[mtgnexus] Random Card of the Day - Samwise the Stouthearted
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3drinks Kaalia's Personal Liaison
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Noted. I'll be more judicial with my comparison to similar cards then, and just leave it to actual functional reprints.
Steel Sabotage'ng Orbs of Mellowness since 2011.
Modern
87guide Burn
87guide Burn
Commander
Kellan, the Fae-Blooded // Birthright Boon (local secret santa gift)
Torbran, Thane of Red Fell (Red Deck Wins)
Alesha, Who Smiles at Death (Slivers)
Kaalia HQ
Kellan, the Fae-Blooded // Birthright Boon (local secret santa gift)
Torbran, Thane of Red Fell (Red Deck Wins)
Alesha, Who Smiles at Death (Slivers)
Kaalia HQ
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3drinks Kaalia's Personal Liaison
- Posts: 4832
- Joined: 4 years ago
- Pronoun: he / him
- Location: Ruined City of Drannith, Ikoria
Steel Sabotage'ng Orbs of Mellowness since 2011.
Modern
87guide Burn
87guide Burn
Commander
Kellan, the Fae-Blooded // Birthright Boon (local secret santa gift)
Torbran, Thane of Red Fell (Red Deck Wins)
Alesha, Who Smiles at Death (Slivers)
Kaalia HQ
Kellan, the Fae-Blooded // Birthright Boon (local secret santa gift)
Torbran, Thane of Red Fell (Red Deck Wins)
Alesha, Who Smiles at Death (Slivers)
Kaalia HQ
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3drinks Kaalia's Personal Liaison
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- Location: Ruined City of Drannith, Ikoria
I keep noticing a distinct trend where people regularly full tap every turn (often times doing irrelevant things, like that t8 cultivate), such that this seems much better in the landscape of today than it realistically has any right to be.
I'd never play it anyway...but it's an interesting outlook nonetheless.
I'd never play it anyway...but it's an interesting outlook nonetheless.
Steel Sabotage'ng Orbs of Mellowness since 2011.
Modern
87guide Burn
87guide Burn
Commander
Kellan, the Fae-Blooded // Birthright Boon (local secret santa gift)
Torbran, Thane of Red Fell (Red Deck Wins)
Alesha, Who Smiles at Death (Slivers)
Kaalia HQ
Kellan, the Fae-Blooded // Birthright Boon (local secret santa gift)
Torbran, Thane of Red Fell (Red Deck Wins)
Alesha, Who Smiles at Death (Slivers)
Kaalia HQ
- MeowZeDung
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Seems unplayable except on t2/t3 when no one has the mana available. Even then, I can't see myself ever justifying a slot for this since it's a dead draw most of the time. The one time the table is tapped out and you go get your win con or answer would make for a great jank ftw story though.
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Balanced card, but why you should play balanced cards when demonic tutor is legal?
If you have some kind of Rakdos/+ griefer deck with Mana Web, War's Toll, Winter/Static Orb, Price of Glory, Treasure Nabber...AND your DT is in another deck...then you'd probably consider this card.
Mirri, Cat Warrior counts as a Cat Warrior.
- PrimevalCommander
- Posts: 872
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Bad Card. Too easy to blank. No one wants to give away Demonic Tutors. Don't play this. Play diabolic and beseech the queen.
Many years ago I had a good friend play this into my open mana expecting me to let him have it. He didn't try to incentivize me before casting so I paid the 2. He wasn't playing a tuned deck, but he is a good player you don't give free cards to. He got salty and started jamming attacking creatures down my throat. I don't remember if I won that game, though I do remember stabilizing after his mini-tantrum. If he communicated what he was tutoring, or game me a turn without being attacked, I may have changed my play. Though we weren't that into politicing back then and relied on threat assessment and "making the right play". This did not always work in our favor of course.
Many years ago I had a good friend play this into my open mana expecting me to let him have it. He didn't try to incentivize me before casting so I paid the 2. He wasn't playing a tuned deck, but he is a good player you don't give free cards to. He got salty and started jamming attacking creatures down my throat. I don't remember if I won that game, though I do remember stabilizing after his mini-tantrum. If he communicated what he was tutoring, or game me a turn without being attacked, I may have changed my play. Though we weren't that into politicing back then and relied on threat assessment and "making the right play". This did not always work in our favor of course.
Decklists
God-Eternal Oketra
Titania, Protector of Argoth
Karador, Ghost Chieftan
Kalamax, the Stormsire
Rocco WILD PAIR
Sefris of the Hidden Ways *Budget*(Page 4)
Zurzoth, Chaos RiderKalamax, the Stormsire
Rocco WILD PAIR
Sefris of the Hidden Ways *Budget*(Page 4)
God-Eternal Oketra
Titania, Protector of Argoth
Rhystic Tutor seems pretty questionable. Ignoring the conditionalness, three mana actually seems like a fair cost for the effect - Demonic Tutor is too cheap, while Diabolic Tutor is too expensive. In the Flaxen Intruder zone, if you will.
Once you add in the ability for your opponents to trivially stop it, the card becomes a lot worse. It might be good if it were 'unless target opponent', but only being playable when all your opponents are tapped out makes it significantly more limited. There are cards to make your opponents tap out (like War's Toll), but I wouldn't play them just to enable this. Might be interesting if you have a very strong anti-control theme though.
Once you add in the ability for your opponents to trivially stop it, the card becomes a lot worse. It might be good if it were 'unless target opponent', but only being playable when all your opponents are tapped out makes it significantly more limited. There are cards to make your opponents tap out (like War's Toll), but I wouldn't play them just to enable this. Might be interesting if you have a very strong anti-control theme though.
- toctheyounger
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People tap out all the time, but there's still no way I'd take the risk. If you run any sort of interference rather than just gunning for the finish line with your own strategies you shouldn't tap out, but it's still always better to give your opponents too much credit than not enough. I'd rather run any sort of redundant effect for what I'm tutoring for than risk this getting nerfed. And it's stupendously easy to nerf.
Comparing it to the rest of the cycle, it's lamentable that this is pretty well par for the course aside from the stellar Rhystic Study.
Comparing it to the rest of the cycle, it's lamentable that this is pretty well par for the course aside from the stellar Rhystic Study.
- hyalopterouslemur
- Posts: 3218
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And Vampiric Tutor (and its three friends if you're in those colors), just for starters. There are way too many tutors for this to ever make the cut.ilovesaprolings wrote: ↑4 years agoBalanced card, but why you should play balanced cards when demonic tutor is legal?
The only case where I can see this being useful is Winter Orb-type Stax deck, and even then, that just makes one opponent pay the rhystic (and you can't choose); it's not nearly as good as most other rhystic cards like classic Force Spike and Mana Leak.
Thanks to Feyd_Ruin for the avatar!
The problem, as has been stated, is that there are too many tutors that are far better that you can use for 3 mana or less even in the decks that this is actually good (and it is actually good in stax/land denial when that 2 mana is hard to come by). Many of these, however, are also really expensive. Rhystic is cheap as hell. Demonic is completely reasonably priced, and Vampiric isn't too bad, but Grim and Imperial Seal are hundreds of dollars. Cruel Tutor is reasonably priced, but also trash, worse than Diabolic, and should never be ran. Rhystic at least has a couple decks where its reliable enough to be better than Diabolic, though those decks are usually going to be pricey enough to make me ask why you didn't spring for Grim.
As for Rhystic as an ability, its not as bad as its reputation. Rhystic Study is an all star. Rhystic Lightning is actually pretty easy to make go off for the full 4 (you only have to catch that one player with their shields down). Deluge and circle can be surprisingly effective at taxing out players. Its just that Tutor gets worse in multiplayer because everyone gets an opportunity to pay and everyone has incentive to do so.
As for Rhystic as an ability, its not as bad as its reputation. Rhystic Study is an all star. Rhystic Lightning is actually pretty easy to make go off for the full 4 (you only have to catch that one player with their shields down). Deluge and circle can be surprisingly effective at taxing out players. Its just that Tutor gets worse in multiplayer because everyone gets an opportunity to pay and everyone has incentive to do so.
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3drinks Kaalia's Personal Liaison
- Posts: 4832
- Joined: 4 years ago
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- Location: Ruined City of Drannith, Ikoria
Steel Sabotage'ng Orbs of Mellowness since 2011.
Modern
87guide Burn
87guide Burn
Commander
Kellan, the Fae-Blooded // Birthright Boon (local secret santa gift)
Torbran, Thane of Red Fell (Red Deck Wins)
Alesha, Who Smiles at Death (Slivers)
Kaalia HQ
Kellan, the Fae-Blooded // Birthright Boon (local secret santa gift)
Torbran, Thane of Red Fell (Red Deck Wins)
Alesha, Who Smiles at Death (Slivers)
Kaalia HQ
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3drinks Kaalia's Personal Liaison
- Posts: 4832
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- Location: Ruined City of Drannith, Ikoria
I once saw someone playing this in a Daretti deck. I still don't know why to this day.
Steel Sabotage'ng Orbs of Mellowness since 2011.
Modern
87guide Burn
87guide Burn
Commander
Kellan, the Fae-Blooded // Birthright Boon (local secret santa gift)
Torbran, Thane of Red Fell (Red Deck Wins)
Alesha, Who Smiles at Death (Slivers)
Kaalia HQ
Kellan, the Fae-Blooded // Birthright Boon (local secret santa gift)
Torbran, Thane of Red Fell (Red Deck Wins)
Alesha, Who Smiles at Death (Slivers)
Kaalia HQ
- MeowZeDung
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I'd run it in some 3+ color decks if I owned one. Just can't bring myself to pay more than a couple bucks for a land outside of fetches/shocks/filters, and even then it's nauseating. Budget aside, enters untapped and doesn't ping you while fixing all colors makes it great. I guess a proliferate deck like atraxa loves it.
Kykar primer and other active decks (click!)
The rules prevent me from playing this in Zedruu. It's almost formatted perfectly that you could make a mana and then donate it before sacrificing and leave someone with a land of yours that doesn't make mana, but unfortunately the sacrifice is built into the mana ability, and you can't respond to a mana ability. If it was a separate line that said "when the last counter is removed, sacrifice it" I would play it in Zedruu.
Zedruu: "This deck is not only able to go crazy - it also needs to do so."
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Rorseph Compleat Fool
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I remember running two Gemstone Mines in my Sliver deck back in the day because it was one of only two 5 color lands I could afford. (The other was Undiscovered Paradise.) They certainly weren't optimal, but they got the job done.
I don't know that I'd play it outside of a deck with a proliferate theme/subtheme, especially since it's not budget anymore, but it did bring up some nostalgia for me, so that's cool.
I don't know that I'd play it outside of a deck with a proliferate theme/subtheme, especially since it's not budget anymore, but it did bring up some nostalgia for me, so that's cool.
"From void evolved Phyrexia. Great Yawgmoth, Father of Machines, saw its perfection. Thus The Grand Evolution began."
—Phyrexian Scriptures
Aurelia | Maelstrom Wanderer | Primer: Thassa | Uro | Primer: Volrath
—Phyrexian Scriptures
Aurelia | Maelstrom Wanderer | Primer: Thassa | Uro | Primer: Volrath
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I have a play set from back in the day, so when I started playing edh it was one of the few multi color lands I had... Works great with bounce lands
Responds well to spells and abilities
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Its a good card. more often than not, even though its gone after 3 uses, it's def worth the colour fixing.
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3drinks Kaalia's Personal Liaison
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Yeah. Traditionally speaking, this is a great land. Anytime you come untapped and make any colour unconditionally is incredibly sought after.
I just can't make sense of that Daretti deck with it lol.
I just can't make sense of that Daretti deck with it lol.
Steel Sabotage'ng Orbs of Mellowness since 2011.
Modern
87guide Burn
87guide Burn
Commander
Kellan, the Fae-Blooded // Birthright Boon (local secret santa gift)
Torbran, Thane of Red Fell (Red Deck Wins)
Alesha, Who Smiles at Death (Slivers)
Kaalia HQ
Kellan, the Fae-Blooded // Birthright Boon (local secret santa gift)
Torbran, Thane of Red Fell (Red Deck Wins)
Alesha, Who Smiles at Death (Slivers)
Kaalia HQ
It's a powerful card, but I wouldn't call it a great one.
It's got a niche, and outside of that niche, it probably shouldn't be in your deck.
Hyper-competitive, 4+ color deck looking to end the game as quick as possible? This land is for you.
Otherwise, 3 uses is a real significant drawback. One that's often worse than coming into play tapped. Sure, there are ways to mitigate the drawback. Bouncelands and the like, or crucible effects to recur it. But since you can construct a very consistent manabase without it, I'm not sure it's worth the work.
It's got a niche, and outside of that niche, it probably shouldn't be in your deck.
Hyper-competitive, 4+ color deck looking to end the game as quick as possible? This land is for you.
Otherwise, 3 uses is a real significant drawback. One that's often worse than coming into play tapped. Sure, there are ways to mitigate the drawback. Bouncelands and the like, or crucible effects to recur it. But since you can construct a very consistent manabase without it, I'm not sure it's worth the work.