Whoa, whoa, whoa. Hexproof Sliver... I think not. Unless it cost something like 4GGUU, that would be one of the most degenerate cards ever printed for a tribal deck because of what Slivers would do under Hexproof that they can't do under Shroud (mostly, it's regenerate). And 4GGUU still may be a little cheap to give that effect to all Slivers.
You can already regenerate slivers under shroud with Clot Sliver, so that's hardly that important. The main thing they gain under hexproof but not shroud is the ability to hold a Jitte.
... So, I'm guessing it's just coincidence that every single other Sliver in Tempest is easily recognizable as a Sliver from it's art?
Even though I don't have a source yet, in the olden Magic days it wasn't too rare for art to be commissioned before the design had been properly worked out, or, even worse, with the artist misreading the description given. I'm sure we all know about Hyalopterous Lemure's art making it onto the card when it was nothing like the art asked for.
You know, on the subject of how past Slivers haven't always looked consistent, look at Muscle Sliver. No seriously, look at it. Just the art. If you didn't already know, would you ever guess that was a Sliver? And that was all the way back in Tempest! Yeah, I think it's pretty safe to say that there's precedent in the disunification of the look of the Slivers.
Muscle Sliver got drawn before they'd settled on the aesthetic design for slivers, it hardly counts.
I hope someone loses their job over this decision, because I don't think you should really have any part in the design of Magic art if you think slivers should change this drastically.
Yeah exactly. I really dislike how they made Ravnica wilder this time around. Bramble Elemental was flavorful for a city plane. This isn't.
Your 'people' sample is very likely to not be representative of the player base as a whole, and thus your results will differ from what Wizards gets fromt heir market research. They know what they're doing, you don't.
The amount of play counterspell have seen in the past and will in the future indicate that this downside is not a dealbreaker, compared to the upsides.
Next to hexproof and indestructible, there are also things like EtB abilities, dies abilities, multiple creatures like Armada Wurm, flashing in Restoration Angel that all make a Murder less effective.
There are only a few things like uncounterable, cascade and flashback that combat counterspells. Next to the percentage of cards a counterspell can answer compared to a removal spell, there's the percentage of cards a counterspell will go 1-for-1 with. That's also a much higher percentage, hence their power.
Of course its not a deal breaker, the fact people play counterspells indicates this. But it isn't all upside playing a counterspell over removal like you think it is, especially in a format with bad draw. If you can't guarantee having a counterspell in hand when they cast a threat, you're going to need enough removal spells to handle that threat.
The comparison between Murder and Cancel only looking at the percentages of cards answered is ignoring the comparative time window. Murder topdecked when you're facing down a big creature is perfect, Cancel is useless.
Slivers are probably the only 'mechanic' exciting enough and tied strongly to the game's history to be worthy of the 20th anniversary core set, but I don't think they'll be chosen for it, alas. It would spare WotC from having to do another sliver block any time soon, though.
I forget who said, but I thought it was said Bolas would be the only non-humanoid walker because 'players can't identify with non-humanoids'? Even so, I've always thought, since the first WUBRG creature was a sliver, the first WUBRG walker should be one too.
"Adding counters" does nothing intrinsically. They are an arbitrary value that only makes sense within the contest of the planeswalker. Doubling season has no special combo with Gideon. It makes him a bigger creature? 2 card 6GWW combo to get a 10/10 that can't block? Why not just play a wolfir silverheart? Sarkhan gives you 20/20 power in creatures, evasive, that can block. And he sticks around and makes them 25/25 or steals a creature
Doubling season doesn't do anything special here, in fact it does less than most planeswalkers, and you have to look at those with no ultimate or -x to get any less.
Doubling season doubles the amount of counters the first ability puts on him, since its the first time an effect has put loyalty counters on a planeswalker and not a cost. I think that's pretty special. Not that useful, sure, but special.
The Queen was pretty sentient, wasn't she? Certainly not a 'smart' being or anything, but I seem to remember Karn engaging in a primitive negotiation with her, which would indicate sentience.
Anyway...I, too, find this disappointing, because it seems like little variations could have been made to some of the cards. Not every set needs the same old kinds of effects as long as the colors/guilds are balanced...
Replaced image leech. -TK
I lol'd at the mod edit. Now you just look like an idiot.
Actually, you play it like Maze of Ith as a spell slot. A spell that taps for mana until you cast it. As a land it cuts into the number of colored lands you can run.
...Oh no? Once again, there's more than enough dual lands to support your mana base, the other guy who replied to me is running colourless lands in a three colour deck! Maze of Ith gets a spell slot because, funnily enough, it doesn't tap for mana. Grove does.
You can already regenerate slivers under shroud with Clot Sliver, so that's hardly that important. The main thing they gain under hexproof but not shroud is the ability to hold a Jitte.
Now that I try and find it, I'm beginning to think I dreamed it. I'm sure I read it somewhere, so I'll just keep looking I suppose.
Even though I don't have a source yet, in the olden Magic days it wasn't too rare for art to be commissioned before the design had been properly worked out, or, even worse, with the artist misreading the description given. I'm sure we all know about Hyalopterous Lemure's art making it onto the card when it was nothing like the art asked for.
Muscle Sliver got drawn before they'd settled on the aesthetic design for slivers, it hardly counts.
Of course its not a deal breaker, the fact people play counterspells indicates this. But it isn't all upside playing a counterspell over removal like you think it is, especially in a format with bad draw. If you can't guarantee having a counterspell in hand when they cast a threat, you're going to need enough removal spells to handle that threat.
It says 'if you would draw a card', so it replaces the first draw from Sign in Blood with a double draw.
Doubling season doubles the amount of counters the first ability puts on him, since its the first time an effect has put loyalty counters on a planeswalker and not a cost. I think that's pretty special. Not that useful, sure, but special.
MTGS: The only forum where mods abuse their powers to troll poor posters
I lol'd at the mod edit. Now you just look like an idiot.
...Oh no? Once again, there's more than enough dual lands to support your mana base, the other guy who replied to me is running colourless lands in a three colour deck! Maze of Ith gets a spell slot because, funnily enough, it doesn't tap for mana. Grove does.