There are a number of good ideas here but unfortunately I disagree with many of them. If WOTC were to produce more cards with different and unique effects it would open up more cards to play. I think a big part of the problem is that the themes and goals of design shows in sets to the point where many cards are different takes on similar effects. The other thing that has happened somewhat recently is the removal of mutual effects shroud, balance, mutual discard, less obvious beneficial effects like discard via wild mongrel, or death's shadow, and synergy effects like threshold. I think by taking out difficult mechanics to make the game more appealing to casual players they have removed much of the depth of the game and also made it harder to print playable cards.
This is slop and I don't have time right now to make it readable. Sorry!
Deathrite shaman is more effective in formats that require efficiency. More expensive and more powerful cards gain import for standard because the CMC matters less in slow less interactive games.
I love playing magic. I will play bad magic if I must. I draft mostly because standard is dull. Has been for a long time. I sometimes play standard if I want to battle on a bigger stage. I would rather play modern or legacy. I only just finished a moderately competitive legacy deck though so I hadn't had that option until now.
If standard sucks and you love magic then draft, cube, build other formats, brainstorm wild *****, apply at wizards, don't just complain.
I'm really sad there isn't much of a modern scene in Seattle and older draft formats are super expensive now. Goodbye grab bag drafts, you were a blast <3.
Having a ton of options for doing the same thing might make deck building deep. The problem is that there are not enough unique strategies. I feel like standard right now is a glorified limited environment. Blue and Black devotion have almost zero flex slots. Aggro is not quite tier one. There is no combo deck. Control is real though. If you want to do something crazy play control.
Actually I can send someone the best deck in standard if they want. I couldn't play it properly. Too complex.
My problem with this is that payouts have not changed, in fact are worse given the cut to PT invites. Extra incentives have not changed, limited promos and play mats. The profits are higher with the increased turnouts. In addition players are getting shafted with increased prices. Nothing is better, everything is worse.
My other winning pool was much looser. I had some obnoxious synergy though with felhide spiritbinderRageblood shaman and some random minotaurs. The deck was really just green monsters with a red splash though. I would note that fall of the hammer is probably the best limited removal spell given that it triggers heroic and is phenominally efficient.
The best archetype overall looked like U/W. A couple acquaintances won prereleases on that color combo as well. I was playing that when I made my play error :(.
A side note, vortex elemental is insane. I bestowed mine up and then forced opponents to block a number of times. I also won a game by playing and shuffling it in on a stalled board to mill an opponent out with no cards left in my library. Glorious!
I think these are the worst sets for limited in years. I even like Avacyn more and I stopped drafting for a while when that garbage was fnm. For standard I think they are fine. We shall see about eternal formats.
I think this card is a sideboard card similar to jace, memory adept. Ashiok, Nightmare Weaver is less powerful in the way it needs to be for control mirrors but is easier to sneak under counterspells. I think the relevance of a corner case card like this is questionable because the format is filled with powerful maindeck answers like Detention sphere and Hero's downfall.
Aside from my personal feelings about the art. (I think it is abysmal)
I cannot understand why WOTC keeps beating it to Jace. The character needs to die or something. He already had a duel deck. Five YEARS ago. I appreciate the characters and constancy but he shouldn't be the flagship for a multitude of reasons. Besides being the most uninteresting character he doesn't fit the creatures matter idea that WOTC has been pushing and he has been taking walker space from other colors.
Gross.
At least the price will drop slightly on a played mythic rare and maybe they will put ancestral vision in this DD as well.
I guess I'll find out at the ptq this weekend in Seattle but seeing as my playgroup is filled with power players and quite a few pro tour dorks I would be very surprised if as a team we were completely off.
It frustrates me when people disregard my posts because I didn't make a justification wall of text.
I played four 4 round sealed events and almost all of the matches went to three games.
The absolute best deck I built had a curve to 3 and lost in the last round to a single card 2 games in a row. Oh whip you so fair. While that experience certainly makes me sour it was representative of the format as a whole to me. The board states were generally decided when one player created a large creature and the opponent could not answer.
My playgroup and I decided the most viable strategy was to run ~19 lands and a bunch of 5 or more mana spells. We all 4-0'd at least once doing this because there is very little that interacts favorable against a 5 toughness creature on the other side of the board.
THINK ABOUT IT. Don't just say I haven't thought in depth about the format because you disagree.
Edit: Also, thanks!
This is slop and I don't have time right now to make it readable. Sorry!
If standard sucks and you love magic then draft, cube, build other formats, brainstorm wild *****, apply at wizards, don't just complain.
I'm really sad there isn't much of a modern scene in Seattle and older draft formats are super expensive now. Goodbye grab bag drafts, you were a blast <3.
Actually I can send someone the best deck in standard if they want. I couldn't play it properly. Too complex.
The instant speed reanimate/indestructible spell is completely unfair. Best/first pool I went B/W. These BNG cards all preformed admirably.
Fated return revoke existence servant of tymaret eidolon of countless battles archetype of courage
My other winning pool was much looser. I had some obnoxious synergy though with felhide spiritbinder Rageblood shaman and some random minotaurs. The deck was really just green monsters with a red splash though. I would note that fall of the hammer is probably the best limited removal spell given that it triggers heroic and is phenominally efficient.
The best archetype overall looked like U/W. A couple acquaintances won prereleases on that color combo as well. I was playing that when I made my play error :(.
A side note, vortex elemental is insane. I bestowed mine up and then forced opponents to block a number of times. I also won a game by playing and shuffling it in on a stalled board to mill an opponent out with no cards left in my library. Glorious!
Ashiok, Nightmare Weaver is less powerful in the way it needs to be for control mirrors but is easier to sneak under counterspells. I think the relevance of a corner case card like this is questionable because the format is filled with powerful maindeck answers like Detention sphere and Hero's downfall.
I cannot understand why WOTC keeps beating it to Jace. The character needs to die or something. He already had a duel deck. Five YEARS ago. I appreciate the characters and constancy but he shouldn't be the flagship for a multitude of reasons. Besides being the most uninteresting character he doesn't fit the creatures matter idea that WOTC has been pushing and he has been taking walker space from other colors.
Gross.
At least the price will drop slightly on a played mythic rare and maybe they will put ancestral vision in this DD as well.
Also I did not say ramp.
Edit: Best card in limited. Sea gods revenge.
I played four 4 round sealed events and almost all of the matches went to three games.
The absolute best deck I built had a curve to 3 and lost in the last round to a single card 2 games in a row. Oh whip you so fair. While that experience certainly makes me sour it was representative of the format as a whole to me. The board states were generally decided when one player created a large creature and the opponent could not answer.
My playgroup and I decided the most viable strategy was to run ~19 lands and a bunch of 5 or more mana spells. We all 4-0'd at least once doing this because there is very little that interacts favorable against a 5 toughness creature on the other side of the board.
THINK ABOUT IT. Don't just say I haven't thought in depth about the format because you disagree.