Card Releases Coming Soon to a Hobby or Retail Store Near You!

Hey guys!
  I haven't posted about upcoming new releases in a while, so let's jump right into it, eh?

From the Vault: Legends
This year's installment of From the Vault releases tomorrow (August 26th). From the Vault: Legends contains 14 Legendary Creatures throughout most of Magic's last 11 years along with a couple of Portal: Three Kingdoms Legendary creatures.

Also included is one Innistrad preview, similar to how they previewed Hellkite Overlord in FtV: Dragons before Shards of Alara or last year's Scars of Mirrodin preview Sword of Body and Mind in FtV: Relics.

Here is a link to the article showing all 15 cards in the set: http://www.wizards.com/magic/magazine/article.aspx?x=mtg/daily/arcana/774

For those too lazy to hit the link, here are the 14 reprints:
Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir (new art)
Kresh the Bloodbraided (new art)
Progenitus (new art)
Doran, the Siege Tower
Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker (new art)
Sun Quan, Lord of Wu
Cao Cao, Lord of Wei
Captain Sisay
Omnath, Locus of Mana
Oona, Queen of the Fae
Rafiq of the Many (new art)
Sharuum the Hegemon (new art)
Ulamog, the Infinite Gyre
Visara the Dreadful (new art)

And finally, we have the Innistrad preview, which I'll just post right...down...here...NOW!

Image from DailyMTG Article on FtV: Legends

Mikaeus is interesting, I think. I don't know if it'll ever see competitive play, but I like the idea. You put a certain amount of +1/+1 counters on him, then you can start semi-Proliferating more +1/+1's on each other creature you control. And when you start running low? You can either tap Mikaeus himself to put another counter on or you could use cards like Contagion Clasp or Tezzeret's Gambit to refuel him AND add more +1/+1 counters to every other creature you have.

I like him for casual play, but we'll see how he does competitively. I doubt he'll make much of a splash, but those +1/+1's add up pretty quickly...just sayin'.

From the Vault: Legends is another all-foil mini-set. All 15 cards, including Sun Quan, Cao Cao, and Mikaeus, have the usual From the Vault foiling on them. The set's MSRP is $35, but you know most stores are jacking the price up because 1) it's a very limited release (like all other From the Vault sets) and 2) Sun Quan and Cao Cao are seeing print for the first time in years and in foil. I was able to snag a couple at $60, but if you can get them for MSRP I'm sure you can turn a profit just on Sun Quan, Cao Cao, and Progenitus.


Duel Decks: Ajani vs. Nicol Bolas
The next release coming up, this time for regular buying (as in Wal-Mart or Target kind of regular) is the next in the Duel Decks line, Ajani vs. Nicol Bolas.

Set on the plane of Alara, this Duel Deck is meant to chronicle a struggle between Ajani Vengeant against Nicol Bolas, Planeswalker.

Ajani's deck is more tuned to be a beatdown theme, utilizing Naya's shard to its fullest extent. Ajani's deck also includes new artworks for Ajani Vengeant himself (in foil, as all Planeswalkers in these decks are), Lightning Helix, and Behemoth Sledge.

Nicol Bolas' deck is more of a control deck, meant to stall the field and accelerate his mana until he can get his biggest weapons on the battlefield, namely himself. New artworks are included for Nicol Bolas, Planeswalker himself (in foil, as all Planeswalkers in these decks are), Counterquall, and Deep Analysis (which, btw, will be Deep Analysis' first time in the current frame non-foiled).

Deep Analysis brings up an interesting speculation for Innistrad. When Deep Analysis first appeared in Torment, it was a Common. It's had a promo printing since then, but there's no official rarity for promos. Normally, when a card is re-released in a deck, it gets its most recent rarity attached to it. Deep Analysis, though, is marked as an Uncommon in the deck.

Why is that big news?

Innistrad is known to be bringing back Flashback (thanks to some Duels of the Planeswalker game leaks). And the decks were known last year to have preview cards (Duel Decks: Elspeth vs. Tezzeret gave us Kemba Skyguard and Contagion Clasp as early preivews for Scars of Mirrodin). It's suggested this is a bit of a sneaky "preview card" without being so obvious that it's a preview.

These deck lists don't look like you'll get too much of a return on investment, but seeing as how Nicol Bolas, Planeswalker is now hitting $17 for a regular one, it may be worth the $20 to pick up the decks just to get Nicol Bolas. :)

The deck lists can be found here in this Arcana: http://www.wizards.com/Magic/Magazine/Article.aspx?x=mtg/daily/arcana/783

The decks release September 2nd. If you're a fan of either Planeswalker, I'd suggest picking these up just for the Planeswalkers. If not, and you're looking at the financial aspect, I'd either pick one up and keep it sealed or just skip over it.

Duel Decks: Venser vs. Koth
Not much is known about the next Duel Decks to be released after Ajani vs. Nicol Bolas. What is known is they're switching up the order of how they do Duel Decks.

Instead of getting a tribal- or otherwise-themed Duel Deck in the Spring and a Planeswalker deck in the Fall, they're switching up the order starting next year. A Planeswalker Duel Deck will release in the Spring, while a Tribal- or otherwise-themed Duel Deck will release in the Fall close to the next new block to come out.

Why is WotC changing this up? With tribal-like themes in each set, WotC feels a tribal-themed Duel Deck will bring more energy to the release of a new block. This way, players can get a feel for certain tribes before they're released in the upcoming block.

As for the actual Duel Deck in question, not much is known aside from the story aspect. Venser and Koth are both trying to save the plane of Mirrodin from the Phyrexians. However, they have their own ways of saving the plane. Venser wants to find Karn, knowing the plane is doomed without him; but Koth won't abandon the Mirrans and would rather die in battle than seemingly give up on them.

This Duel Decks set will release on March 30, 2012, and retail for $20. The Arcana announcing it can be found here: http://www.wizards.com/Magic/Magazine/Article.aspx?x=mtg/daily/arcana/779

BOOSTER SALE! Pre-M12 Boosters for $2 each!

Who doesn't love a sale, eh?

I'm selling any regular boosters from before M12  that I have left over for $2 a piece. I'm just trying to move inventory out the door, thus the low price.

I'm not exactly sure of what all I have, though, so it's up to the mercy of whatever leftover stock I have on hand to what you'll get. It doesn't go back past Zendikar, though, and doesn't include any Worldwake, I can safely say that much.

M12 will still be the regular $2.75. But at the prices some Rares are going for, that may not be such a bad deal. ;)

WHOOPS! Just realized...no banned/restricted list for Reverse Modern

Hey guys!
  Lookie here! I forgot to post a banned/restricted list for Reverse Modern. I apologize. I don't think you wanna risk someone Time Walking you for the win, do you? lol!

  So give me until Saturday to determine a proper Banned/Restricted list. I will go ahead and say anything banned in Legacy will be banned in Reverse Modern. It's a matter of looking at decks that highly rely on old cards and seeing if any of them might could warp the format.

Talk to you all later! :)

Next Tournament: Reverse Modern! September 10th

I think I'm gonna go ahead and pull the trigger.

Saturday, September 10th (roughly 2 weeks from this upcoming Saturday) is the debut of REVERSE MODERN for Saturday Morning Magic!

What exactly will Reverse Modern be, anyway, you may be asking.

Well, take Wizards of the Coast's Modern format...and reverse the legalities.

That's right! If a card was originally printed in the old card frame (used from Alpha through 7th Edition for Core Sets and Arabian Nights through Scourge for Expansions/Blocks), you can use any version of it in Reverse Modern. So a Core Set 2012 Llanowar Elves will work just as well as an Alpha one...well, in most cases.

I'm going to propose (ie: It's not a final decision) that we allow the following bonus: Anyone using all old framed, black bordered versions of cards legal in Reverse Modern will be eligible for some kind of bonus. What this bonus is, or whether it will stick around, is TBD. But essentially, you can't use white-bordered cards or newer-framed black-bordered cards to count in this bonus. If you're going to use a Llaonwar Elves in your deck and want this bonus, it's gotta be either Alpha, Beta, or a 7th Edition foil. ANY old-framed black-bordered version would be okay, so long as it's old-framed, black-bordered, and originally printed as such. (So sorry, but the judge promos Sword of Fire and Ice and Dark Confidant will not be legal).

The tournament will be Swiss, and each person will play each other player once. Once everyone has played everyone else once, the highest 2-4 players (depending on how many people enter) will face off in a Finals/Semi-Finals to determine the Top 2 or Top 4 placings (again, depending on how many people enter.

We will not, repeat not solely rely on the DCI software. The first round or 2 I feel confident that the DCI software can suit our needs. From there on, I'll need to consult with Nathaniel on how to get it to handle the type of Swiss I want us to have.

Any feedback or comments are greatly appreciated.

Entry fee will be $2, and that will go to adding packs of M12 to the prize pool. With enough entrants, we can do at least 1 booster pack to the winner and the rest of us will split a booster or 2. But the actual prizes and distribution will depend on the total number of entrants.

We'll start at 11:00 AM. This should provide us ample time to get some 30-minute rounds in. However, we need to be done by 2:30 so we'll adjust as needed to fit within the time frame.

Thanks! And I hope to see a lot of people for Reverse Modern. :)

It's Official: MODERN is a Supported Tournament Format!

I had a longer post here, but Blogger decided to erase it so I'm just going to post the link.

WotC announced today that Modern will be a supported Eternal format ("eternal" meaning no sets rotate out, similar to Legacy or Vintage). You may remember Modern was one of the Constructed formats for the Magic Online Community Cup.

Modern basically allows cards from Core Sets and expansions starting with 8th Edition and Mirrodin through the present. The oldest cutoff is 8th Edition for Core Sets and Mirrodin for expansions.

Modern also has a ban list associated with it.

You can find the ban list and announcement and reasonings for the changes here: http://www.wizards.com/Magic/Magazine/Article.aspx?x=mtg/daily/ld/155

Feel free to leave comments here. Thanks for reading! :)

Tournament Idea: Reverse Modern?

Hey guys!
  I want everyone's input on an idea I had for our next tournament: Reverse Modern. One of our players suggested something about playing JUST older cards but had it restricted all the way to Alpha/Beta and having to use Alpha/Beta versions of cards. Well, that's not only extremely limiting but it depends on what Alpha/Beta you can get without spending an arm and a leg.

  However, I liked the idea: Take cards not "from X year onward" but "from X year backward".

  The trouble I'd have is, how far back would we want to go for this "Reverse Modern"?

  Here's the idea: Take all the sets from 19XX on back and those are the only cards allowed. To make playing easier, you may use current versions of cards that were allowed back then (so for example, you don't have to have an Antiquities Mishra's Factory in order to play it. You can use the ones from Duel Decks: Elspeth vs. Tezzeret).

  We could also give bonuses for using all/almost all older versions: For example, if your deck is entirely black border without using newer-framed cards (Mirrodin and 8th Edition onward, or the current frames) or alterations (coloring in the white border, for example), you get +10 life or +1 to maximum hand size or some bonus.

  What does everyone think? What would you suggest be the cutoff for "Reverse Modern" (either by year or by block/Core Set).

Impressions from M12 Post-Release, Plus How To Keep Attendance Up?

Hey everyone!
  I know it's taken me a good bit longer than I'd have liked to get a new blog post up. However, I'm hoping this one will open some dialog as to what we can do better at SMM.

  Overall, I loved the Post-Release we had for M12. We had, what, 13 players? And I ran out of promos for the first time in ages! (Well, okay, I had 1 promo left over, but that's compared to having 5-10 promos from one event left. :)  ).

  I didn't hear anyone have any problems with how anything went except for some pairing issues late in the running. I apologize for that. It was the first weekend where I'd had a separate scorekeeper (Nathaniel) and we changed tournament systems mid-stream (from a single winner's/loser's bracket to having at least one loser's bracket per round). That caused a lot of confusion for Nathaniel and myself. We're thinking of keeping that system, but as time goes on I'm sure we'll have it more perfected so we can avoid future confusion.

  I also enjoyed being able to sit back and enjoy the tournament for once! lol! I may separate out the rulings duties too so I'm doing most of my work on the front end of the tournament (gathering entry fees, making sure I've written down who all is in the tournament, prize management, etc.). I'm thinking of appointing 3 people to be judges with one stipulation: Those who judge cannot make rulings on their own match in progress. Would everyone be okay with this?

If you have any questions or comments about the M12 Post-Release or any other questions concerning policy, let me know. I'll try to get a policy document typed up and made available on Facebook (or E-mail for those who don't do Facebook) so we'll have a specified way to run tournaments.

I also want to ask you how can we keep attendance up? I know one way would be to do tournament formats that might interest most people who come around and may seem interesting for those who don't normally. This is where I need your help. If you have a tournament suggestion, feel free to post it here or E-mail me (CardGameNut@gmail.com) and I'll look over it. Just keep in mind you'll be the Tournament Organizer and Head Judge of that tournament (though I'll have booster packs to use for prizes, so you just need to let me know how many and in what assortment you want them in).

Again, any questions or comments, please leave them here or E-mail me. Thanks for reading, and we hope to see you Saturday! :)