The Epic Storm
At first, blue/black decks along the lines of IGGy Pop were the default home for Tendrils of Agony in Legacy. Another early Legacy Storm deck, which has been evolving ever since, was "The Epic Storm." A key distinction was that in 2006, three new red cards were released that dramatically boosted Storm: Rite of Flame, Grapeshot, and Enter the Warrens. With the new emphasis on red, TES used Lion's Eye Diamond in a a different way, relying less on Ill-Gotten Gains and shifting toward activation in response to other spells: Burning Wish and Demonic Tutor. Wait, that's not right. Demonic Tutor is banned. Or is it?
Lately, one of the issues I've pondered is how when it comes to competitive decks is how a minor shift in the functional details of a card can make a massive difference in playability. That sounds mundane, and while the principle is familiar enough to people that it isn't actually surprising, it also wouldn't necessarily be true in every sort of game. At some point, I'll have to just break down and write an article about this, but to briefly explain, there are cases in Magic where a card is broken, but a weaker version is mediocre, and the difference between them is such that there is seemingly no middle ground that could realistically occupy an intermediate space. For example, Demonic Tutor is widely acknowledged as one of the most powerful cards and is banned or restricted just about everywhere. It costs 1B. Diabolic Tutor has the exact same rules text, but costs 2BB, and is unremarkable and rather weak. So if we simplify this to say that 1B is too cheap for this effect and that 2BB is too expensive, what is the "right" cost to make it a good card, but not a broken one? Well, there's a too-good version at two mana and a too-bad version at four mana, but no card that has the exact same effect at three mana, but a couple that are close: Grim Tutor costs 1BB and does the same thing but also makes you lose 3 life, while Rhystic Tutor costs 2B but is contingent on your opponent not paying 2 mana to stop you. Neither card is very good, but the life loss from Grim Tutor isn't such an obstacle that it would stop people. No, Grim Tutor just isn't worth it. WotC seem wary of an unfettered version of the card at three mana, but I personally suspect that even if Grim Tutor didn't cost life, it would still be lackluster. Still, there's definitely some grey area here. Would a version of the card at 2B work? WotC would not print it, but if they did, would it be good? I suspect that it would be a bit weak. And yet, there's no other option, no possible middle ground. If 1B is too strong and 1BB is too weak, 2B is really all that is left, and if it's not good enough, then there's not actually a possible card that has the appropriate cost in this scenario, one that is properly balanced. With their intense focus on Limited gameplay and especially booster drafts, WotC would probably go to the other side and conclude that 2B and even 1BB are too good, but that still doesn't change the fact that 2BB is demonstrably weak. Between 1B and 2BB, there are really only a total of four possible points on the spectrum without completely changing the nature of the card by making it require triple black or require a second color. And if none of those points is the cost that makes the card strong without being busted, then there's just no good "home" for the effect. All of this is hugely complicated by the varying utility of effects and the varying availability of resources across formats. If you're in a booster draft and casting a spell for 2BB, it had better be one of your deck's primary colors. In Legacy, you just might be persuaded to splash it.
Alternate versions of troublesome cards offer other opportunities. An obvious example of this is Diabolic Intent, which functions like Demonic Tutor, but requires a creature sacrifice. Not every deck can fulfill that second condition and not every deck should try, but it does seem like a successful example of a card that does what Demonic Tutor does without being either too strong or too weak. But variations like this can't be compared to each other in a clean, linear way. Infernal Tutor is a more complicated version that has a much weaker effect, revealing a card from your hand and showing your opponent that you are fetching another copy of that exact card, but if you achieve "Hellbent" then it exactly replicates Demonic Tutor. Under most circumstances, this would be far weaker than Diabolic Intent, as sacrificing a creature is, for many decks, not a big deal. And that's where Lion's Eye Diamond comes in and messes everything up. Activating LED in response to your own Demonic Tutor is a known interaction that has its own advantages, and if Infernal Tutor is used in this way, then it is identical to Demonic Tutor anyway. Because many combo decks cannot afford to waste resources playing creatures, Infernal Tutor, which otherwise is clearly the weaker card, becomes more valuable than Diabolic Intent.
On the surface, the Lion's Eye Diamond + Infernal Tutor combo isn't
that amazing, as it requires two cards to find one. Infernal Tutor costs 1B and LED gives you three mana, so you're really only ahead by one mana. There is no one thing that, by itself, redeems the combo. It's a bunch of little things...
- LED is good in multiples.
- LED can be used for color-fixing.
- LED bumps the storm count up without costing anything.
- Infernal Tutor can be used with Rite of Flame to ramp up mana production.
- Infernal Tutor can be used to double up on LED in preparation for setting up another Infernal Tutor, a Burning Wish, or some other use of LED.
- LED can be used without Infernal Tutor if you have another card that synergizes with it, such as Burning Wish or Second Sunrise.
- With multiples of LED and with mana from rituals, Infernal Tutor can be used in "tutor chains." Infernal Tutor revealing a second Infernal Tutor and finding a third, then Infernal Tutor revealing Lion's Eye Diamond for a second one, cast both Diamonds, Infernal Tutor and activate both Diamonds to find Burning Wish, filling up your graveyard and increasing the storm count.
- Either card can be cast before the combo turn to help set something up, such as Infernal Tutor doubling up on Helm of Awakening or LED being used to set up Recoup.
The Infernal Tutor + Lion's Eye Diamond has come to be perhaps the most defining characteristic of Legacy Storm decks, and while nothing these days really looks like the 2006 version of TES, the combo remains prevalent and is probably the major reason that Lion's Eye Diamond is well over $100.