Card/Deck Single Card Spotlight

[safra]

Not into it. I've only played with Library in the mtgo cube (the mube? mobe?) and the main reason its so unbelievably insane is it's a land: it works on turn one, you can almost never remove it, it costs zero, and it taps for mana. Magus doesn't do any of that.... so it's actually kind of a totally different card, and somebody should try it and see.

Edit: or redesign it to be riptide level?

I think its best chance is as a one-drop in a bounceland format so you still have seven cards in hand the first turn you can activate it. Even then it's pretty weak compared to the land. I've power cubed with Library and it's not really a great card to draw late-game, you absolutely want it in your first opening hand. It just has a lot more upside than the other colorless spell lands (1: draw a card, go figure). Magus i've only seen in EDH / casual Tiny Leaders but I've never been super impressed.

e: that said i've been trying to hit 1-2-4 on my ramp curves so who knows, if my players are cool i'll test it

 

[ahadabans]

To be fair, Library of Alexandria is probably the most powerful Magic card ever printed (I would P1P1 that card over every other Magic card). If you start with library in your opening hand, you pretty much cannot lose the game as it's virtually impossible to beat that kind of free CA. So I don't think it's fair that we compare Magus of the Library to it (or any card for that matter). It would be like judging the playability of Brainstorm based on how it stacks up power-wise to Ancestral Recall. My 2 cents.

That said, I don't think Magus of the Library is playable on it's own merits for reasons you touched upon. Not disagreeing at all there. It's too fragile and too hard to build a deck that can repeatedly trigger it.

 

[Aoret]

...and it taps for mana. Magus doesn't do any of that....

Not to be a contrarian Jamesy, but uh... he does tap for mana ....and I'm pretty sure this card is still total dog shit.

I'm not even sure I want this kind of effect hanging around, even assuming we were smart enough to balance it just right. I feel like there are a million other ways to let your players durdle around doing nothing in order to get card advantage that are more interesting than "sit on a bunch of cards in hand". More power to any of y'all who wanna give this bro a test run though, maybe I'm super wrong. I think if he's playable it's costed at G with no other changes (and even then the interesting and skill testing part is figuring out when he's just supposed to be a shitty llanowar elves instead of a shitty library of alexandria - sort of in the same vein as figuring out when Den Protector just needs to be a bear)

 

[Onderzeeboot]

Fwiw, Magus of the Library is just as bonkers as Library of Alexandria if you tap it for cards. It is a good deal more fragile and hard to cast when it needs to be cast due to its restrictive casting cost and the fact that you won't draw it in your first 8/9 cards because you only run one copy in a forty card deck. I got some good value out of it in casual games though!

 

[RavebornMuse]

Wow you guys

I feel like I'm going to have to put Magus of the Library into counseling for self-esteem, yall just shredded that poor little guy

I guess I'll pass on him, yall probably right that he's junk, but I was real tempted by the idea of him in a UG shell, where the blue card draw could help keep your grip full enough to really use him... *sweats profusely at thought of all that card draw* Probably just a dumb fantasy, though I'm sure I'll be crazy enough to give him a shot some day. For, now, though, my 2-drop section is at max capacity, so he gets a pass I suppose... You win this round, ya big bullies.

 

[Aoret]

Aw shucks Rave, we didn't mean to hurt the little guy's feelings D:

 

[ahadabans]

I'm pretty sure Wizard's intentionally made the card basically unplayable simply because of how stupid the library effect is. I'm not sure you can make a card with a repeatable free card draw effect that was anything other than hot garbage or broken. It's hard enough to balance one time card draw. Repeatable draw that isn't symmetrical unbalances a fundamental and critical aspect of the game. It's just a bad idea.

 

[James Stevenson]

Not to be a contrarian Jamesy, but uh... he does tap for mana ....and I'm pretty sure this card is still total dog shit.

Oh woops. Ok, then it might not be too bad if it was just 1G, and maybe a 1/2. Maybe?

 

[Dom Harvey]

 

[RavebornMuse]

Crusader is neat, but low on the list of 4-drops I'd want to cube.
That hybrid spell seems like too much work, but it's better in token builds I suppose? I don't support W tokens so I'm probably undervaluing it.


How are these?



I figure Misstep might just be miserable, but it could be cool, idk
Gem = kinda fixing/ramp reach with landfall applications? Probably just bad.

 

[Aoret]

Misstep is probably way too narrow. I feel like it shines in older formats where the likelihood of your opponent casting CMC 1 is dramatically higher. I ran Khalni Gem in a (much) lower power cube and it was fine there (does everything you describe and does them well), but sadly it won't be good enough for standard riptide fare.

I'd rather run a second Daze or Force of Will over Misstep if I really felt my cube needed another "free" counterspell. Probably Daze because that card is sweet and you can make "don't laze me bro!" jokes whenever somebody casts it.

 

[RavebornMuse]

Misstep is probably way too narrow. I feel like it shines in older formats where the likelihood of your opponent casting CMC 1 is dramatically higher. I ran Khalni Gem in a (much) lower power cube and it was fine there (does everything you describe and does them well), but sadly it won't be good enough for standard riptide fare.

I'd rather run a second Daze or Force of Will over Misstep if I really felt my cube needed another "free" counterspell. Probably Daze because that card is sweet and you can make "don't laze me bro!" jokes whenever somebody casts it.

My format's pretty fast, so everyone has 1-drops, usually at least 3-4. The only real question is whether or not you'll have it in-hand when it's relevant, but I feel like blowing out a T1 mana dork or an anytime Mother of Runes, StP, Reanimate, Rancor, or Skullclamp would be worth the risk, especially since it's free. I don't like Force of Will outside of higher powered lists imho because it feels like a misplay too often and really punishes newer players. Daze is ok but I don't run it.

 

[James Stevenson]

So how about
¿
Trinket Mage fetches it, but is it environmentally friendly?

 

[Kirblinx]

So how about
¿
Trinket Mage fetches it, but is it environmentally friendly?

If the curse doesn't stop it from being bio-degradable, then yes. It is just paper after all.

 

[James Stevenson]

 

[CML]

nah not that one. downsides are way too high in cube.

 

[Eric Chan]

I like that it's instant, and that it scales into the late game... but I think that by the time you can pay a large amount for X in mana, chances are you can't afford to pay X in life. Though they're a bit boring, I think you want these two before Scrying

 

[James Stevenson]

I like that it's instant, and that it scales into the late game... but I think that by the time you can pay a large amount for X in mana, chances are you can't afford to pay X in life. Though they're a bit boring, I think you want these two before Scrying

I already run these two and I'm very happy with them.

Point taken about skeletal.

 

[ahadabans]

I've been running this card for awhile now and it's actually pretty good. A 2/1 unblockable for 3 is not so hot on the surface, but being able to play him from the yard means you can pitch him early to some effect and recur him later when you need a dude (he's sort of like the phoenix twins without haste but a tad easier to recur and with better evasion). Particularly useful for those games where the board stalls. Being unblockable means he gets through every defense in existence. Having a green or black permanent is not hard either, and those colors are often the ones that get stalled due to limited evasion options.

This probably has no place in a high powered fast environment, but it's been solid over here.

 

[blacksmithy]

I also like the Marang guy. My cube is a little (heh, maybe more than a little) too high-power for him. But, if I were in a place where Tasigur were too good for my power level, I'd definitely give Prowler a long look for the Sultai spot. I love Prowler's color flexibility and the Gravecrawler-esque recursion.

 

[Alfonzo Bonzo]

Anybody tried

?

Purpheros is too potent for what I want.

 

[ahadabans]

I tried it. It was too low impact except in tokens. And tokens doesn't need more help being good so I pulled it.

If you want a Purphoros replacement (or adjunct), I highly highly recommend Outpost Siege. That card does work in multiple archetypes too. In sacrifice decks, it's a straight up win condition. I can't count how many times that card has basically destroyed my opponent out of nowhere. That plus blood artist in play is GG most of the time in any creature based strategy.

In your more straight line aggressive decks, it provides some reach options. That first mode is actually excellent if your initial army gets wiped and you just need a CA engine to get you back in the game.

 

[safra]

Anyone have experience with ? running 20 fetches, two pods, like ten walkers in a 360 list, with more abilities besides. Mostly I'm looking for reactive U tempo plays at one mana and Daze pushes Force Spike out of my environment.

 

[Jason Waddell]

Anyone have experience with ? running 20 fetches, two pods, like ten walkers in a 360 list, with more abilities besides. Mostly I'm looking for reactive U tempo plays at one mana and Daze pushes Force Spike out of my environment.

I run it. It's a super fun card, usually finds some target, occasionally is a ridiculously memorable blowout. I think it's a big net fun plus, my players loved drafting it and waiting for the absurd scenarios that would occur.

 

[safra]

I run it. It's a super fun card, usually finds some target, occasionally is a ridiculously memorable blowout. I think it's a big net fun plus, my players loved drafting it and waiting for the absurd scenarios that would occur.

what turn do your games end at? we're usually around 7-9 which is why I was wondering about the density of targets. The fetch triggers are cute but I'm I guess wondering if it's broadly okay as well as narrowly fantastic. I'll slot it in and see what happens!