Notions of Horde: Allies and Eldrazi, a Study in Opposites
February 19, 2016
By Billy
Today I’m going to be discussing two different hordes, both of which I’ve been wanting to build for quite a while but never felt like there were enough Horde-playable cards for the tribes. That’s right: it’s Kor and Vampires Tribal!
Just kidding.
I’m talking about Eldrazi and Allies Hordes. These are two horde ideas that have been bouncing around my head since I’d first heard of Horde, but I wasn’t sure how to build them in interesting and fun ways. Thanks to Magic’s return to Zendikar, I feel like I have the tools available to produce hordes that are worthwhile and provide enough of a different spin on the format to feel different from other, more standard hordes.
Savor That Commander Flavor 26 – Of Praetors and World Eaters
December 13, 2012
By William aka BlueRam
“The feeble resistance of the flesh is over. Phyrexia spreads its shadow over all.” -Life’s Finale
“The emergence of the Eldrazi isn’t necessarily a bad thing, as long as you’ve already lived a fulfilling and complete life without regrets.”
—Javad Nasrin, Ondu relic hunter ~All is Dust
The Praetors. If you haven’t seen one by now, consider yourself either lucky, or brain-dead. These five pillars of misery bring forth doom and despair upon anyone on the wrong side of the fence with a hulking display of power and suppression. They are the pinnacle Magic villainy. At one point, it was believed that these cards would be so overpowered that they would be banned from EDH completely.
Any time a player brought one of these praetors to the front lines you can expect panic and mayhem to ensue. These lords of suppression demand immediate attention. If they’re not countered, then the spot removal rains down on them. Urabrask and Sheoldred might be stopped, as can Jin-Gitaxias (if you’re quick enough), but Elesh Norn and Vorinclex both have immediate impacts on the game, wiping out creatures and locking down mana in one fell swoop.
A lot of people are still sore that Wizards ever released such horrors upon us and call them out as idiots who don’t know how to design for Commander. I, however, praise how well their design works.
Savor That Commander Flavor 16 – Power of the All-Knowing
September 13, 2012
“But Farmer Hogget knew that little ideas…that tickled and nagged and refused to go away…should never be ignored…for in them, lie the seeds of destiny.”
-Babe (1995)
Warning: Exceptionally long narrative ahead.
Magic cards are funny things. Grab any two and they can cause a spark of the imagination. Fan that spark a little and it grows. Fan that flame enough and it could grow out of control into a full-fledged wild fire. This is what we call, “inspiration and enlightenment”.
While I once shared a story about how Baroness Teysa, Orzhov Scion convinced me to grant her an army of the undead, her power came from a long line of decisions and experiences that almost became its own legacy. Not all such stories start from such a long time ago, and not all stories feature the same trials. They may not even share the same setting. But the more things are different, the more the stay the same.
This is one such story. It’s the story of how a certain wizard inspired me to give a controversial enchantment another look. She wasn’t strong, but she was powerful. Her wisdom and vast wealth of knowledge would lead to one of my greatest endeavors ever…