Cards

Five cards looking for a Commander deck

/ Jerome / Leave a comment

I use my local LGS website’s wish list feature to keep track of cards that I’m interested in. Everything from cards that I want for an existing deck, think are neat enough to build around or even both, to ones that might be a good gift for one of they boys (maybe they made a mention in passing at the dinner table for example) might end up on that list.

After my last post about Modern Horizons 3 cards that could fit into decks, I had a look at my list and it occurred to me that some of them might fit into Commander decks.

Steel Seraph

I wanted to play Steel Seraph as soon as I saw it during previews during Brothers’ War. The Prototype mechanic is neat – Similar to Kicker but offering essentially what is a downgrade option instead of an upgrade. Much like Kicker, offering a lower mana cost to get a less powerful version of the card opens up a number of options during game play. Do you go for the cheaper mana cost and benefit earlier or do you wait until later in the game? With Prototype, the ideal is when you have a way to pull the card out of the graveyard as it returns in its full-powered version.

Paying to have a 3/3 earlier in the game is not great value but it can help smooth out game play and has decent evasion. The full version is not cheap either but is definitely worth experimenting with. I love Steel Seraph’s flexibility, offering the choice of Flying, Vigilance or lifelink at the beginning of combat on my turn opens up options. Flying is a good offensive trick, Vigilance gives you the ability to attack and still defend while lifelink is useful when you’re taking a beating. And here you have all three on one card!

I think this one is headed into my Kaalia of the Vast Commander deck. Probably at the expense of a demon or dragon as this deck continues to morph more into an Angels deck every time I make a change.

Ocelot Pride

Ocelot Pride

This one is a new addition to my wish list after the Modern Horizons 3 previews. A 1/1 Cat for that adds First Strike, lifelink, Ascend and the ability to crank out 1/1 white Cat creature tokens whenever you gain life during your turn cannot be bad.

The price as it stands certainly proves that. At CA$30 for the cheapest variant (as I write this ahead of next week’s release), I’ll likely sit on this and see if it comes down in price. Considering the card was selling for CA$40 a bit earlier, I think there is room for it to come down further and then slide into a deck.

As for what deck, I don’t have a tokens deck so this may be a card asking me to build one. Maybe Darien, King of Kjeldor. Not sure mono-white would last long in our house though; the boys would quickly go after it if only to put me on the back foot. And the cost to bring it back would quickly become unaffordable. How about Neyali, Suns’ Vanguard instead? Giving your attacking tokens double strike sounds like something fun to me. And a bit of card replenishment is not bad either.

Neyali, Suns' Vanguard
Grand Abolisher
Animar, Soul of Elements

Grand Abolisher

When I first saw this card, I immediately thought it was perfect for Commander, especially with the decks that the boys love to play. Disrupting their plans is a strategy that I have oft thought about. This card would certainly do that, if only during my turn. Maybe I should pair it up with an Esper Sentinel.

This feels like a cool card in search of a deck for me to play it in. One thing it has going for it is that it is a Cleric.

All I know is that I want this card. But it will stay on the wish list until I think of a deck that will welcome it with open arms.

Kurbis, Harvest Celebrant

Kurbis has been on my wish list for a while. I can’t quite remember how it ended up there but I suspect it had something to do with +1/+1 counters. Giving itself some counters upon entering the battlefield is okay but it’s the second ability that stands out. Removing a +1/+1 counter to prevent damage to another creature with a +1/+1 counter on it is a useful little ability.

Revisiting the card for this post, I thought at first that it might be a good fit into my Animar, Soul of Elements deck but it will likely fit better in my Atraxa deck where it could protect the creatures around it. Giving it some further thought, it might be better off in a different deck altogether. Maybe in the same deck as Ocelot Pride?

Envoy of the Ancestors

This is another new addition to my wish list. It caught my eye given it is a Cleric. For , you get a 2/3 creature with Outlast . Combine that with its ability to give modified creatures lifelink and you have a pretty strong candidate for any deck that relies on counters on Equipments and Auras.

It might be a good fit into my Atraxa deck. Or maybe it is time to build a Commander deck built around Clerics. Wait a second! Grand Abolisher is a Cleric too! Hey, I already have two cards for my new Cleric Commander deck…

Kurbis, Harvest Celebrant
Envoy of the Ancestors
Basking Broodscale

Bonus card: Basking Dreadscale

There is a lot of early interest in this card. While Adapt is not quite as potent as Outlast given that it can only really be used once, Basking Broodscale’s second ability, namely creating a 0/1 colorless Eldrazi Spawn creature token every time a counter goes on plays nicely with mechanics like Proliferate.

So, we have yet another card that could fit nicely into a +1/+1 counter deck even though that’s not what is driving the current interest in the card.

The key takeaway today seems to be that I need to build a Cleric Typal deck as well as one for +1/+1 counters. And I probably need to clean my wish list a bit as well…

Easy come, easy go for the monkeys!

/ Jerome / Leave a comment

It was Outlaws of Thunder Junction pre-release time yesterday. As per tradition, we headed off to play at Face to Face (no more pre-releases in the North now that North of Exile has permanently closed). Christian went 2-1 with a bye while Noah and I went 1-2 but we did have fun as usual. Maybe a story for another time but Noah was somewhat annoyed when one of the players he faced did not want to split the two packs as most people do (especially as he lost).

Christian also took the opportunity to sell a few cards as he is building a new Commander deck who will be fronted by Rakdos, the Muscle. Definitely a Commander suited for the type of games that he likes with his ability to sacrifice another creature to go exile cards equal to its mana value from the top of target player’s library so that you can play them until your next end step.

Unfortunately for him, he did not pull Rakdos, the Muscle at the pre-release or from the box that we always crack open. But it so happens that Noah did, even pulling the Showcase version. I expect that there will be some intense negotiations in the next few days.

Rakdos, the Muscle

To build up his deck, Christian sold some cards while at F2F. Among them were two monkey pirates that caused some grief about a year ago. Yes, Christian sold his two Ragavan, Nimble Pilferers! He got a price that he was satisfied with as well. And with the way WOTC seems to be reprinting most good cards with wild abandon, I expect that the price may continue to drop as it reappears in some future sets (perhaps in Modern Horizons 3 later this summer?).

I’ve always told the boys that these are their cards and that they can do what they want with them. This is even more relevant now that one of them is an adult. But I wish he had said he would sell them and given Noah a chance to get his hands on one after last year’s drama.

Ragavan, Nimble Pilferer
Ragavan, Nimble Pilferer

Noah now has a part-time job and could easily have either traded some other cards for one or bought it off his brother. Fortunately, time has rubbed some of the sting out and Noah did not look too upset to hear that the monkeys had left the building.

Especially after the Curse of the Box Opening turned to Christian this time around. While Noah pulled seven Mythics and I another five, Christian only pulled two. I pulled what is at the moment the most valuable, a Terror the Peaks (my second as I also have the one from Core Set 2021. Almost enough to take the sting out of the fact that there are no Clerics in this set.

Anyways, all this to basically say that the monkeys came, they spent a bit of time with us and have now left for some new adventures. They leave behind a very angry-looking Demon Mercenary that I do not look forward to facing in one of our future Commander games.

Standard B01 Orzhov Cleric Typal in Outlaws of Thunder Junction

/ Jerome / Leave a comment

This will be a very short installment in our Standard B01 Orzhov Cleric Typal adventure. While with a new set comes the promise of new cards and hopefully a strong deck, this latest set fails to deliver. Why? you ask. Well, simply put, there are no Clerics in Thunder Junction. Nary a one! Not even one! But it still finds room for squirrels? Don’t believe me? Have a look at Scryfall and see for yourself.

I’ll take a look at other cards that could slot into the deck to work alongside the clerics. Maybe I should look at the new Saddle mechanic. Can you imagine the fear when a Cleric mounted on a Bounding Felidar, a Bridled Bighorn or a Caustic Bronco comes riding at their opponent?

More seriously, I think I may look at the new Commit a Crime mechanic and see what options there might be.

For now, here is my unchanged Orzhov Cleric Typal deck:

  • 3 Infernal Grasp (MID) 107
  • 2 Anointed Peacekeeper (DMU) 2
  • 2 Valorous Stance (VOW) 42
  • 3 Evolved Sleeper (DMU) 93
  • 3 Shadow-Rite Priest (DMU) 106
  • 2 Voice of the Blessed (VOW) 44
  • 4 Lunarch Veteran (MID) 27
  • 2 Loran’s Escape (BRO) 14
  • 2 Markov Purifier (VOW) 241
  • 2 Elas il-Kor, Sadistic Pilgrim (DMU) 198
  • 2 Phyrexian Missionary (DMU) 27
  • 2 Sanguine Savior (MKM) 230
  • 3 Preacher of the Schism (LCI) 113
  • 2 Roaming Throne (LCI) 258
  • 2 Annex Sentry (ONE) 2
  • 8 Plains (THB) 250
  • 6 Swamp (THB) 252
  • 2 Scoured Barrens (NEO) 274
  • 3 Shattered Sanctum (VOW) 264
  • 1 Takenuma, Abandoned Mire (NEO) 278
  • 2 Eiganjo, Seat of the Empire (NEO) 268
  • 2 Cavern of Souls (LCI) 269

Sideboard:

  • 2 Farewell (NEO) 13
  • 2 Cut Down (DMU) 89
  • 2 Chaplain of Alms (MID) 13
  • 1 Voice of the Blessed (VOW) 44
  • 1 Intercessor’s Arrest (NEO) 20
  • 2 Skrelv, Defector Mite (ONE) 33
  • 2 Fateful Absence (MID) 18
  • 2 Liliana of the Veil (DMU) 97

Standard B01 Orzhov Cleric Typal in Murders at Karlov Manor

/ Jerome / Leave a comment

Welcome to the latest installment in our Standard B01 Orzhov Cleric Typal adventure. A new set means the potential for new Cleric cards for my deck and changes to our deck. Or not. The new set is not as generous with Clerics as Lost Caverns of Ixalan was. No luck finding 10 new clerics; there are only five clerics to be found in Murders at Karlov Manor. Two of them are reprints: Twilight Prophet and Vizier of Many Faces.

Without further ado, here are the Clerics of Murder at Karlov Manor:

Taking a closer look at which might be a good fit for our Orzhov deck, we can immediately eliminate Vizier of Many Faces, a Blue Cleric.

Agency Coroner is an expensive card more suited for Sacrifice decks than ours. A 3/6 with no other upside is not worth it. Pass.

Sanguine Savior, a Common that costs Black pip has more potential. Disguise gives us a bit of flexibility with what is essentially a simple 2/1 with flying and lifelink. If the game gives us a bit of time, we can have it enter as a Mysterious Creature and reveal it later, potentially giving us another lifelinker for a turn. It is susceptible to removal unfortunately. It’s still worth giving it a try.

Twilight Prophet is a card that first appeared in Rivals of Ixalan. With the city’s blessing, it fits nicely into our lifelink engine and can also ping our opponent. All before it swoops in for hopefully a bit more damage. Unfortunately, it is also very susceptible to removal.

Unyielding Gatekeeper is another Cleric capable of Disguise. Revealing its true identity allows you to exile a creature. If it’s one of yours, you get to blink it. Otherwise, your opponent gets a 2/2 white and blue Detective creature token in exchange for their exiled card. This might be worth trying if we take out a removal spell but the slower speed suggests it would not be a good move.

For now, I’m going to slot in a couple of Sanguine Saviors, replacing two Liliana of the Veil. Here is the updated deck.

  • 3 Infernal Grasp (MID) 107
  • 2 Anointed Peacekeeper (DMU) 2
  • 2 Valorous Stance (VOW) 42
  • 3 Evolved Sleeper (DMU) 93
  • 3 Shadow-Rite Priest (DMU) 106
  • 2 Voice of the Blessed (VOW) 44
  • 4 Lunarch Veteran (MID) 27
  • 2 Loran’s Escape (BRO) 14
  • 2 Markov Purifier (VOW) 241
  • 2 Elas il-Kor, Sadistic Pilgrim (DMU) 198
  • 2 Phyrexian Missionary (DMU) 27
  • 2 Sanguine Savior (MKM) 230
  • 3 Preacher of the Schism (LCI) 113
  • 2 Roaming Throne (LCI) 258
  • 2 Annex Sentry (ONE) 2
  • 8 Plains (THB) 250
  • 6 Swamp (THB) 252
  • 2 Scoured Barrens (NEO) 274
  • 3 Shattered Sanctum (VOW) 264
  • 1 Takenuma, Abandoned Mire (NEO) 278
  • 2 Eiganjo, Seat of the Empire (NEO) 268
  • 2 Cavern of Souls (LCI) 269

Sideboard:

  • 2 Farewell (NEO) 13
  • 2 Cut Down (DMU) 89
  • 2 Chaplain of Alms (MID) 13
  • 1 Voice of the Blessed (VOW) 44
  • 1 Intercessor’s Arrest (NEO) 20
  • 2 Skrelv, Defector Mite (ONE) 33
  • 2 Fateful Absence (MID) 18
  • 2 Liliana of the Veil (DMU) 97

Genesis: Battle of Champions Metamorphosis Preview

/ Jerome / Leave a comment

The hype train got started earlier this week for the next Genesis: Battle of Champions set with the reveal of a new Champion. And Edge of Exile (EoE), the game’s new owners, certainly kicked the latest preview season with a bang: A new champion, a new mechanic and a new type of card.

Issac, Jaelarian Smith, is the first Champion to be designed under the auspices of the new company. The design team had been thinking of dual-sided cards for some time but the previous ownership apparently did not support the idea. The new leadership was more open to the idea (maybe because they were familiar with dual-faced cards from another famous TCG?) and Metamorphosis, the upcoming set, felt like the right time to introduce them.

While the card template introduced with Invasion no longer lists the card creator, this specific card was credited during the livestream to Will K, a member of the design team and a contributor to earlier sets.

It looks like Issac transforms into a werewolf not when a full moon is high in the sky but when he gets hurt enough. And speaking of werewolves, EoE promise a fresh take on what they are all about. Traditional tropes such as having to get bit and transforming when a full moon is out or centuries long feuds with vampires may not feature in their background. They could instead be allied to “someone you would not expect,” according to Jason Malott, President at Edge of Exile Entertainment Inc., who promises a fresh take on these fan-favourite lycanthropes. They may even be good guys! All will be revealed in upcoming chapters of the lore.

A bit more about Metamorphosis, including a map of Jaelara, was revealed in the trailer that introduced Issac. Check it out below:

A precise release date for Metamorphosis is not available yet but look for it this coming summer! As for what other dual-sided cards (wererabbits perhaps?) will be on the set, we’ll have to wait for additional previews!

When I slept on Preacher of the Schism

/ Jerome / Leave a comment

This is not a new tale but an oft-told one that bears regular reminders. If only to myself. Let me set the stage.

For whatever reason, I’ve been enjoying building and playing with a Clerics typal deck for some time. With every new set, I take a close look at what new cards I can use in the deck. The last update to my standard B01 Clerics Typal deck came with the release of Caverns of Ixalan late last year. Among the cards that I added to the deck were Roaming Throne and Preacher of the Schism.

I pulled the former as my promo during pre-release and immediately recognized its value (the card’s value has borne that out as well – one of the few times I got it right). And I knew immediately that it was headed into my Clerics deck. I was not quite as sure about Preacher of the Schism. The 2/4 body is a decent stat for Black pip, I wasn’t quite as sure about the overall card. I liked it, thought it would fit well, and added it to my deck, knowing that I could always pull it later if my gut instinct turned out to be wrong.

Well, I added it to my Arena deck but procrastinated on getting it for my physical deck. I suspect that at this point you know where this is going. I just never saw what was coming. With Standard being re-emphasized by Wizards and a certain Rakdos deck doing well recently, the card has started to rise in price.

A few months back, it was going for around CA$1.00 to CA$1.50. As of late January, it now sells for between CA$4.00 and CA$6.00. And that’s when you can find it. It has been consistently sold out at my favourite LGSs for weeks now. If it does suddenly appear available, it tends to be the foil versions, a version I try to avoid.

I still want the card for my deck. If anything, playing with it as confirmed that it deserves a spot in the deck. So, now I’m left to see when I can buy it. As I wait, I’m left with a dilemma: Do I get it at the new higher price or do I wait for it to come down? The upcoming Murders at Karlov Manor set could help dry up demand for it and drive the price back down. Then again, it might also drive it up further [Mental note here to go check the new set now that it has been fully spoiled]. I fully expect it will drop in price when the set rotates out of Standard but then I won’t need it anymore anyways.

Let’s hope I learned my lesson this time. But knowing myself, I may be re-reading this post in the future…

Standard B01 Orzhov Cleric Tribal in The Lost Caverns of Ixalan

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While I was enjoying some vacation back October, Wizards of the Coast announced some significant product changes, namely the new Play Boosters. It followed that news up with what I consider to be possibly the most significant Universes Beyond announcement, its new collaboration with Marvel. More on those in the near future but today is all about the new Lost Caverns of Ixalan set and what it means for my Standard B01 Orzhov Cleric Tribal deck.

Unlike recent sets which contained few clerics (and fewer good ones), the new set comes with 10 Clerics, including two reprints. Best of all, 9 of those are in Orzhov colours. The last is a Blue Cleric. And that’s not all, there are some good cards that will complement the deck well.

Let’s first take a look at the new Clerics:

Confirming how much of a tribal set Lost Caverns of Ixalan is (like the previous Ixalan sets), all of the Clerics are also vampires (except for the blue Didact Echo). As I looked through the cards, it also quickly became obvious that they are more focused on Vampire Tribal than Cleric Tribal.

Acolyte of Aclazotz does not leap out as a must-add to my deck. Mine is not a Sacrifice deck and the benefits of losing a creature to gain one life and have my opponent lose one is just not there.

Clavileño, First of the Blessed would have been a far more interesting card if it targeted Clerics instead of Vampires. This is something for a future Vampires tribal deck rather than something for this deck.

Elenda’s Hierophant is a more interesting card. The deck features enough Lifegain to help buff this creature relatively quickly. It also offers a nice little benefit when it dies. At 4 CMC, it may just be too pricy an inclusion, especially as there is another 4 CMC card that I think is more potent. More on that shortly.

The appeal of Master of Dark Rites is its mana-fixing ability. But it again comes at the cost of sacrificing a creature, something that again does not align with the deck. It may be something that I throw in the deck to see how it fares.

I do like Mavren Fein, Dusk Apostle but this is not the deck for him. If only it said Clerics instead of Vampires.

Preacher of the Schism will definitely get a test in my deck. The 2/4 body is robust enough to attack or block and both triggered abilities will be beneficial. The card draw will certainly help as the deck can quickly deplete itself in some situations.

Redemption Choir is not a bad card but I’m not sure what it would replace given especially if I have to also make room for Preacher of the Schism. I’ll not completely rule it out but it might be an experiment at best as I think that there are stronger options.

Sanguine Evangelist does not offer enough deck synergy for me to consider it as an addition to the deck. Pass.

Twilight Prophet was a great card in Rivals of Ixalan and remains one in the right deck. I’m not sure that this is the deck for it but I suspect that I will at least try it and see.

Beyond the Cleric cards, I also want to see if there is room in the deck for Roaming Throne. Its ability “If a triggered ability of another creature you control of the chosen type triggers, it triggers an additional time.” should play nicely in the deck.

The other big addition to the deck is also not a Cleric but a land. Cavern of Souls is back in Standard and is pretty much an auto-include in any tribal deck.

All in all, The Lost Caverns of Ixalan looks to be a great set for Clerics. A good selection of new cards to play with. Here is what the deck looks like now:

  • 3 Infernal Grasp (MID) 107
  • 2 Anointed Peacekeeper (DMU) 2
  • 2 Valorous Stance (VOW) 42
  • 3 Evolved Sleeper (DMU) 93
  • 3 Shadow-Rite Priest (DMU) 106
  • 2 Voice of the Blessed (VOW) 44
  • 4 Lunarch Veteran (MID) 27
  • 2 Loran’s Escape (BRO) 14
  • 2 Markov Purifier (VOW) 241
  • 2 Elas il-Kor, Sadistic Pilgrim (DMU) 198
  • 2 Phyrexian Missionary (DMU) 27
  • 2 Liliana of the Veil (DMU) 97
  • 3 Preacher of the Schism (LCI) 113
  • 2 Roaming Throne (LCI) 258
  • 2 Annex Sentry (ONE) 2
  • 8 Plains (THB) 250
  • 6 Swamp (THB) 252
  • 2 Scoured Barrens (NEO) 274
  • 3 Shattered Sanctum (VOW) 264
  • 1 Takenuma, Abandoned Mire (NEO) 278
  • 2 Eiganjo, Seat of the Empire (NEO) 268
  • 2 Cavern of Souls (LCI) 269

Sideboard:

  • 2 Farewell (NEO) 13
  • 2 Cut Down (DMU) 89
  • 2 Chaplain of Alms (MID) 13
  • 1 Voice of the Blessed (VOW) 44
  • 1 Intercessor’s Arrest (NEO) 20
  • 2 Skrelv, Defector Mite (ONE) 33
  • 2 Fateful Absence (MID) 18

The Importance of Reading the Card

/ Jerome / Leave a comment

The Professor from the famed Tolarian College is famous for his “Read the card explains the card” line. And for good reason! Magic is not an easy game to learn but everything (okay, nearly everything about how cards work) you need is explained on the cards themselves. I was painfully reminded of this once more when I started playing with Questing Druid on MTG Arena.

Imagine my surprise when I would play the Adventure and then would watch the two exiled cards disappear. I would look to my opponent’s cards to see why my exiled cards did not appear to the right of my hand. There never was anything there to explain this odd behaviour. A bug, I wondered, but nothing online about such an issue. So, what was going on? I’d reread the adventure text. Nope, nothing there to explain this either. And then I read, I mean really really read the card.

It says “Exile the top two cards of your library. Until your next end step, you may play those cards.” That emphasis is mine and explains why the cards kept vanishing. Because I would often play it on my turn. And what happens at the end of your turn? Yes, there is a little something called an end step. And the cards disappear. But if you play the card after your end step, say, on your opponent’s turn or just before yours starts, guess what happens? Yep, exactly what it says on the card.

Lesson learned (for now) but I expect I will make it again if not on this card (okay, maybe not for this one) but definitely for another one.

The Prof is right: Reading the card explains the card.

Orzhov Cleric Tribal in Wilds of Eldraine

/ Jerome / Leave a comment

It’s once again time to take a look at how the latest set will help me improve my Standard B01 Orzhov Cleric Tribal deck. Wilds of Eldraine has been fully spoiled and Pre-Release weekend is only days away. Unfortunately, this is going to be a short post as this latest set is not Cleric friendly. Even if I expand my search to include the supplementary Wilds of Eldraine Commander Decks and Wilds of Eldraine Enchanting Tales, there are only two Clerics to be found!

Starfield Mystic

Starfield Mystic is a reprint from Core 2020 that will unfortunately not make its way into my Standard B01 Orzhov Cleric Tribal deck if only because it is not Standard-legal as it is from the Commander set.

Woodland Acolyte is an Adventure card that will also not be invited into my deck. In this case, the first big reason is that the Adventure requires a Green pip pip, something an Orzhov deck does not offer. Setting aside the adventure for a moment, the creature side of the card is no less uninviting. I’m not going to cut any 3 mana cards for this one.

So, no changes to the deck at this time. It will stay like this until The Lost Caverns of Ixalan hopefully gives us a better slate of clerics:

  • 3 Infernal Grasp (MID) 107
  • 2 Anointed Peacekeeper (DMU) 2
  • 2 Fateful Absence (MID) 18
  • 3 Evolved Sleeper (DMU) 93
  • 9 Plains (THB) 250
  • 7 Swamp (THB) 252
  • 3 Shadow-Rite Priest (DMU) 106
  • 2 Voice of the Blessed (VOW) 44
  • 3 Shattered Sanctum (VOW) 264
  • 4 Lunarch Veteran (MID) 27
  • 2 Scoured Barrens (NEO) 274
  • 1 Takenuma, Abandoned Mire (NEO) 278
  • 2 Eiganjo, Seat of the Empire (NEO) 268
  • 2 Loran’s Escape (BRO) 14
  • 4 Markov Purifier (VOW) 241
  • 2 Elas il-Kor, Sadistic Pilgrim (DMU) 198
  • 2 Phyrexian Missionary (DMU) 27
  • 2 Liliana of the Veil (DMU) 97
  • 3 Metropolis Reformer (MAT) 0004
  • 2 Annex Sentry (ONE) 2

Sideboard:

  • 2 Farewell (NEO) 13
  • 1 Cut Down (DMU) 89
  • 2 Chaplain of Alms (MID) 13
  • 1 Voice of the Blessed (VOW) 44
  • 1 Intercessor’s Arrest (NEO) 20

Sadly, Wilds of Eldraine is going to be remembered as a big disappointment for Clerics!

Another birthday means more Magic gifts

/ Jerome / Leave a comment

Another birthday is now in the books. This one was a low-key affair (bigger celebrations are planned for later in the year but they are not in any way related to Magic or any other TCG). So back to the (big?) day. Much like last year (and other past years), the boys focused on Magic for gifts.

Before I explain Christian’s gift, here is some important background. First, while I recognize that Blue is probably the most powerful colour in Magic, it is not my favourite. It is at the bottom of the list with Black.

That did not prevent me from building a mono-Blue Commander deck headed up by Talrand, Sky Summoner. This Merfolk Wizard is all about casting instant or sorcery spells to create an army of 2/2 drakes. Logically, you would expect the 99 to come with plenty of both to overwhelm his foes with lots of flying threats. Maybe a Temporal Manipulation (especially that Frazetta version) or the annoying Alrund’s Epiphany? Or a heap of cheap counter and draw spells that not only stymie your opponent but also get you more drakes.

Talrand, Sky Summoner
Secret Lair - Temporal Manipulation
Alrund's Epiphany
Alrund’s Epiphany

While Talrand has featured in a few rounds of Commanders, wins have been few and far between (but they have happened). And after every loss comes the advice to drop the many enchantments in the deck in favour of more instants and sorceries.

So, Christian kindly put together a selection of blue cards that would help my Talrand deck. Among the cards were Baral’s Expertise, Insidious Will, Overwhelming Denial, Pull from Tomorrow. A Mindsplice Apparatus, a useful artifact, and a Cemetery Illuminator were also included. As well as number of enchantments like Mirror Mockery and Monastery Siege (probably a sly shot from Christian that I may have too many enchantments in my deck).

Insidious Will
Pull from Tomorrow

Also included was a Mithril Coat from the recent The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth set. It’s not intended for my Talrand deck but was a card that I had hoped to pull for my Ruhan deck.

And then there is Noah’s gift. It is a scrap of torn paper. It is a handwritten coupon for one free event (a pre-release, a draft or another limited event). Maybe not much to look at but an awesome gift nonetheless. While I know Noah probably scrambled (I’m on to you, Noah!), it is a great gift because of what it represents – A future memory of time spent having time with him (it’s explicitly called out after all). How cool is that?

All in all, a very awesome birthday. And Talrand will soon be upgraded and ready for another round of Commander while Noah and I decide which event to go to next.