You remember how Deathtouch changed so dramatically last year? The big thing was it got to ignore the "creature queue", the order in which you'll do damage to your opponent's creatures. The nice thing about that was if you made a mistake in the blocking order you didn't have to worry about it as deathtouch would let you pick at whichever creature(s) you wanted in any order.
Here was the revised text for Deathtouch, circa M10:
Deathtouch (Creatures dealt damage by this creature are destroyed. You can divide this creature's combat damage among any of the creatures blocking or blocked by it.)
That changes for M11.
Here's the revised Deathtouch text for M11:
Deathtouch (Any amount of damage this deals to a creature is enough to destroy it.)
That's much simpler, isn't it? It gets across what deathtouch does very succinctly (2 lines compared to over 4).
But it also has some major rules implications.
First of all, Deathtouch now constitutes "Lethal Damage." Why is that important? Read the new Trample wording (which apparently took effect with Archenemy):
Trample (If this creature would assign enough damage to its blockers to destroy them, you may have it assign the rest of its damage to defending player or planeswalker.)
Let's say Avatar of Might (an 8/8 with Trample and nothing else equipped or affecting it) goes up against Bestial Menace's tokens (a 1/1, a 2/2, and a 3/3). You put the creatures in that order when they block it. Avatar of Might has to assign 1 point to the 1/1, 2 to the 2/2, and 3 to the 3/3 before it could hit the opponent for 2 damage.
Now let's say instead you equipped Avatar of Might with Quietus Spike (which grants Deathtouch). Even under the old Deathtouch rulings, even though 1 damage would be enough to destroy each creature, you still had to assign an amount of damage at least equal to each creature's toughness before "trampling over." On the flip side, though, you could have assigned any of that 8 damage to any 1, 2, or 3 creatures if you wanted to make absolutely sure you destroyed one of the tokens.
Under the new Deathtouch rules, you don't get to ignore the "creature queue". You must deal with the 1/1 before moving on to the 2/2, and you have to deal with the 3/3 before you can trample over. However, now 1 damage is considered lethal damage. How does this change the damage calculations?
Under the old Deathtouch rules, you had to assign 1 damage to the 1/1, 2 damage to the 2/2, and 3 damage to the 3/3 in any order before you could trample over for the remaining 2 damage.
Under the new Deathtouch rules, you must assign at least 1 damage to the 1/1, then must assign at least 1 damage to the 2/2 (since any amount of damage from a Deathtouch source is now considered "lethal damage"), and then must assign at least 1 damage to the 3/3 before trampling over. If all goes according to plan, you get to Trample for 5 damage!
So to summarize, what changes with Deathtouch?
1) Deathtouch still counts 1 point of damage as enough to destroy a creature.
2) Deathouch now counts as "lethal damage."
3) Deathtouch does not let you skip around in the creature queue order.
4) Deathtouch now lets you "creature trample" by allowing you to only have to assign 1 damage to a creature before proceeding to the next one in line in the "creature queue."
Aaron Forsythe explained the reason for the change was because they felt the version from last year was a cobbled together piece that attempted to make Deathtouch work the way it did before the big M10 rules changes (the internal timeline from idea to print was a matter of weeks, not months). In the last year, they've come up with a better way to not only shorten the reminder text but also allow players to logically understand how Deathtouch works without too many extra rules.
So what do you think? Do you still have questions about how Deathtouch works? Leave a comment and let me know!
Until later, take care!
Monday, June 28, 2010
Saturday, June 26, 2010
M11 Preview Weekend! Includes a Near-Reprint of a Power 9 Card
You read the headline correctly. One of the cards in Magic 2011 is a near-reprint of an old Power 9 card.
While you're pondering which Power 9 card it might be, let's take a look at a few others...AFTER THE JUMP!
While you're pondering which Power 9 card it might be, let's take a look at a few others...AFTER THE JUMP!
Thursday, June 24, 2010
REMINDER: Make-up Cube Draft THIS SATURDAY!
Hey guys!
Just a little reminder that we're Cube Drafting again Saturday! With some new Worldwake and Rise of the Eldrazi updates plus some classic card additions, this should be fairly new experience this time around.
For anyone new to the Cube Draft style, it's a format where we take cards from the best Magic has to offer, shuffle up the pile, and create 3 15- or 20-card "booster packs" to draft from. Normal draft rules follow (except the ability to pick one card from one of your packs to keep).
Entry fee is $2, and prizes will come from Rise of the Eldrazi booster splits.
We hope to see you there Saturday!
Just a little reminder that we're Cube Drafting again Saturday! With some new Worldwake and Rise of the Eldrazi updates plus some classic card additions, this should be fairly new experience this time around.
For anyone new to the Cube Draft style, it's a format where we take cards from the best Magic has to offer, shuffle up the pile, and create 3 15- or 20-card "booster packs" to draft from. Normal draft rules follow (except the ability to pick one card from one of your packs to keep).
Entry fee is $2, and prizes will come from Rise of the Eldrazi booster splits.
We hope to see you there Saturday!
Friday, June 18, 2010
BIG Extended Format Change, Plus New Legacy Ban Changes
In 2008, Wizards of the Coast made a huge change to the Extended format rotation policy: Instead of some "rotates every 3 years" policy, Extended would simply carry the last 7 years' worth of Magic blocks and Core Sets.
In 2009, Wizards of the Coast announced that Core Sets would rotate with the block that immediately preceded them.
It's 2010, and Extended's changing again, more on tune with the 2008 announcement.
Starting July 1, 2010: Extended will now only contain the last 4 blocks and their related Core Sets ("related" means "the Core Set that was released after a certain block finished"), rather than the last 7 blocks + their Core Sets.
As of July 1st, then, the following rotate out of Extended for being outside this 4-year limit:
Mirrodin
Darksteel
Fifth Dawn
Champions of Kamigawa
Betrayers of Kamigawa
Saviors of Kamigawa
Ravnica: City of Guilds
Guildpact
Dissension
Coldsnap
9th Edition
Normally, Coldsnap wouldn't rotate until Time Spiral block rotated, but Wizards of the Coast wanted it 100% clear that the only sets legal were the last 4 blocks plus their related Core Sets.
That leaves these in Extended:
Time Spiral
Planar Chaos
Future Sight
Lorwyn
Morningtide
Shadowmoor
Eventide
Shards of Alara
Conflux
Alara Reborn
Zendikar
Worldwake
Rise of the Eldrazi
10th Edition
Magic 2010
Magic 2011 (after it releases July 16th)
Extended will rotate once a year when a new block starts. So when Scars of Mirrodin becomes legal, the oldest block (here, Time Spiral Block) will rotate out, as well as its related Core Set (in this case, 10th Edition).
In essence, then, the new Extended is like a Super-Standard, keeping sets legal for 4 years instead of just 2.
This new list does have an Extended Format Banned & Restricted List. It's only 2 cards big, and they'll both rotate out when Scars of Mirrodin releases:
Hypergenesis (Time Spiral Rare)
Sword of the Meek (Future Sight Uncommon)
Hypergenesis is seen in a Cascade-style setup. A Hypergenesis player will work to get at least 2-3 good big creatures in hand, then they'll cast Violent Outburst with Hypergenesis being the only card lower than 3 casting cost in the whole deck. Creatures of choice usually involve flying plus having some "enter the battlefield" effect (like Angel of Despair)
Sword of the Meek was used with Thoper Foundry to generate many 1/1 tokens in a turn and then use Time Sieve to gain extra turns or Tezzeret the Seeker to beat face with flying 5/5's (plus the 5/5's that Sword of the Meek + Thopter Foudry will each be).
Both combos would be pretty dominant after this new rotation, thus the decision to ban the cards that will rotate out in a few months rather than the ones that will rotate in a few years.
Wizards of the Coast claims low Extended tournament turnout for the change. The card pool was too large (7 years' worth of sets, at times more under the pre-2008 change), and even though it goes pretty far back Extended still rotates so players would gravitate toward Legacy more than Extended to keep good use of their older cards for a much longer period of time.
This leads to the possibility of more "casual level" Extended tournaments. Before this change, Extended was the realm of Pro Tour Qualifiers, Grand Prix tournaments, and Pro Tours. Now that Extended will be more accessible, FNMs could potentially crop up for Extended now.
AS FOR LEGACY:
Legacy didn't get away in the free and clear. One new banning comes in the form of Mystical Tutor. Mystical Tutor is seen in Sorcery-based decks that must have their key Sorcery card quickly. I guess Legacy Reanimator (featuring Entomb) and Tendrils of Agony-based Storm decks started to become too dominant just because of Mystical Tutor, so it got the axe.
For that one card going away, though, we got two back: Grim Monolith and the ever-complicated Illusionary Mask.
While I don't know the reasons for the Legacy banning and unbannings, there should be an article on the official home page Monday or sometime next week detailing the reason for the changes.
Until next time, enjoy!
In 2009, Wizards of the Coast announced that Core Sets would rotate with the block that immediately preceded them.
It's 2010, and Extended's changing again, more on tune with the 2008 announcement.
Starting July 1, 2010: Extended will now only contain the last 4 blocks and their related Core Sets ("related" means "the Core Set that was released after a certain block finished"), rather than the last 7 blocks + their Core Sets.
As of July 1st, then, the following rotate out of Extended for being outside this 4-year limit:
Mirrodin
Darksteel
Fifth Dawn
Champions of Kamigawa
Betrayers of Kamigawa
Saviors of Kamigawa
Ravnica: City of Guilds
Guildpact
Dissension
Coldsnap
9th Edition
Normally, Coldsnap wouldn't rotate until Time Spiral block rotated, but Wizards of the Coast wanted it 100% clear that the only sets legal were the last 4 blocks plus their related Core Sets.
That leaves these in Extended:
Time Spiral
Planar Chaos
Future Sight
Lorwyn
Morningtide
Shadowmoor
Eventide
Shards of Alara
Conflux
Alara Reborn
Zendikar
Worldwake
Rise of the Eldrazi
10th Edition
Magic 2010
Magic 2011 (after it releases July 16th)
Extended will rotate once a year when a new block starts. So when Scars of Mirrodin becomes legal, the oldest block (here, Time Spiral Block) will rotate out, as well as its related Core Set (in this case, 10th Edition).
In essence, then, the new Extended is like a Super-Standard, keeping sets legal for 4 years instead of just 2.
This new list does have an Extended Format Banned & Restricted List. It's only 2 cards big, and they'll both rotate out when Scars of Mirrodin releases:
Hypergenesis (Time Spiral Rare)
Sword of the Meek (Future Sight Uncommon)
Hypergenesis is seen in a Cascade-style setup. A Hypergenesis player will work to get at least 2-3 good big creatures in hand, then they'll cast Violent Outburst with Hypergenesis being the only card lower than 3 casting cost in the whole deck. Creatures of choice usually involve flying plus having some "enter the battlefield" effect (like Angel of Despair)
Sword of the Meek was used with Thoper Foundry to generate many 1/1 tokens in a turn and then use Time Sieve to gain extra turns or Tezzeret the Seeker to beat face with flying 5/5's (plus the 5/5's that Sword of the Meek + Thopter Foudry will each be).
Both combos would be pretty dominant after this new rotation, thus the decision to ban the cards that will rotate out in a few months rather than the ones that will rotate in a few years.
Wizards of the Coast claims low Extended tournament turnout for the change. The card pool was too large (7 years' worth of sets, at times more under the pre-2008 change), and even though it goes pretty far back Extended still rotates so players would gravitate toward Legacy more than Extended to keep good use of their older cards for a much longer period of time.
This leads to the possibility of more "casual level" Extended tournaments. Before this change, Extended was the realm of Pro Tour Qualifiers, Grand Prix tournaments, and Pro Tours. Now that Extended will be more accessible, FNMs could potentially crop up for Extended now.
AS FOR LEGACY:
Legacy didn't get away in the free and clear. One new banning comes in the form of Mystical Tutor. Mystical Tutor is seen in Sorcery-based decks that must have their key Sorcery card quickly. I guess Legacy Reanimator (featuring Entomb) and Tendrils of Agony-based Storm decks started to become too dominant just because of Mystical Tutor, so it got the axe.
For that one card going away, though, we got two back: Grim Monolith and the ever-complicated Illusionary Mask.
While I don't know the reasons for the Legacy banning and unbannings, there should be an article on the official home page Monday or sometime next week detailing the reason for the changes.
Until next time, enjoy!
Monday, June 14, 2010
Idea for July 10th: M11 Pre-Release at Organized Play?
UPDATED June 17th below all this information.
As you may remember, Organized Play in Knoxville (link in the title of this post) helped us out with Rise of the Eldrazi Pre-Release and Release promos for our ROE "Release" Draft the week after the set came out.
They're also helping us with Wayne's "Crazy World" tournament by sending a couple Mirrored Depths Planechase Planar Cards and sold us a Tazeem and Horizon Boughs promo Planar cards.
To help pay them back, I was hoping you'd be open to the idea of going to Organized Play for the M11 Pre-Release.
I'll get details soon, but what I do know is it's July 10th. I think the format is Sealed Deck, but I'm not 100% sure.
Need an extra incentive? Once you see the Pre-Release foil promo, maybe you'll be convinced to go:
(I previewed the card below this post, just FYI. ;) )
I'd personally love to go to the Pre-Release, especially with such a good card being handed out. And it's something different for us; we stick to the Hixson area so much it'd be nice to get out and play somewhere else, even if it's just for a day. And it'd give us another place to advertise; there may be others from Hixson/Chattanooga/surrounding areas who would love a more local place to play for more casual gaming.
At the same time, it is a two-hour drive (roughly), and they open at 11 AM so we'd need to leave before 9 AM that day to get there before they open (to give ourselves the best chance at entering and getting the promo). And I don't know the cost, but if it's Sealed it'll probably be $15-$20 in one hit.
But I want your thoughts. So E-mail me (Defiant359@comcast.net, Subject: "M11 Pre-Release") or leave a comment here.
Give this careful thought. I think it'll be fun: brand-new set, brand-new store, and hopefully we can make some contacts in the area who can help advertise for us!
UPDATE June 17th: The main Pre-Release event is at 7PM. It's Sealed Deck, 6 packs and a Sun Titan promo for $25. It's 4 rounds, and your prizes depends on how you do during those 4 rounds:
2-2: 1 M11 Pack
3-1: 3 M11 Packs
3-0-1 (3 wins, 0 losses, 1 tie): 7 M11 Packs
4-0 (undefeated): TEN M11 packs!
They'll also do side Draft events all day for $15. I don't think Sun Titan promos are given out with these events, but they award packs on a 4-3-2-2 basis: 4 packs to the winner, 3 to 2nd, and 2 packs each to 3rd and 4th places.
Our problem will be time. If we go for the main event and want to do the whole tournament, assuming a 50-minute round so we'll round up to an hour plus at least 30 minutes for deck-building and deck registration, a 4-round tournament will take until nearly midnight to finish (at earliest). That puts most of us getting back into town at 2 AM, and Wayne to 3 AM at the earliest.
I'll hold off on my feelings about this, but feel free to respond in the Comments section or E-mail me.
As you may remember, Organized Play in Knoxville (link in the title of this post) helped us out with Rise of the Eldrazi Pre-Release and Release promos for our ROE "Release" Draft the week after the set came out.
They're also helping us with Wayne's "Crazy World" tournament by sending a couple Mirrored Depths Planechase Planar Cards and sold us a Tazeem and Horizon Boughs promo Planar cards.
To help pay them back, I was hoping you'd be open to the idea of going to Organized Play for the M11 Pre-Release.
I'll get details soon, but what I do know is it's July 10th. I think the format is Sealed Deck, but I'm not 100% sure.
Need an extra incentive? Once you see the Pre-Release foil promo, maybe you'll be convinced to go:
(I previewed the card below this post, just FYI. ;) )
I'd personally love to go to the Pre-Release, especially with such a good card being handed out. And it's something different for us; we stick to the Hixson area so much it'd be nice to get out and play somewhere else, even if it's just for a day. And it'd give us another place to advertise; there may be others from Hixson/Chattanooga/surrounding areas who would love a more local place to play for more casual gaming.
At the same time, it is a two-hour drive (roughly), and they open at 11 AM so we'd need to leave before 9 AM that day to get there before they open (to give ourselves the best chance at entering and getting the promo). And I don't know the cost, but if it's Sealed it'll probably be $15-$20 in one hit.
But I want your thoughts. So E-mail me (Defiant359@comcast.net, Subject: "M11 Pre-Release") or leave a comment here.
Give this careful thought. I think it'll be fun: brand-new set, brand-new store, and hopefully we can make some contacts in the area who can help advertise for us!
UPDATE June 17th: The main Pre-Release event is at 7PM. It's Sealed Deck, 6 packs and a Sun Titan promo for $25. It's 4 rounds, and your prizes depends on how you do during those 4 rounds:
2-2: 1 M11 Pack
3-1: 3 M11 Packs
3-0-1 (3 wins, 0 losses, 1 tie): 7 M11 Packs
4-0 (undefeated): TEN M11 packs!
They'll also do side Draft events all day for $15. I don't think Sun Titan promos are given out with these events, but they award packs on a 4-3-2-2 basis: 4 packs to the winner, 3 to 2nd, and 2 packs each to 3rd and 4th places.
Our problem will be time. If we go for the main event and want to do the whole tournament, assuming a 50-minute round so we'll round up to an hour plus at least 30 minutes for deck-building and deck registration, a 4-round tournament will take until nearly midnight to finish (at earliest). That puts most of us getting back into town at 2 AM, and Wayne to 3 AM at the earliest.
I'll hold off on my feelings about this, but feel free to respond in the Comments section or E-mail me.
M11 Pre-Release and Release Promos
Hey guys!
Today Wizards of the Coast previewed the M11 Pre-Release and Release promo cards. And I've gotta say, the pre-release one looks outstanding! Let me give you a small preview: What if you could take one of the cheapest Planeswalkers that died earlier in the game and could return it directly to play...and get a decent creature out of the deal?
Find out what it and the Release card are...after the jump!
Today Wizards of the Coast previewed the M11 Pre-Release and Release promo cards. And I've gotta say, the pre-release one looks outstanding! Let me give you a small preview: What if you could take one of the cheapest Planeswalkers that died earlier in the game and could return it directly to play...and get a decent creature out of the deal?
Find out what it and the Release card are...after the jump!
Saturday, June 12, 2010
Cube Draft Postponed, Schedule Updated
Hey guys!
We had to postpone the Cube Draft for lack of players today. So I have the new tentative schedule ready to go here:
JUNE
19th: Regularly-scheduled casual day.
26th: Cube Draft instead of "Wayne's Crazy World" tournament.
JULY
3rd: Regularly-scheduled casual day.
10th: "Wayne's Crazy World" or head to Organized Play in Knoxville to play in their M11 Pre-release.
17th: Casual Day.
24th: "Wayne's Crazy World" if it gets pushed from the 10th OR our own M11 booster draft if we don't go to Organized Play for their Pre-Release
31st: Casual Day
I hate that we didn't get the Cube Draft in today, but that just means more time to spiffy it up, right? :)
We hope to see you soon!
We had to postpone the Cube Draft for lack of players today. So I have the new tentative schedule ready to go here:
JUNE
19th: Regularly-scheduled casual day.
26th: Cube Draft instead of "Wayne's Crazy World" tournament.
JULY
3rd: Regularly-scheduled casual day.
10th: "Wayne's Crazy World" or head to Organized Play in Knoxville to play in their M11 Pre-release.
17th: Casual Day.
24th: "Wayne's Crazy World" if it gets pushed from the 10th OR our own M11 booster draft if we don't go to Organized Play for their Pre-Release
31st: Casual Day
I hate that we didn't get the Cube Draft in today, but that just means more time to spiffy it up, right? :)
We hope to see you soon!
Friday, June 11, 2010
Cube Draft On Hold?
I've got a bit of a dilema on my hands.
I've got 4 regular players, and anyone else who comes in is a nice extra surprise (and we hope they become regulars. ;) ).
...But 3 of those players have already informed me that they may not be able to make it. One person definitely can't, as she's out of town. The other two are questionable.
It's a general rule that I won't run a 3-person tournament unless all there agree to it. We've done it a couple times before; we'd set up each "match" as a 3-way game and winner gets 3 points, 2nd gets 2, and last gets 1. The person with the most points at the end wins.
And it's doubtful I'll even have 3 people at this point.
I'll post on Twitter and see if that helps get any responses. But I'm not optimistic. :(
If we have to reschedule...here's the tentative schedule:
JUNE
19th: Regularly-scheduled casual day.
26th: Cube Draft instead of "Wayne's Crazy World" tournament.
JULY
3rd: Regularly-scheduled casual day.
10th: "Wayne's Crazy World" or head to Organized Play in Knoxville to play in their M11 Pre-release.
17th: Casual Day.
24th: "Wayne's Crazy World" if it gets pushed from the 10th OR our own M11 booster draft if we don't go to Organized Play for their Pre-Release
31st: Casual Day
What I may do tomorrow if I only have 1-2 other people is show how the Cube Draft works. Not do a draft for prizes or anything, just a sample draft to get them used to the idea.
So we'll play it by ear, but don't be surprised if we re-schedule. Sorry to anyone for whom this causes an inconvenience.
I've got 4 regular players, and anyone else who comes in is a nice extra surprise (and we hope they become regulars. ;) ).
...But 3 of those players have already informed me that they may not be able to make it. One person definitely can't, as she's out of town. The other two are questionable.
It's a general rule that I won't run a 3-person tournament unless all there agree to it. We've done it a couple times before; we'd set up each "match" as a 3-way game and winner gets 3 points, 2nd gets 2, and last gets 1. The person with the most points at the end wins.
And it's doubtful I'll even have 3 people at this point.
I'll post on Twitter and see if that helps get any responses. But I'm not optimistic. :(
If we have to reschedule...here's the tentative schedule:
JUNE
19th: Regularly-scheduled casual day.
26th: Cube Draft instead of "Wayne's Crazy World" tournament.
JULY
3rd: Regularly-scheduled casual day.
10th: "Wayne's Crazy World" or head to Organized Play in Knoxville to play in their M11 Pre-release.
17th: Casual Day.
24th: "Wayne's Crazy World" if it gets pushed from the 10th OR our own M11 booster draft if we don't go to Organized Play for their Pre-Release
31st: Casual Day
What I may do tomorrow if I only have 1-2 other people is show how the Cube Draft works. Not do a draft for prizes or anything, just a sample draft to get them used to the idea.
So we'll play it by ear, but don't be surprised if we re-schedule. Sorry to anyone for whom this causes an inconvenience.
Some New M11 Previews
So the spoilers are starting to hit faster and faster, which means I may not get to each one.
But I'll do what I can!
We've got some interesting Commons today, and one more keyword retemplating. Find out what it may mean...AFTER the Jump!
But I'll do what I can!
We've got some interesting Commons today, and one more keyword retemplating. Find out what it may mean...AFTER the Jump!
Thursday, June 10, 2010
REMINDER: Cube Draft Saturday!
Hey guys!
Just a little reminder that we're Cube Drafting again Saturday! With some new Worldwake and Rise of the Eldrazi updates plus some classic card additions, this should be fairly new experience this time around.
For anyone new to the Cube Draft style, it's a format where we take cards from the best Magic has to offer, shuffle up the pile, and create 3 15- or 20-card "booster packs" to draft from. Normal draft rules follow (except the ability to pick one card from one of your packs to keep).
Entry fee is $2, and prizes will come from Rise of the Eldrazi booster splits.
We hope to see you there Saturday!
Just a little reminder that we're Cube Drafting again Saturday! With some new Worldwake and Rise of the Eldrazi updates plus some classic card additions, this should be fairly new experience this time around.
For anyone new to the Cube Draft style, it's a format where we take cards from the best Magic has to offer, shuffle up the pile, and create 3 15- or 20-card "booster packs" to draft from. Normal draft rules follow (except the ability to pick one card from one of your packs to keep).
Entry fee is $2, and prizes will come from Rise of the Eldrazi booster splits.
We hope to see you there Saturday!
BREAKING: M11 Changes Deathtouch Slightly
New previews means more BREAKING NEWS!
Someone's got their hands on real M11 cards (way ahead of schedule, but they are authentic) and posted a few new Green cards.
Among them (and this is word-for-word, no shorthand notations or simplifications)...
Greater Basilisk
3GG
Creature - Basilisk
Deathtouch (Any amount of damage this deals to a creature is enough to destroy it.)
5/3
Common
So you're wondering, "What does this mean for how Deathtouch works in combat? With the template change, there's no mention of being able to break the "creature queue" set up in M10."
Even though we don't have the official Deathtouch change rules summary, I'd hazard a guess to say there's little to no change.
The current template is way too long. I mean, read it:
Deathtouch (Creatures dealt damage by this creature are destroyed. You can divide this creature's combat damage among any of the creatures blocking or blocked by it.)
The current version explicitly states how you treat Deathtouch damage. Which is nice...if it's the only ability on the card.
On Vampire Nighthawk, that takes a total of 4 lines of text. AND they had to fit Flying and Lifelink (with reminder text on Lifelink) in the same text box. If it were shortened up a bit, it wouldn't look as cluttered and confusing for a creature that basically reads "Flying, deathtouch, lifelink".
Plus, reminder text doesn't catch every little nuance of the rules behind the reminder text. It should, however, give enough to guide you through most situations.
Under the current template, you still get 1 point of damage being able to destroy a creature. That's fine.
But unlike the current Deathtouch template that explicitly breaks the "creature queue" rule, this version is more subtle but does the same thing. Normally, a creature takes lethal damage when it takes damage greater than or equal to its toughness. Deathtouch seems to re-define "lethal damage" ("any amount of damage...is enough to destroy it."). As such, when you have to deal "lethal damage" to creatures in the queue in order to move on to the next creature in line, Deathtouch will say that just 1 damage will be enough and lets you move on.
Whether you'll get to jump around at will or not I don't know. Under the current template, if you have 5 creatures in the queue blocking a Deathtouch creature, that creature could assign its damage to the 4th and 5th creatures in line when it normally had to go straight through the first 3 to even have a chance of hitting that far back.
Either that, or the official rules will take back the ability to skip around in the creature queue and force you to go in order as long as you have enough Power to go through the "queue."
So wait until official word hits about how Deathtouch will work, but also keep in mind this shorter template will be around starting with M11 in July.
Reactions? Leave them in the comments here!
Until later,
Preston
Someone's got their hands on real M11 cards (way ahead of schedule, but they are authentic) and posted a few new Green cards.
Among them (and this is word-for-word, no shorthand notations or simplifications)...
Greater Basilisk
3GG
Creature - Basilisk
Deathtouch (Any amount of damage this deals to a creature is enough to destroy it.)
5/3
Common
So you're wondering, "What does this mean for how Deathtouch works in combat? With the template change, there's no mention of being able to break the "creature queue" set up in M10."
Even though we don't have the official Deathtouch change rules summary, I'd hazard a guess to say there's little to no change.
The current template is way too long. I mean, read it:
Deathtouch (Creatures dealt damage by this creature are destroyed. You can divide this creature's combat damage among any of the creatures blocking or blocked by it.)
The current version explicitly states how you treat Deathtouch damage. Which is nice...if it's the only ability on the card.
On Vampire Nighthawk, that takes a total of 4 lines of text. AND they had to fit Flying and Lifelink (with reminder text on Lifelink) in the same text box. If it were shortened up a bit, it wouldn't look as cluttered and confusing for a creature that basically reads "Flying, deathtouch, lifelink".
Plus, reminder text doesn't catch every little nuance of the rules behind the reminder text. It should, however, give enough to guide you through most situations.
Under the current template, you still get 1 point of damage being able to destroy a creature. That's fine.
But unlike the current Deathtouch template that explicitly breaks the "creature queue" rule, this version is more subtle but does the same thing. Normally, a creature takes lethal damage when it takes damage greater than or equal to its toughness. Deathtouch seems to re-define "lethal damage" ("any amount of damage...is enough to destroy it."). As such, when you have to deal "lethal damage" to creatures in the queue in order to move on to the next creature in line, Deathtouch will say that just 1 damage will be enough and lets you move on.
Whether you'll get to jump around at will or not I don't know. Under the current template, if you have 5 creatures in the queue blocking a Deathtouch creature, that creature could assign its damage to the 4th and 5th creatures in line when it normally had to go straight through the first 3 to even have a chance of hitting that far back.
Either that, or the official rules will take back the ability to skip around in the creature queue and force you to go in order as long as you have enough Power to go through the "queue."
So wait until official word hits about how Deathtouch will work, but also keep in mind this shorter template will be around starting with M11 in July.
Reactions? Leave them in the comments here!
Until later,
Preston
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
BREAKING: M11 Only Has TWO Cards Printed in Every Core Set
As of Magic 2010, Magic had 8 cards that had survived every Core Set since Alpha.
As of Magic 2011, that field will be whittled down to a full two cards.
What was able to contend for longest-running card in the Core Set?
Go ahead and take your guesses as to the two survivors from all the way back to Alpha, then find the results...do I have to say this after all this time?...after the jump!
As of Magic 2011, that field will be whittled down to a full two cards.
What was able to contend for longest-running card in the Core Set?
Air Elemental
Bog Wraith
Drudge Skeletons
Giant Growth
Giant Spider
Howling Mine
Nightmare
Rod of Ruin
Go ahead and take your guesses as to the two survivors from all the way back to Alpha, then find the results...do I have to say this after all this time?...after the jump!
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
Some Cube Addition Previews!
Well guys, we're just a few days away from our second Cube Draft! We all had fun playing with cards we normally wouldn't have, and I'm hoping you'll enjoy playing with some of them again...and some for the first time!
I wanted to give you a preview of the fun cards going in! From new stuff to blingy stuff to new old stuff, I've got a bit for you here.
So see what we've got...after the jump!
I wanted to give you a preview of the fun cards going in! From new stuff to blingy stuff to new old stuff, I've got a bit for you here.
So see what we've got...after the jump!
Monday, June 7, 2010
BREAKING: "Scry" Goes Evergreen Starting with M11
Remember when Scry was printed in Mirrodin? Every card with Scry had "Scry 2": Look at the top two cards of your library. Put any number of them on the bottom of your library and the rest on top in any order.
Scry was a fixed amount: 2 cards, each and every time. And it seemed to be a one-off deal for one block only.
Then Future Sight came out with a different take on Scry: vary the number of cards you can Scry at one time. Some cards went as low as Scry 1 and as high as Scry 4, and sometimes with other effects after you Scry.
Some wondered if Scry would ever go "Evergreen"; that is, be used so regularly that they can print some cards with the keyword and not include reminder text (especially on Uncommons and higher rarities).
The DailyMTG twitter account spoiled one M11 card today...and it has Scry.
Augury Owl basically takes Sage Owl and improves it. Instead of just getting to rearrange the top 3 cards, you can choose whether or not any/all of those cards should even be on the top of your library. Aside from that "minor" difference, it's Sage Owl in every other way: A 1U 1/1 Bird creature with flying.
I hope you enjoyed the surprise M11 preview! Let me know what you think about M11 introducing Scry as an "evergreen" keyword by commenting below.
Coming tomorrow...a preview of the additions to the Cube! Remember, our next tournament is a Cube Draft this Saturday, so all you need is yourself and $2 for the entry fee. We hope to see you there!
Scry was a fixed amount: 2 cards, each and every time. And it seemed to be a one-off deal for one block only.
Then Future Sight came out with a different take on Scry: vary the number of cards you can Scry at one time. Some cards went as low as Scry 1 and as high as Scry 4, and sometimes with other effects after you Scry.
Some wondered if Scry would ever go "Evergreen"; that is, be used so regularly that they can print some cards with the keyword and not include reminder text (especially on Uncommons and higher rarities).
The DailyMTG twitter account spoiled one M11 card today...and it has Scry.
Augury Owl basically takes Sage Owl and improves it. Instead of just getting to rearrange the top 3 cards, you can choose whether or not any/all of those cards should even be on the top of your library. Aside from that "minor" difference, it's Sage Owl in every other way: A 1U 1/1 Bird creature with flying.
I hope you enjoyed the surprise M11 preview! Let me know what you think about M11 introducing Scry as an "evergreen" keyword by commenting below.
Coming tomorrow...a preview of the additions to the Cube! Remember, our next tournament is a Cube Draft this Saturday, so all you need is yourself and $2 for the entry fee. We hope to see you there!
Friday, June 4, 2010
More Magic 2011 Previews!
I hope you're ready for the first official onslaught of M11 preview cards!
While I'll mostly be featuring reprints and summaries of why these certain cards made it in (and some of which didn't get asked back from M10), I do have one new card to preview.
See the results...after the jump!
While I'll mostly be featuring reprints and summaries of why these certain cards made it in (and some of which didn't get asked back from M10), I do have one new card to preview.
See the results...after the jump!
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
M11 Previews in Archenemy Decks
As promised, I'm here today with the Magic 2011 Core Set preview cards found in the Archenemy decks in a few weeks.
First off, Chandra gets to rage a bit in the Scorch the World with Dragonfire R/G deck...
I think we're seeing Searing Blaze-type burn become somewhat popular with R&D. You know, the kind that deals damage to both a creature and that creature's controller? I like it from that perspective; not only do you usually destroy a creature, but at the same time you get to burn your opponent for a bit. Budget burn will love this, and I wouldn't be surprised to see this in Mono-Red after Shards of Alara rotates.
Next up, Bring About the Undead brings about a cheap, nigh-unkillable Skeleton...
So 1B to get out initially...then 1B to keep getting him back! I can see those "Sacrifice [this] unless you sacrifice a creature" effects becoming easier to pay (and play) as they could now effectively read "Sacrifice [this] unless you pay 1B." I'm kind of surprised there's no other downside, but I guess only getting a 1/1 tapped after you use the effect is downside enough (or so we're supposed to think... >:) ).
Third up! Assemble the Doomsday Machine brings us a luck-based card-drawing artifact...
So it's possible you're wasting 2 mana on nothing...or it could be a mana sink at the end of your opponent's turn when you have nothing better to do: if it hits, you draw 3 cards, and if it doesn't, well, you weren't going to use that mana anyway so what's the harm? If Tezzeret the Seeker gets reprinted in Magic 2011, I wouldn't doubt Sorcerer's Strongbox seeing some play (though I think it'd only be as a 1-of, maybe 2-of, and maybe then only in the rough builds as Standard testing starts).
And finally...the card that may single-handedly tip off that Baneslayer Angel might be in M11 (and found in the Trample Civilization Underfoot deck)...
Baneslayer Angel is usually the creature most decks seem to worry about. It's out of Bituminous Blast range, Bogardan Hellkite can';t damage her, and the whole internet knows that Halo Hunter was a cruel joke (being a Demon with "Destroy target Angel"). But Green now may have a chance...*ahem*if Baneslayer Angel gets reprinted, that is. ;)
So these aren't the best of M11, but then again, neither were Whiplash Trap and Beast Hunt (though Kor Sanctifiers has seen some play and Hideous End isn't exactly hideous itself.).
Archenemy releases June 18th. Each deck comes with 8 Rares (and especially for the Assemble the Doomsday Machine deck, they're not half bad Rares either!) and some decent Common/Uncommon reprints, so think about picking up a deck or two for the value of cards you get.
Until later, take care!
First off, Chandra gets to rage a bit in the Scorch the World with Dragonfire R/G deck...
I think we're seeing Searing Blaze-type burn become somewhat popular with R&D. You know, the kind that deals damage to both a creature and that creature's controller? I like it from that perspective; not only do you usually destroy a creature, but at the same time you get to burn your opponent for a bit. Budget burn will love this, and I wouldn't be surprised to see this in Mono-Red after Shards of Alara rotates.
Next up, Bring About the Undead brings about a cheap, nigh-unkillable Skeleton...
Third up! Assemble the Doomsday Machine brings us a luck-based card-drawing artifact...
And finally...the card that may single-handedly tip off that Baneslayer Angel might be in M11 (and found in the Trample Civilization Underfoot deck)...
Baneslayer Angel is usually the creature most decks seem to worry about. It's out of Bituminous Blast range, Bogardan Hellkite can';t damage her, and the whole internet knows that Halo Hunter was a cruel joke (being a Demon with "Destroy target Angel"). But Green now may have a chance...*ahem*if Baneslayer Angel gets reprinted, that is. ;)
So these aren't the best of M11, but then again, neither were Whiplash Trap and Beast Hunt (though Kor Sanctifiers has seen some play and Hideous End isn't exactly hideous itself.).
Archenemy releases June 18th. Each deck comes with 8 Rares (and especially for the Assemble the Doomsday Machine deck, they're not half bad Rares either!) and some decent Common/Uncommon reprints, so think about picking up a deck or two for the value of cards you get.
Until later, take care!
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