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Published by Books Electric Publishing
Contents copyrighted 1996 by Books Electric Publishing
Enough bureaucratic stuff, get to the contents already!
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Spotlight on ... Multicolor Cards
Card to Watch for ... Forsaken Wastes
Deck of the Fortnight ... Red/Blue Mirage Only
An Attempt at Humor ... Beavis and Butthead do Magic?
Tidbits of Wisdom ... Mirage Only, What Will It Mean?
Trade/Combat Zone and Marketplace ... The Old Cards Still Count!
Feedback ... What do you want?
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Spotlight on MultiColor Cards (by David Norman)
Gold Cards, requiring more than one color of mana to cast, have been in Magic since Legends; unfortunately, many of the cards introduced in that set (like Elder Dragons) were pretty much unplayable. Somehow, I think this "multicolor is unplayable" legacy still exists in the mindset of players, even though multicolor cards are rarely much harder to cast (in decks that already have those colors) than a mono-color equivalent, and are often easier to cast than a doublemana (i.e., requiring two mana of the same color) equivalent Let's look at a few examples.
Compare the Haunting Apparition to the Feral Shadow. Suppose we have a Blue/Black deck, with 12 mana (i.e, lands) of each type. If you have 3 mana, you'll be able to cast the Feral Shadow (i.e., have one of your mana be black), almost 89% of the time. On the other hand, you'll be able to cast the Haunting Apparition (a comparable creature if OP isn't using Green, and a possible nightmare if he is) 78% of the time--not all that bad a drop considering how much you can get with the Haunter. Once you have four mana the discrepancy drops to very little.
On the other hand, suppose we have a 12/12 Red/White deck. If we have 5 mana in play, the Volcanic Geyser (a red doublemana X spell) will be castable 84% of the time. Suppose the deck has plenty of creature control, so we consider using Energy Bolt instead. With 5 mana, this deck can cast it 96% of the time. We can almost rely on being able to cast a 3 point Energy Bolt whenever we have 5 mana. This may not be a great source of excitment, but, the fact remains that the multicolor spell is easier to cast.
The bottom line is, as soon as you put together a deck, you should take a look the relevant multicolor cards. As their casting cost increases (in colorless), it gets easier and easier to cast a multicolor card than
a doublemana. Gold cards requiring 3 colors are another story--a three color deck is made with this many colors for a reason, and such reasons seldom can tolerate throwing in gold cards which are not specifically for the deck.
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Card to Watch for ... Forsaken Wastes
Let's start by looking at that casting cost: One black and two colorless. This is certainly easy enough to cast. Let's look at the powers (THREE, no less!):
Players cannot gain life. Wow! What a way to stop the Zuran Orb--it is almost too bad 'tis going soon anyway. This makes Elixir of Vitality something to consider, since the Elixir doesn't require mana to use, and can be activated in response to this spell being cast (provided its untapped, of course!). Cast this spell when you have a life advantage--and the Elixir sure helps with that--and you get a headstart on the race to see who runs out of life first. There aren't alot of damaging enchantments that both require no mana to get the effect and are as reliable and easy to cast as this (Warp Artifact, Cursed Land, Feedback, etc).
Power number 2 is the one that turns the game into a race. Each player loses 1 life (note that word, loses, i.e., not preventable) during his/her upkeep. Ouch! That sort of thing wins games.
Power number 3 is practically "protection from White" for enchantments. If someone targets this maximum annoyance with a spell (Disenchant tops the very short list, not counting stupid things like Mind Bend), that someone loses FIVE life. Ouch big time. Well, Arenson's Aura would work without drawback, for the one dweeb out there who appreciates that spell (the Aura isn't a spell once it is in play).
This batch of powers for a 3 mana spell is a nice collection, and makes it a fine complement to weenie and direct damage decks (which often need help dealing that last little bit of damage). If you think you might face this thing, keep in mind its an enchant world, so it is buried if another enchant world comes into play. Put a few such in your sideboard, and you'll give yourself a nice way of gaining card superiority, since you'll kill his enchantment simultaneously with creating your own (OR VICE VERSA IF YOU PUT YOURS OUT FIRST!).
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An Attempt At Humor. Beavis and Butthead Do Magic!
Somehow Beavis and Butthead got hold of a binder full of cards. They flipped through them (while consuming nachos, of course!), but won't give them to the owner unless he can identify the cards in the binder. They hid the binder, but remember some of the cards, in their own perverse, illiterate way. Butthead will only return the binder to the person who can identify the rest of the set based on what cards Beavis remembers seeing. He says the binder had 3 Grinning Scrotums, 2 Turd Apes, 1 Fetid Whore, Bone Hardest, and 4 Testicle Shooters. No prize, but can you tell I've been playing with the younger set lately?
3 Builder's Banes, 3 Dissipates, 1 Flare, 1 Hammer of Bogardan, 4 Incinerates, 1 Meddle, 1 Mind Bend, 2 Power Sinks, 2 Rays of Command, 2 Sapphire Charms, 1 Tidal Wave, 2 Volcanic Geysers.
(sideboards separate one tourney deck from the next anymore. Work on the sideboard yourself!)
Today's attempt at a Mirage-only deck uses Red and Blue, classic colors for handling the "I don't have a clue what I'll be up against" situation that defines a new tournament format.
At first glance, this looks like a pretty boring "summon creatures and clobber you" deck, but there's a few things to note about those creatures. The Crimson Hellkite is a beast--sure, it costs 9 mana, but this deck can well survive that long a game, and the Hellkite has the "Armageddon" effect. Armageddon, as you know, is a spell that, quite often, ends the game if cast, as OP will have no way to stop you from smashing him (especially if he isn't using STP!). The Hellkite is the same for Mirage. Go count the number of cards in Mirage that can stop a Hellkite (even Pacifism is dubious). With any luck at all, he won't have such a card in his hand, and you'll be able to counter it when he gets it. That's worth 9 mana, or, at least, experimenting to see if its worth it is a good idea. The Mist Dragon is about the same. The Emberwilde Djinn is another stalling card--let OP pay the two life to take it--you can just take it back next turn, so he'll never be able to attack you with it, and when the time comes to cast a big creature, just pay the 2 life yourself so you can use your mana. Well, its something to experiment with, anyhow. The Seer isn't long for this deck, although check for yourself if its a better creature/cantrip than Pyknite. The Sea Scryers are enough like Elves to be worthwhile, and should be used in the same way. The Firewalker is a MAJOR threat--many decks won't be able to handle him in any way, so he represents a major upgrade from Prodigal Sorcerers. The Wildfire Emissary is destined to be a tournament favorite--strong enough to stop the Centaur, and we've seen before the usefulness of a protection/pumpable creature. Tidal Wave is technically a creature, and gives this deck some way to stop an early large creature from hurting you.
Artifacts are about the only threat to some of these creatures, so 3 Builder's Banes are a necessity. Try to get two artifacts with every use--Amber Prisons should top the list of targets. The whole point of the counterspells is to stop those few spells that can kill the Firewalkers or a dragon; only counter other things if death is a likely result of inaction--with good creature control and some artifact control, being selective is key. Ray of Command gives this deck a nifty way of killing two creatures at once, or of fatally smacking an OP who is using a creature just too big for your own good. Mind Bend is another practice card--note you can only use it to target a permanent in play (unlike Sleights), but this is generally a better way to use it for this deck, since the result can easily be an unstoppable Emissary or Firewalker. Meddle serves as yet another way of protecting a creature from doom, but don't overlook its ability to retarget a big, beneficial enchantment onto one of your creatures instead of OPs. Flare can be impressive in a limited card situation, and "Mirage only" IS limited--hard to believe Flare works here, so just try it and see. Hold the charms until you know what to do with them--usually you'll want to "burn" to get another card (hopefully, the one more mana you need to get a Dragon into play), but every once in a while it makes sense to phase out a creature (another way to stop OP from enchanting his creatures!) or even make a surprise flier (a flying Tidal Wave?).
If you've been reading regularly, you know what's going on with no enchantments and artifacts--just forcing OP to waste draws on Disenchants and the like. In a long game, this can make a difference, and a long game is what this deck is shooting for.
There's much room for tweaking in this deck. This deck could easily turn into a Floodgate deck (with very few non-blue, non-fliers, the Floodgate can be a good "come from behind" card) or a Mind Bend deck (add three Mind Bends and some Cerulean Worms--spelled that wrong last time--and the only question left is what to remove.
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Tidbits of Wisdom ... A Mirage-Only World
Before you build a high-quality Mirage only, Arena, deck, you need to think about what you'll might face. Let's do a quick color analysis:
Artifact. Amber Prison is something any good deck should be able to handle. Grinning Scr--er, Totum isn't something to use--at least until one of these artifacts is shown to be powerful enough to be restricted. Phyrexian Vault is another card that can be a problem if not removed promptly. The Diamonds? No Armageddon, Balance, or Winter Orb means only the Hall of Gemstone has a chance of being a threat, and, if you've been hit by it, you know how it don't hurt enough to worry about.
Black. Stupor is certain to be popular, so consider Sand Golems or Mangara's Blessing as possible sideboard cards. Choking Sands isn't much of a threat--Mirage non-basic lands are laughable and/or sacrificeable. I see Forsaken Wastes is handled above, but make sure you won't be stymied by a Gravebane Zombie--either flyers, Amber Prisons, or permanent removal should be a part of your deck. Painful Memories can only be endured--expect to see it because of this.
Blue. Shimmer is the only NEW thing for Blue--the other cards are just minimal variants. Well, the Firewalker can be a great threat, although Prodigal Sorcer-type creatures are kinda common now. Blue is just as strong as always, and without the land destruction to make it vulnerable. No Control Magic is the only loss, but Ray of Command and Mind Harness are still threats to consider when building a deck, and, more importanly, when playing.
Green. Foratog is a threat--consider having some way of stopping a creature of arbitrary size for even just one turn because of this. Jolrael's Centaur is 100% guaranteed to make many Green decks. You must have a way of dealing with it (the most common I've seen is having 3/3 or bigger creatures). Mtenda Lion is something you'll see as well, although nobody builds a deck that can't handle a 2/1 nonflyer. Nettletooth Djinn is mighty big. Some walls in the sideboard, if not in the main deck, will stump Nettie--technically, you're using a wall to deal 1 damage a turn to OP. Stalking Tiger might be a sleeper--there aren't alot of decks with a surplus of medium creatures, which is what is needed to stop this 3/3; thank god it doesn't have Rampage. If you favor the Firewalker, watch out for Tropical Storm, which is a real problem (note how it doesn't hurt players). Uktabi Wildcats are also threatening--large, regenerating creatures can be a significant threat. Don't overlook Femeref Archers--if you use fliers, make sure you have a way to rid yourself of these hyperstrong dudes.
Red. Burning Palm Efreet makes Fliers with toughness 2 a risky thing to put in your deck. The Hammer is here to stay, so find some way to eliminate GYs (Ebony Charm) or use certain cards (Dissipate), or expect to be done in by this thing, especially if your deck isn't all that fast. Incinerate is still around, so be wary of using creatures with toughness 2 or 3--chances are, you're paying extra casting cost for something that won't help you. Counterspell players should expect to see Kaervek's Torch from time to time. Volcanic Geyser is the new direct damage spell, and its a relief that massive creature destruction like Fireball and Pyroclasm are gone--don't expect Torrent of Lava to be a common replacement.
White. STP is gone, huzzah! Jabari's Influence is a threat--consider making your best creatures artifacts or black, or using a way to sacrifice them quickly. Pacifism is the more likely replacement for STP--again, being able to sacrifice your creatures works well, but the ability to handle an enchantment (especially via an Instant) can be a gamewinner against a pacifist.
Gold. Hazerider Drake and Reparations are the only Gold cards that one is likely to see en mass. In the former case, be wary of only having Red for creature removal, and in the latter, consider having a fast deck, or a way of dealing with enchantments. Malignant Growth might be a threat, but at five mana, you should have enough time to develop your deck so that the extra cards just make it easier to kill OP.
As far as tactics go, the "basic" strategies have undergone some shifts:
Land Destruction. No Balance? No Armageddon? No Strip Mine? No Jokulhaups? Choking Sands and Stone Rain are it (Dwarven Miner is nigh irrelevant here), and the Miser's Cage is the replacement for the Vice. Will Fallow Earth and Natural balance be exploited somehow? With land destruction so feeble, it will be interesting to see if people will still have no choice but to make tournament quality decks that aren't composed entirely of cards costing 4 or less.
Direct Damage. Red has lost alot of direct damage, but gained some fun creatures. No Zuran Orb means gaining life is a bit harder (my personal theory is the Orb made direct damage so unreliable that it couldn't be counted on, allowing Necro players to just assume they'll have plenty of life to use), but there's so much less direct damage that using this as a sole tactic might still be unreliable.
Permission. All the counterspells are still there, and the land destruction that was Blue's bane is much reduced. Still, another strategy is needed for victory, since Millstone-type cards are few.
Discard. Card ripping will still be popopopular, as Black has some good replacements for Hymn and Necro. Expect this strategy to be both common and effective. The loss of key cards (Strip Mine, Necropotence) might bring back Pauper's Cage (er, Rack)--be prepared for this possibility.
Weenie. Can they make a comeback? Again, no Armageddon and no Meekstone, combined with all the Tim-type stuff, makes Weenies tough to rely on. Methinks this strategy will stay on the tournament sidelines, no Pyroclasms notwithstanding.
Got a Tidbit of Wisdom or Counter-Argument? Let us know!
Rick (IQRick) runs the InQuest Magic Trivia Game in the InQuest special events chat room, Thursday Nights, 10 EST. (Keyword InQuest) Tune in there and win to get a starter deck in a random CCG.
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Trade/Combat Zone and Marketplace
The first deck I ever bought had a Berserk in it. I thought the card sucked, so I never played it. Someone tells me how valuable it is, so I put it in my "trade deck" of stuff I'm willing to trade away. Later, I get an Acid Rain, because a friend of mine insists on loading up on People of the Wood for Emperor games. We never play Emperor again, so off it goes to the trade deck. Some guy trades me a Jade Statue for stuff I didn't care about either. That was over a year ago, and nobody wanted any of it. This stuff has been lingering in my trade deck so long I got emotionally attached to it. Finally, a guy with 5 pounds of Mirage rares wants my stuff. Well, he now has 3 pounds of Mirage, and I'll never see another Berserk in my life. Sniff.
Selling Shivan Dragon, Demonic Hordes, Mox Jet(in bad condition), and other cards. E-Mail for availability and prices. DynamoB@aol.com.
Cwill99@aol.com has bunches of 4th or Ice Age commons or uncommons to sell/trade.
adam61185 looking to trade ali from ciaro and serindip efret. (Wonder what a Serindip is?)
Any submissions or replies become the sole property of Books Electric Publishing.
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Our sincere thanks to AOL, Compuserve, InQuest Magazine, Tulane University, and the New Orleans Magic club for their help in preparing this. Happy Holidays!
