The Commons of M14 - Black

This is part of a series of posts about drafting our brand new set, Magic 2014. I'll discuss each of the five colors, and rank each common card from that color as I would expect to take them in a limited format. Check my recent posts to see the other colors.

Black

Tier 1 - Potential pack one, pick one:
1. Liturgy of Blood
2. Mark of the Vampire

I wanted desperately to put Mark of the Vampire first, but when thinking about the actual decision, there's just no way I'd take Mark over Liturgy if the choice was in front of me. That said, Mark of the Vampire is essentially half a bomb, so I have no problem taking it first if there isn't a true bomb in the pack.

Tier 2 - Potential pick one in pack two or three, after my colors are established:
3. Deathgaze Cockatrice
4. Quag Sickness
5. Accursed Spirit
6. Blood Bairn
7. Child of Night

Deathgaze Cockatrice shows how absurdly good Vampire Nighthawk is; Deathgaze costs one more mana, has one less toughness, and doesn't have lifelink. And it's still a good card. Quag Sickness is a pretty solid piece of removal. Accursed Spirit is the black version of Bladetusk Boar, which was a nice card. Blood Bairn is a functional reprint of Vampire Aristocrat; it's still good. Child of Night, despite only having one toughness, can get a lot of work done.

Tier 3 - Solid cards to fill out the color:
8. Altar's Reap
9. Corpse Hauler
10. Dark Favor
11. Wring Flesh
12. Nightwing Shade
13. Festering Newt

Altar's Reap is one of those cards that really fits into black flavor-wise, and at instant speed, gives a lot of opportunities for extra value. Corpse Hauler is another example of how 2 power makes any two-drop fairly useful. As with most enchantments, I like Dark Favor more than most, but 3 extra power can turn any creature into a real problem. Wring Flesh is more of a combat trick than true removal, but a pretty good one. On a scale of shades, Nightwing Shade feels pretty close to the bottom. That said, it's still a 2/2 flyer with some ability to pump, so it's got value. Festering Newt will often be Festering Goblin, which makes it pretty decent in my book.

Tier 4 - Not exciting, but playable cards in color:
14. Mind Rot
15. Duress
16. Undead Minotaur
17. Shrivel

Mind Rot is one of those cards you never want to play, but you also hate seeing your opponent cast. Duress serves a specific purpose, and has a place in every sideboard. Nobody's going to call Undead Minotaur a beast, but it'll get plenty of work done. Shrivel is like infinitely worse than Cower in Fear...which often ended up as no more than a sideboard card.

Tier 5 - Cards I have a hard time seeing myself play:
18. Vile Rebirth
19. Minotaur Abomination
20. Shadowborn Apostle

Vile Rebirth isn't the worst...but it's pretty close. Minotaur Abomination is blah. If you have no finishers, it can squeak in, but if it's your best finisher, you're probably going to lose. Shadowborn Apostle is utterly worthless in limited.

The Commons of M14 - Blue

This is part of a series of posts about drafting our brand new set, Magic 2014. I'll discuss each of the five colors, and rank each common card from that color as I would expect to take them in a limited format. Check my recent posts to see the other colors.

Blue

Tier 1 - Potential pack one, pick one:
1. Trained Condor
2. Time Ebb
3. Claustrophobia

Trained Condor may not be a factor in constructed situations, but in limited, it feels like one of the best cards to start with. Time Ebb undermines your opponent's tempo and is fairly splashable. Any deck can use it. Claustrophobia isn't at all splashable, but beckons you into blue with how powerful it is.

Tier 2 - Potential pick one in pack two or three, after my colors are established:
4. Nephalia Seakite
5. Disperse
6. Archaeomancer
7. Essence Scatter

Nephalia Seakite is a good card; flash is really valuable in blue decks, because it lets you keep up mana for counterspells without missing opportunities to play creatures. Disperse is Unsummon-plus, but that extra mana knocks it down a peg for me. James's favorite card in every set is Archaeomancer; while I'm not quite as enamored, it's very useful and very blue. Essence Scatter is the "Blu-oom Blade," arguably the best piece of removal in blue. Once you're going blue, you're always happy to take it, any pick.

Tier 3 - Solid cards to fill out the color:
8. Cancel
9. Messenger Drake
10. Divination
11. Scroll Thief
12. Sensory Deprivation

I'll never understand why Cancel gets shrugged aside so often in limited. If Counterspell were reprinted, it'd be hated as far too powerful, but adding another colorless mana suddenly makes the card unplayable? I don't get it. Messenger Drake is a non-bomb bomb; a 3/3 with evasion and an on-death bonus has a place in every blue deck. Divination is Divination. I never really like choosing Scroll Thief for my deck, but he seems to always get work done. Sensory Deprivation, I don't know, maybe I like it more than I should, but it honestly seems like it can be as useful as Pacifism in plenty of circumstances.

Tier 4 - Not exciting, but playable cards in color:
13. Negate
14. Seacoast Drake
15. Coral Merfolk
16. Frost Breath

In this set, with all the useful enchantments, I'm more willing to main-deck Negate. Seacoast Drake is fine, defensive, helps you prolong the game. Playing Coral Merfolk makes you realize how much more important power is than toughness in low drops. Frost Breath fits into blue decks, but there are plenty of other cards that I'd put above it.

Tier 5 - Cards I have a hard time seeing myself play:
17. Armored Cancrix
18. Zephyr Charge
19. Merfolk Spy
20. Tome Scour

Armored Cancrix can fill out a deck if you really need some depth and defense, but I'll try to find a thousand other ways to fill that need. Zephyr Charge is one of those cards that looks useful, but when the cards are on the table, you'd rather have almost anything else in your hand. Merfolk Spy is a mostly useless 1/1, though I suppose it's better than a completely useless 1/1. I'm glad Tome Scour will be back in Standard, but the mill deck is a tall order in M14 limited unless you get awfully lucky.

The Commons of M14 - White

This is the first of a series of posts about drafting our brand new set, Magic 2014. I'll discuss each of the five colors, and rank each common card from that color as I would expect to take them in a limited format. I'll arrange them in tiers, for your organizational viewing pleasure.

Normally I'd be all about ranking the colorless cards as well, but seeing as how there's all of one common-level colorless card, it might not be all that interesting an article. Sliver Construct is a fine card, though.

White

Tier 1 - Potential pack one, pick one:
1. Celestial Flare
2. Pacifism
3. Dawnstrike Paladin

Celestial Flare is one of the stronger pieces of removal in the set, right up there with Doom Blade. I like that it's a very white card in flavor, and I like that it pierces hexproof and indestructible. Pacifism is classic; no discussion necessary. I know I'm going to rate Dawnstrike Paladin higher than most people, but I can't help it. I've always been a fan of vigilance, and after the number of times I've gotten rolled by Mark of the Vampire in M13, I've got a newfound appreciation for lifelink. The cost is high, but spells cost mana, that's how it goes.

Tier 2 - Potential pick one in pack two or three, after my colors are established:
4. Charging Griffin
5. Master of Diversion
6. Auramancer

Charging Griffin is fine, works really well if you have some defenses back to cover. Master of Diversion is a 2/2 body with a useful effect. Same goes for Auramancer. The set seems to almost demand that you play at least a couple of enchantments, so I'd expect that you're getting full value out of Auramancer around 40% of the time.

Tier 3 - Solid cards to fill out the color:
7. Sentinel Sliver
8. Suntail Hawk
9. Divine Favor
10. Hive Stirrings
11. Solemn Offering
12. Capashen Knight
13. Pay No Heed

I like Sentinel Sliver a lot, but vigilance on a 2/2 doesn't do a ton; by the time you can attack with a 2/2, it's usually at risk of being traded for another 2/2, which means half the time your Sentinel Sliver is just another Silvercoat Lion. In a slivers deck, obviously it's more useful. Suntail is fine, a one mana flyer in an enchantment-heavy set should be useful. Divine Favor isn't a phenomenal, but it makes any creature a problem to deal with. Hive Stirrings I'm rating a little higher than I might normally rate a sorcery-speed token spell, simply because the set favors slivers. Solemn Offering is going to be a damn useful card in this set, I promise. I initially had nothing positive to say about Capashen Knight, but really, it's a two-drop that you don't hate pulling in turn 8, so that has value. Pay No Heed seems just okay, but it can unmake a lot of red decks' plans, and also has a narrow fog effect.

Tier 4 - Not exciting, but playable cards in color:
14. Show of Valor
15. Fortify
16. Siege Mastadon
17. Pillarfield Ox

Show of Valor was a deck-filler at best in M13; I expect it to be the same in M14. Fortify is a tough card to judge, but I could see it moving up my list a bit as we see more of the set. Siege Mastadon and Pillarfield Ox are cards, but that's all they are.

Tier 5 - Cards I'd have a hard time seeing myself play:
18. Griffin Sentinel
19. Angelic Wall
20. Soulmender

Griffin Sentinel has to exist, but I don't ever want to play it. Getting just one power on a three-drop creature never feels good. Angelic Wall is what it is; Fog Bank is infinitely better. Soulmender might fit into lifegain decks, but until I see him getting work done, I'm wary of any 1/1 without evasion.

Top 5 "Whoa Nelly" Moments from Terraria - Number One

This is part of a series of five articles about the great surprises from my first foray into Terraria. Check out the other recent posts for the rest of the list.

#1 - The Blood Moon

So here we are, the #1 most insane moment from my early forays into Terraria in a multiplayer setting. I remember the first time it happened, I was deep into the third cave level, not knowing when the sun was rising or setting, and I got a message: "The Blood Moon is rising." That was followed by a confused "wait what?" from one of my companions on Skype. Curious, I returned to the surface, where I could see the moon.

What I found was carnage and chaos.

The Blood Moon basically means that nowhere is safe. Zombies and Demon Eyes can force their way through your doors and into your house to pummel your characters and murder your townsfolk. The enemies also spawn in greater number and with greater frequency. But the last, most devious change is that those sweet little five HP bunnies turn into murderous Corrupt Bunnies, who have greater health and damage than the zombies themselves. Watching a purple rabbit maul your friends while you try to fend off the zombies that have invaded your home is a mortifying experience...and part of what makes Terraria just so F-ing great.

Top 5 "Whoa Nelly" Moments from Terraria - Number Two

This is part of a series of five articles about the great surprises from my first foray into Terraria. Check out the other recent posts for the rest of the list.

#2 - Eater of Worlds

Ahh, the Eater of Worlds. The best thing about the Eater of Worlds is that when he shows up, it's your fault. The Eater is spawned when you smash enough of the dark crystal balls in the Corruption, which is only possible after you've crafted a fairly high level hammer. When you smash a crystal, you get a cryptic message, something like, "A horrible chill runs down your spine..." The first time one of our group did so, there were four or five of us in the server, and upon that text appearing at the bottom of the screen, one of our players immediately disconnected. It turned out he wasn't up for whatever was coming.

After two more orbs were smashed, the rest of us realized that we were also not ready for what was coming.

Seeing that massive worm barreling through the cavern, was an eye-opening experience for me during the game, and pretty much the exact moment when I realized it was time to upgrade my armor and find some more life crystals. Eventually, after upgrading your gear and getting the hang of the Eater's mechanics, the fight becomes fairly easy, and a good way to generate a bunch of money. But I won't forget that first time, when I got chewed up and spit out...or not spit out, rather, but definitely chewed up.

Top 5 "Whoa Nelly" Moments from Terraria - Number Three

This is part of a series of five articles about the great surprises from my first foray into Terraria. Check out the other recent posts for the rest of the list.

#3 - Sky Islands

I'm sure that a lot of people found out about sky islands from the internet, but I'm delighted to say that my group of friends came across our first sky island by chance. We had been having a pain of a time traversing the countryside getting from one side of the map to the other, so we decided to build what we called a sky bridge, an elevated line of stone blocks across the map. With some jumping around, a friend came across the vines hanging from one of the islands. I honestly thought he was joking about the island when he started talking about it, but it turned out he was telling the truth...and he reaped the rewards. When he showed the rest of us a few dozen pieces of nice ore, a cloud in a bottle, and some other assorted loot, we were all on the hunt for other islands.

Though the harpies that patrol the sky islands were a bit of a nuisance, the "Whoa Nelly" wasn't so much from being panicked or threatened. It was more of a, "Whoa Nelly, what a cool thing they did in this game with these sky islands."

That's not so much the case with #2. Tune in tomorrow to read all about it.

Top 5 "Whoa Nelly" Moments from Terraria - Number Four

This is part of a series of five articles about the great surprises from my first foray into Terraria. Check out the other recent posts for the rest of the list.

#4 - The Dungeon (and those asshole skull ghost things)

I knew the dungeon existed fairly early in my Terraria-playing days, well before I actually delved into it. The trailer for the game showed part of the boss battle against Skeletron, the "gatekeeper" of the dungeon, so I had some sense of the situation when my friends and I finally found the dungeon entrance in our travels. But I didn't have any idea exactly what sort of dangers lurked in the dungeon.

We started to go into it, and then these flying skull things started zipping around. So we do a little dodging and weaving, pop a couple shots at the skulls, and then one of us takes a hit and just gets obliterated. We try to regroup, but there's no way around it; these flying skulls were just massacring us. After about a dozen deaths, we finally realized there was something up with the situation, and did our research to find that we needed to defeat Skeletron to eliminate those bastards, but for a few minutes we had a hilariously panicked time.

Steam Summer Sale 2013

Every year, there are two massive sales on Steam, one during the summer and one during the winter. Today is the last day of this year's summer sale, and, as usual, I bought a couple games I absolutely did not need to buy. I've got 370+ games, but my thirst for good values brings me to the virtual checkout line over and over again. Here are the games I bought, why I bought them, and what the likelihood is that I play them anytime soon.

Fallout: New Vegas - Ultimate Edition ($4.99)

I played Fallout 3 for about an hour over at my friend Chip's house several years ago, and I really, really enjoyed it. Which of course means nothing when it comes to how I spend my free time. I have owned Fallout 3's Game of the Year Edition for over a year now, and I haven't even installed the title. And while I'm absolutely looking forward to playing Fallout: NV at some point, I want to play through Fallout 3 first. After hearing people talk about how they spent hundreds of hours on Fallout 3, and knowing that I'm the kind of guy who takes the long way around in Bethesda games, who knows when I'll get to New Vegas.

Likelihood to play in the next year: 5%

Wanderlust: Rebirth 4-Pack ($7.49)

I loved Secret of Mana. Loved it. When I was in middle school, or maybe early high school, a friend of mine brought the game over and we started playing around 7:30, after dinner. When we stopped playing, the sun was coming up. That's what I'm hoping for out of Wanderlust. It's billed as an arcade-action RPG, and while it looks a little more explosive and intense than Secret of Mana, I'm willing to take a gamble on that kind of payoff.

I also got the 4-pack of this game. The game has a four-play cooperative mode, and I've always been a big advocate of cooperative gaming. So with the opportunity to try out a game I'm interested in, on top of the ability to share that gaming experience with my friends, I think that maybe, just maybe, I'll play this game.

Likelihood to play in the next year: 50%

Under the Ocean ($2.49)

Under the Ocean is the only game I purchased during the sale that I had never heard of before the event. I got a text from a friend about the game, saying it was one of the "hidden gems" of the sale. It was never one of the featured sales, but the discount was deep. The game is still in alpha, which means it'll have its share of bugs and problems, but honestly, that's part of the appeal. Getting to see how a game develops is something I don't normally do; I rarely even buy games at all in the first year or more after their retail release. Picking up Under the Ocean gives me a chance to play a game right away, and for $2.49, you can't beat that.

Likelihood to play in the next year: 75%

Top 5 "Whoa Nelly" Moments from Terraria - Number Five

I'm a huge fan of Terraria. If you check out my Steam profile, you can see that I've spent over three hundred hours mining, constructing, exploring, and slaying. It's often described as a 2D Minecraft (by myself as well), which is accurate enough, but the implication is that Terraria is a dumbed down version of Minecraft, and that's not fair. Terraria has a much stronger combat system, a more robust suite of enemies, better graphics, and a killer soundtrack.

Terraria has also offered some multiplayer moments that rival even the most heated battles in Left 4 Dead or Payday in terms of intensity. The game really captures the idea of the wilderness being this treacherous, unknown area, where danger lurks at every turn. Here are the top five "Whoa Nelly" moments from my first time playing through Terraria.

(For those of you unaware, the phrase "Whoa Nelly" has a special place in my heart since Earthworm Jim.)

#5 - Jungle Shrine

The first time I came across one of these, I was mystified. What on earth are gold bricks doing down here? And...ooh, treasure. When it comes to Terraria, there are two things I really go crazy for: high-end blocks and treasure. Finding both of them was a delightful surprise in the dangerous depths of the jungle.

Of my five "Whoa Nelly" moments, the jungle shrine was the least scary, which also makes it the least fun to talk about. It was a nice surprise, but didn't hold a candle to the other four. Which is my way of saying, stay tuned.

The Things I'm Going to Miss About Drafting M13 - Number One

This is the conclusion of a continuing series highlighting what I'll miss most about drafting M13. Check out recent blog posts to view the rest of the list.

#1 - The Roaring Primodox Engine

One of my favorite things in an M13 draft was getting a Primodox early and then going bonkers with "enter the battlefield" cards. When it didn't work out it left you with a hodgepodge of green, white, and black cards, but when it did, oh mama, that engine could hum.

The thing that was so fun about Roaring Primodox is that its effect is, in a vacuum, a negative. Having to re-cast creatures is generally not something you want to do with your mana. But when you find the cards whose "enter the battlefield" effects were valuable, you were turning a negative into a positive. By employing the right complementary cards, you could draw extra cards, spawn new tokens, pump your creatures and more, all from sensible use of this one beautiful card.

We're losing not only the Primodox, but most of the cards that made the engine work:

 

 

 

I'm sure there'll be other engines that present themselves as we begin to play the drafts; there appear to be a number of lifegain-based cards in this set that might work well together. But I will miss the magic that me and the Primodox used to make.

Thus ends this series of posts regarding M13. See you next week, bros.

The Things I'm Going to Miss About Drafting M13 - Number Two

This is part of a continuing series highlighting what I'll miss most about drafting M13. Check out recent blog posts to view the rest of the list.

 #2 - Omniscience

I've never played a deck with Omniscence. Not in a draft, not in Standard, not in Commander, not even in a casual game with friends. But Omniscience is representative of one of my absolute favorite things about Magic.

When M13 came out, Omniscience was basically a nothing card. It was a big effect that people mostly ignored because of its prohibitive mana cost. It's not alone in that category; there are cards in every set that look great, but get pushed aside because they're too difficult to cast. But then one day, Travis Woo took a recommendation from a reader (a guy named Derek Adams) and worked it into a complex and exciting deck that was able to take advantage of it. He's well-known for brewing up interesting decks, and the deck he put together with Omniscience was a hit.

Like, a BIG hit. So big, in fact, that the regular buying price for Omniscience went from a few cents to several dollars.

And that's the beauty of Magic. Each card has its value, its niche, its role to play. Some cards seem unimpressive or useless, but all it takes is some clever guy to figure out where that role is, and the whole community responds. Travis Woo was able to affect the ENTIRE MAGIC ECONOMY by simply identifying an untapped opportunity and spreading the word about it. That's what makes Magic beautiful.

Well, that and Unsummon.

The Things I'm Going to Miss About Drafting M13 - Number Three

This is part of a continuing series highlighting what I'll miss most about drafting M13. Check out recent blog posts to view the rest of the list.

#3 - Unsummon

 

I love Unsummon. If I could declare one card as being almost completely under-valued by the Magic community, it would be Unsummon. I've picked it first in drafts more often than I probably should, just because it's so amazingly versatile.

• Big token incoming? Unsummon is a kill spell.
• Big honkin' Primordial Hydra about to smash you? Unsummon and all those nasty +1/+1 counters slip into the ether.
• War Falcon attacking with a white ring and Mark of the Vampire? Unsummon kills the enchantment and massively undermines your opponent's tempo.
• Need that Murder back from your graveyard? Unsummon Archaeomancer and treat yourself.
• Opponent casting Rancor? Unsummon the target and Rancor goes into the graveyard for good.

When you have Unsummon in your hand, you have an out for almost any turn of events. Replacing its role in M14 will be its big brother Disperse, which allows you to return any permanent to its owner's hand for 1U. It's a broader effect and I'm sure it'll be a useful card, but at one mana, Unsummon is just the king. It will be missed.

The Things I'm Going to Miss About Drafting M13 - Number Four

This is part of a continuing series highlighting what I'll miss most about drafting M13. Check out recent blog posts to view the rest of the list.

#4 - The Ring Cycle

One of the aspects that really highlighted the balance of the colors was the cycle of rings they brought in. Each ring offered a very on-color effect to any equipped creature, as well as the bonus of +1/+1 counters to creatures that were in the prescribed color. The flavor made sense, the effects were balanced and had value, and the costs seemed appropriate. Any card that satisfies those criteria is a good card, and when you can say it about an entire cycle, well, someone at Wizards of the Coast deserves a hearty pat on the back.

On another note, I want to mention that I will NOT have the cycle of creatures with off-color bonuses in my list of things I'm going to miss (Harbor Bandit, Arctic Aven, Prized Elephant, Flinthoof Boar, and Crimson Muckwader). It's not that they weren't powerful cards; they were...but they sometimes struck me as an odd combination of both too powerful and too situational.

The activated effects were reasonable and well costed, but getting +1/+1 on top of that made each of the cards extremely powerful if you were playing the right colors. But in drafts, it seemed like most of the time you had to just get lucky in order to take advantage of them. As long as you just happened to be playing blue and white, Arctic Aven was a veritable bomb. In green/red decks, Flinthoof Boar was a house. I'm not saying I wasn't happy to take advantage of a giant Harbor Bandit to smash an opponent. Those cards just didn't make the set for me.

You're welcome to disagree; that's what the comments section is for.

The Things I'm Going to Miss About Drafting M13 - Number Five

M13 was a great draft set. The colors were balanced, the reprints fit great and the new cards were creative and flavorful. Now Slivers are back, and I'm sure M14 will have its own delightful draft flavor. But before we move on, let's take a moment to look back at M13, and offer a fond farewell to the cards that made it such a sweet, sweet set.

#5 - Staff of Nin

 

Talk about just a useful card. While Staff of Nin has a prohibitively expensive mana cost, it integrates two very useful effects into one card. Card draw, especially late game when you often don't have a hand at all, is of supreme value. On top of that, being able to ping your opponent, or one of the many 1-toughness valuable creatures in the set, is a fantastic addition.

Losing this card wouldn't be so bad, though, if there were better replacements for it in the set. Ring of Three Wishes is going to be a great card for tutoring, but it's a mythic rare, which means at least half of us won't ever see the card. Then, for the pinging, we get Rod of Ruin, one of the lowest rated cards in all of Gatherer. If you could use it more than once on a turn, that'd be one thing, but it's just one damage for three mana, once every turn. I get that there have to be unimpressive cards in each set, but did Wizards have to go back to something so wildly bad?

Tune in later this week for the rest of my top five list.