DGM -- Full Spoiler is UP!

[Thrillho]

http://www.wizards.com/magic/tcg/articl ... nsmaze/cig#

Some comments:
I don't think there are any Sphinx's Revelations or Deathrite Shamans in this set, but there's definitely a lot of at least interesting cards worth exploring, and probably many of them are good in Constructed. I'm a big fan of "living the dream" via Plasm Capture into Reap Intellect. I really want Tithe Drinker to wind up being good. I'm glad we live in a world where Skyslasher is probably wasted design space (it seems hellbent on beating Snapcaster and Delver while fighting absolutely nothing else [bearing in mind that Geist is very commonly seen wearing Pants or coming in from the SB in Standard]).

Mostly, I'm just glad that the set seems to offer some kind of at least revisiting if not
rebuilding established design space and opening up some cool niches to explore in either an Innistrad/M13-free Standard, block, or maybe even an Innistrad-powered Standard. It's really cool when it doesn't feel like they phoned in the last set in an exciting block.

[Calamity]

I like how crazy some of the designs are in this set. I dunno how powerful it will be since a lot of these cards have such unique design and are difficult to evaluate, but the set just seems like it'll be a blast to play. I'm especially looking forward to RGD limited.

[Kazekirimaru]

I'm tempted to say this looks like a limited-only set. But, that's what they've said about every set for about the last three years. It's so difficult predicting how a set will affect Standard, anymore.

[Dodger]

I remember when I thought Innistrad was total shit. Okay it was just mostly shit with a few good cards and the second best PW ever printed

[Thrillho]

You guys are magumbos if you thought those sets were devoid of cards.

[Kaitscralt]

This set is the polar opposite of Gatecrash. It seems to have a highish number of playable rares and mythics, while having an all-time low in playable commons and uncommons. Gatecrash was just the opposite, providing entire new archetypes with its non-rare pool but being pretty dry at the back of the pack.

[Thrillho]

yay or nay for the 3/1?

[Checkbox]

Yay

[redthirst]

Haste 3/1 or Bloodrush 3/1?

Or another 3/1 that I don't remember?

[Thrillho]

the bloodrush hammer.

[Checkbox]

Oh, I was thinking the haste guy. I'm not sure about the bloodrush goblin. All I am hoping for is that Goblin Guides me on my quest to determine if this card is good or not.

[Thrillho]

ouch.

[TubeHunter]

right in the intellegence

[redthirst]

I like them both. The Bloodrush guy does a lot of work - especially when you're running FS guys, evasive guys, and guys your opponent can't profitably block.

Reckoner is basically all those things in one.

I'm considering replacing at least one Stonewright with him before rotation.

[imopen2]

i thought you were talking about the 3/1 that kills revelation

[iamabadman]

These are cards alright

[TubeHunter]

I have confirmed, these are cards

[Thrillho]

just had an interesting exchange over twitter: what would you first pick over Unflinching Courage? DGM is pack 1 of DGR draft.

[redthirst]

Maybe Blood Baron or Varolz, depending on what else was in the pack, but I can't think of anything else that I would even entertain picking over Cloak in Draft.

That card is very often an "EASY" button for winning.

[Thrillho]

I exclude rares/mythics from this exercise because that's not really exercising anything, except maybe imagining a world where you open foil Voice of Resurgence and get passed a foil Ral Zarek and then every subsequent pack has its Guildgate slot filled with a shockland.

[redthirst]

If you're going to omit rares as viable options for whatever reason then there's nothing you pick over pack one Cloak.

[Thrillho]

Commons: Tithe Drinker (it is a 2cc aggressive Extort source)
Uncommons: Putrefy
Warleader's Helix
Turn/Burn
Far/Away
Armed/Dangerous (assuming there's a plan for Naya Dinosaurs in mind)
Possibly the "destroy a random creature your opponent controls" Gruul creature

This is a block draft where your pack 2 has two "auto win" creature enchantments that not-that-uncommonly table in favor of cards that better synergize with a deck rather than a buch of good cards. Tithe Drinker is one of the best set-ups for a "building for a deck" strategy, especially at common. There's a good chance you just snap up the enchantment, but Tithe Drinker in the abstract is one of the best commons in the set. Putrefy is the best removal spell in the block, hands down. Helix is pretty tight -- 8 life swing, etc. All of the above split cards at 2-to-your-opponent's-entire-board-for-1s, which is a lot better than
just having a creature enchantment that makes your creature substantially better. Gruul rando-fighter is another 2-for-1, though having a random target die is probably worse than having one really good guy. I would even possibly consider Korozda Gorgon over Unflinching Courage -- there are a lot of +1/+1 counters that go around this block freely, and the Gorgon evolves all evolve creatures except for Clinging Anemone at least once (IIRC ...).

Why is there no other option for you to pick Unflinching Courage, in your opinion?

[redthirst]

Unlike those other cards Cloak has the potential to just win the game - and I don't mean like "if I play a bear and my opponent doesn't do anything for 10 turns I win" potential - I mean they've damn well got to have an answer and quick or you're going build up a nearly insurmountable advantage.

There are cards that answer this and many will 2-for-1 you, but you don't pass bombs that win games for cards that might answer it or because someone else might be able to answer it.

[Thrillho]

every single one of the cards i listed answers the creature before or after being enchanted, except for tithe drinker, possibly scab-clan giant and helix, and probably armed/dangerous (since you are not leaving a creature enchanted with armadillo cloak back to block, but the card is a RG Wrath of God otherwise), and works on cards that don't involve creature enchantments in addition.

like i said, holy mantle and to a lesser/greater extent madcap skills do the same things you're saying, but they are not first picks. the addition of lifelink to the equation makes courage the better card of the three, but allowing people to gain a large advantage would summarily make alms beast one of the worst cards in GTC limited.

you're talking about a slower limited environment overall in DGR that has, cumulatively, a lot of answers to creatures that are just dudes that turn sideways. the format is also ripe with very large creatures -
- having a big life swing doesn't mean all that much (alms beast) if you can make up for lost time by throwing a few haymakers at your opponent and calling it a game.

courage is a very good, but very linear, card. you put it on a creature, it is now better at attacking. you should attack your opponent with that creature and also give yourself some room to breathe while your opponent is now pressured. but what if your opponent has a bigger creature? or holy mantle? or removal? or an ability on a card that moots it? there's no real pivot space -- it's tap this dude and hopefully you can do that enough times and your opponent is dead.

it is a very high pick. it is also very likely a first pick in a lot of packs. i don't think it is absolutely the first pick of every pack that doesn't have a rare better than it.

[redthirst]

And I don't think you pass a bomb because there are answers to it.

[Thrillho]

if you consider that "blocking" is an answer and "is hard to block profitably" a bomb status, then i guess we've found an answer to our thought experiment's hypothesis.

[redthirst]

I consider that if you put Cloak on anything larger than a weenie creature you've got a fairly resilient (high toughness) Trample, Lifelink creature with all the abilities of the parent creature... and that wins Limited games quickly if it's not answered.

So yeah, pretty much the definition of a bomb.

[Thrillho]

It's no Loxodon Warhammer in that/those regards. Warhammer was a bomb... this is less than that.

Also in those regards, the classic "well a llanowar elf unanswered wins games... yadda yadda." My point isn't that the creature dies to removal, my point is that there's a big disparity in RTR-block limited between small and large creatures (or having plethora of Tokens in play) and that making a 3/3 a 5/5 has many combat-based solutions. I think the critical point of maximum return on this is 4+ toughness as a baseline (so Zhur-Tar Swine can't effectively block it), preferably with evolve or activated evolve triggers (IE Crocanura + Cloak = madness). The only issue with that is that you can't really predict that in pack 1 pick 1 whether it will just be good or it will be completely busted.

That's what I think downgrades it from "bomb" to "extremely strong and very first-pickable limited card."
It's also the reason I can put up other cards that are always going to be 2+ for 1s as possible picks over it, as those cards will, barring your opponent not playing creatures, be extremely impactful when cast. They also happen to answer new-Cloak pretty well.

The reason I like Gorgon over this possibly is because she can single-handedly shut off an opponent in a similar "if you drafted a deck that plays well with it" build; having creatures that easily evolve or having plethora of graft effects is going to turn her into a one-sided pestilence.

Similarly, with Armed/Dangerous, you have a one-sided wrath effect usually reserved for the likes of Reaver Demon or Revenge of the Hunted, albeit with double strike instead of an inherent buff (6/6 body and +6/+6, respectively). The Lure effect can also merely serve as a Falter for a lethal alpha strike.

Putrefy is also a "Destroy target creature." effect in a format largely devoid of Destroy target creature period effects, with the
added bonus of hitting Armored Transport (which Grisly Spectacle cannot do despite Melissa DeTora's insistance), Chromatic Lantern in greedy decks, and tricky Keyrune creatures that dodge most of the removal in the format without having to play Naturalize. It is not a bomb effect, but it answers most all bombs and then some in a way that very few other cards in the block are capable of, especially in an single card, at Instant speed, and without being a wrath- or rare-based effect.

[Yannaria]

I like the bloodrush guy a lot. I can see him getting played when Hellrider rotates as the lategame for red.

[Yannaria]

still upset I missed on the called shot of a blood rush dude with scavange as well.

[Thrillho]

Something I'd like to note here and will at some point in our financial subforum: none of the creatures in this set, excluding Stagtusk (who dies but is replaced with a Crusader of Odric), dodges Mizzium Mortars. All of the best creatures are toughness 4 or less. In addition, Mizzium Mortars, tied roughly with Supreme Verdict, is the most played removal spell in RTR Block Constructed.

Many store-writing pros are hyping the 5 mana x/4 mythic creatures from this set noting that "NOTHING BEATS IT*! (*except Mizzium Mortars)" This, coupled with an already solid game against basically all non-Advent of the Wurm-token creatures leads me to believe that our future is Mizzium Mortars and if you don't already have your copies, that you should acquire them post-haste.

[Thrillho]

for reference, I have just purchased roughly 25

[Kaitscralt]

People are way overestimating Armadillo Cloak in Limited. Rancor is not that great in Limited, Gift of the Orzhova is not that great in Limited, and Armadillo Cloak is not that great in Limited. They win games when they are not answered, but people draft removal for a reason.

[Kaitscralt]

I'd absolutely pick Helix and Putrefy over it, and that's just off the top of my head

[Checkbox]

It's no Loxodon Warhammer in that/those regards. Warhammer was a bomb... this is less than that.

Also in those regards, the classic "well a llanowar elf unanswered wins games... yadda yadda." My point isn't that the creature dies to removal, ...

Also in those regards, the classic "well a llanowar elf unanswered wins games... yadda yadda." My point isn't that the creature dies to removal, ...

My point isn't that the creature dies to removal, ...

dies to removal

[redthirst]

Yeah... Cloak being busted in Limited isn't theory. It's been in a Limited environment before - one that had more and better removal than this one and worse creatures, in general, to put it on - and it was a bomb then. In an environment that's more friendly toward it, it's still a bomb.

[Kaitscralt]

Combat aura's aren't busted in Magic, certainly not in Limited, and this is no exception. It's a high pick card, but the set has a lot better stuff. You are way overvaluing it based on a Limited enviroment from a decade ago... lol.

[iamabadman]

It's no Loxodon Warhammer in that/those regards. Warhammer was a bomb... this is less than that.

Also in those regards, the classic "well a llanowar elf unanswered wins games... yadda yadda." My point isn't that the creature dies to removal, ...

Also in those regards, the classic "well a llanowar elf unanswered wins games... yadda yadda." My point isn't that the creature dies to removal, ...[/size:
1cswx1dn]

My point isn't that the creature dies to removal, ...

dies to removal

sometimes, you dont try to hard. and thats when the magic happens