Sets Battle for Zendikar Spoilers

[Grillo_Parlante]

The slow lands are going to be lands that you design a cube around, not lands that you put into most existing cubes.

There are large incentives to run them, but at the same there are large disincentives to running them: which is exactly what you want when you are looking to use lands to create structure in an environment. They also introduce a sequencing decision with how and when you use fetchlands, which should provide further structure.

Cubes built around ubiquitously powerful cards that need ubiquitously powerful fixing will (and should have) no interest in these.

 

[vennythekid]

Is it me or is this new Gideon design the laziest planeswalker design ever?

I'm not sure, they could've given him megamorph...

 

[vennythekid]

Oh sorry, Gideon isn't a creature /s

 

[Chris Taylor]

1) I actually like the new Ulamog Art way better
2) The New Arid Mesa are apparently appearing at "Slightly more likely than a foil mythic" so I don't expect these to ever fall below 200$. Think ComicCon Black Frame planeswalkers, except actually playable.
3) New Gideon would be totally fine even if the word ally appeared nowhere, so I'm still making the switch from my new custom version.
4) Love new hero's downfall. I'm not sure 7 mana upside is where I want my removal spells, but I do love me some volcanic hammer, so I'll try it.
5) Everyone also missed the biggest news: the 4th Kami of Ancient Law singleton cubes can run!

 

[Goldenpineapple]

Is it me or is this new Gideon design the laziest planeswalker design ever?

It's basically what someone would pop out if the only restriction you gave them is that it has to 'be gideon' (be able to attack). It IS really lame but I think that's largely due to none of his abilities being new to planeswalkers in the slightest (Kiora had 2 new-to-walker abilities and a big splashy ultimate, to compare cool factors).

His 'ultimate' being relatively weak / an afterthought ability kind of makes him a two-ability walker. Gideon, Battle-forged gave me the impression that they would return to his no-ultimate design, especially after Champion of Justice's complete flop. I think he'll operate somewhere between OG Elspeth and any gideon- 2/2s on defense, 5/5 on offense, ignore that last ability.

 

[Chris Taylor]

It's basically what someone would pop out if the only restriction you gave them is that it has to 'be gideon' (be able to attack). It IS really lame but I think that's largely due to none of his abilities being new to planeswalkers in the slightest (Kiora had 2 new-to-walker abilities and a big splashy ultimate, to compare cool factors).

His 'ultimate' being relatively weak / an afterthought ability kind of makes him a two-ability walker. Gideon, Battle-forged gave me the impression that they would return to his no-ultimate design, especially after Champion of Justice's complete flop. I think he'll operate somewhere between OG Elspeth and any gideon- 2/2s on defense, 5/5 on offense, ignore that last ability.

That sounds like a good spot to be in honestly.

 

[anotak]

Did people not see the basic land types as the first feature of the lands?

Also, Gideon is an Ally? Ugh.

dude i don't even read that line because i just assume it won't be fetchable

 

[Chris Taylor]

Well clearly you're wrong

 

[Rasmus Källqvist]

I totally missed the fact that it can etb untap t3 the earliest

 

[ahadabans]

The slowlands are interesting primarily because they have basic land types. I'm currently running single fetch double shock, temple and a combination of filter/pains for the last cycle. It's solid as far as fixing goes, but there is a lot of self inflicted damage involved. It's conceivable I could swap one shock cycle for the slowland cycle (assuming we get the other 5). That encourages more midrange/control, so it might not be a net positive. I'll have to think more on this.

FWIW, I think the full art lands spoiled look ugly. And with them being essentially mythic foils, they will be so stupidly expensive anyway that I'm just going to pretend like they don't exist.

 

[Eric Chan]

I hope I'm not the only one who looked at Ulamog and thought, "bleh"
Not a huge fan of the art on some of these either... I mean, they just don't look as "epic" as the older ones do:

I think you're just pining for more Aleksi Briclot artwork... which, to be fair, I am, too. After his illustrations for the original Lorwyn Five, almost all of the planeswalker art that followed hasn't lived up to those lofty standards. What I like most about his style is that it resembles an actual painting, rather than the standard direction of comic-book inspired, CGI-looking artwork.

 

[FlowerSunRain]

Aleksi does the best planeswalker art, but Eric Dechamps consistently does good ones too. The only problem is his style doesn't stand out much, but when I think which ones have good art, his name is usually on the bottom of the card.

 

[shamizy]

DeSchamps has some great pieces, this new Gideon just isn't one of them.

 

[FlowerSunRain]

He was probably just pissed about having to draw giant dumb looking hedrons in the backround and phoned it in out of spite.

 

[Jason Waddell]

Is it wrong for me to want a 2-mana Bob-quality Eldrazi to come out of this set?

 

[Onderzeeboot]

Aleksi does the best planeswalker art, but Eric Dechamps consistently does good ones too. The only problem is his style doesn't stand out much, but when I think which ones have good art, his name is usually on the bottom of the card.

Yo, FSR I'm really happy for you, I'ma let you finish, but Scott M. Fischer had one of the best planeswalker arts of all time! One of the best planeswalker arts of all time!

 

[Chris Taylor]

Is it wrong for me to want a 2-mana Bob-quality Eldrazi to come out of this set?

Depending on how you elaborate that, yes

Also, I've always wanted to swap out the basics my cube uses for full arts, but I wasn't really ready to lay down the money for unhinged basics (The only kind I could say I loved all 5 arts from)
But then again...

I'm excited

 

[Goldenpineapple]

I've been rocking these- I started during zendikar so these were dimes (0.10 USD) or something. I'm not 100% on the plains but like the other 4 quite a lot. Am I the only person who gets the impression of a window from the new lands' square bottom corners? It's pretty sweet. Haven't fallen in love with any of the new art yet but usually stuff takes a bit to grow on me.

Spoiler

New card:

Lots of big green sorceries lately, wizards. I like 'em.
Alright, this is pretty cool new art:

 

[FlowerSunRain]

Nissa's renewal is awfully silly. It'd be a cool card if I had any 9+ mana dudes in my cube I guess, seven life will often buy you a turn you need to kill them with your zillion mana.

 

[Eric Chan]

The artwork on the new full art basics is indeed gorgeous, but I'll always be partial to the Veronique Meignaud set from the first time around

 

[vennythekid]

The mountain by Veronique is coming back... crossing fingers for the whole cycle?

 

[Chris Taylor]

We already have the reprint forest, and it's not hers

 

[anotak]

wait why do these new duals say basic

i just really cant read anything about them

 

[CML]

1) I actually like the new Ulamog Art way better
2) The New Arid Mesa are apparently appearing at "Slightly more likely than a foil mythic" so I don't expect these to ever fall below 200$. Think ComicCon Black Frame planeswalkers, except actually playable.
3) New Gideon would be totally fine even if the word ally appeared nowhere, so I'm still making the switch from my new custom version.
4) Love new hero's downfall. I'm not sure 7 mana upside is where I want my removal spells, but I do love me some volcanic hammer, so I'll try it.
5) Everyone also missed the biggest news: the 4th Kami of Ancient Law singleton cubes can run!

hahahah amazing. i tweeted @wtwlf123

 

[Rasmus Källqvist]

Another curiousity, Gideon makes white-knight allies.