Prerelease Tactics: Champions of Kamigawa Edition

Lord Konda Wants You for the Kami War

The Kami, the spirit gods of the people of the plane of Kamigawa, have unexpectedly come under attack, assaulted by the gods they once worshipped. The land is ravaged by the gods as they vent their terrible power in a war started for their own inscrutable purposes.

That's the basic story behind the newest set of Magic: the Gathering, at any rate. While that simple fact doesn't relate in an immediate sense to the mechanics of the cards and to the things you'll need to know to increase your odds at the Prerelease tournament, it is an important fact. The back story plays so heavily into the flavor the mechanics of the new set are based on that it should help you categorize all the new information we'll be covering. It's no big deal, but I'd keep it in mind for the sake of reference if nothing else.

In looking back at the Prerelease Tactics article I wrote for the Fifth Dawn expansion, I saw that I mentioned that I was starting more and more to like the new expansions of the game before I started playing with them, at least a little bit. Fortunately, we don't have time to gush, but this set has pushed me way over the edge on that meter. This set is going to be excellent.

At any rate, the cards and mechanics are what we're here for this time. As before, please note that I'm getting all my information about the Champions of Kamigawa cards for this article from the official releases on www.magicthegathering.com and more especially from www.mtgnews.com. A hearty thanks to them for the information.

For those who haven't heard yet, the Kamigawa block's main theme hails back to the old Legends set, and this set has no shortage of Legendary permanents. The set is so Legendary, in fact, that they did away with the Legend creature type altogether. Weird, huh? The change came along with some modifications in the Legend rules, and for the sake of accuracy (I'm not a DCI judge and I wouldn't pretend to be), I'm going to refer any interested party to the magicthegathering.com article that outlined those changes. You can find it here: http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=mtgcom/daily/af31.

As always, it's helpful to begin with at least a brief explanation of the new mechanics. There's a lot of them, so hang onto your hats.

Bushido: Some have stated that Bushido is a new keyword for an old ability. Kind of like Vigilance (The new name for the ability formerly worded Ô~this~ doesn't tap to attack') While that seems to be the case, I'm tempted to differ. First, I don't think they're going to go back into the Oracle card definitions and give all of those cards Bushido for flavor reasons. Second, some of the other rares in the set hinge on Bushido specifically. It's a fine difference, but I'm guessing that they're not actually doing a major keywording of old cards here. Looking at my explanation, however, I realize now that I haven't stated at all what it is that Bushido does, and I needed to get to that sooner or later, right? Bushido X gives +X/+X to a creature if it blocks or is blocked. The X can be anything but most cards will run about Bushido 1 or Bushido 2. Note that if a card has multiple copies of the Bushido ability from some method or other (*snicker*) that all copies of Bushido will trigger and stack. It doesn't activate for each creature blocking it, though, so it's not quite that similar to Rampage X, but if that helps some of our older players out, that works too.

Flip Cards: An odd mechanic that feels a little like Morph, the flip cards start out in play Ôfacing forward' and stay that way until some specific trigger outlined on the card is met. Once the condition is met, the card flips over and becomes something else entirely. I still don't like the formatting, but what can you do? Generally, flip cards give you a creature that helps you in some way to meet the Ôflip condition' and then flips to become a Legendary creature. Watch out for the new Legend rule here, as many of the flip cards will destroy each other if their flip conditions are met simultaneously.

Splice onto Arcane: This one needs just a bit of background. While it's not a new mechanic, some types of spells that formerly didn't have subtypes: enchantments, sorceries, and instants particularly now do. On sorceries and instants, the subtype is Arcane. Keep in mind that the arcane subtype doesn't actually do anything by itself. It means something only when the text of a card says it does. Which is happening a lot in this set. One of the biggest ways in which Arcane spells will be useful is in splicing. Splice onto Arcane allows you to pay a cost on a card, reveal that card in your hand, and add that card's effect to another Arcane spell that you have already played. Much like the Scry mechanic from Fifth Dawn, I'm not going to be able to say enough good things about this mechanic. Using the effect of a spell in your hand without having that card leave your hand has been a powerful effect ever since Buyback at least. Splice onto Arcane is limited by the fact that you also have to play an Arcane instant or sorcery normally, and that can take up a lot of mana, but even one Splice onto Arcane spell in your hand can be devastating over the course of many turns.

Now there's a bit of math we need to take care of before we can get to the card previews due to the nature of this mechanic. Splice onto Arcane is a Ôhungry' mechanic, one that demands a large card presence to really make itself known. You can splice as many spells onto an Arcane spell as you have mana for, but you still are losing the card that is going to the graveyard. The mechanic simply doesn't sustain itself on its own. This doesn't make it bad, but it limits it in the Prerelease. We've talked about deck ratios before, but it's important enough to go over again. A typical Champions of Kamigawa deck should have around 16 to 17 land in it, and I'd be nervous about including less than 15 creatures, even if I had to splash for good ones. That leaves only 8-9 noncreature spells since we won't be planning to go over 40 cards. I'd typically want a few of those to be creatures anyway, but I'm trying to give noncreature spells the benefit of the doubt here. If you can stretch your mana base to grab Splice onto Arcane spells for each of those slots, that still leaves you with only around 4-5 per game at the most. It also takes a lot of mana to really Splice well, so we'll probably end up using at least one of those splice spells each game without splicing. Trying to be optimistic about our chances of running a good Splice engine, that gives us about 3 splices from any one splice spell at most. The result? I don't predict that many Prerelease decks will be running an effective Splice onto Arcane engine. You might be able to grab enough general Arcane spells to really use one Splice onto Arcane spell like they should be used, but I wouldn't count on much more than that.

As a result, in my analysis I'll be forced to assume only a limited amount of Splicing action, especially since I gave the Splice onto Arcane mechanic every benefit of the doubt I could in the above analysis. As I proceed through the cards, please note that I can only afford to judge Splice onto Arcane cards as though you could only use them once, and that they're better than the rating I give them in the right setup.

Soulshift: Along with Arcane spells and the Spirit creature type, this mechanic is primarily the property of the Kami, and although simple, this mechanic could have a large affect on your Prerelease games. Soulshift X means that when the creature with the ability is put into a graveyard from play, you can take a Spirit creature card from your graveyard with a converted casting cost of X or less out of your graveyard and put it into your hand. Yeah, some Kami are that hard to get rid of. Fortunately, most of the Soulshift cards can only return cards with a smaller casting cost than themselves back to their controller's hand. As far as your Prerelease deck is concerned, this is a fairly significant ability. You're nearly guaranteed to be running a number of Spirits, and if you have even one or two with Soulshift, this mechanic could turn the tide in your favor.

Let's get to the cards. Once again, I'll recommend opening a second window to the spoiler on www.mtgnews.com or elsewhere, as I don't have the patience to specify the cards myself.

White Commons:

• Blessed Breath - Tier 3 - As a single-cast card, Blessed Breath does its job well, but it is fairly situational. In order to get any true use out of the card, you have to use it to change an unfavorable block into a favorable one, or to counter an enemy targeted removal spell. This could prove too tricky to manage.
• Cage of Hands - Tier 1 - It's Pacifism on steroids. I wouldn't bother keeping mana open to save it from enemy enchantment removal unless they have an obvious trap laid, such as Kami of the Ancient Law or an already revealed Wear Away. In those cases, make sure to keep mana open if at all possible. In its most basic use, though, I'd keep moving this card to the toughest enemy creature you can't handle throughout the game, leaving them with only their second-string attackers.
• Call to Glory - Tier 3 - I like this card. I really do. In the right deck, I'd take it over Hold the Line. At the Prerelease, however, I have to assume that we won't be able to get enough Samurai to use the card right. Even if we could, the card is really only useful when you can bait an opponent into attacking a seemingly open board position, and I don't see that happening at a Prerelease.
• Candle's Glow - Tier 3 - Much like Blessed Breath, this will only be useful if you can use it to negate enemy removal or to turn a bad combat into a good one. The life gain is negligible unless you can splice it, and I can't afford to make that a part of my calculations. As a surprise tactic, Blessed Breath is better. I'll be looking to try this after the tournament is over, though.
• Devoted Retainer - Tier 2 - I had to think about this one for a while. I don't value him much for his ability to deal damage to an enemy player in the early game, but you'd have trouble finding a better early-game defender, and he has the ability to trade with a large number of significantly more costly monsters. Add in a creature enchantment or a piece of equipment, and the early game will fall in your direction quickly.
• Ethereal Haze - Tier 1 - Fog has been a good card for years, even after it moved to white with Holy Day. Making it an Arcane spell makes it even better. There are a large number of game-ending effects that Ethereal Haze can turn completely around. Be careful not to waste a surprise like this in the early game, but wait for your opponent's killing blow, and be sure to keep some mana open.
• Harsh Deceiver - Tier 3 - Four mana is a little slow for a 1/4 blocker, and the Harsh Deceiver can accomplish little else. The ability to untap on demand is nice if the top card of your library happens to be a land, but the card is far too situational to commend it for general inclusion in your deck.
• Hundred-Talon Kami - Tier 2 - It comes into the battle a little bit late, but there are very few flyers in the common slots of this set, and even fewer that can compete with a 2/3 in the air. Add in the Soulshift, and it should work rather nicely.
• Indomitable Will - Tier 2 - Methods of increasing the power and toughness of a creature is suddenly much harder now that the equipment-heavy Mirrodin block has passed. A +1/+2 creature enchantment is a nice way to boost up your more reliable creatures. What makes the card truly valuable, however, is the instant-speed casting ability. Teach your opponent that combat math tells him lies.
• Kabuto Moth - Tier 1 - It's not very threatening in the sky, but creatures like this aren't meant to be. Boosting your creatures above the stable norm of 2-3 power and toughness that pervades the format is an extremely valuable ability. It makes a nice 2/4 flying blocker as well, if need be.
• Kami of the Ancient Law - Tier 1 - Enchantments are back, and while they aren't dominant, a 2/2 creature with an enchantment removal ability looks pretty good, especially for a casting cost that only looks bad next to Isamaru, Hound of Konda. There are a large number of uncommon and rare enchantments in the format that will wreck you if you're not prepared. If you're running white, include this guy.
• Kami of the Painted Road - Tier 3 - In Champions of Kamigawa, we'll be needing a better creature in the five mana slot. The ability is nice, but I don't think the source of Spirits and Arcane spells will be abundant enough to make it work more than once or twice.
• Kitsune Blademaster - Tier 1 - I'm far too much of a fan of first strike, you know? I'll stick to my guns, though. Extremely efficient, the Kitsune Blademaster sits on the top of the block's power and toughness curve for early-game commons without costing an exorbitant amount of mana.
• Kitsune Diviner - Tier 2 - Spirits won't be quite as prolific in the Kamigawa block as artifacts were in Mirrodin, but Kitsune Diviner is also better at tapping Spirits than Auriok Transfixer was at tapping artifacts. You'll be fighting against Spirits in almost every game. It'll be good. Keep it handy in the sideboard if you're playing white at the very least.
• Kitsune Healer - Tier 2 - With the preponderance of Legendary creatures running around, I expect most everyone will manage to pick at least one out of their five rares and fifteen uncommons. The Kitsune Healer costs a bit much for the amount of damage it prevents to non-Legendary permanents, but the larger 2/2 body is something a Samite Healer would really dig.
• Kitsune Riftwalker - Tier 3 - I tried playing with Tel-Jilad Outriders at the Darksteel Prerelease, and I found them to not be the offensive bruisers I'd been hoping for. I expect the Riftwalker will be much the same. Any old non-Spirit can beat him back to Tuesday, so he'll likely remain on defense, and that just isn't where a 2/1 ought to be.
• Lantern Kami - Tier 2 - A 1/1 flyer for one mana is simply powerful. The Lantern Kami is likely to get in many more early-game hits than the Devoted Retainer, and even a small boost in power will bring the end of the game rushing on.
• Mothrider Samurai - Tier 1 - Flyers are important in Prerelease games, and white is usually where you find the best ones. He won't do quite the damage to an opponent's life total that we could hope for out of a four-cost flyer, but little will be able to compete with him in the air.
• Pious Kitsune - Tier 3 - Obviously, it skyrockets to Tier 1 if you can get Eight-and-a-Half-Tails in your deck, but a card that is that dependent on another card for its ability is hard to like much. Your chances of getting the half-tailed Kitsune are minimal, and without him the Pious Kitsune's life gain abilities are nearly worthless.
• Quiet Purity - Tier 2 - I'd much prefer the Kami of the Ancient Law unless you're trying to rev up your Splice engine. Devoting an entire card to enchantment destruction sounds like a job for the sideboard. Keep it handy there, however. Enchantment removal is important again.
• Silent-Chant Zubera - Tier 3 - Considered on its own without any other Zuberas, it looks lackluster. Even with other Zuberas it won't combo often in a Prerelease deck. It looks good for Constructed, but I wouldn't run it here.
• Terashi's Cry - Tier 3 - This sort of thing is good for a finishing move, and not much else. First you need to build up board dominance, and devoting a card to your finishing move weakens your chance of doing that. It's not an instant and can't be used for defense. It is obviously meant for a late-game lockdown to allow your army to pass through, and while that is attractive, the card is useful in far too few situations. Leave it out.
• Vigilance - Tier 3 - The defining enchantment for the now-keyworded Vigilance ability, I'm very happy that they've made this card. Would I run it at the Prerelease, though? Likely not. Like other enchantment creature spells, you're still exposing yourself to losing two cards in one sweep. Serra Angel and Akroma, Angel of Wrath are good with Vigilance because they're good without it, not the other way around. If you had a means of recurring enchantments or a really nice, reliable set of creatures to go with it...a good blocker with evasion like Magnigoth Treefolk, maybe, that would be different.

Blue Commons:

• Callous Deceiver - Tier 3 - I'm feeling a little harsh today, and this guy doesn't make the cut. A 1/3 is really nice if you just want a blocker to frustrate an aggressive deck of goblins, but the chances that you'll face a large array of one toughness aggressive creatures without Bushido isn't very good. Even if you make the additional ability reliable with Sensei's Divining Top, a 2/3 flyer that requires a mana investment every turn isn't what I'm looking for in my Prerelease card supply.
• Consuming Vortex - Tier 3 - This is good when you're Splicing it, but the splice cost is pretty steep, and I said I was judging them on their own merits. Alone, this one doesn't even match up to Boomerang, which is famous mostly for generating card disadvantage.
• Counsel of the Soratami - Tier 1 - Drawing two cards for three mana is a very good thing, allowing you to shrink your deck and to search for that key card you've been missing. If you play blue, stop staring at the card and use it.
• Eye of Nowhere - Tier 2 - The return of Boomerang itself in an Arcane spell form. While I couldn't say much for Consuming Vortex, this is just a little bit different. There are some permanents in the game that aren't creatures that, if they went a little-bit missing at the correct time, could cause a great deal of pain in their loss. Remove Takeno, Samurai General or Konda's Banner from the field at the right moment, for instance, and your opponent's attack starts looking rather different. Even then, it's at the bottom of Tier 2 at best, but keep it in mind, especially if you lack other methods of enchantment or artifact removal.
• Field of Reality - Tier 3 - This card is far too situational to be of much use. While I do expect to see Spirits in almost every game, I also expect to see non-Spirit creature in almost every game. This just doesn't do much for you.
• Floating Dream Zubera - Tier 2 - Drawing a card is better than gaining two life, but you're only getting a relatively poor chump-blocker out of the bargain. Replacing the card is worth moving it up above Tier 3, but only just enough. We can do better.
• Hisoka's Defiance - Tier 3 - The problem here is in strategy. A Prerelease card supply simply won't provide enough countermagic to allow you to win games consistently with it. That leaves countermagic in an unenviable position. Most decks will be focusing heavily on putting things into play or otherwise managing the field. That fact doesn't typically allow you to keep mana open for a counterspell, especially a counterspell that can only target certain kinds of spells. Keep it at arm's reach in the sideboard, however, since your opponent may well show you a powerful Spirit or Arcane spell in game one.
• Hisoka's Guard - Tier 2 - The ability to protect your win conditions from enemy removal is important, and using Hisoka's Guard will allow you to force them to use valuable removal on your Wizard first. It's not like anyone can get enough removal at a Prerelease anyway, so making an opponent expend it on your little guys instead of saving it for the big ones is really nice, if you can fit it in.
• Kami of Twisted Reflection - Tier 2 - The difference between this card and Consuming Vortex is in the creature. Being able to bounce one of your own creatures on command to protect it from removal is a nice effect to go with a 2/2 body. The double-blue makes it harder to recommend, but sometimes all you really need to do is save your best creature from that Rend Flesh spell. Dirty black.
• Lifted by Clouds - Tier 2 - Considered alone, this is pretty expensive for giving a creature flying on the go, but getting that last block of damage through is important enough to warrant a card. The Callous Deceiver does somewhat the same thing, but its problem is that its ability is attached to a relatively ineffective body. Too bad.
• Mystic Restraints - Tier 2 - This will take most creatures out of the battle as surely (or even more surely) than wiping them out with a removal spell. Save it for a good one, or for that one creature that's been chewing up your life total.
• Peer Through Depths - Tier 3 - The value of this card could go up if you're playing more instants and sorceries than I suspect most people will, and it is especially good if by chance you can get a good splicing engine going. Long-standing experience has shown that heavy-creature decks normally do better in Prerelease matches, however, and unless your sorcery/instant count is up to the theoretical maximum of 9 we mentioned earlier, you're too likely to not find anything.
• Psychic Puppetry - Tier 3 - I can't wait to get to a Constructed environment to use these Splice cards right. Considered alone however, this starts looking like a bad Twiddle. What can you do?
• Reach Through Mists - Tier 1 - I scoffed at Obsessive Search when I first saw that card. I was wrong. Cards like these shrink your deck for a cheap, cheap price. Opt and Serum Visions are obviously better in the general case, but if this allows you to Splice a spell even once while going about your deck-size reduction goals, that's spectacular. There isn't a better card to splice things to in the entire set, either. If you hear of anyone pulling off the Search Through Sands combo to bring out The Unspeakable at a Prerelease, well...I'll be really, really impressed.
• River Kaijin - Tier 2 - Sometimes all you really need in life is a creature with a really strong back to hold off the enemy hordes. Anything that can stop a Villanous Ogre and a Kitsune Blademaster from attacking at a price this reasonable is something to look into.
• Soratami Cloudskater - Tier 2 - While I'm not thrilled with its toughness and power, we usually can't get much better out of blue, and the card's ability is very nice in the late game, allowing you to burn off excess lands in search of the cards you'll need to win.
• Soratami Mirror-guard - Tier 1 - I'd greatly prefer that the creature have a higher toughness, but after the success of the Mistform Seaswift at the Legions Prerelease, I can't give this card a rating that's any lower. Its ability to push other 2-power and lower creatures through multiple times in a single turn makes this one of the most aggressive blue cards I've seen in a long time. The cost to use its ability may be high, but you get a decent chance of killing your opponent out of the package.
• Soratami Rainshaper - Tier 2 - Hisoka's Guard can only protect one creature at a time. Using the Rainshaper requires keeping three mana open, but the ability is too powerful to ignore and the cost of bouncing a land to your hand at the Prerelease is pretty small in the late game. You can nullify most enemy removal before it is even cast by carefully playing this card, and its 2/1 flying body works well in a blitz, for a being a blue creature.
• Thoughtbind - Tier 2 - Unlike Spirit and Arcane spells, spells with casting costs of four or less won't be something you'll have to wait long to see in the general case, especially with Splice onto Arcane running around, so unlike some other counterspells I've tried in the past, you'll find a use for this one. It's unlikely that you'll be able to make really good use out of it unless you're saving mana for another instant-speed ability as well, since keeping mana open in games as aggressive as Prerelease games becomes burdensome until you're well into the late game. I say counter the first thing you can of any significance and move on.
• Wandering Ones - Tier 3 - I know a lot of people think that first-turn drops are important, but please splash to another color before you take this guy. Fugitive Wizard wasn't good either.

Black Commons:

• Ashen-Skin Zubera - Tier 3 - While this card is passable in the early game, it's absolutely horrible in the late game. Simply just not worth it unless somehow you can get a Zubera deck working, and I wouldn't give good odds of that.
• Befoul - Tier 1 - I don't see anyone going monocolor at the Prerelease without the proponderance of Mirrodin artifacts waiting in the wings. You'll find a use for this kind of removal. It also doubles as a contingency against Legendary lands. Maindeck is just fine for Befoul.
• Cruel Deceiver - Tier 3 - While it would be interesting to watch most opponents agonize over whether or not to block this Deceiver, the mana investment is getting to us again. Given its low toughness, they probably won't put something in its way that's big enough to survive the damage, anyway, and when the best you can hope for is a trade, you know you need to find something else.
• Cursed Ronin - Tier 2 - My doubt that anyone will be making a good monoblack deck is keeping him back as well. An Orochi Leafcaller in a black/green deck could change all that, but I expect this guy will be useful either way, just not spectacular. Four mana was a little late for Whispering Shade as well, and I'd personally prefer the Swampwalk.
• Deathcurse Ogre - Tier 3 - A 3/3 for six outside of a combo deck is hard to commend. The three life loss across the board would take some work to get working in your favor as well.
• Distress - Tier 2 - A very powerful discard ability for a small price, this could often work heavily in your favor by taking out the opponent's most critical card in the early game. (Or the card they are hoping will save them in the late game) It's held back from Tier 1 by the double-black casting cost, which may be difficult to meet by the two-mana threshhold in many games, since Prerelease decks tend toward at least two colors, or even more.
• Gibbering Kami - Tier 2 - It's not spectacular, but flyers don't usually need to be at a Prerelease. It Soulshifts as well, and that could make the difference. Worth playing, but not exciting.
• Kami of the Waning Moon - Tier 2 - Artifact creatures aren't holding fear effects down anymore, and although I haven't been keen on the chances of Prerelease decks running a capable Splice engine, I do expect that you will be casting Spirit and Arcane spells. It is dependent on those, however, so watch the build of your deck before you put it in and make sure that you have creatures that make attacking worthwhile first.
• Midnight Covenant - Tier 1 - There are some effects that are just better when they're not attached to a creature already. Find something with a little effective evasion (A Lantern Kami works great here) and even if you have only two black mana per turn to throw at it, this will win games in a hurry.
• Nezumi Cutthroat - Tier 2 - It all depends on whether your opponent is playing black, so I'd keep him in the sideboard for Game 1. In Game 2, however, I couldn't ask for much better. Cheaper than Severed Legion and just as effective in most situations. If you can cast him early and get him to three power, the game is virtually over.
• Nezumi Ronin - Tier 2 - This one is a little interesting. I'm expecting that most Samurai creatures will tempt people to not block them to avoid making them bigger. The Nezumi Ronin is the opposite. He demands that he be blocked. Left to his own devices, he'll progress you toward a win quickly and even if he is blocked, he's fairly sure to take out any fool that stands in his way.
• Numai Outcast - Tier 3 - I've heard of Suicide Black before, but this guy's regeneration cost would be ridiculous even if there wasn't a black mana involved.
• Pull Under - Tier 2 - Now that we've been through both blue and white, you've heard enough about ways to avoid removal. Now it's time to get into the good-good of killing creatures. Pull Under is a little steep, but the sheer magnitude of its power and toughness reduction tells you it means business. It's obviously a late-game card, so you may be able to splice something onto it as well. Anything that can get rid of Lord Konda has my respect.
• Rag Dealer - Tier 3 - The Soulshift mechanic isn't expansive enough to really make me excited about removing things from the graveyard. I wouldn't necessarily keep it handy even in the sideboard, but if you get one of these in your Sealed card supply, keep it in mind in case you meet someone that has managed to pull off graveyard recursion in Champions of Kamigawa.
• Ragged Veins - Tier 2 - An excellent surprise-tactic card, but one that is difficult to use repeatedly to good effect. If your opponent decides to attack with a Lured creature, thinking that black mages are helpless against his creature enchantment tricks, this could present a nasty surprise. Chances are good, however, that either you won't do much damage to the enchanted creature and that Ragged Veins will be reduced to a Pacifism, or that you'll kill the creature in question and the enchantment will be a burn spell at best. That's not too bad, but it doesn't stop the opponent in too many situations.
• Rend Flesh - Tier 2 - I've been confident in my analysis of cards so far that you'll be facing both Spirits and non-Spirits in the Prerelease. I don't have any real qualms about running this maindeck, but make sure that you have a good plan for winning the game instead of simply just ruining your opponent's game-plan first.
• Rend Spirit - Tier 2 - Practically identical to Rend Flesh in this environment. It suffers slightly from not being an Arcane spell, but it's still solid quality.
• Scuttling Death - Tier 2 - Another excellent black creature. It isn't as durable as many of the others, but its power demands a blocker, (distracting your opponent from your other attackers) it automatically leaves your opponent with a nasty gift on its way off the field, and it also has Soulshift on a creature that just loves to die. That's solid in my Magic manual.
• Soulless Revival - Tier 1 - As a one-shot spell, this card works well, negating an enemy kill or allowing you to recur a sacrificed creature once. Solid and usable in almost any game. Worthwhile even if only used once.
• Villanous Ogre - Tier 2 - I'm only seeing Demons in uncommon and rare slots still, so I'll have to assume that you won't necessarily get one. Without a demon it's very close in quality to the Nezumi Ronin, which is pretty good. A 3/2 regenerating creature, however, can provide a solid attacker all game long, and if you get even one Demon in your Sealed card supply with a Villanous Ogre, I'd be hard-pressed to think of a situation that I wouldn't want to play black. I talked down to Scavenging Scarab, a similar creature, but the extra ability and the extra mana shaved off is easily worth the point of toughness.
• Waking Nightmare - Tier 2 - My experience with Prerelease decks is that both players tend to run out of cards quickly. That could change with even a few Splice plays, however, and Walking Nightmare would be excellent in the early game if you get it then. It's playable, but I'd look for something better.
• Wicked Akuba - Tier 3 - Don't be mistakenÑthis isn't a Nantuko Shade in disguise. With so many effects available that allow you to pump power and toughness for black, it just doesn't measure up. A 2/2 is too easily blockable after the first few turns.

Red Commons:

• Akki Avalanchers - Tier 2 - First strike seems fairly available in Champions, which makes this card less useful even with its ability, which is pretty nice after the early game has gone by. I haven't been kind to one-drops either, but if there's one color that wants an early lead in life, it's red, so just about any one-drop goblin will do in a pinch.
• Akki Rockspeaker - Tier 3 - A little too weird to be thinking about outside of Constructed play. A 1/1 for two is just slow, especially if it could come along with some mana burn, conceivably. I've been bitten by both Deconstruct and Cathodion in the past, and I'm not eager to repeat the experience.
• Battle-Mad Ronin - Tier 2 - A 1/1 for two is still slow, but unlike most aggressive 1/1 creatures, I can't see too many folks being eager to block this guy until a number of turns have gone by. The only early-game creature I can think of standing up to him would be the Kitsune Blademaster, and that's saying a good bit. The 2-3 damage I expect out of one drops could easily go up to 5-6 with the Battle-Mad Ronin.
• Brutal Deceiver - Tier 2 - Call me a first strike nut, but first strike and a +1/+0 is one of the nastier tricks I can think of. Making your opponent squirm in the blocking phase is finally looking as though it could pay off with this Deceiver.
• Crushing Pain - Tier 2 - I said before that first strike was fairly present in this expansion, and pinging isn't out of the ordinary, either. Crushing Pain could be just the rude surprise you need when facing down the opponent's big creatures. If your only method of dealing damage lies in instants, sorceries, or non-first strike creatures, however, get something else.
• Desparate Ritual - Tier 3 - This card could be big in Constructed play, but considered alone, it just isn't what you're needing. At best, it can help you to make up for the cost of casting an Arcane spell a few times, but if you don't need the extra mana following that casting, you'll be sorely in need of something else to do with all that power.
• Devouring Rage - Tier 1 - This is the game-ender that I was hoping to get out of Hunger of the Nim at the Darksteel Prerelease. There are a great many creatures in this format that tempt an opponent to leave them unblocked. Take care when foregoing your options to block against the red mage, and beware, users of Devouring Rage, of Ethereal Haze.
• Ember-Fist Zubera - Tier 3 - I'm not trying to be mean, but the Zuberas just aren't built for Sealed play. Slightly tempting since it can ping a creature on its way to the graveyard, but it is still just something that will get squashed by whatever your opponent has waiting in the wings.
• Glacial Ray - Tier 2 - Is an overpriced Shock worth it? My gut feeling is that it is. Don't hit your opponent with it unless their life total is at 1 or 2, but feel free to blast whatever pesky creature is giving you trouble. I said before that I was going to hold off on talking about the quality of Splice onto Arcane spells, but this is likely one of the best of the bunch if you can manage to start splicing.
• Hearth Kami - Tier 1 - Normally I wouldn't place this guy so high, but after the Mirrodin deluge of red and green artifact hate, we're left to stare down an array of effective artifacts with little to protect us. Similar to the Kami of the Ancient Law, this will prove its worth both as an aggressive creature and as an artifact-slayer.
• Kami of Fire's Roar - Tier 2 - In large numbers, they'll be fantastic. In single numbers with the help of a few Spirit or Arcane spells, it's still worthwhile. Tying down an opponent's best blocker for a turn usually results in an effective attack, and anything that helps red indulge its aggressive tendencies is excellent in my book.
• Lava Spike - Tier 3 - I've felt guilty about placing some cards in Tier 3. This time, I can't be mean enough. This is a bad, bad card, folks. Lightning Bolt gave you options. This card siphons away mana and card advantage to achieve virtually nothing. Yes, it can give your opponent a surprise if they are at three or less life, but if you can get them to three in a Prerelease game and you're playing red, you can win another wayÑa way that will actually help you more than once throughout the whole tournament.
• Ronin Houndmaster - Tier 2 - He's not fantasic, but we've already noted an array of aggressive creatures in red that can put on enough heat in the early game to take home the win if you just keep it up. I've probably disappointed or annoyed some fans of Lightning Bolt with my analysis of Lava Spike, so I'll try to make it up by pointing out the better cardÑthis guy.
• Sokenzan Bruiser - Tier 2 - This guy will pass for your big muscle if you really can't find anything better, but you probably can. My recommendation is to keep him waiting in the sideboard for anyone foolish enough to play red against you, and to maindeck him only if you really need something with three toughness.
• Soul of Magma - Tier 3 - Too costly for a 2/2 and its ability will likely be unreliable in Prerelease games, this card is meant to go into splice decks or other decks that rely on casting large numbers of Spirit or Arcane spells. Often that last damage will be just what you need, but if you're not already doing well, a turn five creature that doesn't really help until after that time, and only then if you cast more spirits or arcane spells isn't convincing.
• Stone Rain - Tier 3 - To me, this seems obviously designed to help players handle Legendary lands in the Block format. You likely won't see them often at the Prerelease. It's good to see our most familiar friend again, but land destruction is generally ineffective at Prereleases.
• Strange Inversion - Tier 3 - While I like this card's effect, it is mostly good for taking out walls. Far too many creatures have power and toughness that are equal, or high enough that switching them won't matter too much. It could be useful, but I wouldn't want to rely on it, and when you choose a card for a Prerelease deck, you're relying on it heavily.
• Uncontrollable Anger - Tier 1 - I mentioned before that cards that increase power on a long-term basis are tough to find in this set. Uncontrollable Anger is a little risky in that it takes away your options with the enchanted creature, but if you aren't pushing hard for a win when you're playing red, it's tough to know what to do. This is even better since you can play it as a combat instant, taking out the creature that your opponent finally managed to put down that could slow your rush. Bowl them over and keep going.
• Unearthly Blizzard - Tier 1 - Quite often, your opponent won't be able to get together more than three creatures to oppose you, anyway. Even if your deck doesn't live up to red's aggressive potential, cards like this will usually spell doom for the opposing player in a late-game glory-rush. Watch out for an open plains, though. If your opponent can slap down an Ethereal Haze, the entire game will likely turn against you. Note that the difference between this and Terashi's Cry is that red is far more likely to be in position to take the whole game at any given point out of its sheer aggressiveness.
• Unnatural Speed - Tier 3 - I know I've talked about massive aggression throughout the entirety of my comments about red, but this card still doesn't cut it without a lot of support. You could use this to trigger Arcane spell triggers, of course, but there will be something better in your other color.
• Yamabushi's Flame - Tier 2 - I liked Carbonize since I first saw it. I gave Glacial Ray the OK to go even without considering Splice onto Arcane, and this is better than a single-cast Glacial Ray.
• Yamabushi's Storm - Tier 2 - Looking back at red's repotoire of creatures, I'm not seeing as many one toughness creatures as I thought I would. Other colors, such as white with its Samurai and Green with its Snake tokens, however, could be devastated. Add to that the fact that it meets the qualification for both Crushing Pain and Initiate of Blood and you have a good card. It's held back by the fact that it could easily hurt you worse than your opponent, and wind up being a dead card in your hand.

Green Commons:

• Burr Grafter - Tier 2 - Finally a Soulshift creature that impresses. There's a little setup necessary, which keeps it out of Tier 1, but Soulshift creatures that can sacrifice themselves for a positive effect will be far more effective than those with no built-in mechanic to get themselves to the graveyard.
• Commune with Nature - Tier 1 - It's hard to imagine going five cards down into a forty card deck that's more than a third creatures and not getting something, especially after the deck is reduced by the cards you draw for the beginning of the game. Cheap and effective at aiding the progression of your army-building, I can't find anything to complain about.
• Dripping-Tongue Zubera - Tier 3 - I suppose this is the best the Zubera cycle can give us...a chump-blocker that replaces itself with a second chump-blocker. I just can't feel inspired by that.
• Feral Deceiver - Tier 2 - One mana less to come out, and he would have been fantastic. Green creatures shouldn't be behind the mana curve of Villanous Ogre without a good ability to match, but this deceiver's game plan works well enough. There aren't many common creatures that can get into the four-damage range to bring this guy down in his best form, and damage is likely to go through to the opponent. The mana cost and timing the activation for when a land will come up is hard, but this Deceiver will at least trade with most creatures even if someone calls your bluff.
• Humble Budoka - Tier 2 - We've seen a number of two-power creatures for two in our run through Champions of Kamigawa commons, but few that have a defensive ability this solid. Unfortunately, preventing targetability on a constant basis also removes this Budoka from other areas of support available in green that could raise it past the mediocrity of 2/2 into effecitveness. It's still in Tier 2, but that's a low Tier 2.
• Joyous Respite - Tier 2 - Green has been waiting around for a new effective life-gain card for some time now. I don't generally approve of one-shot life gaining cards, but sometimes that's what you need to keep ahead of an enemy's aggression while the board stabalizes, and green is very good at putting out land, making the Joyous Respite even more effective.
• Jukai Messenger - Tier 2 - Good in a sideboard against other green decks, but 1/1 creatures without an effective ability aren't as good as one might hope.
• Kami of the Hunt - Tier 2 - A 2/2 for three isn't too bad by the standards of most colors, although it's somewhat poor in green. It's ability to combine with spirit or arcane cards to grow bigger means that it has additional punch when you use combat instants, or that it can increase its fighting ability in situations where you can cast a spirit ahead of an attack. The consistency of those effects depends a good deal on your particular Prerelease deck, but its strong enough that it deserves to not be ignored.
• Kashi-Tribe Warrors - Tier 2 - A nice solid card with enough toughness to take a hit from most of the better commons in the game, and enough power to knock out some of the others. Even if the Kashi-Tribe doesn't manage to slay their foes, however, they do a nice job of taking it out of the picture for a while.
• Kodama's Might - Tier 2 - Wizards seems to have balanced the Splice onto Arcane cards by placing them on the border of effectiveness if used alone. Much like Blessed Breath and Glacial Ray, I wouldn't feel bad about putting it in a deck without other Splice onto Arcane support. If you can get a couple of Arcane spells going to help out, it'll be well worth it. Otherwise, I'd look for someothing else.
• Kodama's Reach - Tier 1 - Good in any deck with a green component, Kodama's Reach fits nicely in the niche between Rampant Growth and Explosive Vegetation, both of which are cards that I have little hesitation running in my decks.
• Matsu-Tribe Decoy - Tier 2 - I've rarely found a creature that can tie down an opponent so reliably. Even if the Decoy dies, it still can bind a blocker, much in the way that Provoke did in the Legions set, which might prove critical in pushing an attack through for lethal damage. On the downside, its toughness isn't quite enough to keep most creatures in the block from killing it, and the provoke-ish ability is more expensive than I'd like to see.
• Moss Kami - Tier 2 - Some will recognize this card as the Giant Warthog reborn as a Spirit. It fills an important role in the block, a common creature large enough to dominate the field when it manages to make it into play. The trampling ability ensures that it will get some damage through on most attacks, unless it is double-blocked.
• Order of the Sacred Bell - Tier 2 - Too slow to count as early-game aggression, but with a toughness low enough that smaller creatures in the block will be able to kill it, the Order of the Sacred Bell needs a little help to get going properly, and its lack of an additional ability isn't encouraging. It is efficient, however, and the 4/3 size makes a good launching point for a decent enhanced creature or a backup player for a larger bruiser.
• Orochi Leafcaller - Tier 2 - The Leafcaller will be an important component of many Prerelease decks, allowing additional splashing or enabling Midnight Covenant to take off in a multicolor deck. Other decks won't find a use for it, however. It's a bit of a toss-up.
• Orochi Sustainer - Tier 2 - Good old-fashioned mana acceleration that falls behind the curve of Llanowar Elves but is still effective. It dodges a few of the 1-damage effects from red with the additional point of toughness it buys with the extra mana in its casting cost over the famous elven mana-producers, too.
• Serpent Skin - Tier 1 - It's a little odd that green's instant-speed creature enchantment is a less direct and to-the-point than red's since no one does stompy better than green, but the regeneration ability more than makes up for it. While I'd be hesitant to run too many creature enchantments, ones that make the creature more durable are a great place to start. Not only will Serpent Skin give a creature the edge it needs to overpower enemies in combat, the regeneration ability will allow it to stay in the game if it gets outmatched anyway. There's nothing wrong with that.
• Venerable Kumo - Tier 2 - I like to have my spiders bigger than this, but you can't complain about any card that allows green to block flyers, as that may be one of the most important attributes a creature could have in your games. The lower-than-normal toughness is also compensated by the soulshift mechanic to a degree.
• Vine Kami - Tier 2 - It comes with an expensive price tag, but also with the highest soulshift among Champions of Kamigawa commons, and a nice ability to support it. While forcing two enemy creatures to block the Vine Kami will frequently get it killed (especially with so many Samurai waving their swords around) things like this tend to create havoc with blocker math, and will make the Vine Kami a nice support creature for a late-game brawl.
• Wear Away - Tier 2 - I've rated enchantment and artifact destruction highly so far, and among non-creature sources of those abilities, Wear Away takes the prize for versatility. You'll likely find a number of decks that won't run either artifacts or enchantments, but I suspect that the card will prove itself useful in more games than not. Only Tier 2 since it can't participate in creature combat normally and due to the double green in its basic casting cost.

Gamebreaking Uncommons:

• Soratami Savant - I doubt that few would argue that a card that can Mana Leak so easily is not a card to be reckoned with, especially when it is also a 2/2 flyer.
• Dance of Shadows - I mentioned before that playing Ethereal Haze would be a good idea, right? If you're not playing black, this is definitely one to watch out for.
• Devouring Greed - Unfortunately, Ethereal Haze won't do anything to save you from this card. On the plus side, you're safe from it until your opponent gets your life total down to 2 + (2
• number of spirits they control). The bad news is that once that happens, you're dead unless you can counterspell it.
• Nezumi Graverobber - The flip condition on this card is so easily met in early games that its laughable, and it probably wouldn't take long in other games, either. If Nighteyes the Desecrator ever sees a few turns of play, your opponent's army will get out of hand quickly.
• Blind with Anger - Past versions of this ability didn't bother with the nonlegendary stipulation, but it fits here. Either way, however, this is dangerous. Far too many Prerelease decks rely on a particular creature to win the day for them, and watching it turn over to the enemy for even one turn can spell doom.
• Blood Rites - You knew that those red mages had all lost their marbles, right? They can get away with it due to things like Blood Rites. If you get it, try to stretch to red unless you just can't justify it. This is a great deal like Devouring Greed and will win you games.
• Sideswipe - Our very own Spriggan won a Prerelease game like this, taking the match by a last-minute misdirection. It wouldn't be so good without Devouring Greed in the format, but there are a large number of other worthy targets as well.
• Hana Kami - Even some of the smallest of Arcane spells become fantastic if you can do them twice, and Hana Kami is very good at getting them back. Its best use is to return a card that will enable further splicing, though. Out of all the cards that can help splicing in Champions of Kamigawa at the Prerelease, this is the most important one.
• Lure - This could go without comment, as Lure has won games for many players in the past. Put it on your least threatening attacker, and swarm over your opponent with the rest for the win. Ethereal Haze stops this plan, too, but it's still a good one.
• Orochi Eggwatcher - This creature really isn't that bad until after she flips over. Once she does, however, it's all over. Most Prerelease decks won't be able to maintain ten creatures in play outside of the prolific green color, so one of those ten creatures is bound to go through, and it would only take one after Shidako, Broodmistress appears. Or a single trample creature. Take your pick.
• Strength of Cedars - Once again, green shows us its fangs only when it cares to. A trampling creature or a single unblocked creature will prove lethal if followed up by Strength of Cedars. It isn't as though green can't get enough land out, anyway.

Color-by Color Review:

• White - White as a color seems almost built for white weenie this time around. Its creatures are generally fast, efficient, and very capable in combat, since almost all of them happen to have bushido. It's solid, and unless you get only a small amount of white cards, it will likely be an option for a Prerelease deck color for you, simply because its cards are of generally good quality.
• Blue - As is usual, blue has the best support for ensuring that your deck doesn't sputter out in the late game. Card drawing is always important, and blue still has it, though in lesser numbers than I was expecting for the common slots. The biggest thing to be said in blue's favor is the sheer number of flyers it has available. If you get a couple Soratami cards, take a good hard look at what blue might have for you in the aggression column.
• Black - Looking as lethal as ever with four removal cards in common and a solid array of creatures to back them up. Black is definitely a tempting option, but the first strike cards in the format may hinder it somewhat, since its creatures generally have low toughness. Definitely an option if you land a demon or two in your Prerelease card supply.
• Red - Somewhat predictably, red is very streaky as far as its card strength is concerned in the commons slots. Red has a large number of highly dangerous cards such as Devouring Rage or Frostweilder , but if you don't get any of those, you might want to look elsewhere.
• Green - While green is as good at producing mana as ever, it is uncharacteristically lacking in the Ôbig stompy' category. While Moss Kami will rule the commons of the format after he comes out, the other large creatures in green are all fairly weak to enemy blockers. Green tries to make up for this in Orochi combat tricks, but I'm not confident in how it worked out. Look for combat tricks like Kodama's Might to make up for it.

Tactical Reminders:

• No matter how tempting a card might be, don't go over 40 cards. There's always something in your deck that can be cut out to make room.
• Keep track of your creature count when deckbuilding. You can have the best equipment and creature enchantment and combat trick setup in the world, but if you don't draw into a creature to put them on, you'll still lose. I went with only 11 or so in the Scourge Prerelease, and I paid for it.
• Whether or not you run it in your main deck, keep some form of enchantment removal handy. Creatures only form the bulk of most games, and there are definitely enchantments and artifacts in the format that will cost you the match if you're not careful and prepared.
• Try as hard as you can to lose any color bias you might be clinging to. Even if you don't usually see the point of blue, or if black is just to icky to play with in your casual decks, don't discount them here. The color you like the least might be your best and only hope.
• Use what you can of any advice I give here, but Rule #1 will be to build and play your deck off the cards you get in your Prerelease card supply. At the risk of sounding like a Yu-Gi-Oh cartoon character, listen to your cards. There is a pattern in them that will tell you what to do. In your Prerelease matches, they're the only things you've got.

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Written by Prometheus on September 17th, 2004