Following on the heels of the Orzhov, we have the Boros Legion. Boros is designed to be the most aggressive of the guilds, even moreso than Rakdos or Gruul. As such, the guild centers mainly on having lots of little guys that are cheap but efficient, and right at home in the Red Zone. EDH is not a format that lends itself to “weenie” strategies. But that doesn’t mean it won’t work if you try. I’ve had a lot of success with my R/W build that focuses on small guys with Doublestrike or other relevant combat bonuses that help them compete with the much larger creatures common to most EDH decks.
In light of this, I had high hopes for Boros in this set, and while they do have some spicy options, there aren’t nearly as many playables as I’d hoped. The small creatures are mostly below the threshold of playability for me, and there was little or no Doublestrike to be found. Oh well. Let’s see what the guild DOES have to offer:
This is the sort of thing I was talking about above. Seems solid for a dedicated White Weenie or Boros Weenie deck, but by the time you have 2 other guys to attack along side this guys, you'll be attacking into 5/5's and 6/6's. Great for 60-card, terrible in EDH.
I'm torn on this one. It has a really compelling Battalion effect, but you usually want mass Indestructible on your opponent's turn when he goes to Wrath the board away. That said it lets the super aggressive R/W or Mono-W deck attack with his little guys without fear of blockers wrecking it's army. Running this guy into an Swords or Path, though, will be devestating. Also, not sure how relevant the anti-X-spell tech will be.
It will probably see play here and there, but won't be a staple of the format.
I read this as "Firstest Striker" at first, which I though was amusing. As with the White uncommon, this is too weak for EDH but seems cool for Limited or 60-card.
Very cool but seems mostly useless in EDH. Anti-token tech is useful, but this particular bit of tech seems unwieldy and unreliable.
Very fun, and will do scary things if left unchecked. It's a bit slow-rolling and I can't tell if that helps it or hurts it. If threat assessment is dodgy this could snowball and by the time the table realizes they should have killed it, it's too late. Or, it might rightly be seen as something to deal with ASAP and it will be 5 mana for a 1/1 token. I plan to try it out in a couple decks, so we'll see how it goes.
No sooner did I profess my undying love and devotion to Gisela, Blade of Goldnight, when this sultry temptress comes along to make me forget my honor. I'm not 100% sure but I really think Aurelia is my new R/W general. Sorry, Gisela.
I hope it doesn't need saying, but this chick is scary good in EDH, as a general or one of the 99. VERY playable.
Well, the Boros got the best charm in the cycle, hands down, AND it's an absurdly amazing new addition to Sunforger packages all across the format. Every deck with Sunforger should have this. Period.
In case you are missing it, it says "permanents you control are indestructible this turn". Permanents. Instant speed. Two mana. WTF?
Duh, obvious bomb is obvious. But, it's also hella cool in a way most obvious bombs are not. Omniscience? Boring. This? Awesome. It's versatile in a way that rewards the skilled player most for using it correctly, but it's powerful enough that a weaker player can still make it do swingy things without too much effort. This should be highly playable in EDH, but for a while at least, it's high price will likely see most EDH players trading it to Standard players. If it fails to take off in competitive play, though, it will find and eager, loving foster family in the EDH crowd.
More of a 60-card bomb, but could easily do good work in EDH, in the right decks. Lightning Helix doesn't really kill much in EDH, but sticking a Basilisk Collar on this bird might be fun enough to try.
Meh. Limited fodder.
I'm not the biggest fan of this, but it could see a fair amount of play in EDH. It is removal on a stick, so someone is bound to make good use of it. None of my decks particularly want this, especially at the 6-drop slot. 6 mana is pretty much the most overcrowded CMC for playable EDH critters, so the competition will likely be too fierce for this to hit it big.
I love Doublestrike, and my R/W deck has Doublestrike as it's main theme, yet I still don't think I would consider this playable. It's basically this guy vs. Hound of Griselbrand, and obviously the two-headed mutt wins.
Meh. Ball Lightning variants are pretty bad in EDH.
They got the best charm, but a rather mediocre Guildmage. I am sorely disappointed the word 'doublestrike' appears nowhere on this card. Both abilities are on-theme for my Rith deck, though neither seem powerful enough to be worth running. Oh well.
I guess to make up for the weak guildmage, they decided to give the Boros a second "guildmage". LOL. Won't be playing this one either.
Okay, I'll bite. I've played Spitemare in a few decks and found it useful most of the time. For my aggro R/W deck, this seems a MUCH better fit.
I'm not 100% sure I need this guy, but I will try to find room. I don't
expect to see this become a staple or anything, but it's not terrible.
It's not worth running iffy removal like this, when both colors have access to far more reliable options. Also, "Arrows of Justice"? Really? What is this, Sailor Moon?
No comments:
Post a Comment