Let's Trash Masques Block

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urzas_mistress

Guest
why not? everyone else is. i'll start...

who's BRIGHT IDEA was it to give black virtually NO REMOVAL in prophesy? in prophesy draft, NOBODY plays black unless they are lucky and open an avatar of woe or plague winds.
 
G

garfobo

Guest
Hey Shutup, Masques kicked ass! It slowed down the game so a casual/competitive game lasted more than 5 minutes, now the game is more fun, and u dont hafta spend tons of cash to make a good deck!
 
F

FoundationOfRancor

Guest
Listen, MBC format is a really good format and people need to give it more of a chance. YOu may not like it, thats your call, but i DO, and i dont like people talking trash about it when theres no call for it.
 
J

Jaws10387

Guest
I didn't like Masques block as much as Urza's Cycle or the Tempest Clycle but that doesn't mean it needs to be trashed.
Just my opinion.
 
C

Cateran Overlord

Guest
As the self appointed Champion of Masques Block, I must say that you obviously aren't playing for fun. Lose the silly "idiotic combo or stupid rush win on turn 4" Urza block mentality and you'll find the best block since Tempest (gee, guess which one it's better than :D )
 
I

Istanbul

Guest
What-freakin'-ever.

Ah, I fondly recall Tempest block.
Turn 4 wins were common with red.
Every deck had land...then four Cursed Scrolls...then the rest of the deck.
We had glorious rares such as Deadshit...er, Deadshot, Bellowing Fiend, Duplicity.
Mox Diamond changed from a crazy rumor to a crazy reality.

Ah, I fondly recall Urza's Block.
Broken from the word 'go' with Tolarian Academy, Stroke of Genius, Morphling, Sneak Attack, Worship...
Let's continue on to Grim Monolith, Palinchron, Ring of Gix, Rancor...
And GLORY to Urza's Destiny! Masticore, Rofellos, Replenish and Opalescence IN THE SAME SET, Yawgmoth's Bargain, Donate, Thorn Elemental....BAAAAAAH-ROOOOOO-KENNNNNN!

Mercadian Masques leaves them both in the dust. So many of you people are so used to such a blatantly BROKEN environment that you think that a balanced block sucks!

Deal with it. I hope every expansion from now on is like Masques.
 
TomB

TomB

Administrator
Staff member
But urzas_mistress has a point. Removal overall in MMB is subpar, and big CC creatures with cheap ACC's doesn't necessarily make for a balanced environment. Add to that no dual lands (not even bad ones, like Flood Plain) and you're not really talking about a balanced environment.

You're talking about a slow, luck based one. :(

You know, in years past I dreaded the release of a new expansion. I had learned that there'd be only a handful of playable cards in it, and half of those would end up banned soon after people caught on to their power. The trick became figuring out which cards were good, but not so good they'd end up banned once I'd acquired 4 of them. After a few near misses I realized I wasn't real good at that, so I settled for buying only quirky above average cards that I could build something decent with, but that would never even be considered for banning.

Only now, I can hardly wait for Invasion. It's not just the cycling out of Urza's that I'm looking forward to (though that IS a big part of it), but I'm also hoping the tools will be in there to juice up the environment again. Not to the same extent Urza's did - God no - but rather something more along the lines of what Alliances did, or Mirage block (Visions especially).

Wow. This turned into a bit of a rant. :eek:

I guess the point is, while I do not agree Masques block deserves flames, neither do I agree it is a perfect set.

Now if you want to talk about flaming Urza's block...
 
C

Cateran Overlord

Guest
I can't even begin to say that Istanbul is right, as it's too much of an understatement. Urza's block wasn't just broken, it was a MISTAKE! There are some things in there that are fantastic fun, yet are overshadowed by the overpowered madness of the sets. For every post trashing MM block for being slow, then I shall respond in kind against Urza block being just plain stupid.
 
H

Hellion

Guest
Urza block has so many broken cards that even if sub standard rares like Repercussion or Ancient Sliverback were to be added in other sets like Mirage or MM, they will be the pick of that set.

The biggest problem is the Urza block is so broken, all other cards that aren't used in tourneys are dismissed as chaff. Totally ignored cards like

Sanguine Guard
1BB
First Strike. B1:Regenerate
2/2
Uncommon UZ

How many of you guys know this card EXISTED? This card is an above average uncommon and actually a Cavernous Knight reprint (but better i feel). Urza block is so broken and so fast that since MM is released, ppl say Magic's gonna die, magic's lame, magic's dumb, play pokemon....ect ect.

My thought is: Urza Block is a mistake and MM is the way Magic should have always been about, sets like MM or Mirage Block, playable and fun, not,"die by the 4th turn stuff."

I like MM and I'm really glad that I am around to enjoy it, unlike many other "Magic" players who have quitted and sold out on Magic. I shed no tears when Urza Block rotates out this fall.

However, a few things that spoiled MM block is the overpowerness of Blue and the Rebel search engine. Also, Rishadan Port = Strip Mine. 2 totally different cards but with the same concept," Deny target opponent the relevant land."
 
U

urzas_mistress

Guest
i believe the title was let's trash MASQUES BLOCK, not URZAS BLOCK. go start another thread.

also, i believe the title was let's TRASH masques block, NOT "let's get all touchy feely about masques block." again, go start another thread.

lol you guys KNOW i'm saying that in good humor, right? ^_^


but on a more serious note, i'm just a hair disappointed with masques right now. the format is slower... but WAY slower. tournaments filled with matches that DRAG on FOREVER and end in draws are NOT the answer to the ten-minute match-ups from current type two power decks. you HAVE to agree with me on this one. yes it is good that things are slower, no it is not good that currently the field is dominated by blue decks that stall and draw matches.

also, there seems to be a sad imbalance of color, particularly on black's part. now i am not an avid black player, but i think it SUCKS when i play draft and all i'm being handed is black because no one will play it. there is something WRONG with a set when this happens. black is losing out in the current masques constructed enviroment as well. aside from a few black/white control decks, have you seen any other successful black decks? any successful SOLID black decks? if so, please tell me about it.
 
R

rkoelsch

Guest
I understand that it has upset a lot of tournament players. But I can't understand why. I really think that tournament player's had gotten so involved in concentrating on their deck they forget about the opponent. Masques doesn't not give you that luxury. You have to react to what your opponent is playing more than other formats. I don't know of another format that is so diversified. There are deck archtypes but the decklists are so varied. The current black green deck is really making a wave. But I am prejudiced my favorite deck type U/W control is actually viable after a prolonged absense. Masques is good for players just not tournament players.
 
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Inyatha

Guest
I think Urzas_Mistress is reacting from a tournament point of view, as some people might have pointed out. . . .I, personally, have never played in a tournament, sanctioned or not, so I have no beef with Masques's "Slowness". I can appreciate her concerns, however, this is a new era for Magic. It's just a matter of adjusting, as people have pointed out, from the quick kills of Urza Block to the more careful play of Masques Block. There are many new strategies to be adjusted to. Masques is currently my favorite block, with Tempest Block a close close second. I missed Urza block, on account of leaving Magic during Exodus, and coming back just as Prophecy is released, so I guess I can't pass judgement. But, just my opinions.
 
C

Cateran Overlord

Guest
I knew Sanguine Guard existed! I always wondered why everyone thought it bad too...

Hellion offers an interesting reason why here too, in hta teven above average cards don't make the cut when tehre are hyper-powerful cards running around.

As for inyatha and u_m, I would agree that maybe, from a tourney standpoint, MBC is just too MUCH of a contrast. But even looking at it from that angle, I still think it's a good thing...
 
D

Duel

Guest
Look, you keep dreaming about the brokeness that is Urza's block. and the insane pipe dream that was tempest. I'll deal with realities. MBC is one of the most balanced sets ever. No truly broken cards. Rishadan port was considered broken! After masticore, or Recurring Nightmare, that's pretty good.
 
D

Django

Guest
Here's my opinion on the matter.
Urzas had plenty of powerful cards (overpowered? I'll come to that soon), but since I'm strictly a casual player I didn't mind. I play with Masticores, Treacheries, Monoliths and all those other brutal cards, but it's the way I play with them that really matters. I play fun decks with them. I include one or two of the real crazy cards when I see fit, but most of the time I try to make decks out of the other Urzas cards that people seldom talk about. And there are alot of those in Urzas.. fun cards and useless cards that puzzles my opponent when i play them. I never aim for a 4th turn kill when I make my Urza decks.. I aim for fun.

As for the 'overpowered' nature of Urzas. Well, I'd say it's the same for everyone. I have not played a single tourney in my life, but I believe that wins were pretty balanced between Bargain, Acc Blue, Stompy and the other deck types.. or am I wrong?
It will always be the same with tournament play. A couple of cards in a cycle will be stronger than others in combos or just by themselves, and people will exploit that opportunity to make a killer deck with a 3rd turn kill or whatever. I bet Masques will follow the same routine. If not, then it is truly a marvelous cycle.

My longest contribution to these boards so far. Go me?
 
M

Multani

Guest
(Multani smashes all of the Urza-Block haters. He then flames them, sprays them with 30mm shells, and RPG's a number of them.)
Shove that up your a**! :mad:
 
C

Cateran Overlord

Guest
Don't make me get the evisceratin' scythe out! MBC kicks UBC out the 100th story window (sooo tired, can't even make good metaphors anymore...)
 
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