Sometimes WotC actually make changes that are for the better. Allowing your FLGS to start running Pre-Release events from 3pm on the Friday instead of having to wait until midnight is one of those better ones. Tie this in with a previous change from a couple of months ago of being able to sell booster boxes (along with the buy-a-box promo) a week early makes for a fun cardtastic weekend for players and a more profitable weekend for the FLGS.

It’s a shame they didn’t allow the FLGS to sell everything a week early like they did for the War of the Spark Pre-Release. However we know the reason for that decision was to allow the vendors at the London MagicFest to sell the new stuff over the Pre-Release weekend to those visiting. So they had to open it up to stores as well to avoid a mass riot from store owners. Who lets face it were not entirely happy that they were losing business to the MagicFest on a major weekend for sales.

Another change (and unpopular at the very least with those players who like to express their opinions online) for this weekend was the London Mulligan became official.

I’d signed up for the very first 3pm Pre-Release. Which considering it was starting whilst the majority of people were still at work, and my FLGS is located in a small rural Fenland market town, was pretty well attended.

Before the Pre-Release kicked off some of us were opening booster packs from our pre-ordered booster boxes. I was very happy with my pulls. I was even able to trade my mythic Chandra and some other cards for cards I wanted for decks. I ended up with playsets of some cards I wanted to build around, or close with 3 copies. Which sometimes I prefer to play with instead of the full 4.

New standard deck ideas are buzzing.

I definitely want to build a wolf deck to play just for fun. Ferocious Pup has to be played and is a key card for the deck, because reasons!

Golgari will see me returning to it, and the Rotting Regisaur is going to be a key card. It’s going to be an aggro deck.

But the main deck until rotation will be the green/red Dino deck. It will be built around Marauding Raptor and the enrage mechanic. I might add Polyraptor to the deck just for that infinite loop combo and the lol’s. I’d need to add some way to escape the loop so I’d win instead of drawing. Playing that version will have to be done once.

I was happy with my Pre-Release kit, and the cards I got. I went green/black with my cards. Leyline of the Void was fun to play and effective in my games. There seems to be some nice graveyard hate in this set.

3pm Pre-Release Stats

Participants: 12

Rounds: 3

Round 1: Noob to store Win 2-0

Round 2: Jonathan Loss 0-2

Round 3: Josh Win 2-1

Record: 2-1

Final Position: 3rd

Prizes: 2 participation packs.

Saturday’s Pre-Release

The dogs had me up early to answer the call of nature. Unwisely I decided to look for some cards whilst they were out side demonstrating just how effective their scorched earth policy is in the backyard.

I ended up building the Marauding Raptor deck. Without that infinite combo.

Originally I’d only planned to do the one Pre-Release. However I’d sold my booster box of Conspiracy Take the Crown, and Battlebond. So I had to meet the buyer outside Ely.

With the Wisbech Rose Fair on, I didn’t fancy hitting that, closed roads, and traffic delays. So I decided to hide at my FLGS instead and do the first of the days 2 Pre-Release events.

For this Pre-Release I ended up going Red/White. I had too. I’d pulled a mythic Chandra and baby Chandra as I’m calling her. Plus I had the 7/7 7 CMC dragon. It’s a game winner in this sort of format. Baby Chandra is great for cheating it out early, and her mythic self.

11am Pre-Release Stats

Participants: 20

Rounds: 4

Round 1: Macauley Loss 0-2

Round 2: Grant Win 2-0

Round 3: Kar-Fai Win 2-1

Round 4: Thomas Loss 2-0

Record: 2-2

Final Position: 11th

Prizes: 2 participation packs.

The evening Pre-Release was something I talked myself into during the afternoon.

I went Black/Red for this, and had the leylines for each colour in the deck. I also was playing my promo card which was the black 8/8 8 CMC demon.

4pm Pre-Release Stats

Participants: 8

Rounds: 3

Round 1: Simon Loss 0-2

Round 2: Andy Loss 0-2

Round 3: Kristaps Win 2-0

Record: 1-2

Final Position: 6th

Prizes: 2 participation packs.

I hadn’t started the weekend with the intention of playing so many Pre-Release events. The original plan was to do my usual single event. But in the end I ended up attending 3. The most I’ve ever done.

The London Mulligan was ok. It’s great for hitting those leylines and combos.

I had a super fun time. Apart from seeing my friends from the Standard Showdown. I also got to see others that I normally only get to see at these sort of events. It’s great to catch up, have a laugh, trade banter.

As of 3pm today your local FLGS (mines The Hobbit Hole) will be running pre-release events for the Core Set 2020. Or they are allowed to run them I should say.

It also means your FLGS is able to sell booster boxes with the buy-a-box promo.

Don’t forget to take some sleeves with you to the pre-release and some lands. Although your FLGS will provide lands for you to use. Which means I most likely will forget both.

I hope you get a great promo card and some great pulls in your pre-release kit, and have a great time playing MtG with the new cards.

It’s that time of year once again when WotC try and tempt new and returning players to the game with the promise of free MtG decks, and promo cards.

Ok the promo card part has changed. They have gone and are now replaced with the new Promo Packs. I can’t see anyone getting a whole Promo Pack for attending a Welcome event. We are more likely going to see one or two of these opened up and the cards inside given out individually as a promo for attending.

Apparently this is better!

I do believe that your FLGS will also be able to sell the 5 new Planeswalker decks this weekend as well. Which makes sense for new players, who have just learnt to play and want to buy a deck. They are fine for casual play. But I wouldn’t use one in FNM or Not Standard Showdown. The deck wouldn’t be competitive enough. I’d be looking at the new Challenger decks for that.

Anyway I know my FLGS The Hobbit Hole will be holding their Core Set 2020 Open House this Saturday. Also at mid day they will be holding a Not Standard Showdown event as well.

So here it is the post you have all been dreading.

I should give some sort of disclaimer for this post. It’s not as if I know what I’m talking about. As the title of this post says, these are cards I like, and in one or two cases may be a little unsure about. They are definitely cards I can see going into my decks, or building decks around.

I’m starting off with the card that I just love the art on. I think everyone is talking about the card just on the art alone. Ferocious Pup. Beautiful, beautiful art. Great flavour text. 0/1 isn’t amazing. But with a card later on it gets a buff, plus you get a 2/2 wolf token (which would also get that boost). If this cards art is not on a playmat then all those companies that sell official MtG playmats are fools. I want this as a playmat.

It seems the poster child for Core Set 2020 is Chandra. I like Chandra. So I’m down with that. But we are getting 3 Chandra Planeswalkers in this this set. There is a strong elemental tribal theme to this set. Or that’s the impression I am getting. Which might be something I explore for Showdown.

There are one or two cards in Core Set that are linked with Chandra. I like the Regulator. Doubling Awakening Inferno’s +2 ability seems broken. Two of them emblems a turn. Ouch! I like the Embercat, a 2/2 for 2. Pretty standard, but having it give mana that can get a Chandra or Elemental out early is nice. Scheming Symmetry, I like this card a lot. It’s obviously aimed at Commander players. The politics this will enable at the table. This may just find a home in all my decks that have black in them.

Thought Distortion, the card that every blue and red deck will come to fear. All those counter spells, card draws, lightning bolts etc sitting in the graveyard. All those cards that allow you to play them again from the graveyard, gone. I like this. Flame Sweep is a card that screams adding to my dragon tribal deck. It’s a token spam board wipe basically. Unless they have been buffed. The flavour text is great too. I imagine that quote wouldn’t have been out of place in A Game of Thrones. Dragon Mage I like for my dragon commander deck also. Not cheap, 7 CMC for a 5/5 flyer. But I think it could be irritating as heck with people having to discard and draw all the time. It shouldn’t be hard to the damage through.

Three contenders for my mono white angel deck.

Ok here is the deadline for the set, Leylines are back! This will hopefully push the price down. My Standard deck would love a playset of Leyline of Sanctity in it. Actually with the new London Mulligan rule kicking in with this set, might be able to get away with less. But shutting down burn decks, YES! Add Leyline of Anticipation to the deck for the flash ability to everything. It’s going to be so interesting to see how these impact the meta.

Bishop of Wings, I like for my angel deck. Not an angel granted. But it gives me a benefit for playing angels.

More recruits for my mono red goblin deck. Destructive Digger and Treasure Nabber out at the same time, I’m calling shenanigans. I just love the idea of sacrificing an opponents artifact to help pay for drawing a card. I can imagine their face as it’s done. It also means that threat unless they can stop the combo will slow them down. Reckless Air Strike has a goblin on it, so it qualifies for the deck just like Goatnap did from Modern Horizons. Goblin Bird-Grabber love the art with the goblin hanging on for dear life on the leg of some giant flying creature.

There are a handful of dinosaurs in Core Set 2020. Thrashing Brontodon is reprinted (and not included here). But these new ones I like. Amazing art on Rotting Regisaaur, and a 3CMC for a 7/6 – wot?!!!!! That’s broken. Or is it? It does mean at the start of your upkeep you have to discard a card. Is that a big enough draw back to stop this? I’m not sure. And once again the flavour text. Marauding Raptor is another I like the flavour text on. It’s also the first part of an infinite loop! Team this up with Polyraptor (that is strangely out of stock in a lot of places at the mo) and you go infinite forcing a draw. Unless you can break out of the loop at instant speed. If you have that then things get very silly indeed. It’s definitely going in my dino tribal deck. It reduces the cost of dinos for starters! Be prepared if you are a MtG Arena player seeing one of the two cards in this combo banned. Shifting Ceratops is greens answer to blue control. Is it better than the out going Carnage Tyrant? Close call I think.

Ancestral Blade is going into my token spam deck. Gives me a token and buffs it. That middle green card below, yeah the 8/7 for 6 CMC is Gargos, Vicious Warden. The translation of the card text says it’s a Legendary Creature – Hydra, with Vigilance, and Hydra spells you cast cost 4 less. Whenever a creature you control becomes the target of a spell, Gargos, Vicious Warden fights up to one target creature you don’t control. Obviously this card is going in my big green stompy deck. That has one or two hydras in it. Villis is a demon that would fit nicely in a demon deck or the Kaalia of the Vast Commander deck that I have.

Lotus Field will be a Commander staple. It also fits in nicely with Lord Windgrace decks, Muldrotha and cards that allow you to play lands from the graveyard. The middle card is Icon of Ancestry. It’s a tribal card, because you chose a creature type when it enters the battlefield. It gives creatures of that type +1/+1. Then for 3 mana you can tap it, look at the top 3 cards, reveal a creature of the type chosen and put it in your hand. The remaining cards go on the bottom of the library. I think this is a nice tribal card that gives that buff, and allows you to find a creature card. Steel Overseer is going to go into my planned artifact deck.

Especially when it gets combined with Manifold Key. Nightpack Ambusher I like, and it turns that cute little pup into a 1/2. Plus if you don’t cast a spell you get a 2/2 wolf token. Woodland Champion is going into my token spam deck, plus my elf deck. This has the potential to get huge in those decks.

Raise the alarm is also another candidate for the token spam deck. Vampire of the Dire Moon I like for an aggro deck that splashes black. Which I have been known to build. I’ve only included one as an example but scry lands are back.

I can see this Sorin Planeswalker doing very nicely in the Edgar Markov commander deck. Yarok is a nice card for a deck I plan to build that abuses ETB effects. Mu Yanling, hello super friends. Her ultimate is insane. It’s nice her +2 takes care of a flyer so you can block it with a none flying creature.

I like Season of Growth. Not sure how playable it is though. Legion’s End that is just mass token removal for 2 CMC. Dungeon Geists I love it’s ability to lock down a creature.

Pulse of Murasa I like, life gain and get a card back from the graveyard. Kaalia, Zenith Seeker is going to allow you to get that perfect card to use with Kaalia of the Vast. I want to like Golos but I’m not sure.

Rule of Law obviously a candidate for my Death and Taxes deck. Voracious Hydra naturally Big Green Stompy. But this with something like doubling season out could be insanely big. Veil of Summer I think could be a powerful card in the right circumstances.

And that folks is all he wrote about the spoilers for Core Set 2020. What cards did you like from the spoilers?

If you are into MtG then you can’t have failed to notice since yesterday cards have been appearing from the soon to be released Core set 2020.

Last week there were the 3 Chandra plainswalker cards spoilt. But this week is full blown spoiler season for the set.

It’s only a week long this time, so I’ll do my post with cards that I like the look of at the end of it.

A heads up there are some sweet sweet cards being reprinted. I can’t wait to talk about the ones that caught my eye.

I have target bought some cards from Modern Horizons. Mostly ninjas and some mono red goblins (the black goblins are no use to me). It’s the cheapest option. I haven’t gone after any of those full art snow covered lands. They are expense.