Zendikar III

[The Fluff]

Heard on another site that zen would be visited again. Would there still be eldrazi to see if ever we go there again? Well, it's been awhile, so I'm hoping we see some again.

Also heard that there will be a 4 colored Omnath.

[CommanderMaster999]

I was told very little left for eldrazi's (but I heard emrakul does leave the moon...if that's true what cause innistrad or whatever to be ready for emrakul)

And on omnath nope I got he's learn black and white at the same time so 5-color
And even a concept of what he does

Create X 1/1 elementals something with life total

And a ETB for elementals that's draw a card and ping any target for 5 (I think the 1/1s are cast trigger based of this)

[hyalopterouslemur]

Zendikar should always be a very Timmy/Spike set, IMO. Spike by making us think of things like when to drop lands, but Timmy for 1) something to do with those lands, and 2) things like quest counters.

[The Fluff]

[mention]CommanderMaster999[/mention]

hmm, a little left is better than nothing. I guess it's only a matter of time before they all disappear, because Ula and Cosi are both dead already.

[mention]hyalopterouslemur[/mention]

landfall is a very good mechanic, I hope it returns.. along with the quests that give zendikar the Indiana Jones adventure feel.

[The N82O Molecule]

traps

and landfall

there could be a colored artifact equipment thing

the roil? its supposedly happened cause the eldrazi were trapped inside. but I expect it to be back in full force, to "rebuild" itself

I hope there is a colorless theme, perhaps a "ramification" of getting "eldrazied" but I don't think its zendikar vs eldrazi anymore. rather zendikar reclaiming itself and the inhabitants having to deal. in other words its not a battle scenario.

Maro said a long time ago somewhere in one of his many articles that they sorta bombed it in regards to returning to zendikar so this set is going to make up for that I hope.

what kind of treasure would you want to find or hope to find?
umezawa's jitte lol

probably have to look at og zendi for muse

[The Fluff]

[mention]The N82O Molecule[/mention]

ah, yes the traps. Looking forward to them making some more of that too.

some traps from the original block actually became useful.. ricochet trap, ravenous trap, and the archive trap.

and I'm looking forward to another steppe lynx variant. Scythe leopard from Zendikar II is not enough! :<

[The N82O Molecule]

you know what

Ally

Ally creature type gotta come back

warlock food ally for the wiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiin!

[hyalopterouslemur]

But food is an artifact type...

[The N82O Molecule]

I got you
how about

tiger blood Adonis
warlock ally
2, tap, sacrifice warlock ally: gain 3 life
#winning - Charlie sheen

[The Fluff]

you got to bring food // find food when going on an adventure. Wotc might decide to extend the food mechanic to Zendikar.

[CommanderMaster999]

Welp were getting pre-con decks like eldraine in this

But there's a difference...

They commander decks not brawl

[folding_music]

ginormous bump :B

predictions for zen rising:
- Legendary creatures with expensive Adventures attached to them; if the theme of the set is recovering/rebuilding/rediscovery then a new Jori En or a character in her lineage would be perfect. One of them is a "Legendary Instant - Trap Adventure" with a unique frame, regardless of Trap actually appearing in the set otherwise.
- Surrakar as a creature type grow from neanderthal status to a proper civilization with a language worth learning. A surrakar planeswalker would be incredibly cute. less humans for a while, this setting has lots of alternate people to focus on and the Kor are kinda iconic in particular
- more of an artifact/equipment theme because a lot of the commonplace items lost during the battle with the Eldrazi suddenly become sought-after relics
- absolutely no sign of Scalding Tarn anywhere. it's a shame that the names of the Darkslick Shores cycle don't really suit Zendikar because I feel like they'd be an excellent and timely reprint. of course if the Phyrexians showed up on Zendikar, that'd kinda allow it =P
- random reprint of something that turns out to be format-defining for two years. Equilibrium isn't reserved and hasn't been reprinted in twenty years, just saying giggle

[CommanderMaster999]

ok

omnath will be 5-color legend and probably one of the commander deck legends and mayble landfall legend we have ben waiting for

traps

maybe the adventures from eldraine but in zendikar style rather than book style

the enemy tango lands

new nissa (one from leak)

and probably one bonkers reprint

[Arkmer]

and probably one bonkers reprint

They only reprint Marsh Flats, lol. MaRo tweets only middle fingers for 24 hours.

[AvalonAurora]

- absolutely no sign of Scalding Tarn anywhere. it's a shame that the names of the Darkslick Shores cycle don't really suit Zendikar because I feel like they'd be an excellent and timely reprint. of course if the Phyrexians showed up on Zendikar, that'd kinda allow it =P

You don't really need phyrexian or even metal focused plane for the cycle's names, if you're clever with the art and/or flavor text.

Blackcleave Cliffs: This name doesn't take much effort, any kind of dark or black colored to a bunch of sharp cliffs works here.

Copperline Gorge: You could have a gorge with a line of copper deposits or copper colored deposits (real copper ones would probably wind up green from oxidation, while copper colored ones could be something else), you could also have a gorge which shows a copper line somehow during the sunset, either from part of the gorge hit by the sunset, or by the sunset itself taking on copper tones. You could also have a gorge with a copper mine, possibly with a rail line leading out of it, or a line of wheeled carts or something.

Darkslick Shores: An easy option here would just be shores with oil slicks, a place where oil is bubbling up from the earth or where a massive whale died and releasing oil as it decomposes sliding into the water, note that this doesn't have to be phyrexian oil, it could be regular oil. However, it doesn't have to involve oil, merely dark stone that is smooth and wet could be slippery enough to be referred to as 'slick', as could a form of dark, slippery seaweed or algae.

Razorverge Thicket: A verge that is sharp and has some thickets could easily count as a 'razorverge thicket', as could a verge that has some thickets that include sharp parts of plants, or a thicket on a verge that also has some barber services set up with tents or small stalls as part of a market, or a thicket on a verge that has creatures with razor sharp bits, like claws or teeth or back sails or something.

Seachrome Coast: Doesn't have to involve actual chrome, it could involve things like particularly shiny sea foam, perhaps with some degree of silvery dust in the water that make things more reflective and chrome-like, or a place with some kind of chrome colored sealife, like silvery fish schools or some kind of silvery shelled mollusks or loose shells with silvery inner parts from dead mollusks that line an area. Or a foamy sea that looks silvery and chrome-like in certain lighting.

More options are possible besides these as well, without getting into more Mirrodin/Phyrexian stuff, it just takes a bit of creativity. Perhaps not as easy to fit to more generic places than many other lands, but the names aren't ones that entirely force a metal plane kind of thing.

[The N82O Molecule]

one thing I guess, that they really haven't done before is explore the natural native creatures (and their respective skill set per the rare tree)

you have cards like Felidar Sovereign which seem to really compliment Ikoria. but the non Eldrazi were essentially iconic behemoths (angels, dragons, tribe giants, etc)

so with that the creature types really shift towards tribes. . .kor, merfolk, goblin, vampire, elf. I think looking at m21 with a keen eye will help reveal a little more about what's to come.

whats the fight? spoilers?
og zendikar was exploration. . .and the plane was in flux and hard to navigate only to find out it was the Eldrazi (Que the creature that really was explored instead of native) wait, was the roil caused by Eldrazi or was it the plane "crying" cause the Eldrazi were killing it. having the roil as the enemy? omnath?

Zendikar was saved and the Eldrazi are back in the space between planes. I feel like there is a big vacuum of space that has to be filled and honestly im not sure they are going to pull it off. . .this is zendy 3. im not even sure I want to be on Zendikar again and there are no Eldrazi?

as im typing this im understanding that a perspective is in play. haha anyway

[CommanderMaster999]

one thing I guess, that they really haven't done before is explore the natural native creatures (and their respective skill set per the rare tree)

you have cards like Felidar Sovereign which seem to really compliment Ikoria. but the non Eldrazi were essentially iconic behemoths (angels, dragons, tribe giants, etc)

so with that the creature types really shift towards tribes. . .kor, merfolk, goblin, vampire, elf. I think looking at m21 with a keen eye will help reveal a little more about what's to come.

whats the fight? spoilers?
og zendikar was exploration. . .and the plane was in flux and hard to navigate only to find out it was the Eldrazi (Que the creature that really was explored instead of native) wait, was the roil caused by Eldrazi or was it the plane "crying" cause the Eldrazi were killing it. having the roil as the enemy? omnath?

Zendikar was saved and the Eldrazi are back in the space between planes. I feel like there is a big vacuum of space that has to be filled and honestly im not sure they are going to pull it off. . .this is zendy 3. im not even sure I want to be on Zendikar again and there are no Eldrazi?

as im typing this im understanding that a perspective is in play. haha anyway

Don't forget the elementals for a tribe on zendikar

Plus it's a no brained we're getting omnath with color number 4 or going straight to 5 color

[Krishnath]

Why would they give Omnath a fourth color, or a fifth for that matter?

[Mookie]

Why would they give Omnath a fourth color, or a fifth for that matter?

Pattern recognition - each version of Omnath so far has had an additional color. Omnath, Locus of Mana → Omnath, Locus of Rage → Omnath, Locus of the Roil. So the fourth version will have four colors, fifth version will have five, and sixth version will have six. Or so the thinking goes.

Personally, I'm somewhat skeptical of a 4C Omnath. I wouldn't expect them to have a 4C card in the set without a full cycle, and the odds of having a 4C theme for Zendikar seems.... low. I could see a 5C Omnath as a 1-off card though.

[CommanderMaster999]

Why would they give Omnath a fourth color, or a fifth for that matter?

Pattern recognition - each version of Omnath so far has had an additional color. Omnath, Locus of Mana → Omnath, Locus of Rage → Omnath, Locus of the Roil. So the fourth version will have four colors, fifth version will have five, and sixth version will have six. Or so the thinking goes.

Personally, I'm somewhat skeptical of a 4C Omnath. I wouldn't expect them to have a 4C card in the set without a full cycle, and the odds of having a 4C theme for Zendikar seems.... low. I could see a 5C Omnath as a 1-off card though.

And maybe one of the 3 new cards in one of the commander decks as either a 5-color elemental tribal or 5-color land matters legend

[Krishnath]

Why would they give Omnath a fourth color, or a fifth for that matter?

Pattern recognition - each version of Omnath so far has had an additional color. Omnath, Locus of Mana → Omnath, Locus of Rage → Omnath, Locus of the Roil. So the fourth version will have four colors, fifth version will have five, and sixth version will have six. Or so the thinking goes.

Personally, I'm somewhat skeptical of a 4C Omnath. I wouldn't expect them to have a 4C card in the set without a full cycle, and the odds of having a 4C theme for Zendikar seems.... low. I could see a 5C Omnath as a 1-off card though.

Each of those color additions have had a logical reason to them though, adding white or black makes no sense what so ever. Obviously I am not saying it could not happen, it just feels unlikely.

[SecretInfiltrator]

Personally, I'm somewhat skeptical of a 4C Omnath. I wouldn't expect them to have a 4C card in the set without a full cycle, and the odds of having a 4C theme for Zendikar seems.... low. I could see a 5C Omnath as a 1-off card though.

I see your point and agree... at the same time though...: This is the year of Commander, so a nod towards four-color commanders might be on the table. And we have the rather colorful Ikoria with a three-color subtheme which might indicate a multicolor-friendly theme in the same environment. I don't outright predict it, but this might be a time where a four-color cycle might not come out of the blue after all.

Speaking of color: While I recall that Zendikar is supposed to be Eldrazi-free now (exact wording escapes me, something MaRo put online), I suspect that colorless/generic nonartifact spells are still a thing in Zendikar III. It seems like an explanation for the seemingly random colorless nonartifact creatures in Ikoria.

Putting these together, maybe colors will be a mechanical hook for the set. Or maybe colorless creatures will just be a theme to go with land creatures...

[Krishnath]

Speaking of color: While I recall that Zendikar is supposed to be Eldrazi-free now (exact wording escapes me, something MaRo put online), I suspect that colorless/generic nonartifact spells are still a thing in Zendikar III. It seems like an explanation for the seemingly random colorless nonartifact creatures in Ikoria.

Putting these together, maybe colors will be a mechanical hook for the set. Or maybe colorless creatures will just be a theme to go with land creatures...

I think there is a much, much simpler explanation for the colorless creatures in Ikoria, they wanted a handful of creatures to enable mutation strategies that could be put in any color deck, and common artifact creatures didn't make sense on Ikoria.

[SecretInfiltrator]

I think there is a much, much simpler explanation for the colorless creatures in Ikoria, they wanted a handful of creatures to enable mutation strategies that could be put in any color deck, and common artifact creatures didn't make sense on Ikoria.

The cards started out as artifacts and actively were changed to nonartfact. I don't think they couldn't have easily flavored the creatures as made of the very common crystals of Ikoria if they didn't suddenly feel that colorless nonartifact creatures were an available tool (as the one artifact creature of the set is already). Time and time again we see new wording and small design changes introduced that are based on decisions they made for later sets.

I don't disagree that there is a small benefit to doing things as they have done, but I feel they wouldn't make a philosophy change regarding colorless nonartifact creatures if the point had not been discussed due to a larger issue first. And once they made the call for the upcoming set, they just allow earlier sets to benefit from the change.

Basically, lenticular design. Right now you get to see one reason why these colorless creatures make sense. A set or two into the future you will be able to look at them in a new light.

[Krishnath]

I think there is a much, much simpler explanation for the colorless creatures in Ikoria, they wanted a handful of creatures to enable mutation strategies that could be put in any color deck, and common artifact creatures didn't make sense on Ikoria.

The cards started out as artifacts and actively were changed to nonartfact. I don't think they couldn't have easily flavored the creatures as made of the very common crystals of Ikoria if they didn't suddenly feel that colorless nonartifact creatures were an available tool (as the one artifact creature of the set is already). Time and time again we see new wording and small design changes introduced that are based on decisions they made for later sets.

I don't disagree that there is a small benefit to doing things as they have done, but I feel they wouldn't make a philosophy change regarding colorless nonartifact creatures if the point had not been discussed due to a larger issue first. And once they made the call for the upcoming set, they just allow earlier sets to benefit from the change.

Basically, lenticular design. Right now you get to see one reason why these colorless creatures make sense. A set or two into the future you will be able to look at them in a new light.

While that is true, they have already told us that the Eldrazi are dead and gone from Zendikar, as such Colorless creatures does not make sense on the plane as colorless creatures on Zendikar are intrinsically linked with the Eldrazi.

While a rare artifact creature on Ikoria makes sense from a design perspective, after all it is rare and was built. Common artifact creatures on a plane where people are basically barely holding on against the onslaught of nature, doesn't actually make any sense. For there to be common artifact creatures on the plane, they need to have been produced in large numbers, and people on the plane doesn't actually have the necessary resources to do that. And what scarce resources they do have are better spent on things that actually benefit them immediately: Weapons and Defenses. Spending wood, metal, and other resources on something animate doesn't make sense in that regard unless it is something that can help defend against the Kaiju of Ikoria.