[General] Is/Will Iona be Banned?

[Harlequin]

Iona, Shield of Emeria 6WWW
Legendary Creautre - Angel
Flying
As Iona Enters the battlefield, choose a color.
Your Opponents can't cast spells of the chosen color.
7/7

I want to make an Iona General deck ... but I'm feeling like she's probably going to be banned (if she isn't already pre-emptively banned).  She's lots of mana, but It seems like she would win the game by herself, especailly in a low play setting or in a duel.  White has plenty of great removal, great deterance spells, and the ability to survive until the end game.  There are also plenty of artifact tutors, so digging up Painter wouldn't too difficult either. 

[Anusien]

Play it locally, and see what your playgroup thinks.

[Killane]

In general, I don't think Iona will be banned. Maybe it's just where I tend to play, but the few mono color decks around here will be fast enough to kill before Iona would make it to the board. She seems fine to me.

[Mr. Nightmare]

Tooth and Nail is a MUST Counter, now, though - even more than before.  Any G/W deck can play Iona/Painter and T&N for them both.

[LennonMarx]

I'm pretty sure Tooth and Nail is a must counter anyways, as it can get Sundering Titan/Woodfall Primus at the least, and adding more colors allows various infinite combos. Iona is likely not going to get banned (though the EDHRC is really sketchy about it's banning principles), so have fun with her. That said, I think as a general she will draw you a lot of heat.

[Harlequin]

I feel like white has enough cards to prevent a swift death.  With so many wrath effects, and alot of creature removal.  The question is: can Iona carry your deck?  I think even in multiplayer you name the color that hoses someone the hardest and causes enough splash damage to protect you (so probably green, maybe black or white).  Then you just go for the throat of anyone who is uneffected by your color choice and try to land 3 hits against them thus ending them with general damage.

I agree that in multiplayer this concept, and this general, is weak (but will draw the lightning).  However in a duel, she seems amazing.

[SpencerForHire]

If you are running mono-color just run Duplicant and be ready.  That's pretty much all that can be advised.  Iona could be banned as a general but I'm not sure that I could see it being banned as a card in general.

In our play today we saw two decks running Iona and although it was a definate bomb it was no more of a bomb than say TNN or any similar 9 drop.  It was just unusually powerful as creatures go, not spells.

[Apollyon]

It turns out that Painter's Servant is pretty good in Iona. If you really worry about on-board abilities, there's always Earnest Fellowship.

[Matt]

There's always, uh, Resounding Thunder/Wave/Silence?

[Apollyon]

There's always, uh, Resounding Thunder/Wave/Silence?

Have fun with that 8 mana to draw a card. I'm pretty sure Earnest Fellowship + Painter's Servant + Iona means you win, if they don't have anything on the board (Vial, Dispeller's Capsule, etc.), and they can't run out a ton of man-lands. That combo is crushingly unfun.

I would actually worry more about a GW general than mono-W because of Tooth/Defense of the Heart. Pulling off a turn 3 Defense (Forbidden Orchard + they play a creature) into that lock is crazy good.