Avacyn Restored Primer

No fancy setup, no pics, no links.

Just raw data this time around.  Wasnt even going to do this but this is mainly for myself to check back on prices and such.  If you get some knowledge or entertainment out of it thats great and all, but I'm pretty much done trying to impress others and instead I'm just going to use this for research purposes.

Avacyn, Angel of Hope
Current Price $14.99
Short Term $10-12
Long Term $8-15

Notes: Reanimation target.  Not impressive, but that might change next rotation.

Bonfire of the Damned
Current Price $5.99 and out of stock
Short Term $4-6
Long Term $2-4

Notes: Powerful miracle, way overpriced otherwise.  Great for fighting off lingering souls tokens either way.

Bruna, Light of Alabaster
Current Price $5.99
Short Term $4-7
Long Term $4-6

Notes: Commander.  No noteworthy auras in standard currently, but might be of use if some auras break out.  Otherwise meh for standard

Entreat the Angels
Current Price $5.99 and out of stock
Short Term $3-5
Long Term $2-4

Notes: Horrible anytime in the early time.  Worse than Decree of Justice nearly all the time.  Limited uses in standard.

Gisela, Blade of Goldnight
Current Price $7.99 and i dont know why
Short Term $3-5
Long Term $3-5

Notes: Decent commander.  Fair reanimation target.  Feels like too much of a gamble since she's so weak to nearly all removal.

Griselbrand
Current Price $9.99
Short Term $7-9
Long Term $6-9

Notes: Reanimation of course.  I wrote off that draw 7 until I seen it in action.  It does some major work. Interested to see what becomes of it.


Misthollow Griffin
Current Price $4.99
Short Term $4-6
Long Term $4-6

Notes: Two uses in legacy already, pitch to force of will or use in food chain combo.  Laughs at O-Ring.  Seems like a solid contender to me. 

Sigarda, Host of Herons
Current Price $14.99
Short Term $10-15
Long Term $10-25

Notes: Superb in Commander.  Green Sun Zenith target.  Laughs at Barter in Blood, Liliana, Geth's Verdict, Killing Wave, Tribute to Hunger, etc.  Hard to deal with her!  Great card all around and will hold some value or tick up later on.

Tamiyo, the Moon Sage
Current Price $39.99
Short Term $25-35
Long Term $15-20

Notes: Love this card but I've seen it enough to know better: shes way overpriced.  Look forward to seeing it do some work in U/G Ramp/tempo

Temporal Mastery
Current Price $39.99
Short Term $39.99
Long Term $30-50

Notes: Pretty safe bet that this card will do some damage to legacy, up to and including bannings if needed.  Brainstorm might finally end up banned thanks to this guy.  Strong in standard too if in the right shell.

Tibalt, The Fiend Blooded
Current Price $24.99
Short Term $20
Long Term $8-15

Notes: It's all about the +1.  The other ablities dont matter at all.  Can you use the cards in your graveyard?  Does it matter that its random?  I would discount this but the fact that its only 2 mana is the only reason i will give this guy a shot.

Cavern of Souls
Current Price $24.99
Short Term $20-30
Long Term $15

Notes: This card upsets me.  Maybe M13 and Ravinca will have answers.  Either way, standard will be miserable for a while thanks to this+titans.

Aftermath Spoilers: Inuyasha Alternate Arts.

Aftermath is the final set in the Weathered Hope block, and its in the polish stage (all cards are finished but require spellchecking, grammar, rules check, rewording, etc.).  If you dont already know, every card in Aftermath is part of a cycle (aka the Titans) in one way or another.  One such cycle has been dubbed, "The Inuyasha Cycle".  These are altered names and art of preexisting cards I had in a random database, resurrected for this fun and special cycle.

Enjoy.

While it's important to note that you'll get the
+1/+1 bonus immediately after casting this,
its also important to know that because of
the wording, it will not stack if more
Adamant Barrage end up in the graveyard.

It's a powerful shielding effect on borrowed
time, but 5 turns should buy you enough
time to get back into the game.

A more potent pyroclasm that has an ill
side effect.  Usable in quick decks, but the longer
the game goes the more that side effect matters.

4 mana destroy target creature is probably fair
enough.  Dark Banishing was 3 and couldnt
hit black creatures.  Gaining 4 life is just gravy.
But the best part is that you get to tutor it up
when casting Iron Reaver.

This card was the perfect fit to start the cycle.
Potent effect, and a nice "scarring" aftermath.

Let's face it, you are playing this just for the
tutoring effect.  The packaged deal is nice for
the price, otherwise this is a lackluster card.

Bitter Turmoil - Complete Spoiler: Multicolor

Well, its a Lightning Blast.  Well, its a lot more than
that actually, as it could cantrip and it also
can help exile any forgotten cards that your opponent
could be stacking up against you.  So, if
red and purple is a viable deck, this card will be
in it.

Feels like careful study, but with a safety net.
If you pitched cards you couldnt flashback or animate
with careful study, those cards were pretty much gone.
With forget, you can stack useful cards in your forgotten
pile to cheat into play later, or just stuff some cards you
do not need at the moment and just save them for later.

Leave it to me to recreate Totem Armor as
a negative effect.

Superb sideboard stuff+awesome art= Nifty card.

Goofy card that doesnt fit into the quick
stratgem that goblin decks often have.
It does, however, work well in the late game.

Well, you wanted one, so here you are.
Nearly immortal and boosting your other gobbies
should make this guy a fine addition to your goblin deck.

Rejuvenate is a "Super Lifelink" ability that
I used a lot when Bitter Turmoil and Aftermath
were in their infancy.  I had to cut most of it,
and decided to keep this card in order to appease
those green/white players out there.

This is one of those few cards that I made a
long time ago and never had to change.  I love
how simple and effective it is.  A potentially
backbreaking card to be on the opposing side of.

This was the first card of Bitter Turmoil.  I used
it originally in Weathered Hope to appeal to
the "thinkers" out there that like to build decks
around complex cards such as this one.  I decided to
pull it from Weathered Hope once I knew I was doing
purple in Bitter Turmoil.  But, at that point, I didnt know
exactly what purple would be doing, all I knew
is that it involved complexity.  To sum things up,
it didnt feel like it felt like a purple card once the
Forget mechanic came into the picture, so I just kept it
the way that you see it today.  If you enjoy deckbuilding
crazy stuff, this one is for you.
(PS if you really need a hint as to why this is good, just
start with the Duration mechanic or Cumulative upkeep)

I know I know hes a Garruk Ripoff.  But thats
for a good reason.  Garruk was probably the most
balanced walker out there, so why not throw a
look-alike into the fray of this awesome set?

Craziness.  He not only works well with his master,
he holds his own just fine as well.  So many
options and all of them are good.

How is a reverse rewind any good?  It is
freaking Counterspell guys!  Maybe 10% of the
time they will embarrass you by playing another
spell with that mana you gave them but most of the
time this is indeed Counterspell!

Just had to have a Myr.  This one is Sacir's pet
and he follows suit with his ablities.

The most supported walker in this set by far.
The angel of death Sacir banishes everything
your opponent has, from their hand to their life total.
If that wasnt enough, how about erasing their
ENTIRE board with his ultimate?

Powerful on his own, and even more lethal
with Sacir.  If you need life, force your opponent to
draw and then use Sacir's plus ability!

Drains the foes life quickly and plays well with
Missive.  Does a ton of damage in Multiplayer.

Running blue/red artifacts?  (for some weird reason?)
This card was made with you in mind!

Super mega elf!  Bonus: You can cheat this guy
in turn three with the Green Planeswalker, Lork!

Thats a messed up looking sphinx! 

Ups and downs

Dark Ascension has hit, and while it was overall a very disappointing set, it did introduce a few new cards that may or may not warp standard.  Here are a few of the hyped cards, and I examine each one to see if the hype is real.

Sorin, Lord of Innistrad
Starting Price: $59.99
Current Price: $49.99
SCG buylist price: $25.00

Sorin is the most tricky card in Dark Ascension to evaluate price wise.  B/W tokens is indeed overhyped, at least until Ratchet Bomb and Sword of War and Peace rotates.  In any case, Sorin is a powerful but not broken card.  He feels like a $25-$30 card to me, but if the rumors are true, then Dark Ascension will be like Worldwake, which means there are less packs available and therefore less packs cracked.  This will shoot the price up, and if B/W tokens becomes a real contender post Scars, then Sorin will surely become a $50-$60 card.

Final Verdict: Pick these up right now if you ever plan on playing B/W tokens.  If you are iffy about B/W tokens, but still want the Sorins, wait a few months and pick them up when they dip. 

Huntmaster of the Fells
Starting Price: $19.99
Current Price: $14.99
SCG buylist price: $5.00

Well, it's no secret that Huntmaster is fixing to plummet in price.  If SCG is offering $5.00 trade in credit, then its safe to say Huntmaster will be dropping to $9.99 very soon.  That said, Huntmaster has to be the most surprising card in this set.  I had a chance to test it out in a RUG type deck recently and I was very impressed with the way it just dominates the game if your opponent cannot remove it quickly.  I would be willing to compare its power to even the likes of Hero of Bladehold. 

Final Verdict: Huntmaster will dip in price, but I recommend picking them up once they do.  It's a fine green sun's zenith target, and once Scars rotates, I see this guy stepping up into the spotlight.


Grafdigger's Cage
Starting Price: $9.99
Current Price: $5.99
SCG buylist: $2.00

If we go by my theory on SCG buylist prices, then if this goes to $3.99, then this card will have been the most overhyped card of the set.  More than a 50% depreciation in less than 2 weeks marks this card as a huge overhype, and many people who preordered this in playsets are shooting themselves in the foot right now.  That said, this is a very solid sideboard card in legacy vs dredge.  Time will tell if it will impact standard at some point.  Being an artifact is a huge downside, since we have Ancient Grudge in standard, Red/green decks can trade just one card for 2 of these. 

Final Verdict: It might be worth picking up a pair of these when they hit 4 bucks.  I would not over invest into these, however, since the disadvantage of being an artifact is a quite the liability these days.

Bone to Ash

Price isn't really an issue here, but I just wanted to point out that this card exists.  I think this is as close to Dismiss as we are going to get.  Every deck is going to run creatures in some fashion or another, so this should be at least a 1 of in your control decks.  Being able to negate their whole turn and punish them by making them go down a card and you maintaining your card advantage is nothing to scoff at. 

Final Verdict: This is the best Anti-titan card, hands down.  A fine 1-of, and you should make room for 1 or 2 in your board.

Strangleroot Geist
Starting Price: $0.99
Current Price: $1.99
SCG buylist: $0.10

Even though the price on him went up, he is extremely overhyped.  Yes, he might find a home at some point, but he has two places right now: Birthing Pod and Mono-Green.  He's great in Pod but in tri-color decks how often does he hit turn 2?  Turn 3?  And he's one of the strongest plays in Mono-Green, but Mono-Green just doesn't have enough cards to make it right now. 

Final Verdict: I see this card being a true player in 6 months, but right now you need to store him on a dusty shelf and don't fall for the trap.


Snapcaster Mage
Starting Price: $29.99
Current Price: $29.99
SCG buylist: $17.50

This guy is the real deal.  Even I didn't think he would impact standard the way he has.  I do think that he is mostly played in standard so once he rotates, he will drop like a rock in price, but if you plan on playing standard for the next 2 years, you better jump on the snapcaster wagon and shell out $120 for your playset.

Final Verdict: A huge player in all formats, and used more than Jace 2.0 was in standard.  You aren't going to be able to get around playing $30 for the best card in standard, so just buy them now.

Extended Economical EDH

Hey guys, some of you already know about this, but this will be helpful for you anyways in case a question comes up. 

Anyways, some friends and I have been toying around with a way to get some use out of our old cards (we have a ton of zendikar) and have been wanting to get into Commander/EDH but a lot of the staple cards are too expensive.  The solution we came up with is called Triple E: Extended Economical EDH.

Extended: Extended is dead, right?  Well not in this format.  This means we will be using cards from the two current blocks (right now that is Scars and Innistrad).  Since it is extended, we will extend that by the two previous blocks (Zendikar and Shards of Alara).  As far as Core sets, we will use M10 and forward.  This may rotate with Alara, and it may just remain M10+.  That's up to us.  One exception to this rule is that everyone may use the card Command Tower, which comes with any Commander deck and was not released in any set.  The group has also decided to include Spell Crumple has another exception, so you may include one copy of Spell Crumple in your decks as well.  This card is exclusive to the WotC released Commander decks.  It is currently under review by the members of the group if we can use any card that is exclusive to those decks, and I will post it up when a decision has been reached.  The good thing about this is that it lets us use those cards that might just be sitting around, and thats what this idea is based around.  It also gives us access to some important tools for Commander, like mana fixers and ways to get rid of commanders, like Spell Crumple.  The bad, is that this will cause confusion as to what cards are usable from Commander.  It also is semi counter productive to our plan to use our Zendikar block cards that we have so much of.

Economical: Besides your commander, no card in your deck can be worth more than $9.99 on starcitygames.com.  Now, prices will increase and decrease, so if you put a Koth of the Hammer into your EDH deck when he is worth $7.99, then he goes up to $12.99 over a month's time, then you will have a 30 day grace period in which you can change it out or wait it out.  If it seems that your card is stuck at an over $9.99 price tag, then you'll need to replace it in order to make the format fair for everyone.  Your commander can have any price, since there are only so many commanders.

EDH: You will build a deck of 99 cards, all of which besides basic land must have a different name.  No running 4 mana leaks in this format.  You will also choose a Commander, who basically decides what color(s) your deck can run.  For example, if "Grimgrin, Corpse-Born", a black and blue creature, is my commander, then I can run cards like Mana Leak(blue), Doom Blade(black), and Evil Twin (blue and black).  I cannot run cards like Oblivion Ring(white), Copperline Gorge(red/green), Sulfur Falls(blue/red) or Geist of Saint Traft(white/blue).  Basically, if the card has a mana symbol anywhere on it that does not match your commander, you ain't playing it. 

EDH also has a banned list, which most of are not relevant.  However as needed we will take votes on cards that are deemed too powerful.  So far the cards that are banned are:

Triple E Banlist:
- Emrakul, the Aeons Torn
- Jace the Mind Sculptor (which I doubt would ever drop below $10)

That's pretty much it.  Remember:
- Anything from Alara+ is fine for now.
- You can use a copy of Command Tower
- You can use a copy of Spell Crumple
- No non-commander cards worth more than $9.99
- EDH format, modifed banlist.

Any questions?  Any comments? Post below!

Decks of Dark Ascension: W/b Tokens

Here is my current build of a simple token deck, with a slight black splash.  No green splash in this varient.  If I build the W/b/g build I will post it up on here.

Main Deck:
4 Blade Splicer - Bread and butter token card.  Apply early pressure and sometimes just outright win with this potent creature.
4 Doomed Traveler - Our one drop.  Nothing special, but your opponent sure doesnt want to kill it!
3 Elspeth Tirel - Our end curve bomb.  If you set her up properly, her -2 will be very lethal.
1 Geist-Honored Monk - Another 5 drop.  Doesnt seem nearly as good as Elspeth, but I threw one in to spice it up.
1 Grave Titan - My infamous "one-of"
2 Hero of Bladehold - Powerhouse, but competes with Sorin as a 4 drop.  Sorin usually wins that battle, so I dropped her down to 2.
4 Sorin, Lord of Innistrad - Cornerstone of the deck, along with lingering souls.  I plan to 99% of the time use his -2 when he hits.

1 Honor of the Pure - Iffy, but it does boost over half of the deck, and you never want to go without an anthem effect.
4 Intangible Virtue - Essential
4 Lingering Souls - Cornerstone.  So much value for so little resources.
2 Midnight Haunting - Lingering souls 5 and 6, with the added benefit of being instant.
2 Mortarpod - So powerful with Vault of the Archangel.
2 Oblivion Ring - Basic Removal
2 Shrine of Loyal Legions - Gonna toy around with this, I dont like it but we are short on 2 drops so it makes the cut for now.

1 Evolving Wilds - Random one of to fix mana and thin deck.
4 Isolated Chapel - Essential
11 Plains
6 Swamp
3 Vault of the Archangel - People are running 2, 3 and 4.  I dont ever want more than 1.  But I want 1 for every game that goes long.  I think 3 is the correct number.

Dark Ascension: How the mythics stack up...

As of posting, there are 10 of 10 mythics spoiled for Dark Ascension.  I'm going to review these mythics and see which ones are over hyped and which ones have potential.

I'd imagine you will feel the same remorse
akin to pulling a Time Reversal when you pull
a Beguiler of Wills.

Beguiler of Wills
Current Price: $2.49
Future Price: $1.50-$2.50

Beguiler of Wills is what we call a bulk mythic, and shes really the worse kind.  She does nothing backbreaking in limited unlike most other bulk mythics, and she will not touch standard.  Sure, casual players and EDH players (well, aren't they really one in the same?) will eat this up, but to those of us that like to actually bust open packs and get some value when we pull a mythic, this one will disappoint.  Final Verdict: Bulk Mythic junk.

Drogskol Reaver

Current Price: $9.99

Future Price: $2-$4

I have no clue why this guy is hyped the way that he is.  He is like a Baneslayer mixed with a worse version of Consecrated Sphinx, for 7 mana and forces you into blue/white.  He seems weaker than a Titan, and when you want a Consecrated Sphinx effect, you'd be better off with the original.  You have to connect to get the cards, and Sphinx just gives them to you on your opponents upkeep.  Sure, you can unburial this, but you aren't speeding things up since this guy should only cost 6 mana at the most. Final Verdict: Some will try to use this at first, and shortly after he will be a thing of the past.  Nice bomb to pull at the prerelease, however.

Falkenrath Aristocrat

Current Price: $8.99

Future Price: $4-$10

Falkenrath Aristocrat is a solid card.  She does not pass the "Gut Shot" test, and depending on the popularity of that card, this card may not see the light of day.  This guy has a lot of potential, including some cool combat tricks, however, the fact that you have to sac humans to get real value is offputting.  You normally aren't going to run many humans in a red/black deck right now, so most of the time you'll just be getting a 4/1 hasted flyer for four.  Still not a bad deal, but not mythic quality.  Final Verdict: Outclassed in almost every way by Olivia.  I like this card, but I still don't see much upwards potential.

Havengul Lich
Current Price: $14.99
Future Price: $4-8

Full of flavor, but might be a little trickier
to pull off then we think.

This is a really cool one.  People are already coming up with combos for it, including the infinite loop with Heartless Summoning and Perilous Myr.  The important things to remember are: 1) You still have to pay the mana costs for the card you are rezzing.  For example, if you pay 1 mana, target Grave Titan, then you'll have to pay another 6 mana, and 2) You still can only cast the creatures as a sorcery.  One of the problems with this card is that it must compete with many other cards that actually do something when they hit the battlefield.  More than likely, you wont have the mana to put his ability to use the turn he hits, so you'll have to wait until the next turn.  Even then, his ability only really shines when you run out of cards in hand and stuff to do, since he will likely strap all of your mana down.  The combo idea is cute, but 3 card combos are not practical in this format since we have limited resources that will search for those pieces.  Final Verdict: Cute card, oozing with flavor.  Has hopes of standard play, but it has its drawbacks.

Huntmaster of the Fells/Ravager of the Fells

Current Price $17.49

Future Price $5-$12

Cards that transform are nice, but a good way to evaluate them is to just assume they never transform.  I mean, 90% of the time they'll either die or they just wont transform.  Let's see what we get at face value.  A 2/2 for 4 mana, and that mana is red and green so that might restrict what decks it can go in.  You get a 2/2 wolf, and you also gain 2 life.  Not bad.  I would expect more from a mythic though. 

Now on the flip side we get no more tokens, but we get a tougher creature in the form of a 4/4, plus we have a mini "Searing Blaze" effect to boot.  Final Verdict: All in all, he's pretty solid, but you usually want more bang for your buck, and this card combines a lack of value with a gamble aspect, and the big jackpot is rather disappointing, especially for a mythic dual color.

Moonveil Dragon

Current Price $2.49

Future Price $1.49

If this card were only rare, would it be a 4/4
for 7 mana?

DAMN BULK MYTHIC DRAGONS STOP IT STOP IT STOP IT STOP IT STOP IT STOP ITSTOP IT STOP IT STOP ITSTOP IT STOP IT STOP ITSTOP IT STOP IT STOP ITSTOP IT STOP IT STOP ITSTOP IT STOP IT STOP ITSTOP IT STOP IT STOP ITSTOP IT STOP IT STOP ITSTOP IT STOP IT STOP ITSTOP IT STOP IT STOP ITSTOP IT STOP IT STOP ITSTOP IT STOP IT STOP ITSTOP IT STOP IT STOP ITSTOP IT STOP IT STOP ITSTOP IT STOP IT STOP ITSTOP IT STOP IT STOP ITSTOP IT STOP IT STOP ITSTOP IT STOP IT STOP IT  Final Verdict: STOP IT!!!!!!! </QQ

Sorin, Lord of Innistrad

Current Price: $59.99

Future Price: $20-$40

My first thought was, why white?  I thought back a bit, remembered his name the flavor text on the Zendikar edition of Day of Judgment, remembered the role he played in Rise of the Eldrazi, and the bond that he shared with Nissa.  I shrugged, and decided to just roll with it.  I'm pretty partial to Black/White as a color combo, so maybe I can swallow this a bit better than some of you others. 

But let's talk about the card itself.  I'm going to allude it to the likes of Elspeth, Knight Errant, a solid card in its time, and if Sorin stacks up, then we will have us quite the winner.  Like Elspeth, he costs 4 mana (albeit one of them is black) and starts with 3 loyalty.  While Elspeth had two +1 abilities, Sorin has only 1.  The first one is recognizable: it puts a 1/1 into play.  But Sorin actually goes one step further and gives it lifelink, a nice little bonus.  I'll just write that off as payment for the demand of two colors.  The next abilities of both walkers differ a bit, but they both play the same role: they enhance your creatures.  Elspeth had an additional +1 that gave a creature +3/+3 and flying, until the end of the turn.  Sorin does something really unique.  He puts a stackable emblem that gives a permanent attack bonus to all of your creatures.  Forever.  Emblems cannot be messed with whatsoever.  Now, I dont know if I would pay 4 mana for an effect like that, but I do know that having that option is greatly welcome with all of the 1/1 lifelinkers you'll have in play.  Now for the ultimates, I cant even compare.  Elspeth had a very expensive and usually non-impactive ultimate that I never used.  Sorin, on the other hand, has a game reversing, backbreaking ultimate that will usually spell game for your enemies.  My goal is to steal a Karn, Liberated with this move.  Final Verdict: Sorin no doubt stacks up to be the chase mythic of the set.  He will see play, but his home is undetermined at this point.  The power is there, but will the two enemy colors be an issue? 

Vorapede

Current Price: $7.49

Future Price: $2-4

Undying is a pretty cool ability.  It is like a better version of persist in my opinion.  Instead of a weaker version coming back from the dead this version is stronger than ever.  And they all combo with hex parasite, which steals the counters from them and keeps them alive virtually forever.  They already spoiled an uncommon 2/1 haste with undying for 2 mana.  Green.  So naturally I was excited to see what they cooked up for a mythic with undying.  Instead, we got this fail of a mythic.  I would be ok with this card being an uncommon.  And at rare, I could write it off as a bulk rare.  But no, we seem to have a need to make nearly every mythic for Dark Ascension a failure.  Oh well.  I really have nothing good to say about this.  I just wish that it said haste where it says vigilance.  Final Verdict: I just cant see this beating the 5 drop spots that we currently have, like Garruk, Primal Hunter or Acidic Slime.  I'm sure it will see play as a one of in BirthingPod.dec but that should be the end of it.

Helvault

Current Price: Around $5 on ebay.

Future Price: $2-4

Helvault.  Pretty cool name huh?  But, does it follow the cycle of being a crappy mythic in Dark Ascension?  In short - yes.  It feels akin to Oblivion Stone, in where you can store some of your creatures inside and then wipe the board (which oblivion stone did on its own, with this new card you will have to find a way to wipe the board on your own).  You can also take a other route with it, you can just use it to exile all of your foes creatures.  Over and over again.  The problem with this lies in the fact that it is an artifact.  Artifacts die.  Especially in this format, where we tend to run many maindeck solutions to artifacts.  Green has a plethora, like Bramblecrush, Acidic Slime, and Beast Within, all which can be easily found in maindecks.  Red might not be running Oxidda Scrapmelters and Manic Vandals main deck (which I have personally ran Manics main before) but after sideboard they have these options and so much more (Ancient Grudge, anyone?) I cant help but point out that you would almost always want a Karn, Liberated, or even a Spine of Ish Sah over this card if that is your intentions.

One thing I would like to mention is the wording on this card, which I can't help but think it is an error, but its the way it is, so lets find us some loopholes!  It does indeed state that if it is put into graveyard, then that is when all 'Hel' is unleashed.  But what if it was exiled?  Then, according to the wording, all of those things are pretty much gone forever, for good and bad.  For example, lets say you are putting 'fate counters' on your own creatures, sucking them into the vault.  Later, you'll intend to wipe the board, then somehow destroy the vault yourself and unleash your stored creatures onto the battlefield.  (Lame combo, btw peoples.) So, what if right after you wipe the board, your foe uses Oblivion Ring on Helvault?  Yup, that means all of your stuff is gone.  Forever.  If Oblivion Ring is destroyed later on and Helvault reenters the battlefield, it does not remember what it exiled, since it itself was exiled and now is essentially a fresh copy.  Now, on the flip side, you can use this knowledge to your advantage.  Say, you have exiled your opponents Wurmcoil Engine and Inferno Titan with Helvault.  Now, all they have to do to get their cards back into play and kill you is destroy the Helvault.  But what if you exiled it before they are able to destroy it?  For example, you could do this with your own Oblivion Ring or even -3 with Karn, Liberated.  That would basically exile them forever, according to the wording on this card.  Magical Christmas land aside, this is a difficult process to actually make all of this work and to me it seems like a waste of time.  I just wanted to point out how this card works and that the loopholes might actually be relevant at some point or another, and its important that we know how it actually works, even if we never plan on using it.  Final Verdict: This Oblivion Stone wanna-be does not stack up.  It's two ablities are controversial to each other, giving this card less options than it seems.  It's also easy for your opponent to control how it is used.  Aside from some fringe play in Tezz.dec, this card is going straight to the mythic dump bin.

Mikaeus, the Unhallowed

Current Price: $7.99

Future Price: $5-10

This guy is pretty nifty.  Lots of flavor and pretty good value.  Sadly, it costs 6, and therefore we must compare it to Grave Titan.  Card by card, Grave Titan is much stronger and almost all of the time, its the card you want.  That's not saying Mikaeus isn't good.  In fact, I think he is one of the better mythics in this set.  He will see value in many ways, from EDH (pick up foil versions of this card ASAP, they will bring a pretty penny) to block, to standard.  That's not to mention when and if Grave Titan doesn't see a reprint in M13, then this guy will be the premier black 6 drop.  I think Mikaeus will be very strong in a couple of niche decks to start with.  He seems amazing in Heartless summoning, where his lord boost counteracts the -1/-1 from Heartless.  Hitting him turn 4 seems good as well.  Very possible to see him in zombies as well, as a bunch of 3/3 undying zombies just seems frightening.  One more deck you might find him in is Black/White tokens, where you make a crap ton of weak tokens that are bulked up with the likes of Intangible Virtue and this guy.  Final Verdict: It's going to take some time and some work, but don't write Mikaeus off yet.  He just might surprise you.

That's all of the Mythics for this set, unless they surprise us and do 11 instead of 10.  If you guys want me to review the rares from this set, leave feedback!  If I write all of this and get nothing back in return, it seems pointless to stay on a schedule and get this content out to you if you can't do your part!