[COMM] - Identity Nemesis

[MaximumCDawg]

Identity Nemesis {U}

Creature - Merfolk Rogue

As Identity Nemesis enters the battlefield, choose a player.

Identity Nemesis has protection from that player. (This creature cannot be blocked, targeted, damaged or enchanted by a source controlled by that player.)

Spoiled here: http://forums.mtgsalvation.com/showthread.php?t=549761

Between this and Sydria, I am actually looking forward to pre-ordering some Commander singles. 

Okay, so casting cost is Vintage playable.  See: Vendilion Clique. 

And what do you get for that cost?  Nemesis seems totally absurd.  It's a 3-mana, 3/1 Invisible Stalker.   It cannot be hit by Swords or Bolt, cannot be blocked by anything, and blocks anything all day long.  It answers Blightsteel, blocks and kills Lodestone, it kills Jace (and cannot be bounced by Jace).  Each format has only very, very few narrow answers to it.  In Vintage, it dies to Massacre (depending on what colors you are playing), a very large Engineered Explosives, and... that's about it. 

Is it as good as Clique?  I think yes, yes indeed, but it is good in a way that tends to matter less in Vintage than Clique does.  It remains to be seen whether having a mini-Progenitus is as good as having a thoughtseize/cantrip on a stick. 

In Legacy, the list of things that deal with this dude is larger, but the format is also more conducive to a 3/1 for 3 than Vintage, so it will probably be huge in Legacy Merfolk.  People have already been groaning about what this does to Stoneblade, and I sort of agree; now they have 8 "hexproof, unblockable" blue drops to toss a sword onto.

You might remember how I kept telling everyone I think that Mistcutter Hydra is sketchy?  Yah, not this guy.  If you make a blue aggro list, I don't see how he's not a staple from here on out.

[DubDub]

It answers Blightsteel,

Well, not that.  Blightsteel has trample, and this has one toughness, so although Nemesis will live, you will not.  But yeah, extremely good.

[Samoht]

Clique has Flash, which is hyper relevant.

[MaximumCDawg]

It answers Blightsteel,

Well, not that.  Blightsteel has trample, and this has one toughness, so although Nemesis will live, you will not.  But yeah, extremely good.

Oh yeah, we did this with Skylasher, didnt we?  A creature with trample will assign enough damage to be lethal as if the creature did not have protection.  So, under current trample rules, you're right.  This is the kind of combat peculiarity I could see changing in the future, though, since it doesn't seem intuitive at all.  

Clique has Flash, which is hyper relevant.

Oh, no doubt.  Clique is probably the better card for the current Vintage metagame.  I don't think it's necessarily better than Mini Progenitus here in a vacuum, though.

[bactgudz]

This guy is like merfolk getting their own version of Etched champion that is always active.

[AmbivalentDuck]

He's blue and cheaper than Thrun, but can be countered. Not sure why you'd play this over Thrun?

In Merfolk, the lords are better and draw all the removal anyways. Not sure why a medium dork helps its cause.

[brianpk80]

Identity Nemesis has protection from that player. (This creature cannot be blocked, targeted, damaged or enchanted by a source controlled by that player.)

I wonder if there are any bizarre abusive interactions enabled by choosing one's self as the player.  

[MaximumCDawg]

He's blue and cheaper than Thrun, but can be countered. Not sure why you'd play this over Thrun?

In Merfolk, the lords are better and draw all the removal anyways. Not sure why a medium dork helps its cause.

Well, Thrun can be blocked, for one.  For two, you need to keep mana up to regenerate him.  For three, he's not a merfolk and he's not blue.

Identity Nemesis has protection from that player. (This creature cannot be blocked, targeted, damaged or enchanted by a source controlled by that player.)

I wonder if there are any bizarre abusive interactions enabled by choosing one's self as the player.  

Umm.. Pestilence?  Pyrohemia?  I got nothin.

[gkraigher]

This card is too good to be real.  

It single handedely destroys MUD.  And warps the entire vintage format into Blue or Dredge.  

If this card is real, it effects my deck decision at the Vintage World Champs.  

It just seems too good to be real, and has equally warping effects in Legacy as well.  

[MaximumCDawg]

This card is too good to be real.  

It single handedely destroys MUD.  And warps the entire vintage format into Blue or Dredge.  

If this card is real, it effects my deck decision at the Vintage World Champs.  

It just seems too good to be real, and has equally warping effects in Legacy as well.  

Hah, you cross-posting much?  You just said exactly this over at MTG Salvation, and you're still wrong.  

A 3-drop does not destroy MUD.  The card you are thinking of is Oath of Druids.

EDIT: If anything, this is less good against MUD than Porcelain Legionnaire.  That dude does 90% of what this merfolk does in that matchup, and comes in under Golem and Thorn to boot.  Merfolk is immune to Trike and Dup, and relevant in other matchups too, which probably makes it a better card overall.  But if Shops can survive Legionnaire, they can survive this dork.

[gkraigher]

How does a card that makes Jace nearly irrelevant, is a moat against MUD, and opens up a Blue devotion deck in Vintage not seem surreal to everyone else?  This card is too good, period.  

Porcelain Legionnaire dies to Triskelion and Duplicant.  This does not. 

[Blue Lotus]

3 mana sorceries that are not straight hosers do not shut down mud decks. Smokestack and tangle wire (not to mention spheres) laugh at this card.

if it becomes highly played, I expect a) people to play massacre or b) people to play combo and laugh when you waste your turn 3 playing a 7 turn clock that doe not immediately effect the game.

[gkraigher]

I'm sure that combo deck will match up beautifully against the Blue devotion deck that this card allows as an archetype. 

[Samoht]

How does a card that makes Jace nearly irrelevant, is a moat against MUD, and opens up a Blue devotion deck in Vintage not seem surreal to everyone else?  This card is too good, period.  

Porcelain Legionnaire dies to Triskelion and Duplicant.  This does not. 

BLUE DEVOTION DECK....IN VINTAGE....Thank you for making me laugh. I hadn't heard such a surreal comment in a long time.

[Blue Lotus]

I'm sure that combo deck will match up beautifully against the Blue devotion deck that this card allows as an archetype.  

a blue deck thats gimmick requires you to tap out on your turn to commit to the board? yes. yes it would.

[gkraigher]

I'll just quote Brian Demars new article about his group's failure at pro-tour theros.

#1: Don't ever dismiss things without trying them.

http://www.starcitygames.com/article/27127_Narrowly-Missed-By-A-Wide-Margin.html

[Samoht]

I'll just quote Brian Demars new article about his group's failure at pro-tour theros.

#1: Don't ever dismiss things without trying them.

http://www.starcitygames.com/article/27127_Narrowly-Missed-By-A-Wide-Margin.html

Good luck beating TV+K. Good luck beating Dredge. Good luck beating Oath, long or control. Good luck beating Shops.

There's testing a reasonable idea and then there is wasting time.

[MaximumCDawg]

Damn guys, why you staking out such extreme positions?  Good card is good.  Probably Vintage playable.  Whether it actually sees serious play depends on the metagame and how other decks adapt, like everything else.  It's not worthless but the sky is not falling.

BLUE DEVOTION DECK....IN VINTAGE....Thank you for making me laugh. I hadn't heard such a surreal comment in a long time.

Yeah, uh, what do you mean by "Devotion Deck," GK?  Nemesis and the Blue God?  That doesn't seem like a very good core of a deck.  Nemesis is fine for what he is in decks that are not trying to do something bad.

[d8dk32]

When I saw this I got a bit concerned too. It seems really good, and many decks don't have a good way to deal with it. Shrivel comes to mind as an answer. It's a bit scary if cards like that become necessary (although shrivel isn't so bad, it can kill a lot of this format's creatures, including Pyromancer tokens). But I don't think this guy will become a huge problem. It will certainly see play though. I'm sure of that.

But anyway, decks will adapt to be able to beat it if by chance it does get scary. If there's one thing I know about Vintage, it's that its decks are very adaptable.

In Legacy I can see it being a problem though. Give it a sword and it'll end games in short order. Time to start playing Artificer's Hex, everybody!

In other news, I'm happy with how Commander 2013 is turning out. Nice to see some Eternal-playable cards once in a while.

[MaximumCDawg]

In Legacy I can see it being a problem though. Give it a sword and it'll end games in short order. Time to start playing Artificer's Hex, everybody!

If you want to hose equipment, you're better off with Manriki-Gusari.

[d8dk32]

In Legacy I can see it being a problem though. Give it a sword and it'll end games in short order. Time to start playing Artificer's Hex, everybody!

If you want to hose equipment, you're better off with Manriki-Gusari.

Eh, I was kidding anyway.

[gkraigher]

here's a rough sketch of a blue devotion deck:

4 INSANLY BROKEN NEW CARD
1-4  daze
4 force of will
1-4 flusterstorm
1-4 hurkyl's recall
4 thassa, god of the sea
3 Jace, the mindscuplter
4 Gush
1 Fastbond
1 Ancelstral Recall
1 Brainstorm
1 Ponder
1 Time Walk
2 Vendillion clique
2-3 snapcaster mage
Delver of Secrets

4 Wasteland
1 Strip Mine
1 Library of Alexandria
3 Tropical Islands
2 Nykthos Shrine to Nix

SIDEBOARD:
Dredge hate

[Samoht]

here's a rough sketch of a blue devotion deck:

4 INSANLY BROKEN NEW CARD
1-4  daze
4 force of will
1-4 flusterstorm
1-4 hurkyl's recall
4 thassa, god of the sea
3 Jace, the mindscuplter
4 Gush
1 Fastbond
1 Ancelstral Recall
1 Brainstorm
1 Ponder
1 Time Walk
2 Vendillion clique
2-3 snapcaster mage
Delver of Secrets

4 Wasteland
1 Strip Mine
1 Library of Alexandria
3 Tropical Islands
2 Nykthos Shrine to Nix

SIDEBOARD:
Dredge hate

Please let me play against this deck every single time at Champs.

[MaximumCDawg]

I, too, want to start deploying threats in my aggro deck on turn 3.  There is no way anything bad will happen to me before that in Vintage.

[gkraigher]

make fun of it now, eat crow later. 

this is a blue moat against MUD that costs less and kills jace. 

[MaximumCDawg]

Just stuff this guy in a blue shell or a fish deck and be happy.  He belongs in a deck where you can protect him with Cavern or your own countermagic, then stop the opponent from comboing while he finishes the job.  Exalted+unblockableunkillablemonster seems really good. 

Basically, he should be the top of your fish curve.  Don't be stuffing dumb crap in your deck like Thassa, and don't stuff too much crap into your three-slot to compete with him.

[Commandant]

Why do they continue to nerf the stack as a mechanic, push the red zone as the major source of interaction, and continue to print cards like Geist/this?

Creatures always pose a question albeit a boring one. Invisible Stalker type cards blow gigantic holes in RnD's original argument for the concentration rotation to creatures. Have we finally reached the point where this game is managed by morons with the sole purpose of appeasing masses of drones?

[MaximumCDawg]

Have we finally reached the point where this game is managed by morons with the sole purpose of appeasing masses of drones?

Well, replace "morons" with "Wizards of the Coast," "sole purpose" with "goal," and "masses of drones" with "the majority of players according to Wizards' research." and, yes, that's about right.    Wizards has been very upfront with the fact that they've been pushing creatures since Lowryn.

But, fear not.  Vintage is safe.  We still live in a format where spells are absurd and Wizards cannot safely print creatures on par with them.  It's Modern that you should be worried about.

[vaughnbros]

Am I reading this wrong or something? 3/1 hexproof, unblock-able, that can't be dealt damage by your opponent or his/her creatures for 1UU?

Sans non red board sweepers, which is the case in vintage, its an unkillable unblockable 3/1.  This basically gives you complete combat superiorty AND its on color for almost every deck AND it has a relevant creature type.  It may not be format breaking, but is definitely playable.

[MaximumCDawg]

Er, yes.  Welcome to the opening post