You could be right, I could be undervaluing it. However very few auras have made the cut into constructed decks. The notable ones I can think of are Elephant Guide and Armadillo Cloak. Both of these are nice because they offer a bigger boost than a simple +1/+1 and first strike. I believe you're looking at the Umbra with rose colored glasses. How often are you going to save your creature with a Hyena Umbra and how often are you going to draw it in the late game without a creature to play it on? If it comes out first, it saves your creature from a Basilisk equiped Sparkmage for one turn, if it comes out late, it doesn't do any good against that Basillisk Sparkmage If your opponent has another creature attached to the Basillisk collar, he will probably just try to race you, until he can find more removal. In that case a simple +1/+1 isn't going to give you much reach.
River Boa also has protection against Day of Judgment, and it even has unblockability in many cases against UW, however it's still not that difficult for UW to deal with it. Control decks aren't all about the Day of Judgment, They have a lot of other tools to use.
There's no question that Hyena Umbra is a very efficient little aura. But it's just asking for card disadvantage without adding much speed to the creature its enchanting.
3/3 split worked fine with me. I personally never ran into artifact hate. You could try 2/2 split, but there will be a handful of times where you want to fetch an artifact forest over island but already have 2 on the board. Not a big deal though.
I think the Longbow is better than the Relic as a singleton. I think pinging is currently a bit underrated and would give the 1/X creatures more things to do. It should give the deck a little more reach and lategame power / tricks. Good idea.
People were suggesting taking the Longbow thing further by putting in deathtouch creatures. I'm not so sure about that. The deathtouch creatures imo aren't good enough by themselves, so playing subpar creatures to set up a good combo isn't worth it.
Kudos on your generosity then. I am amused at your use of the phrase "domm & gloom" as it sounded like an echo from a past conversation. My whole point wasn't to complain about "Woe is Me". I am an adult. I made my life choices and I live with the results. Some of the circumstances are beyond my control (diabetic, health problems, etc) and others aren't (sobriety to avoid alcoholic behavior).
I made my comments to illustrate how FRUSTRATING those cards are to face. They ARE a barrier and you evidently agree with that. That was my whole point. Yes perhaps I go a little over board sometimes making my point but I wanted to be sure I nailed it shut.
I am far from content with my life but I also know it could be tons worse. I have had friends who seem like a trainwreck on wheels, constantly going from one disaster to another with no breaks. Talk about unfortunate. Being able to play Magic at all after I sold my paper collection is a boon which I am grateful for.
(Btw much of the reason for that is because of Heath, directly and or indirectly as this site gives me credits for my work to spend on cards. Also the PRES and the fact that I know if I need something special I can count on him. This has kept me playing even when I am fed up and disgusted with the various things.)
I agree that complaints are overrated but honestly doesn't it feel good to blow off steam and list your grievances? I feel it does. It also helps to clarify things. Because sometimes something is bothering me and until I have put it into words it doesn't crystallize.
I pride myself on my way with words so to be stumped is tough going. Anyway the bottom line is this thread isn't about me and my collection which is certainly less shoddy than many through much endeavoring and trial and error. It is about the ridiculousness or not of the eternal format prices differentials.
I think the reason it irks me is that even though FOW/Duals/LED etc are really very low in ridiculousness compared to their paper counterparts they are the real barriers to entry. I will NEVER need to play Lands 43 so I could care less about Tabernacle. If it hits 40 tickets I won't be kicking myself for not buying 4 when they were 2.
On the other hand I would love to have playable lands. Currently I've got Rav duals instead. They don't suck but they are far from good either. Also no fetches. Old school fetches were out of range long before I got back online. New fetches seem kind of ridiculous for their effect. Managed to get singletons of some through luck and sold them when the prices went high enough.
So bottom line, it sucks for people in my boat to not have duals as it makes Legacy auto unreachable. Even on layaway duals are now established well out of reach. It also really sucks for those who own them to feel they can't play with them. I completely sympathize with that and want people to enjoy their cards.
its hard to keep tokens on the field with Sosuke's Summons when they're just getting pinged away before I can gain an advantage, sure it kept those pingers from going to my head, but without the creature advantage the deck struggled
Well, what can I say. Im really pleased with how my deck played. I actually built it a few days before hand and tested some in the casual room this time. I dont know that it was the perfect choice if we were doing more than 3 rounds, but having all that reach against Moat and removal against Snakes certainly didnt hurt. Id have to say that Searing Blaze was my MVP. I found myself holding lands once I got to 3-4 in play just so I could get the full effect from it. But being able to Bolt a blocker and Bolt its controller with 1 card is insane.
My match with JustSin was pretty epic. I think it was in game 1 where his Lorescale just got out of control. Before I knew what happened, it was out of burn range. Games 2 and 3 were all about Fireslinger and Vulshok Sorcerer clearing the way for Blood Knight and Raiders to do there thing while keeping his offense in check. But all 3 games were definitely very close.
My vote for the next specialty week is SINGLETON.
First Strike: The 1st week I played I 3-0ed with Goblins and was met with a few groans but at the same time I won some praise since it was basically pauper Goblins with a few uncommons (Tattermunge Maniac and Boggart Ram-gang) thrown in. Im sure my Burning Pings deck earned groans as well. Come with whatever, just not a fully fleshed out legacy Goblin, Merfolk, or Elf combo deck.
while I'm not too thrilled with the Eldrazi, I have to say I can appreciate a set that allows for not only white weenie, but (essentially) black weenie as well
Yall best believe as soon as Legacy is available, a set of Rancors will be mine. O yes, they will be mine. Until then, heres an idea for discussion thats being kicked around on the pdc board for this deck. Trinket Mage + artifact lands + Bonesplitter + Viridian Longbow. You have a nice little array of targets for Mage to get from artifact lands (where it does the same job as Borderland Ranger/Civic Wayfinder) to being able to fetch your "Rancors" in Bonesplitter to a nice option to mow down X/1s with Longbow. At the moment, I have Ranger/Wayfinder in my list but Im really considering Mage. Any thoughts on the number of artifact lands that gives you targets with Mage but doesnt open you up to artifact removal too much? I see in the 1st list posted in the article theres a 3/3 split.
I guess you're undervaluing Hyena Umbra. Creatures already die to the cards you mentioned with or without this aura. But it can at least save the creature from a Day of Judgment, Vampire Nighthawk, any creature with a Basilisk Collar on, burn, Vendetta, Hideous End etc... The ones you listed are heavily played cards but the ones I listed are also heavily played cards.
Your fully leveled up Student of Warfare would die to my Day of Judgment whereas my fully leveled up Student of Warfare wouldn't die to yours. At least not to the first one. Also the +1/+1 boost plus first strike is a bonus. Oh and all that service is available for a mere W. I think I'll buy! :)
Frustration differs for every player. Painter's Servant + Grindstone bothered some people, it does not bother me.
I can say that I get tired of facing Goblins and Elves in a tourney with such a wide array of tribes available. I have now played in 6 non-pauper Tribal Apocalypse tournaments. Among those, I have had 2 weeks facing 2 or more elves, 1 week facing 2 goblins, and 1 week facing a Merfolk and a Elves deck.
That being said, I actually have no beef with people bringing Elves. I just will concede the match when facing them and do something else until the next round.
I expand the tribes I play very slowly. I am an average deck builder at best, but I am pretty good at evolving a deck. I need to test, destroy, and rebuild before I am ever happy with a deck.
Thopter's seems difficult at first glance for me. Of course, I don't seem to have the internal archive of the cards available online that many of the other players have. Almost every time Paul, AJ, or other various players mention a card when we play, I have to go my collection to look it up.
I look forward to seeing it.
I actually think Plants has a viability to be more formidible than my 1-2 record, but my budget was exhausted. I have seen decent GW plant builds that can have ridiculous draws. I went with GR and there were certain cards that would have made my build much better.
Thanks for all the responses guys. Feedback is always appreciated.
Scouting decklists is a part of the game. If you choose not to take part in it, that's your choice, but there's not really a basis for faulting anyone who does choose to do it. It is purposely programmed into the MTGO client after all.
The tip about opening up the deck builder screen is something I agree with 100%. Knowing your outs and cascade targets are invaluable. And certainly back in ACR block drafts just knowing your mana composition helped significantly with mulligan decisions.
I play anything I like combo, duals whatever takes my fancy, I also play off the wall tribes as well.
But note that although I play anything I only play the deck once. This way I don't ruin the event by bringing the same deck every week.
There also a few cards that have been banned over the top of the client ones which are Goblin Lackey, Lion's Eye Diamond, Earthcraft, Bazaar of Baghdad, I can't remember if there are any more Shard will let you know if I have missed any.
I'd say bring your best deck first time round and see how you do if you feel your bringing too much power then turn it down a notch for the next event.
Dont feel too bad about the manabase...my collection of green white blue lands looks the same way. And I only have those for the Ultimate EDH deck which i built...
The speciality weeks are always near the end fo the month. they will also always be announced in the articles. Feel free if you ever have questions to PM me in the game. I have no problems answering any questions you may have. As far as the bad form question it's tough. It always kind of a 'hard to describe, but you know it, when you see it'
For example a deck you just dont like...not bad form
that feeling that you can only describe when it happens...bad form
I equate bad form decks, to the feeling that all joy has been sucked from your life and you will never be happy again
I would look up the comments in ShardFenix's past articles to get an idea of what is considered "bad form." Essentially, any converted dedicated Legacy deck, such as goblins and merfolk running FoW, as well as dredge, has been frowned upon in the past. But those past comments will give you a better idea.
I think it is hard to compare the two. At some point some football players realize they aren't talented enough to play at a higher level. Most magic players don't think this way. They believe if they have all the right cards they can be competitive and that simply isn't the case.
You can have every card available online and still not be competitive due to several variable factors. Knowing your decklists, the meta, the right sideboard options all come to mind.
The opposite for football is true. You see I know more about football than I do magic. I know all the formations, I know the plays, the rules, the best strategic plans, but I simply don't have the physical capability to compete at a high level. I just don't think a 5'8'' football player works out, unless your name is Barry Sanders.
So if money is a problem then find a cheap competitive deck, study the entire format and all possible matchups. Take time to be a pro at Magic thinking, then continue to tweak your deck and know your deck inside and out. There are plenty of decks that laugh at FOW. Find one and run with it, then laugh at them as your deck which cost half the amount of a FOW playset beats theirs.
You could be right, I could be undervaluing it. However very few auras have made the cut into constructed decks. The notable ones I can think of are Elephant Guide and Armadillo Cloak. Both of these are nice because they offer a bigger boost than a simple +1/+1 and first strike. I believe you're looking at the Umbra with rose colored glasses. How often are you going to save your creature with a Hyena Umbra and how often are you going to draw it in the late game without a creature to play it on? If it comes out first, it saves your creature from a Basilisk equiped Sparkmage for one turn, if it comes out late, it doesn't do any good against that Basillisk Sparkmage If your opponent has another creature attached to the Basillisk collar, he will probably just try to race you, until he can find more removal. In that case a simple +1/+1 isn't going to give you much reach.
River Boa also has protection against Day of Judgment, and it even has unblockability in many cases against UW, however it's still not that difficult for UW to deal with it. Control decks aren't all about the Day of Judgment, They have a lot of other tools to use.
There's no question that Hyena Umbra is a very efficient little aura. But it's just asking for card disadvantage without adding much speed to the creature its enchanting.
3/3 split worked fine with me. I personally never ran into artifact hate. You could try 2/2 split, but there will be a handful of times where you want to fetch an artifact forest over island but already have 2 on the board. Not a big deal though.
I think the Longbow is better than the Relic as a singleton. I think pinging is currently a bit underrated and would give the 1/X creatures more things to do. It should give the deck a little more reach and lategame power / tricks. Good idea.
People were suggesting taking the Longbow thing further by putting in deathtouch creatures. I'm not so sure about that. The deathtouch creatures imo aren't good enough by themselves, so playing subpar creatures to set up a good combo isn't worth it.
Yeah my cats didnt do very well vs Sosuke's Summons the snakes kept comming back like a bad case of fur balls
Yeah well it is a tough archetype. Particularly trying to make it combo in an aggro format.
Dunno but I had a ton before I sold my collection. Loved those Sunflower cards. Now I have 24 online which comes to about 2 tickets worth.
Kudos on your generosity then. I am amused at your use of the phrase "domm & gloom" as it sounded like an echo from a past conversation. My whole point wasn't to complain about "Woe is Me". I am an adult. I made my life choices and I live with the results. Some of the circumstances are beyond my control (diabetic, health problems, etc) and others aren't (sobriety to avoid alcoholic behavior).
I made my comments to illustrate how FRUSTRATING those cards are to face. They ARE a barrier and you evidently agree with that. That was my whole point. Yes perhaps I go a little over board sometimes making my point but I wanted to be sure I nailed it shut.
I am far from content with my life but I also know it could be tons worse. I have had friends who seem like a trainwreck on wheels, constantly going from one disaster to another with no breaks. Talk about unfortunate. Being able to play Magic at all after I sold my paper collection is a boon which I am grateful for.
(Btw much of the reason for that is because of Heath, directly and or indirectly as this site gives me credits for my work to spend on cards. Also the PRES and the fact that I know if I need something special I can count on him. This has kept me playing even when I am fed up and disgusted with the various things.)
I agree that complaints are overrated but honestly doesn't it feel good to blow off steam and list your grievances? I feel it does. It also helps to clarify things. Because sometimes something is bothering me and until I have put it into words it doesn't crystallize.
I pride myself on my way with words so to be stumped is tough going. Anyway the bottom line is this thread isn't about me and my collection which is certainly less shoddy than many through much endeavoring and trial and error. It is about the ridiculousness or not of the eternal format prices differentials.
I think the reason it irks me is that even though FOW/Duals/LED etc are really very low in ridiculousness compared to their paper counterparts they are the real barriers to entry. I will NEVER need to play Lands 43 so I could care less about Tabernacle. If it hits 40 tickets I won't be kicking myself for not buying 4 when they were 2.
On the other hand I would love to have playable lands. Currently I've got Rav duals instead. They don't suck but they are far from good either. Also no fetches. Old school fetches were out of range long before I got back online. New fetches seem kind of ridiculous for their effect. Managed to get singletons of some through luck and sold them when the prices went high enough.
So bottom line, it sucks for people in my boat to not have duals as it makes Legacy auto unreachable. Even on layaway duals are now established well out of reach. It also really sucks for those who own them to feel they can't play with them. I completely sympathize with that and want people to enjoy their cards.
Thank God for the pingers against Summons. Im positive I wouldve been sunk without them. I had forgotten how silly Summons can be.
its hard to keep tokens on the field with Sosuke's Summons when they're just getting pinged away before I can gain an advantage, sure it kept those pingers from going to my head, but without the creature advantage the deck struggled
If ROE lacked the colorless spells Id be just fine with that.
I concur.
Well, what can I say. Im really pleased with how my deck played. I actually built it a few days before hand and tested some in the casual room this time. I dont know that it was the perfect choice if we were doing more than 3 rounds, but having all that reach against Moat and removal against Snakes certainly didnt hurt. Id have to say that Searing Blaze was my MVP. I found myself holding lands once I got to 3-4 in play just so I could get the full effect from it. But being able to Bolt a blocker and Bolt its controller with 1 card is insane.
My match with JustSin was pretty epic. I think it was in game 1 where his Lorescale just got out of control. Before I knew what happened, it was out of burn range. Games 2 and 3 were all about Fireslinger and Vulshok Sorcerer clearing the way for Blood Knight and Raiders to do there thing while keeping his offense in check. But all 3 games were definitely very close.
My vote for the next specialty week is SINGLETON.
First Strike: The 1st week I played I 3-0ed with Goblins and was met with a few groans but at the same time I won some praise since it was basically pauper Goblins with a few uncommons (Tattermunge Maniac and Boggart Ram-gang) thrown in. Im sure my Burning Pings deck earned groans as well. Come with whatever, just not a fully fleshed out legacy Goblin, Merfolk, or Elf combo deck.
while I'm not too thrilled with the Eldrazi, I have to say I can appreciate a set that allows for not only white weenie, but (essentially) black weenie as well
Yall best believe as soon as Legacy is available, a set of Rancors will be mine. O yes, they will be mine. Until then, heres an idea for discussion thats being kicked around on the pdc board for this deck. Trinket Mage + artifact lands + Bonesplitter + Viridian Longbow. You have a nice little array of targets for Mage to get from artifact lands (where it does the same job as Borderland Ranger/Civic Wayfinder) to being able to fetch your "Rancors" in Bonesplitter to a nice option to mow down X/1s with Longbow. At the moment, I have Ranger/Wayfinder in my list but Im really considering Mage. Any thoughts on the number of artifact lands that gives you targets with Mage but doesnt open you up to artifact removal too much? I see in the 1st list posted in the article theres a 3/3 split.
I ran humans (monowhite) with geddons for a few weeks. No one complained. I think it depends on the crowd and what the complaint is.
Thanks for the comment.
I guess you're undervaluing Hyena Umbra. Creatures already die to the cards you mentioned with or without this aura. But it can at least save the creature from a Day of Judgment, Vampire Nighthawk, any creature with a Basilisk Collar on, burn, Vendetta, Hideous End etc... The ones you listed are heavily played cards but the ones I listed are also heavily played cards.
Your fully leveled up Student of Warfare would die to my Day of Judgment whereas my fully leveled up Student of Warfare wouldn't die to yours. At least not to the first one. Also the +1/+1 boost plus first strike is a bonus. Oh and all that service is available for a mere W. I think I'll buy! :)
LE
Frustration differs for every player. Painter's Servant + Grindstone bothered some people, it does not bother me.
I can say that I get tired of facing Goblins and Elves in a tourney with such a wide array of tribes available. I have now played in 6 non-pauper Tribal Apocalypse tournaments. Among those, I have had 2 weeks facing 2 or more elves, 1 week facing 2 goblins, and 1 week facing a Merfolk and a Elves deck.
That being said, I actually have no beef with people bringing Elves. I just will concede the match when facing them and do something else until the next round.
I expand the tribes I play very slowly. I am an average deck builder at best, but I am pretty good at evolving a deck. I need to test, destroy, and rebuild before I am ever happy with a deck.
Thopter's seems difficult at first glance for me. Of course, I don't seem to have the internal archive of the cards available online that many of the other players have. Almost every time Paul, AJ, or other various players mention a card when we play, I have to go my collection to look it up.
I look forward to seeing it.
I actually think Plants has a viability to be more formidible than my 1-2 record, but my budget was exhausted. I have seen decent GW plant builds that can have ridiculous draws. I went with GR and there were certain cards that would have made my build much better.
Thanks for all the responses guys. Feedback is always appreciated.
Scouting decklists is a part of the game. If you choose not to take part in it, that's your choice, but there's not really a basis for faulting anyone who does choose to do it. It is purposely programmed into the MTGO client after all.
The tip about opening up the deck builder screen is something I agree with 100%. Knowing your outs and cascade targets are invaluable. And certainly back in ACR block drafts just knowing your mana composition helped significantly with mulligan decisions.
I only have one Ranger of Eos which is why I went for the Knight's
I play anything I like combo, duals whatever takes my fancy, I also play off the wall tribes as well.
But note that although I play anything I only play the deck once. This way I don't ruin the event by bringing the same deck every week.
There also a few cards that have been banned over the top of the client ones which are Goblin Lackey, Lion's Eye Diamond, Earthcraft, Bazaar of Baghdad, I can't remember if there are any more Shard will let you know if I have missed any.
I'd say bring your best deck first time round and see how you do if you feel your bringing too much power then turn it down a notch for the next event.
Dont feel too bad about the manabase...my collection of green white blue lands looks the same way. And I only have those for the Ultimate EDH deck which i built...
The speciality weeks are always near the end fo the month. they will also always be announced in the articles. Feel free if you ever have questions to PM me in the game. I have no problems answering any questions you may have. As far as the bad form question it's tough. It always kind of a 'hard to describe, but you know it, when you see it'
For example a deck you just dont like...not bad form
that feeling that you can only describe when it happens...bad form
I equate bad form decks, to the feeling that all joy has been sucked from your life and you will never be happy again
I would look up the comments in ShardFenix's past articles to get an idea of what is considered "bad form." Essentially, any converted dedicated Legacy deck, such as goblins and merfolk running FoW, as well as dredge, has been frowned upon in the past. But those past comments will give you a better idea.
Well, perhaps "trumped by" is a better choice of words. Still, I think my point stands that Hyena Umbra is a rather weak card for constructed.
Also Sovereigns isn't in Zendikar block and would more likely be fetching bigger auras like Eldrazi Conscription anyway.
I think it is hard to compare the two. At some point some football players realize they aren't talented enough to play at a higher level. Most magic players don't think this way. They believe if they have all the right cards they can be competitive and that simply isn't the case.
You can have every card available online and still not be competitive due to several variable factors. Knowing your decklists, the meta, the right sideboard options all come to mind.
The opposite for football is true. You see I know more about football than I do magic. I know all the formations, I know the plays, the rules, the best strategic plans, but I simply don't have the physical capability to compete at a high level. I just don't think a 5'8'' football player works out, unless your name is Barry Sanders.
So if money is a problem then find a cheap competitive deck, study the entire format and all possible matchups. Take time to be a pro at Magic thinking, then continue to tweak your deck and know your deck inside and out. There are plenty of decks that laugh at FOW. Find one and run with it, then laugh at them as your deck which cost half the amount of a FOW playset beats theirs.