Tag: Casual Planeswalker

  • Killer Combos – “Life and Death”

    Killer Combos – “Life and Death”

    Phyrexian Unlifeplus signDeath's Shadow

    When the Casual Planeswalker Crew went to the New Phyrexia Pre-Release, some of the cards we were most looking forward to snatching up were those employing the new Phyrexian mana symbols. Cards like Porcelain Legionnaire
    Porcelain Legionnaire     and T-t-t-Thundering Tanadon
    Thundering Tanadon     (inside joke, but I hope everyone else feels as silly as I do saying this card’s name – goofiest name since Wooly Whatsit, I mean, Woolly Thoctar) are still wreaking havoc in our playgroup as we experiment with decks restricted to the Scars block.

    In the sealed event I played in at the Pre-Release, my rare from NPH was Phyrexian Unlife, a card that isn’t great in a Limited setting, but has proved to be a lot of fun in Constructed. I first threw the enchantment into my “Life for Death” pre-con, then made some alterations, picked up a full playset of Unlifes and have been tearing things up with a Red/White Phyrexian suicide deck.

    So far I’ve had a lot of fun with Phyrexian Unlife, and I haven’t even started making decks with the broader range of cards. My first thought about Unlife in Standard is to combine it with Death’s Shadow.

    As early as the third turn (with a Dark Ritual
    Dark Ritual    ) you can play your Unlife, attack with Immolating Souleater
    Immolating Souleater    , pump him to reduce your life total to nothing (or next to it), and even if he doesn’t connect your opponent will waste a spell or blocker dealing with him.

    Nine times out of ten your opponent is going to Doomblade
    Doomblade    /Lightning Bolt
    Lightning Bolt    /Glissa’s Scorn
    Glissa’s Scorn     your Souleater, which will make them even less prepared for the 11/11 Death’s Shadow you play in your second main phase.

    There’s a lot of fun to be had with Phyrexian Unlife. Please comment and let us know how you plan to exploit this card, or add to this combo. Melira, Sylvok Outcast, Near-Death Experience, Fling…

  • Casual Crew Comics #3–Why Play Magic?

    Casual Crew Comics #3–Why Play Magic?

    comic3
    [button text=”Click the Comic to Enlarge” link=”https://casualplaneswalker-media.b-cdn.net/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/comic3.jpg”]

  • New Phyrexia Round 2, Innistrad and More.

    New Phyrexia Round 2, Innistrad and More.

    We got more in depth with a discussion of NPH and handle some rumors about upcoming sets including when, where and why you’ll be paying attention to this lady:

     

  • 5 Reasons to be Excited for Mirrodin Besieged

    5 Reasons to be Excited for Mirrodin Besieged

    So this weekend saw the release of the newest Magic set: Mirrodin Besieged. Full scale war has broken out between Mirrodin and the invading Phyrexians. A new set always brings new cards and a small set like Mirrodin Besieged is able to create new decks and expand upon any decks that already exist, especially for those that use a lot of themes and abilities from Scars of Mirrodin. Here are a few of the coolest things that you will see in the new set.

    1. More awesome artifacts to play. I think it is really cool to have another set that is in Mirrodin because a visit to this plane always comes with some brand new artifacts. Artifacts are my favorite types of cards because they are permanent; they stay on the battlefield and have all sorts of really cool abilities that will stick around, sometimes changing the way the game is played. My favorite artifact in this set has to be Knowledge Pool which totally changes the game by exiling each spell a player casts and forcing them to choose from one of at least 6 other spells instead. Shimmer Myr can allow you to play artifacts whenever you want, leaving your opponents guessing when you can leave a lot of mana open on your turn. For those that simply prefer crushing their opponent, Blightsteel Colossus is happy to oblige by being an 11/11 that is indestructible with Trample and Infect. This guy can completely poison an opponent in one turn, even if you aren’t playing an Infect deck!

     

     

    2. The Phyrexians are advancing, and evolving. With the release of Mirrodin Besieged, it’s all out war between the Mirrans and Phyrexia. In Scars of Mirrodin the balance of these two forces was heavily in favor of the Mirrans, a majority of the cards having their watermark. The Phyrexians have spread across the plane, even into other colors bringing the abilities of Infect into white and Proliferate into green and black. This is great for any player that enjoys Infect and Proliferate as it makes them a lot more versatile. You can also find plenty of new cards to provide a nice power boost to any of your decks made from Scars of Mirrodin.

    3. Equipment can now act on its own with Living Weapon. While the old Phyrexian abilities of Infect and Proliferate have spread to new colors, they also have a brand new ability unique to equipment artifacts. Phyrexian equipment comes into play with a 0/0 germ token and attaches itself to that token. These weapons are real great because you no longer have to choose between playing a creature to defend yourself and playing some equipment that will just be sitting around until your next turn. Living weapons make good blockers because they are just 0/0 creatures that came free with your equipment.

    4. The Races of Mirrodin have united to combat the Phyrexian horde. With Mirrodin Besieged, the Phyrexian threat to the plane has been realized by its denizens. The Mirrans are no longer fighting against each other and have become a unified force. The new Battle Cry ability demonstrates this very well. When creatures with Battle Cry attack, each other attacking creature gets +1 power until the end of the turn. This ability really encourages decks that can make huge armies and will surely be very useful for anyone’s token deck. Battle Cry appears mostly in red and white, colors that can really appreciate having tons of creatures out at once, but there are also colorless creatures with Battle Cry that allow you to create any color deck you please while still making use of this cool new ability.

    5. Fight for the fate of the plane of Mirrodin. Many of you have probably taken a look at the cards in this set and Scars of Mirrodin and noticed the watermark in the text box of nearly every card. Now that the conflict between Mirrodin and Phyrexia has escalated, it is time to make use of those watermarks and pick a side to fight for the fate of the plane. At the prerelease each player had to choose a side and received special Mirrodin Besieged booster packs that only had cards from their chosen side. Friday Night Magic events will encourage players to take part in the war with a poster that keeps a tally of each victory for Mirrodin or Phyrexia themed decks against an opponent’s themed deck. The war will be decided in the next set, but two different sets have been announced. The next set will be Mirrodin Pure if Mirrodin wins or it will be New Phyrexia if Phyrexia is the victor. Who will decide the outcome of the war? I’m hoping that the players will have some influence on the future of Mirrodin.

    These are just a few of the reasons to check out the latest Magic set. There is also a brand new planeswalker but I’m not sure what to think of him yet. I am certainly looking forward to using all the awesome new cards. This set brings a lot of new stuff to the game, did I miss your favorite card of the set? There are awesome new artifacts and the war between the armies of Mirrodin and the Infect decks of Phyrexia makes for two totally different ways to play Magic. I hope that you are also excited to pick a side and fight the war for Mirrodin!

  • Heavy Metal(craft)

    Heavy Metal(craft)

    Metalcraft is a new ability used by the Mirrans in order to unite against Phyrexia. It gives extra abilities or other bonuses if you control three or more artifacts which can include power and toughness increases, new abilities, or extra effects from spells. The nice thing about Metalcraft is that it always requires 3 artifacts so it is easy to take a quick look at the field and see if they are activated or not. The bonuses are also pretty nice, always being something that you would have to otherwise pay a bit more to use.

    Probably the coolest use of Metalcraft is to surprise your opponents with powerful spells when you don’t have a lot of mana open. While counterspells usually cost 3 mana these days you can be ready for anything your opponent casts for 2 mana if you have three artifacts on the field and Stoic Rebuttal. I really like galvanic blast, which can deal an extra damage for the price of a lightning bolt. A lot of creatures are built around the 3 damage that lightning bolt can deal and an extra point can make a difference of life or death.

    There are a few powerful spells with Metalcraft and their upgraded effects can really change the game but there are ways around it. Spells and triggered abilities with Metalcraft only occur if that player has three artifacts as they resolve. If you are facing someone that uses one of these abilities, try to melt away some of their artifacts. If you can get them down to two or less, you may have saved yourself and wasted some of your opponent’s cards!

    If you are using an artifact deck with Metalcraft then you certainly don’t want this to happen to you. Once you’re at three artifacts it’s important to keep playing more, ensuring that Metalcraft triggers aren’t in jeopardy. This is important in decks with creatures like carapace forger that can become real threats around a lot of artifacts. Some good artifacts for this are those made of darksteel that are always indestructible. Other artifacts with Metalcraft are good additions to a deck, counting themselves when looking for artifacts. If you only have 2 artifacts on the field then a cool trick is to cast darksteel sentinel or another artifact with flash to activate Metalcraft and give a big boost to your creatures that will quickly give you the upper hand in many situations.

    The Mirrans with Metalcraft, although it is their only ability in this set, are more than a match for any opponent. With the help of only 3 artifacts, many cheap creatures and spells become much more potent. But having just 3 artifacts will just leave your position vulnerable to the shatters and naturalizes of an opponent. Continue building a strong force of both artifacts and Metalcraft abilities to make a powerful united force that can stand up to anything!