We are quickly approaching the end of this review. Just one day left, after today. Today we get to talk about White. It seems that White gets the most bang for its buck in Innistraad. Whit is full of card quality in both the constructed and limited environments. Since, this is only a small review I will only cover a handful of these cards.
It is day four of my set review. For those of you who have not read these daily reports yet, here is what I am doing. I am reviewing each color and sharing with you my top picks. I am not a pro player by any means, I am just a judge who enjoys writing and playing Magic the Gathering along with many other games.
On to the cards
Bloodcrazed Neonate 1r
Creature – Vampire Common
Bloodcrazed Neonate attacks each turn if able.
Whenever Bloodcrazed Neonate deals combat damage to a player, put a +1/+1 counter on it.
While elder vampires select their meals with care, the newly sired frenzy at the first whiff.
Illus. Cynthia Sheppard 2/1
This guy is not super, but he gets an honorable mention because he grows and he is common.
Curse of Stalked Prey
1r
Enchantment – Aura Curse Rare
Enchant player
Whenever a creature deals combat damage to enchanted player, put a +1/+1 counter on that creature.
“Innocent thorns can fill the air with your bloodscent. Don’t stray from the path.”
–Elmut, crossway watcher
Illus. Christopher Moeller #136/264
Will this card make it into constructed – yes. It will Goblins or red deck wins a boost in their speed. Oh and combine this with Bloodcrazed Neonate and you have a Vampiric nightmare.
Brimstone Volley 2r
Instant Common
Brimstone Volley deals 3 damage to target creature or player.
Morbid – Brimstone Volley deals 5 damage to that creature or player instead if a creature died this turn.
Illus. Eytan Zana #132/264
I like Brimstone volley because it will be fairly easy to deal 5 damage. Why because creatures die in Magic the Gathering.
Pitchburn Devil 4r
Creature – Devil Common
When Pitchburn Devils dies, it deals 3 damage to target creature or player.
Illus. Johann Bodin #156/264 3/3
Our friend here is nothing special for a 3/3. But when he dies he becomes a lightning bolt. So he has potential. He might see play in constructed. I believe you will most certainly see him in limited. I expect him to be picked as early a the third pick in a draft. Really tough to say when a card will be pick but this guy brings some serious card quality to the limited format.
That is all for now. tomorrow we move on to White and everything it has in store for us.
While looking at green I have concluded that green is just kind of blah. Now, I don’t mean that in a negative way. Green in Innistrad is just so similar from card to card that only a few cards stand out. We will get to those in a moment. Green has a couple of recurring themes that happen too frequently. They are +X/+X where X is number of creatures in your graveyard and werewolves. They both happen so much that it waters them down. I do not really like the fact that Green is full of transforming cards, and I even dislike the trigger for them more.
On to the cards.
So the next Magic the Gathering expansion is on the horizon. It will bring with it 5 mechanics. Some of these mechanics are making a return, like Flashback and Fight (which is a new keyword). While others are just knew. But before you go any further I suggest you read Wizards of The Coast article on Innitsrad mechanics here. Because this article is going to talk about rules in significant detail.
Transform
Of the the mechanics being introduced in Innistrad this has to be the most complicated one.
What does all of that mean for a player and for the judge?
Judge Perspective
While double faced cards are going to bring to the game a potential for new levels of card quality it is going to be a messy mechanic at first. I suspect that early on players are going to miss the transform triggers left and right. I can just see it know some random player draft 10 double faced cards and put 7 in his deck. Can you imagine having 4 of them in play at the same time? You might have different faces face up. In other words the players might have four different triggers to remember on top of normal game play. The good news is that this is most likely to happen at the casual level of play for some time – practice. In the end I think it will force both players and judges to improve their game.
Player Perspective
As a player I am looking forward to the card quality that thes might bring us. And I do believe there will be enough good double faced cards that a handful of them will see play. Otherwise, WotC is waisting their time with this mechanic.
Morbid
Judge Perspective
There is not a thing that is so unique about this mechanic that we have anything to worry about.
Player Perspective
The trigger is going to be easy enough to pull off that you will definitely see it played. I kind of like Skirsdag High Priest. I used this spoiler for information. I kind of like putting 5/5 flying demons in play.
I judge a lot of Magic the Gathering tournaments, and I mean a lot. As a result I get to observe people. One of the things I notice is players and judges ignore their bodies, especially when it comes to hydration. It is important for you and for the players around you that you take care of yourself. Yeah right, why should I care. Well, there are only a handful of reasons, but they can be summed up like this; good health makes for a better game. It is really that simple. Dehydration can have some serious effects on your game, and your body. While not eating foods that supply nourishment can effect you body in many ways (anything from headaches to poor digestion). the rest of this article will talk about recognizing the symptoms of things like dehydration and lack of nourishment.
Dehydration happens when you don’t consume enough liquid (water is the best). Symptoms of dehydration are
While I realize at a tournament there are a lot of other factors that can come into play dehydration is always a first in my mind because it is easy to ignore. So here are some rules of thumb to prevent dehydration. if your game is a light game that does not involve a lot of standing or though consume a cup of water for every hour. If it is more intense consume closer to twenty ounces of water every hour. That might sound like too much, but it’s not. When you game you actually do burn a lot of energy thinking.
Eating improperly can cause all kinds of problems for you. In fact, there are so many I won’t even attempt to cover them. We should all know the common symptoms of not eating right (headaches, fatigue, light headed,). Instead I will share what I have had great success with at events of this nature.
You might say that is a bit much, but the one thing I have learned as a judge is you just never know what is in store for you. I have worked events where where the closest food was a twenty minute walk, and if you are understaffed it just doesn’t work. It is about the same for you as a player. It is better to be prepared. I also go heavy on the grains to combat the potential irratablity from various digestive problems, besides they are a good snack.
If you are wondering why this article is here. This is why. Not too long ago I worked an event where a player did not eat foo. His reasoning was it was too far away to get to it. He was also alone, and had no one to go get the food for him. As a result of not eating, he got a headache. He made this publicly known, and that he believed it was from a lack of food. The player eventually blacked out from fatigue and ended up not finishing the event. I realize that the example above is extreme, but who wants to play with a headache or worse. It really doesn’t take much effort to plan for this, and in the end you will be happier.
I just learned that Wizards of the Coast is sponsoring Magic the Gathering Mini Masters events at select stores (Magic Celebration) this Saturday September 10th. Here are the locations. What is cool about, I mean what makes it different from other mini masters? It is free, while supplies last. That is right free Wizards of the Coast is giving back to their customers.
So what is a mini master AKA pack wars? It is one of the most inexpensive limited formats you can play. Each player receives one pack (M12 on Saturday) and three of each basic land then they get shuffled together. That is right you play blind, you don’t look at your cards. Each event is three or four rounds. Each round you win earns you another free M12 booster to enhance your deck with. On top of that WotC is supplying retailers with T-shirts and a code card for Duels of the Planeswalker 2012. I am not sure how the code is going to be distributed, but it is for the platform of the player’s choice.
I will be at Freedom Games in North Canton Ohio on Saturday playing. If you want to duel me come on down.
