Some Interesting M13 Previews!

Hey all!
  I know I said I'd be back on Monday...of last week. I apologize. I got  busy and didn't get back to the blog.

  With enough of M13 spoiled to show off some cards, I'd like to start showing off stuff I think might be interesting to see in Standard and possibly even Legacy, or perhaps just some cool casual stuff hitting for the first time.

First off, we have the return of some beloved Time Spiral-block Angels...er rather, an Angel and a memorial to an Angel.

Welcome back to Standard Serra Avenger and Akroma's Memorial!

Images from DailyMTG.com

I love these cards! Serra Avenger is forced into being a Turn 4 play, but the ability to play 2 of them then or to play one and have enough mana left over for, say, a Phantasmal Image both on Turn 4, I think the mana savings over something very similar (Serra Angel) is well worth the wait. In fact, I'll be surprised if Serra's Avenger does not find a home in Standard over the next year or so.

As for Akroma's Memorial, this is either a mana ramp deck's dream come true or a casual player's dream of a cheap one come true. Running right now in the $15-$20 range, the one from Future Sight is highly sought-after. With a Mythic reprint in M13, Akroma's Memorial will probably go down in price but it'll still be pricey. As for playability...so what it's 7 mana to get out? Look at what all you get! All your creatures are mini-Akromas (or in some cases with fatties, major-Akromas!). How can you turn that down?


Next up, we have a card that may mimic cards like Dream Halls, or perhaps will be used alongside it to help big Conflux big win decks. Presenting Omniscience!

From DailyMTG.com

Okay, okay...I know what you're saying. "10 mana!!' Yes, I don't see people hard-casting this either. I do, however, see cheating it into play. And Legacy has plenty of options: Academy Rector, Dream Halls, Hypergenesis, Eureka, and Show and Tell are the most likely ways. After that, who needs to give your opponents chances to put more stuff down? Just either Conflux up a bunch of cards or get your fatties or 1-turn combo pieces into play and go at it!

This will have casual appeal. Anything that lets you cast cards for nothing can be broken given the right circumstances, I feel. The question is, who latches on and who thinks it's not worth the time or effort?


Finally today, I'd like to look at a Red card I feel will be a sleeper hit...no pun intended. :) It's a 1-mana Dragon. 1-mana Dragon!! However, it takes a while to build him up...thus the unintended pun. Let's look at Slumbering Dragon.

From DailyMTG.com

 Yes, you get a 1-mana 3/3, so he's most efficient as a first-turn drop. But it's got a downside...it can't attack until it has 5 +1/+1 counters! 5!! And how does he get those? Well...you gotta be attacked. *CRINGE!* Well...perhaps it's not that bad. You're gonna get attacked anyway, right? So unless your opponent has something to deal with it soon, they're either gonna hold off their attacks or wait until they draw a removal spell to deal with the Dragon. After all, who wants an 8/8 Dragon to hit them? Green and Red may have issues as most of their destruction is either A) limited to a few cards, or B) limited to "x damage to target."

It'll be a huge causal favorite, I feel. It takes a drawback and turns it into a potentially huge gain. In Constructed, though? I wouldn't expect it to last too long, and with a lot of targeted "destroy/exile/return target creature/permanent" effects your opponent can just attack as normal and deal with the dragon before it hits 5 counters. But what do I know? I'm just a lowly casual player. :p


That's what I have time for today, so hopefully next week I can get a few more previews in before M13 Pre-Releases hit. Look for the full spoiler on DailyMTG.com next Friday, though, as they usually do a full spoil of the set ahead of the Pre-Release.

Take care everyone! And feel free to post comments here on what you think may be sleeper hits or huge Standard-playable cards in the set. :)

Some M13 Nuggets

Hey guys!
  This will be sort of short and sweet tonight as spoilers have come in left and right on MTGSalvation as to what is and isn't in Magic Core Set 2013. For those who are returning to the game, M13 is a part of a yearly release of Core Set product that both reprints and brings in new cards to the Standard and Modern environments (okay...technically Extended, Legacy, and Vintage too, but it has bigger impacts in Standard and Modern generally).

  If you've not had access to the previews or have been lazy about looking around, I'll make a few highlights here before starting actual previews Monday.

ADDED TO M13:
- Vampire Nocturnus makes its vampiric return in the Core Set...and makes for one of the 3 promos given for purchasing Duels of the Planeswalkers 2013. Joining him and partying like it's Zendikar Reborn? Vamprie Nighthawk!
- Serra Avatar gets a much-needed reprint as a Mythic Rare in M13. Now for some big lifegain cards. Oh, wait...there is a 2/2 creature with Lifelink for WW too, and it's Common!
- There are six Planeswalkers in this set: Reprints of Nicol Bolas, Planeswalker; Chandra, the Firebrand; Garruk, Primal Hunter; and Jace, Memory Adept. The other two?
- There are two brand-new Planeswalkers: Ajani, Caller of the Pride (1WW and starts at 4) and Liliana of the Dark Realms (2BB and starts at 3).
- A card that says "Destroy target creature"...with no restriction.
- Mill gets some super-mill cards and a creature that grows similarly to Isleback Spawn.
- Exalted...yes, Exalted is the returning mechanic for M13! And there's a land that has Exalted at only Rare.
- Legendary Creatures return in M13! There are 5 Legends, 1 for each color, and they're literally the face cards of the Intro Packs for M13.
-...and more!

REMOVED FROM M13:
- The Titans will not be returning to M13. WotC learned a lesson: Powerful cards don't necessarily need to stick around for 2 years as if they were in the old 2-year Core Set cycle.
- Day of Judgment does not come back for the first time since M11.
- For the first time since the span from Fourth Edition to Eighth Edition, Royal Assassin will not make a Core Set appearance.
- Giant Spider, the last card from Alpha to see print in all Core Sets released since then, has lost that title. There are now no cards that have made every Core Set appearance since Alpha.
- Apparently 1R for 3 damage and no regeneration is too much, so Incinerate gets replaced by a new card: Searing Spear. It's a 1R Instant that deals 3 damage to a target...and that's it. Basically, a Volcanic Hammer as an Instant instead of Sorcery.
- For the first time since 9th Edition, Birds of Paradise will be left out of a Core Set. Interesting factoid, though: The next block to release after 9th Edition was Ravnica: City of Guilds. Birds of Paradise was moved from the Core Set to Ravnica at the time. Now? What's the set after M13? Return to Ravnica. The bet? Birds of Paradise will be in Return to Ravnica, making it for sure legal for 2 years instead of a tenuous 1 year in a Core Set.
....and more as we know more, I'm sure!


This week marks the end of official spoilers until the week of the 25th, so next week I'll take some time to catch up on spoilers on here and anxiously await the final bits in about a week and a half. Join me then and see what you think!

I hope everyone enjoys their weekend. :) See you here Monday!

For those who used to play Yu-Gi-Oh! or Magic at the Baha'i Faith Center on Hamill Road in Hixson, we're having a going away lunch for Rachel this Saturday. Her house beside the church has been sold, and there's a good chance she's leaving the area which also means no more league there. :( But I'm asking everyone who did play there to come by Saturday afternoon after 2:30 for a going away lunch party thing. I'm asking everyone who can to donate $5 toward some present for Rachel + $5 OR a dish/snack for everyone to munch on the rest of the day. There's no planned end time, just probably until Rachel gets tired of us. lol! Thanks! :)