What I found really interesting about EDH when I first got into was the ability to make a coherent deck in a 100 card singleton format. It's synergy that still exists with any random set of the 100 cards, so what bothers me (and is caused by pretty much every WoTC printed EDH product) is when that is subverted. The proliferation commander you posted introduces a consistency that I think undermines the idea of commander. Your commander should have interaction with your deck, but having it be the immediate engine of your deck to the point that the deck is internally boring I think makes the game much less fun. Playing good stuff involving counters + Atraxa or expensive cards + Jhoira or expensive creatures + Kaalia is really boring. Unfun for me is synonymous for utterly predictable, which especially plagues any commander which allows tutoring, because the the deck functions identically game to game and the singleton aspect is just circumvented. I can beat those decks, but it's just not interesting.
EDH isn't a casual format though it's just a quirky format, you should know your deck and how the rules work. When using SDT you should be able to resolve it quickly. A lot of the hate towards cards and strategies comes from players just being upset over losing, but I think that someone's deck in EDH should be really their's and have a bit of creativity in it.
Yes, Legacy is competitive, but it's a game, and it's supposed to be fun.
You should play modern. Legacy features control decks that win by taking control of the game away from you. If you just want to play without fearing a counterspell, just go play a format that cripples control every chance it gets.
Everything is just creatures now. It feels like whatever effect you might want is just an ETB effect on a creature, making instants, sorceries, artifacts and actual enchantments irrelevant. Standard is interminably boring because nothing magical can be done, the game has been reduced to combat math and who lands the 10/10 hexproof beater first. All the weird archetypes of the past have been eliminated because they are "unfun" which usually just means interactive.
I don't like Ravenous Rats. I'd prefer Specter without Witches especially if you are playing Gary. Otherwise Wicked Akuba can do a LOT of damage.
Ravenous Rats I mostly include just to have something on the lower end of the curve that has an upside, do you think Duress might just be better?
Witches I haven't had too much luck with in the last few games, but it has had games where it has been amazing, and especially against Kuldotha I think it has some value, and 2 devotion for 2 mana isn't that bad.
In general I've been trying to switch away from a creature focused build and transition into CA almost entirely. I'm now running 6 to 7 read the bones effects with a much greater discard package than before and I've been having good luck with it, even against blue based control decks which used to be a terrible matchup. Anyone doing similar?
My main issue with this card is the lack of colorless mana used in burn normally. Getting 1 swamp on the field to pay for this card isn't that hard, but after dropping this creature isn't that swamp fairly dead?
After you DESTROY whatever is left of their hand and board state by making the absolute WORST magic related decisions possible, yes, YES, for the love of GOD YES they will get another turn to pick up the pieces of their shattered game state and play on in humiliation when they top deck a declaration in stone and exile her before you get an attack in with her.
Oh no, not THAT.....God forbid you'd want to win the game or anything.....
Wow, you are ridiculously riled, try to maintain yourself.
The point is, ignoring the CA for the opponent in playing this card, and acting like it's a free win when it is still subject to removal is foolish. 13 mana for a worse mindslaver effect is not a game winning effect.
Also, since it wasn't hard cast your opponent won't get a free turn against you.
Your opponent doesn't get a free turn against you.
YOU get their turn, and then they get their regular turn. This belief that Emrakul gives opponents a "free" turn is foolish.
They take the next turn before you get your next turn. It's giving them another card, and the damage you can do during that turn you control them is limited. At the very least, they get a card
It's really not that good, and outside of standard I think it's probably trash, especially because even with the Mindslaver effect it gives the other player another turn, so the mindslaver effect doesn't do that much. Don't invest in it. Every ability it has is just immediately undercut. It has protection from instants, but not enchantments and it isn't indestructible, it mindslaves but gives an extra turn. No annihilator, no huge casting bonus. In every format except standard it's beaten by at most 2 mana. It'll be forgotten about soon enough. A 9 mana 13/13 isn't that great and there are better things to reanimate.
I play control decks and combo decks extensively and find that they are very interactive. It's just a shame that some players refuse to interact with the stack/hand and don't have the patience to learn how to deal with threats outside of combat.
I have no problem with combos, just with predictability, Niv Mizzet+Curiosity isn't creative and rarely results in that unique of a game. I build combo decks all the time, I just try to make ones are could not be seen a mile away from their commander. It's the same as 1-card combo generals like kalia, I have only ever seen 1 kalia deck ever.
That's largely my only issue with commanders, if I can come up with your entire decklist just by seeing your commander I really don't want to play. That ends up the problem with pretty much every CommanderYear product from WoTC, because they're almost always comically powered and fall into a single immediate strategy. There's a lot of fun lost when the entire game is predicted from the get-go. If I go in knowing what your deck does and that I need to target it down it isn't fun, far better to have some subtly and unpredictability.
It also isn't about power, I play a very competitive deck, it's just not obvious.
Gush works because it's a valuable contribution to your combo turn. Daze looks like a Force of Will you can defend your win with, but in play, Daze is much more about slowing down an opponent's fast draw when you know you don't need another land drop for a while. It's an easy thing to misunderstand.
I play a gush build, and it's wonderful to be played on the combo turn, because the future parts of the game don't particularly matter. Daze is for decks with incredibly low mana-curves which don't need a land drop past their third. It's great in Delver, in blitz I doubt it'll be that great. I wouldn't really want to play it on the combo turn, and honestly I'd play force spike over it on the prior turns, as I'm rarely tapped out.
T1 Delver+Daze support is rad, doesn't really set a tempo deck back. We're a combo deck, I'm almost always tapped out on my last turn, losing a land drop for a force spike doesn't seem exceptional.
EDH isn't a casual format though it's just a quirky format, you should know your deck and how the rules work. When using SDT you should be able to resolve it quickly. A lot of the hate towards cards and strategies comes from players just being upset over losing, but I think that someone's deck in EDH should be really their's and have a bit of creativity in it.
You should play modern. Legacy features control decks that win by taking control of the game away from you. If you just want to play without fearing a counterspell, just go play a format that cripples control every chance it gets.
Ravenous Rats I mostly include just to have something on the lower end of the curve that has an upside, do you think Duress might just be better?
Witches I haven't had too much luck with in the last few games, but it has had games where it has been amazing, and especially against Kuldotha I think it has some value, and 2 devotion for 2 mana isn't that bad.
In general I've been trying to switch away from a creature focused build and transition into CA almost entirely. I'm now running 6 to 7 read the bones effects with a much greater discard package than before and I've been having good luck with it, even against blue based control decks which used to be a terrible matchup. Anyone doing similar?
mizzium skin Anything that we use to prevent targeted removal
I mean you can say what you choose, and also randomly drop the discussion if you want, you're free to do as you please.
Wow, you are ridiculously riled, try to maintain yourself.
The point is, ignoring the CA for the opponent in playing this card, and acting like it's a free win when it is still subject to removal is foolish. 13 mana for a worse mindslaver effect is not a game winning effect.
They take the next turn before you get your next turn. It's giving them another card, and the damage you can do during that turn you control them is limited. At the very least, they get a card
I have no problem with combos, just with predictability, Niv Mizzet+Curiosity isn't creative and rarely results in that unique of a game. I build combo decks all the time, I just try to make ones are could not be seen a mile away from their commander. It's the same as 1-card combo generals like kalia, I have only ever seen 1 kalia deck ever.
That's largely my only issue with commanders, if I can come up with your entire decklist just by seeing your commander I really don't want to play. That ends up the problem with pretty much every CommanderYear product from WoTC, because they're almost always comically powered and fall into a single immediate strategy. There's a lot of fun lost when the entire game is predicted from the get-go. If I go in knowing what your deck does and that I need to target it down it isn't fun, far better to have some subtly and unpredictability.
It also isn't about power, I play a very competitive deck, it's just not obvious.
I play a gush build, and it's wonderful to be played on the combo turn, because the future parts of the game don't particularly matter. Daze is for decks with incredibly low mana-curves which don't need a land drop past their third. It's great in Delver, in blitz I doubt it'll be that great. I wouldn't really want to play it on the combo turn, and honestly I'd play force spike over it on the prior turns, as I'm rarely tapped out.
T1 Delver+Daze support is rad, doesn't really set a tempo deck back. We're a combo deck, I'm almost always tapped out on my last turn, losing a land drop for a force spike doesn't seem exceptional.
I have dazes and I don't run them in this.