I started my daughter when she was 6 with janky decks using simpler cards at home. My nearest LGS does a 2HG session for each pre-release, and we've been doing them as a team since Aether Revolt.
Each pair keeps the God's original color while also matching one of the Bolas Guilds.
It was mentioned that there will be other three color cards aside from Bolas, so it's possible that some or all of the Gods would have three colors. Oketra could be WBR and Rhona could be UBG, since Bolas owns part of their enemy color pairs.
Kefnet could be UB, with Bontu being BR, since their colors easily allies with Bolas's own identity. It'd be rad if both of them are UBR.
Two color is possible but three color is better and oh no I have the color combo predictions and they would not mix the two
Oketra RWB (it’s just too obvious it’s this if they’re 3 colored)
Rhona UBG or GUR
Bontu WBG or BRG
Kefnet WUB or RUW
If they get separate cards, I feel like they will all have black in them.
Noticeably, Aminatou and Estrid are also missing and they are relatively new. While several others on the 36 are just as green as them, Aminatou's power level is considerably higher.
Same for Daretti and Dack, right? Kaya made it from globally available supplemental product to WAR by virtue of being pre-planned to feature in Ravnica and making a previous appearance in Standard. Otherwise I think those planeswalkers are just not judged to have the same recognition power.
And who can blame them missing a spot when Garruk and Tezzeret get to sind on the bench? Those two are from the first and second wave respectively.
I think the Commander precons are also not necessarily depicting the present time and we don't really know when Aminatou and Estrid lived unless they tell us through additional story.
WU Assault Formation? I'm down! Pair this with Tetsuko to make everything unblockable, Wall of Mist, Suncleanser or any of the cheap 1/3s with Looming Altisaur as the 1/7 curve topper.
Brawl is my go-to Constructed format now for playing with my 8-year old (we do 2HG pre-releases as well).
I do think that the format would work a lot better for casuals if it had a 3 or 4 year rotation window. That would still prevent the format from getting too expensive as most of the sets in that timeframe are pretty easily obtained. It would also largely mitigate the fears of your favorite card not being usable so quickly.
I've been doing GRN drafts the last week with gold and the $5 starter pack gems. I really don't see the point in not rare drafting unless it's a really weak bulk rare. I've been pulling 5-7 rares(and usually one being a mythic) off my drafts prior to prizing, and can usually still throw a deck together good enough to eek out two or 3 wins and get about 200-300 gems back along with the prize pack(s). That seems pretty fair for 5 packs worth of gold.
Prowess will probably be phased out as an evergreen mechanic.
Hexproof and Prowess are both on the cutting block, but Hexproof is a needed tool for R&D but Prowess is not.
I haven't seen any evidence of hexproof going away. Sure, it was listed as a mechanic to remove by candidates for the great designer search, but it's used more than double strike. They're just careful how they use the two because they are pretty powerful. Now, yeah, prowress is on the chopping block, but hasn't been used since Amonkhet block and is on one card in Kaladesh block. I actually haven't even heard anyone but heavy tournament players complain about hexproof and it's a favorite of a lot of people I know.
I think they are moving to more situational Hexproof like they experimented with in Dominaria (Hexproof from white/black on the new Knights) and blanket Hexproof will start becoming rarer in a few more sets as they absorb the feedback from Dominaria and adjust future designs.
Honestly, all they had to do was offer a non-jank Mythic rather than Rare from within set as a foil alternate-art BAB promo and I think it would have been enough. If foil alternate-art flippy Nicol Bolas was the BAB promo, people would have still gone relatively ape-***** to get one, it would have at least commanded the same price as Nexus Of Fate, and it would have had zero negative impact to Standard.
I like that all the "Walker-matters" cards this time around are based around the PW type, rather than just the PW deck walker card. Feels like they have dialed this product in a bit better and it's a tiny bit closer to playable.
My LGS does one session of each prerelease as 2HG, and I've brought my daughter (just turned 8 last week) to the last few. We're playing the BB launch tomorrow, and I think she'll be up to it. However, she generally gets the basic mechanics and we've been playing casually at home with simple decks since she was 6.
I've definitely seen her progress by doing the prereleases together, with the earliest attempts feeling more like I was telling her what/when to play each turn. The Dominaria prerelease was awesome, as she's experienced enough now that she knows what she can cast and is now thinking a turn or two ahead and the intra-team conversation feels more like any other team game of magic where we are coordinating our plays. Best moment last time was where we coordinated a big attack together to force our opponents down to 2 life and she finished them off with a Chainer's Torment.
If they have the very basics of magic down, it's probably ok to bring them. You may need to intervene or advise a bit more than usual depending on their comfort/experience. I'd say that it's still likely a good experience for them even if you are directing most of their plays.
I wouldn't mind them as much if they were vintage-legal only so they could be played in EDH and skip Standard/Modern.
While it makes sense from the perspective of players frightened by the potential of such cards being competitive, this idea, much like the silver-border one, would not be enough of a sales booster to convince the company to change. It's a given that many players who preorder standard booster boxes play standard/brawl, so non-standard promos would make no sense except for people at the center of the EDH and standard Venn Diagram, which isn't a perfect overlap. Either some form of safety valve via future printings or going back to in-pack promos would be the best solution options imo.
I doubt they have seen any real uptick on box pre-orders due to promos prior to this exclusive one for some time. They have been pretty stingy with the last 4 or 5 sets.
I agree. A good way to get some more foot traffic into the store. And opening a couple of packs a week before pre-release would be fun as well.
Sadly, all Planeswalker decks will only have 1 pack in them going forward BUT their price is dropping to 10.99. So give and take.
Just wanted to add that I think this is a good thing. Boosters in intro decks never sat right with me, and this is the same thing. There is no good reason to make new players buy boosters to get their hands on a starter product.
FWIW, I bought my daughter a Chandra PW deck(she's 7 and Chandra is by far her favorite character in MTG) when Kaladesh came out, and she was pretty much dancing around the house when she pulled a Cataclysmic Gearhulk in one of her packs. It went right into the PW deck as an upgrade and she's boardwiped oh so many games with it.
I wouldn't mind them as much if they were vintage-legal only so they could be played in EDH and skip Standard/Modern.
Honestly, it wouldn't kill them to make it a Mythic (and not the bulk red Mythic that every set seems to have) from the same set rather than a rare. It costs them nothing extra, sells more boxes for LGSs, would help keep Standard pricing on that Mythic slightly under better control.
This is a bad road to go down. A card that sees play in no competitive formats, is only somewhat desirable in commander and is from the newest set shouldn't be near $20. Muldrotha, THE hypest commander in the set and a MYTHIC RARE for Karona's sake is $8.
The current price point is not relevant, the set isn't officially out yet and not everyone got their pre-orders during prerelease weekend. The price will settle down some in the next week or so.
This is terrible road for them to go down because they will at some point screw up and make a card that is constructed-playable or a format staple.
If they get separate cards, I feel like they will all have black in them.
I think the Commander precons are also not necessarily depicting the present time and we don't really know when Aminatou and Estrid lived unless they tell us through additional story.
Yep.
http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Search/Default.aspx?sort=t-|cmc+|cmc,cmc,t+&action=advanced&format=%20[%22Standard%22]&color=%20@(|[W]|[U])&type=%20[%22Creature%22]&tough=%20%3E=[3]&power=%20%3C[2]
I do think that the format would work a lot better for casuals if it had a 3 or 4 year rotation window. That would still prevent the format from getting too expensive as most of the sets in that timeframe are pretty easily obtained. It would also largely mitigate the fears of your favorite card not being usable so quickly.
I think they are moving to more situational Hexproof like they experimented with in Dominaria (Hexproof from white/black on the new Knights) and blanket Hexproof will start becoming rarer in a few more sets as they absorb the feedback from Dominaria and adjust future designs.
I've definitely seen her progress by doing the prereleases together, with the earliest attempts feeling more like I was telling her what/when to play each turn. The Dominaria prerelease was awesome, as she's experienced enough now that she knows what she can cast and is now thinking a turn or two ahead and the intra-team conversation feels more like any other team game of magic where we are coordinating our plays. Best moment last time was where we coordinated a big attack together to force our opponents down to 2 life and she finished them off with a Chainer's Torment.
If they have the very basics of magic down, it's probably ok to bring them. You may need to intervene or advise a bit more than usual depending on their comfort/experience. I'd say that it's still likely a good experience for them even if you are directing most of their plays.
I doubt they have seen any real uptick on box pre-orders due to promos prior to this exclusive one for some time. They have been pretty stingy with the last 4 or 5 sets.
FWIW, I bought my daughter a Chandra PW deck(she's 7 and Chandra is by far her favorite character in MTG) when Kaladesh came out, and she was pretty much dancing around the house when she pulled a Cataclysmic Gearhulk in one of her packs. It went right into the PW deck as an upgrade and she's boardwiped oh so many games with it.
Honestly, it wouldn't kill them to make it a Mythic (and not the bulk red Mythic that every set seems to have) from the same set rather than a rare. It costs them nothing extra, sells more boxes for LGSs, would help keep Standard pricing on that Mythic slightly under better control.
The current price point is not relevant, the set isn't officially out yet and not everyone got their pre-orders during prerelease weekend. The price will settle down some in the next week or so.
This is terrible road for them to go down because they will at some point screw up and make a card that is constructed-playable or a format staple.