Brother's War Spoilers
Spoilers, Rumors, and Speculation forum
Posted on Sept. 29, 2022, 11:38 p.m. by Hi_diddly_ho_neighbor
Well we got our first sneak peek of Brother's war from WotC. Official spoiler season doesn't start till later in October, but with only a couple cards spoiled so far, I can safely say that WotC is about to make a bunch of money off me.
I mean look at these:
Those old bordered artifacts with the schematic artwork are just beautiful.
Also, the meld mechanic is back and we got one bonkers Urza planeswalker.
TheOfficialCreator says... #3
Oh my lord the Urza planeswalker is insane :o
And those lands... yayyyy
September 30, 2022 8:35 a.m.
Can confirm, Wizards will be taking my money as well. I've been waiting ages for an actual Urza planeswalker and oh boy.
Also EDH useable Mishra is cool!
September 30, 2022 9:58 a.m.
I'm honestly just gushing over the Saheeli Rai art that is spoiled of her making a duplicate cylax...would be great if she has an impactful card in this set.
September 30, 2022 3:46 p.m.
Are the artifact cards like the mystic archives from strixhaven?
September 30, 2022 3:56 p.m.
Ashnod and Gix are getting cards too. So they're taking all of my money now
September 30, 2022 4:33 p.m.
Coward_Token says... #8
I first read it as "Urza, Land Protector" and was quite confused, as he's not very environmentally friendly. Kinda sad that the melding ability isn't what blows up the world but w/e.
Decent Recruiter of the Guard allusion for the never-ending quest for white card advantage. Queen Kayla bin-Kroog is doing the same for boros; Ranger-Captain of Eos and Gavony Dawnguard are going to go up in price.
Surge Engine is part of a cycle I assume. Sorry defender-matters cards!
Kinda want EDH!Mishra to make Assembly-Worker copies but w/e. Kinda funny that he's the more combo-y one while EHD!Urza is more aggro. Note that Mishra can copy legendary artifacts.
September 30, 2022 5:20 p.m.
Beyond hyped for this set. Urza and Mishra cards look awesome and I can't wait to see what Ashnod, Gix and the rest are like!
Sadly, this has to be immediately chased with Transformers cards? Ugh.
September 30, 2022 7:03 p.m.
Coward_Token says... #10
Transformers takes:
I was really annoyed that they insisted on using "convert" for transformation, but turns out there's a funny (in a schadenfraude kind of way) reason for it: https://tfwiki.net/wiki/Transform#.22Transform.22_as_a_verb
I want to like the G1-style card art but it just looks like low-rez screenshots
Feel like Soundwave requiring you to exactly match the MV rather than just saying "equal or less" is needlessly clunky
Starscream should be cheaper seeing as it both gives out card advantage and makes you extra prone to draw aggression
Slicer's converted mode not having double strike is pretty dissapointing seeing as it's what he's going to be attacking with most of the time
Goldbug is a fine azorius human tribal commander, even if it's pretty straightforwardly aggro
Feel like there's little reason to not cast Optimus converted unless you're feeling paranoid
October 1, 2022 4:08 a.m.
Coward_Token says... #11
Oh snap sorry, Slicer actually doesn't convert when you temporarily donate him and Truckminus can't block so there's that.
October 1, 2022 5:12 a.m.
Hi_diddly_ho_neighbor says... #12
Coward_Token - In regards to your Mishra comment, Ugin's Nexus says "hi".
Wow, these transformer cards came way out of left field but I am here for it. I am not bothered by the lower res images since these cards are playing heavily into the 80's cartoon style. My only complaint would be that they are mixing some of the newer transformers in with the old which will likely push out some iconic names (looking at you Goldbug probably replacing Bumblebee). I definitely expect to see Megatron and Hot Rod show up. Seeing Unicron, Shockwave, or Grimlock would also be cool. They won't do it, but it would be hilarious if they included all 6 Constructicons and had them meld into Devastator. I'll 100% be picking up the G1 cards just to have them.
As an aside, we have had 3 very interesting Esper token commanders revealed in the last month between Shockwave, Urza, and Marneus. Definitely a welcome surprise.
October 1, 2022 9:05 a.m.
Coward_Token says... #13
Sadly, the Nexus doesn't work because having multiple ones on the battlefield means that their anti-extra turn abilities block each other's extra turn abilities (otherwise you could just cast multiple ones and have them die to the legend rule)
October 1, 2022 10:58 a.m.
marco-piatti says... #14
I'm all team phyrexia so i know i will end up Building an edh deck based on Gix. Also i love old school card style and artifact matter theme so i'm really hyped about this set.
I also like both new Urza. The precon one will replace as commander the MH one in my "fair" Urza deck since he really boosts artifact creatures and spawns constructs. The "set" one is IMO a fair card overall: nice ability on its own without being broken or a combo enabler/degenerate stuff engine like the modern horizon version. The meld PW is not that easy to achieve, i don't know if you can consistently pull it off in standard. In EDH is probably more easy to get but i wouldn't base an entire strategy on that.. i would probably use the esper one as commander and the PW version as a bonus in the 99.
October 1, 2022 1:34 p.m.
Coward_Token says... #15
The worst thing about Urza, Lord Protector as a commander is that it doesn't partner with The Mightstone and Weakstone, so if the latter gets exiled you're kinda stuck with a bad Grand Arbiter Augustin IV. I think it's still seems pretty fun though. Maybe go for a lot of 1-mana artifacts?
October 1, 2022 3:24 p.m.
Hi_diddly_ho_neighbor says... #16
Coward_Token - You right. I always thought it said "opponent"...that is unfortunate. On the good news side of things. Supposedly The Commander RC are ruling that Urza, Lord Protector and The Mightstone and Weakstone have "partner with" so feel free to run them together. I'll have to track down the article my friend showed me last night.
October 1, 2022 4:26 p.m.
Not sure if I will be into this set or not... Maybe if some strong anti-artifact faction is involved.
I do like me some of the old non-Borg Phyrexians. The power-brokers that they were. I found them to be cooler before praetors & all the forced-unity stuff.
October 1, 2022 11:07 p.m.
I am very disappointed with the Transformers. Just print Pickle Rick and be done with it. Magic is turning into Fortnite. It's wave after wave of other money grabs and it just feels wrong to me. I know some people will enjoy it, but for me its making me care less and less for the game.
October 1, 2022 11:55 p.m.
Coward_Token says... #19
Gleeock: I don't care much either way, but it should be noted that oldrexia also did assimilation; I remember an article where Phyrexian Battleflies where said to infect people with the glistening oil. Meanwhile, newrexia also got some willing traitors, like Geth, Lord of the Vault
And on the topic of an anti-artifact faction: the "Third path" was that in the lore during the War, and since Hurkyl of Hurkyl's Recall is already confirmed, you might just get what you want there at least
October 2, 2022 3:11 a.m.
True, still like the feel of Oldrexia better.
I wonder if this set is going to ramp up staples in the 99 for commander, a risk they run any time an artifact-centric set comes around with a bunch of colorless stuff (if they don't lean into colored). Higher potential I think to be a staple-chase set.
October 2, 2022 12:19 p.m.
Gleeock At this point I'd fully expect a couple of mythics and a couple of rares that will be commander staples. With it being an artifact focused set I'd expect at least a couple of cards on par with Plaza of Heroes.
October 2, 2022 1:20 p.m.
marco-piatti says... #22
I've seen the new artworks for Ashnod, Gix, Teferi, Saheeli, Hurkyl... The last three look spot on but i would have some issues with Ashnod being less intimidating than i would expect and Gix becoming some sort of fire demon. They still all look awesome overall imo
October 2, 2022 5:06 p.m.
Anyone have any thoughts on what Ashnod could do? Something about sacrificing creatures, I assume. Dimir, probably?
I really hope they take the chance here to reprint Ashnod's Altar in the Mishra commander deck, too.
October 2, 2022 7:31 p.m.
Coward_Token says... #24
The new Dragon Engine's color identity is rakdos right? A little sad for my mono-red dragon tribal deck, the 3-wheel would have been pretty good potential card advantage.
October 4, 2022 2:32 p.m.
Coward_Token I got a notification saying you mentioned me but I can't find the comment
October 4, 2022 2:53 p.m.
Coward_Token says... #26
Hi_diddly_ho_neighbor: Did you actually see the article first hand? It doesn't seem to be on the EDH site itself right now.
(Personally, I think a less ad-hoc solution would be to just let "Melds with" function the same as "Partners with" for the purpose of being a commander, so long as both cards are legendary. (Sorry, Mishra!) (Congratulations, Brisela!))
shadow63: No clue. Sure it wasn't a sock puppet account? =)
October 4, 2022 3:04 p.m.
Coward_Token the Rules committee hasn't actually made any rulings about the card as of yet, so far as I can tell that screenshot has been passed around from Reddit.
An indicator that it's fake is that they cite Urza, Lord High Artificer in the article as opposed to Urza, Lord Protector.
Rules Committee Site, if anyone else can find the actual article here please let me know, because I haven't been able to corroborate it otherwise.
October 4, 2022 3:33 p.m.
Sorry, meant to tag Hi_diddly_ho_neighbor, not just Coward_Token in that last bit (I know coward was responding to neighbor).
October 4, 2022 3:36 p.m.
Hi_diddly_ho_neighbor says... #29
Coward_Token and Massacar: Yeah that looks like what my buddy showed me. I've been struggling to track the actual article down myself and I haven't seen anything on their discord in support of it. Sadly it seems I've been duped. My apologies, usually my friend is pretty reliable.
October 4, 2022 4:06 p.m.
That article is a fake. If the rules committee published it then it would be easy to find on the site. It is not so it is fake.
October 4, 2022 4:46 p.m.
Yeah, I'd imagine that the rules committee would've said something by now if they were gonna say anything about it.
Buuuuuuuuut there's nothing to stop you from doing a rule 0 thing and running them as partners anyway! :P
October 4, 2022 10:54 p.m.
Coward_Token says... #32
With reference to Mantis Engine and Magus of the Candelabra, I kinda hope the Tawnos gets a card in the main set, but I doubt it.
Kinda wish Ashnod's commander deck card was more universal, e.g. "Whenever you sacrifice one or more permanents to cast a spell or activate an ability..." Dunno if that would have led to an easy infinitive combo. (Also, in a Breya deck or something, she has cute synergy with BRO!Tawnos.)
October 25, 2022 11:42 a.m.
Hi_diddly_ho_neighbor says... #33
Coward_Token I would imagine that your wording on Ashnod would be too strong. If she were worded that way then Phyrexian Altar and Ashnod's Altar loops would no longer need a third piece to help generate that additional mana to fuel various combos. Nim Deathmantle or Reassembling Skeleton loops are the two that immediately come to mind. Treasures would now be even stronger. I think they are trying to play it very safe with her.
October 26, 2022 9:18 a.m.
Coward_Token says... #34
Hi_diddly_ho_neighbor: Oh, I meant that I would still keep the non-mana ability clause; just make it work with activated abilities that don't come from artifacts/creatures and spells that have sacrifice as an additional cost
October 26, 2022 11:22 a.m.
Today's spoilers are sick. The rare version of Urza and Mishra both look awesome. Love the blueprint variants. Titania and Argoth both look cool, too. Gix kind of confuses me, though. That's my only disappointment.
absolutely gonna make a young Urza and Mishra partner deck and no one is gonna stop me!!
October 27, 2022 8:58 p.m.
Coward_Token says... #36
So in 1v1, Gix is Coastal Piracy on legs.
In multiplayer, he's black Edric, which is probably quite a bit weaker as he has less access to cheap evasive creatures and extra turn spells. I wish he was blue-black, don't think that would have been out of character either.
The activated ability feels pretty underwhelming seeing as it costs a whopping 7 mana in addition to requiring you to discard. IMO your opponent's cards are often not going to be as powerful when used by you compared to when they're used in their native deck, and here you're throwing away your own cards to do it too! I wish it atleast let you cast X cards from target opponent's hand, as that would have synergized with the symmetrical Edric-ability and wouldn't be as prone to card disadvantage.
October 28, 2022 5:43 p.m.
Hi_diddly_ho_neighbor says... #37
The commander decklists are now fully spoiled. I love their design/construction, love that they are completely old bordered, love the new art for some of the reprints. I really have no complaints other than the ever-present "reprint value could be higher" complaint. Still, there is decent reprint value in these decklists. I will 100% be picking up 1 of each.
https://www.mtggoldfish.com/articles/the-brothers-war-commander-decklists
October 29, 2022 1:53 a.m.
marco-piatti says... #38
To me every Mishra looks way more interesting than the corrispective Urza (Talking about personal preferences gamplay-wise). I made for fun a budget list for the Urza of the precon when it was spolied and now i find out that it's like 80% identical to the actual precon. Just to say that Urza's precon is pretty straightforward while Mishra is more complex and i tend to like more that kind of playstyle. Nice decklists overall, the retroframe is a total flavour win and i'm really tempted to buy them both just for that.
About the main set my new favourite is Gix. The ability to draw is insane since it's super easy to put together a bunch of unblockable creatures. Getting to 7 mana in EDH it's not a problem and there are plenty of ways to benefit from discarding our own cards while punishing people for drawing extra cards. Also loosing all the cards in your hand doesn't look like a big disadvantage when you can you just refill it with the first ability. I can totally se your point of view Coward_Token, stealing your opponents cards is not the most efficient strategy since you rarely get OP cards on their own. But there are easy ways to copy Gix's activated ability. In the worst case scenario you are basically drawing a couple of extra cards per turn and in the best one you are stealing 6-7 cards from a couple of your opponents. IMO Gix is a nice commander, it's not broken but it's powerfull enough.
October 29, 2022 7:13 a.m.
Coward_Token says... #39
The Brother's War: Wow! Ramp, cast two thirds of a Disrupt Decorum, then end it with a Feedback Bolt to each of their faces (or just remove a creature/planeswalker or two). While it's telegraphed and will definently draw some ire, this definently worth considering in artifact decks, especially token-based ones. (Bonus: curves directly into Bitter Feud.)
Thran Spider: curious on the reasoning behind its ETB being symmetrical, especially since your opponent will untap with their Powerstone before you do.
Harbin: Neat, although blue is not a color I associate with Soldier tribal.
Finally: lol Show
October 30, 2022 4:42 p.m.
jethstriker says... #40
I find it weird that they designed a card like this to have two targets. In the past, they worded a card like this with something like: "Destroy target land. Cardname deals "N" damage to that land's controller and each creature they control."
October 30, 2022 7:07 p.m.
Hi_diddly_ho_neighbor says... #41
Holy crap! This is amazing. It's like someone at WotC thought "Hey, what artifacts in Hi_diddly_ho's blinged out old bordered Glissa deck don't have an old bordered printing? Lets print all of those in retro frame". This is like Christmas for me right now.
Aside from that,
Liberator, Urza's Battlethopter while a bit goofy looking, seems like a really cool colorless commander.
Tocasia, Dig Site Mentor is the first Bant artifacts matter commander (I think). Pretty nifty and granting each creature the ability to surveil is insane value.
Hajar, Loyal Bodyguard seems low-key really powerful. I just with they had flash.
Visions of Phyrexia might be one of the best Outpost Siege variants yet.
Diabolic Intent intent getting a reprint is quite nice to see.
I find Gix, Yawgmoth Praetor interesting. An ability that encourages combat directed at opponents is fairly uncommon in black, but his activated ability seems a little too steeply costed but my guess is WotC was trying to play it safe. Not sure what to think on this one yet.
The "prototype" cycle seems pretty interesting. They all seem fairly powerful so far.
Titania, Voice of Gaea + Argoth, Sanctum of Nature are cool. I like that they gave a nod to the Titania, Protector of Argoth + Zuran Orb combo with first ability on new Titania. Melding them together will be suuuuuuper easy in commander. I am definitely adding these to my Titania, Protector of Argoth list.
Urza's Sylex is a bit disappointing. I wish WotC wouldn't be so afraid of printing mass land destruction.
October 31, 2022 2:31 p.m.
Coward_Token says... #42
Visions of Phyrexia: Wish this didn't punish you for running other impulse-draw cards.
Liberator: Hi_diddly_ho_neighbor The face, right? That plus the name reminds me of this.
Tocasia: Her needing to be in the graveyard makes me a little sad.
Combat Tresher: Pretty goofy too tbh
Forging the Anchor: Isn't this rate kind of absurd? Especially with some casual blue scrying, it can't be that hard for an artifact deck to draw three with this.
Third Path Iconoclast: Young G.I.-mancer?
Rootpath Purifier: I dislike that this nullifies nonbasic hate.
October 31, 2022 3:45 p.m.
Hi_diddly_ho_neighbor yeah, this set seems pretty great for Glissa, the Traitor
October 31, 2022 5:02 p.m.
Yup just got to see what the new Saheeli Rai planswalker can do.... I have no idea what I'm gonna do with her but I love her!
Oh and the lay down arms white instant spell that's a psuedo Swords to Plowshares is very cool too!
October 31, 2022 9:46 p.m. Edited.
marco-piatti says... #45
Honestly the mythics of the set are super interesting. Portal to Phyrexya and One with the multiverse are super sweet in EDH.
Also "the brothers' war" looks really fun to play.
I must say that on the other hand i'm disappointed with set Ashnod, i was expecting something more impactful
October 31, 2022 9:57 p.m.
DemonDragonJ says... #46
Why is it that the cards that generate powerstone tokens create them tapped? Would the tokens really be that powerful if they were untapped, and will Worn Powerstone be given the powerstone type?
October 31, 2022 10:06 p.m.
Coward_Token says... #47
Not really a break, but I feel that green getting artifact animation is an unnecessary bleeding of a blue mechanic.
Battlefield Butcher: Doesn't feel like the flavor text matches this guy's 1 power.
Fortfied Beached: Again, feels weird to solidify blue as color for Soldier tribal.
Audacity: I get the Rancor reference but I much more associate audacity with bold red rather than steady green.
Awaken the Woods: Hah.
I've had fun building and goldfishing a Slicer, Hired Muscle deck, check it out: Slicer gets around. Basically a more focused Tahngarth, First Mate, I hope he doesn't get too expensive.
November 1, 2022 12:32 p.m.
Hi_diddly_ho_neighbor says... #48
Coward_Token - Yeah I think it's the face. Kind of gives me Frylock vibes
Gleeock - Definitely some great adds for casual Glissa decks. So far only Liberator, Urza's Battlethopter and maybe the today spoiled Gruesome Realization have a chance of making it into my list. Liberator is a better Shimmer Myr and having a second option in the deck is quite nice. Yes Vedalken Orrery exists but the difference between 3 and 4 mana is huge. With that being said, my more casual Jan Jansen, Chaos Crafter deck has a lot of new toys to try out.
I wasn't expecting for so much Titania, Protector of Argoth support in this set, but Awaken the Woods and Persistent Behemoth definitely warrant consideration.
Seeing Fauna Shaman and Painful Quandary reprints are quite nice.
Union of the Third path seems like a big deal for White. This is, to my knowledge, one of the first straight draw effects in White that doesn't have a symmetrical or additional requirement clause.
Gixian Puppeteer is pretty cool. Possibly a shoe-in for new Sheoldred, new Braids, Seizan, or Nekusar style decks
November 1, 2022 2:54 p.m.
TheOfficialCreator says... #49
Urza's Workshop seems like it might have a place in Tron decks, but I'm not sure. It messes with the curve a bit I think, but with all the artifacts you use in that deck maybe it's worth it? Idk.
November 1, 2022 3:21 p.m.
DemonDragonJ says... #50
I do not wish to be annoying, but no one actually answered my question: why do powerstone tokens enter the battlefield tapped? Would they really be that powerful if they did not?
Hi_diddly_ho_neighbor says... #2
Also, also, I hear that both of the commander decks will be completely old bordered which is awesome. I definitely will be picking one up, not sure which one yet.
September 30, 2022 12:04 a.m.