Locations
Last week, I started the epic journey that I embark on every few months to break down the spoiler of each new set. The beginning of this quest can be found here, where I covered all of the mono-colored cards from what appears to be one of the strongest sets we have seen in a while. Multicolored blocks bring about new challenges to players as you are put to the test in building mana bases to allow you to cram all of these amazing cards into the same deck. It seems that this block will follow that trend, providing players with two sets of some of the best duals ever printed to allow for some very interesting designs.
This week, I want to cover all of these cards you will be trying to jam into your seventy-five and exactly where I think they may end up on the price scale. Since I have a lot to cover in this article, I am going to skip past anything that will probably be bulk or even just fringe-playable.
Price: $10
Armada Wurm – I can’t decide if I like this card in a midrange deck looking to finish the curve after Thragtusk as another Restoration Angel target or as a finisher in a control variant. Putting 10 trample on the board can be devastating as a way to quickly sweep a game or defend the motherland until you can gain the high ground. Of course, I can’t make it through an entire article without talking about Séance, so I will take this as my opportunity to mention how good this guy fits alongside Thragtusk and friends in that shell as well. I am a little surprised that this guy is mythic, but the ability can certainly be epic, which means the price can be as well if this guy starts seeing any reasonable amount of play.
Price: $12
Price: $3
Detention Sphere – This improved Oblivion Ring is among the most elegantly designed cards I have ever seen, allowing for a very diverse number of opportunities where this card can be very relevant. The standard application is to remove a problematic permanent just like Oblivion Ring, but where this card truly shines is in its ability to shut off multiples, creating riskier hands for your opponents. If you know your opponent is running this, you may hesitate before slamming that second Gravecrawler, and this gives the Sphere a new level of defense that O-Ring lacked. What once was a card you couldn’t wait to shove in the board against tokens is now one of your strongest tools to unraveling that matchup if it arises. I don’t see this card seeing much play in the Eternal formats, meaning its price is solely based on its Standard performance.
Price: $6
Dreadbore – There isn’t much to be said about this card, so I will keep it short and simple: It kills guys and planeswalkers. It will probably see some play in almost every format and will hold value for a good long time as one of the only ways to just off a ’walker.
Price: $6
Price: $7
Isperia, Supreme Judge – A nice upgrade from the bulk predecessor, this new legend seems to be a possible option in control decks as both a deterrent for attacking and a win condition. Sadly, this is no Consecrated Sphinx, but that does not make it unplayable in the current and future format. A certain hit in the Commander community, this card should discourage players from sending anyone your way, giving you time to set up board presence and start swinging in when you have control. I don’t expect this to see a great deal of play, but it may show up as a two-of in certain control builds, so expect it to stay out of the bulk bin.
Price: $4
Jarad, Golgari Lich Lord – I am still not sure how I feel about this guy since he is somewhat counterintuitive to what Golgari’s main goal is. That does not change the fact that in the right deck, he can absolutely dominate the board if you have a way to fill the grave undeterred. His ability does seem to work well in a midrange deck to drive those last few points home, but as of now, I just don’t see a shell he wants to be in. He is too slow for Zombies, and a midrange deck that wants him certainly won’t be willing to sacrifice lands to bring him back. I would like him to see play since he is a well-costed beater in the right deck, but as of now, that deck just doesn’t seem to exist.
Price: $5
Price: $12
Loxodon Smiter – I want to like this card a lot because it does two of my favorite things in the form of uncounterability and discard protection, but I just can’t get behind him in this format as a major player. I am running him in a midrange deck currently, and unless discard becomes prevalent, he will probably be getting the axe—counters don’t mean anything in this format anyway. Gone are the days when a 4/4 for 3 was good enough on its own to contest this format, but I truly hope this card shows up somewhere serious in its life in Standard . . . even if it is just in the board.
Price: $3
Niv-Mizzet, Dracogenius – I am in love with this guy in a control variant as the finisher. Not only does he bury your opponent in card advantage, he also allows you to control the field while still ruling the sky. I don’t know that Izzet will have the tools necessary to create any sort of real waves in the format, but at some point, this guy is going to hit and hit hard. Commander players love him as a way to fill a grip or combo off and kill everyone, but regardless of his Commander play, he should have a time to shine in Standard.
Price: $14
Price: $4
Rakdos's Return – I am a huge fan of this card—unlike most I have seen—but I also remember how pivotal Identity Crisis was in the control mirrors. That is not to say I think this is an auto-include in any deck, but it will probably see a great deal of sideboard play if control becomes an issue. The ability to empty your opponent’s hand and kill a ’walker is nothing to sneeze at, and the way this format is shaping up, it will be unlikely to meet a counterspell, creating a backbreaking situation for your opponent to attempt to crawl back from.
Price: $6
Sphinx's Revelation – This is another card—like Rakdos's Return—that will probably see a lot of sideboard play against the mirror matches. Unlike Rakdos's Return, Revelation gives you the ability to get back in the game against aggro if you can survive to that point, making it a possible main-deck option. Blue Sun's Zenith saw mild play, and this card is almost always better, so expect to see a few of them sprinkled in the top-tier decks’ seventy-fives.
Price: $6
Price: $4
Trostani, Selesnya's Voice – This is another card that I like a lot at first appearance but have a tough time seeing in the format. I don’t think this is where G/W wants to be with its 4-drop spot, and although the ability to proliferate is very strong, I just don’t see the midrange deck needing any more life-gain.
Price: $4
Vraska the Unseen – I truly can’t get over how much I like this card at first glance . . . but then I start looking deeper at what this card actually doing, and I start getting over my initial reaction. I do believe there will be a Rock variant that is very happy to have the reusable Vindicate, but the unfortunate part about this card is that it typically is just a 5-mana removal spell. The first ability seems great at first glance, but when you realize that it takes three turns to double-Vindicate and doing so still kills Vraska, you begin to see how slow this card truly is. I can see this being a great answer to any control deck, but I think it is just too slow to make a real impact on what the environment is shaping up to be. I am sure this card will see its fair share of play, but when you cast it, ask yourself if an Abrupt Decay or Dreadbore would have been better. You may find more often than not that aggro just ignores this femme fatale and drives straight for your jugular.
Price: $16
Price: $3
Deathrite Shaman – This card seems to be a very big trap to me. This guy does almost everything you want, but he really forces you to devote a particular part of your deck to assisting him. I love him in Legacy and Modern, where his first ability can be used immediately, but in Standard, a Birds of Paradise he is not. The ability to kill your control opponent after he has locked down the board can certainly be a boon, and the fact that you can use him to keep yourself alive against Zombies and other aggro strategies does mean this guy will see play. The true question is how many people will view this as a mana source and how many will accurately see it as a mid- to late-game tool to keep you on the path to victory.
Price: $6
Growing Ranks – This is another one for the Commander crowd, and for the same reason that Doubling Season and Parallel Lives are worth anything, this will be as well. Foils are good pick-ups if you can find them for cheap while everyone is rushing to gather all the pieces they need for this coming Standard season.
Price: $3
Price: $3
Chromatic Lantern – The last card I want to cover this week before I depart is potentially one of the strongest Commander cards we have seen in a while. Coalition Relic just found some competition, and this Lantern is no slouch. If five-color control becomes a legitimate deck in Standard, you can bet this card will be a reason for its success, so pick them up while you can because this card can only go up over the years. Foils are also strong buys if you can find them cheap, but you probably already knew that.
Price: $7
Since I am already significantly over my word count for this week, I will make my parting words brief. I did not cover the shock lands because everyone knows what they can do already, and listening to me rehash why a dual land will see play seems like a waste of both of our time.
Join me next week for the start of our theme week articles based on the guilds of Ravnica. I am having a tough time incorporating a reasonable way to tie this into trading, but I really like a challenge, so I am going to try to participate. If you have any ideas on what I could do to challenge myself and stay on theme, leave a comment or shoot me a tweet. The guild we are covering first is Selesnya if that helps stew some ideas.
Thanks for sticking with me this far, and join me next week as I find a way to incorporate your ideas and mine into what should prove to be a challenging and enjoyable article.
Ryan Bushard
