Magic: the Gathering's Ravenloft revealed: INNISTRAD

[Gonzoron of the FoS]

Well then, I stand corrected.... and enthused....

(I'm not sure how I missed that. I check usually dailymtg.com every weekday.)

[Algaris]

Hey Ron. Did you manage to get to the pre-release and open the Helvault? I'm stoked that that I got oversized copies of all the legendary angels and Gristlebrand for Commander (amongst other stuff). I just need to get me some Cavern of Souls lands now.

[Gonzoron of the FoS]

Nope... I wasn't enthused with the set after seeing the spoiler, so I didn't go to the pre-release. Even after reading the Making Magic column explaining the set, I still don't see the point of the set. It seems like filler thrown together to fill the slot, and as a fan of Innistrad/DA, I would've preferred a traditional 3rd set. I don't see why they thought a horror theme couldn't stretch 3 sets. (Or even two. Originally, Innistrad was the single set, until they axed the two sets before it and had to shuffle things around.)

Now, there are some awesome cards in there (some maybe too awesome. The blue player in me weeps for Cavern of Souls, even as Temporal Mastery makes me all tingly.) but as a whole, the Angels vs. Devils thing doesn't work for me, and the only interesting mechanic is soulbond.

[Strahdsbuddy]

Hi Ron and other Magic fans. Agree wholeheartedly with the flavor of the 3rd set. Innistrad didn't need a happy ending (yes it's a happy ending, an indestructible angel isn't going to lose to the demon twice). How about the CARDS though? the Flicker ability of cards like Nephalia Smuggler or even better Deadeye Navigator make things very interesting. I admit to still being a novice to the game, but the deck I built just from Avacyn Restored cards utilizing that flicker ability was pretty unstoppable among the guys I play with. It was nice to be the most hated guy at the table for a change.

Tying back to Ravenloft, couldn't the Avacyn Restored idea leads to a sort of Elena Faith-Hold zealotry where law and order swear an oath to "never let THAT happen again, everyone back to church!" I could see the independent folk of Kessig bristling under that sort of draconian mandatory goodness. There is still a lot of room for intrigue in the setting. Too bad they cut the Savor the Flavor posts right in the midst of their best flavor set.

I still think the entire setting could be ported easily to the Demiplane of Dread, though it probably works better during the first two sets than the third. How about an enormous cluster of Innistrad and Ustalav for a little high-fantasy horror?

[Algaris]

I'm playing a really nice deck called Kamikaze. It's basically a vampire and zombie deck that revolves around sacrificing your own creatures and using sweepers such as killing wave to kill your opponents creatures. The key to the deck is the Blood Artist vampire card and getting as many of them as possible onto the battlefield. The cards ability is when a creature dies your opponent loses 1 life and you gain one life.

[Gonzoron of the FoS]

How about the CARDS though?

Eh... my buddy bought a box, and we did some drafts and sealeds over memorial day. There are definitely some powerful cards, and a few really fun ones. But on the whole, I wasn't feeling it. I like flickering effects more than most people, but with the shear number of them available, and all the ETB and Death triggered effects, it was just too busy. It reminded me of Lorwyn in that respect. The more stuff on the table, the more exponential the possibilities for tons little effects synergizing into something to worry about. Too many possibilities, too many what-if's.

And to add insult to injury, there were some cards that would have fit right in with Innistrad/DA, making it even clearer that they didn't need to reboot.

Tying back to Ravenloft, couldn't the Avacyn Restored idea leads to a sort of Elena Faith-Hold zealotry where law and order swear an oath to "never let THAT happen again, everyone back to church!"

That was my original first guess for the set. Avacyn's back, but be careful what you wish for, she's pissed! I think I would've like that better.

[Mortavius]

I miss the dual-sided Werewolves. I have a deck of Werewolves made from IN/DA, and I love it. Was really looking forward to more of them from AR.

[Gonzoron of the FoS]

Well, if the set (may it Rest Fitfully in a Shallow Grave... Waiting) wasn't proof enough that RL has fans over at the M:tG side of WotC:

http://www.wizards.com/Magic/Magazine/A ... ily/mm/251

Danger Room, Ivory Tower, Mishra's Workshop, The Helvault, Eye of Ugin, Lost Temple, Grand Central Station, Graceland, Wayne Manor, Ravenloft, The Mana Zone
...
These are the meeting rooms that R&D most often uses (all of them are on the third floor). Most of the names are references to geeky things. The rooms closest to R&D, which we named, all refer to Magic. The one exception is The Danger Room (which is an X-Men reference; it's where they practice/battle). And yes, when we moved buildings we chose to keep The Danger Room alive.

(emphasis added)

Wonder which room most of Innistrad was designed in...

[Strahdsbuddy]

Latest block hasn't excited me like the innistrad block that got me into the game initially. Call me for Return to Stensia!

[herkles]

Latest block hasn't excited me like the innistrad block that got me into the game initially. Call me for Return to Stensia!

I liked the last block but then I am an izzet fan, I love them but of course they fit my nature However Theros might be interesting, not sure what they will do with it. I want return to lorwyn-shadowmoor, even though I did not play durring it I love it.

[Strahdsbuddy]

I was a total orzhov whore during this block, tho izzet fit with my charmbreaker devils from innistrad. I'm much more casual than I was during innistrad block, I guess I am just a gothic fan at heart!

[Dion of the Fraternity]

Magic: the Gathering now has three horror-themed worlds: Ulgrotha (Homelands), Shadowmoor and Innistrad.

There has recently been an increase in legends, specifically for M14 and Modern Masters, as well as a HUGE ruling about legends (each player can now have one copy of the same legend on the battlefield); this has given hints that Theros (most likely Greek-themed) will be legends-heavy like Kamigawa.

[Gonzoron of the FoS]

I loved, loved, loved RTR block, but that was obvious because I loved,loved,loved,loved original Ravnica block back in the day. I think I drafted that set inside out. If I had the kind of spare time these days that I had back then, I'd have done the same with RTR.

The uptick in Legends is no doubt to fuel the Commander/EDH format (Which is the only constructed format I play anymore, personally), but yeah, it seems like Theros is likely to be legendary themed (with grandeur perhaps making a comeback according to rumors).

[herkles]

I play limited draft, commander and standard, less standard atm but i still enjoy it. I am also awaiting theros; more legends for commander will be fun

[Gonzoron of the FoS]

It's BAAAAAAAAAACK!



speculation:

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Based on the name's similarity to Shadows over Innsmouth, it sounds like the Lovecraftian influence is cranking up. And what Lovecraftian horrors in Magic recently went missing? My bet is that one of the two Eldrazi titans who left Zendikar is headed Innistrad's way. (Kozilek or Emrakul) Hopefully it won't be the Galactus-style world eating monstrosity as depicted on Zendikar, but take on a more classic Lovecraftian lurking in the shadows vibe as it comes to Innistrad.

"target gothic horror plane gains undying"