Lelouch32
05-25-2010, 02:39 PM
Taking It to the Next Level
By: Corlando
Well my summer is officially in full swing meaning that I am busy scrounging for a job, working out in the yard, and playing many fun video games such as Borderlands, Mass Effect 2, and Oblivion. Now looking at these three games, people will no doubt notice that they are all RPGs. Yes, I’m stocking up Rocket Propelled Grenades so I can… wait no. All of these games are Roleplaying Games which are games based around creating a character and raising the character's level up fighting bigger and badder enemies as they go. How convenient it is that these games have a similar attribute to the cards we will be talking about today, the Levelers. This group of twenty-five cards was introduced with the Rise of the Eldrazi deck and at first saw some serious attacks from players as slow and gimmicky. However, as soon as Rise of the Eldrazi hit shelves, many of those thoughts were completely reversed. Why is that? Well this edition of Cards n’Flux is here to find out. Let’s take a look.
For those who are unfamiliar with the Leveler cards, they are a set of cards that slowly gain levels as their controller infuses them with more and more mana. A similar idea was first introduced with the infamous Spirit of Destiny, a 1/1 kithkin out of the Eventide set. Spirit of Destiny’s abilities read as follows, “:manarw: Figure of Destiny becomes a 2/2 Kithkin Spirit. :manarw::manarw::manarw: If Figure of Destiny is a Spirit, it becomes a 4/4 Kithkin Spirit Warrior. :manarw::manarw::manarw::manarw::manarw: If Figure of Destiny is a Warrior, it becomes an 8/8 Kithkin Spirit Warrior Avatar with flying and first strike.” Now this is a powerful ability because this little 1 mana creature can easily and relatively quickly become a major threat. The new level up cards have similar abilities except their mana expenses are lower and are a little more malleable able to be paid over time instead of right then right now. Allow me to show you what I mean.
Looking at the over all color layout for the level up cards we have three for green, three for red, four for black, seven for white, and seven for blue. I think I found my order of discussion. With Green only having three cards there must be some variety between them to really make them unique and trust me there is, but which one is the best? Well in my opinion I’d have to go with Joraga Treespeaker. At only :manag:, Joraga Treespeaker is very easy to play, but the best part about her is her level up cost and ability combo. By paying :mana1::manag:, Joraga Treespeaker levels up and gains the ability to tap and add :manag::manag: to your mana pool. In essence what she does is give you the ability to pay for her own leveling. This is powerful because while other level up users are diverting mana away from spells to level up their creatures, you’ll be tapping and leveling Joraga Treespeaker and still have mana to play your other spells. Of course the final ability is the real kicker. At level 5, Joraga Treespeaker gains the ability to give all your other elves you control the ability to tap for :manag::manag: mana. Think of this ability in an all elf deck combined with say a little Worldwake rare known as Joraga Warcaller, an elf warrior that gives all elves you control +1/+1 for each +1/+1 counter on it. Five elves on the field (one of them a fully leveled Treespeaker) plus three lands means you can tap all your lands and elves to put six +1/+1 counters on Joraga Warcaller. Suddenly you have a 7/7 creature boosting all your elves by +6/+6. Ladies and Gentlemen, that is scary.
Moving along the pentagram to Red, we run into another trinity of interesting level up cards. Now some might think I might put my vote on the irresistible awesome that is Lord of Shatterskull Pass, but that is not so. Now before you grab your hate pens let me show you my favorite red leveler. Kargan Dragonlord is a :manar::manar: 2/2 Human Warrior with an amazing ability to tame a massive beast. Starting at a 2/2, by paying one :manar: mana four times, players can see Kargan Dragonlord become a flying 4/4. Now that’s pretty good, but far from the best this card has to offer. Pay that same cost just four more times and you get yourself and 8/8 flying trample creature with the ability to boost its power by +1/+0 by paying :manar:. Alright, an 8/8 is powerful, but an 8/8 that can not only boost its attack but run over its opponents like a steamroller verses a mouse, I’m thinking this little guy gets my vote for best red leveler.
Rolling along the pentagram to black, we come across four levelers each one designed to be a real devastator in some way. From the Null Champion’s 7/3 regeneration to Zulaport Enforcer’s 5/5 near unblockableness these are a few cards that most opponents would dread seeing. However, neither one of these beasts are my preferred black leveler. For that award we actually have a tie between the two vampire levelers Guul Draz Assassin and Nirkana Cutthroart. Yes ladies and gentlemen, Black just added two more fun removal cards to its already massive stockpile so let’s take a look. Guul Draz Assasin is the cheaper of the two vampires at :manab: and starts as a 1/1. However after paying :mana1::manab: twice we see our little Vampire Assasin become a 2/2 with the ability “:manab: :symtap:: Target creature gets -2/-2 till the end of the turn.” And it doesn’t stop there folks. Paying that same :mana1::manab: two more times, Guul Draz Assasin becomes a 4/4 with the ability “:manab: :symtap:: Target creature gets -4/-4 til the end of the turn.” That’s pretty strong removal right there, but what happens if you’re facing something like an 8/8 or an impressive wall? That is where Nirkana Cutthroat comes into play. At :mana2::manab: this Vampire Warrior is a little slower to play, but her level up cost of :mana2::manab: is easily met. By paying her level up cost once, Nirkana Cutthroat becomes a 4/3 with deathtouch. This makes her very versatile as both a defender, keeping an opponent’s valuable creatures at bay, and as an attacker with decent power. Yet that’s not all. By just paying that :mana2::manab: level up cost just two more times, Nirkana gains first strike and becomes a 5/4. Now that is just awesome. 5 combined with first strike means that many big creatures will fall to Nirkana’s blade before they even get close, but with the addition of Deathtouch nothing will live. Nirkana Cutthroat is basically the ultimate kill all because even if they have an opponent has a 10/10 defender that would normally survive a firststrike attack, the addition of deathtouch means that the 10/10 creature is killed before it can deal its damage. I’d have to say both of these card a pretty sweet.
Taking a turn over to white we run into an number of powerful leveling creatures, many of which have already become famous. Cards like Student of Warfare and Transcendent Master really help to make Levelers a real strong threat, yet these two guys are not my favorite white leveler. Now I’ll go ahead and say that my favorite white leveler is Kabira Vindicator. When fully leveled he becomes a 4/8 that boosts all your other creatures by +2/+2. Not to mention the fact that he is riding a Felidar Soverign… that is just awesome! Instead I’m just going to take a moment to point out a card I feel is being overlooked. Caravan Escort is a 1/1 :manaw: Human Knight with :mana2: for a level up cost. This is actually pretty fun because you can play this guy on turn one and on turn two level him up to attack with a 2/2. Granted that isn’t as nice as Student of Warfare’s 3/3 with first strike, but it also isn’t something to just brush off. However, the thing I want to point out about Caravan Escort is the fact that Caravan Escort can be better than Student of Warfare. Once fully leveled at five, Caravan Escort becomes a 5/5 with first strike which is pretty nice all its own. Granted Student of Warfare surpasses Escort's damage with its 4/4 Double Strike, however if these two go up against one another Caravan Escort would win. This is because Caravn Escort deals all his damage up front while Student of Warfare tries to inflict more damage by separating his attacks over two moves. That means when Escort and Student meet head on, Escort and Student will deal first strike damage meaning Student will only deal 4 while Escort deals a killing 5. I realize people will still believe Student of Warfare is better and I can respect that; but if you’re having trouble obtaining Students of Warfare, why not look at this cheaper alternative?
Onto Blue, the other color with seven levelers and the most to offer to a possible leveler deck, however I will get into that in just a little bit. Now with blue levelers you defininitely have variety. From card draw, to good creatures, extra turns, this color is packing some real power. A perfect example of this is my favorite blue card Hada Spy Patrol. This :mana1::manau: Human Rogue starts off as a simple 1/1, but by paying :mana2::manau: you gain a 2/2 unblockable creature. This would be fine as is, but there’s still more that can be done. By leveling up this creature just two more times, Hada Spy Patrol becomes a 3/3 unblockable with shroud. Granted the stats boost really isn’t that impressive, but the shroud does make it unable to be the target of spells and abilities you opponent controls meaning the Spy Patrol is able to 3 your opponent to death with out risk of reprisal. This really is a fun little card and one I look forward to obtaining.
Now I mentioned earlier that Blue has a lot to offer to possible leveler decks and I say this with such strong feelings that I honestly don’t see a leveler deck being made without some blue being used. The main reason is a little card known as Training Grounds. Training Grounds reduces creature ability costs by :mana2: or down to a minimum of 1 mana meaning that all those level up costs just got a lot cheaper. This means that Kaibra Vindicator only needs :manaw:, Carvan Escort only needs :mana1:, Hada Spy Patrol only needs :manau: to level up. Training Grounds almost triples leveler creatures’ effectiveness and could easily be seen in many other decks. Now, Training Grounds isn’t the only card Blue has to offer and its not the only color bringing side cards to bare. Other blue cards such as Venerated Teacher, which gives all level up creatures you control two level up counters, and Champions Drake, a :mana1::manau: Flying drake that becomes stronger as long as you have a creature with a level counter on it, help to add variety and versatility of some decks. Meanwhile, White is also bring in a beautiful side card known as Time of Heroes which gives all creatures you control +2/+2 if they have level counters on them. This is just insane when combined with creatures like Kargan Dragonlord and Hada Spy Patrol. These few cards could easily help make Level up cards something truly fun and terrifying to play.
Well onto the deck of the week. This deck I pieced together about four weeks ago when I first learned of levelers. It seems to work rather well and could be really fun to play if I ever get the cards. Now, I literally threw in the Transcendent Masters because I felt the deck was lacking a finisher, yet with multiple Kabira Vindicators and a few Time for Heroes I don’t really think it needs a finisher. So let’s take a look at the deck.
Taking it to the Next Level:
Creatures:
4x Caravan Escort
4x Enclave Cryptologist
4x Hada Spy Patrol
3x Ikiral Outrider
3x Kabira Vindicator
2x Transcendent Master
4x Venerated Teacher
Lands:
4x Glacial Fortress
8x Plains
8x Island
Spells:
4x Time of Heroes
4x Training Grounds
4x Distortion Strike
4x Hyena Umbra
http://tappedout.net/mtg-decks/taking-it-to-the-next-level/
Now as I have said before most of my decks are foundational and should be looked at with scrutiny. The same is true with this one though I honestly think I’ve ironed out most of the problems. If anyone manages to put this deck together please inform me how well it played in real life.
Onto closing questions:
1. Would you like to see more level up cards in the future?
2. Do you think the idea of a level up artifact equipment is an interesting idea?
3. With all these level up cards being crowded with ability and stats information there is zero room for flavor text. If you could put it on the card, what flavor text would you add to your favorite leveler?
With that I think I will draw this article to a close. I hope you found it interesting and informative in some way. If not or you wish to make a different critique please leave it below and I’ll try to alter where I can. And always remember, “Etherium is limited. Innovation is not.” This is Corlando signing out.
By: Corlando
Well my summer is officially in full swing meaning that I am busy scrounging for a job, working out in the yard, and playing many fun video games such as Borderlands, Mass Effect 2, and Oblivion. Now looking at these three games, people will no doubt notice that they are all RPGs. Yes, I’m stocking up Rocket Propelled Grenades so I can… wait no. All of these games are Roleplaying Games which are games based around creating a character and raising the character's level up fighting bigger and badder enemies as they go. How convenient it is that these games have a similar attribute to the cards we will be talking about today, the Levelers. This group of twenty-five cards was introduced with the Rise of the Eldrazi deck and at first saw some serious attacks from players as slow and gimmicky. However, as soon as Rise of the Eldrazi hit shelves, many of those thoughts were completely reversed. Why is that? Well this edition of Cards n’Flux is here to find out. Let’s take a look.
For those who are unfamiliar with the Leveler cards, they are a set of cards that slowly gain levels as their controller infuses them with more and more mana. A similar idea was first introduced with the infamous Spirit of Destiny, a 1/1 kithkin out of the Eventide set. Spirit of Destiny’s abilities read as follows, “:manarw: Figure of Destiny becomes a 2/2 Kithkin Spirit. :manarw::manarw::manarw: If Figure of Destiny is a Spirit, it becomes a 4/4 Kithkin Spirit Warrior. :manarw::manarw::manarw::manarw::manarw: If Figure of Destiny is a Warrior, it becomes an 8/8 Kithkin Spirit Warrior Avatar with flying and first strike.” Now this is a powerful ability because this little 1 mana creature can easily and relatively quickly become a major threat. The new level up cards have similar abilities except their mana expenses are lower and are a little more malleable able to be paid over time instead of right then right now. Allow me to show you what I mean.
Looking at the over all color layout for the level up cards we have three for green, three for red, four for black, seven for white, and seven for blue. I think I found my order of discussion. With Green only having three cards there must be some variety between them to really make them unique and trust me there is, but which one is the best? Well in my opinion I’d have to go with Joraga Treespeaker. At only :manag:, Joraga Treespeaker is very easy to play, but the best part about her is her level up cost and ability combo. By paying :mana1::manag:, Joraga Treespeaker levels up and gains the ability to tap and add :manag::manag: to your mana pool. In essence what she does is give you the ability to pay for her own leveling. This is powerful because while other level up users are diverting mana away from spells to level up their creatures, you’ll be tapping and leveling Joraga Treespeaker and still have mana to play your other spells. Of course the final ability is the real kicker. At level 5, Joraga Treespeaker gains the ability to give all your other elves you control the ability to tap for :manag::manag: mana. Think of this ability in an all elf deck combined with say a little Worldwake rare known as Joraga Warcaller, an elf warrior that gives all elves you control +1/+1 for each +1/+1 counter on it. Five elves on the field (one of them a fully leveled Treespeaker) plus three lands means you can tap all your lands and elves to put six +1/+1 counters on Joraga Warcaller. Suddenly you have a 7/7 creature boosting all your elves by +6/+6. Ladies and Gentlemen, that is scary.
Moving along the pentagram to Red, we run into another trinity of interesting level up cards. Now some might think I might put my vote on the irresistible awesome that is Lord of Shatterskull Pass, but that is not so. Now before you grab your hate pens let me show you my favorite red leveler. Kargan Dragonlord is a :manar::manar: 2/2 Human Warrior with an amazing ability to tame a massive beast. Starting at a 2/2, by paying one :manar: mana four times, players can see Kargan Dragonlord become a flying 4/4. Now that’s pretty good, but far from the best this card has to offer. Pay that same cost just four more times and you get yourself and 8/8 flying trample creature with the ability to boost its power by +1/+0 by paying :manar:. Alright, an 8/8 is powerful, but an 8/8 that can not only boost its attack but run over its opponents like a steamroller verses a mouse, I’m thinking this little guy gets my vote for best red leveler.
Rolling along the pentagram to black, we come across four levelers each one designed to be a real devastator in some way. From the Null Champion’s 7/3 regeneration to Zulaport Enforcer’s 5/5 near unblockableness these are a few cards that most opponents would dread seeing. However, neither one of these beasts are my preferred black leveler. For that award we actually have a tie between the two vampire levelers Guul Draz Assassin and Nirkana Cutthroart. Yes ladies and gentlemen, Black just added two more fun removal cards to its already massive stockpile so let’s take a look. Guul Draz Assasin is the cheaper of the two vampires at :manab: and starts as a 1/1. However after paying :mana1::manab: twice we see our little Vampire Assasin become a 2/2 with the ability “:manab: :symtap:: Target creature gets -2/-2 till the end of the turn.” And it doesn’t stop there folks. Paying that same :mana1::manab: two more times, Guul Draz Assasin becomes a 4/4 with the ability “:manab: :symtap:: Target creature gets -4/-4 til the end of the turn.” That’s pretty strong removal right there, but what happens if you’re facing something like an 8/8 or an impressive wall? That is where Nirkana Cutthroat comes into play. At :mana2::manab: this Vampire Warrior is a little slower to play, but her level up cost of :mana2::manab: is easily met. By paying her level up cost once, Nirkana Cutthroat becomes a 4/3 with deathtouch. This makes her very versatile as both a defender, keeping an opponent’s valuable creatures at bay, and as an attacker with decent power. Yet that’s not all. By just paying that :mana2::manab: level up cost just two more times, Nirkana gains first strike and becomes a 5/4. Now that is just awesome. 5 combined with first strike means that many big creatures will fall to Nirkana’s blade before they even get close, but with the addition of Deathtouch nothing will live. Nirkana Cutthroat is basically the ultimate kill all because even if they have an opponent has a 10/10 defender that would normally survive a firststrike attack, the addition of deathtouch means that the 10/10 creature is killed before it can deal its damage. I’d have to say both of these card a pretty sweet.
Taking a turn over to white we run into an number of powerful leveling creatures, many of which have already become famous. Cards like Student of Warfare and Transcendent Master really help to make Levelers a real strong threat, yet these two guys are not my favorite white leveler. Now I’ll go ahead and say that my favorite white leveler is Kabira Vindicator. When fully leveled he becomes a 4/8 that boosts all your other creatures by +2/+2. Not to mention the fact that he is riding a Felidar Soverign… that is just awesome! Instead I’m just going to take a moment to point out a card I feel is being overlooked. Caravan Escort is a 1/1 :manaw: Human Knight with :mana2: for a level up cost. This is actually pretty fun because you can play this guy on turn one and on turn two level him up to attack with a 2/2. Granted that isn’t as nice as Student of Warfare’s 3/3 with first strike, but it also isn’t something to just brush off. However, the thing I want to point out about Caravan Escort is the fact that Caravan Escort can be better than Student of Warfare. Once fully leveled at five, Caravan Escort becomes a 5/5 with first strike which is pretty nice all its own. Granted Student of Warfare surpasses Escort's damage with its 4/4 Double Strike, however if these two go up against one another Caravan Escort would win. This is because Caravn Escort deals all his damage up front while Student of Warfare tries to inflict more damage by separating his attacks over two moves. That means when Escort and Student meet head on, Escort and Student will deal first strike damage meaning Student will only deal 4 while Escort deals a killing 5. I realize people will still believe Student of Warfare is better and I can respect that; but if you’re having trouble obtaining Students of Warfare, why not look at this cheaper alternative?
Onto Blue, the other color with seven levelers and the most to offer to a possible leveler deck, however I will get into that in just a little bit. Now with blue levelers you defininitely have variety. From card draw, to good creatures, extra turns, this color is packing some real power. A perfect example of this is my favorite blue card Hada Spy Patrol. This :mana1::manau: Human Rogue starts off as a simple 1/1, but by paying :mana2::manau: you gain a 2/2 unblockable creature. This would be fine as is, but there’s still more that can be done. By leveling up this creature just two more times, Hada Spy Patrol becomes a 3/3 unblockable with shroud. Granted the stats boost really isn’t that impressive, but the shroud does make it unable to be the target of spells and abilities you opponent controls meaning the Spy Patrol is able to 3 your opponent to death with out risk of reprisal. This really is a fun little card and one I look forward to obtaining.
Now I mentioned earlier that Blue has a lot to offer to possible leveler decks and I say this with such strong feelings that I honestly don’t see a leveler deck being made without some blue being used. The main reason is a little card known as Training Grounds. Training Grounds reduces creature ability costs by :mana2: or down to a minimum of 1 mana meaning that all those level up costs just got a lot cheaper. This means that Kaibra Vindicator only needs :manaw:, Carvan Escort only needs :mana1:, Hada Spy Patrol only needs :manau: to level up. Training Grounds almost triples leveler creatures’ effectiveness and could easily be seen in many other decks. Now, Training Grounds isn’t the only card Blue has to offer and its not the only color bringing side cards to bare. Other blue cards such as Venerated Teacher, which gives all level up creatures you control two level up counters, and Champions Drake, a :mana1::manau: Flying drake that becomes stronger as long as you have a creature with a level counter on it, help to add variety and versatility of some decks. Meanwhile, White is also bring in a beautiful side card known as Time of Heroes which gives all creatures you control +2/+2 if they have level counters on them. This is just insane when combined with creatures like Kargan Dragonlord and Hada Spy Patrol. These few cards could easily help make Level up cards something truly fun and terrifying to play.
Well onto the deck of the week. This deck I pieced together about four weeks ago when I first learned of levelers. It seems to work rather well and could be really fun to play if I ever get the cards. Now, I literally threw in the Transcendent Masters because I felt the deck was lacking a finisher, yet with multiple Kabira Vindicators and a few Time for Heroes I don’t really think it needs a finisher. So let’s take a look at the deck.
Taking it to the Next Level:
Creatures:
4x Caravan Escort
4x Enclave Cryptologist
4x Hada Spy Patrol
3x Ikiral Outrider
3x Kabira Vindicator
2x Transcendent Master
4x Venerated Teacher
Lands:
4x Glacial Fortress
8x Plains
8x Island
Spells:
4x Time of Heroes
4x Training Grounds
4x Distortion Strike
4x Hyena Umbra
http://tappedout.net/mtg-decks/taking-it-to-the-next-level/
Now as I have said before most of my decks are foundational and should be looked at with scrutiny. The same is true with this one though I honestly think I’ve ironed out most of the problems. If anyone manages to put this deck together please inform me how well it played in real life.
Onto closing questions:
1. Would you like to see more level up cards in the future?
2. Do you think the idea of a level up artifact equipment is an interesting idea?
3. With all these level up cards being crowded with ability and stats information there is zero room for flavor text. If you could put it on the card, what flavor text would you add to your favorite leveler?
With that I think I will draw this article to a close. I hope you found it interesting and informative in some way. If not or you wish to make a different critique please leave it below and I’ll try to alter where I can. And always remember, “Etherium is limited. Innovation is not.” This is Corlando signing out.