Another birthday is now in the books. I was fortunate to get some cool Magic cards from the boys to celebrate.

From Christian, I got an Utvara Hellkite for my Kaalia deck as well as two draft packs of Kamigawa Neon Dynasty. The Hellkite will replace a Leyline Tyrant, a move that will give the deck a bigger finishing threat.

As for the two packs, I pulled a Jugan Defends the Temple in one and a Greasefang, Okiba Boss in the second. The Jugan could end up in an enchantments deck should I finally start to build one as I’ve said in the past that I would.

From Noah, I got a Plummet, a card that is becoming a running joke tradition between us. In recent months, we keep finding opportunities to gift each other at least one Plummet (More on this in a future post perhaps). I also got a number of goblin cards as Noah and I are thinking of entering the next Modern tournament (in late September).

I thought (naively) that a Goblins deck would be cheap but early signs suggest that a somewhat competitive deck will require a bit of an investment especially as I lack many of the goblin and land staples. I probably should have done a bit more research before declaring my intention!

He also gave me a Balor for my Kaalia deck. Given that I emphasized angels and dragons, I think I will keep it as backup should the Utvara Hellkite prove not to be the punch that I’m hoping for.

Finally, Noah also gave me the Unlicensed Hearse he came home with. I told him to keep it given that he’d won it (albeit in a random draw) but he told me that I needed it more than he did given how many graveyard shenanigans the boys use in their decks. I told him that snark like that was enough for me to gladly accept the present and find a deck for it to go into.