I titled this article this way, because for the life of me I can't remember what this set is called. After all the hype about who would win the war, and what this set would look like, I don't even know what it's called. I find that this is really indicative of my overall attitude about this set: I just don't care.
I really just don't care. There is hardly a handful of cards which even peek my interest. The cycle of Praetors seem kinda cool and swingy, but I think I can pick most of them up in trade. The fact that 60% of the Mythics in the set are Legendary (Karn) sends a clear signal that my suspicion about the next block will be Legendary matters is correct. Batterskull seems like a great equipment, but Standard not withstanding, is not worth it's current price. If Stoneforger Mystic rotates, it should drop like a rock. I really think there is a good case to be made that Stonforger will be reprinted in M12, but nothing definitive. The Sword is the last piece of a long cycle, and as such is nearly a must have.
The rares have a similar picture. The Chancellors seem neat, but I suspect I can get them in trades for years to come, so no rush there. If I was going to play Standard, Hex parasite seems like the way to go. Standard not withstand, I expect I will still get one. Most of the other rares seem sort of niche, and there is no real way to know which (or more likely none) will take hold.
I think the one must own card in the set is Mental Misstep, as it is bound to have cross format impact. I have not really done the math yet, but it may make busting packs worth wild on it's own? With all this in mind, I'm not sure if I will be going to the Prerelease or if I just want to throw a few bucks at packs?
I really just don't care. There is hardly a handful of cards which even peek my interest. The cycle of Praetors seem kinda cool and swingy, but I think I can pick most of them up in trade. The fact that 60% of the Mythics in the set are Legendary (Karn) sends a clear signal that my suspicion about the next block will be Legendary matters is correct. Batterskull seems like a great equipment, but Standard not withstanding, is not worth it's current price. If Stoneforger Mystic rotates, it should drop like a rock. I really think there is a good case to be made that Stonforger will be reprinted in M12, but nothing definitive. The Sword is the last piece of a long cycle, and as such is nearly a must have.
The rares have a similar picture. The Chancellors seem neat, but I suspect I can get them in trades for years to come, so no rush there. If I was going to play Standard, Hex parasite seems like the way to go. Standard not withstand, I expect I will still get one. Most of the other rares seem sort of niche, and there is no real way to know which (or more likely none) will take hold.
I think the one must own card in the set is Mental Misstep, as it is bound to have cross format impact. I have not really done the math yet, but it may make busting packs worth wild on it's own? With all this in mind, I'm not sure if I will be going to the Prerelease or if I just want to throw a few bucks at packs?
Comments
There are more "good" cards than you think though, expecially for 5C: Praetor's Grasp, Phyrexian Ingester (New Duplicant), New Clone, Birthing Pod are all excellent. Etched Monstrosity has potential for 5C too.
Mental Misstep will be a Legacy staple, and is already $5. Collect your set early.
The bomb rares are bomby, but also with incredibly high mana costs. I agree they wont be expensive once the hype dies down. AKrn will be an EDH staple though, as it solves a lot of control problems for monored/monoblack decks.