[C14] - Loreseeker's Stone

[Prospero]

But this isn't a six drop.  In order to get to the point in the game where you're able to play this, you must have played other cards first, usually Spheres and Thorns.  If you play one Sphere and one Thorn, this costs eight.  Eight mana is a lot of mana. 

You don't open up every game with a pair of Shops, and on top of that, how are you going to guarantee that you have the mana to activate this? 

If we're talking about draw engines for Shops, why don't we talk about about cards like Coercive Portal?  Long and grindy games are won by incremental advantages, not blowout plays.

A successful Shop deck is one that is capable of making the small plays to get to the point in the game where it can make the hero play.  Cards like this come at the cost of the cards that you need in order to get to that end game.  I don't like playing that kind of Shop deck; you're a two outcome deck at that point; home run or strike out.  In the end, the law of averages will get you, and you'll end up striking out more than you hit home runs.

[wiley]

I don't get the skepticism.  It's not even as if you guys are taking a measured look at it and deciding it's just not quite right for the 6 drop slot.  Your arguments appear to be:

1. Six drops in MUD must win the game on their own and this does not; and
2. This is inferior to Memory Jar.

This isn't any different from how a blue player evaluates prospective cards:
1. If it costs 4+ mana it must have a huge impact if not outright win the game.
2. It must not be inferior to any playable analogs.
3. It must fit in with a prospective deck's game plan.

This card 1) costs more than 4+ mana, but likely has a large impact on the game at the cost of tying up turns doing little else besides drawing cards.
2) The investment required makes it difficult to to pinpoint if it is on par with cards like staff of nin or coersive portal, or even jar.  There are already things that fill the draw options for shops, some of which don't get shut down by null rod.
3) As has been stated, this card becomes increasingly difficult to cast the later it gets drawn.  Unfortunately the best time to utilize it is later in the game.  In a typical shop deck it fights itself, something the analogs don't do.

[hashswag]

I'm not so much concerned about the power of drawing 3 cards per turn as I am about the amount of mana required to successfully deploy the threats drawn each turn after an activation.

[MaximumCDawg]

I'm not so much concerned about the power of drawing 3 cards per turn as I am about the amount of mana required to successfully deploy the threats drawn each turn after an activation.

I don't pilot shops beyond affinity, so I guess I defer to the experienced pilot's feelings here.  That said, I don't see how this is a big deal.  Dump your hand, then spend 3 to draw three.  You've probably got some more mana kicking around after that if we're in the late game, so you use that.  If you have threats to deploy, you don't need to use this that turn.  Seems like it just gives Shops something they never had before; a draw engine on par with Blue.

[serracollector]

If your running affinity you got skullclamp. Otherwise Staff of Nin blows this out of the water. I would much rather get a card guaranteed for free every turn and in most cases get card advantage by killing a dude or pinging jace than have to tap my ancient tomb lose two life then tap my factory or wasteland causing me to lose out on an attack or destroying a land in the hopes i can draw three cards that i might be able to cast.

[JarofFortune]

If your running affinity you got skullclamp. Otherwise Staff of Nin blows this out of the water. I would much rather get a card guaranteed for free every turn and in most cases get card advantage by killing a dude or pinging jace than have to tap my ancient tomb lose two life then tap my factory or wasteland causing me to lose out on an attack or destroying a land in the hopes i can draw three cards that i might be able to cast.

Skullclamp is only a four of, in a deck that doesn't have any other draw effects aside from memory jar(Not saying this card is playable btw, but it's food for thought ).