Scars Prerelease/Release Events

[DubDub]

I have earlier this year attended the Rise of the Eldrazi and M11 prerelease events, but I'm not 100% convinced that going to the Scars Prerelease or Release events will be as worthwhile.

I am primarily a Vintage and EDH player, with some dabbling in Legacy.  I don't play Shops, and I don't see a lot of cards that will get played in the type of decks I tend to play (i.e., Drains, Rituals, and coming soon to a tournament near you, Gushes).

I am considering in place of playing in 1-2 prerelease or release events and getting a random assortment of cards, just putting that money towards getting the one copy of Mox Opal I think I'm likely to use a great deal.

I guess it would be cool to have the promo Wurmcoil Engine or Steel Hellkite in case I ever put an Esper themed EDH deck together, but the new-set promos usually settle at ~$3 anyway.  These promos aren't as great a draw to me as Emrakul was for Rise.  Since I have such little experience and skill with Sealed and low power-level formats I think it's unlikely I'll win any meaningful amount of product in the tournaments themselves.

Does anyone feel similarly?  Am I missing a large number of cards that will be relevant in Vintage (in the decks I tend to play, I admit there are some nice cards for Shops and Fish)?  Is Riddlesmith going to spawn a Legacy-Slaver deck?  Some other example of a useable card I'll be able to get a bunch of copies of in my pool?  How gung-ho are people for this new set?

[Troy_Costisick]

If you play a lot of Time Vault, Storm, or maybe so rogue-ish decks like Elves, then you'll want to get a Mox Opal.  You don't have to go to the pre-release to do that.  I'm going because I like the events, enjoy limited, and feel I benefit from playing in a format other than just Vintage.  I do agree, that the number of commons and uncommons that I'll need from this set are very few.  For me, that's one of the plusses of going to a Pre-release/Release event (to scoop up all the cheap cards I need easily).  It may take use some time to see how all the new cards in SoM affect Vintage.  Skipping the pre-release won't kill ya in the long run, I  think.

[honestabe]

I go because its usually not too hard to top 8, between the promo card and 6 pax, you usually get a large chunk of your money back in card value, and the decideing factor (for me at least) is that Feinstein runs my local cardstore, and it's well worth the $25 just to bask in his presence for a few hours

[DubDub]

Well, I went, and my worst fears were realized.

I opened Argent Sphinx, Precursor Golem, Kuldotha Forgemaster, Tunnel Ignus, Necrotic Ooze and some other crappy card as my rares.  I played UW Metalcraft, but had to try to achieve metalcraft by playing some horrendous artifacts.  I had to include an 'infect' subtheme because one of my best blue cards was the 1/1 flier that proliferates on combat damage.  I had zero artifacts costing 0 or 1 worth playing.

Each time I played Precursor Golem it was answered by a single one- or two-mana spell.

Blech.

Also, someone at the event I went to (40 people) opened both Elspeth and Venser.  What a day.

[vassago]

Also, someone at the event I went to (40 people) opened both Elspeth and Venser.  What a day.

Some fag next to me today did the same thing.  

Verbal warning for indecent language - Eastman

[honestabe]

Also, someone at the event I went to (40 people) opened both Elspeth and Venser.  What a day.

Some fag next to me today did the same thing. 

I knew I wasnt hitting any money on my packs, as befroe i touched mine, the person to my left opened Venser, to my right, Koth, across, Mox opal, and the guy 2 people to my left got an Elspeth

[Troy_Costisick]

Best card I opened was Sunblast Angel.  Yeah, it was that bad

[SiegeX]

Also, someone at the event I went to (40 people) opened both Elspeth and Venser.  What a day.

Some fag next to me today did the same thing. 

Likewise, except Koth and Venser.  Funny thing was that he traded his 6 packs with some guy across the table before we cracked them.  I guess these two gues did the same thing at the midnight pre-rel at which this lucky SOB pulled a foil Mox Opal so they decided to do it again today.

[Royal Ass.]

I pulled an Elspeth as well as a Ratchet Spellbomb and Steel Hellkite. (At the M11 pre-release I pulled a Banslayer, Primeval and Natuko Shade in my 6 packs!)   Both my round 2 and 3 opponents were playing Koth.  I played in 4 games in a row where Koth came down on turn 4 against me.... It was like a reoccurring nightmare.

I dropped after round three and traded the Espeth for a Mox Opal. 

Mark Tedin was at our Pre-release and I got some stuff signed by him including my Unl. Time Vault (I decided not to get my drains or beta sol ring and mint Juzam and other expensive cards signed).   I also picked up 3 Revised Bayous and 2 Scrublands (one was unlimited) for $130.  All in all it was a good pre-release.  I don't know what everyone is bitching about

[i_set_fire]

Best card I opened was Sunblast Angel.  Yeah, it was that bad

Same here.  I did get a miscut revised Island out of the box of lands though

[SiegeX]

(I decided not to get my drains or beta sol ring and mint Juzam and other expensive cards signed).

Perhaps I'm in the minority for this one but thank you for not ruining mint eternal cards.  I want to stab my eyes every time I see a mint piece of power or what have you get completed defaced by a signature.

[Royal Ass.]

(I decided not to get my drains or beta sol ring and mint Juzam and other expensive cards signed).

Perhaps I'm in the minority for this one but thank you for not ruining mint eternal cards.  I want to stab my eyes every time I see a mint piece of power or what have you get completed defaced by a signature.

Yeah, I went to a Local Card store pre-release today and Tedin was there again.  I got some more stuff signed but none of the expensive stuff.  I don't have a problem getting inexpensive or played things singed (My TV was played) but like to preserve the rare nice condition stuff.

Ok, so in today's pre-release I pulled ANOTHER Elspeth!  Afterwords I traded it for a second Mox Opal plus Misty Rain forest.   Oh, and then I traded the M11 Baneslayer that I pulled at the last pre-release for a Goyf!

[vassago]

(I decided not to get my drains or beta sol ring and mint Juzam and other expensive cards signed).

Perhaps I'm in the minority for this one but thank you for not ruining mint eternal cards.  I want to stab my eyes every time I see a mint piece of power or what have you get completed defaced by a signature.

Ditto. Signed cards make me want to puke. I mean dont get me wrong its cool, but not on expensive cards....

[MaximumCDawg]

Pulled a Rachet Bomb and a Leonin Arbiter, so not that bad.  And, I know it's a common, but Tumble Magnet is the bee's knees.  Holy cow do I love that little artifact.

[Evenpence]

One dude in our pre-release opened a foil Koth and a regular Koth.

I went 4-1 and got relatively low value back.  I probably won't be attending any more pre-releases, especially not ones at midnight.

EDIT:  I had to go mono-green because the only other cards I had worth splashing were Rune Slag (the 3RR 5 damage card) and Arrest.  I had a Steel Hellkite as my single bomby card.  The rest was filled with medicore cards like 2x 2/3 infect guys and 2x 2GG 3/1 infect guys.  Neither were even that good.

My sealed pool was terrible.  Half the games I won were based on bluffs because people thought I had the XG +x/+x card when I didn't.  (That card, btw, is easily the best common in the set for limited).

[The Atog Lord]

Vassago, please watch the language.

[thecman]

I opened a Koth and an Indominable Archangel which were both awesome (although I never metalcrafted the angel).  Mimic Vat on the red replica made for one awesome win.  The double Glint Hawk Idol were definately MVPs though, I loves me some cheep flyers.

I was largely unimpressed by Infect in sealed.  No one I saw got a critical mass of Infect creatures so it seamed like the decks that played it were trying to do 30 damage instead of 20 or 10.  I guess it'll be more relevant in draft.