MTG Salvation

At the risk of being flamed into oblivion, my favorite card is Jace, the Mind Sculptor

Now let me explain...

There's plenty of hate around Jace, both in terms of $$$ and power. Still though, I think it represents something we don't see as much of anymore, and something that I think people enjoy.

I like that Wizards decided to just go a little crazy and say "You know what? Screw it, we're going to blow it up and create the most powerful planeswalker the game has seen and probably will ever see. Three abilities? Pfft, give it four! Make ALL of them awesome!"

I feel like Wizards is afraid to create crazy cards anymore. How often do people look at some new powerful card and think "man, it's like they ran to the 1 yard line, stopped, and then said 'good enough!'" I like that they went crazy even if it meant banning the card in multiple formats. I like that they decided to make it the poster child of Magic in terms of artwork and power. I like that they revealed it a puzzle piece at a time, letting fans salivate over the abilities. "OMG, is that Brainstorm on a stick?" "Holy crap, he can unsummon too?!"

I think it meant something to the game in general, no matter how broken it was. It said that Wizards could still go a little nuts. It proved that the game could still be broken, resulting in the first Standard ban in a long time.

Love it or hate it, I feel like Jace, the Mind Sculptor is the first card printed in a long time that had the same notoriety and fame as the cards in the Power Nine.

Quote from Spikex

Now, there is something which happened to me at a tourney which I dont understand. My opponent was playing restoration midrange and I was playing R/G Tron. I play Karn Liberated, knowing I have priority over his direct damage, I exile his only source of red mana - a Steam Vents. He "responds" by playing Lightning Bolt on my Karn - I told him I had priority, and he was confused so I called the judge. The judge said that my opponent could, indeed, add the bolt to the stack though it wouldnt resolve before Karn's ablity of exiling the Steam Vents did(the judge added that my opponent could also tap for red, float R, then bolt Karn when his ability had resolved. This I didnt appreciate becuase the judge isnt supposed to tell my oppenent his plays). This is what confuses me: If the bolt resolves before Karn' ability does, yet the cost of loyalty counters on Karn goes down to 3 because his ability is payed for wouldnt the bolt resolve first, since it was added second to the stack, Karn is at 3, hit for 3 then dies before his ability could resolve(since the targets have been altered as you descirbe in this entry)? This would mean that direct damage can kill planeswalkers before their prioritarian ability can even resolve making the whole rule about planeswlakers having priority completely moot and useless. In my opinion, the judge was wrong here, and my opponent couldnt cast lightning bolt, except by floating the R, the playing the bolt after the land was exiled. What are your thoughts on this?

The judge was indeed wrong and doesn't understand how the stack works.

In the situation you mentioned, your opponent can tap land targeting and add red, or even float it for that phase (remember mana empties between phases). At that point, Karn's ability has been added to the stack. If your opponent elects to cast a bolt, the bolt is on top of the stack (last in first out).

At that point, Bolt resolves first, killing Karn. However, that doesn't remove Karn's ability from the stack. All targets for the ability are still legal (the Steam Vents) and so the ability resolves because checking on resolution passes. The target hasn't been altered at all; it was and still is the Steam Vents. Karn doesn't need to be present for the ability to resolve.

Your opponent can keep that red mana floating until that phase ends. Once you enter either combat or the end phase it's gone though.

A simliar situation is true for abilities when creatures enter the battlefield. Say you play Vendilion Clique on your main phase. Clique's ETB ability goes on the stack. Your opponent may Bolt the Clique in response to the ability, but even with Clique gone the ability still resolves.

If you've already cast a Volt Charge, if you have a PA on the field it would get a counter on the second Volt Charge and then a second when it resolves from the proliferate.

Staggershock and Volt Charge make for an active Ascension on their second cast.

Does Throne of Geth make sense in the Jace/Tezz/Koth variant?

I'm thinking it can provide some extra backing in the form of:

• It can get Jace out of bolt/slag range if you brainstormed with him when he hit the field
• It can get Koth out of Galvanic Blast range if he's only at 4
• It can get Koth's ultimate to fire the second turn he's out
• It can get Tezz's ultimate to fire earlier/fire without losing him earlier (could be good if you need the life)
• It can pump the chalice
• It can be a 5/5 beater for Tezz

I think it *might* be worth using over the Opal since it can pump the chalice and keep Sphere of the Suns around longer. Contagion Clasp could also be good, but I think it's too slow for the aggro approach.