Card/Deck Single Card Spotlight

Yeah, I find her to be more interesting than Sphinx's Rev and am not a big Fan of Venser, the Sojourner, so I happened to choose her to fill that last multicolour spot. I don't know, I guess I'll cut her in the end.
 

Chris Taylor

Contributor
I don't know if that's what it takes to make narset good, but if you wanna swap out auger of bolas for anything I'd be happy.
LSV jokes Auger's text box reads "Look at the bottom 3 cards of your library" and I've never found it any different
 
I don't specifically want UW spells matter to be a thing in my cube, I guess it's my fault for choosing an unprecise formulation. In fact, that's the problem I have with Narset. I did swap her today with Detention Sphere.
 

Eric Chan

Hyalopterous Lemure
Staff member
And Mystic Confluence is pure busted, do not run that please. It's like a better, instant-speed Aether Gale, which is another piece of hot garbage to come out of a Commander set. Please, please, please evaluate your Commander cards carefully, childrens. I know I was high on Mystic when it was spoiled but it's clearly bonkers.

I'm now in agreement with this. I got to see both counter + draw two, and counter + bounce + draw, both of which were certifiably insane. As was running it back via Snapcaster Mage - wowza!

I didn't get to see triple Whiplash Trap mode, because the pilot was playing a control deck, but I think that would also be categorically busted in any tempo aggro-control deck.
 

Onderzeeboot

Ecstatic Orb
I'm now in agreement with this. I got to see both counter + draw two, and counter + bounce + draw, both of which were certifiably insane. As was running it back via Snapcaster Mage - wowza!

I didn't get to see triple Whiplash Trap mode, because the pilot was playing a control deck, but I think that would also be categorically busted in any tempo aggro-control deck.

I got to see triple Unsummon though. Yeah, card is getting cut in my next update as well.
 
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How many red instants and sorceries would you normally be wanting to play in the deck?

From what I've found, it's not that you need a certain density of red instants/sorceries, as (presumably) your red spells are good enough on their own to be played in your deck. You have to want a situational piece of late game card advantage that also provides some ramp. It allows red to be a primary color in a late game control deck. Generally, as few as 3 red spells could make this worth it in a ramp deck.

Decks that want it (in my Cube, at least) are the RG Wolf-Run Ramp decks playing Fireballs as Finishers and the high-end Grixis decks that want ramp/card advantage out of their red spells.

What goggles does for a deck is change the way your deck views burn spells (as removal). Traditionally, burn is phenomenal early game removal, as creatures are small enough to die to 2-3 damage spells, and its very efficient mana-wise, between 1-2 mana. Additionally, (most) red removal is flexible; it can damage players as well, meaning it's not dead on an empty board as its counterparts (Path, Swords, Doom Blade, etc) are. The trade-off you make when playing red removal is that it scales very poorly into the mid/late game, when creatures start having 4 or more toughness, or your opponents have stabilized their life totals out of Burn range.

Pyromancer's Goggles changes this power curve entirely. It allows your removal to be strong and flexible early, while scaling late as well. With Goggles in play, 4-6 toughness creatures fall down all the same. What's more, you get 2-for-1s on creatures you could already kill with 1 spell. Opponents have to manage their life totals even more carefully or fall prey to Goggles-empowered bolts and jets. Magma Jet becomes a tutor. Electrolyze is disgusting. Pyroclasm and Anger of the Gods become Day of Judgement and Wrath of God. I'll let you figure out Devil's Play yourself.

Not to mention the dream (TM)
 
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How many red instants and sorceries would you normally be wanting to play in the deck?
This is a card with a very small amount of draft utility and incentive.

I feel like neither of the 5cc permanents compare favorably with arc slogger, it's just such a shame 40 card decks can't handle that ability cost.
 
They just both seem really meh for 5 mana.

Is an arc slogger that mills 5 too good? God that 5cc artifact seems disappointing, a land is only really worth part of a card on it's own. By the time you've already got 5 of them to pay for this stupid land how many extra volcanic hammers does this card take to be worth it. Especially given how down some of you guys are on sick removal spells and how often you make your control decks play 3 colours I'm mega dubious.
 
Arc-Slogger needs to have its ability exile ten cards as part of the effect. That way all you need to do is get to a point where you have half as much red as they do life and you just blow them up. You would also be able to nuke their face again after you untap, although its far too risky to count on. Even if it just hit my opponent's face I think I would like it then. It might even need a smaller body at that point. Or maybe we don't need a straight up nuke...
 

Onderzeeboot

Ecstatic Orb
They just both seem really meh for 5 mana.

Is an arc slogger that mills 5 too good? God that 5cc artifact seems disappointing, a land is only really worth part of a card on it's own. By the time you've already got 5 of them to pay for this stupid land how many extra volcanic hammers does this card take to be worth it. Especially given how down some of you guys are on sick removal spells and how often you make your control decks play 3 colours I'm mega dubious.
Pyromancer's Goggles may not be your thing, but I have multiple players in my playgroup who love it, me included. It's not even about power level per se, it's just so cool to double your spells. For the measly cost of a single slot in your cube, you could make a lot of players happy* ;)

*providedyourcubeisnottoofastandthepowerlevelisnottoohightmallrightsreserved
 

Eric Chan

Hyalopterous Lemure
Staff member
While Cruel Ultimatum is obviously the dream scenario, I don't think we need to go that far to make Pyromancer's Goggles worth someone's while. For me, the threshold is two spells - copying a Volcanic Hammer plus a Searing Blaze would seem to me like you've gotten your five mana's worth.

Having said that, I realize that copying two red spells after you've cast your five mana rock that doesn't affect the board can be a tall order. Even though the hoops you have to jump through are considerable, I think there's enough fun factor packed into the card to make the payoff worth striving for, for a lot of players.
 
Yeah but big red decks or red control decks that are doing more than splashing for some multicolor burn spells are pretty rare in my berg. On top of that think of red top end, you've got wildfires and earthquakes, sounds great right? Planeswalkers and dragons.. Hmm.

I guess it's fun those rare moments when you draw your terminate turn 7 and you have your 5 mana land in play and you aren't really dead yet and you get to do something kinda like quarantine zone or whatever it's called and that must feel pretty cool. But you gotta be a couple cards deep right? It just feels too narrow for old lulu. People need to put more effort into their support for big red decks. I guess it's gonna be pretty great with that new command that does 6 lol
 

Onderzeeboot

Ecstatic Orb


And then there's a bunch of customs that are awesome with this, like the sorcery shock with exile and play this turn, or the six mana wrath that plays an instant or sorcery from your graveyard for free. So many juicy options. It's win more for sure, but it's also hella fun! :D
 
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