MTG Salvation

Quote from KeroroTaicho

This is a good point. Even control decks right now are becoming aggro mid or end game. I like our beatdown version more and just bring in the control-ish cards on the next game.

I think this point is key for this deck. We are a fast racing aggro deck, let's not dilute our power unless we have to address something very specific.

Quote from Tapped Out

Blade Splicer would be really good in this deck if our existing 3-drops were worse.

As it is, however, the card is currently best utilized in control decks that need to block aggro (a la Porcelain Legionnaire) and stop attacks.

We don't do a lot of blocking. I wouldn't use it, personally.

+1

Our 3-drops are great, in the current build of this deck there is no room for it.

The only caveat being, there are two different directions this deck could take.

1) White weenie where this card is inferior
2) Mid Range control where this card could work

Quote from Tapped Out

4 Doomed Traveler and 2 Gideon's Illusion Slayer are what has been working for me.

I almost exclusively always run 4x Champ and then 2-8 other 1 drops, with the higher end when I play more white weenie style, and less when I play more control.

This deck can go two ways, the key is building accordingly

Quote from RPD41

I've noticed that too. I wonder what decks they're facing. hmmm.
I've always liked champion and It would be cool if he could start making a comeback.

I just couldn't resist this,

"Don't call it a comeback, I been here for years
Rockin my peers and puttin suckas in fear"

LL COOL J - Talking about Champion of the Parish

On a more serious note, I don't understand this statement and I think it represents what is a poor decision when it comes to deck building (sorry, not trying to single you out). The decision to include/remove a card may be made for various reasons, but "Peer Approval" is not one of them!

You might look into someone who taps opponents like Gideon's Lawkeeper

or someone who exile's a card when he comes into play like fiend hunter

There are many ways to lock down a board

Adriana Lima and Jessica Alba are certainly high on my list, for a more natural beauty I would go with Natalie Portman

Thanks everyone for the responses, nice to get such fast treatment, really appreciated!

Thank you for that. Btw, I noticed the other Skinshifter thread. I didn't want to hi-jack it, despite my question dealing with the same card. Is that the appropriate way to do it, or should I have just asked in that thread. This is more for future reference

Quote from Binary

Effects that set a creature's P/T to specific values are always evaluated before counters.

If I understand you correctly, this means that those two +1/+1 counters I was talking about are added AFTER the shift, making me both correct, and my Skinshifter that much more difficult to deal with

Sorry if this has been asked before, did a search and didn't see anything immediately relevant. This pertains to casual magic and is not Standard.

So, if I play Skinshifter and I have two Oran-Rief, the Vastwood
out already. I wish to tap both to put two +1/+1 counters on him. Do the counters only have effect when he is his usual 1/1 self making him a vanilla 3/3, or do they add power and toughness to his other forms as well?

This has become an issue because skinshifter states "Choose one — Until end of turn, Skinshifter becomes a 4/4 Rhino and gains trample; or until end of turn, Skinshifter becomes a 2/2 Bird and gains flying; or until end of turn, Skinshifter becomes a 0/8 Plant. Activate this ability only once each turn.

The word becomes leads my friends to believe that the counters do nothing for him when he shifts into one of his other forms. They believe that he can only be a maximum of whatever he "shifts" into. I of course disagree, but since the wording in magic is very specific, I thought I should ask the judges for an absolute answer.

Quote from dantcg

One suggestion for a beginner. Get Magic Work Station and play around on there for a day. Sure, you might piss some trolls off - but it'll definitely help you get used to the cards.

And... first thing I did when I got back in to the game (this week, as a fact)... took out my wallet, took out $100 and bought a playset of Snapcasters. Get the pain out of the way first

+1

I agree, he is so versatile, he can fit into so many different decks, you won't regret it!

There is a lot of debate about PL vs LotU, just look in the PL thread in these forums.

I don't like PL, because as a two turn drop, I am paying life to get him out to keep my tempo/aggro going and this deck already sacrifices a lot of health for our removal. Despite this costing me only 1 game in 20, for some reason I see this coming back to haunt me.

However, he is a first strike dude and in the right scenario, he is superior to the LotU.

Now, LotU can provide some great benefits (even with a depleting amount of illusions) in our deck. Yes we lose some early tempo/aggro for hopefully longer term gain. He spells trouble for anyone who can't remove him right away.

I like 4 images myself, others run 3, there has been all sorts of talk as to what to do with them. I think taking them out is a mistake, perhaps one that isn't learned until that Legendary creature you have no answers for kills you

This is one of the more difficult top tier decks to play. No one can tell you how to play it, as no one knows exactly how your meta will play out.

The best way to learn this deck is to play it. It has gone through many changes and evolved over time, as do a lot of the decks.

As already stated, it's tempo and aggro but to get the feel for it, you really have to get your own hands dirty

That said, when you do learn it, its very rewarding

Quote from Polendino

However, assuming a certain level of technical skill, there is something to be gained from playing cards that noone else does. Decks and boards will be tuned for various big players in the metagame. By playing and boarding rogue cards, then they will be made better than they actually are due to players not expecting them.

Noone expects Green to be able to manufacture a kill spell for 1G. People don't "play around it" like they would in a Limited game.

This is exactly what I was trying to get at. Thank you for recognizing the fact that Magic is not just technical play, but that it also includes keeping your opponent guessing (and I don't mean just predictable stock answers).

@Subversion

No one is saying "learning to play" means your making the world tour, but certainly, one can learn to play almost any deck and have a decent showing at FNM

@Metamorph

Skill can be taught to some degree, and to some degree it is innate within us.

@everyone

My intention was not to say build a rogue deck, learn to master it and you will be world champion, far from it. However, if your meta has dismissed a card as "not play worthy" it doesn't necessarily mean that it is. After all, a "rogue" card gets its start somewhere does it not. I mean, did anyone really expect "Stitched Drake" to be in competitive play or to really be talked about in that vein. It has since been proven that this card is simply one option available to illusion players (though not necessarily the best one).

Since so many players simply copy the blueprints of top 1-16 decks at tournaments, it stands to reason that many people use a small portion of the cards that are available. Look at any primer discussion and you can see all the disagreements about what cards are superior.

Magic is much like sports. When a deck posts superior stats, or is in the limelight, it naturally draws in fans. When the deck falls apart, many leave and move on to something else. It is only natural then, for competitive decks running Snapcaster's to influence the value of the card when placing well in a tournament, especially if the card is integral to the strategy (snappy is an easy example here). I mean, it was already a great card, but demand shot through the roof because it's a great card, and because it's just so versatile. Almost everyone wants this card. Just think of what the price of Snappy would be if he was indeed a mythic. The only thing keeping this card lower than $50 is the fact that he is only rare, thus easy peasy to pull, I pulled all four of mine.

There is no doubt that the secondary market is perverted in it's pricing. But why shouldn't it be, after all, We are the one's to blame for the cost of the cards, not WotC. If you don't like the price for a card, don't pay it. Supply and Demand play a role, but so does greed and impatience. Cards are only worth what someone is willing to pay, a patient seller will make his money, and a patient buyer will save his.

There are a ton of people who move cards far cheaper than SCG or other online vendors. Patience is key to finding a good deal, but this means you may not have your trusty card exactly when you want it.