BLOODRUSH! Similar to Bloodthirst from the original Ravnica block, the barbarians and rubble-slummers of the Gruul Clans have a special love for cracking skulls. Where Bloodthirst would make your creatures bigger as they came down, Bloodrush turns your creatures into pump spells. Like Batallion, Bloodrush isn’t actually a keyword; it is an ability word, and […]
Simic: How Evolve works.
I’ve got to say, I’m really liking the new Simic! You’ll be seeing a lot of their little mutations at the prerelease, and just like Batallion, it helps to know how it works before you head into the event so you don’t make a misplay. Evolve is another triggered ability. If you have a creature […]
Boros: How Battalion works.
With the prerelease bearing down on us just this Saturday, it’s time to kick off the Gatecrash week! This week I’ll be covering all 5 of the new mechanics, just like we did with RtR. Today we’ll be doing Battalion, followed by Evolve tomorrow, Extort on Wednesday, Bloodrush on Thursday, and Cipher finishing things up […]
Rakdos, Lord of Riots can only reduce colorless mana.
has a fairly nifty ability. It says that for each 1 life that an opponent has lost this turn, your creature spells costs 1 less to cast. So, if your opponent has lost 6 life this turn (say, because you just attacked with your Rakdos), your creatures spells will cost 6 less to cast that […]
Zero damage can’t be avenged by Avenging Arrow.
Your opponent’s has been pestering you all game. Your deck doesn’t really have any flyers, so you have no way to block it. However, you just drew an Avenging Arrow, so your plan it to let the Pest attack next turn, then use the Arrow after combat damage to get rid of the Pest. Does […]
Wayfaring Temple and Essence Backlash
You’re playing your Selesnya token deck, and you have five tokens on the board. Hoping to take advantage, you cast your Wayfaring Temple, hoping to start attacking with a large creature and creating a larger army. However, your opponent doesn’t like that idea very much, and they counter your Temple with Essence Backlash. Surprisingly, your […]
A spectator’s role at FNM, a PTQ or Grand Prix day 2.
Whether you’re at your local FNM, watching a match because you already finished your match, or you’re at a Grand Prix watching your friend play, it’s not uncommon to see spectators watching matches. So what is expected of a spectator watching a match? First off, you should be a silent observer. You can say some […]
If Parasalene destroys Havoc Festival, you will gain life.
Your Rakdos opponent has gotten off to a fairly fast start. You managed to their board away, but then they dropped a , shutting off your life gain and threatening to drop you into burn range. You’re holding a , but you’re not sure if you’ll be able to gain any life off of the […]
Divine Deflection vs. Olivia Voldaren (a study in state-based actions).
Times are tough for your Olivia Voldaren. She came down right on schedule on Turn 4, but your opponent immediately stabbed her with , reducing her to a mere 1/1. Fortunately, your opponent has a juicy 1/1 Human token, ripe for the plucking (and the vamping)! You untap and immediately direct your vampire queen towards […]