[mtgnexus] Random Card of the Day - North Star

[pokken]

Aetherize is one of a long list of wonderful "gotcha" instants for massive combat attacks, along the lines of Comeuppance and Keep Watch that I absolutely adore. I like spouts better but still very good.

Another in the long list of 'decks I want to make' is the 'instant speed gotcha' deck that plays nothing but a pile of this nonsense, even including Angel of the Dire Hour as a way to train people not to attack me

[3drinks]

Friday, December 11th, 2020; Reprisal|ALL

A reasonable removal with easy to meet reqs, and an ease of castability to it and an aire of finality that comes with it. Could see more play than it gets.

[RxPhantom]

It's a solid spell. With this particular art though, it always looked like one of those dragons in a Chinese new year parade with a dozen people under it. Also, I wish they didn't hose regeneration so much back in the day.

[Sinis]

Friday, December 11th, 2020; Reprisal

A reasonable removal with easy to meet reqs, and an ease of castability to it and an aire of finality that comes with it. Could see more play than it gets.

It's hard to want to play this over Radiant's Judgment. Given the conditional nature of it, the cycling on RJ could be clutch.

[3drinks]

Friday, December 11th, 2020; Reprisal

A reasonable removal with easy to meet reqs, and an ease of castability to it and an aire of finality that comes with it. Could see more play than it gets.

It's hard to want to play this over Radiant's Judgment. Given the conditional nature of it, the cycling on RJ could be clutch.

Good spell too. I find it's hard to hold up three for it so I almost always cycle it. I play removal for a reason, so I'd think Reprisal gets the nod. Judgment would then be a bonus slot, not a corre removal but something that can be, or can proc astral slide as needed.

I think these are both examples of why commander doesn't need to cost as much money as so many people think it does. Just stop being lulled into wizard's sweet talk that you "have to" buy quick cause it's new and realize what you have is just fine.

[Dunharrow]

If I am playing conditional removal I would probably go for Oblivion Ring variants.

[JWK]

This card is okay, and in most games you won't lack for potential targets, but the creatrues I most want to remove are usually smaller ones with abilities of one sort or another, so I don't really see running this over something that will hit creatures regardless of size.

[PrimevalCommander]

There are about a dozen power-dependent removal spells out there now. I hardly ever see them due to the restrictive nature. No one remembers the 99 times a removal spell does it's job, but they remember the 1 time it sits in hand and can't target that Krenko, Mob Boss, Karador, Ghost Chieftian, Alesha Who Smiles at Death or other low power creatures. Perfectly playable card if you need some removal and are in a combat based meta.

On the flip side, CMC restrictions appear to be better received, with Despark being highly discussed and praised.

[Hawk]

I have several copies of this kicking around and it sometimes ends up in the "maybeboard" of White decks (especially white decks that lack access to black or blue), but it never seems to make the cut.

- White has the two best targeted removal spells in the format in Swords to Plowshares and Path to Exile which are the immediate starting point. I also don't hate Condemn and there's always Dispatch for an artifact-heavy build.
- At 2 CMC there isn't a ton of competition, but I do personally prefer the flexibility of Valorous Stance or the anti-commanderness of Darksteel Mutation (despite its sorcery speed) and I know lots of folks adore Declaration in Stone (again, despite it being a sorcery). There's also Journey to Nowhere for an oblvion-like effect.
- This comes in at 2 mana and instant speed, but that restriction is real - in my old analysis, I found that the difference between this and Skywhaler's Shot was absolutely massive in practice in terms of how often you'd find a meaningful target. There's also as noted Radiant's Judgment which has cycling to make up for the limited targeting. 3 CMC also opens up stuff like Crib Swap, Afterlife. and Devouring Light which can hit creatures regardless of size as well as Generous Gift and Oblation (which can hit anything and everything). Oh, and any number of Oblivion Ring variants and improvements if that's your jam.

That's all just in mono-white, which means even on a considerable budget I'd be hard pressed to run this. The average deck for me is running 7-12 single-target answer cards, at least one of which is probably a Disenchant effect, and I just listed 20 possible options. Some of those are sorta niche too, but overall it's easy to find better and stronger spells before looking at this.

[3drinks]

I have several copies of this kicking around and it sometimes ends up in the "maybeboard" of White decks (especially white decks that lack access to black or blue), but it never seems to make the cut.

- White has the two best targeted removal spells in the format in Swords to Plowshares and Path to Exile which are the immediate starting point. I also don't hate Condemn and there's always Dispatch for an artifact-heavy build.
- At 2 CMC there isn't a ton of competition, but I do personally prefer the flexibility of Valorous Stance or the anti-commanderness of Darksteel Mutation (despite its sorcery speed) and I know lots of folks adore Declaration in Stone (again, despite it being a sorcery). There's also Journey to Nowhere for an oblvion-like effect.
- This comes in at 2 mana and instant speed, but that restriction is real - in my old analysis, I found that the difference between this and Skywhaler's Shot was absolutely massive in practice in terms of how often you'd find a meaningful target. There's also as noted Radiant's Judgment which has cycling to make up for the limited targeting. 3 CMC also opens up stuff like Crib Swap, Afterlife. and Devouring Light which can hit creatures regardless of size as well as Generous Gift and Oblation (which can hit anything and everything). Oh, and any number of Oblivion Ring variants and improvements if that's your jam.

That's all just in mono-white, which means even on a considerable budget I'd be hard pressed to run this. The average deck for me is running 7-12 single-target answer cards, at least one of which is probably a Disenchant effect, and I just listed 20 possible options. Some of those are sorta niche too, but overall it's easy to find better and stronger spells before looking at this.

If Plowshares is $3 across a hundred prints, and P2E is $6-$8, I see no issue in playing a 0.25¢ Reprisal or a 0.75¢ dec in stone, in all honesty. Especially now in this post covid-19 mtg economy where supply is drying up and prices skyrocketing on the secondary market as a response. This is, after all, an unsanctioned format with no cash on the line. Having used this card within the white border pool, it's really fine. It's like wear//tear, nothing to write home about but it cleanly gets the job done.

[JWK]

There are about a dozen power-dependent removal spells out there now. I hardly ever see them due to the restrictive nature. No one remembers the 99 times a removal spell does it's job, but they remember the 1 time it sits in hand and can't target that Krenko, Mob Boss, Karador, Ghost Chieftian, Alesha Who Smiles at Death or other low power creatures. Perfectly playable card if you need some removal and are in a combat based meta.

On the flip side, CMC restrictions appear to be better received, with Despark being highly discussed and praised.

Despark would probably not be played as much if it hit only creatures, but it also targets a wide range of problematic enchantments, artifacts, planeswalkers, etc., in addition to hitting a lot of problematic creatures that have low power but CMC 4+, including Rashmi, Jhoira, Beast Whisperer, Kiki-Jiki, the ones mentioned above and numerous others. Commander Legends has introduced many more creatures that are going to be good targets.

[Hawk]

I have several copies of this kicking around and it sometimes ends up in the "maybeboard" of White decks (especially white decks that lack access to black or blue), but it never seems to make the cut.

- White has the two best targeted removal spells in the format in Swords to Plowshares and Path to Exile which are the immediate starting point. I also don't hate Condemn and there's always Dispatch for an artifact-heavy build.
- At 2 CMC there isn't a ton of competition, but I do personally prefer the flexibility of Valorous Stance or the anti-commanderness of Darksteel Mutation (despite its sorcery speed) and I know lots of folks adore Declaration in Stone (again, despite it being a sorcery). There's also Journey to Nowhere for an oblvion-like effect.
- This comes in at 2 mana and instant speed, but that restriction is real - in my old analysis, I found that the difference between this and Skywhaler's Shot was absolutely massive in practice in terms of how often you'd find a meaningful target. There's also as noted Radiant's Judgment which has cycling to make up for the limited targeting. 3 CMC also opens up stuff like Crib Swap, Afterlife. and Devouring Light which can hit creatures regardless of size as well as Generous Gift and Oblation (which can hit anything and everything). Oh, and any number of Oblivion Ring variants and improvements if that's your jam.

That's all just in mono-white, which means even on a considerable budget I'd be hard pressed to run this. The average deck for me is running 7-12 single-target answer cards, at least one of which is probably a Disenchant effect, and I just listed 20 possible options. Some of those are sorta niche too, but overall it's easy to find better and stronger spells before looking at this.

If Plowshares is $3 across a hundred prints, and P2E is $6-$8, I see no issue in playing a 0.25¢ Reprisal or a 0.75¢ dec in stone, in all honesty. Especially now in this post covid-19 mtg economy where supply is drying up and prices skyrocketing on the secondary market as a response. This is, after all, an unsanctioned format with no cash on the line. Having used this card within the white border pool, it's really fine. It's like wear//tear, nothing to write home about but it cleanly gets the job done.

Hey, right there with you - I'm all about budget, and recognize that even though I wager I'm among the poorer people posting in this thread I'm also #blessed in owning 5-6 StP, a playset of PtE, and even in my access to a playset each of Oblation, Generous Gift, and Journey. I would also wager most decks on a strict budget would do better with some combination of Declaration, Crib Swap, Afterlife (now THAT'S an underplayed gem imo), and O-ring. But I am happy this exists and is affordable, and can definitely see some budget Selesnya, Boros, or mono-white builds opting for it.

[3drinks]

Saturday, December 12th, 2020; Frenzied Fugue

Well, I like it. Great political tool, people can't get mad at you cause they're the one that put the desired card in their deck.

[TheAmericanSpirit]

I actually really like this card. It can target any permanent, and one turn weilding someone else's death ray is usually enough to do serious damage. But no, it keeps giving! You get that thing every turn! Forever*! It's super.

*Frenzied Fugue's Forever policy does not cover liability or provide compensation in the event of removal, sacrifice outlets, suicidal combats, Blink effects, or other forms of leaving the battlefield. See full policy for details.

[Serenade]

I haven't tried it out yet, but I figured it would have a good place with Ghen, Arcanum Weaver.

[Sinis]

Saturday, December 12th, 2020; Frenzied Fugue

I hate this card. It presents as fun and interesting, but then some monkey shows up with a Conjurer's Closet and all you've played is a complicated Wrong Turn. Or, it gets sacrificed for something, possibly a Gravepact effect.

It's not that the floor for this card is abysmally low for me, it's that the ceiling just isn't very high. Sac outlets (on anyone's board) will pretty much nix this and it will be at its very heart Complicated Removal With Unwanted Risk.

[Wallycaine]

Saturday, December 12th, 2020; Frenzied Fugue

I hate this card. It presents as fun and interesting, but then some monkey shows up with a Conjurer's Closet and all you've played is a complicated Wrong Turn. Or, it gets sacrificed for something, possibly a Gravepact effect.

It's not that the floor for this card is abysmally low for me, it's that the ceiling just isn't very high. Sac outlets (on anyone's board) will pretty much nix this and it will be at its very heart Complicated Removal With Unwanted Risk.

I'm very confused as to how this interacts with sac outlets on someone who's not the target's board, or how it can interact to create a Wrong Turn. Frenzied Fugue only triggers on your upkeep, and always gives you control. Unless someone else is taking control of the Frenzied Fugue, there's no way the creature ends up on anyone's board other than you and the person who originally controlled it (and at that point why aren't they just taking the creature itself?)

[Sinis]

I'm very confused as to how this interacts with sac outlets on someone who's not the target's board, or how it can interact to create a Wrong Turn. Frenzied Fugue only triggers on your upkeep, and always gives you control. Unless someone else is taking control of the Frenzied Fugue, there's no way the creature ends up on anyone's board other than you and the person who originally controlled it (and at that point why aren't they just taking the creature itself?)

I thought this was a different card similar to Assault Suit. I'm definitely in the wrong here.

[The_Hittite]

Well now I want to use this in Zedruu the Greathearted as a very roundabout way to gift people other players' stuff.

[3drinks]

Sunday, December 13th, 2020; Craterhoof Behemoth

Not sure if we'll hear more groans for this card, or the Cy. Rift day we had.

[Antis]

Never played Craterhoof, not planning to. I generally avoid "easy" wincons like that. Infinite combos are the usual victims of that policy, but I also count cards like 'Hoof or Exsanguinate into that category, too.

I don't have a problem with CyRift, though. I would say the difference is in the card's main use. Yes, you can use Rift to clear the way for your army, in the best case scenario at the end of the turn of the player jusr before you. But such a use of the Rift is, at least in my experience, very rare. In most cases, Rift is just a board wipe, same as Devastation Tide. On the other hand, Craterhoof is an instant wincon and nothing else. In this case, playing it in a benign way is the ultra-rare exception.

[Treamayne]

Craterhoof is one of those cards I avoid unless it is very "on-theme." That said, it is in my Gahiji Beast deck. The closest I can get to tutoring for it is Cream of the Crop. But, since I am also running Lurking Predators, I figure there is a chance that an opponent's spell will drop him on their turn when his ability is wasted; so I generally have to avoid using Cream of the Crop to put him on top of the library.

It's about as fair a use for the card as I can conceive.

Craterhoof is an instant wincon and nothing else. In this case, playing it in a benign way is the ultra-rare exception.

Well, it is not always an instant WinCon. I was in a game the other day when Yisan popped Craterhoof too early (of his 11 creatures, 7 were summoning sick with no means of gaining haste) and though they got a huge bonus, 6 attackers was not enough to blow out three opponents (life: 40, 40, 46).

But I agree with the sentiment of your statement, if the card is played correctly, it tends to be an "answer now or lose" play.

[Dunharrow]

I hate this card for the way it turn an innocuous board presence into the ability to blow out multiple opponents.
I do run Pathbreaker Ibex in couple decks... convinced it is stronger than CB in Maelstrom Wanderer where ibex when cascaded into is a guaranteed +7/+7.

So I guess that means that it is not just the way it wins but how overplayed it is that bothers me.

[pokken]

I mostly prefer Finale of Devastation with Pathbreaker Ibex these days. Ibex is kinda cool because it repeatedly kills people and it's a lot cheaper to cast in the first place.

[toctheyounger]

Ugh. Overpriced abd overplayed, but also one of those win cons thats just so underwhelming. I don't see how you can win with this more than once and enjoy it a second time. Also fairly frustrating to stop from the receiving end. Unless you can get it on the stack or have a fog you're done almost no matter what your board state looks like and thats just lame.