Charm'd Part 3: NNNNNGGGGGGHHHHHHH

For Clan; For Survival.... God this is bad

4 out of 5 charms down. I bet you were wondering how I was going to fill my last day with only one card. Well, here it is, Temur Charm, the charm in my favorite color combo and it is Ah-Full. Terrible. Horrendous. Is that Mana Leak? Gruul Charm? A not so Savage Punch? Temur Charm pretty much meets every quota of overly difficult to cast, but completely underwhelming effects of the original 3 color charms back from Invasion and they are still better because they don't have as many contingencies required to make Temur Charm even work!

Over ten years old and still better Temur Charm

Temur Charm is boiled down to three effects. 1.) Mana Leak 2.) Panic for weaklings 3.)Instant Speed Savage Punch. This card is always trading down in some way. Early on, you have to hope to hit the Charm Mana, which isn't that hard with good mana fixing, but still not always possible as Stephen Sawka can attest to. Then, you have to find a time to cast it! Temur's Rare beat stick Savage Knuckleblade already fills the three drop slot wonderfully.There are also morph creatures (Den Protector and Rattleclaw Mystic) that occupy the same space. If you cast it later, at least two of the effects (Leak and Panic) lose effectiveness. Essentially there is no good time to play this card.

Then there's the fact you'll at least go 1 for 1 with very little flexibility iconic to the Charms overall. You need a creature to fight and if you're only barely killing it, then there is no point in 2 for 1'ing. You Counter, 1 for 1. You Panic. You maybe get in some damage as long as your opponent isn't playing anything above the power 3 *ahem Siege Rhino*. Every other Charm has something to it that provides versatility or power. Mardu Charm, probably fourth out of all the charms can kill an opposing creature, put 2 power on the board with a relevant creature type and ability at instant speed, AND instantly cause a discard effect. That's brutal! Temur Charm's effects are incredibly underwhelming and synergize very little with either the clan or an archetype.

So ranking the Charms of Tarkir overall I'd go:

1.) Jeskai Charm- It at the very least 1/5ths your opponents life total.

2.) Abzan Charm- The most Versatile and permanent advantage.

3.) Sultai Charm- Suffers from a medicore performance and a metagame not favoring single colored creatures.

4.) Mardu Charm- Rapidly loses effectiveness past turn 3.

5.) Temur Charm- None of it's effects are worth forcing 3 colors. It's underpowered and awkward to play.

Next week, let's sleeve up our 99 and 1 and talk about some definitely unique additions to your Commander stack.

Charm'd part 2 Mardu Charm vs Jeskai Charm

Strength through Violence or Knowledge; Power through Clan and Self Mastery

R/W has long been an aggro powerhouse. Boros Swiftblade, Boros Reckoner, uh... Skyknight Legionairre... wow, Boros is crazy aggro heavy. Anyway, splashing any color into the mix is not going to change much. Both Jeskai and Mardu have very aggressive styles of play, even as a midrange or control decks. Of course, the charms of the clans also inherited these traits. Of all the Charms, these two are most heavily geared towards aggro archetypes.

Let's address the removal third first. Both charms can help clear a path for beaters to get through, but only one is making sure that creature stays dead. In an odd twist, the Jeskai Charm uses it's blue part to throw an opposing creature back on top of its owner's deck. While not very cost effective it can get a flier out of the way and make sure your Mantis Riders can get through the damage. It also improves when your opponent is playing fetches. They crack one turn 5-6 followed with a Jekai Charm and blam, no more problem. The Mardu Charm answers problems more permanently, but sadly not all. Mardu Charm is as great against aggro as it is bad against control. A 4 point burn to a creature will kill almost any aggro creature, but fizzles something awful against midrange and control and ramp etc. etc.

Mardu Charm also hits other aggro decks with it's powerful white effect. Two, instant-speed 1/1 first strikers are almost guaranteed to ruin some poor goblin deck's day. They can also be snuck in vs control a la' Raise the Alarm. Jeskai Charm's white effect is very synergistic with prowess. Like crazy, game ending synergy. Three mana open turn 4 should make anyone quake in their boots.

The black effect on Mardu Charm is a potent instant speed Duress. Stripping someone's hand at the end of their draw step has always been dirty even if it is very restricted. Probably the most potent effect on Mardu Charm, this third is an excellent answer to anything your opponent could throw at you and gleaning information. Jeskai Charm slaps your opponent right in the face for a 1/5 of their life. Such disrespect, much monk, wow.

In the end though, there can only be one. I rate Jeskai Charm much higher than Mardu Charm. At all points of the game Jeskai Charm matters while derpy Mardu Charm doesn't matter much past turn 6. 

Friday I address a particularly offensive Charm, Temur Charm!

Charm'd Part 1; Sultai and Abzan

The fang and the scale; the individual and the family

Starting Charm Week, we have the two B/G/x charms. Both are powerful, flexible, but narrow in their utility. The charms provide excellent power for their strict casting cost. These two in particular, however, I believe are the more focused and provide support than breaking the opponents back like the other charms.

The Sultai Charm has 'destroy' in its text twice so let's examine those first. The weakest effect by far, destroying a mono colored creature is not ideal in a format of Rhinos and Dragonlords. With Theros rotating out soon, and Zendikar introducing colorless creatures destroying a monocolored creature is going to be even more difficult now. It is not useless though as it currently hits the rare cycle of dragons, Stormbreath, and little guys like Rabblemaster and Seeker of the Way.

The second effect is devastating in the right circumstance. A built in naturalize makes Sultai Charm an excellent answer to the rampant artifacts and enchantments seeing play. It hits everything from Courser of Kruphix to Hangerback Walker to Hardened Scales.This sideboard effect is given the maindeck side effects to make it at least worth looking at when it comes to deck building.

Lastly, the Sultai Charm can power your graveyard through its powerful cycling effect.  A net zero gain for your hand, but +2 in the yard for delving makes Sultai charm at least worth tossing out even when both effects are dead.

Abzan Charm offers a permanent answer to many, but not all threats. It exiles greedy Hangerback Walkers and opposing Rhinos with ease, but faulters on two fronts. 1.) Unlike the Sultai Charm it can't hit the dreaded Stormbreath Dragon, and 2.) most likely, the exile effect won't matter on the player's turn 3. Abzan Charm fits awkwardly on its curve. 

Abzan Charm also does a sweet, instant-speed impression of Read the Bones. Not much to say here. Drawing cards is good and losing the two life shouldn't matter all that much with the type of deck you'd play this in.

Finally, a combat trick. Putting 2

+1/+1 counters wherever you please is incredibly strong. Hate Frost Walker? Kill it! Want to activate your outlast lord's flying or lifelink or whatever? Slap those suckers down. Win the mirror with a tide turning 6/7 Rhino? Go for it! The final effect is nothing to laugh at as I can attest. Putting a creature out of burn range or bigger than all but the biggest creatures is quite powerful.

So, which do I rank higher? Well, I hate to say it, but Abzan Charm is probably the winner by the narrowest stretch. While always reliant on something (3>power, 2 life, or having creatures on the battlefield), the amount of work Abzan Charm can do is amazing. Sultai Charm is narrow too, but it has a greter chance of needing to be recycled should is not be able to kill something. Being nothing but delve fuel doesn't make up for that.

    

Next time, I'll have Mardu and Jeskai duke it out over whose charm is better! 

Witness This!

Power in a small package

Come into play/Enter the Battlefield effects have always been a source of contention in magic. Essentially, they are spells with bodies, which means they have more inherent value than every other spell in magic. To make up for this, an ability will often bump up a creature's cost. Eternal Witness does not have this modifier and I doubt a more versitile 3 drop exists in Modern.

Another time, Another time

Eternal Witness has been a star since it's first printing. Sharing space with Ravager Affinity and Skullclamp, Eternal Witness was a key piece of Astral Slide based decks that thrived off the card advantage Witness provided. Since then Witness has been a low-key contributor to pretty much any deck playing green in both Extended and Modern. Notable decks with E. Witness include Pod, some zoo archetypes, and b/g rock.

The Witness does best in longer, grinding games, although it's recollect effect is quite powerful in shells looking to double their burn/counters/removal. It also provides a good bump against opposing Tarmogoyfs. 2 power enables it to contribute to combat and it will always positively trade against x/2's.

Next week I'll be returning to Standard. There's a a cycle of CHARMING cards I'd like to review.

Until then, stay Silver!

Pickles in the Jar-o

Everybody else... slooooow dooooown

Ha, I bet you thought I met a dud card overall! Nope, I'm here to highlight one half of the infamous pickles lock combo from Time Spiral block/standard. Basically, this guy combined with Vesuvan Shapshifter created a soft lock combo that kept your opponent from untapping. You then had to deal with 2 5/4's as well. Fun times, fun times.

Well after Standard rotated, our dynamic duo ceased to exist basically in their entirety. However, I'm here today to remind you that this guy is still around! A Modern dud, but he's still around. With the printing of more morph friendly effects in Khans, I just wanted to give this guy some limelight. He's an iconic combo piece without a home in a format most likely to fast for a comeback.

Feel free to disagree though. No ratings anymore either. They were to confusing. Instead, I'll leave you with a question: What other slow, but interesting cards would you like to see in Modern? Leave your comments below and you may be featured in a coming Uncommon Thoughts.

Next week is Eternal Witness.

Arcanum What Now?

Future Sight: A.K.A the Set With 'Goyf

Future Sight was a set full of oddballs. Riggers, Rebel Enchaments, and a serious case of keyword overload. Among several of the unique mechanics introduced with the set was this bad boy: Arcanum Wings. Not only is the artwork absolutely gorgeous, but it also has a lot of power, both as a 2 cost Fly spell, but a way to cheat Eldrazi Conscription into play faster than any old Sovereigns of Lost Alara. Sure we could cheeseball in any old, game-ending Aura, especially since the swap is uncounterable. However, I think there is a value to Arcanum wings in aggro as well as a Conscription-focused deck.

Flying is nothing to scoff at. If it gets over goyf, then that's a positive. Following up a one drop creature like Soldier of the Pantheon, Wild Natacl, or some other cost efficent beater with turn of flying then turning that flying into something even more devastating on turn three. Spectra Ward also comes to mind as a counter to any sort of removal that early on.

Torch it

Touch it: If you're looking for a unique angle on aura's, check out Arcanum Wings. Otherwise, it might be a little to narrow for what you're looking for.

Try it

Play it

Wednesday we'll be looking at a dud from Time Spiral that really irks me. See ya soon!

Stomp and Howl! Call of the Full Moon!

Of Course a Horse!

Call of the Full Moon fills a particular void in magic that has long been absent: Cards with meaningful drawbacks, but devastating upsides. Part of a cycle that pays tribute to past sets, this Werewolf-y card oozes with flavor from Innistrad while addressing something the set lacked. While werewolves were typically strongest at night, for some reason they all started on their day side. Call of the Full Moon gives you that sweet, sweet moon power without any of the pesky human parts. It's like watching an episode of Sailor Moon skipping all the plot for those transformation scenes ;-p

Anywho, the card's drawback limits what decks want to play it for the long term. Ideally, enchanting a 1 drop then dropping Call is a safe and powerful move. 4/5 Damage is nothing to scoff at. Turn three should either clear the way for your empowered creature or follow up with a 3 drop. Turn four? Well, plowing your opponent's face in with damage is strong. Throw a four orthree drop with haste and end the game. This is just a dream though, because Call's real power lies in how it is solved by your opponent.

Your opponent needs to cast two spells, but on the play, you're way ahead on your opponent. Dish out the pain, then watch as they over commit to stop the damage from furthering. That is the beauty of the card. Your opponent might make steps they may later regret. Punish them, and follow up with a powerful 3/4 drop monster and plow over their error.

Torch it
Touch it
Try it
Own it: You want this card, not just because it's a powerhouse the turn you play it, but because it makes a creature sucha  threat they need to be answered.

Next week I'll be  evaluating some uncommons for modern, ending on Eternal Witness Friday. Stay Tuned

P.S. Sorry for the delay. Life happened.