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Eldritch Moon Spoilers: Limited Review for June 29


The birds are singing, the sun Eldritch Moon is shining, and the Eldrazi have all woken up and are ready to wreak fresh havoc on the citizens of Innistrad! Let's review the newest scary spoilers from the day.

I'll be reviewing these cards from the standpoint of how well I expect them to perform in Limited. We can't rate the cards completely accurately without knowing the entire set, but we can evaluate the cards in an "average" limited format. You can find all the latest spoilers on the Eldritch Moon page. Please note that if I haven't yet reviewed a card, it's probably because the official spoiler for it has not been released yet.

Grading scale

A: This card will often be the best card in one's deck. I'd consider splashing it where possible. (Linvala, the Preserver, Tireless Tracker)
B: This card is rarely cut from a deck that can cast it. In draft, it signals that a color or archetype is open. (Baloth Null, Forgotten Creation)
C: Cards like this make up the majority of limited decks. You're neither excited nor embarrassed to have them in your deck. (Akoum Flameseeker, Moorland Drifter)
D: I'm not putting this in my main deck unless I have a specific reason or I'm low on playables. (Dazzling Reflection, Merciless Resolve)
F: This card will have little or no impact on the game if I draw it or is strictly sideboard-material. If I cast this card, please stage an intervention for me. (Hedron Alignment, Harness the Storm)

Blue

Curious Homunculus

$ 0.00 $ 0.00

D+

Curious Homunculus is adorable, as all homunculi are, but I'm pretty worried about its playability. A two mana 1/1 doesn't affect the board, the mana ability is marginal, and by the time you put three spells in the graveyard to transform this, you may not have many left for triggering Prowess. In a deck with both heavy self-mill and a critical mass of spells, you can try to make this creature work, but don't wreck your deck over it.

Ingenious Skaab

$ 0.00 $ 0.00

B-

Watercourser was already a solid card in Magic Origins, and adding Prowess for free is a nice proposition. Ingenious Skaab can be a decent blocker and can crack in for 4 (or more) damage when left unblocked. It would be hard for this creature not to be the first or second best Blue Common in the set.

Black

Haunted Dead

$ 0.00 $ 0.00

C+

Haunted Dead looks to be this set's Stitchwing Skaab. It's a little underwhelming in stats for the mana cost, but most self-mill decks will be happy to have it. These types of cards should hopefully get better with the presence of the Emerge keyword.

Tree of Perdition

$ 0.00 $ 0.00

C+

All combos with Triskaidekaphobia aside, Tree of Perdition is a relatively straightforward card in Limited. It can block one ground creature per turn forever, and it will occasionally dome the opponent for 7 damage by activating it before attacking the opponent during a game. All things considered, a huge blocker is only okay, but still certainly playable.

Voldaren Pariah

$ 0.00 $ 0.00

A-

Voldaren Pariah feels like a win-more card, but I don't think that's how it will play out. When you don't have creatures to spare, it will simply be a 3/3 flyer for five. Overcosted, but acceptable. But as soon as you have three other creatures, a world of possibilities emerge:

  • If your three worst creatures are worse than those of your opponent, simply transform and win the game.
  • If your opponent is alpha striking you, line up four different chump blocks, sacrifice three of your blockers to Fog the attack and get the transform trigger.
  • Get some creature tokens or a stolen creature from Malevolent Whisper to make the sacrifice cost easier to pay.

There are so many ways that this transform threatens to wreck your opponent, and it really isn't that hard to set up.

Don't worry too much about the Madness clause. Occasionally, you'll get to discard this card for value, but the fact that it costs triple Black makes the alternate cost unlikely to be a factor.

Red

Smoldering Werewolf

$ 0.00 $ 0.00

B+

Smoldering Werewolf is a lowly 3/2 that might get lucky and pick off a relevant creature or two when it enters the battlefield. Despite this, it demands immediate removal. As soon as you get to six mana for the transform activation, your opponent will be hurting. The Erupting Dreadwolf side can crash in and Shock an opposing creature, so make sure you kill this creature before the Eldrazi side becomes active.

Vildin-Pack Outcast

$ 0.00 $ 0.00

C+

Once again, we have a hulking Red Werewolf that threatens to transform into something truly awful. While the Vildin-Pack Outcast side can "only" hit for up to 7 damage if unblocked, the Dronepack Kindred abomination can hit for 12 or 13 points with Trample the turn after transforming! It takes a lot of investment to make this card scary (five mana up front, seven to transform, and however much more you want to pump) and a bounce spell can seriously slow down your fun, but this is still a great top-end threat at Common.

Green

Kessig Prowler

$ 0.00 $ 0.00

B

With neither of its sides are unbeatable or particularly undercosted, Kessig Prowler is another poster-child for the power of versatility. The Savannah Lions half comes out early and can peck in for 2-4 damage. Then you either trade it off in combat or keep it around for when you want to turn it into a Charging Rhino.

Multicolor

Bloodhall Priest

$ 0.00 $ 0.00

B

Let's count up the downsides on Bloodhall Priest . . . 

Oh that's right. There aren't any. You can cast this Cleric with Madness and get value, but you don't need discard outlets in your deck to make it good. You can pitch your whole hand to Murderer's Axe to turn it on right away, or simply wait until your hand empties naturally to take advantage of the free Shocks. It'll be a powerful creature in any deck that can cast it, and every synergy you find with it will make it just a little bit sweeter.

Gisa and Geralf

$ 0.00 $ 0.00

B+

How good is milling four? Delirium says it's pretty good. How likely are free Zombies? There are seven at Common in Shadows over Innistrad alone. How will we take advantage of free creatures? How about the brand new keyword Emerge?

Gisa and Geralf enable everything you want to be doing in this set, especially if you're drafting a Blue-Black deck.

Colorless

Elder Deep-Fiend

$ 0.00 $ 0.00

A-

Can you imagine playing a three-drop then casting Elder Deep-Fiend with Emerge on turn 4? It sounds nuts because it is nuts. Tapping four lands on your opponent's upkeep (or maybe two and two creatures) comes somewhat close to skipping their turn and getting a 5/6 with which to start smashing face is going to make taking that turn off really hurt.

Stitcher's Graft

$ 0.00 $ 0.00

C+

Is it true? Could it be the second coming of Grafted Wargear? No, it really isn't.

This Equipment doesn't grant evasion or protection and it only lets your equipped creature attack every other turn, which will seriously lessen its impact. If you can combo this card with Haunted Cloak or True-Faith Censer to grant Vigilance, you've got an unstoppable combination. Without that, this card will be slow to pay off.

Soul Separator

$ 0.00 $ 0.00

D

Soul Separator is high and flavor and low on applications in Limited. It costs eight total mana to clone one creature, and you get the clone in two parts. The Zombie half can bash face, while the Spirit half retains the abilities of the original creature. The best use I can find so far is to exile a Siburlind Snapper and get a 6/6 with no attack restrictions (plus the bonus 1/1 flyer). Eight mana is too much to pay for just a weird clone, so I'm tentatively out on this card.

Conclusion

I don't know about you, but I'm loving Emrakul's effect on Innistrad. After this block, I'm sure I'll be ready for a break, but for now sign me up for more Eldritch horror. Please join me for more spoilers and more Limited review throughout this week and next. Reach out to me on Twitter @JakeStilesMTG or in the comments below with your thoughts on the new cards.



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