Theros EDH Set Review, Part 7: Artifact + Land

Well we stumbled a bit just before the finish line, but we're finally here at the final chapter in this set review. It's going to be fairly short, as there aren't a whole lot of artifacts or lands in the set, but there are a few, so let's get to it.

I'm going to go ahead and spoiler my own review a bit, and just say that I really don't like any of the Equipment cards in this set. This particular stinker is cheaper than Whispersilk Cloak, but not enough so that the loss of Shroud doesn't make this a vastly inferior card on the whole.

Crappy CG art on a barely-playable-in-Limited uncommon... Magic is dead to me.
/hyperbole

Neat, but I can't endorse this card despite my undying love of Scry.

Big and dumb, but also very fun. Guaranteed to make many a Timmy squeal in delight. I like it, and I expect to see it garner some fans in our format. For me, it seems a bit under the curve, which again is a bit of a shame. I can't really think of any decks of mine that would benefit from running this card, but a part of me wishes that wasn't true.

Oh, well, this is neat. Non-Green decks can now cast Explosive Vegetation for 6 colorless, and they get a 2/2 chump blocker out of the deal too.
To be perfectly honest this card isn't great - but it will nonetheless be a significant boon to non-Green decks that need more ramp options. Solemn Simulacrum should still be the go-to, but this is a good second-pick option.

And here we get to the set's requisite group hug/chaos staple. And, it's not a bad one, in that it does have some level of strategic control, rather than the "LOL RANDOM" approach many such cards embrace. For instance you could just use it as a pure group hug card, but you could also just build up to 13 mana, and cast Gather Specimens right before you activate this.

Okay, I can see how non-Green decks might want to pay 6 mana for an Explosive Veggies. But do non-Red decks want to pay 6 mana for a Lightning Bolt (that can't hit players)? Well, most Red decks don't even want to play Bolt for 1 mana, so...

Cute design. Seems fun. Obviously a clinch for Zedruu decks. I'm excited to see what less-obvious uses other clever players/deck builders might find for this card. Massacre Wurm? Elesh Norn? C'mon innovators - what's the key to making this good outside of group hug.

Clearly this is a tough sell outside of mono-color decks. In sweeper-heavy metagames, this might even be a tough sell in mono-color decks, too. But it definitely has a lot of potential, and will likely be popular among mono-color fans.

The Scry Lands

Though love time. These are good. They will get played, and rightfully so. They aren't, however, great. They are quite a ways down on the list of good dual land cycles, but they aren't at the bottom either. I wouldn't just jam them willy-nilly into any and every deck, but they make a fine budget option for players who don't have all the Shocks, Fetches and ABUR duals on hand.

I like 'em, but at the same time, I find them underwhelming.









Well, folks, that's it for the Theros EDH Set Review. We've got the new line of Commander precon decks coming out in one month, so stay tuned for discussion about that product once the spoilers start coming in.

Enjoy!