Aether Revolt Limited Mailbag Questions
Added 2017-02-15 01:44:30 +0000 UTCHey All,
Luis and I are going to talk AER on the show tonight. We want to touch on some re-review type topics but I thought it may be good to take the pulse of our vibrant community (that's you) to see what you want to hear about.
So. Are there any cards we need to discuss now that we've had the set for a while? Are there any big stumbling blocks you are facing? Are any of the assumptions we had going in proving to be untrue or needing of change? What has you confused still?
Fire away here and when I get back from my basketball game I'll pick questions for the show.
Thanks as always,
Marshall
Comments
I don't know if you're the same, but for some reason, Magic Online used to make me super nervous. I'd almost have a panic attack before the first match, and then feel better about halfway through the first game. This did not happen to me in person for whatever reason... I guess you feel less nervous when you can see your opponent. Anyway, I got over it by playing at least one match a day. I still get nervous but it's not debilitating anymore.
Adam Olsen
2017-02-17 19:49:07 +0000 UTCReally appreciate the teaching (and the trolling) that happens on the show. A couple of questions. 1. How many main deck artifact removal spells are appropriate? 2. How highly would you take removal? aka, how many removal spells is too many? I find that if I don't take removal immediately, I never see any. 3. Level up question - How does one improve at knowing the picks/reading signs. Is it just repetition of drafting and playing to know where you value the cards or is it based more on pick orders. I find myself debating if I am taking a weaker card in my color or if I should be looking to change colors. Thank you for doing the show.
Kari Malsom
2017-02-16 00:51:49 +0000 UTCWhat do you guys think could have been done to fix revolt in this format, was it that the payoff wasn't good enough or that the enablers were too inconsistent, or could if be that the format was fast enough that playing and cracking implements was too slow for what revolt gave you? Also with the amount of X/1s in this format do some of the one sided board sweeps look better i.e. Make obsolete or the black hornet in AER. Love the show currently listening to the old episodes on 104 now,
Andrew J Dufour
2017-02-15 22:50:47 +0000 UTCHi Marshall and Luis, thanks for the great content. I was curious to see that team cfb had consulate dreadnaught rated quite highly in their team meeting. I've always found that the card does very little other than tapping for improvise. I was wondering if you know what their reasoning was and whether your opinions on the card have changed?
James Andrew
2017-02-15 22:07:49 +0000 UTCRank all the removal. Also, is Gontai machinations still bad?
Kyoji Takenouchi
2017-02-15 21:11:19 +0000 UTCAfter watching Paul Cheons video on the CFB AER Limited meeting for the Pro Tour I realized how high the pros pick creatures these days. I find it difficult to accept that Daring Demolition is worse than Aether Chaser P1P1 even though I understand the rationale behind it. What are your opinions on where to pick strong creatures versus average to good removal? Do you think people should be picking creatures more highly like Sam Black seems to be doing as well as many others on these pro teams? Love the show, keep doing what you're doing!
Kilian Johnson
2017-02-15 17:01:16 +0000 UTCCan you crew a vehicle with Walking Ballista? Surely then it's not walking any more.
Aston Ramsden
2017-02-15 16:12:03 +0000 UTCHey Marshall and Luis! Love the show, I've got two AER-specific questions for ya. 1. True or false: this is a 16 land format. 2. What does a good Improvise deck look like? I haven't been able to find the balance for it yet, and so I end up with a pile of "good stuff" instead of a synergistic deck.
Seth Fellenstein
2017-02-15 15:55:51 +0000 UTCHey guys, For AER I've been having relative success with draft while struggling in sealed. Perhaps it's because I see this as a fast format (I haven't yet had ANY success with control), so I'm building faster sealed decks which aren't cutting it. I recognize the format slows down a turn or two in sealed but I can't find the balance as of yet. Thoughts on sealed vs draft specific cards in this format? Thanks fellas!
chitobein
2017-02-15 15:45:36 +0000 UTCHi men Listener since Brian I am a 54 year old who discovered this game 4 Years ago through my boys I love It and find it extremely challenging and frustrating 🤔with all the variance I have been drafting more than ever since the creation of leagues I find my local game store experience rewarding In pod matches and varying talent pool makes Me feel that I am improving On line I feel I am often overmatched I have never gone 3-0 My question is: I think my in game play has improved with reps and exposure to the cards I feel my weakness is reading the signs I find my decks ok but appreciate the synergies and strengths of my opponents decks I assume talent level and greater experience by most of my opponents accounts for the difference Any guidance Thanks for making my drive to work enjoyable I appreciate your approach to life and value the humor in this day and age Ed
Edward Galligan
2017-02-15 14:54:10 +0000 UTCGet to know the people you're drafting with. Introduce yourself, get their names, make small talk. It seems you're comfortable playing with your friend, so being on friendly terms with the people you're drafting with will make it feel more casual naturally.
Kevin Goveia
2017-02-15 13:35:50 +0000 UTCHow important are long game resource sinks in this format now? Are some of the weak mana and energy sinks more worthwhile now with the speed of the format?
Greg Holmes
2017-02-15 13:22:22 +0000 UTCCruel Finality: I seem always see this card being passed to be late in the draft (like 5 or 6) and that pushes me towards black. Is this card bad, and therefore I should not read this signal?
Paul Vidal
2017-02-15 10:46:41 +0000 UTC1-Are there any differences between Sealed and Draft on this format? 2-How high do you have Resourceful Return?
Ferran Fons Titos
2017-02-15 09:59:21 +0000 UTCAlso, what's the path to a decent control deck in this format? Mine so far has been 2-4 Daring Demolition plus Bastion Innovators and a big finisher (whale, serpent). Even in drafts I've won though, I rarely feel confident that I've fully "turned the corner" and am topdecking removal to squeak by.
Byron Bean
2017-02-15 07:51:34 +0000 UTCI'd like to hear some comments on Baral's Expertise and any other cards where your evaluation differs greatly from CFB Fire's (loved the cameo btw).
Byron Bean
2017-02-15 07:41:48 +0000 UTCImprovise. In an improvise focused deck, what is a healthy ratio of 1 and 2 cost artifacts to cards with improvise. And then, what are your thoughts on all-in style improvise decks? I'm talking about roughly ~10 1-2 drop artifacts and 6-8 improvise cards. Thanks!
Jaeger
2017-02-15 04:56:47 +0000 UTCWinding Constrictor. Also, I recently got to do a bunch of chaos drafts. I know that this isn't really a topic that you can make any generalizations for because the "format" is always different, but have you ever done a chaos draft? What do you think about them?
Caleb Smith
2017-02-15 04:37:35 +0000 UTCAlso, one more... I feel like the only decks I'm successful with are BG or RU. Are those the best two archetypes? What do you think is next best from there?
David Harbarger
2017-02-15 04:36:15 +0000 UTCI've been really struggling with this format... some of it is variance, I'm sure, but some of it must be me misunderstanding how it works. (For the record I'm ~40% in matches through ~60 matches, off of 60% in matches in kld.) So I guess I have two questions: 1) my aggro decks don't feel fast enough... should I be prioritizing 2- & good 3-drops even higher than I am (basically, even over removal)? Are the best aggro creatures that important in this set? And, 2) How do you reset when you feel like you're just stuck in a rut on a format? Thanks.
David Harbarger
2017-02-15 04:34:17 +0000 UTC[Not AER-specific] What do you look for in re-evaluating cards that look great/amazing on the surface? Lining up power & toughness is one you've cited a lot, but are there other patterns you watch for to be constantly rethinking cards? I often find myself excusing cards like Nahiri's Wrath or Cultivator of Blades, or even something like Long-Finned Skywhale with "this card's still great, it just wasn't great there" for far longer than they deserve.
Ian Keyworth
2017-02-15 03:57:26 +0000 UTCDrafting Green - I notice on MTGO that the only time I actively draft green is when I open a green bomb, or get good green in P1P1 through P1P3 then green almost always dries up but if you keep after it then it eventually opens back up in the last half of pack 2 and pack 3. I think this is because everyone is trying to be green initially and then backs off when they determine it's not open. I'm not saying you can persist green every time based on this, but more saying if you have reason to be green you need to persevere through pack 1?
Aaron C Williamson
2017-02-15 03:52:58 +0000 UTCI am having a hard time determine when to take payoffs vs enablers with Improvise and Revolt cards. I've ended up with decks that are weighted one way or the other, but I'm having a hard time finding that sweet spot. Is there are certain payoffs to enablers ratio that we should be shooting for?
Ben Norris
2017-02-15 03:33:45 +0000 UTCThis is a question that extends beyond AER and isn't something you need to spend much time on, but I'm curious: going forward, we know we'll have Masterpieces in every set. You prepare for Limited in part by knowing what most of the cards do, so do you devote part of your energy, however small, to knowing about the Masterpieces that are absolute bombs? Or do you have a heuristic wherein they're just powerful cards of a certain subtype, and therefore answerable the same way another powerful card of that type would be? This question comes in part from one of my Kaladesh Prereleases. I pulled a Sword of Fire and Ice. It flat-out won me several games, and it also got hit by Fragmentize twice by a prepared/coincidental opponent. I didn't devote head space to SoFaI, but I did have a little devoted to "unusually good equipment."
JeFF Stumpo
2017-02-15 03:24:12 +0000 UTCBlue is always open. Are the blue cards really that bad? I can consistently pick up decent blue commons for my last 7 picks in almost every pack. What gives? Is it worse that I think?
Zack Webb
2017-02-15 03:23:05 +0000 UTCCould y'all talk a bit about Welder Automaton? And maybe how that lines up with the listener questions from last week about mana sinks. Seems to me that using it as a mana sink is not a huge pay off, however I think the card is great. Other cards I wouldn't mind hearing about: Aerial Modification, Alley Evasion, Illusionist's Strategies, and Defiant Salvager. Do you think that RB artifact sac is a viable archetype? Thanks for all your hard work.
Vinny Cavaliere
2017-02-15 03:15:56 +0000 UTCJam games - online and as many drafts as you can... nerves go away as you get comfortable in an environment. The best way to tackle nerves is head on - do the thing that makes you nervous a lot
Aaron C Williamson
2017-02-15 03:14:57 +0000 UTCHey guys, love the show (brightens up my commute once a week) and enjoying this format. Even though it seems mostly correct to always be aggro in Aether Revolt, what would it take for you guys to get into a more non-sense based deck like Efficient Construction, Mechanized Production, or Hidden Stockpile? Any validity to these strategies or do we just need to wait until the format gets stale?
Tyler Spiering
2017-02-15 03:09:48 +0000 UTCI think this is a great question. Reid Dukes level 1 on Line up theory is awesome. I assume that is where you read this but If not it's at the mothership, he has a whole list of level 1 articles that are awesome but I too would like to hear how Marshall and LSV apply this regularly to Limited.
Aaron C Williamson
2017-02-15 03:05:06 +0000 UTCI'm a pretty new player to magic, I play all the time with my friend maybe 3-5 hours a day. I play in drafts only about 2 times a month, and every time I play I choke because of nerves. I forget triggers, and even some of the very basics of Magic. Any advice on how to deal with nerves?
Jesse Kalavoda
2017-02-15 02:55:44 +0000 UTCWhat's the better way to draft the improvise decks? Prioritize the enablers (servo schematic, implements), or the payoffs (bastion inventor, enraged giant)? Also, what cards are you really looking out for in pack 3? I've been overjoyed to see Gearseeker Serpent and the "thriving" creatures.
Dylan Nelkin
2017-02-15 02:50:07 +0000 UTCHi Marshall and Luis, I was wondering if you could talk a bit about Winding Constrictor? I've played against Winding Contrictor decks and seen them played at FNM a couple times, and sometimes, the right cards are drawn, and the deck is brutal, but often times, the deck is far too slow and can be neutralized by a basic aggro deck. I was wondering about your thoughts/experiences of the card and deck? Thank you for your time.
Harry Driscoll
2017-02-15 02:46:49 +0000 UTCYou guys are so down on revolt because 1. The pay off is not great and 2. It's so difficult to trigger. I feel like you guys are forgetting delirium, and how difficult it was to achieve in limited. In comparison revolt is much easier to achieve with rewards that are pretty good (and yes some not so great). This is less of a question, just me trying to get you guys to not be so down on revolt.
Jesse Kalavoda
2017-02-15 02:43:58 +0000 UTCThe only thing that makes me feel that Gx counters isn't easily the best archetype ... is that everyone is trying to draft it. Do you agree?
Christian Manchester
2017-02-15 02:32:32 +0000 UTCHow do I get in on one of these basketball games? We need to hoop at one of these GPs!
Morgan Tomlinson
2017-02-15 02:27:23 +0000 UTCWhat would you say is the speed of this format where 1 is Zendikar and 10 is Ice Age/ROE? To follow up, why are some of the pros having such a hard time with this format?
George Wright
2017-02-15 02:26:49 +0000 UTCThat eagle though!
Christian Manchester
2017-02-15 02:26:08 +0000 UTCHow playable is Conviction, really?
Andy Skinner
2017-02-15 02:19:36 +0000 UTCDo you think it would be a better draft if they went to a 4 pack format? Like 2 AER 2 KLD with the packs alternated of course
Andy Shadow Patron of the Arts and Lover of all things depressing Bentley
2017-02-15 02:17:29 +0000 UTCI really like Mobile Garrison. It does all kinds of neat things, I think. My friends, and the community at large don't seem to like it as much. Is it possible for a card to be better for someone, based on their play style, card evaluation, skill level, etc, than the card is for someone else?
Rob Bovill
2017-02-15 02:17:08 +0000 UTCWhat card(s) could possibly make you ever play white?
kitkat3musk
2017-02-15 02:09:40 +0000 UTCDo you think the draft portion of this format would be improved if the pack order was AER-KLD-AER? Taking improvise (and to a lesser extent revolt) cards in your first two packs isn't interesting or high risk high reward, it's just bad right? Lots of AER cards interact well with KLD (Shelly and puzzle knots for example) and the other way around but back to back AER is like speculating on your last pack which feels bad to do and even worse when it doesn't work out. Obviously there is enough in AER to support its own mechanics but it just feels so awkward to find fabricate at the end of the draft. Just a thought I would like to hear discussed by the both of you. Thank you for all the content.
fahad al-gharaballi
2017-02-15 02:08:42 +0000 UTCWhat are the best color combinations? What are the worst? Worst color? Best color?
Jon
2017-02-15 01:59:23 +0000 UTCYou never got around to grading Scrap Trawler from your rare and mythic review... so what do you think about it?
Jon
2017-02-15 01:59:00 +0000 UTCMarshall seems like you have been struggling with this format (and a lot of pros) Do you like that challenge? Post question: do you also enjoy the challenge of pretending LSV is the better player to boost his ego?
Jonathan Westhoff
2017-02-15 01:56:31 +0000 UTCI've been reading about Lineup Theory and while it seems quite useful for Constructed. How easy is it to apply Lineup Theory in Limited? It seems like you can only apply this once you have played a game with your opponent and have seen a number of their cards. Can you please talk about Lineup Theory as it applies to Limited? Thank you for the Great Podcast. I look forward to it every week.
Terry Rice
2017-02-15 01:52:41 +0000 UTCAre any revolt cards actively good? Is revolt a trap? What artifacts for UR improvise are good, and which still don't carry their weight. Caught in the brights. Do you still rate this card the same? I've found it hard to trigger the vehicle exile clause, and without that it is much worse than Revoke Privileges.
Matthew Hall
2017-02-15 01:51:30 +0000 UTC
