Magic is a contextual game, especially when crafting a modern-day Limited deck. Magic has evolved from creatures with one line of text that always made decks when picked. The cards are more complex, synergistic, and dynamic than ever before.
Today I wanted to keep it light, and speak to the cards that some may view as always good, when in reality they are just sometimes good. (I’ve also seen a trend of people writing cards off in their entirety, forgetting that they have practical applications in niche scenarios, but that’s an article for a different day.)
Aeronaut’s Wings
For the most part, it has felt like a lot of The Brothers’ War battles are settled on the ground due to the lack of solid aerial threats. Having said that, this is a fast format, especially in Best-of-One. Taking a turn off to deploy Aeronaut’s Wings can put you on the back foot, where the wings turn to melted wax. I think this Equipment should go only in decks with high-powered creatures that can put a fast clock on your opponent, most often Gruul.
Corrupt
Long gone are the days of just jamming Corrupt in any B/X deck. I’d want either Elsewhere Flask or a minimum of ten Swamps in my deck before running this. Time is of the Essence Extraction, and paying six for a sorcery-speed drain-three isn’t going to cut it.
Involuntary Cooldown
I don’t think Involuntary Cooldown is necessarily overplayed, but I have witnessed it in the wrong decks. This is an aggressive card, not a control card.
Loran, Disciple of History
Loran has the potential to be a Hill Giant, or actually go down in history. Don’t just throw Loran into any deck assuming it will get you a free card. I like to look at the Disciple as a build-around, as there are only two other legendary creatures at uncommon, Mishra, Excavation Prodigy and Urza, Powerstone Prodigy. If you’re lucky enough to get some of the great legendary creatures at rare and mythic, Loran can become a very serious threat, or at the very least, a card-drawing engine using cheap cantrips like Mishra’s Bauble or Chromatic Star.
Pyrrhic Blast
Pyrrhic Blast is a very appealing card, and was hard to evaluate before playing with it. I’ve tried this card out a few times, and my experience was far from a blast. The majority of Flings cast in Limited are to end the game by Flinging a giant creature at the opponent, which essentially negates the “draw a card” incentive you pay extra for. The high possibility of this being a dead or irrelevant card is far too great to include it in just any deck. The responsible deck for this card would be a very aggressive deck that includes multiple ways to discard it, like Scrapwork Mutt or Bitter Reunion.
Recommission
Don’t get me wrong, I’m all for getting bringing your dead back to the front lines, but I don’t think Recommission is for every deck. Obviously, you will need to have an abundance of good targets for it, but I’m hesitant to play this card without a couple of ways to put your own creatures into the graveyard, like Airlift Chaplain or Scrapwork Mutt.
Sardian Cliffstomper
I’ve seen Sardian Cliffstomper in far too many multicolored decks. While it can prove useful in certain matchups as an early blocker, I’d still recommend running this Minotaur on the sidelines if you’re not mono-red.
Swiftfoot Boots
Actually, Swiftfoot Boots isn’t even a good card. Please don’t put it in your Limited decks. It’s very, very bad.
Tocasia’s Dig Site
If you didn’t get the memo, The Brothers’ War is just way too fast for Tocasia’s Dig Site to ever pay off. I could see running it out of the sideboard against a very slow Best-of-Three matchup, but stop putting this in your maindeck, ya dig?
Hopefully that clears up some cards that are always sometimes good, well, at least 60% of the time.
Lose and learn, learn and win.
