Spoiler Season (Series 1)

Lingering Magicks

This week we're going to take a look at some enchantments. Enchantments rank among some of the most powerfull spells in old school, with the likes of Moat and The Abyss. We've got some minor redesigns and some major overhauls, so let's get to it.

World's Greatest Wall

Back when they were designing Legends, the third expansion for MTG, a problem began to surface...

Yep, you read that right, "Plainswalk". This mechanic was so egregiously powerful that they wouldn't even bring plainswalkers back until the year 2007. However, the designers, clever as they were, created a pressure release valve in the very same set, lest the entire game of magic be destroyed.

This, the greatest of walls, managed to hold off the great plainswalker invasion of 1994, and magic still exists today because of it.

You Shall Not Pass!

Even though Great Wall is the linchpin that held magic together in the early years, I decided to give the greatest wall a redesign none the less.

This is what happens when Living Lands meets Moat. Banding is huge here because it allows you to spread damage amongst all your plains, making it feel more like one giant contiguous wall. The great wall also helps your other blocking creatures do to the blocking with banders rule. This means, even if you only have one plains untapped to block, it can band together with your other creatures to take on bigger threats like Craw Wurm. Add a Castle into the mix and, oh man, nobody's getting through that.

Except... well... Righteous Avengers. Damn those Avengers.

Speaking of Living Lands...

Living Lands has always felt a bit lack-luster, but it's hard to put a finger on why.

It could be because after you spend four mana to play it, you often don't have many forests left to attack with. It could also be because, once played, it has often blown up in the caster's face do to the plethora of cards that will wreck your little sentient forests.

Shuffling Numbers

Behold! A slightly different card.

You might be thinking, "Is this better or worse?". Well, let me make my spiel, then you can decide. I think the problem with Living Lands is that it's not as impactful as it needs to be on the turn you play it, combined with the fact that the longer it remains in play, the more chance it has of becoming a liability. While a cost difference of 2 doesn't seem like a lot, consider this. If you play this with 5 forests out, you can attack for 3 (triple the damage of the previous version). With 6 forests, you get to attack for 4 (double the damage of the previous version). The more forests you have out, the less the difference matters, but for the typical game, the initial impact of this card is a lot more. Now let's talk about the upkeep cost, which may actually be a blessing in disguise. Imagine if your opponent plays a Nevinyrral's Disk or a Prodigal Sorcerer while you have this card out. On your next upkeep, you simply choose not to pay the upkeep, and boom, Living Lands dies and your forests get to live!

The Not-So Eternal Flame

Who named this card??

While this card can do some work, it'll typically resemble; "We have Psionic Blast at home." My main beef with this card however, is that there's nothing eternal about it! Flavor fail!

IT JUST KEEPS BURNING

Now this is how you kill a player! It may not be your opponent, but a player will die none the less. This thing is Copper Tablet on steroids. You see, the game becomes staying on an odd number of mountains, so you can make sure it hurts your buddy more than you. Good friends burn together, but if you want to be a great friend, you can run something like Circle of Protection: Red and let them have all the fun.

I Am Very Bad Ass

I've spent my eons in a cold, wet darkness. One hundred thousand tonnes of brine crushing down upon me without relent, honing my body into the perfect weapon. When I arise from the unfathomable fathoms, the seas will flood this world, and I will reign over it, for I am the Devouring Deep.

With a name like that, this little guy surely thinks highly of himself. Well, if you're familiar with my last article; Reverse Bio-Engineering (Part 1), Devouring Deep is Gray Ogre's rival, on a point for point basis, so there is that...

Fake It 'Til You Make It

The Devouring Deep of old was just a minnow, ripe with potential. What it would eventually turn into is something entirely different, something more... A stretch of seemingly endless sea where travelers tend to go missing. Were they swallowed up by some Leviathan? Did they cross into some alternate dimension à la the Bermuda Triangle? Maybe they just fell overboard and drowned. Who knows. The fact is, the creatures that are devoured by the deep always go without a peep.

This is a strange design, something like a multi-target Oblivion Ring. If you cast this thing with 5 islands out, you could exile a single Demonic Hordes, or a Savannah Lions plus a Serendib Efreet, but if you tried to exile anything beyond that, it would fail. However, if you played another island while this card is out, now you could exile an additional Savannah Lions, or you could wait until you get yet another island out so you can exile a White Knight.

"Reeeeeee"

Ah, the Howl from Beyond. This card has slain its fair share of kids on the playground.

While Howl from Beyond is playable, it's a tough sell. Especially when you compare it to something like Giant Growth. It kinda suffers from the same problem as Eternal Flame. The variable aspect of the card gives delusions of grandeur, but in practice, you may never have enough mana to make your dreams come true. More often than not you'll end up spending 4 mana for half of a Giant Growth.

The Party Animal

Howling is contagious, as any mob of 20 year olds drunk on Natty Ice can tell you, and this new design reflects that.

This new Howl effects ALL creatures in play, but there is a drawback, in typical black fashion. Since the new Howl is an enchantment, it will still be in play during your opponent's next turn. So if they manage to throw a wrench in your attack (Fog anyone?), you may have to brace yourself for the flogging of your life.

That's All Folks

At least for today. Keep an eye out for more Old School Remix posts. All remixed cards are available here.

Disclaimer: This blog contains unofficial fan content permitted under Wizards of the Coast's Fan Content Policy. This content is not approved/endorsed by Wizards. Portions of the materials used are property of Wizards of the Coast. ©Wizards of the Coast LLC. Custom card mock-ups are created with Card Conjurer, credit to Kyle Burton(ImKyle4815).

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