Card of the Day - October, 2009 | MAGIC: THE GATHERING

By Wizards of the Coast

All Hallow's Eve – Legends rare. All Hallow's Eve was originally printed as a sorcery, errata-ed to an enchantment, and then turned back into a sorcery that used the technology from the suspend mechanic. However, instead of suspend's time counters, All Hallow's Eve goes for flavor with scream counters.

Incremental Growth – Lorwyn uncommon. Incremental Growth is part of a loose ongoing series of "cone" cards, which includes Incremental Blight and, of course, Cone of Flame.

Dragon Mask – Visions uncommon. The art for Dragon Mask was originally intended for Crimson Hellkite, but it just wasn't dynamic enough. So the Mirage team created the idea of a mask that looks like a dragon so the art would have a home.

Haunting Echoes – Odyssey rare. In Odyssey playtesting, there was a time when haunting Echoes didn't contain the words "other than basic lands". Playtesting with the same set's Traumatize soon fixed that.

Headless Horseman – Legends common. Here's something cool: everyone that posts their Magic Online account name in the "Halloween Tricks for Treats" thread (NOT the blog comments section) by 2 pm PDT/2100 UTC on October 28th will be awarded one Headless Horseman promo card. This Legends card has not been released on Magic Online, so here is your first chance to collect him!

Torch Slinger – Zendikar common. By an interesting "coincidence", the two mana that it costs to kick Torch Slinger and deal 2 damage to a creature is very similar to the two mana it would cost to play and equip an actual Blazing Torch.

Umara Raptor – Zendikar common. One of the challenges Mark Rosewater set for competitors in the Pro Tour–Austin edition of "Question Mark" was to list a Zendikar card beginning with each letter of the alphabet (except for X and Y, which don't have any). One of the trickier letters was U, which has only Unstable Footing and Umara Raptor.

Punishing Fire – Zendikar uncommon. Punishing Fire can return to hand whenever an opponent gains life for any reason. Looking for a way to abuse that? Consider forcing the life gain, via cards like Grove of the Burnwillows or Invigorate!

Sphinx of Jwar Isle – Zendikar rare. On the Pro Tour, Sphinx of Jwar Isle is popular because it has shroud, protecting it from Terminate and Maelstrom Pulse. But it's popular on the coverage team for three little words:At. Any. Time. If you had one, you could be looking at the top card of your library right now.

Vampire Hexmage – Zendikar uncommon. As we learned over the weekend, Vampire Hexmage combos well with Dark Depths. But think outside the box! It also works with Phyrexian Etchings and Aboroth, and it's an absolutely brutal card against B-I-N-G-O!

Exhaustion – Ninth Edition uncommon. Exhaustion is what happens when you're already tired. If someone isn't quite tired enough, you can always cast Sleep to push them over the edge.

Sengir Bats – Homelands common. The Sengir Bats aren't just "bats that happen to live on the grounds of Castle Sengir. They're actually all under the direct control of Baron Sengir himself, who can see through their eyes!

Chromatic Star – Tenth Edition uncommon. Chromatic Star is almost identical to Chromatic Sphere, except that it got a wording change to fix an obscure hiccup caused by the timing of the card draw on the sphere.

Steamcore Weird – Guidpact common. There are only three Weirds in Magic, and they're all in Guildpact. But if they were more common, they wouldn't be all that weird, would they?

Musician – Ice Age rare. Even after Musician leaves play, the costs associated with the music counters have to be paid. Based on Obsidian Fireheart, we can assume that if Musician were printed today, it would say "The music continues to play".

Geyser Glider – Zendikar uncommon. The terrain of Zendikar is constantly undergoing upheavals and changes. The Geyser Glider has adapted to that environment, so when an unexpected lava geyser shoots it into the air, it casually spreads its wings and uses the height to improve its hunting area.

Grazing Gladehart – Zendikar common. Grazing Gladehart is not spelled Gladeheart. It's "hart", as in the name for a male deer. It's a deer, grazing in a glade. See?

Ob Nixilis, the Fallen – Zendikar mythic rare. Ever wonder what Ob Nixilis was before he became The Fallen? The flavor text gives a hint, mentioning that he's lost his spark. Was Ob Nixilis once a planeswalker?

Shoal Serpent – Zendikar common. The Shoal Serpent's head looks a little odd, doesn't it? That's because at the moment we see it in the art, it's upside down! The eyes are onthe bottom, and the tongue is on the top!

Eternity Vessel – Zendikar mythic rare. Here's a "great" combo: First, cast Eternity Vessel when you're at a reasonable amount of life, like 15 or so. Then slam Lich on the table. Now every time you play a land, you'll draw however many cards your life was at! At fifteen cards per land, winning is left as an exercise for the student.

Sea Gate Loremaster – Zendikar rare. The Lighthouse at Sea Gate is the center of learning for explorers in Zendikar, and it sits in Tazeem, the homeland of the merfolk. The loremaster knows things that even the library does not contain.

Guul Draz Vampire – Zendikar common. In Guul Draz, vampires aren't the monsters; they're the citizens. The vampire homeland is a humid region of teeming lagoons and tangled, fetid swamps, but that isn't always enough to deter daring treasure-seekers from the dangerous land.

Posted in Feature on October 1, 2009

Card of the Day - October, 2009

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