My love affair with Magic is a long one filled with ups and downs, like a bumpy relationship between two people who don't like each other but just so happen to be in love. Many times I've stepped away from the game, either for personal reasons, or due to the fact that I was turned off by the Block at the time. However ever since I introduced my girlfriend to the game my addiction to it has reignited. I got her into Magic with the release of M10 and after a few games using mainly the contents of an old booster box of Coldsnap I had laying around she was hooked. We have collected quite rabidly over the last few years although the Scars block was not really our cup of tea. With the release of Innistrad we've fallen back in love and our collection shows it.
But I digress. The point of this Blog post is to touch on what my hopes and fears are for the Dark Ascension pre release this weekend. It is an exciting prospect but a little nerve racking as well. I am really looking forward to the opportunity to build a sealed deck as I feel that for the most part this provides a level playing feild (although the random nature of booster packs can really curb this level"ness"). I've been honing my deck building craft over the past few weeks and with the release of the visual spoiler for Dark Ascension I have an idea of what cards work well with one another. I'm also keen to see how this Tribal subgame element goes in the tournament, and like some others I hope to be picked as a Vampire or Zombie so I can turn as many of my opponents to my side as possible.
These hopes have also come with several fears though. I would have to say my biggest fear is pulling no solid cards from my packs and therefore having a weak card pool to build my deck from. That and just the fact that I've never participated in a sealed touranment and am unsure if the pressure will lead to mistakes. These fears will be dashed upon the rocky Nephalian shore if I manage to pull Sorin, Lord of Innistrad from my alloted Dark Ascension packs.
Below I've listed some the cards I'm really amped up to see from Dark Ascension and my reasoning behind this unabated excitement.
White Cards:
- Faiths Shield - This card is going to be a good replacement for Brave the Elements in my White decks. I love the versatility and the fact that I can protect any one of my permanents instead of just my creatures. It's Fateful Hour ability is a game changer in my opinion and I can't wait to see how often that mechanic is truly relevant.
- Thraben Doomsayer - I'm just a stickler for tokens, especially when it comes to the white mage in me and this guy is just begging for a spot in my Soldier Boys and Jesus Freaks deck. I don't know how effective he will be in the sealed format though.
Blue Cards:
- Artful Doge - The flavour here is great. I also happen to love unblockable creatures. This makes my B/U/R deck "Invisible Fist Bump" more versatile as I can justify throwing in some creatures that otherwise would not benefit from being unblockable.
- Increasing Confusion - I love milling and the doubling effect of its flashback ability just makes this card a tasty morsel, nuff said.
- Soul Seizer // Ghastly Haunting - a mind control that is also an evasion creature! Yes please.
Black Cards:
- Black Cat - I love the picture. I really have no other reasoning behind liking this card.
- Deadly Allure - Traps have always been my thing, I love springing them on my friends (Ambush Viper is awesome), and with flashback this card has quite a fair bit of utility. Makes my weak 1/1 Humans very dangerous.
- Zombie Apocalypse - This card is fantastic, I really love how the zombies are starting to come around and be more of a threat. The other reason I love this card is that I don't like having a near trump card in my games, I've always hated stupidly overpowered cards (Emrikol comes to mind) and yet I find myself in love with Invisible Stalker. I like Zombie Apocalypse for the opportunity it gives my friends to counter act my use of Invisible Stalker's excellence.
Red Cards:
- Curse of Bloodletting - I don't really play a lot of Red but this card has a place in my B/U/R "Invisible Fist Bump" deck as it centers around pumping Invisible Stalker and then swinging away.
- Hellrider - I like his ability to act as support artillery. I really hope that the Devils / Demons become a viable tribe by the end of the Block. I might be more inclined to play Red if that were the case.
Green Cards:
- Lost in the Woods - Great flavor here! I would love to see the look on my friends faces when I pull this off on them!
- Tracker's Instinct - Mulch for Creatures, excellent. This card is making the idea of a U/G self milling strategy more appealing.
- Vorapede - What a jerk! I can see this guy really causing problems.
Other Cards:
- The Tribal Captians (Diregraf Captain), (Drogskol Captain), (Immerwolf), (Stromkirk Captain) - My girlfriend and I are both suckers for Tribal themes and these cards make the tribal aspects of Innistrad Block a bit more playable.
- Sorin, Lord of Innistrad - Sorin is my favorite Planeswalker and now he's totally playable.
- Chalice of Life // Chalice of Death - Possibly my favourite artifact in Magic (maybe a slight overstatement) This card will go great in my B/W deck "Your Life for Mine".
- Jar of Eyeballs - The picture and quirky mechanics are just great.
Well that is all for now keep an eye out for some MTG videos that I hope to do in the nearest of futures.
88's
Lester Crow and His Strolling Bones
