MTGNexus

Wednesday, April 21st, 2021; Spinal Embrace

I remember think that card was the coolest thing back in high school when I and a bunch of class mates would play on the wood shop table. We used to play 6 player games with an "all mana down" house rule. I forget what I traded for it, but I probably got ripped off. I had just bought a pack of the freshly released onslaught and traded whatever my rare was for it.

Ahh memories....

In the early days of EDH this would bounce in and out of my Crosis deck because it really does a lot. It's never going to see a ton of play but the 6 cost is honestly not that bad considering what you get.

This card brings back great memories of my earlier days of magic, when we still thought the command zone was the hand and didn't realize it was an entirely different format. Entered my binder one day from a mass rare exchange between me and a friend, and never left it, still there to this day.

In terms of usability? It seems both extremely overcosted, and unnaturally restrictive. Would at least be able to deal with the 6 cmc if it wasn't only castable as a combat trick. Seems like wizards had a very specific idea of how and when they wanted this card to be played, and it's a shame that there isn't more flexibility Would love to see a similar card without the combat restriction, or for 5 cmc, or at the very least one that can just target your own creatures as well.

I got out of MTG during Invasion (not before pulling this card in a pack, though) and back in during Alara, so I had Recoil, Agony Warp, Brainbite, and Soul Manipulation in my collection. I had this impression that UB was just a bunch of two or more weak effects stapled together, always had been and always would be (more than any other color combo). Even Enter the God-Eternals is a recent example of a bunch of UB things jammed onto one card. I figured they didn't want to give too many too-good spells to UB because they are such great colors anyway.

The Prismari stuff kinda feels like that. Maybe UR was always kinda like that, too.

Anyway I do not use my copy of this card. Maybe in a Circu or UB instants/flash deck for nostalgia's sake, but it feels like it's an early cut.

I dunno, Undermine was okay, as was Recoil. I liked Vioe Consumption. And Urza's Guilt was fun. And Finkel has to have his robe so a few options.

Anyway, I can't get around the existence of cheaper options (Ray of Command, Control Magic). This is an instant tho, so there's that.

Thursday, April 22nd, 2021; Al-abara's Carpet

I've never seen this card cast. I could see it in some really niche pillowfort build with Archetype of Imagination/Mystic Decree

"when you want a Moat but can't afford the real thing". Best I got.

Man they really loved expensive artifacts with even more expensive activation costs back in the day. There are scenarios where this is better than Forcefield but that's a pretty generous statement. Still the best flying carpet in the game I guess.

3drinks wrote: ↑

3 years ago

"when you want a Moat but can't afford the real thing". Best I got.

I don't think I can afford pseudomoat. I miss when trash cards on the reserved list didnt cost 60$.

Jesus, what a cost. Just play spike weaver...

3drinks wrote: ↑

3 years ago

"when you want a Moat but can't afford the real thing". Best I got.

And even there, it's still not a cheap card at all, just because it's from Legends.

Best use I see is comboing it with March of the Machines so you can beat someone to death with a carpet.

I'd be looking at Island Sanctuary, Magus of the Moat, Teferi's Moat or something else like that if I wanted an effect like this that is a bit more reasonable and fairly easy on the wallet.

What a fascinating card. But overall I think, a bad one. 10 mana to Fog someone (and even then somewhat unreliably) is expensive. I'd say this is more budget friendly than Forcefield and Moat, but it's a lot less friendly than cards like Crawlspace or Glacial Chasm, nevermind colored effects like Dueling Grounds, Teferi's Moat. Island Sanctuary, Spike Weaver, Energy Field, Solitary Confinement, Constant Mists, or other foggy/attack-limiting effects.

Just look at Aladdin's Lamp and Ring. Pyramids combines costing 6 with a very narrow ability.

I suppose there are a few mana elves that make Jandor's Saddlebags go infinite.

brainface wrote: ↑

3 years ago

I don't think I can afford pseudomoat. I miss when trash cards on the reserved list didnt cost 60$.

Yikes, what has been going on lately?? I got hatred for 64BRL on june 25 2020. Now the cheapest one is 235BRL less than a year!

duducrash wrote: ↑

3 years ago

brainface wrote: ↑

3 years ago

I don't think I can afford pseudomoat. I miss when trash cards on the reserved list didnt cost 60$.

Yikes, what has been going on lately?? I got hatred for 64BRL on june 25 2020. Now the cheapest one is 235BRL less than a year!

Just people who treat magic cards as STONKS instead of game pieces. Same old crap, same old argument for why the reserve list is crap and needs to die,

Oof, this ain't cheap. In any sense of the word. Not worth the price to use in-game or to purchase. Pick up a Magus of the Moat instead and save yourself a kidney.

onering wrote: ↑

3 years ago

Just people who treat magic cards as STONKS instead of game pieces. Same old crap, same old argument for why the reserve list is crap and needs to die,

Honestly I've never seen it this bad, it's really pretty disgusting at the moment. Not gonna lie, it's led to some favourable trades for me, but it doesn't feel any less grotesque. The RL really does need to die in a fire, but I can't see it happening. Even if it does though, things seem to have changed. WotC and daddy Hasbro seem potently aware that they're able to hold us over a barrel for chase cards without meaningfully reprinting them, all the while maintaining their strange position that the secondary market doesn't affect their practices.

I know it's not the place for all of this, it's just increasingly harder and harder not to be cynical about the way WotC sells their product.

toctheyounger wrote: ↑

3 years ago

Honestly I've never seen it this bad, it's really pretty disgusting at the moment. Not gonna lie, it's led to some favourable trades for me, but it doesn't feel any less grotesque. The RL really does need to die in a fire, but I can't see it happening. Even if it does though, things seem to have changed. WotC and daddy Hasbro seem potently aware that they're able to hold us over a barrel for chase cards without meaningfully reprinting them, all the while maintaining their strange position that the secondary market doesn't affect their practices.

I know it's not the place for all of this, it's just increasingly harder and harder not to be cynical about the way WotC sells their product.

I love that WotC being so asinine about reprinting needed cards and maintaining the RL is making players widely accepting of proxying.

JWK wrote: ↑

3 years ago

I love that WotC being so asinine about reprinting needed cards and maintaining the RL is making players widely accepting of proxying.

Yeah thankfully there's not a lot of purists out there. I think anyone on that stance would have a hard sell convincing anyone they're right considering how expensive the game is at the moment, between the RL going gangbusters and being generally inundated with premium product.

Unfortunately for me I'm neurotic. I can't not have the actual card. I'm generally not picky with editions or whatever so long as I know it's not a fake whether that be intentional or not. It just means I've got to be a little picky with my purchases and make the most of my trades. As far as the RL goes though that doesn't get me even into the game, those cards started out of reach for me, now they're so far out of reach I might as well be buying a top tier sports car, it's just never going to happen.

Here's the thing: Look at how much fun she is having!

Serenade wrote: ↑

3 years ago

Here's the thing: Look at how much fun she is having!

The green smoke thing looks like it's coming from her armpit...also that grin reminds me of

To play devil's advocate a bit, the thing this does that Moat does not, is allow your opponents to attack each other. If you want to fort up while allowing your opponents to duel to the death, this might make sense. Plus it's colorless. That said, I think(?) I own one, and I've never seriously considered running it, lol.

I get people not liking the reserved list, and I get people not liking WotC reprint stinginess, but those two things are, as far as I can tell, completely unrelated. If anything, WotC is giving up a ton of money by not reprinting RL powerhouses. I don't think you can really call the reserved list greedy per se.

The RL is not greedy on the part of WotC. It's honestly stupid on their part. Any legal obligation - highly questionable in any case - to not reprint RL cards ceased to exist when Hasbro purchased WotC, and they could be making a ton of money and creating a lot of good will in the player community by printing stuff on the RL that would have no impact on the formats they manage but which would make commander players ecstatic.

Their stinginess with non-RL reprints, though... that's completely greedy on their part. And maybe also stupid, because in the long run, it is stifling some formats, such as modern, and because they could be making money hand over fist by putting out special printings of high-demand stuff at a somewhat premium price, but instead their practices are encouraging players of the most popular format - commander - to give up buying things at grossly inflated prices and just proxy instead.