This would be a good question for the Magic Rulings forum.
While taking notes during a game is ok, I think it is against the rules to use outside notes during the tournament. I think this came up last year at a constructed Grand Prix where a bunch of players were DQ'ed for using side boarding notes that were prepared before the tournament. They may have changed the rule because of that incident though.
I really don't think it will be entwine. There have been many spells recently that have had "choose one or both", or "choose two" (the Command cycle). These spells make entwine seem over costed for what they do.
My vote is for either imprint or affinity returning.
I don't if this has been mentioned yet or knows while WotC will never "reprint" anything on the reserve they still are allowed to let's say come out with a "new" card that may have some or all of a "reserved" cards abilities. So let's see here imagine say card named "Lost Paradise" (pardon the unimaginative name) that is both a forest and an island. That would mean that in no way did they reprint a specific card. Welcome to business 101.
the following is from the Official Revised Reprint policy:
The complete list of reserved cards appears at the end of this document. Reserved cards will never be printed again in a functionally identical form. A card is considered functionally identical to another card if it has the same card type, subtypes, abilities, mana cost, power, and toughness. No cards will be added to the reserved list in the future. No cards from the Mercadian Masques set and later sets will be reserved. In consideration of past commitments, however, no cards will be removed from this list. The exclusion of any particular card from the reserved list doesn't indicate that there are any plans to reprint that card.
I think you should go back to business 101 for a refresher. What you outlined would be considered a "functionally identical form".
Sure, you could print Colorsap (This card is colorless), but that takes up even more space and is at least as much of a gimmick as tribal. It's completely useless other than parasitic cards to interact with it. It would be much more sensible to just do them as monocolor hybrid cards and change the comprehensive rules to say that such a card is colorless in addition to the color in its mana cost if it has no fully colored mana symbols.
But that defeats the purpose of being "colorless". How exactly would something be colored and colorless at the same time?
Ghostfire, which is obviously a future-shifted card from ROE, was a forecast of the colorless nature of the set. I'm pretty sure we will see more cards like it, most likely keyworded.
I hope you realize that what you are really complaining about is the fact that Worlds was moved to the Nov.-Dec. time frame in 2005. Before that Worlds was held in Aug.-Sept., that means there were at least 2 more full sets of cards to use in the standard portion of Worlds. That is around 350-400 more cards in the format at the time of the tournament.
Fraeries was the strongest deck coming out of Lorwyn block. It lost almost nothing that couldn't be replaced when standard rotated in the fall. Of course the majority of players who went to worlds played that deck. It was the deck to beat going into the tournament. It turns out it is no longer the only deck you have to beat. Control is making a comeback. Lark is the closest thing to combo right now, unless you count the one trick pony Sharuum deck.
There is variety now thanks to the tournament you say is so bad. Many of the popular strategies now viable came out of 2008 Worlds, Just because they didn't top 8 that tournamnet doesn't mean they aren't viable now.
And please don't make this into one of those threads about the difference between net decking and building your own. That is complete nonsence when it comes to competitive Magic.
After reading your blog entry it sounds like you are upset because one of your friends net decked and out spent you to win.
Now, some strategies will be stronger than others depending on what cards are in the format. Milling was a strong strategy back in the mid 90's. Now it is relegated to the kitchen table. Not too long ago, combo was running rampant. Now, the closest thing to combo is 'Lark. Aggro is running it's course now with control on the rise. I imagine combo might come back in the next block.
This is the reality of competitive magic. The pros get together and devote insane amounts of time finding the strongest strategies in whatever format is next being used on the pro tour. Then the rest of us not in their inner circle find out what worked and what didn't after the fact. Of course, even the pro's don't always get it right.
Even if someone does make a deck that beats everything else out there, within 2-3 weeks that same deck will be picked up by people around the world or someone will come up with something to beat it. That is the nature of competitive Magic. Everyone is trying to come up with the best deck for any given tournament. The minute they do at a high level event it is broad cast to everyone with an internet connection. I'm not ashamed to say I use net decks. I like to win and I have a better win percentage when I use a highly tuned deck designed by someone who knows how to do it better than I do.
The last 2 non-limited tournaments I won, I actually borrowed a deck at the event. One ended up being a mid range Bant deck, the other was mono-red. In both events I had to beat fae and 5CC along with a number of Kithkin, Elf and rogue decks. At my local store was a guy doing well for short while with an aggro control esper deck until people started packing more hate against it.
Fae and 5CC have never been unbeatable. Bitterblossom is a strong card that enabled Fae to become tier 1. Has it ever been ban or restricted worthy? I think the answer to that is no. The last card that came close to being ban worthy was Jitte because it could be played in any deck that had a creature and could win you the game with it and only said creature.
Judge, correct me if I'm wrong, what you are really complaining about is the fact that 5 of the top 8 decks from worlds were fae. You are saying the game was stagnant at that point in time, but you don't think it is as bad with the current standard.
Worlds took place just 2 months after the rotation of 4 sets from the environment. Are you expecting one set from the new block to make up for that fact? 250 cards are supposed to make up for nearly 1000? Of course Lorwyn block cards are going to make up the lions share of the Worlds top eight. At that time fae was the strongest known strategy. But many of the new archetypes showed up around or just after that time.
Also, why would they have banned or restricted anything in that standard format when they already knew they had more answers comming in Conflux? Then again there is that thing about 250 cards having to make up for nearly 1000. But you seem to think they are just dropping a block and walking away never to look back. WOTC is always looking at the game and how it is played. This game changes about every 3 months when a new set comes out. Some sets are stronger than others, some strategies are stronger than others. That is the way the game is and has been.
Please stop complaining about a three month period that has already passed.
I'm trying to figure out what you are arguing about here? You start off with wanting the banned/restricted back then start in on how they shouldn't make cards that obsolete older cards. Now you are talking about how the metagame is stagnant and the banhammer needs to be applied.
Last I knew the only cards that got banned were overpowered and went into every deck. Not just popular cards or overly expensive cards.
I'm trying to remember when there was a metagame with more than 5-6 tier 1 decks. tight now there are 5 and about twice as many tier 2.
I fail to see where the banhammer would be used today. There are too many answers to any given card to have anything banned.
This creature can't be blocked by creatures with Infect.
Your list doesn't include Kuldotha Rebirth yet your report mentions it.
While taking notes during a game is ok, I think it is against the rules to use outside notes during the tournament. I think this came up last year at a constructed Grand Prix where a bunch of players were DQ'ed for using side boarding notes that were prepared before the tournament. They may have changed the rule because of that incident though.
My vote is for either imprint or affinity returning.
Combust Elixer and Reverberate should be in the side only, not main.
the following is from the Official Revised Reprint policy:
The complete list of reserved cards appears at the end of this document. Reserved cards will never be printed again in a functionally identical form. A card is considered functionally identical to another card if it has the same card type, subtypes, abilities, mana cost, power, and toughness. No cards will be added to the reserved list in the future. No cards from the Mercadian Masques set and later sets will be reserved. In consideration of past commitments, however, no cards will be removed from this list. The exclusion of any particular card from the reserved list doesn't indicate that there are any plans to reprint that card.
I think you should go back to business 101 for a refresher. What you outlined would be considered a "functionally identical form".
But that defeats the purpose of being "colorless". How exactly would something be colored and colorless at the same time?
Ghostfire, which is obviously a future-shifted card from ROE, was a forecast of the colorless nature of the set. I'm pretty sure we will see more cards like it, most likely keyworded.
I'm assuming you mean Day of Judgment in the side board and not Wrath of God.
Because Zenogais has confirmed and spoiled things like this is the past.
I hope you realize that what you are really complaining about is the fact that Worlds was moved to the Nov.-Dec. time frame in 2005. Before that Worlds was held in Aug.-Sept., that means there were at least 2 more full sets of cards to use in the standard portion of Worlds. That is around 350-400 more cards in the format at the time of the tournament.
Fraeries was the strongest deck coming out of Lorwyn block. It lost almost nothing that couldn't be replaced when standard rotated in the fall. Of course the majority of players who went to worlds played that deck. It was the deck to beat going into the tournament. It turns out it is no longer the only deck you have to beat. Control is making a comeback. Lark is the closest thing to combo right now, unless you count the one trick pony Sharuum deck.
There is variety now thanks to the tournament you say is so bad. Many of the popular strategies now viable came out of 2008 Worlds, Just because they didn't top 8 that tournamnet doesn't mean they aren't viable now.
And please don't make this into one of those threads about the difference between net decking and building your own. That is complete nonsence when it comes to competitive Magic.
Now, some strategies will be stronger than others depending on what cards are in the format. Milling was a strong strategy back in the mid 90's. Now it is relegated to the kitchen table. Not too long ago, combo was running rampant. Now, the closest thing to combo is 'Lark. Aggro is running it's course now with control on the rise. I imagine combo might come back in the next block.
This is the reality of competitive magic. The pros get together and devote insane amounts of time finding the strongest strategies in whatever format is next being used on the pro tour. Then the rest of us not in their inner circle find out what worked and what didn't after the fact. Of course, even the pro's don't always get it right.
Even if someone does make a deck that beats everything else out there, within 2-3 weeks that same deck will be picked up by people around the world or someone will come up with something to beat it. That is the nature of competitive Magic. Everyone is trying to come up with the best deck for any given tournament. The minute they do at a high level event it is broad cast to everyone with an internet connection. I'm not ashamed to say I use net decks. I like to win and I have a better win percentage when I use a highly tuned deck designed by someone who knows how to do it better than I do.
The last 2 non-limited tournaments I won, I actually borrowed a deck at the event. One ended up being a mid range Bant deck, the other was mono-red. In both events I had to beat fae and 5CC along with a number of Kithkin, Elf and rogue decks. At my local store was a guy doing well for short while with an aggro control esper deck until people started packing more hate against it.
Fae and 5CC have never been unbeatable. Bitterblossom is a strong card that enabled Fae to become tier 1. Has it ever been ban or restricted worthy? I think the answer to that is no. The last card that came close to being ban worthy was Jitte because it could be played in any deck that had a creature and could win you the game with it and only said creature.
Worlds took place just 2 months after the rotation of 4 sets from the environment. Are you expecting one set from the new block to make up for that fact? 250 cards are supposed to make up for nearly 1000? Of course Lorwyn block cards are going to make up the lions share of the Worlds top eight. At that time fae was the strongest known strategy. But many of the new archetypes showed up around or just after that time.
Also, why would they have banned or restricted anything in that standard format when they already knew they had more answers comming in Conflux? Then again there is that thing about 250 cards having to make up for nearly 1000. But you seem to think they are just dropping a block and walking away never to look back. WOTC is always looking at the game and how it is played. This game changes about every 3 months when a new set comes out. Some sets are stronger than others, some strategies are stronger than others. That is the way the game is and has been.
Please stop complaining about a three month period that has already passed.
Last I knew the only cards that got banned were overpowered and went into every deck. Not just popular cards or overly expensive cards.
I'm trying to remember when there was a metagame with more than 5-6 tier 1 decks. tight now there are 5 and about twice as many tier 2.
I fail to see where the banhammer would be used today. There are too many answers to any given card to have anything banned.
What cards would you want to see banned then?