Ok enough said! Let's just dive in and take a look at The Good, Bad, and how I Expect New Phyrexia will impact Legacy!
Mental Misstep
The Good
If you play Legacy, it's not too difficult to realise that this is the best card out of New Phyrexia. Much has been said by Star City Games' Drew Levin on Mental Misstep and I refer you to him for avoidance of duplication.
The main point in which I disagree with Drew is that he thinks Chalice of the Void will play a big part in the coming metagame. As you can see from the Star City Games Metagame, Ancient Tomb/Chalice of the Void decks has more than underperform ever since the start of the games. As I argued before, Stax is well known for its inconsistency and its slow clock does it no justice either (with the plethora of answers in Legacy, don't assume you're winning when you lock the game up). How will Mental Misstep revive Tomb/Chalice decks? It's not as if any player will stop bringing decks filled with 1-drops just because it can get countered.
Rather, the metagame will remain roughly similar in my opinion. Just that players will be accustomed to the presence of Mental Misstep and the better ones will account for the risk of playing a 1cmc spell when his opponent has 1 or more cards in hand. I think that it's going to be more of a mental adjustment than a substantial shift in the metagame.
p.s. The more I think about it, the more I'm persuaded that Mental Misstep can be used maindeck in non-blue decks with fast clocks like Zoo and Goblins. Against combo decks, this allows you to (perhaps) buy a turn, which may be all you need. Against other decks, you gain free protection from the most played removal in the format. The problem only lies in what you remove for them. Nonetheless, get multiple playsets of them if you can. It's at least worth Path to Exile in price, and I think more than that.
The Bad
It's a super uncommon, so pay for it as early as you can.
Expected
4-of in many viable Legacy deck you own.
Now that we have that out of our way, let's get back to card number order.
Dispatch
The Good
Zoo has Wild Nacatl, Affinity has Ardent Recruit. Zoo has Chain Lightning, Affinity has Galvanic Blast. Zoo has Path to Exile, Affinity has Dispatch. Zoo has Tarmogoyf, Affinity has Tarmogoyf, Cranial Plating, and Master of Etherium. Why play Zoo?
The Bad
Affinity's manabase is much much weaker than Zoo's and Affinity simply folds to a resolved Null Rod. And if you build Affinity like you build Zoo, it's more susceptible to cards like Qasali Pridemage/Ancient Grudge as it has a lower artifact density. This in turn lowers the effectiveness of Dispatch and Galvanic Blast.
Non-Affinity decks? Name me one that can consistently activate Metalcraft and would not want Swords to Plowshares.
Expected
Affinity is well known for its early explosiveness and the Zoo-like build deserves some testing. Affinity is unlikely to make tier 1 unless a suitable answer against Null Rod is found.
Inquisior Exarch
The Good
White Weenie now has direct damage.
The Bad
Other than Death and Taxes, no other forms of White Weenie exists. Even with its bounce effects, DnT cannot effectively turn this card into a semi-auto machine-gun for 2 life that it wants to break locks/standstills.
And there are better things to cast with 2 mana.
Expected
Why did I even mention this card?
Gitaxian Probe
The Good
Hi Street Wraith, meet your more future wife Gitaxian Probe and your new home – 52 cards combo.dec! Thanks to the Probe, you can now see whether your opponent is holding a counterspell the turn you're about to go off. You like it?
The Bad
Sorry but your deck is still prone to making bad mulligan decisions.
Expected
Free card that cycles for free and Peeks as a result. Interesting but not very exciting.
Jin-Gitaxias, Core Augur
The Good
I'll draw all your cards in EDH!
The Bad
You'll all gang up against me when I show you what's my general...
Expected
Wasn't this a Legacy blog? Why am I talking about EDH?
Despise
The Good
Another Duress variant! This time an Ostracize that hits Planeswalkers!
The Bad
Ostracize wasn't played, why would this?
Expected
More bad than good.
Dismember
The Good
Remember when I said in New Phyrexia Legacy Preview 1 that cost reduction is always something to consider especially when it has an useful effect? Dismember is effectively a Snuff Out that costs 1 and kills creatures of any color Goyf size or smaller. That's about almost everything on the block except bigger Goyfs, KotR, Emrakul, Progenitus, Phyrexian Dreadnought. For those, you have Diabolic Edict.
If you're a green mage, you'd love this!
The Bad
It's still 4 life to cast it if you want it at 1. Otherwise you're splashing black and there's better options like Go for the Throat.
Expected
Perhaps only considered in non-black decks. Even so, there's Slaughter Pact for combo decks. Otherwise, why not consider splashing for black/white when it's so easy to do so with fetchlands and duals? (unless you're on a budget of course)
Geth's Verdict
The Good
And we were talking about Diabolic Edict earlier on. Less splashier but it pings for 1. Between this, Go for the Throat, and Innistrad, watch out for black decks in standard!
The Bad
In Legacy, a single colored mana is easy to splash but 2 isn't due to the presence of Wasteland. Why this than Edict? Unless you honestly think that a Legacy mono-black deck is tier-1 (I don't think so).
Expected
More for Standard than Legacy just because of Edict.
Act of Aggression
The Good
At best, it's a 3cmc instant that says: “Pay 4 life: Choose 1 – Destroy 2 of your opponent's creatures or target opponent's blocker becomes your attacker until the end of turn”. Both are likely to win your the game.
The Bad
Difficult to imagine how it'll git in any Legacy deck.
Expected
This is going to be in the vaults for some time before someone finds a use for it. Until then, forget about it.
Furnace Scamp
The Good
1 mana for 4 damage? Sign me up!
The Bad
You have to hit the player with it and this is puny compared to Cats and Fishies.
Expected
Would Burn be better with this? Is it worth opening your deck up to removals or trading 1 Bolt for a blocking creature? I don't think so. But you can give it a try and tell me your thoughts.
Geosurge
The Good
4 mana and a card for 7 mana. That's a lot of creatures and artifacts you can dump on 1 turn.
The Bad
With its casting cost, possibly used only in a deck with either lotsa mountains or lotsa Red Rituals. Belcher and Dragon Stompy comes into mind. Belcher already has better Rituals and Dragon Stompy has Ancient Tomb and City of Traitors which do not tap for Red mana. Now which other deck can and want to use Geosurge?
Expected
Maybe only kinky-yet-to-be-known-decks.
Priest of Urabrask
The Good
It's a free 2/1! Add some cost reduction and some infinite combo will be waiting for it!
The Bad
This, a cost reduction engine, and a kill condition makes for 3 cards. 2 card comboes such as Painter-Grindstone, Flash-Hulk, Cephalid-Nomad are doable, but 3 cards? Kinda difficult (hi non-Imperial Aluren!).
Expected
Who knows? It might be useful some other day... But not now.
Beast Within
The Good
Destroy. Target. Permanent. In Green. At Instant Speed. Karn? What Karn?
The Bad
3/3.
Expected
Use it! Even if it's just because it's cheap!
Glistener Elf
The Good
Now you have 2 1cmc infect creatures (together with Virulent Sliver) to make your curve complete!
The Bad
Infect deck only.
Expected
Infect viable in Legacy with free pump spells like Invigorate? Being the pessimist that I am, I'd say no. But I'd like to be proved wrong! Especially with Mental Misstep as pseudo-removal and protection against removal!
Mutagenic Growth
The Good
You know, the mini Invigorate in the Legacy Infect deck.
The Bad
Probably only in Infect decks.
Expected
Invigorate, Mutagenic Growth, Mental Misstep, Snuff Out, black-green infect deck? Seems fun to me at the very minimum.
Noxious Revival
The Good
Reclaim is now for every colour! Relic/Crypt bothering you? You can save that Loam you want the most. Pay 2 life to pseudo-Time Walk someone by putting a useless Land on the top of their deck!
The Bad
Seems to do remarkably little for a remarkably cheap card.
Expected
Some cards are meant to be kept in your cupboard before they turn useful. Expect a few years to pass before this does. And you may want this in your Pyromancer Ascension deck just for fun.
Triumph of the Hordes
The Good
Elves can now poison someone to death!
The Bad
Glimpse, Pact/Green Sun, and this in an elf deck? Would it dilute your elf density?
Expected
Not likely to make an impact in Legacy this point in time.
Mycosynth Wellspring
The Good
Mana fixing for any deck that's not green! Basic lands preventing your Second Sunrise deck from going-off? Use this (and Time Sieve)!
The Bad
Just a basic land? That's like worse than Realms Uncharted.
Expected
At least this goes into EDH decks...
Myr Superion
The Good
Now this is Goyf size for Goyf cost!
The Bad
Only if you're playing Birds/Hierarch/Elf/Dryad Arbor, and at turn 3 earliest
Expected
8 Goyf in decks with Noble Hierarch, Dryad Arbor, and Green Sun's Zenith? Now possible.
Soul Conduit
I'd love to use this in EDH to make Chris scoop again!
Sword of War and Peace
The Good
You won't believe how hard this equipment can hit someone. I'm thinking just 2 hits will make the player KO! Plus, the equipped creature is basically immune from targeted removal. Watch as the game goes into hyper-drive mode when this lands.
The Bad
It can just be a sign that says “Use Edict on me!”
Expected
With Stoneforge Mystic around Swords will definitely see play. This Sword will probably beat Sword of Feast and Famine to take the number 2 slot just behind Sword of Fire and Ice, just because of the immunity to Plow/Bolt and the huge life swing this provides.
Torpor Orb
The Good
I was stuck on this card but I found out the interaction with Phyrexian Dreadnought thank to this thread. And it stops Matron, Ringleader, Siege-Gang!
The Bad
The danger of this is to put in trash like Eater of Days and draw lotsa dead cards that don't immediately win you the game when you resolve the combo.
Expected
Do you need to go out and buy Phyrexian Dreadnought? I don't think so. Stifle is good enough and the splash damage of Torpor Orb on your opponent's cip effects doesn't really make a big dent to justify the deck being great. I do hope to see innovators proving me wrong though. Who knows? Maybe Day of Eaters may be playable...
Summary
The biggest contribution of New Phyrexia is Mental Misstep. Good job Wizards, for printing a great answer to Vial and a great answer to the answer to Vial all in 1 card! Some interesting cards like Karn, Gitaxian Probe, and Torpor Orb were printed and I'm eager to see how much Legacy is changed (I'd think little).What do you think? Are there cards I've missed out that you think are great? Let me know by commenting or by posting on my facebook page! Tweet this!
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