-milking, seven swans a-swimming, six geese a-laying…
FIIIIIIIIIVE GOOOOOO-OOOOOOOLLLLD RIIIIIIIIIINGS!
Four calling birds, three French hens, two turtle doves, and a partridge in a pear tree.
On the eleventh day of Christmas, Star City sent to me…
Eleven pipers piping, ten lords a-leaping, nine ladies dancing, eight maids a-milking, seven swans a-swimming, six geese a-laying…
FIIIIIIIIIVE GOOOOOO-OOOOOOOLLLLD RIIIIIIIIIINGS!
Four calling birds, three French hens, two turtle doves, and a partridge in a pear tree.
On the twelfth day of Christmas, Star City sent to me…
Twelve drummers drumming, eleven pipers piping, ten lords a-leaping, nine ladies dancing, eight maids a-milking, seven swans a-swimming, six geese a-laying…
FIIIIIIIIIVE GOOOOOO-OOOOOOOLLLLD RIIIIIIIIIINGS!
Four calling birds, three French hens, two turtle doves, and a partridge in a pear tree.
Happy Holidays, folks!
…
It’s time, I fear, for yet another descent into Sealed mediocrity.
Below, I list seventy-five good cards and true, each holding a hand high and screaming “pick ME, coach”… but what do we pick? First, let’s meet the players
Red
Sell-Sword Brute
2 Sparkmage Apprentice
Viashino Fangtail
Wojek Embermage
2 Coalhauler Swine
Breath of Fury
Cleansing Beam
Reroute
Seismic Spike
Smash
Surge of Zeal
Boros R/W
Boros Recruit
Skyknight Legionnaire
Rally the Righteous
White
Votary of the Conclave
Courier Hawk
Veteran Armorer
2 Nightguard Patrol
Gate Hound
2 Dromad Purebred
Oathsworn Giant
Wojek Siren
2 Faith’s Fetters
Selesnya G/W
Centaur Safeguard
Tolsimir Wolfblood
Congregation at Dawn
Seeds of Strength
Green
Elves of Deep Shadow
Elvish Skysweeper
Transluminant
Vineleasher Kudzu
Civic Wayfinder
Nullmage Shepherd
2 Fists of Ironwood
Rolling Spoil
Perilous Forays
Golgari G/B
Golgari Guildmage
Shambling Shell
Dark Heart of the Wood
Bloodbond March
Gaze of the Gorgon
Golgari Signet
Golgari Rot Farm
Black
Golgari Thug
2 Stinkweed Imp
Keening Banshee
Sewerdreg
Darkblast
Disembowel
Last Gasp
Strands of Undeath
Dimir U/B
Lurking Informant
Dimir Signet
Bloodletter Quill
Clutch of the Undercity
Blue
Drift of Phantasms
Snapping Drake
Tidewater Minion
Dizzy Spell
Mark of Eviction
2 Muddle the Mixture
2 Convolute
2 Flight of Fancy
Artifact
Terrarion
Round about now, it is customary for me to leave a gap of, say, eighteen dots and a soupcon of empty space. In this time, I tell a joke, and you dash off to make a decklist.
Hell, why break with tradition? Go!
…
…
…
Time for a joke:
Q: What do you call a donkey with three legs?
A: A wonky.
…
…
…
As usual, the pool splashes us with drips of gold and wee-wee in equal measure. There’s some nice Green, and some decent Black removal… and of course there’s a Legend that gives birth to dogs. But can we build a deck around him?
Here are my ill-formed opinions regarding the cards in question.
Red
I’m a simple man. I like dealing damage. Thus, the Red spells are my favorite. Make a small man, burn away the blockers, swing and swing and swing.
In Ravnica Limited thus far, Red is crippled. When Izzet hits in Guildpact, this imbalance should be addressed. Until then, we scrape the barrel and play with what Fate brings.
This Red pool? It has certain merits. Enough to make the deck?
You decide…
- We’ll begin with the Red staple 2/2 for two mana. Sell-Sword Brute has a drawback, but a beatdown mage cares not for the vagaries of his life-total. It sees play, most notably in Boris (sorry, I mean Boros). In more controlling Red decks, he may miss the cut. Apparently, he’s out to sell his sword. Of course, the art shows he has two swords, so if he sells one he can still stab things with the other.
- We have a double case of Sparkmage Apprentices to play, too. These two-mana one-shot pingers have game, I think… but apparently, I may be in a minority here. This guy attacks, blocks, can act as a cheap finisher, messes with combat math as a surprise post-attack, and kills pesky x/1 critters without the loss of a card. Maybe the x/1 critters are tame in this set, but even so I think this little guy has legs. He won’t win a marathon, but he helps in a sprint. Without those legs, he’d be useless in both races.
- Viashino Fangtail is the marquee Red guy in Ravnica. Much like Teller of Tales and Kamigawa Blue, without the Fangtail you can toss the Red in the bin. He’s a 3/3. and he’s a Tim. His tail is also at least twice the length of his body. I bet he gets it caught in doors all the time. No wonder he looks so angry.
- Wojek Embermage is another Tim, albeit a little more fragile. That said, both he and the Fangtail die to Helix, Arc, Putrefy and Last Gasp. Even Disembowel costs the same to off either. The Embermage also has a hidden talent: he’s nuts against Selesnya. We’re talking Kataki vs Affinity nuts. The art is nice too, seeing the Marzipan Pimp howling in anger as some bastard has set fire to his snooker cue.
- I feel sorry for the Coalhauler Swine. I mean, look at the poor bugger… he’s dragged from his family, enslaved underground and forced to haul coal to heat the cities of Ravnica. At least this pool gives us two of the poor beasts. They can keep each other company. In the sideboard. Zang!
- I’ll start the spells with the Red rare Enchantment-Aura, Breath of Fury. Sorry, but any Red card with that much text isn’t worth reading, let alone playing. Having said that, there is a possibility that it may be a sleeper bomb like Savage Beatings or Insurrection. Thoughts?
- Moving on, we have Cleansing Beam. This can often decimate your opponent’s forces, leaving the battleground pine-fresh and shiny. If you’re looking for a watered-down Wrath of God, you can do much worse than Jesus’s Little Sunbeam.
- Reroute has a short name. This, according to Wizards Arcana, is the sure-fire sign of a Good Card. Me? I can’t see it myself. Like a fat man’s complaints about his airline seat, it’s far too narrow.
- Seismic Spike, too, is a boy’s card in a man’s game. Limited Land Destruction is largely redundant, other than Rolling Spoil that can do damage to the Selesnyans. Seismic Spike? On yer bike!
- Smash is a fine card. Thee mana, instant, kill an artifact, draw a card… it even has a pithy name. Thing is, artifact kill is far too situational in Ravnica Limited. Where are the targets? Bottled Cloister? Glass Golem? Plague Boiler? Twiglets (sorry, Signets)? I think this stays in the sideboard.
- Finally, the Red cards spew out the unplayable Surge of Zeal. There are far too few ‘Z’s in Magic, and this card is a terrible waste. Play it if you have a 25/25 trampler you can make on turn one for free.
Red starts off well. Double Sparkmage, Fangtail, Embermage… even a Coalhauler Swine if you feel brave. Then we hit the support spells, and the wheels fall off the wagon.
Cleansing Beam is nice, but where are the Galvanic Arcs?
Boros R/W
- One mana, 1/1 First Striker. Say hello, Boris Recruit!
“‘Ello Craig. It’s nice to be ‘ere.”
“So Boris, what can we expect to see of you in the coming battle?”
“Well, I’ll show up on turn 1, an’ then I’ll swing for a bit, maybe do two damage.”
“Then?”
“Then I’ll be outpowered by a two or three-drop and be relegated to chump-blocking.”
“You’re a bit rubbish, aren’t you Boris?”
“Watch yer mouf, yer Scouse git. I’ll bite yer kneecaps.”
Not for me, thanks.
- Flying high, with haste, we have the wonderful super-Boris, the Skyknight Legionnaire. Swinging for two through the air on turn 3 is quite the value. Somehow this huge griffin, mounted by an armored, sword-wielding psycho, does less damage than three squirrels. How the hell does that work? [Squirrels are mean. Never forget. – Knut, still traumatized]
- Lastly for Boris, we have the Skyknight (and squirrel) pumping Rally the Righteous. I quite like this. I find it has good game when red splashes into Selesnya. It wins, but it can randomly screw you up. Remember the untap ability, as it gets double-duty from Thundersong Trumpeters and Viashino Fangtails.
White
The Red, and Boris, seem tempting if unspectacular. The White? Well, we already know we have Tolismir to consider, so White should make up some aspect of our final build. Do the pure White offerings make us sweat like cheese in the sun?
- I have to start with the double Faith’s Fetters. In fact, I feel a poem coming on…
Praise your elders and your betters!
Time to contact all your debtors
And send them happy thank-you letters!
Say hello to Double Fetters!
Hah. That was rubbish. Anyway, This card is ridiculous. If you’re playing against White, you may as well place his life at 24 before you shuffle up. And remember, it enchants permanents, not just big fat dudes. I find it helpful against Svogthos and the like. Great stuff and no mistake, but you all know this, amiright?
- The only other White spell we have is the one-mana pumper Wojek Siren. In a fast deck, or a Selesnyan token-guy special, this is nice enough. A 20+ card, of course, if nothing else floats your boat. Otherwise… meh.
- Now for the guys. We’ll kick off with the gash that is Votary of the Conclave. I suppose his ability could be relevant, but it’s one hell of a mana requirement for a simple regeneration effect. Then again, this pompous-sounding asshole is only little, so maybe we should forgive his shortcomings. Sounds like someone I know…
- Three mana brings the appalling Gate Hound. Please, let the dogs out on this turkey.
- The last of the unplayables is the five-mana Dromad Purebreed. I want more than a 1/5 wall for five mana, thank you very much. We have two of them. Go us! I do like the art, though. I particularly enjoy the three gentlemen employed to placate the savage beast. It’s not easy to calm a llama down… calm a llama down…
Calm a llama down
Calm a llama deep down in the ocean blue
Like a barnacle
Sitting in the tight place
Laughing like a monkey arm
Pulling like a china boy
Caraway caraway caraway noise
Boing chika masala
Boing chika masala
Ooooooo
Tooth tooth *phhhhht*
And if you got that reference, I applaud you.
- On the playable horizon, we have the small blip that is Courier Hawk. He’s a 1/2 flyer for two, which is a little lame, but he has vigilance and can annoyingly ping in the early game. Plus, he’s nice with cards like Selesnya Evangel and Veteran Armorer.
- Talking of the porn king, it’s time to break out the slap-bass! The Veteran Armorer is in effect! We like him, oh yes we do. But the ladies like him more. The moustache, the ponytail, the scars and grizzled toughness… and a twinkle in his eye. He’s a legend.
- Three mana bought us a 2/2 bushido first-striker back in the glory-days of Kamigawa. Today, the pickings are slimmer, but we still chow down nonetheless. Nightguard Patrol dies to Clinging Darkness and Darkblast, which is a bind, but his Vigilance is appreciated. We have two of them, and having them patrol together is wonderful.
- Last up, there’s the six-mana Oathsworn Giant. I was a little harsh on this guy in pervious pools, and was quickly informed that he does the business. Having tokens spring from 1/1 to 1/3 is nice, as is the boost he gives to the Nightguard Patrols. Ok guys. You win. He makes the team.
On the whole, White gets my juices flowing. Ok, so there’s none of the much-missed flyers such as Conclave Equenaut, Divebomber Griffin or Screeching Griffin… but we have decent early men and a big fat bloke with a nice ability. Couple this with double Fetters, and access to Tolismir… I think White can’t be overlooked.
Then again, it could be splashed, dependant on the strengths of other colors. Let’s see what they offer before we rush headlong into the wall like a drunken midget in a blindfold.
Selesnya G/W
- Tolismir Wolfblood. Woof Woof! A six-mana 3/4 that sh**s dogs has gotta make the team. He also acts as a Glorious Anthem, or better, for most of your guys. If he weren’t a bloody elf, he’d be poifect.
- Seeds of Strength is a combat trick, and Daddy likes his tricks. Able to boost one, two or three guys can mess with the math faster than you can say Peggy Babcock. Also, it’s nice to see the Borg getting work now Star Trek is off the air.
- Back in Kamigawa, there was the playable Time of Need and the questionable Commune With Nature. Ravnica fetches up creatures with Congregation at Dawn. This is playable, yes? Or does the threat of the millstone mage add redundancy? Thoughts?
- Lastly, we have the Centaur Safeguard, keeper of the sacred Mullet. I’ve played him, but he’s nothing special. Having said that, with Tolismir he’s almost a Skizzik.
So… we have to go White, and we have to go Green… and thus far, we’ve not even touched on the true Greed cards themselves.
Green
Green… the color of beginners everywhere. Make-a-monster make-a-monster make-a-monster smash.
Green seems to be the spine around which most Sealed decks rotate. Though why they rotate around a spine is anyone’s guess.
- Some Green guys are fat, such a Siege Wurm. Some are strong and durable, such as Greater Mossdog. And some, like our one-mana friend Elvish Skysweeper, have interesting and overcosted abilities yet are as fragile as an Eggshell Pinata. With Selesnya, he’s golden. Indeed, with mist Green builds he bears consideration, especially if removal is at a premium… but everyone complains about premium, so we’d better move on.
- One mana also buys us the Elves of Deep Shadow. As with all mana accelerants, they’re lovely in the early game but they suck like Lewinsky on turn 10. Yeah, play it, especially if Black is paramount to your plans of table domination.
- Two mana is where things get more interesting. Vinelasher Kudzu! Again, this suffers the early-game late-game blight of the Evil Llanowar Elf. However, if it does hit the pitch early, the payoff is wonderful. Especially with the bounce-lands.
- Transluminant it a 2/2 for two, who makes a 1/1 flyer when she dies. Simple, strong and effective. Remember, the flyer appears at end of turn… this fact has screwed my combat math a few times, I can tell you.
- Three mana checks the hall pass of the Civic Wayfinder. I know Ravnica is a big city, run by guilds, but I’m bored with the council-style naming convention of some creatures. Votary of the Conclave, Civic Wayfinder… what next, Undersecretary to the Assistant Accountant? Having said that, I quite like the word “Bursar.” Hehe. “Bursar.” C’mon, say it with me…. “Bursar.” Anyway, play the Wayfinder. He finds the way, after all.
- Sadly, our Green pool “fats-out” with a 2/4 for four mana. While cumbersome, the Nullmage Shepherd’s ability is relevant, as it takes care of problems such as Fetters, Pollenbright Wings and even Sunforger. She also blocks well. Approved, if not heartily.
While our Green goons are a tad lightweight to truly inspire, they do have tricksy abilities and secondary functions… I can see them making the deck
How about the spellage?
- We have two Fists of Ironwood, usually so strong in Green base decks… but this pool? While I appreciate their token-generation, I’d sure love a fat guy to whack ’em on. And we’ve nothing in our pool to Convoke out, so they seem a little redundant. Thoughts?
- Rolling Spoil, I think, is a wasted slot. Sure, it’s a great Sideboard answer to Selesnya, as well as Vitu-Ghazi and Sunhome and the like, and it can wreck anyone making an early bounce-land… but it doesn’t do enough to warrant maindeck space. Maybe if it also targeted enchantments. And artifacts. And creatures. And players. Yayness!
- The final true Green spell is the five mana Enchantment Perilous Forays. No, sorry. A decent effect on a costly card. Probably does something silly in a Combo deck. Not for me, thanks all the same.
Golgari G/B
- All the Guildmages are playable. The Golgari offering is particularly fine, even if his abilities are rather expensive. It’s easy, however, to overvalue his abilities and protect him without giving full attention to the game state. If he needs to chump-block, then so be it.
- The Shambling Shell is a fine dredgeable threat on its own… and it pumps guys too! If you’ve the colors, then he’s a no-brainer. Strangely, he also appears to be a no-sheller, at least according to the artist. He’s more of a mound than a shell.
- Next, there’s the four-mana Bloodbond March. Obviously, it has no place in Limited, as double copies of spells are not the norm. And it sucks in the mirror. Again, another Combo card, or maybe a Constructed board card against heavy removal decks.
- Dark Heart of the Wood is a reprint, but is it worth playing? Me, I don’t think so, although the life it makes available is not to be sneezed at. I’ve had it hit play against me, and while I went on to win, it still slowed things to a crawl and gave my opponent options. Thoughts? One thing is certain: I love the name.
- The last call of the Golgari guys is the Gaze of the Gorgon. We love Gordon. We love him. This card, as well as being a fine combat trick, is an instant-speed removal-thwarter. It presents options. Gordon is a fine gazer, as most of the things he stares at end up dead. That’s psycho stalker territory, if you ask me.
- Rounding things up, we have a Dimir Twiglet and a Golgari Rot Farm. If we do play Black with our Green, these are invaluable.
There’s some good Green/Black booty here, of that there’s no doubt. As usual, Green/White/Black is looking promising, and we’ve not yet hit the Black hotel.
Black
We’ll begin, as usual, with a sweeping overview of the Black removal on offer in today’s Magical Smorgasbord. After all, it’s the killin’ what matters.
- Well, it starts off with promise. Two mana, -3/-3, Last Gasp. A wonderful catch-all removal spell. Need help dealing with a regenerator? No problem. A creature who shrugs off damage? Easy. One with four toughness? Erm… eh… taxi! *screeches away*
- Second up, we have… wait for it…. *drumroll*… Chengo…. Mc…. FLINGERS! Say hello, Chengo!
“Hi Craig. Hello, you Chengo fans!”
“So, Chengo, what have you been up to?”
“Well Craig, I’ve been busy disembowelling things.”
“Have you? How interesting! What sort of things?”
“Creatures, mostly. It’s all work-work-work these days.”
“Creatures… say, have you been disembowelling any non-creatures? Lands or enchantments, for example?”
“Erm… no… just creatures.”
“Well, you’re hardly a picture of versatility now, are you Chengo!”
Heh. Play it. Obv.
- The final true removal spell is the durable Darkblast. While hardly all-conquering, its “come-back-for-more” sideline plays havoc with combat math, and it can take down 2/2 spods with upkeep shenanigans. Sure, we play it. It kills guys.
- Our final Black non-creature offering is the four mana discard enchantment that grants regeneration: Strands of Undeath. While I generally avoid discard in Limited (something I’m slowly changing), I do feel this is pretty strong. Regeneration is a fine ability in Ravnica, especially when placed on a flying monster. If there’s space, I’d play this card… but it’d hit the showers for a lot of things.
So the removal is the bombzorz. Coupled with the Fetters from White, and the mighty Tolismir Dog-Bomb, we have the makings of a playable deck. The creatures in Black are just gravy.
- We’ve two copies of Stinkweed Imp. Again, I feel imbued by my muse. Poetry ahoy!
Is your defence feeling limp?
Were you beaten by a chimp?
Bling your deck and be a pimp
With double-trouble Stinkweed Imp!
Much better than the bloody Fetters one from earlier, I’m sure you’ll agree. Play the Imp. He’s peachy.
- Next up, Keening Banshee. Geez, this Black just gets better and better. A flyer and a removal spell in one tasty package. And she has boobies! What’s not to like? On the down side, she’s in desperate need of a manicure. And possibly some pastel foundation, some eye-liner and a bit of lippy. We all love her, but that’s not an excuse for her to let herself go.
- Of the two guys left, the most important is the 3/3 swampwalking Sewerdreg. Not only does he bum-touch the mirror mage, he also fondles their graveyard recursion. He’s blue, he’s not poo and he’s comin’ for you.
- Lastly, there’s the “I like him but no-one else does” Golgari Thug. Yes, he’s slow, but he gets back the good stuff and sets the yard up for recursive tomfoolery. What’s better than Tolismir Wolfblood? Tolismir Wolfblood that comes back from the dead, that’s what!
The Black seems lovely. Decent removal, happy guys, all rocking out to bangin’ tunes and DJ sets on dirty dancefloors, with dreams of naughtiness.
Red is passable. White is nice. As is Green. And Black
Lets’ see if the Blue dirge pisses on our quiche.
Dimir U/B
- Dimir starts with the two-mana Lurking Informant. While the Entrancer has an ability that may underperform in Sealed, the Informant’s cheeky two-mana tap-dance is always relevant. It mills and improves your draw. It’s easy to cast, and it can enter combat too! And he lurks! Look at him lurk…. (lurk lurk).
- Next up, Clutch of the Undercity. If you would, take a look at that mana cost. Actually look at it. It looks ridiculous! Visual aspects aside, this card is probably poor. It’s one whole mana too expensive (compare it to Recoil, for example), and the color-cost is prohibitive. But it bounces, and transmutes, so it will see play. However, if you’re relying on Crotch of the Underpants to win you games, your deck can’t be super-saucy.
- Bloodletter Quill is cheap. It draws you cards. Surely that’s great, no? I’ve never pulled one, and have only seen it played against me once (when the game was out of reach for my opponent) I’d imagine the life-loss could become prohibitive, or even the mana-sink needed to prevent it. What do you all think?
- Finally we have the token guild mana-accelerant. Dimir Twiglet. Always welcome.
Blue
- Drift of Phantasms is at home in any base-Blue deck. Uber-blocker and answer-fetcher, it puts a valuable crimp in the hair of the Boris drafter’s gameplan.
- Snapping Drake is a fine four-mana flyer. Although the two toughness is workaday, the extra point of power raises the threat-level admirably. A snappy card for a snappy creature.
- Five mana brings us the Tidewater Minion, a 4/4 defender with a relevant ability and the option the attack when prudent. In a Dimir strategy, he’s a lynchpin. He also trades with Bramble Elementals and various other fat-ass Greed dudes. Do I like him? No. Would I play him? Yes.
- Dizzy Spell. A one-mana transmute spell. Fringe-playable if you’ve multiple Disembowels, and perhaps not even then. It also gives an attacker -3/-0 for a turn, which is rubbish. Yet somewhere out there, some poor guy is being defeated in round one of a draft when swinging for lethal damage, right into the telegraphed Dizzy Spell. Feel for him. It may be you next time. [It’s actually quite good if you have the next card in your pool as well, since it dominates boards. – Knut]
- Mark of Eviction is a fine spell, especially if pitched deck-wise with Flights of Fancy, Strands of Undeath or (God forbid) Galvanic Arc. Mark of Eviction can kick the back door down of any matchup, throwing the inhabitants out on the streets.
- Two mana, two copies of Dumbledore’s Idiot Cousin, Muddle the Mixture. As a counterspell, it is inherently evil. In Limited, it is inherently pointless. It can fetch something decent, such as a Guildmage or a Last Gasp, so it bears consideration. Me? Not likely. I have a soul, thanks for asking.
- Convolute. Three-mana situational counterspell. Two of them. Here we bloody go again! No. Just no. No! I don’t care if it does something funky to tempo, I’d rather accomplish the same by, y’know, casting a bloody threat. Take your Islands, and your smugness, and feck right off.
- Rounding out the spells, we have another double-copy… this time, it’s Flight of Fancy. At least this one doesn’t counter a spell. Its ability is nice, as flying means wins… but the two cards drawn are the true boon here. Beware the spot removal! Unless you’re riddled with acne. If you are, embrace the spot removal.
As usual, Blue confuses me. The guys are pretty decent, but there’s so few of them. And we’re missing some important features. No Entrancer, no Dismisser. The support spells will probably tickle the feathers of the Counterspell birds amongst you, but they’re not my bag.
I think I’ll be giving the Blue a wide berth.
Artifact
One mana… (ah-huh)… one mana… (ah-huh)… one mana… Terrarion! Maybe, maybe not. I don’t care, to be honest. Thoughts?
…
That’s yer lot, Geoff.
So how did you do?
For a start, we simply must play Green and White. Two Fetters and Tolismir? Fantastique! The thing is, there’s clearly not enough to be a simple Green/White two-color build… is there? Do we add Red, or Blue, or Black?
Here’s how I built my deck:
White (6):
Veteran Armorer
2 Nightguard Patrol
Oathsworn Giant
2 Faith’s Fetters
Black (5):
Stinkweed Imp
Keening Banshee
Disembowel
Darkblast
Last Gasp
Green (5):
Elves of Deep Shadow
Transluminant
Vinelasher Kudzu
Civic Wayfinder
Nullmage Shepherd
Multicolored (6):
Selesnya GW (3)
Centaur Safeguard
Tolismir Wolfblood
Seeds of Strength
Golgari GB (3)
Golgari Guildmage
Shambling Shell
Gaze of the Gorgon
Artifact (2):
Golgari Signet
Terrarion
Land (16):
Golgari Rot Farm
6 Forest
6 Plains
3 Swamp
Creatures:
1cc: C SS* A
2cc: CCCC SS A
3cc: CCCCCC
4cc: CC SSS
5cc: –
6cc: CC
7cc: –
8cc: –
(* Disembowel)
…
Overall, I think this pool is fabulous. We’ve removal in depth, some common and uncommon bombs, a little mana-fixing and an out-and-out game-winner. Sure, the mana issues could be problematic, but the on-color Twiglet and bounce-land are Mucho Helpfulo here.
Of course, I’m sure I’ve misbuilt it. The Terrarion should probably be the Dimir Twiglet, or even a Fists of Ironwood. I know that you out there are screaming at me to play Congregation at Dawn… with Tolismir, Banshee and other good stuff like Guildmage and Stinkweed, I can see your logic. Still, it’s no fun unless we can have a laugh in the forums.
Hopefully, I’ll have another pool of cards to digest and dissect before the end of the year. Then, a little break until the release of Guildpact. I’ll not lie to you… I can hardly wait.
Ravnica block is excellent. If you’re wondering about what present to buy me this year, then you can’t go wrong with boosters.
Merry Christmas, folks!
Until the next pile,
Thanks for listening.
Craig Stevenson
[email protected]
Scouseboy on MTGO
…
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Still feeling festive? OK, one more song…
And-a-one, and-a-two, and-a-three and-a-four…
Ding dong! Merrily on high!
In Heaven the bells are ringing!
Ding dong! Verily, the sky
Is riven with angels singing!
Glooo-ooooo-ooooo-oooo-oooo-ooooria!
Hosanna in excelsis!
Bye!
(Excelsis? WTF?)