Another set is out, and that means it’s time for a Type 4
review! Normally core sets are full of
reprints that aren’t super exciting to talk about (given the eternal nature of
the format, you’re probably already playing most of the good ones), but let’s see
if the last core set can switch things up.
Celestial Flare: We start off with a mediocre removal
spell. I’d only play this in a very
combat heavy stack because otherwise it’s not very good. It gets past indestructible and hexproof, but
not much else.
Gideon’s Phalanx: Make a bunch of guys (8 power worth) and
probably counter a wrath? Seems pretty
good. Not the strongest of cards, but
nice if you like to draft a creature heavy deck, and with anthems like Elesh
Norn the 2/2s can turn into lethal threats.
Hallowed Moonlight: Stop the guy running some sort of
graveyard shenanigan cold, and cantrip alongside it. Nothing to really hate here besides the fact
that it’s fairly narrow, but reanimating guys is pretty common. Chainer comes to mind as a guy who is
incredibly broken that you can hose hardcore.
Hixus, Prison Warden: Normally, I don’t want to have to
remove creatures only after they’ve hit me.
However, he doesn’t target and exiles which is nice. But on the other hand, he’s very
fragile. An intro pack rare, so don’t
worry about how to pick him up.
Kytheon’s Irregulars: Taps the field, becomes a 5/4
yadayada. Pretty dull but brings the
hurt if your opponents can’t find a way to kill him (which they will). Still worse than Crowd Favorites.
Sentinel of the Eternal Watch: If you play a pauper/common
uncommon only stack (is this a thing?) this seems pretty good. If not, there are better options.
Starfield of Nyx:
Enchantments are normally pretty awesome cards, so having a Debtor’s
Knell for them seems fine. Slow, but if
you draft your deck right this can be very, very powerful. The second ability is just gravy.
Tragic Arrogance: Doesn’t kill lands, which is sad. Other than that, seems fine, fairly low
power, but you get to choose which makes up for it a bit.
Alhammarret, High Arbiter: See something scary? Stop it for
a few turns until they kill this guy or draw something worse. Nothing to really see here, but he’s not
trash all the time.
Bone to Ash: Reprint, worse than Overwhelming Intellect but
that’s not necessarily a strike, given the power of that card. Playable.
Day’s Undoing: The “End the turn” clause matters less when
you only get one spell, and drawing a new 7 can really be a lifesaver,
especially if you foster some goodwill among other players. Definitely not a card I’d play in some
stacks, but still an ok choice for most.
Displacement Wave: Bounce the field, unless you have the
fattest fatty (cmc wise). Being a
sorcery hurts, but probably ok.
Mizzium Meddler: Counters targeted removal, probably does
some other neat stuff but mainly around to protect your guys that matter.
Negate: Worse than Cancel, but still ok.
Psychic Rebuttal: With Spell mastery, this goes from trash
to insane. Note you still don’t get to
steal an Urza’s Rage, as you need to counter the spell to get the copy.
Sphinx’s Tutelage:
Just a warning, do not play this card unless you enjoy the Infinite
stack of firebreathers and fireballs.
This is just as dangerous as those, even more so at times. A friend of mine once had compulsion in his
stack, and it was removed immediately when he realized how broken it was.
Talent of the Telepath: “your spells are better than mine,
share”. Once again, getting spell
mastery makes this much much better, and doing so isn’t particularly hard in
this format.
Willbreaker: I don’t know what this guy is good with
(besides in my experiment Kraj EDH) but I’m certain she will do some disgusting
stuff. Free mind control seems insane.
Cruel revival: Don’t need a zombie to get this doing stuff,
but with one it’s pretty nice. Removal
remains removal, and every stack needs it.
Dark Dabbling: It cantrips, so it can’t be all bad. Try it out sometime if you have a non-super-
busted stack
Dark Petition: It’s demonic/diabolic tutor. I don’t like searching decks but if you do go
nuts.
Demonic Pact: for the lulz.
But seriously, it has some very powerful abilities. If you know for a fact that you can kill it,
go nuts in your deck.
Gilt-Leaf Winnower: The amount of dudes with the same P/T is
pretty high, so this guy will often be worse than Dark Hatchling, which is a
terrible card. Play at your own risk.
Kothophed, Soul Hoarder: With great power… Drawing a ton of
cards is very good, but make sure you have the life to lose. Also watch out for infinite death combos, as
they tend to kill you with this out.
Revanant: It’s a flying goyf. If that’s your jam go for it, if not (like
me) pass.
Tainted Remedy: What Rain of Gore wishes he was. Not good unless you have a lot of ways to
gain life that you want to counter, but at least it screws over lifelink.
Unholy Hunger: Murder with an upside is all I need for my
removal spells to be acceptable playables.
Abbot of Keral Keep: Free 2/1 with the top card of your
deck. Much worse than the morph guy from
Khans, but not atrocious.
Avaricious Dragon: DO NOT PLAY THIS. Seriously, having no cards on your opponents' turns is just asking to lose. It’s not
even a scary body, this gets you nowhere you want to be.
Chandra’s Ignition: Do this to a big lifelink creature, and
watch the world burn as your life sits high and mighty. Fine card.
Animist’s Awakening: Get all the busted utility lands in
play. I don’t like tutors so this will
stay out (just takes too long) but if you do it seems fair enough.
Evolutionary Leap: Unlike survival, it doesn’t let you dump
all your guys in the yard, which makes it much fairer. Still seems pretty sweet with tokens.
Gaea’s Revenge: Reprint at lower rarity. Pick one up, it’s a big green fatty that
looks fun to hit people with.
Managorger Hydra: Probably not good enough, but I totally
want to play a naya deck with this, the White dragon from Dragons of Tarkir and
Taurean Mauler. Counts your spells too.
Nissa’s Revelation: This is big game. Drawing anything less than 4 with this should
be pretty rare, and 6-8 should be the norm.
Unless you hate creatures, this is good.
Outland Colossus: A big guy that gets bigger. Not much to write home about, but kinda cool.
The Great Aurora: Doesn’t reset life, but this is just
another reset button that puts cards into the library instead of exile, hand,
or graveyard. Do note, this is real
good/bad for you with tokens.
Woodland Bellower: Finds your Eternal Witness. Also finds other stuff I guess. Nothing exciting, unlike in competitive
formats.
Alhammarret’s Archive: A big mana artifact that does nothing
when it comes into play, this promises massive rewards if you can land a card
draw spell of any sort. Inspiration
becomes Opportunity, Jace’s Ingenuity becomes a draw 6. Most likely, people will be very scared of
this at first and it can be a great target for baiting removal or
counters.
Mage-Ring Responder: A 7/7 vigilance that blasts dudes for 7
when he attacks. If you’ve got a generic
fatty, just swap it out, this guy looks sweet.
Orbs of Warding: Hexproof plus a little bit of life
protection, really neuters most token swarms.
Seems fine.
Pyromancer’s Goggles: This is an odd one. A mana rock (normally useless in Type 4) that
can fork red spells. Fun with Urza’s
Rage to be sure, but unclear how good it is in the real. Try it out.
Rogue’s Passage: A card I’ve never been unhappy to have, can
ensure you get a good amount of damage through.
And that wraps it up!
Nothing on the level of the past few sets, but we can’t always get 3 new
counterspell morphs along with god tier fat in every set. Enjoy the prerelease!
