Playing To Win At Magic: The Gathering

A good part of this article is inspired by David Sirlin's excellent book Playing To Win, which can be viewed for free online at www.sirlin.net/ptw. This article will have many of the same concepts, but also has my own ideas and examples specific to Magic: The Gathering. Reading Playing To Win is not required to understand this text.

Playing To Win At Magic: The Gathering

An article by Jay Bailey (mtgsalivanth)

Introduction

Many of the concepts found in these texts will be ones that you do not agree with. If you wish to argue them, I'll make it easier on you by providing my e-mail address (www.salivanth@live.com) and my Twitter account. (mtgsalivanth). I routinely check both of these.

With that out of the way, let's move on to the meat of the article: Playing to win at this game. Some of you do not want to play to win. Some of you play casually, and don't want to progress past the level you are at right now. That's fine: these concepts do not apply to you. I speak to the ones who aim to improve their game.

Magic: The Gathering is a game, and the first thing you must accept is the following:

Magic: The Gathering must be treated like Magic: The Gathering.

This means that no tournament-legal card, deck, or strategy is cheap, wrong, or should not be used for reasons other than 'It will not help me win'. If you are playing casually, play casually, but in tournaments, PLAY TO WIN.

This means accepting truths about the game. A combo deck is not cheap because it does not interact with the opponent. It's not a deck that 'does not 'play' Magic'. It does not interact with the opponent because it's not designed to. If you think that's wrong, you're not playing Magic: The Gathering. You're playing a different version of the game, and you must play the version that the tournament is playing.

If a deck is going to cost several hundred dollars to build and you can't afford it, fine. But don't whinge about the fact that you can't afford it. If you cannot remain competitive with your budget, then you should set your sights to other places other than improving at the game and playing at higher levels.

Counterspells are a valid strategy. Discard is a valid strategy. Land destruction is a valid strategy. (Note that I'm not saying these are valid as in 'They are competitive' for they may not be at the time of your reading. However, it is valid as in if it is a competitive strategy, you should not refrain from using it because it's 'cheap' 'dishonorable' or 'no fun'.)

I believe David Sirlin himself said it best.

"The game knows no rules of "honor" or of "cheapness." The game only knows winning and losing". 

- David Sirlin, author of Playing To Win.

I could give many other examples. Netdecking, metagaming, rules lawyering...but the principle is the same. If you want to win, you must accept that every tournament-legal strategy is fair game if it increases your chance of winning.

You do not decide what is fair and what is not. Wizards of the Coast does. If they say it can be done (by not banning or restricting it) then it can (and if it is good, will) be done. End of story.

Sir Scrub

Let's introduce a player I call Sir Scrub. Sir Scrub has many names and many guises. He may appear at your table or your FNM. If you haven't met him, or have met him in a large tournament where you do not have to put up with him again, be grateful.

You can never outplay Sir Scrub. Ever. You can beat him, of course, but it's always due to luck. You drew better or he drew worse. He was mana screwed or mana flooded. You got a lucky cascade, he never did. Sir Scrub is cursed with terrible luck, but at least he plays with honor.

Sir Scrub is the guy who draws cards off the top when he loses and then says 'In 3 turns, I would have had you.' The fact that you made sure the game DIDN'T last longer than it had to doesn't seem to resonate with Sir Scrub. He still had all these in his deck, he just never drew them.

Do you recognise him? You probably do, and if not, it's a good thing, too.

You

The previous section seemed to make no sense. It offers no advice on winning, and just bashes people. I wrote that section to show you the opposite of what you should be.

You should not chalk matches up to luck. Sometimes you WERE mana-screwed or mana-flooded. But could you have prevented it? By saying that mana-screw cost you the game, you're saying that:

A) You fully randomised your deck.

B) You made the correct mulliganing decisions.

C) You played perfectly.

D) There was no way you could have psyched your opponent into thinking you had something to stop him doing what he did to win.

Only if all of these are true can you blame mana-screw or mana-flood, or any other luck-based occurence.

When you lose, be humble. How could you have performed better, played more tightly, anticipated your opponent's moves better? Was his lucky topdeck lucky or was he holding you off until he could draw it? Did you push him as hard as you could, or in control, did you defend and prioritise threats to the best of your ability?

You must trust your decisions and your deck. A classic example is mulliganing. Do you, after mulliganing, look at the top card to see if you would have drawn the card you need? Okay, so there WAS that third land off the top. Who cares? You still made the right decision. This is something I consciously stopped doing, since by doing so, I basically say 'I don't trust that I made the mathematically correct move.' You must trust your decisions after you make them.

You must do everything you can to win. If you need a certain card, did you aggressively mulligan to find it? Did you defend as best you could to attempt to draw the card? Did you overextend into your opponent's sweeper? These are things that could cost you the game, but can be hard to notice. A 5-land hand against your opponent's Black-Red deck in Zendikar draft can very well be suicide, even if it looks good against a slower deck. If you don't know what your opponent is playing, that's one thing, but Game 2 you should not make that mistake.

Did you do your research? You didn't know what to do in that situation. Perhaps you should have tested more.

Essentially, there are a thousand things that you probably could have done, but did not, that can contribute to your loss, a lot more than mere luck. If you're not trying your best in a situation, luck merely helped your opponent win, not sealed it for them.

Conclusion

A great deal of my blog and many other hands have written about how to improve your play skill at Magic, so I shall leave that to other articles and other hands. This is the mindset you MUST take into any serious tournament, and if you do not, you may as well not go. If you still disagree with me, as some of you probably will, my e-mail is once again www.salivanth@live.com. My Twitter account is mtgsalivanth. Feel free to argue as much as you like, but in the end, as I have come to realise: this is the mindset that counts when you want to win.

Bad Deck Baz Presents Blisters On Your Fingers!

Hello and welcome to the second of the Bad Deck Baz posts. Last time, we looked at IT'S A TRAP!, which I piloted to a 1-3 record: not too bad given the deck. Let's see if I can repeat myself with this deck: Blisters on Your Fingers.

A “Bad Deck Baz” Deck

14 Island

2 Swamp

4 Jwar Isle Refuge

4 Drowned Catacomb

4 Alluring Siren

4 Wall of Frost

4 Sphinx Ambassador

4 Cosi's Trickster

4 Gomazoa

2 Quest for Ancient Secrets

3 Sadistic Sacrament

4 Telemin Performance

4 Polymorph

3 Haunting Echoes

Sideboard 

1 Platinum Angel

3 Marsh Casualties

4 Kathari Remnant

3 Deny Reality

4 Flashfreeze

Blisters On Your Fingers is a shuffling-based deck, with cards like Polymorph, Haunting Echoes, Gomozoa, and Cosi's Trickster. The alternate aim is to win with a Sphinx Ambassador.

The deck also has a library exiling theme, where you get rid of the opponent's bad creatures to Telemin them, or their good creatures to Polymorph them.

Let's get to testing!

Round 1: Blisters on Creatureless Control's fingers!

I don't really know how to classify this control deck, but as a creatureless deck I was hoping for a random Telemin win. 

Game 1 I play Alluring Siren and Gomozoa. I take a few points off him before he casts a Day of Judgment. I drop Sphinx Ambassador and he retaliates with Martial Coup. I drop another one. Next turn I swing. I reveal no creatures, but plenty of planeswalkers and controllish cards. He's on 8 life.

He uses Vengeant to keep my Sphinx tapped. I try to resist, but he gets me to 10, then a combination Ajani Helix and Earthquake for 7 clinches it for him.

0-1

Round 2: Blisters on WBR Midrange's Fingers!

Game 1 I play two Tricksters. He cracks an Armillary Sphere, and I start swinging. He drops Day of Judgment. He then drops Blightning, Sorin, and Siege-Gang, and slaughters me. At 1 life I drop a Polymorph to see a bit more of his deck.

Game 2 is rather anti-climactic. I get mana-screwed, he gets a Turn 5 Siege-Gang Commander. I never offer any real resistance.

0-2

Round 3: Blisters on White Weenie's Fingers!

I drop Trickster, he drops Knight of the White Orchid. I drop Gomozoa, he Paths it. He plays Conqueror's Pledge and Elspeth. He gets a quick win.

Game 2 he plays: Kazandu Blademaster, Knight of the White Orchid, Veteran Swordsmith. He then gets Behemoth Sledge and Elspeth. I Polymorph the Blademaster into an Armorsmith, and Telemin into a Captain of the Watch. I'm on 8 life, but he equips the Sledge to his Swordsmith, pumps it with Elspeth, and swings for 8 in the air :(

0-3

Round 4: Blisters on Jacerator's Fingers!

I drop two Cosi's Tricksters, he drops Howling Mine and Jace. I correctly figure he's playing Jacerator. I wait for him to tap most of his mana for a Font of Mythos, then I untap, cast Telemin Performance, and kill him in a single blow. Booyah.

Game 2 he drops an early Wall of Denial (Better than Baneslayer against Telemin). He drops Jace as well, and ramps it up. I play Telemin Performance, which gets Negated. He drops a Font, and I drop a Telemin Performance. He mills me for 20, but unfortunately he has less cards than me now and no answer in his deck. He loses the game to mill.

1-3 (Random win! Woot!)

And that ends Blisters On Your Fingers. Join me next time I get a post up (which might not be until Sunday, but hopefully is before that) for the results of It's A Wonderful Life!

See ya!

The Ten Commandments of Magic: The Gathering

And then yay, Maro descended from the heavens, his hands bound by the tomes of prophecy, and he spake: These commandments are handed down to me by Richard Garfield, and they are to be obeyed, now and forever.

1. Magic is the first TCG, and the harbinger of all TCG's. Thou shalt claim no other trading card game came before me.
2. While thou shalt play other card games, thou shalt not claim any TCG be greater than Magic, whether it be Huntik or Yu-gi-oh, whether it be old or new, whether it be simple or complex, for I, the designer, am a jealous one, visiting the inquiry of thy peers upon the people who seek to betray me and not keep my commandments.
3. Thou shalt not blame the designer for any problem with which the designer is not at fault, for many hands make up Magic, and blame shalt be apportioned to the proper areas.
4. Remember the casual day to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou test, and do all thy optimisation, but the seventh day IS the day of the casuals, in it thou shalt not attempt to theorycraft, nor grief thy table with combo decks, for in six days all thy testing may be concluded, and casual multiplayer shalt be joined on the seventh day, and should be hallowed.
5. Honour all of thy formats, that thy days be long exploring the infinite variety that is all of Magic.
6. Thou shalt not cheat.
7. Thou shalt not deck-hop every week.
8. Thou shalt not steal.
9. Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy opponent.
10. Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's deck, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's topdecking, nor his playskill, nor his drafting, nor his building, nor his collection, nor any thing that IS thy neighbour's.



Yes, I did base these off the real 10 commandments. One of them (3) was forced to change a lot, whereas one (8) was able to not change at all.

Yes, this is a very strange idea.

No, I don't believe these commandments are actually what anyone from Magic thinks, and I don't believe all of them should be followed, and as in the real bible, there is room for interpretation in it.

Also, this was a complete joke, so don't take any of it as actual gospel. Unless someone breaks 6, 8, or 9. Then Richard Garfield compels you to stone them to death.

Happy gaming, fellow initiates!

Bad Deck Baz Presents IT'S A TRAP!

Hello and welcome to the first of three Bad Deck Baz posts. Baz, also known as ThatDamnAussie from Twitter, has happily made three decks for me to play that are all, in their own way, terrible, but are also very interesting to play. I'm happy that he's been very creative in the theme rather than 40 5-7 drops and 20 lands and calling it a 'bad' deck.

The first deck, as featured in the previous post, is U/R Trap Control, or as Baz calls it:

IT'S A TRAP!

A “Bad Deck Baz” Deck

9 Island

11 Mountain

4 Scalding Tarn

3 Goblin Artillery

3 Reckless Scholar

3 Runeflare Trap

2 Lethargy Trap

2 Mindbreak Trap

4 Lavaball Trap

2 Whiplash Trap

4 Inferno Trap

4 Trapmaker's Snare

2 Trapfinder's Trick

3 Burning Inquiry

2 Chandra Ablaze

2 Quest for Ancient Secrets

Sideboard 

4 Lightning Bolt

2 Jace Beleren

3 Font of Mythos

2 Pyromancer Ascension

1 Runeflare Trap

1 Burning Inquiry

1 Chandra Ablaze

1 Mindbreak Trap

This deck has a lot of cool interactions, and yet still manages to be outmatched. As I was quick to find out, Chandra or Runeflare Trap was my only hope of ever winning.

EVER.

Round 1: IT'S A TRAP for Boros Bushwhacker!

He curves out fast, Goblin Guide, 2 Geopedes and a Skyfisher. To match this armada, I have a Goblin Artillery, which is a bit like shooting yourself in the foot so someone else doesn't do it for you. I quickly fall to 7 life, then to 1. His creatures overwhelm me, though it's worth saying if I had another mana I could have played Lethargy Trap to live another turn.

Game 2 I Bolt his Steppe Lynx and drop an Artillery to match his Skyfisher. I kill 3 guys of his in one turn, blocking a Vanguard, shooting another, and Inferno Trapping the third (which he Paths to find a land). He drops some more guys, and I shoot them. He Paths my Artillery and starts pinging me with a Geopede. I hold on a bit longer, but he burns me out.

0-1

Round 2: IT'S A TRAP for Sigil of the Empty Throne.dec!

He drops Sunspring Expedition and Ardent Plea into Trace of Abundance. He gets a Sigil of the Empty Throne, I get Reckless Scholar. Numerous 4/4 angels beat a lone 2/1 looter. Who knew?

Game 2 he drops a Luminarch Ascension. I am literally unable to apply pressure, and am slaughtered in 4 minutes according to the time logs.

0-2

Round 3: IT'S A TRAP for Conley's Land Destruction!

Game 1 he plays a Turn 2 Lotus Cobra. I know this will not end well. He gains approximately seventeen thousand lands next turn, and kicks a Mold Shambler. Fortunately it's his third spell of the turn, so I tutor up a Mindbreak Trap to stop it. I get stuck on 3 land. He drops an Acidic Slime. I ask if he has any more LD, he reveals a second Mold Shambler, and I scoop it up.

Game 2 is a lot better.  He drops double Khalni Heart to my nothing. His Ruinblasters do very little against my all-basic-and-fetch deck. He drops Lotus Cobra. I try to bolt it, and he sacrifices his Khalni Hearts. Four hours later, my Bolt resolves to kill his Cobra after he gets about five lands. He drops an Acidic Slime, and I Mindbreak Trap an Ob Nixilis. I use Inferno Traps and trades to take out his guys, and Snare into a Mindbreak Trap to take a Rampaging Baloths.

We have a back and forth until I run out of counters and removal. He then Violent Ultimatums me to 4 lands, then again next turn to 1 land. Yeah, that'll do it.

0-3

Round 4: IT'S A TRAP for Grixis Control!

The first game went by fast. He dropped a Turn 3 Blightning, Turn 4 Blightning, and Turn 6 Sphinx of Jwar Isle, a creature to which I literally have no answer except for double Lavaball Trap. (Yeah.) I do a pathetic attempt at racing, but the Sphinx crushes me.

Game 2 he gets Sedraxis Specter and Blightning. I scoop my brains back in and start to fight back. I drop the key to this whole match: Chandra. Unlike Jund or other Pulse-endowed decks, Grixis Control has no way to kill a planeswalker outside of combat damage.  I make us both draw two, and he Bolts Chandra.

What was that I said earlier? I meant to say "Except for Lightning Bolt."

I do a killer Inquiry, discarding two lands and Whiplash Trap to his tri-land, Terminate, and Sphinx (yes!). He gets double unearth on Specters, I tutor up a Lethargy Trap and use it. I drop another Chandra to draw 3. I bolt his counterattacking Specter, and Inferno Trap when he unearths the Specter. He drops Vampire Nighthawk and I tutor for a trap to kill it with. I then drop Jace, empty my hand, draw three with Chandra, and draw with Jace.

I love planeswalkers.

He uses Blightning to take down Chandra. I start powering Jace up, noticing he only has about 25 cards in his deck by now. If I can mill him that's gg. I want to steal one game with this deck. He uses Magma Phoenix to drop Jace to 5. I'm forced to kill it, and Jace goes to 4. Sedraxis Specter drops him to 2, but all the card-draw has worked in a different way. I drop him from 16 to 9 with Runeflare Trap at EOT, then Reckless Scholar attacks, then Runeflare Trap him again for the win. Random!

Game 3 he gets Blightning, I get Reckless Scholar. The Scholar, like the Looter, actually just wins games if left unchecked: which people always do. Turn 6 he plays Sphinx of Jwar Isle. Remember him? That card I have no answer to? I changed my mind. I have one answer. RACE HIM. I declare in the chat that I will race that 5/5 flier and win.

I then drop Chandra Ablaze. Game on. 

I get her to 6 counters to drop my opponent to 16. He hits me to 11 and drops a Nighthawk. I draw a card with the Scholar and EOT Bolt it. He uses Double Negative. I Snare for an Inferno Trap and use that to kill it in my turn. And by 'use it to kill it' I mean that I pitch it to Chandra for an identical effect. (7 counters). He drops Chandra to 2 counters with the Sphinx. I drop a Jace, drawing a card which I then pitch to take him down to 12 life.

He slaughters Jace with a single blow. I then pitch another card to Chandra. I'm looting all this time, which is the only reason I keep drawing red cards. He's on 8 life. He then makes a big misplay, by knocking me down to 6 and not killing Chandra. I guess he fears a lot of burn.

I then think for a moment. The card in my hand is Lightning Bolt. There's no point looting since it's the best card in my deck to hold at that moment. So instead, I throw it at his face and then go down to 2 with Chandra to draw three. I draw a Lightning Bolt and Inferno Trap. Oh yeah.

He then swings me to 1, and then plays Nighthawk and Magma Phoenix. Ladies and gentlemen, if you're ever in the position of having lethal damage next turn regardless of whether or not you kill a planeswalker this turn, kill it. Else you might just lose to a Baz deck :p

I drop him to 2 with bolt, untap, and pitch the Inferno Trap. GOOD. GAME.

1-3.

And that's IT'S A TRAP! in all it's glory. Join me next time as we preview Blisters on Your Fingers and try to get a certain Merfolk up to godly sizes.

See you!

Letting Your Proteges Go - Part 2

Last time we covered my Magic story. It lasted longer than I thought it would so I split the post into two. Here's the second part.

After I was starting to get a new handle on the game, a pair of kids showed up: Matthew and Sarah. (I won't release last names for privacy reasons). Now, these were good kids. They were eager to learn and play. They only had two flaws:

A) Matthew was very, very irritating.
B) They both sucked.

So I set out to remedy B. I decided to teach the kids to play some good Magic. (Though I never talked Sarah out of that U/B Faeries deck...(This was a casual Faeries deck, not the Cryptic Command - Bitterblossom - Mistbind Clique concoction. It had Pestermites and Faerie Harbingers)).

Ironically, Matthew seemed more receptive. I came to the conclusion that he was a lot like me: he was young, and didn't KNOW when he was driving people up the wall. I gradually moved the kids up to Limited, I helped them with decks, I built their manabases in drafts every week. I took them under my wing.

And as karmic justice, guess what happened? I became a better player. Turns out when you have to explain how to build a sealed deck, you get a bit better at it. Same with many other concepts, like card advantage, life as a resource (Or, How To Not Chump Block a 3/3 at 18 Life 101) and drafting.

They got better. Matthew especially built new decks and got better at building them. He took my advice. Five-Color? Need less colors with that manabase. Bant? A bit too top-heavy and not consistent enough. Treefolk? Not bad. (It was able to beat my aggro decks a decent amount). Then before Zendikar came out he asked me to build him Mono-Black Control. All of a sudden he could beat me. His recent deck, Naya Cascade, is tough for me to beat. (I built that too). I wouldn't want to face that kid in a tournament with stuff on the line as much as I would have before.

As for Sarah, she improved her play but didn't change her deck. This kept her skill capped. But what happened when Zendikar came out? She built, with my tutelage, a Mono-White Emeria deck, and shot up. Both of them are now only a little below me.

And then there was Max. The third kid who only showed a few months ago. He really is a mini-me. He played the same class and race as me in World of Warcraft, he built a Jund deck like I did, and he even looks like me. I'm looking forward to sculpting him into a good player, once he learns what decks are possible and which are not.

It's time for me to let Matthew and Sarah find their own paths. I'll probably help Matt with his decks now and then, but I've taught them nearly as much as I can. I've still got Max, and I hope I keep having kids to teach. It's deeply rewarding, and makes you a better player. You can learn something from everybody.

From Sarah, I learnt to stick to a strategy. She played a deck for two years, and always drafts the same deck. She's so notorious for forcing it that nobody near her drafts it since they know she'll never quit. (Mono-White in Zendikar).

From Matt I learnt adaptability. I learnt that sometimes it's not bad cards, but bad decks. I also learnt the importance of trying different archetypes.

And from Max? I'm still looking forward to the lessons he has to teach, but he's looking like he'll end up a formidable player.

And this is my story, and some of the lessons I've learnt. I hope you find it informative.

Tomorrow, the Twitter community's best worst deck concept will be featured on this blog. I'll build it, test it, and probably fail miserably, but you learn a lot from failure.

Enjoy! See you tomorrow!

More Zendikar Spoilers

Hi guys! It's time for more spoilers already, so I don't fall too far behind again! Let's go!

Feast of Blood
Sorcery
Cast Feast of Blood only if you control two or more Vampires. Destroy target creature. You gain 4 life.
#88/249

This card is a sideboard card, at best. "But, Salivanth, what are you talking about? It's a better Doom Blade in Vampire Aggro!"


Answer: Not really. In a hyper-aggressive aggro deck, 4 life is only a bit more important than Instant vs. Sorcery, and you can't play it Turn 2. You also, obviously, can't play it after a Judgement. I think Doom Blade is a better choice.


That being said, you can probably pick these up late in a Vampire deck in Limited for some more removal.

Kabira Crossroads
Land
Kabira Crossroads enters the battlefield tapped. When Kabira Crossroads enters the battlefield, you gain 2 life. : Add  to your mana pool.

This could be decent in Mono-White Control, which is being pushed a decent amount. ETBT doesn't matter as much to control, and control is all about incremental advantages. 2 life tacked on to a Plains is an incremental advantage. Keep an eye on this card.

Obsidian Fireheart
Creature - Elemental
: Put a blaze counter on target land without a blaze counter on it. Lands with blaze counters on them have "At the beginning of your upkeep, this land deals 1 damage to you". (The land continues to burn even after Obsidian Fireheart leaves the battlefield.)
	4/4

Hmm...the RRR cost is a bit much for decks that aren't almost all red. However, regardless of the effect, it's a 4/4 for 4 in Red. Not to be sniffed at. As for the effect, it's clearly a way to spend extra mana. I think this could see play in a Red aggro deck as a finisher. Even if it dies, if it sticks around a turn or two, your life, probably already low, is now in dire peril.

Oran-Rief Recluse
Creature - Spider
Kicker  Reach When Oran-Rief Recluse enters the battlefield, if it was kicked, destroy target creature with flying.
	1/3

This card isn't that great. Could be decent versus W/U skies in Limited, but I don't see it seeing much play.

Quest for the Gemblades
Enchantment
Whenever a creature you control deals combat damage to another creature, you may put a quest counter on Quest for the Gemblades. Remove a quest counter from Quest for the Gemblades and sacrifice it: Put four +1/+1 counters on target creature.

An interesting quest. I think this'll be a good rattlesnake. It's very hard to attack into this card. Or block either. In fact, combat math becomes bloody hard. Pick these up. I wouldn't hesitate to play 2-3 of these if I could get them in a Draft. They'll be fifth-seventh pick, but they should be higher.

Mire Blight
Enchantment - Aura
Enchant Creature When enchanted creature is dealt damage, destroy it.

This is a good piece of common removal, and you can probably pick it up pretty late. It's not hard to do damage. Basically, the card reads "If enchanted creature is nonevasive, if it attacks or blocks, destroy it at end of combat". Plus, there's probably at least one pinger in Zendikar.

Turntimber Grove
Land
Turntimber Grove enters the battlefield tapped. When Turntimber Grove enters the battlefield, target creature gets +1/+1 until end of turn. : Add  to your mana pool.
#227/249

Not really a playable. This card does not work, since it's only really decent application (a combat trick) is nullified. Probably second-worst of the cycle (the black one being the worst).

Relic Crush
Instant
Destroy target artifact or enchantment and up to one other target artifact or enchantment.

Enchantment removal is a lot better in Zendikar than in other sets because of quests. This card is better than it would be in another set. Pick it accordingly.

Expedition Map
Artifact
, , Sacrifice Expedition Map: Search your library for a land card, reveal it, and put it into your hand. Then shuffle your library.

Good common mana-fixer, that can also get you a non-basic should you need it. This isn't spectacular, but it does it's job in Limited.

Unstable Footing
Instant
Kicker  Damage can't be prevented this turn. If Unstable Footing was kicked, it deals 5 damage to target player.

This is, essentially, a Lava Axe. Not too great. The R effect is incredibly, INCREDIBLY narrow, and will almost never be used. Just...no. Don't play this except if you have to.

Kor Aeronaut
Creature - Kor Soldier
Kicker  Flying When Kor Aeronaut enters the battlefield, if it was kicked, target creature gains flying until end of turn.
	2/2

Decent card. Probably not quite Constructed material (maybe with Kicker W) but it's good for Limited. Gets in there well. Still, a 2/2 flier for 2 is damn good. This might see play in Constructed yet. Wait, it's a SOLDIER? The plot thickens...

Kor Hookmaster
Creature - Kor Soldier
When Kor Hookmaster enters the battlefield, tap target creature an opponent controls. That creature doesn't untap during its controller's next untap step.
	2/2

Strong Limited card, doesn't quite make the Constructed cut. At 1W it would. If only...

Verdant Catacombs
Land
, Pay 1 life, Sacrifice Verdant Catacombs: Search your library for a Swamp or Forest card and put it onto the battlefield. Then shuffle your library.
Illus. Vance Kovacs #229/249

Cool. I have a name to start praying for. Verdant Catacombs. Open for me please...

Sphinx of Jwar Isle
Creature - Sphinx
Flying, shroud You may look at the top card of your library.(You may do this at any time)
#68/249	5/5

WOW. In Limited, in 19 cases out of 20, you just win when you play this. In Constructed, it's a great finisher. This card is amazingly good, since a 5/5 flier is basically proof against anything but removal. This WILL see play in Block, and in T2 if Baneslayer is not in M11.

Savage Silhouette
Enchantment - Aura
Enchant creature Enchanted creature gets +2/+2 and has ": Regenerate enchanted creature".

If you have spare mana, this card is great. It's nearly indestructible with the new removal spells. Good to put on fragile utility creatures.

Hagra Diabolist
Creature - Ogre Shaman Ally
When Hagra Diabolist or an other Ally enters the battlefield, target player loses life equal to the the number of Allies you control. Then gain that much life.
	3/2

In an Ally deck, this can be quite mean. In a non-ally deck: not really.

Ondu Cleric
Creature - Kor Cleric Ally
When Ondu Cleric or another Ally comes into play, you may gain 1 life for each Ally you control.
	1/1

Now THIS is an ally. In a deck with half-a-dozen plus allies, it could gain 6 life or so before dying. I think Allies may be worth looking at in Draft, as a matter of fact.

Nimbus Wings
Sorcery
Two target creatures get +2/+2 and flying until end of turn.

An innovative pump spell. Well designed, and this could totally take out a stalemate if put on a couple of decent-sized creatures, like 3/3 or bigger.

Kor Outfitter
Creature - Kor Soldier
When Kor Outfitter enters the battlefield, attach target equipment you control to target creature you control.
#21/249	2/2

Now that's a good weenie in Limited. Look out for B/W Aggro as a Zendikar archetype, because it will be mean stuff.


And that's another bundle of cards.


See you tomorrow!