#mm2015

[island-delver-go]

Quick guide to the light test and black light test for determining fake MtG cards

The top pic shows a real card on the left and a fake on the right using the Black light Test. It’s not as prevalent in the photo but the fake has a brown tint to the black. Keep in mind, MM2015 cards show this too!

The bottom pics show the standard light test. This works best with an LED flashlight because you can see the bulbs. Once again, real card on the left, fake on the right.

These tests are quick, easy, and can be done with a $10 flashlight off of Amazon. Bonus! If you live in the southwest, these also help you find scorpions because they’re really just fake spiders

[neingel]

Should’ve or Shouldn’t?

Welcome back everybody. It has been a busy week for me due to my exams and for many others as well. But currently, it’s my short study break and that means time for me to start picking up on the blog again. Well, with that out of the way lets jump right in!

Today’s article would be none other than the recent ban announcements, while they were no changes to any format in Wizard’s focus, I would like to highlight and do a small review on each format’s state as of now, and what Wizards should’ve or shouldn’t ban.

STANDARD

I’ll jump right to the topic which everyone on the internet is buzzing about right now-Standard. Now Standard has not been very well received for quite a few months now, starting from the release of Aether Revolt, through the Pro Tour and now after a somewhat redundant ban announcement. I believe the main problem started with the spoiler season during Aether Revolt, where people actually realized an incarnation of Splinter Twin was already in the format:

The combo/deck is still legal due to the “no-changes” ban announcement(admit it, most of you are already used to it). But what seems to frustrate the playerbase/community the most is the fact that this archetype is clearly not very healthy for the metagame or for new players to go up against. The aftermentioned 2 points is what I and probably many Standard players believe is bad for Standard as a whole.

The next point I would like to emphasize would be Vehicles, or more specifically-the current reigning deck in Standard. Pre PT Aether Revolt, many thought that vehicles would never make the cut to the top tier in the upcoming Pro Tour, this was mainly due to the banning of Smuggler’s Copter which was a major backbone for the deck and the introduction of rather “unexciting” and mainly underwhelmed new Vehicle cards. However, many of the others, who were well ahead of their competitive scene decided to work on Vehicles’s unpopularity and somehow turned it to be the top deck that would go down winning the entire competition.

As you can see, the winning deck/archetype ran a interesting selection of cards, cheap threats such as Toolcraft Exemplar/Inventor’s Apprentice as well as “value” creatures Thalia/Scrounger/Inspector. What really pushed it’s power level was the 2 new vehicles-Heart of Kiran and Aethersphere Harvester. Both somewhat seemed to be the better versions of the previously banned Copter.

Vehicles have been ever rampant in the meta and competitive scene after the Pro Tour. Which led to many players speculating a 2nd consecutive Standard banning in a very short period of time. To me, it’s quite obvious that the power level of these 2 cards are indeed quite strong when played around the right shell, but it didn’t bring the same amount of “disgusting value” Smuggler’s Copter had when it was still legal. Furthermore, Copy-Cat was the more likely target of getting banned anyways.

Other individuals bans many have predicted included these:

Modern

Modern Masters 2017 is just right around the corner for release, and what a surprise/shocker it would be if they banned a certain card that was already in MM17? It’s actually no suprise though, where they banned Twin a few months after the release of MM2015 2 years ago. Many have started speculating a few cards being banned the next announcement, but would Wizards actually have a smiliar Splinter Twin scenario again. Chances are, quite possibly.

And here is my top pick.

Now before a horde of angry Suicide Zoo players came destroying my room. I feel that Death’s Shadow is quite the speedy unfair deck, somewhat reminiscent of the old days of Modern where there would be fast decks that would define the format as “the Turn 4 format”. Death’s Shadow however, unlike Goyf is a card that scales from a simple creature to a gamechanger, by using the player’s life total as a tool, it doesn’t hurt to have a low life total when Death’s Shadow is most probably going to swing for lethal possibly on turn 3. Put Death’s Shadow into a good shell consisting easy access to life loss, Goyf shenanigans as well as cards that cycle effectively to find pieces. Suicide Zoo does effectively hold itself as a fast combo deck given the right situations as well as a strong, consistent aggro deck in some grindier matchups.

My 2nd pick

No I’m not insane, I know my picks are getting crazy or retarded, but Mox Opal recently has been creeping up on a lot of people’s radar nowadays. The powerful 0 cmc artifact has seen play for as long as Modern’s inception, but recently has been showing up in Cheerios. Where many have seen a portion of it’s raw power and efficiency. Mox Opal might deserve a ban, but doing so will immensely lower down the power level of many decks, but particularly Affinity-where many players have a long love-hate relationship with the deck for a very long time. This could overall help slightly with a shift of the metagame enabling a small change of taste in Modern.

My 3rd pick

If Death’s Shadow wasn’t banned yet, I think the next card to go will be this important piece of the puzzle running the whole deck. Bauble at 0 cmc does offer a lot of card advantage as early as Turn 1. Being able to gain information off the top of an opponent’s library, combined with the free card draw the next upkeep as well as the fact it can be activated at instant speed is just additional icing on the cake. Bauble does seem to give too much card advantage at 0 cmc, something Wizards have paid particular attention to especially when they have banned Gitaxian Probe.

EDH

EDH is mainly a format full of variety, volatility and a crazy blend of cards you would often find in your shoebox of unwanted cards. Bannings for EDH in the past have been quite sensible and have kept the format in balance(Let’s be honest, there’s a long list of cards/combos/generals you hate a lot :/). Thus, I’ll try to be fair/reasonable in my pickings for cards that should’ve been banned in this section.

The Main Course

Paradox Engine is the new, awesome, must-have Christmas toy every EDH player is buzzing about. Released recently in Aether Revolt, Paradox Engine spells disaster for the whole board. Being able to play mana rocks/dorks, Phenax shenanigans or sinking yourself in a vast amount of card advantage…

This card basically can fit into any shell/deck, but make it much better as a whole overall. I could see this getting banned soon if the need arises.

The Potato side

Let’s be honest here, Mana Drain has lurked around in EDH for far too long, many have asked for a ban, but none has come by for quite a few years now. Having the same cmc as a regular Counterspell, Mana Drain has the ability to provide maximum tempo at any given rate. One good example is to counter an opponent’s Eldrazi Titan and then casting your own Eldrazi Titan next turn.

The new thing

There has been quite the influx of opinions from the playerbase, where Atraxa deserves to be banned due to the sheer power of her strategy in multiple decks(Superfriends,Infect,any counter strategy,etc). Though I see it being very unlikely as she just got released in Commander 2016, and the fact there are many other stronger generals out there.

Conclusion

That’s it for today’s article, the announcement was probably a letdown for most players, but majority of the playerbase agreed that Wizards really needed to fix some formats fast. However, from this example, it is sure to see the next set of cards that could probably be banned. As for now, players can hope to grab on to their precious formats and hope for the best. I hope you have enjoyed today’s articles and please do follow up with any upcoming articles. See you soon!

[yomearrepiento-blog]

Sin los huevos de oro

@mauriciomacri Gracias x elegir a la mejor compañera de formula. Vamos x el Gobierno el 10/2015 !!

— ★ Javier ★ (@javierdvt)

19 de junio de 2015

#MacriPresidente MM2015 ... MACRI YA GANO Y CAMBIAMOS PARA ESTAR MEJOR!!

— ★ Javier ★ (@javierdvt)

15 de noviembre de 2015

#YoCambio #MacriPresidente MM2015 GRITALO BIEN FUERTE...MACRI YA GANÓ !! pic.twitter.com/da1RfYaVw5

— ★ Javier ★ (@javierdvt)

19 de noviembre de 2015

@mauriciomacri @todonoticias Mesa 2560 CABA Caballito Muy tranqui. Poca gente aun (8.40am).HERMOSO DIA PARA EL CAMBIO. MM2015. !!

— ★ Javier ★ (@javierdvt)

22 de noviembre de 2015

#Decision2015 #MacriPresidente EMPIEZA UNA NUEVA ARGENTINA !!! MACRI PRESIDENTE !!!!! pic.twitter.com/yIsUFCdcGh

— ★ Javier ★ (@javierdvt)

22 de noviembre de 2015

#Decision2015 #MacriPresidente SOY FELIZ !!!!! MM2015 !!! Se siente se siente @mauriciomacri PRESIDENTE !!! pic.twitter.com/sMNJZmCfhH

— ★ Javier ★ (@javierdvt)

22 de noviembre de 2015

FESTEJEMOS ARGENTINOS.....GRITEMOS CON EL CORAZON.....MACRI PRESIDENTE !!!!! pic.twitter.com/qsQddgpdQj

— ★ Javier ★ (@javierdvt)

10 de diciembre de 2015

POR UN PRESIDENTE PARA TODOS LOS ARGENTINOS....POR UNA ARGENTINA LIBRE...MAURICIO MACRI PRESIDENTE pic.twitter.com/rvLhe0D270

— ★ Javier ★ (@javierdvt)

10 de diciembre de 2015

Brindemos x una NUEVA ARGENTINA....@mauriciomacri PRESIDENTE pic.twitter.com/dCvS9taWHG

— ★ Javier ★ (@javierdvt)

10 de diciembre de 2015

Saludos MI PRESIDENTE !!!! @mauriciomacri pic.twitter.com/qr1JfJ3aZz

— ★ Javier ★ (@javierdvt)

10 de diciembre de 2015

@mauriciomacri Por favor Presidente:NO SOMOS CUBA.Saque esa figura del edificio.Millones de argentinos agradeceran. pic.twitter.com/Cn9mgsU2tG

— ★ Javier ★ (@javierdvt)

11 de diciembre de 2015

@mauriciomacri Por favor Presidente: Auditoría TOTAL sobre la gestión de la administración saliente.Es muy necesaria https://t.co/DITXQxUg3W

— ★ Javier ★ (@javierdvt) 11 de diciembre de 2015

@mdzonline @mauriciomacri Lo califico con un 10 rotundo !!!

— ★ Javier ★ (@javierdvt)

11 de enero de 2016

@mauriciomacri Te apoye siempre,te apoyo y te apoyaré pero CON LOS AUMENTOS TE ESTAS YENDO AL CARAJO !! Más sensibilidad.

— ★ Javier ★ (@javierdvt)

1 de mayo de 2016

CON ESTA IMAGEN DE PODER QUIEREN GANAR EN EL 2017?? DAN RISA..MIRA COMO SE CAGAN DE RISA DE TODOS. MACRI ESTO NO LO VES? TE IMPORTA?

— ★ Javier ★ (@javierdvt)

4 de agosto de 2016

YO TE VOTE @mauriciomacri Y LA VERDAD Q TE CREIA CON HUEVOS PARA ARREGLAR TODO. MIRA COLO SE NOS CAGAN DE RISA Y VOS QUE HACES?????

— ★ Javier ★ (@javierdvt)

4 de agosto de 2016

@DiazMassaraIvan a mí ya se me paso la bronca.Ahora me siento defraudado con TODO el gobierno de @mauriciomacri .Deposité muchas esperanzas

— ★ Javier ★ (@javierdvt)

18 de octubre de 2016

[cosselp]

Wizards releases previews of packaging and artwork for Modern Masters 2016, Amonkhet

Wizards releases previews of packaging and artwork for Modern Masters 2016, Amonkhet

Wizards of the Coast put out some great information today as they prepare for Modern Masters 2017 previews starting next week. Up first is the release of the packaging for MM17. With the disaster of the MM2015 packaging, it is nice to see WotC returning to the more traditional packaging. What’s the most telling about these is the art. As you can see Griselbrand, Domri Rade, and Stoic Angel are on…

[fumitoshikato]

おかもちコーヒー。準備中です。 #okamochicoffee #mm2015 #爽やかな解散

[mryhi]

Córtala con Tan Biónica y métele gas que ya se me están durmiendo las piernas #macri #asuncion #cfkausente #chupina #alfinalvinistealcongreso #gato 🐱 #macri #mm2015 #tantolioporunpalo #congreso #architecture

[island-delver-go]

Major MtG sale

Live in New England? Newbury Comics has a BOGO offer on MtG packs including MM2015, MM2017 and EMA! Sadly I'm not close enough to partake but thought I'd share the news of the bounty

[srtapowers-blog]

Todo un palo, ya lo ves.

¿Cambiemos? Yo no quiero que nos cambien, no quiero que cambien mi país. Tampoco quería que siga igual que hace años con su lado negativo tanto como positivo. 

Yo quiero un MEJORÍA para mi país, para el país que, por un lado, no tuvo otra idea que votar sólo para sacar al Kirchnerismo y, por otro lado, votaron para mantenerlo sin escuchar las propuestas de los candidatos. Votaron ciegos, votamos ciegos. No dimos oportunidad a otro partido que quizás si nos llevaría realmente adelante y ahora medio país festeja y medio país tiene miedo. Y dentro de esas mitades, estamos lo que no compartimos nada con Frente Para la Victoria ni con Cambiemos, pero en mi caso preferí elegir por uno en vez de votar en blanco, lo cual lo veo mal. 

Y hablando de mal, tengo tan mal visto a Macri por lo que dijo, por lo que dicen, por lo que dirán. Espero que, sinceramente, me cierre el orto y no nos hunda (más) porque no quiero perder lo aprendido, lo conseguido, lo laburado. Tampoco quiero que mis padres vuelvan a sentir los ‘90 y mucho menos el 2001. Suena extremista, pero la suerte es loca y en “todo puede pasar” entra, literalmente, todo. Me quedará desear la mejor de las suertes a nuestro mañana y, sobre todas las cosas, paz y unión entre nosotros los Argentinos. ¿Qué somos sin unión? Aún no entiendo porque no tiramos todos para el mismo lado siendo parte del mismo suelo. Está bien estar divididos entre ideas porque somos seres independientes y cada uno debe tener una manera propia de pensar y ser libre de hacerlo, pero estamos tan divididos entre clases sociales que se hace imposible respetarnos y aceptarnos. 

Tenemos cuatro años para cambiar actitudes de mierda, para crecer y ser mejores como humanos y, repito, que este “cambio” sea positivo y alentador para Argentina estemos de acuerdo o no con este gobierno que se nos viene. Tuvimos 12 años de kirchnerismo, supongo que le toca al macrismo. Estando juntos y cuidando lo nuestro, no nos pueden hacer caer. ¡Vamos, carajo!

P.D.: Que no se me malinterprete, no soy K ni macrista, sólo quiero tener algo de positividad respecto a todo esto.

[bautigranella-blog]

#YoCambio #MM2015

[lapekas]

#Maldeamores #AngelGrave #MM2015 #instagood Tanta espera. :)

[soapylayne]

Amongst beautiful people with their amazing handcrafted goods 🌿 Visit handmade maker's market today from 11-4 @theecologycenter #supportartists #mm2015 #handmade #sanjuancapistrano #local #makersmarket #theecologycenter

[n4ttz]

[ikonz]

iKON at MelOn Music Awards 2015

[soapylayne]

Join us for Maker's Market in San Juan Capistrano @theecologycenter Sat. Nov 14th from 10-4 🌿Discover a unique outdoor market full of functional and well designed goods, handmade my local artisans, plus a Wildcraft Lab for kids, cocktail garden lounge, and musical guests #makersmarket #theecologycenter #sanjuancapistrano #handmade #local #supportartists #mm2015