SpartanNerd Unboxing and Review…Shadows Over Innistrad Holiday Gift Box

June 7, 2016 by SpartanNerd

It was bound to happen…the SpartanNerd has run out of media file space on WordPress…Should I upgrade? Let me know in the comments.

You’ll have to take my word for what I say in the meantime, readers.

Above are the final pictures I could upload.

I have reviewed a few of these MTG gift boxes? Is this one any better, or any worse? Keep reading!

(Links to past reviews of similar products.)

Kahn’s of Tarkir Holiday Gift Box

Battle for Zendikar Gift Box

So this box is roughly the equivalent of those two. But there are a few key differences.

First of all, the Wizards made a good move when they decided to change the name of the product from Holiday Gift Box to just Gift Box. Holiday Gift Box is off-putting if you buy it in October. Or in March. It seems you are Christmas shopping early, or buying something that should have been marked down. The BFZ one was just called Gift Box. And this is great, because you can feel OK giving it as a wedding present. Anniversary present. To your boss on boss’s day. As a birthday present. And so on and so forth.

It is still a great gift for a MTG player, from a non-MTG player. Say, what if my mom walked into a store looking for new Magic cards for me…she wouldn’t know where to start.

But with THE GIFT BOX written across the front, she has a clue what might be a good present.

This time we get one more pack. However, I believe the price was slightly higher this time, an increase of almost four dollars. So, that’s where that value comes in.

We get the stickers and dividers as before.

But this time the box has been made sturdier!

Remember those two reviews from earlier, when the SpartanNerd gave them 5/5? I would have to downgrade that now. (Perhaps I will add a footnote to my previous posts?) Why? Those boxes have NOT withstood the test of time. The Kahns box is “busting out.” It’s not even full! Of course, I have stacked deck boxes, my little catch-all basket, and other things on top of it, and the corners of the lid are tearing up. I saw this around the time I started to fill up the Battle for Zendikar box. So I have been careful to be less careless with that box.

But with the Shadows Over Innistrad Gift Box, the Wizards have doubled up the cardboard on the sides. Now the lid rests properly, and CAN’T buck under reasonable weight. It seems to be like, maybe a centimeter taller as well when I compare it to the other two. (My sense might be skewed, considering the shape of the KTK box.)

So the box is better. And there is an extra pack of cards. This warrants the price increase.

The box also came with a pack of lands, and a special foil Ravenous Bloodseeker. This is a pretty good card in the barely sub-par Black and Red Vampires deck. (I’ve been playing that deck. It is so fun. But just can’t beat Black-Green Cryptolith Collected Company Aristocrats.)

So what did my packs have? I would show you, but the conundrum of not having any more media space.

In short, this was one of the best Gift box openings as far as packs are concerned. Shadows Over Innistrad is different than other sets because you COULD get three rares in a pack. (One regular, one double faced, and one foil.)

I didn’t get all that, but I DID get Westvale Abbey, an incredible land that transforms into a big demon. That same pack came with Duskwatch Recruiter, an uncommon double faced card that is an integral part of the above mentioned Collected Company deck.

I also got Olivia, Mobilized for War. This makes my third copy of Olivia…she’s good in the vampire deck, also described above, though I kind of prefer Drana from BFZ. And I got Avacyn’s Judgement, which is also good in the vampire deck.

The other three packs had Drownyard Temple (land), Nepali Moonndrakes, and Second Harvest, none of which do I know what do do with.

So how am I going to use this more sturdy box? I intend to take it on vacation, and pack all of my dual decks inside. Last year, I took the Dual Deck Anthology box, but I feel kind of creepy taking such a nice box out. I don’t feel as bad about the gift box, because it is sturdy, and more replaceable if damaged. This time, I am keeping the paper sleeve that it comes with to help it stay together during transport.

How could the box be improved? Instead of a singular foil and a copy of each basic land, why not give us another pack. Then a person gifted with the box could make a sealed deck and play right away! (provided they also had lands….)

Still, I am going to rate this 5/5. This box is an improvement over the past boxes, and I feel comfortable storing and transporting my cards in it.

SpartanNerd Vintage Unboxing and Review…”Obscure Ascension” Magic the Gathering Event Deck (Dark Ascension, French)

July 4, 2015 by SpartanNerd

The SpartanNerd has been on vacation! In case any readers haven’t figured that out! I have been shopping at places not local to Spartanburg. I was looking for things I have never seen, or can’t get here. No luck in some cases. For instance, I would like a Star Wars Black Darth Maul.

At White Widow Games in Myrtle Beach, SC, I came across this gem. It is the Dark Ascension Event Deck, only entirely in FRENCH! A truly unique find. And only $20! Maybe the only one in South Carolina. SEALED! I have reviewed many Magic the Gathering Event Decks… Keep on reading to see how this one measures up! This is the oldest event deck I have ever reviewed.

“Obscure Ascension” means “Dark Ascension.” I have limited, and generally negative, experience with the French language. Just some singing in college that kicked my butt! Interesting that the word “Obscure” equals “Dark.” But that kind of makes sense, right? The French would probably only use “dark” for absence of light, rather than meaning “mysteriously evil.” One thing I picked up from the study of foreign language, is that English is just about the only language to have tons of different meanings for the same word.

The back has all of this French wording. I have no idea what it says. Probably similar to what is on the back of the other event decks I have reviewed. “The right deck for now. Jump right in…this deck is competitive.” They generally aren’t, however. This deck is actually titled “Flammes Espiegel.” “Flames of Joy,” or “Flames of Glee.” Something like that.

So it is a burn deck.

You get the exact same crummy box that the other event decks come in. As much as I am down on them, I use them! Here you can see what it looks like on the inside when you first open it.

Here are the contents. A deck with a sideboard, two pieces of paper…one a guide to playing Magic, and the other a guide to playing this deck. Both in French, so I can’t read them. Then there is the handy divider and the life counter, which has the Dark Ascension expansion symbol on the number 20.

I just threw away the guide to playing. It probably says “You are a planeswalker!” in French. I don’t have to be told that anymore!

This deck is a mono-red deck. A little odd..most of the Event decks I have reviewed are two color decks. There are 21 mountains in this deck, each with the word “Montagne” across the top, and the text “Terrain de base: montagne”. The lands are the same lands from the Innistraad block.

You get five utility lands, including…WHAT’s THAT?!!! “Nexus des enormities”…Where have I seen this…? KABAAM!

“Ink moth Nexus.” TWO COPIES! Basically one of the greatest “man-lands” ever printed. You can pay one colorless to transform it into a 1/1 flyer with infect.

These two cards make the deck TRIPLE THE VALUE of what I paid for it! So, the SpartanNerd is a happy boy!

The other three lands are “Haunted Fengraf.” You can pay three, sac the land, and return a creature to your hand.

The creatures in this deck…I will just tell you who they are and what they do.

Forge Devil, top left. When he enters the battlefield, you take a damage, as well as target creature.

Goblin Arsonist, top middle, When he dies, target player loses one life.

Top right, Flameslinger Goblin. tap him to send one damage to target player.

Goblin Gaveleer, bottom left, he gets an extra +2/+0 for each equipment attached to him. He also has trample.

Torch Fiend, bottom middle, pay a red mana, sacrifice him, and destroy target artifact.

Hellrider, bottom right. the largest creature and about the highest mana cost in the deck. He sends one damage to target player for each attacking creature. He also has haste! Not currently a valuable card. However, back close to the time Innistraad block was about to rotate out, he was fairly valuable. About a twelve dollar card.

So studying the creatures reveals to us that this deck is not only a burn deck, but almost a a Goblin Tribal deck as well. And the creatures here exist for the sole purpose of smash, destroy, and damage.

The other main-deck spells are…

Infiltration Lens, top left, whenever equipped creature becomes blocked by a creature, draw two cards. An artifact equipment.

Faithless Looting, top middle, draw two cards, then discard two cards. This one’s french name almost threw me…”Pillage sans foi.” My thought was “Pillar of Flame.” But that didn’t seem right…as the art didn’t seem to indicate it. So I looked it up. This is the card that really helped me figure out how to translate the others!

Goblin Grenade. Top right. A sorcery, and one of your main game plans. Sac a goblin, send five damage to your opponent. The beautiful thing to do is attack first with Goblin Arsonist, who they generally avoid blocking, then in second main phase sacrifice him to Goblin Grenade. BAM. Seven damage.

Curse of the Stalked Prey. Bottom left. Aura Curse. You enchant your opponent, and then any creatures that hit them get a +1/+1 counter.

Brimstone Volley, bottom center. Your other “main plan.” An instant with a “morbid” trigger. Three damage to target creature or player. But if something had already died this turn, then the spell does five damage instead!

Artillerize, bottom right Sacrifice an artifact or creature as an additional cost, and then Artilleries deals five damage to target creature or player!

Playing the Deck

Playing this deck means using the goblins, and maximizing value with them by sacrificing them in many cases.

I like how solidly focused on that goal the deck is! You have four copies of most creatures! And four copies of other things you need, like Artillerize and Brimstone Volley!

This deck could be a little stronger if it used “Lightning Bolt.” But I’m thinking that wasn’t allowed in Standard at the time. Maybe a way to appease burn players who had recently lost their Lightning Bolts.

In its day, it probably was a great Standard deck!

There is a sideboard…

Gut Shot, top left, a card with pharexian mana as the cost. At instant speed, you get one damage to target creature or player.

Torpor orb, top center, this prevents “enters the battlefield” triggers from happening. Important!

Act of Treason, top right, gain control of the opponents creature, untap it, and give it haste. Then use it as your attacker for this turn! Or even sacrifice it!

Arc Trail, bottom left, deals two damage to target creature or player, and one damage to another target creature or player. Another card with four copies!

Dismember, bottom middle, the only black card in this deck, uses pherexian mana, and is handy to get an indestructible creature. (Target creature gets -5/-5 until the end of turn.) This card is currently a popular choice; it was re-printed in Modern Masters 2015!

Into the Core, exile two target artifacts.

Thinking back to what I know, this sideboard addresses affinity decks, cards with indisctructible, and land destruction., giving you something to do using Pharexian mana. At the time of Innistrad/Scars of Mirrodin, this would have been really sound. Scars was really before my time of playing Magic. But I am somewhat aware of “Caw Blade.”

SpartanNerd Thoughts on “Dark Ascension Event Deck.”

I don’t play burn. And I don’t play infect. (Infect isn’t the main plan of this deck. The Inkmoth Nexus is here so you can be assured to have a creature to sac..)

The SpartanTeen used to play burn, and Goblins when he used to play MTG. If he ever comes back, he can use this deck!

I’ll admit, though, it is a fun deck to play. I was tempted to take it to the Modern Tournament, just for its fun, and to test it some more for this review. But I really wanted to win Path to Exile, (and I did! With Esper Reanimator Control.)

This deck stands up against most of the pre-constructed decks I own.

It has beaten Elves (From the Duel Deck Anthology) as well as the Angel deck. It has beaten the Monsters deck from Heroes vs. Monsters. Not that it hasn’t lost some to these decks as well. But it is competitive against them. Oh yes. It beat Chandra from Jace vs. Chandra as well! That’s burn vs. burn!

Changing the deck

How could we update or change it for Modern? First of all, I believe switching the strategy from Artillerize to Lightning bolt will be important. Then maybe switching out Infiltration lens to faithless looting for card draw. Then updating the creature bombs some.I would avoid any Planeswalkers. I can’t think of any that would help with the goal of send as much damage as possible. Maybe add some scry via Magma Jet or something.

SpartanNerd’s rating of “Obscure Ascension” Magic the Gathering Event Deck (Dark Ascension, French)

I can’t take off any points. For any reason. And the fact that it is worth three times what I paid for it, and in French, makes this a SOLID 5/5! It is by far the best event deck I have ever purchased, with four copies of each important card. None of the other event decks I have purchased or reviewed even approach this deck. Most of them have three copies or two copies of two cards. Most of them feel like souped up starter decks. This one, definitely competitive.

The SpartanNerd rates the French printing of the Dark Ascension Event Deck a 5/5. Do you agree or disagree? Let me know in the comments!

SpartanNerd…Why I play this game?

June 21, 2015 by SpartanNerd

Why do I play “Magic: The Gathering?”

I began playing this game around four years ago. I had been playing Pokemon cards with my children, as well as Shadow Era. I got into Shadow Era because I wanted a card game that was more in-depth and on an adult level. (I was playing Poker online as well, but not gambling.) Around this time, I began frequenting comics stores, and noticing how popular Magic was. I thought it a little crazy that some cards costed over thirty dollars, and said as much. (Not to mention Jace, Mind Sculptor…who at the time was $100.)

I made the jump one day when I found some cards on sale at Target…a “Deck Builders Toolkit.” And It was during “Innistraad” block at the time. But I didn’t know that.

Since then, I have moved my children into the game, and one has left. The other teeters on losing interest, as children do and should do have shifting interests as they grow and develop. But I don’t see myself quitting any time soon.

Today I went to “The Mighty Moo” festival in Cowpens, South Carolina. Then ate lunch with my family at Taco Dog, in Spartanburg. Then proceeded with the SpartanKid to a Modern MTG tournament at the Tangled Web in Spartanburg. This tournament turned out to be really small…we left at 4:00…but I needed to play some more. So I drove up to Grover, NC, and played at Stormcrow’s Clubhouse Modern event.

Today was the first time I ever played two Magic tournaments, at two different locations. I am not counting a midnight pre-release and then a “next day” event. No. This was a double-header. And an incredibly full Saturday. Am I a man obsessed?

I have recently built a re-animator deck, using cards from “Graveborn,” which was my Father’s Day present. I grew bored with losing using Amulet-Primeval Titan…a fun deck but SUPER HARD to play. Only recently did I realize, sure some of it is me, the pilot of the deck. But that deck has losing built in if conditions aren’t just right.

To be fair, I know it is going to be awhile before I enter another tournament. And I am probably going to miss the Origin’s Pre-Release. 😦

I didn’t come out on top at either tournament. But still, I had great fun. And the reasons I had fun are the reasons I play magic:

Sitting across from someone for thirty minutes to an hour creates a social relationship that I don’t take lightly. I learn some things about my opponent. And they inevitably learn that I am a Christian, a father, a teacher, and a minister as well. I have time to talk to them and show them that they really are important to me.
Magic is a creative outlet. Side boarding in cards is an act of reacting creatively to situations that aren’t always that clear. There are a lot of “what-if?” questions to ask.
The act of playing in a tournament, at least for me, is an expression of deck-building, which is the biggest creative outlet in MTG. I don’t “net-deck” much. In this case, I knew I had encountered a lot of Splinter-Twin at the Tangled Web, so I sided in a card NO-ONE saw coming. There was a moment in the tournament at Stormcrow’s Clubhouse that summarizes one of the reasons I play Magic. My opponent, “Turbo”, was playing Tarmo-Twin . I lost to two Tarmogoyf’s early game in match one. I sided in “Batwing Brume,” knowing this must be his strategy. He proceeded to flash in his Deceiver Exarch, put the twin on him, and then begin manuafactoring tokens. I was surprised that he didn’t just say… “This is a million times. They all have haste. They attack.” I’ve heard that line many times. Instead, he made twenty-one copies, and declared attack. I played Batwing Brume, using white and black mana…he attempted to Dispel that. But I was ready with a Pact of Negation. BAM. It was an intense moment, when we both had tons of land on the field, and were vying for the greatest card advantage. This moment alone was just about worth the whole day of Magic for me. After this match, Turbo would go on to beat me in another intense standoff. In that match I bested three Tarmogoyfs! It could have gone the other way and I could have won if I had had another Pact…(but the way card games work is, there is randomness that beats you sometimes. I am OK with that!)
It is fairly cheap entertainment…I don’t pay for cable or satellite. In their place I play cards. I acquire cards. I collect and organize cards. I read their flavor text and background stories. I read about card development from “the mothership” site. I make casual decks. I play online occasionally. And as cheap entertainment goes…it is me using my brain in an analytical and creative way. I was thinking, as much as I enjoy playing guitar, it is much easier to lug around a red bag with magic decks in it than it is to lug around a guitar, chords, effects, and an amplifier. At least it is easier to carry. And while both activities help me get my groove on in a creative way, Magic is a quiet and reflective activity. A great way to cool down after a long day of work.

I play magic for these reasons. But as a parent, I have reaped other benefits from teaching and playing the game. Playing cards is a good way to talk about odds. Building decks is a way of talking about strategy. Keeping a curated collection is a way to model taking care of cards.

And playing is quality time spent with the children.

Why do you play Magic, the Gathering readers? Please let me know. I know you are out there. My reviews of sealed products are what gets me the greatest internet traffic to this site. Please comment in!

SpartanNerd Unboxing and Review…Magic the Gathering Premium Deck Series “Graveborn”

May 31, 2015 by SpartanNerd

It’s almost Father’s Day…and I was told to order some cards…

Not these kind! Magic Cards…Did I have you fooled? (I’m sure such cards will be coming my way, though.)

Because it is pretty hard for non Magic players to know what to get Magic players, I was told I could just order what I wanted. So I ordered “Graveborn,” a Legacy MTG deck from 2010 or 2011. It looked pretty sweet on the internet, and the allure of all foil swamps hypnotized me into making the purchase. Have I found it to be worth the $83.00 paid through TCGplayer? Keep reading to find out more!

The “Graveborn” deck is from what was called (is called?) the “Premium Deck Series.” There are two other decks out there, one a red burn deck and the other a Slivers deck. But the Zombies and the color black are my thing. So I’m just offering that as background information. The Premium Deck Series gives you a deck in all foil, with some alternate art. The foil is special, though. I would call it “Super Foil.”

The package looked like this.

A transluscent tube of plastic that let you see the of the most important cards in the deck. Featured as spokeswoman is Avatar or Woe…a card that could be Legendary, but isn’t.

On the back, you can see the deck box, which is also notably foil, with the Reanimate art prominently featured on the packaging. You also get some inspiring messages and a contents list. The deck was wisely cellophane…This tube of a package would be no trouble for a dishonest person to hack.

But I’m just throwing away the packaging, right!

Opening the box, you see this. The spin down life counter is visible.

Removing the product from package lets you see all of this. Have a look at the foil detail!

The box has nice foil…as mentioned.

This card really shows off the foil. This foil is a little better than what we usually see. It might be equivalent to what they put on Planeswalkers in the Dual Decks.

I wanted to mention that the spin down counter feels a little chalky. It is also a little bit lighter than the kind we had before Dragons of Tarkir. But it doesn’t feel like the dice that came in those pre-release boxes. It doesn’t feel like the dice that came in the Dual Deck Anthology either.

I am going to go over each card featured in the packaging.

This is a handy card. This deck needs ways to discard things from your hand. In this case you are rewarded with 2/2 Zombie Tokens. You will probably just use them to block on the ground or as things to sac.

The Avatar of Woe is good as a beater…but better as reliable removal.

Animate Dead is an odd card with a contentious history. Evidently an aura can’t attach to things in the graveyard…

Cabal Therapy. I had this card before, but not with this art. I have only played it in Commander…it is a fun card with a lot of utility. You can use it as a Thoughtsieze effect, or you can target yourself and get one of the bombs out of your hand into the graveyard. It’s just fun! Someone recently asked if the wizards would be reprinting this for Standard. I wonder why they wouldn’t?

Of all the cards in this deck, this is the most “money card” of them all. Priced at $30 or roundabout. You can get whatever creature you NEED and put in your graveyard for re-animation. And at instant speed too…so you wait until they are tapped out, then drop this bomb.

Reanimate is banned in Modern for a reason…One mana to get back whatever bomb you have. OK…Turn one, Entomb. Turn Two Reanimate. GG.

At sorcery speed, and for three mana, you get entomb times three. SICK!

A card from my early days of playing. I always thought it was bad. But it is great in this deck, where you need to discard things!

As mentioned, this deck is a MONO BLACK deck. So you can’t cast this card from your hand…Crosis will have to be reanimated. But he is great! He is also the only legendary in this deck, surprisingly.

I had this card from Commander. I always thought it good in esper colors. Pro Red and Green makes it great to entomb out at instant speed when needed.

Onto what is in the deck box.

The cards in cellophane and inserts in cellophane.

I just threw away the insert which is a general guide to playing Magic. I am keeping this insert. The historical information here is pretty nice to know…I wasn’t aware of who was successful with reanimator decks before.

The decklist is on the other side. Good for future reference when I piece out the deck for different purposes.

I am going to go over the cards a little at a time.

Starting with the bombs.

These four cards are just sick. Think how absurd it is to have any one of them out on turn two…

Blazing Archon is probably the most annoying!

Casting Terastadon late enough in the game means you probably have Terastadon plus three elephant friends!

Inkwell Leviathon. Great against blue players.

Verdant Force is here not only as a bomb, but also for historical significance, if you pay attention to what they told you in the insert.

There are also black creatures you CAN hard cast.

I don’t care much for Putrid Imp. I would rather Stinkweed Imp be here…

Faceless Butcher is a black Banisher Priest.

And Twisted Abomination rides the line between bomb and chump for this deck. He is better for swampcycling. You might find him to be the only “bomb” you can reanimate on a bad occasion.

The other spells…

All spells are singularly focused on discarding or getting bombs out of the library and into the graveyard. There is no cancel or burn. No ramp. No pump. Just all re-animator business. I am highly impressed with the foil on Duress. I mentioned before that Duress is one of my favorite spells! It is funny when you play Exhume on turn two against someone who hasn’t played any creatures. Diabolic Servitude and Animate Dead are about the same thing.

Then there are the lands…

21 foil swamps. Just about enough said! The other three lands are utility lands that let you do colorless mana or sac for ramp. There is also a cycling land. Dakmor Salvage would be good here.

Playing the deck…

This deck works as advertised. I heard someone say “It is from the Golden Age of pre-constructed decks.” Very true. There is no comparison to some of the tripe I have reviewed that they have put out…(Virtually all of the event decks I have reviewed lack important consistency. Those intro decks are lackluster. And recent dual decks, like Elspeth Vs. Kiora, feel really weak by comparison.)

Get your bomb in the graveyard early…and bring them back to life. Swing in for damage. Rinse and repeat.

Deck Matchups.

I played this against the SpartanKid, piloting various decks from the Dual Deck Anthology.

The first deck I wanted to try it against was Divine, from the Dual Decks Anthology. Because that deck is generally a winner. A good matchup. But almost without fail, GG for Graveborn by turn 5.

Chandra’s deck From the DDA was an interesting matchup. Burn is meaningless against Sphinx of the Steel Wind on Turn three. All of the progress Chandra could bring was just displaced by the giant, lifelink, vigilance, first striker.

But Jace from the DDA was a different story. If the reanimator spells get canceled, this deck does nothing. And worse, if the bombs get bounced back to your hand, you have to work to get them back to the graveyard to reanimate. Graveborn lost two matches to Jace Beleren’s deck. And it was mostly because trick creatures with morph redirected spells, or bounced things.

I am going to continue testing, and will update this post to reflect the results. (hopefully!)

Changing the Deck

Because this deck is Legacy, I will have to modify it for play. I am thinking about how to use it in Standard. But that is really probably out of the question. The Whip of Erebos is good, except the cards brought back from the graveyard to swing are exiled after they leave the battlefield. Rescue from the Underworld is a mana-intensive spell. I am going to experiment some before the Standard tournament at the Tangled Web on Friday night this week. But I suspect I will just sleeve up my foil Duress cards and foil lands and continue to play Liliana/Waste Not.

Modern has some possibilities though. I have already ordered “Gifts Ungiven,” which means introducing blue to this deck. However, I think it will improve the deck where it is weak. Adding blue means I get to use my own cancel spells. Unburial rights is also a possibility. In fact, someone recently flashed back Unburied rights and got Emrakul out on me when I was playing my Amulet/Bloom deck. This would mean introducing white. So now we are talking esper…

The other way this deck can be modified is by changing the bombs. Since 2010/2011 a lot more cards have been released. You can re-animate Iona, Shield of Emeria, and break your opponents colors. You can re-animate Emrakul, the Aeons Torn or other Eldrazi. Avacyn Angel of Hope and Akroma Angel of Wrath are good choices. Re-animate Aurelia and take extra combat steps. Reanimate Ashen Rider and remove a threat…Reanimate Medomai the Ageless and take an extra turn. Reanimate Griselbrand…Reanimate …….. any Titan…. So many broken things to do!

SpartanNerd’s Rating of Magic the Gathering Premium Deck Series Graveborn is 4/5. Here’s why.

The foil cards look incredible. The deck is fun and consistent. The Spindown Counter is unique and cool, if a little different. The special insert with historical information was cool. There is a lot of monetary value here as well, especially with “entomb”.

The deck box cannot hold the deck when sleeved with Dragon Shields. And these premium foils demand to be sleeved. I felt really paranoid I was going to scratch them by their rubbing together in the most natural way that cards do. This is a Legacy deck, and in my area, I have never seen a Legacy tournament. I have encountered players who brought decks to practice with. But I can’t just take this item to a local tournament and playtest it against a metagame. And then, the single-mindedness of this deck is also its downfall. If someone can prevent you from…Discarding cards, tutoring cards to the graveyard, or reanimating cards, all three of which are required to make this deck work like the organic machine it is, then that person will win. There is no sideboard included.

But saying all of that negative stuff doesn’t detract from the sheer coolness of the deck. It is something most people won’t see coming. I ordered it for its beauty and for what it stands for, and for a way to help me do more things with the graveyard, and this deck has delivered this.

SPARTANNERD’S RATING OF “GRAVEBORN” IS 4/5. DO YOU AGREE OR DISAGREE. LEAVE NOTES IN THE COMMENTS, OH HUB CITY GEEKS!

SpartanNerd…Cool Idea- Photograph Toys with a Black Light!

April 10, 2015 by SpartanNerd

Just some fun I had today…something really substantial forthcoming, however, oh Hub City Geeks!

Skeletor is just about my favorite subject to photograph. With a black light, his face looks extra gruesome.

I thought it would be cool to put the Havoc Staff that came with the Faceless One in the black light. It isn’t that apparent in the pic below, but the pink translucent details on the “powered up” part of the staff changed bone white!

Here is Modulock wearing the alternate Beast Man armor. The unusual and unexpected thing is the plastic on the torso and visible in his joints at the knees and elbows glow a different color in the black light! I noticed this with Draego Man too. (Not pictured)

I’ve never thought that the vintage Mantenna was a very menacing looking figure. (This is my original toy from the 1980’s.) Placing a blacklight on him changes this. The red details become that salmon-isn color, which contrasts to the blue parts of his body that disappear in the blacklight somewhat. His eyeball paint is about gone, but because of this it makes that weird thing that is his mouth seem extra creepy!

The cool thing about Grimlock isis weapons. They look translucent amber in person. In the blacklight, though they pp like the science fiction things they should pop like.

Last but not least, LILIANA! The cool thing about this pic is as I was editing it with iPhoto, I was playing with the sharpness controls. Lilliana almost disappeared when the control was at 0. As you moved the slider, she would slowly appear or disappear! Just like magic! Because her substantially exposed skin is “flesh-tone”, and her clothes are all purple, this caused the disappearing effect. I wish I had a modded Liliana card with this picture on it!

SpartanNerd Unboxing and Review…Magic the Gathering Duel Decks “Elspeth vs. Kiora”

March 1, 2015 by SpartanNerd

Once again, the Wizards have given us a duel deck, this time featuring the Theros block planeswalkers Elspeth and Kiora.

Elspeth has seen a lot of play in the Standard environment, being the bomb of choice for both midrange and control decks. She can undo much of the work you accomplished in the early game if you are playing aggro. And she provides the necessary bite during the end game for control decks.

Kiora is a good early game planeswalker who can really “bring it” if she gets to her ultimate ability, otherwise preventing damage and creating ramp and card draw.

No denying what the money cards are here…the two planeswalkers combined could bring $30.00 at some places. (Elspeth vs Kiora was only priced at $19.99.) So you are getting value for your purchase, no question.

And because these are alternate art versions, let me just say that I find them superior to the earlier printings. I never liked the old Kiora…it was just too creepy with that tentacle hanging out front prominently featured…and why? There is a tentacle here, but it isn’t as ugly. Elspeth’s card is very similar to the earlier printing, but I think the portrait is “prettier” this time.

Onto the unboxing!

The box (seen above) is of a celebrated new type of cardboard, which is supposedly recyclable. Nice…it seems a little lighter. But it has just as much of a premium look as the previous planeswalker duel decks. If you will recall, I didn’t think “Speed vs. Cunning” had too great of packaging. But the Wizards like to save the foil for the planeswalker decks, and that’s understandable, I guess.

The back of the box shows off some of the featured cards, and has propaganda to help you get excited about playing the deck.

Removing the box…which is really more of a carton, revealed a plastic blister over a black plastic tray, which held all of the items seen above. The two deck boxes are nice, but cannot hold the entire decks sleeved. The white insert is the guide to playing magic…for new players. (Incidentally, I believe this Duel Deck to be a product for beginners.) And then there is another insert which contains details for playing both decks, and decklists.

The decks were sealed in “cigarette style” cellophane wrappers. This time I thought I would photograph the cards, as it was more convenient for me. And besides, I couldn’t wait to play it.

ELSPETH, SUN’S CHAMPION

The first thing I noticed was something really dumb.

You get two soldier tokens. ONLY TWO. Let me point out, that Elspeth’s top ability is “put three 1/1 soldier creatures onto the battlefield. They should have at least included one more! And what about the emblem?!

Here are the rare’s from the deck.

These rares are really good for battle. Especially Gustcloak Savior.

Here are the uncommon creatures.

Last I checked, Mother of Runes is ALSO a money card, at around $5.00. Banisher Priest is really good with his O-ring effect. Both uncommon are every bit as good as the rares.

The common creatures are generally soldier themed…and there are other Gustcloaks! Also notable…Veteran Armorsmith and Veteran Swordsmith…both have echoes in the current Kahns of Tarkir block with the warriors.

The other spells in this deck are instants, except for Sunlance, which is a sorcery. All good stuff.

The flavor of this deck is very strong…Elspeth, Sun’s Champion would TOTALLY lead these soldiers and use these spells.

The lands are unremarkable.

Those two are lands with cycling. Everything else is a Basic Plains.

KIORA, THE CRASHING WAVE

Another dumb thing of equal dumbness.

Kiora has two associated tokens, and no emblem. Why didn’t the wizards use the double sided tokens they gave us in Commander 2014?

Kiora’s rares are absolutely frightening. Elspeth’s deck has the means of dealing with them. Including her middle ability…….(-3 destroy all creatures with power 4 or greater.)

But if Kiora’s fatties go unchecked, it is GG. (Good Game.)

Plasm Capture is the odd one here. While Kiora needs some cancel, this spell almost never goes right. It costs a ton, and since Kiora is an Aggro style deck trying to get big creatures on the field, why would you have the mana available to use this spell? But a properly casted Whelming Wave can net you a win. Unfortunately, many of Kiora’s creatures are not Octopuses, Leviathans, Krakens, or Serpents. There are Merfolk and Snakes, notably.

Kiora has more cards at uncommon than Elspeth. The most notable one here is Lorescale Coatle, who gets a counter each time you draw a card. He can get REDICULOUS! This deck has lots of ways to draw cards, beside the regular draw step.

We’ve seen some of these cards in duel decks before…I’m thinking Man-O-War was in Jace’s deck. And Grazing Gladeheart was in Garruk’s deck. Except for Coiling Oracle and Omenspeaker, these cards just feel like preliminary cards to the main giant creatures. It is cool how there are some card draw effects and control effects attached to some of these.

Don’t ask the SpartanNerd how, but somehow he lost the photo of the instants and sorceries. But I assure you, there aren’t that many defensive spells. There are four copies of Accumulated Knowledge, a card that I didn’t know before. It says “Draw a card, then draw cards equal to the number of cards named Acumulated Knowledge in the graveyard. Basically you get to draw two cards for two mana at the least, and the number of cards only gets more the more of these cards you cast. And with Lorescale Coatl on the battlefield…

There is also explore, a ramp card with card draw. This card reflects Kiora’s roll down ability. (-1 Draw a card. You may play an additional land this turn)

The lands are also cripplingly slow, as expected. No shock lands. Not even any cycling lands. No pain lands. No gain lands. Just basics, Evolving Wilds, and Temple of the False God. (I think I have only seen that in Commander decks before this…)

So Kiora’s flavor is Ramp, Card Draw, and Fatties. I could totally see her leading this group of cards in a fight with Elspeth.

The Matchup

No way around it. Elspeth’s deck is better. It has cheaper creatures, and ways of dealing with things that are huge. Not that Kiora’s deck doesn’t put up a fight…But Elspeth’s “white weenie” strategy is just faster and designed to fight against big green monsters. To be fair, we have only played five times since we got the product. I will update if things change…but I’m not sure they will.

The SpartanNerd’s rating of Magic the Gathering Duel Decks “Elspeth vs. Kiora”.

The packaging is beautiful, and the fact that it is recyclable now is another bonus. The propaganda makes everything clear about how to play the decks. This would be a great product for new players. And for seasoned players, you get some alternate art cards, especially the two planeswalkers.

It is a bummer that we only got two tokens with each deck…even more-so that we didn’t get an emblem either for the planeswalkers.

And Elspeth’s deck seems to outdo and undercut Kiora’s deck. Just a quick survey on the web and others are reporting that Elspeth generally beats Kiora.

So, the SpartanNerd rates Magic the Gathering Duel Decks “Elspeth vs. Kiora” a cautious 3/5. There isn’t enough wrong here to warrant 2/5…maybe with more play we’ll see Kiora bring some wins. Elspeth, at least, needed another Soldier token…and knowing that the Wizards could have printed double sided tokens and gave us an emblem is even more frustrating. But that doesn’t have a huge impact on the gameplay, and the insert does tell new players that they don’t have to use tokens.

So what’s your rating of “Elspeth vs. Kiora”? Let me know in the comments, oh Hub City Geeks!

spartannerd

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Tag Archives: Magic the Gathering