I have a question: When 'bolt was the only thing out there like it(when I started, and about a year after IA when people hadn't noticed that Incenerate was still good) does anyone remember bolting a 3-toughness critter?
I didn't use red much, but I remember that people used to carry bolts specifically to stop all the Juggernaughts (4 to cast: 5/3 may not be blocked by walls must attack each turn if able), especially the invisible ones (invisibility, U: enchant creature, enchanted creature may be blocked only by walls).
Personally, I think the bolt got axed because of overkill. When I read stories of the "Black Summer" where suicide black decks dominated tournament play, it reminded me of playing back when Legends was new. Heck even a bit before then, burn was not about getting the cards, Wheel of Fortune and Howling Mine handled that easily, it was about getting the mana. Lightning Bolts were the key to efficient damage. Channel was restricted, but nearly all burn decks had their one. They were also packing (in my area at the very least) 4 forks ('till it got restricted, then banned, then restricted again). But everyone packed 4 bolts and 4 chain lightning plus a smattering of the x-spells. I saw a pair of red decks turn a single chain lightning into 27 points of damage for just 9 red. If that was printed "Chain Lightning, RRRRR: Your opponent takes 15 damage and you take 12" I don't think anyone would call it a reasonable spell. The difference between a Lightning Bolt and Chain Lightning is only the number of cards required, the efficiency of damage to mana is the same and that was the key issue at the time. I think R&D over reacted when they pulled the bolt, but they did fix a number of truly broken cards at the same time. A/B/U/R had a lot of problems; bolt may not have been one of them, but if turning it into Shock was the price of fixing red, I think it was pretty affordable.
-----
Written next morning:
'Course there really weren't too many other options at the time. Take the situation right before Legends came out: Fireball, Disintegrate, Lightning Bolt, Earthquake, Orcish Artillery. That's Red's burn, all of it. Lightning Bolt is clearly the most efficient of the lot.
Compare it to the other options: With artifacts you had the Rod of Ruin (4 mana for 1 damage). Period. Then Arabian added Aladdin's Ring (8 for 4) and Antiquities brought the ever popular rocket launcher (2 for 1). Stepping out of Red you've got Drain life (1 for 1 and gain life) and Cuombajj Witches (tap: you and opponent each deal 1 damage) in black; Volcanic Eruption (1 for 1), Psychic Blast (3 mana for 4 damage plus you take 2 yourself), Prodigal Sorcerer (3 for 1 damage reusable), and Pirate Ship (5 for 1 damage reuseable) in blue; Hurricane is the only green DD at 1:1.
Lightning bolt outclassed nearly every other style of direct damage of its day. Drain life came close purely because of the gain life added on. In terms of killing though, the bolt was tops. Everything close to as efficient had drawbacks, and most stuff as powerful (3 damage) was either way more expensive, or also had a drawback, like psionic blast. I still don't think it was broken, I just think it was one of the top cards.
Also, a few other things people used to kill with bolts regularly which shock wouldn't have been able to deal with had it been around: Rukh Eggs (our own), Mammoths, Pirate Ships, grounded Primal Clay's and Sengir Vampires (after it blocked something or was blocked and expected to grow). Now I'll admit that the mammoths and primal clay's may have been unique to my experiences because not to many other people played with them, but I had it happen to me a bunch.
[Edited by Nyx on 11-14-00 at 12:14 PM]