I can't believe all those claims that it is hard to make this card asymmetrical. Do I really need to spell this out?
1. Don't play creatures or planeswalkers in the early turns.
2. Use this to kill all your opponent's creatures and planeswalkers.
3. Profit.
If Day of Judgment would also destroy planeswalkers, that wouldn't make it worse, just different. I really don't get why the 5 damage to all planerswalkers part is seen as a negative? Control decks often have trouble dealing with opposing planeswalkers and this card does deal with them. Sure, it would be better if it would only deal 5 to opposing planeswalkers, but the card is still good as is and you are still able to profitably make it asymmetrical (see above).
Yes, it doesn't deal with early fatties, but no red sweeper does. That's what your secondary color is for.
I've been going back and forth about how boring this card is. It is a bit boring, like the Sphinx, but almost none of my regulars likes Regal Behemoth, so I am most likely making that swap this autumn.
Maybe in a red control deck without black or white that doesn't use creatures smaller than X/6 in size and no non-Bolas planeswalkers? Seems ...narrow.
How about every red control deck? That doesn't seem narrow at all.
It deals with larger threats than Pyroclasm variants.
It can kill multiple planeswalkers at once.
It doesn't damage you, unlike Earthquake variants.
All in all, great in red control, still good in Wildfire decks (that are a variant of red control).
This is one of the very few exciting and sure inclusions from this overall pretty lackluster set.
Planeswalkers have also become Wildfire decks greatest enemy. Also, as I have tried to explain before, "threat that survives Wildfire into Wildfire" is only one of two basic plans for using that card. And in my experience even the lesser used one.
A land that becomes a spell later is really, really useful. Even if it is a bad spell, it is basically an additional spell drawn for free. And sacrificing a land is a negligible cost later in the game, unless your deck has a really high curve.
I think this is a real contender for the second best black-aligned land. (After Volrath's Stronghold, of course.)
Not having to pay life every single time you tap it for mana but still having the option to produce colored mana is a real advantage over Cabal Pit and its cycle. And you can rely more on reaching 5 mana than having 7 cards in your graveyard. Therefore, I think it is better than the Pit.
And I also like it more than Blighted Fen. An edict is far less reliable when your have wait until you have 6 mana available (and also have to spend that much to use it). Two -1/-1 counters seem more relevant even later in the game. Oh, and Fen strains your mana base, which is also a considerable downside.
The only thing that annoys me is the sorcery speed restriction. Without it, I would probably try it out.
The effect is fun and I can definitely see why they put in the cmc restriction, but I wish it would dig a little deeper. Like 5 or 6 cards instead of 4. As is, the chance of not getting your worth back is rather high.
It feels like this set is full with interesting cards that miss out due to being a bit too underpowered for a traditional cube.
1. Don't play creatures or planeswalkers in the early turns.
2. Use this to kill all your opponent's creatures and planeswalkers.
3. Profit.
If Day of Judgment would also destroy planeswalkers, that wouldn't make it worse, just different. I really don't get why the 5 damage to all planerswalkers part is seen as a negative? Control decks often have trouble dealing with opposing planeswalkers and this card does deal with them. Sure, it would be better if it would only deal 5 to opposing planeswalkers, but the card is still good as is and you are still able to profitably make it asymmetrical (see above).
Yes, it doesn't deal with early fatties, but no red sweeper does. That's what your secondary color is for.
I've been going back and forth about how boring this card is. It is a bit boring, like the Sphinx, but almost none of my regulars likes Regal Behemoth, so I am most likely making that swap this autumn.
Decent card. Two mana per activation is a lot. Makes it less suited for early reanimation. I wonder if I want this over Bloodrage Brawler or not.
It deals with larger threats than Pyroclasm variants.
It can kill multiple planeswalkers at once.
It doesn't damage you, unlike Earthquake variants.
All in all, great in red control, still good in Wildfire decks (that are a variant of red control).
This is one of the very few exciting and sure inclusions from this overall pretty lackluster set.
This is a definite inclusion for me, btw.
Take that, Super Friends (and Gatewatch)!
Perfectly valid in Wildfire decks, too.
It doesn't hit creatures, but having 2 additional direct damage ready can mean the difference between winning and losing for an RX aggro deck.
In the end, it is just as mediocre as the rest of the red utility land options. Which means it has an actual shot of getting a slot over those.
Not having to pay life every single time you tap it for mana but still having the option to produce colored mana is a real advantage over Cabal Pit and its cycle. And you can rely more on reaching 5 mana than having 7 cards in your graveyard. Therefore, I think it is better than the Pit.
And I also like it more than Blighted Fen. An edict is far less reliable when your have wait until you have 6 mana available (and also have to spend that much to use it). Two -1/-1 counters seem more relevant even later in the game. Oh, and Fen strains your mana base, which is also a considerable downside.
The only thing that annoys me is the sorcery speed restriction. Without it, I would probably try it out.
It feels like this set is full with interesting cards that miss out due to being a bit too underpowered for a traditional cube.
"Your God-Pharaoh has returnd."
Well, sorry, still a pass.