Blog Elemental – In Search of Kaldra
I think the first question a deck trying to summon Kaldra is going to face is how many pieces of Legendary Equipment it wants to use.
I think the first question a deck trying to summon Kaldra is going to face is how many pieces of Legendary Equipment it wants to use.
We went through the creatures last week, and now move to the artifacts. These are the most interesting permanents of the Mirrodin block, and we’ll tend to the”Does this card do something no past card ever did?” rule now.
There are sixty-five artifacts in Fifth Dawn and only twenty cards of each color, so it’s hardly fair to do all of the artifacts in one menu installment. Here are my faves through roughly the first half, letters A through I.
It is about time for me to get back into the thick of another metagame – I held off this article until after the bannings because I had a hunch the Block Constructed environment was going to chance drastically. A single card got banned and now a whole slew of decks became potentially viable. The PTQ season is coming up soon, and there are a lot of hopeful people looking to qualify. The tricky part is that this is essentially a brand new metagame with the banning and the introduction of Fifth Dawn.
Before I started playing multiplayer and casual Magic heavily over the last couple of years, I had purchased only two Unglued boosters. I liked the lands. I even skipped a local Unglued draft tournament, because I didn’t want to play with silly cards. I like my Magic serious. Today, I am a different person. I still like my Magic serious, but I also allow for a bit of frivolity. Sanctioned Magic has printed silly cards for ages. Why not allow in a few more from the Unglued sets?
I think I like theme decks more than the average fellow. In fact, here’s a quick recap of my first year of Magic…
The Jon Kaus article about what he learned about Wizards R&D was filled with sweeping generalities and impossible recommendations. It is clear to me that he doesn’t understand the phenomenon that is playtesting for a game on the scale of Magic: the Gathering. But rather than try to summarize it all at once, I want to address each of his points, and show the mistakes one at a time.
This time we’ll talk about Red and Black. I’ll go card by card in pick order and talk about them, and how my evaluation of these cards has changed over time
Last time we published an article by Gadiel, our forums erupted like someone had lit them on fire (though it was mostly with hatemail.) Well, he’s back again to tell you how he finished in the money in San Diego. Yeah, it’s late, but we all know that you want to keep up with the continuing adventures of the most precocious (yes, there are other descriptions one could use) fifteen-year-old on the Pro Tour.
A continuing look at the trends of Type I, and some observations about what to expect for the Summer Convention Season.
I’m just going to jump in with both feet and get the ol’ fire stoked. Okay, that line is a horribly mixed metaphor because, barring some sort of Far Eastern mind trick, your feet would be burned in the most disgusting manner, leaving you with useless chunks of charred flesh and a sticky sweet stench that will haunt your nostrils forever. You should get my drift, though, because I contend that: The DCI did not need to ban Skullclamp.
Today, for no reason whatsoever, I’m continuing my Fifth Dawn menu with a look at the Black cards.
You are covered head-to-toe in welts and bruises, lice, and bodily wastes. Worse: you are bound hand and foot, your limbs are stretched to the four winds on the rack, and your captor stands above you mocking your every breath. You can’t move, you can hardly breath, and every time you try to sleep or escape into the recesses of your mind your captor turns the wheel yet another notch. There is absolutely nothing you can do but suffer… and, eventually, die. Welcome to the hell that is Krark-Clan Ironworks.