Ally Tribe. An underrated contender in Modern

Recently, I have been more active in the Tappedout forums discussing in the topic of the Ally tribe in their Primer build.

My Modern 5c Ally Blitz deck: Collected Alliance

Just to let you know, I have been playing this deck in my local game stores' events and I can quite consistently go 2-1 overall. Sometimes I can go 2-0 with the last game split with the opponent. I usually give the win so I won't count.

Since on the topic of allies, I realised there are no articles discussing the power level, finance and playability of the different allies from the original Zendikar block. Hence, I have decided to come up with this article discussing their play viability in constructed and which ally card potentially has a chance to see a spike when BFZ block comes out and suddenly, modern is a viable card.

Currently, there are 31 Allies in the gatherer list, including the new . I'll be strictly reviewing the Ally creature cards in the Original Zendikar Block. So things like Changelings or other spells that produces ally creatures won't be included. Without further-ado, let's begin!

	Agadeem Occultist Modern Playability: Low - Medium.  Decent mana cost, but the mechanic is slow isn't impact-ful enough to turn or win games. It's best in EDH or casual play. P/T is also very low. Finance It won't see anything more than $1.00 when BFZ rolls around. It's very hard to abuse the card without a good board-state. But, hey if you are having a decent board state, why are you still needing this card? Sure Modern has a lot of cards costing 1-3 mana as the most probable CMC. But, it's not that viable to just keep taking things which doesn't help the ally board-state. Who knows, unless you are playing it as a control deck, then it may help. May. Until we can make use of this card in a decent control deck, I'm leaning for it to be a bulk rare.
	Akoum Battlesinger Modern Playability: Medium - High.  Decent mana cost to its ability. It is only good in an aggressive shell. Finance It is a common card, so there is a maximum ceiling to what it can hit. Still, 2 mana for 2/1 most of the time is okay, but not back-breaking. It's a decent card that gives a small anthem effect which is often overlooked, but it is still quite good for 2 mana.
	Bala Ged Thief Modern Playability: Low Bad casting cost to its mechanic. It works well in multiple triggers, but other than that, it's not as good as it seems. Finance It won't see any play in modern. Bulk rare. Skip
	Bojuka Brigand Modern Playability: Medium Decent mana cost to its ability. It is only good in an aggressive shell. Only drawback is that it cannot block Finance It is a common card, so there is a maximum ceiling to what it can hit. It is good for what it does, but it has serious competition with at least 4 other cards with the same CMC ability. It won't have a crazy spike in any way.
	Graypelt Hunter Modern Playability: Low  Decent finisher for an ally, not counting other support cards. It's slightly high mana cost to its decent 3/3 body is good enough for a strong finisher if left unchecked. Finance It is a common card, so there is a maximum ceiling to what it can hit. It's not a bad card, but neither is it actually good.
	Hada Free Blade Modern Playability: High.  Best used in an aggressive shell. But, its extremely low cmc to its effect makes it ideal for a Ally-tribe-only Tarmogoyf. It scales very well as more allys comes into play Finance There is a good chance this can break the $2.00 mark if ally deck does breakout in modern. It's extremely low cost for a scaling ability that makes it strong in late game. It's currently the only 1-mana ally card. So, it will see fit in most ally decks requiring a cheap 1-drop to fill the curve.
	Hagra Diabolist Modern Playability: Low  High mana cost for its potentially abusive ability. Resolving this for 2 turns can actually close games. But, the drawback is its weak P/T. Finance It screams to be broken in a deck, but its high mana cost at 5 and weak body makes it not an ideal pick in Modern.
	Halimar Excavator Modern Playability: Low  It is good for casual games. If it is seriously to be considered for modern play, a lot of effort is required to make it work. Trust me I have tried it. Finance Best in casual play. Not ideal for modern. Skip.
	Harabaz Druid Modern Playability: Medium - High  Decent mana ramp for ally deck. It's crazily good in late game and by itself can give you a deep mana sink which you can easily empty your hand. It's weak P/T and summoning sickness are the only drawback for this otherwise awesome mana dork. Finance At the point of writing this article, it spiked to $1.80 before breaking to $4.00. I'm guessing it's a hype thing, but it does have potential to break the $5 mark if it really breaks out in modern. If all else fails, it should settle back to around $1-$2. But, now it's still too early to tell. It is one of the cards that has potential for a third spike.
	Highland Beserker Modern Playability: Low It is good in an aggressive shell. But it does not give much other than First Strike. While the ability is good and does help prevent or changes blocking/attacking strategies, the card itself has a relatively low P/T. It's decent, but not that good overall as it has serious competition with Akoum Battlesinger. Finance It's not a bad card, but neither is it actually good at all.
	Joraga Bard Modern Playability: Low  Similar to Highland Beserker, it's good to give all Vigilance but it honestly doesn't help in the boardstate as much as we all think. It's definitely better than First Strike in most cases, but 4 mana for it is not exactly appealing. Finance It's not a bad card, but neither is it actually good at all.
	Jwari Shapeshifter Modern Playability: Medium.  The Phantasmal Image of the ally tribe. It's good in what it does and when it works. But, there are times which this card fails miserably. Finance Currently, it's holding at around $1.00 after a small spike at the point of writing. It has the potential to go up to $2-$3. But, I'm not counting on it to be anything more than $3. Phantasmal Image is potentially strictly better choice in most cases.
	Kabira Evangel Modern Playability: High.  One of the best 3-drop we have in the tribe. Gives everyone protection basically just win games Finance Currently, it's holding at around $0.50 after a small spike at the point of writing. It has the potential to go up to $3-$4 if the deck breaks out. It will be a 4-off in most variants of decks playing Ally.
	Kazandu Blademaster Modern Playability: High Low mana cost for 3 abilites is a steal. It's mostly a 2 mana for 2/2, First Strike, Vigilance. It's the best 2-drop for aggressive shells and will scale quickly if left unchecked. Finance Similar to Hada Freeblade, this is in my radar to potentially break the $2 mark if Ally decks become a thing. It scales and curve very well with Hada freeblade in the same deck.
	Kazuul Warlord Modern Playability: Low It is good in an aggressive or a midrange shell as a finisher. Its relatively low P/T and lack of trample are the things limiting it to be a first-pick in constructed. But, solely based on the ally creature pool, this has massive potential to be a late-game anthem. Only issue is that once we look at other support cards, this falls flat. Finance It's not a bad card, but neither is it actually good at all. It will still be a bulk rare, but likely to hover around $1.
	Makindi Shieldmate Modern Playability: Low  Great if you want a good blocker. But in Modern format, we need more than just shields. Finance Not ideal for modern. Skip.
	Murasa Pyromancer Modern Playability: Low  Terrible mana cost to P/T ratio. Decent ability however, but the biggest drawback is that it only hits creatures. Finance If this hits players and if it is 4 mana cost, it can be a serious contender. But, in most cases, Hagra Diabolist is strictly better to win most games.
	Nimana Sell-Sword Modern Playability: Low  Tough competition with 3-4 other cards doing the same thing for much cheaper rate. Bust. Finance Not ideal for modern. Skip.
	Ondu Cleric Modern Playability: Medium  Decent mana cost to its ability. It is only good to prolong matches. But, solely itself, it's very easily removed. I personally won a lot of games thanks to this card. It's stupidly good when it works, but it will fall flat if it doesn't. Actually, the worst is spending 2 mana to get 1 life. That's not actually that bad in some cases. Finance It is a common card, so there is a maximum ceiling to what it can hit. It's not a bad card, but neither is it actually good at all.
	Oran-Rief Survivalist Modern Playability: Medium.  Decent mana cost for what it does. A less powerful Hada Freeblade and Kazandu Blademaster. But it is still decent. Finance It is a good card, but we won't see spikes from this card.
	Sea Gate Loremaster Modern Playability: Low It's actually crazy good if you have the right board. But, in most cases, it's just aiming to be removed before you get to draw. Finance Bulk rare status. It won't really be a serious contender unless a control version of ally deck comes out.
	Seascape Aerialist Modern Playability: Low  Over First Strike and Vigilance, this actually does help win games. Only thing is the mana cost and low P/T. Finance It's not a bad card, but neither is it actually good at all.
	Stonework Puma Modern Playability: None  Trust me when I say no deck will play this. Finance It's a bad card. Like really bad. Bust.
	Tajuru Archer Modern Playability: Low  Opposite of Murasa Pyromancer. This instead has a relatively lower cost, but it hits only flying creatures. It's not something that we need in most games. For most cases, the best is still to direct the damage to players. Even in possible control shells, we would have other stuff to use to deal with the creatures instead. Finance Not really a good card. Bust
	Talus Paladin Modern Playability: Medium Decent P/T body and ability for its mana cost. It can work as a finisher and this card can grow stupidly big if left unchecked. Lifelink for all here is just a cherry on top in late game. It won't win games immediately, but it can change games. Finance It has potential to be a good curve-ender. But, the decks will mostly play 1-2 off if its being played. Likely to be still in bulk rare though.
	Tuktuk Grunts Modern Playability: Low  A little high mana cost for what it does. Akoum Battlesinger is better. But, this grows overtime. But at that turn, I rather be doing other things. Finance It is a common card, so there is a maximum ceiling to what it can hit. It's not a bad card, but neither is it actually good.
	Tuktuk Scrapper Modern Playability: Low  Decent ability against the meta. It's an affinity hate that deals damage to player? Yes please. Finance 1-off in sideboard at most due to meta. Hence, don't expect it to spike. Also, it's 4-mana so its still relatively expensive still.
	Turntimber Ranger Modern Playability: Medium  A bit on the high end of the mana curve. But, this has potential to be broken with infinite combos. However, at the moment now the combo is a little too clunky Finance If there is a chance for the combo to be broken and abused, then it will see a price increase. However for now, it will still be in the bulk rare price.
	Umara Raptor Modern Playability: Low - Medium  Decent mana cost to its ability. It is only good in an aggressive shell. It's a good 3-mana drop with decent scaling. But, it could be better. Finance It is a common card, so there is a maximum ceiling to what it can hit. It's not a bad card, but neither is it actually good.
	Vastwood Animist Modern Playability: Low Low P/T, weak ability overall. No. It's not a good card to Consider. Finance It is not decent nor even playable in constructed.

Long story short, keep a lookout for the white ally cards, as well as Harabaz Druid. It also makes sense when we see the first 3 spoilers for support in the ally tribe:

Do you see where this is going? The best bet is that if Modern Ally is a real thing, the base shell of the deck will be in Green/White colours. That's the main reason for looking and keeping track of the green and white cards as priority. 

Also, as mentioned, Hada Freeblade, Kazandu Blademaster, Harabaz Druid and Kabira Evangel are good cards for the casting cost and abilities. Hence, these are the cards that I will be taking a closer look.

Looking at the recent BFZ spoilers, it seems that that the new creatures won't really be getting the +1/+1 counters as to the old counterparts from Zendikar. The mechanic have now officially been named Rally. But, we would see better ability support from the new Allies.

Vetaran Warleader is the closest that we have for a strong 3-drop for ally in replacement for some of the older allies with the older mechanic, and Gideon looks promising as an ally support Planeswalker. Hero of Goma Fada is too expensive for modern play though. I'll review them more if they happen to be in my top 10 picks in a future BFZ First Look article.

FTV: Angels!!!!! [First Look!]

I love Angel Tribe, period. Hence, when this was released, I was really excited. In fact, I never had been so excited for a FTV set. When the preorders opened, I immediately preordered my set. Well, at least the collection won't go into some corner of my room. I will be using some of them in my EDH. The rest? Well, I'm just going to sleeve them and store them back in the box as a collection.

But, right now I'm going to review them. Since all of them are in there, I'll be reviewing based on artwork and the appeal of the card overall. Also, since the last FTV I reviewed, FTV: Annihilation, I have decided to also review based on whether the card should be included in the collection set. 

Again, I won't cover the EV. I would link to the Video by Mana Source here below if you want to know is the FTV set worth it or not.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7uYiMjxlIYE

Oh, just so you know, I only found and watched this video half-way through doing this article.

Both versions of Akroma looks stunning. The art on both cards shows and depicts Akroma in both forms really well. I can see the elegance and beauty of the woman that Akroma was modelled after, but yet the power within in the Wrath version. The Fury just simply screams power and dominance. 

I'm not sure about you, but when I think of Angels, I really do reference the theme and tribe to these two cards. Personally, I think they are well-deserved to have a spot in this expansion.

Archangel of Strife is a relatively new card, but Oh MY... the Art! Yes, this is the same art from Commander 2014, and thankfully they kept that art. Depicting both the offensive and defensive capabilities of an angel with a shield and sword, the ability give the respective players the relevant buffs based on their choices mirrors the art well. Furthermore, the background colours definitely will be beautiful in foil. I haven't seen her in the physical copy yet, but I think will like the foiling and it's a great addition into the FTV set.

Aurelia from Gatecrash expansion just looks and feels badass from the art to her abilities. her subname, Warleader suits her role as the Boros guild leader really well. The card overall has a very strong boros theme to it. From the general artwork in red and white mostly, to the design of the character and card to give the feel of a very important character in a massive army. Does she fit the bill? I guess so, but I was expecting something more of the graceful side of the Angel. 

Talking about gracefulness, Avacyn is one beautiful angel with one of the most graceful poses in the FTV set. Her art theme of light among darkness suits her role as a protector of humans in the Innistrad plane. My local community here affectionately nicknamed her "Lady Gaga" because of the Gothic looks and dressing. But, that doesn't stop her from being included in my personal list of top 5 Angels. She is definitely one of the chase mythics in this FTV set and I am personally hyped when I saw this card spoilt.

The community nicknamed her wallet-slayer. She peaked at $50 a piece when she was played in standard. She is one of the most powerful creatures back in her days. That's Baneslayer Angel for you. Her flavour text is simply amazing! It says exactly what I perceive an angel to be; powerful, yet graceful. A force to be reckoned with, but yet a protector. 

This is the card that I fell in love with when I started MTG. I have always wanted to play this card in a deck but I could not find one to fit her in. But, never mind. This is going into either my EDH or into my collection.

An honestly great addition to the set. Though not an Angel creature card, it's still relatable card in the Angel theme. If you are complaining, Decree of Justice is a worse choice. There are worse choices compared to this card out there. For the art, I'm happy that they kept the art. It looks really amazing and fitting for the name of the card. Only draw back is that you are paying rather a high cost for a few angels if you don't pay the miracle cost.

I'm a little confused with the artwork to the name of the card. Isn't exalted supposed to be defined to be someone elevated in terms of status or level? This was the artwork that was teased to us when FTV: Angels was announced. I personally was expecting it to be Twilight Shepherd or Requiem Angel because of the covered face of the Angel. But hey, it turned out at least the current artwork for both are really nice the way they are and not having another artwork for them as an alternative? Or them as filler cards. Then again, Exalted Angel is a filler card herself isn't it? 

Holy shiiiitt!! New Art by Jason Chan and I approve of this art! Iona looked amazing in her original art, but here, she looked badass and a major force to be reckoned with!! I love this card having tried playing this in a Gifts-variant in Modern. Love this card! The new artwork looks absolutely amazing!!! Glad I ordered the FTV! 

Beautiful art, beautiful flavour text. I'm screaming internally for the foil. I want it NOW! I don't know this card, but I don't care. I'm mesmerised by the artwork. 

My first Angel. My next EDH general. I'm sold. Jenara IMO is one of the best Bant Generals for EDH. Sure we have Rafiq and Derevi, but they are really high in the threat level and will definitely be aimed. Jenara evades the radar a few times before the play group knows what you are really going to do with it. I wished a new art would be great though. Not that I am complaining the art is bad, no. The art really depcits her gracefulness and capability as a warrior. I'm just hoping that a new art would be given to her to make her be seen in action. 

I'm quite confused as to why this card is in there. I'm not too fond of the card nor the artwork. Sure, it fits the name of the card really well; Lightning Angel. But, I'm not too sure if I would relate to her when I think of Angels in MTG. Maybe because of my relative inexperience to the lore and to the game, but I personally think that if this is Linvala, Keeper of Silence, Twilight Shepherd or maybe Karmic Guide? Heck, I'd even settle for Maelstrom Archangel!

I heard stories. Awesome stories of this card abusing and punishing their opponents. Platinum Angel is unique in the sense that while we don't see her in play often, we will always hear stories about her. It's like a legend where we don't see it, but will always hear their stories. Does she deserve a spot in the FTV set? YES! Her stories told are a legend on its own and seeing this card points to prove that this card is capable of doing many many abusive things. Stories alone make her iconic enough to be remembered and not forgotten.

Classic Angel card. We definitely relate to this card. From a draft bomb, to a then constructed powerhouse. I really don't mind this card in the FTV set as it is both nostalgic (in a way) to some, as well as a very relatable card to relatively new players like myself. I thought the current artwork for Serra Angel is actually more beautiful. But hey, I'll hold back my comments because it's Rebecca Guay. I saw her artwork in a playmat. It looked stunning, so I'm anticipating this to be beautiful as well in foil.

First Foil for this card. Tariel first appeared in Commanders and yes, the artwork really speaks out Mardu. Yes also to the fact that this is going to appeal and impress the EDH players who are using her as a General and are screaming their lungs out in excitement for a foil card. It's a good move to include Tariel in as a shout out to the EDH community. While we have Archangel of Strife doing the same for the community, I think this card is a far much better one to give the reference.

In summary, is this a good FTV set? In my opinion, I would say yes. Yes to this FTV set for being awesome in the selection of cards and as well as the overall flavour of it. It does have the potential that this is one of best FTV sets we have in awhile. FTV: 20 and FTV: Annihilation are a major disappointment. I'm looking forward to pick this up when it is released. As again mentioned earlier, I'm looking at this set solely from the appeal in the artwork and cards chosen to represent the Angel theme of the FTV. I'm not looking at the estimated values of the cards and of the set itself. 

Alright, now I have given you my thoughts, what do you think of FTV: Angels? Is it good or bad? Is it worth the selling price? Discuss in the comments below, or follow my discussion at twitter @mtgprojectzero!

3 Reasons why I believe that the new land cycle for Battle for Zendikar may not be Enemy-Colored Manlands [Flash!]

So with the apparent news, everyone went bananas. Zendikar Fetches spiked back to their "original" prices and Khans fetches are soon to follow the trend. Damn that wasted opportunity to find that one Arid Mesa... I am still in need of that as a singleton. Nevertheless, life moves on. And, so does card prices. 

Here is the thing; earlier I posted on twitter remarking that since the dual lands in BFZ expansion is confirmed not to be the enemy-cycle fetchlands, then what can else can it be? The first thought that I have and am sure many have already guessed, Enemy-colored Manland cycle. 

However, I have 3 reasons why I don't think it is

1. It is too easy... (to predict)
   
   Other than Shocklands prediction in the Return to Ravnica block, Did you actually guess correctly what lands are going to be printed or created in a new expansion? How did you know that Innistrad, a completely new block at that time, is going to contain a cycle of enemy checklands? Likewise, how did you know that Theros block will give you the incredibly controversial scrylands?
   My point here is that if it's something that was so easily predicted, the anticipation and the hype behind the set is not really worth right? Remember how the anticipation and hype for Khans was rather mediocre until the reveal of the Allied-Fetches? Yes, it's something we want, but because it was also because it wasn't expected!
2. Looking at the colour fixing, the new cycle has to be Allied color
   
   Note that the rotation of the sets will occur when BFZ is released. We're losing the scrylands from Theros. What is left are the enemy cycle of Painlands from Magic Origins, Allied Fetchlands and, if you wish to include, the gain-life tapped lands from Khans of Tarikir.
   But note that whatever the land cycle in BFZ must survive 2 rotations as the transition from a two 3-block set to a three 2-block set. Hence, they still must cater to the loss of khans fetchlands, which means, the Allied colors will require the necessary mana fixing.
   
   
3. Read in between the lines
   
   The key-phrase here is this phrase: "but they’re brand new designs..." If we define brand new designs as it is, it means these land cycles are NOT yet printed. Yes, Enemy-coloured Manlands are considered new, but read in between the lines. The highlight is brand new. Passing off the Enemy Manland cycle as a brand new is really misleading.
   
   Bonus: in the same reasons, I believe that the Enemy Fetchlands / Man-lands is possibly in the 2nd expansion of Battle for Zendikar Block.

My speculation targets for PTOrigins

The top 8 decks for PTOrigins has been revealed and this has really made cards like Demonic Pact spike hard. Open confession; I did not buy any pieces despite sending a text to my friends what to look out for this weekend.

My speculation list was quite different from the above. In terms of what I actually bought, I went for the cheaper, but higher risk specs and this is my list as a result: 

Card Bought	Number of copies	price per piece
Grim Haruspex	28 eng, 1 jap	SGD $0.60 ea
See the Unwritten	6 eng, 1 jap	SGD $4.00 / $5.00 ea
Ghostfire Blade	27 eng, 1 jap	SGD $0.60 ea
Silumgar's Command	12 eng	SGD $1.00 ea

Bummer... I could have dumped a few dollars into demonic pact for the easy money, but the copies here were going for $7.50 last checked. I was only willing to buy them in at $5 a piece and the places selling at that price were out of stock. Nevertheless, let's make lemonade out of lemons.

Prices captured on 2nd August 2015, after the announcement of PTOrigins top 8.
Source: www.mtggoldfish.com

I mean that jump from $7.50 to $13 is still money that could be made. But, nevertheless, it's still good to see 2 out of the 4 specs that I bought made it to the top winners immediately after the ProTour. I'll see how much can they rise before determining the profit margin. 

I don't expect Ghostfire Blade to stay in the increment trend for too long as it may or may not be relevant once rotation. I believe it would still be a relevant but can the deck last through two rotations? It's quite hard to tell now, so that is likely an early out if it hits $2.00 - $3.00 a piece. 

See the Unwritten potentially may see play in the post-Theros rotation period, so I'm not too bearish with the prices. It has a good potential to double from here on, so I'll take my chances. I may get a few more copies if I can get them under $4.00.

Grim Haruspex is a tough one. Abzan Rally seemed to dominate the meta until this recent ProTour, falling out from the Top 8. I'm not exactly confident in it going any higher than $3.00 if the meta shift caused the Rally deck to become obsolete. But, it is already cheap enough to jump in as bulk rare spec, and no matter what, it is still a card draw engine. If nothing else, just look at the casual appeal for this card.

I'm quite bullish about this one. It's still a Command with 4 utility regardless. The utility modes are actually very relevant in constructed format and it's cheap to buy in at the moment! Except that I foolishly clicked "buy" at $1.00. This can be a spec that I'm looking to keep a slightly longer term if it doesn't see play or price spike in the next. It eventually will find its home, but it will take awhile.