M15 Legacy Set Review

M15 Legacy Set Review

Core set reviews for eternal format are easily the quickest set reviews of all but since there are a couple of cards that caught my eye I wanted to highlight them. I will continue to update this as more cards are spoiled for M15. Also, I have avoided mentioning reprints for the most part.

Last update 07/08/14.  

 

White

Constricting Sliver - While the mana cost is quite heavy, this may be a decent sideboard card for legacy slivers as it helps deal with Sneak and Show monsters as well as dark depths.

Hushwing Gryff - This is an interesting little critter. Ultimately, I think death and taxes wants more Thalia/Aven Mindscensor effects rather than effects like this since this card is mostly dead versus combo.

Spirit Bond - I feel like I need to mention this card even it is a little off being legacy playable. It is possible that if a Sam Black style 'Zombardment' deck needed or wanted to play white then this might fine a home. Gravecrawler and this mean you can make a whole host of 1/1's and you can use them to protect a giant carrion feeder, etc. The problem of course is that this card doesn't nothing on its own and is slow...

Warden of the Beyond - I wanted to mention this one since I love cards that make use of interesting design space. Unfortunately, three mana is just too much for this guy. If he cost WW with the same stats and abilities he may have been playable in budget legacy WW with four swords to plowshares and four path to exile. Note: He gets pumped by your opponents cards removed for Force of Will!

Blue

Chief Engineer - This card is pretty interesting but I am not sure that it is more playable than Grand Architect which sees 0 legacy play. The cost difference between 2 and 3 is pretty huge though and having 8 of this effect in your deck may push this up to playable.

Diffusion Sliver - This guys is probably more relevant for modern than for Legacy but having access to essentially 8 crystalline sliver effects is a pretty big game. Its worth noting that most of the 2 mana slivers are 2/2's so this guy is presumably too good as a 2/2.

Military Intelligence - There is little in life that I love more than drawing cards so this card is at least worth looking at. Back in the dark ages of legacy (circa 2001) I used to play a lot of UW fish decks with all stars like ninja of the deep hours and meddling mage. This card would have been a big game then but I am not so sure it is good enough now.

Quickling - I don't know that Aluren needs any more bounce creatures but if it does this one isn't terrible, though it is likely still much worse than dreamstalker who is pretty tough to kill.

 

Void Snare - This card might have been marginally playable at instant speed but at sorcery speed it is a bust, though it is worth noting that you can burning wish for it.

Black

Festergloom - Oh look another way to kill True Name Nemesis.

Leeching Sliver - This guy seems quite aggressive to me and he sort of like a Sliver Hellrider for 2 mana which is pretty good.

Ulcerate – Ulcerate currently sits between disfigure and dismember in the plethora of black removal spells. Unfortunately, I think it is outclassed by dismember and disfigure at almost all points on the curve. Dismember makes you lose 1 extra life when you pay full phyrexian cost but it also kills bigger creatures and can be cast off of a wasteland. If you have more mana available then you can only lose 2 or 0 life allowing even more flexibility. While close to playable Ulcerate is just slightly underpowered compared to what we already have available to us.

Waste Not – I will not waste your time reviewing this terrible card. Though I am sure I will have to play against this in pox decks (I will probably lose to it too).

Red

Belligerent Sliver - Another Sliver that is not far from playable. Unfortunately, the difference between 2 and 3 is pretty huge but this guy sure does make blocking your team difficult. With galerider sliver around I am not sure you really need this sort of evasion.

Goblin Rabblemaster – Goblin Rabblemaster may see its way into a more aggressive Goblins build but those have never worked in the past. Goblins strength has always been its ability to utilize card advantage to win rather than pure aggression. This card does provide some card advantage by pooping out some 1/1 goblins but I am seeing this as more of an aggressive card. It is worth noting that this is as close as we can get to a Goblin Piledriver in modern.

Green

Hornet Queen- I will bring up Hornet Queen despite it being a reprint mostly because now I can pick-up a sweet Russian version  and also because I think this card has been very underplayed in Nic-Fit to date. I am not sure if this is because of card availability or people not knowing the card exists. Either way I expect to face more flying death touch hornets in my future. I also hope to see hornets killing Griselbrand and Emrakul, the Aeons Torn.

 

Invasive Species - See Quickling. Also note that this can return your Aluren to your hand which is interesting. Again this effect may already exist and not be playable...

Reclamation Sage – The key thing about this is that it is an elf that blows up artifacts or enchantments so it becomes a better version of viridian shaman. The downside is that it is a 2/1 so it will be killed by golgari charm and the like. It is also worth mentioning that it is also a shaman (more useful for modern).

Venom Sliver - Another playable sliver that makes attacking and blocking tricky for your opponent.

Artifact

Soul of New Phyrexia - While he is likely just worse than Wurmcoil Engine he does have the potential benefit of being able to protect your lock pieces and provide an advantage even after death. I don't think he is close to an auto include but he could be a minor role player in the sideboard at some point in the future. If mud is ever playable in Modern he may be useful versus all the shatterstorm effects.

Land

Sliver Hive -  Between Sliver Hive and Cavern of Soul's Sliver's manabase is slowly improving to the point that it is close to legacy playable. Come on meathooks! What slivers really need is a sliver that can interact with combo so that them being all in on dudes isn't such a downside.  

 

-Cheers-