Apollo,
A few questions, but first, you may be right about the Zorb, but then again you may not. I've always hated that card, but I remember usually winning the game when my opponent started saccing land to stay alive too. Many people swore by them years ago, but perhaps it wouldn't hurt anything if they were unbanned and unrestricted.
I have to ask though: How does the Academy go from too Broken for Restriction, in your estimation, to useless? Even if it only stayed in play for a few turns it could be useful, and if it drew the Wasteland away from your Port would it still be totally useless? How about if it only kept your Tundra from being Wasted?
I'll admit there's a sometimes fine line between a strong card and a Broken one. I believe that's why, years ago, WotC came up with the notion of card Restriction in the first place, so strong cards that were broken in multiples, like Balance, could still be used.
There's nothing wrong with having an environment that allows for the use of strong cards. As Magic players, having, and playing, with strong cards is what a large part of the thrill of this game is all about. To skate the line between strong and Broken is R&D's job, and, obviously they sometimes fail in that endeavor. To me, restricting these cards first to see if an out of control situation can be fixed that way allows for strong cards to remain eligible for play. Whether anyone would choose to play with them afterward, in a non-Broken way, is tough to speculate about...
At least we'd have the option though.
A few questions, but first, you may be right about the Zorb, but then again you may not. I've always hated that card, but I remember usually winning the game when my opponent started saccing land to stay alive too. Many people swore by them years ago, but perhaps it wouldn't hurt anything if they were unbanned and unrestricted.
I have to ask though: How does the Academy go from too Broken for Restriction, in your estimation, to useless? Even if it only stayed in play for a few turns it could be useful, and if it drew the Wasteland away from your Port would it still be totally useless? How about if it only kept your Tundra from being Wasted?
I'll admit there's a sometimes fine line between a strong card and a Broken one. I believe that's why, years ago, WotC came up with the notion of card Restriction in the first place, so strong cards that were broken in multiples, like Balance, could still be used.
There's nothing wrong with having an environment that allows for the use of strong cards. As Magic players, having, and playing, with strong cards is what a large part of the thrill of this game is all about. To skate the line between strong and Broken is R&D's job, and, obviously they sometimes fail in that endeavor. To me, restricting these cards first to see if an out of control situation can be fixed that way allows for strong cards to remain eligible for play. Whether anyone would choose to play with them afterward, in a non-Broken way, is tough to speculate about...
At least we'd have the option though.