M14 EDH Set Review, Part 1: White

Okay so first of all, I owe an apology to any of you who might still be out there listening. Uh, reading. Whatever. I really didn't intend to just up and let this thing die. As always, life gets in the way, but this time I really just didn't make much of an effort to keep up. Modern Masters came and went without so much as a peep on this blog, and that's pretty inexcusable.

So first off, let's do the Modern Masters set review. In a nutshell, it rocked if you could get it. And it made a few EDH staples like Tooth and Nail and City of Brass a lot easier to get in foil. So, that's done.

Now, on to the official EDH Set Review for M14. Starting, as always, with White.

Awful. Not even Limited-fodder.

Probably not as good as it looks on paper, but still a great fit for EDH because when it DOES work out, it'll lead to some great blow-out victories. Obviously best in token decks. Could be an okay win-con for Mono-White too.

 Easily one of my top 3 favorite cards in the set, Archangel of Thune is nowhere near the power level of some recent EDH all-star mythics (Prime Time, Sphinx, etc.). But it's still a really cool card with some neat build-around potential. I'm actually more excited to play her in 60-card Magic, but she definitely has a home in many a Vish-Kal deck for sure.

Possibly a bit too underpowered for even a dedicated "Enchantress" deck in EDH, I think this card is much better suited to 60-card casual. But, nonetheless, I expect to see this right along side any EDH deck already running Mesa Enchantress and Sigil of the Empty Throne. Because why not?

I already don't see Dawn Elemental in the format. Like, EVER. One might argue that this is mostly because of Dawn Elemental's casting cost of quad White - you'd have to be INSANE to play Dawn Elemental in anything other than Mono White. Well, for any of you tempted to make that argument - here's your chance to prove it. This is functionally the same card, but with a mana cost that makes it imminently more splashable in two or three color decks.
Me? I still don't think she'll make the cut... but she IS an Angel which has a lot more stock with Vorthos-y types than Elementals. So she might make it base solely on Tribal concerns.

 Slivers will get played. They always do.

Neat, I guess. Not really EDH material though.

Yep. That's a sliver alright. Not the best sliver by far, but not the worst either.

Sigil of the Empty Throne, except for life-gain decks instead of Enchantress decks. Find away to cross the streams and run both in the same deck! Madness!

I expect to give this a shot. I already like the effect cards like Urabrask and Blind Obedience have on the format (in the right decks, at least). However, this little lady's diminutive stature and lack of battlefield presence (despite the art depicting exactly that!) mean she might just get swept away too quickly and easily to have any real impact on the game.

Fiend Hunter was already not worth running in EDH unless you had ways to pull of the exploit he allowed with blink/sacrifice tricks. This closes that little timing loop hole, which only further invalidates this as a real option for removal.
Dumb down Magic some more, WotC!

I already don't play Glorious Anthem in any EDH decks, so why would I want one that only sometimes works? And don't pretend the incidental life gain is makes up for it either. However, in that 60-card deck with Archangel of Thune... maybe...


















That wraps up White... in a mostly disappointing fashion. So far everything seems to be terrible or fine for 60-card, but not much EDH love. The two Mythics are playable, at least. Oh well, on to the next color.