Anafenza, the Foremost

[fsecco]

Anafenza, the Foremost
WBG
Legendary Creature - Human Soldier
When Anafenza, the Foremost attacks, put a +1/+1 counter on another target tapped creature you control.
If a creature card would be put into an opponent's graveyard from anywhere, exile it instead.
4/4

5c humans beater + dredge hate? Me like.

I don't know if it makes the cut. Exava is better as a Jace/Lodestone beater, and the "dredge hate" may be too slow, since it doesn't remove creatures that are already on the graveyard. Anyways, it's a good card to be aware of its existence.

[MaximumCDawg]

I'm a fan of Khans generally so far, because finding identities for the wedges is making some really interesting new cards, but I'm seeing very little of Vintage interest so far.  The Time Walk Egg is ok, Delve returning is pretty amazing and might yet bear fruit.  But, overall, the specific cards have been pretty lackluster as far as Vintage is concerned. 

This card is one of those, but, as Scar says, "Perhaps, there's a glimmer of potential."  We are well past the days when a 4/4 for 3 would raise any eyebrows, so we're really evaluating this card based on its other abilities.  Taking a look at each in turn:

"When this attacks, put a +1/+1 counter on another target tapped creature you control."

This is kind of like a crappy form of Exalted.  It requires you to resolve Anafenza, then attack with her and have another tapped creature.  It doesn't even pump all your dudes.  The only possible utility I can see for this is to beef up Cold-Eyed Selkie, but Quasali Pridemage does that job so much better it's just not even close.  If you get into a situation where you are swinging with this and a 2/x Human to close out the game, this adds 1 damage the first attack (7 total) 2 damage the second attack (9 total) and the third swing is lethal.  Without Anafenza, it's STILL probably lethal, since that'd be 6 damage three times for 18.  Not really doing much in the race.  This ability might as well not be here as far as I'm concerned.

"If a creature card would be put into an opponent's graveyard from anywhere, exile it instead."

It's the inverse of Dryad Militant?  Okay.  Does it hose Dredge?  Yes, but it costs 3 colored mana to start doing that.  Is that worth it?  Maybe, actually.  So if you accelerate Anafenza out on turn 2, Dredge really is in a hard spot.  It can't really do anything at that stage; can't use Ichorid more than once, can't keep the dredging going, can't make zombie tokens.  It cannot kill Ana using Darkblast or Contagion.  It feels like, once this drops, Dredge stops functioning in a very profound way and there is no currently played answer to Ana in that deck.  They'd have to pack Dismember or something.  On top of all of that, Ana's body is large enough to pick off invading zombie tokens or ichorids that happened to slip in first.  Narcomebia hilariously flies over her, though.

That said, to get such a hard lock on Dredge, you have to be able to get to WGB.  So, you'll lose games where Dredge goes off turn 2 on the play, or you can't assemble the mana until there are just too many tokens out there.  I think you'd only take the risk in a deck with a minimum of on-color moxen, and probably 6-8 Hierarchs/Shamans to smooth out the mana.

tl;dr version:

She's a so-so beatstick and her first ability is neigh-worthless.  Assuming you can immediately assemble her very high mana cost very reliably, her second ability devastates Dredge in a profound way while being hard (impossible?) for Dredge to remove in its normal configuration, and winning fights against Dredge's early game creatures.

[fsecco]

I kinda agree with you, but I wouldn't dismiss it so early. From my experience, WBG are the easiest colors to get in Humans. Of course 3 colored mana is hard, but not impossible. I agree this is slow against Dredge, but could add redundancy to Grafdigger's Cage. The good thing, though, is that this shuts off Bridge from Below so even if it comes online a little late, could help a lot.

About the first ability, I also wouldn't dismiss the power of exalted. And the fact that this allows you to attack with more than one creature for the bonus is also nice. Exalted is better because it protects the exalted creature (I mean, you can attack with a Thalia into a Lodestone without putting your Noble Hierarch in danger).

[Protoaddict]

It's power and toughness are where it needs to be and it does get out of hand rapidly. Being a creature is an upside because of caverns and thalia, but honestly most 5CC humans decks are running Rest in Peace, Cage, or Both, so I don't see the grave hate upside being relevant all that much, and with that all you have left is just a big beater, which is not that impressive.

[serracollector]

It does not have to be in humans. I mean wbg hate bear decks can easily abuse it. Imagine turn one dryad then turn two this with a mox against dredge. Not to mention this also stop a lot of welder tricks not just including Strix.

[Protoaddict]

Imagine that same situation, except without a mox and with rest in peace.

I cant imagine this card ever being more than a 1 of in the first place because its high cost for the list and legendary, so its not reliable hate on its own as it is so you would have to use rest in peace or cage as well, and at that point you would probably want them over this in the dredge matchup anyways. If thoes are your hate cards, this is just a big dude, and those are readily available.

[nedleeds]

Is having a tapped 2/3 Deathrite Shaman and passing your second turn after attacking for 4 exciting? I'd rather play Doran, and he's very bad. But made of wood.

[MaximumCDawg]

Is having a tapped 2/3 Deathrite Shaman and passing your second turn after attacking for 4 exciting? I'd rather play Doran, and he's very bad. But made of wood.

Oh, don't be so silly.  No one is playing this card because it's a beatstick like Doran.  The only possibility for her to see play is that she functions as incredibly powerful Dredge hate when you land it -- it shuts ALL of Dredge's avenues off completely, which is more than Cage does, and is immune to all currently played anti-hate like Chewer, Claim, etc.

[fsecco]

I'm thinking of those 5c Humans lists. This could fit in, depending on the metagame. I think it's definetely a card that should be on the toolbox of Humans players.

[vaughnbros]

This is like an upgraded samurai of the pale curtain, better creature type, better body, better pump ability and better graveyard hate for just 1 more mana.  Since I considered the samurai fringe playable Id say this has to be as well.  Any GWB hatebear deck should be happy to add this as at least a singleton in the 75.  I mean really how does dredge answer this?  It's immune to every anti hate card they play other than chain of vapor and even shuts off stinkweed imp value dredging!

[gkraigher]

I think this card is legit.  I expect to see it played in modern and as a 1 of in all vintage junk lists.  maybe even have extra copies in the board, as the card is a house vs. dredge.

[Meddling Mike]

I think if you're relying on this guy as your Dredge hate, you've got a problem. He's too slow to be relevant against the average Dredge hand. You would need some other form of disruption and then he would be a reasonable supplement to that. I have to believe there are better options out there.

[fsecco]

Dredge post-board is a slower deck. Also, I know this seems slow because, by turn 3, dredge will already have a lot of cretures in the graveyard, but the fact that this shuts off Bridge from Below is very relevant. If this gets popular, I could see Dredge packing a couple Dismembers sb to get rid of him.

Also, he may not be good on alone. But couple him with Thalia and whatnot and I could easily see him sealing the game quite quickly.

[ben_berry]

So the dredge player is going to kill my creature to allow him to trigger his bridges again?

[dangerlinto]

the problem here is that by the time this creature is on the board, dredge too often will have enough cards in the yard.  Unlike Rest in peace, it doesn't remove the yard first. 

[vaughnbros]

I think if you're relying on this guy as your Dredge hate, you've got a problem. He's too slow to be relevant against the average Dredge hand. You would need some other form of disruption and then he would be a reasonable supplement to that. I have to believe there are better options out there.

the problem here is that by the time this creature is on the board, dredge too often will have enough cards in the yard.  Unlike Rest in peace, it doesn't remove the yard first.  

Not really.  On the play with a mox, hierarch, or deathrite she's easily turn 2 playable.  If you've won the die roll this is early enough to beat any dredge deck, and if you lost the die roll still fast enough to at least give most dredge players a headache.  Dredge is a turn 3 deck, this is a turn 2 card.  Fast enough.

Imagine that same situation, except without a mox and with rest in peace.

I cant imagine this card ever being more than a 1 of in the first place because its high cost for the list and legendary, so its not reliable hate on its own as it is so you would have to use rest in peace or cage as well, and at that point you would probably want them over this in the dredge matchup anyways. If thoes are your hate cards, this is just a big dude, and those are readily available.

Rest in peace and cage are completely dead in a number of match ups.  You are completely brushing over that shes a 3 mana 4/4 human with purely beneficial abilities, the only other human even close to this is knight of the reliquary (who puts restrictions on your mana base).  She easily outclasses main deck rest in peace for this reason, and in a non oath heavy meta outclasses cage.

So the dredge player is going to kill my creature to allow him to trigger his bridges again?

Well they need to remove her.  Swords to plowshares/path to exile is the only way to remove this gal permanently without dredge losing their bridges.

EDIT: it's apparently female.

[dangerlinto]

Not really.  On the play with a mox, hierarch, or deathrite she's easily turn 2 playable.  If you've won the die roll this is early enough to beat any dredge deck, and if you lost the die roll still fast enough to at least give most dredge players a headache.  Dredge is a turn 3 deck, this is a turn 2 card.  Fast enough.

IF you get the right colored mox, lands etc... I think if you run this card you'll be kicking yourself on the keep with Savannah, Hierarch, Mox Emerald...

[Stormanimagus]

People who think this is a card decks are RELYING on to beat dredge are missing the point. He IS a supplemental piece of hate and he IS maindeckable. Were people ever RELYING on Dr. Shaman as dredge hate? He'll no! Does it occasional help? Sure. Thalia is indirect dredge hate as well. It's all about the hate pieces working well in concert and this is the finishing blow. I'll be testing 1-2 in my various junk builds. It's also very relevant that he dodges bolt (especially vs Landstill) and in two swings he can make your dr. Shaman bolt proof as well. In 1 swing he can make shaman Bob, Thalia, and Snap proof. He seems plenty playable to me and might spark a non Knight-based version of Junk from me.

-Storm

[fsecco]

Am I missing something? (I'm not being sarcastic, I may not be seeing this right)

When this guy(girl) is out, it doesn't matter that Dredge has a lot of creatures already on the grave, right? Of course he can always Dread Return a Griselbrand or something like that. Aside from that being already on the grave, he can't do anything... right?

[Bakalias]

The problem is it "just" stop them.
If they got a solution for your creature, they start again where they left.

A card like Rest in Peace or Tormod's Crypt leave them behind where they were and they have to start again.

So the card is like a worse Cage for 3 manas, on a beatstick.

[Stormanimagus]

The problem is it "just" stop them.
If they got a solution for your creature, they start again where they left.

A card like Rest in Peace or Tormod's Crypt leave them behind where they were and they have to start again.

So the card is like a worse Cage for 3 manas, on a beatstick.

What played card in Dredge is getting rid of this guy? I'd really be curious to know. Chain of Vapor doesn't really count because that card is fringe played now in Dredge and Chain deals with everything you can throw at them anyway.

-Storm

[Bakalias]

You mean everything like Rest in Peace, Tormod's Crypt, Relic of Progenitus or Ravenous Trap?

It indeed is hard to deal with for sure, but as far as I see on the dredges I play against, Chain of Vapor or even Firestorm aren't that few, especially against an aggro meta.

[vaughnbros]

You mean everything like Rest in Peace, Tormod's Crypt, Relic of Progenitus or Ravenous Trap?

It indeed is hard to deal with for sure, but as far as I see on the dredges I play against, Chain of Vapor or even Firestorm aren't that few, especially against an aggro meta.

There are certainly massive disadvantages of 1 shot Gy hate compared to permanent based.  RiP is the only permanent based hate card that isn't answered by chain.  Firestorm isn't really a reliable way of killing her as you need to pitch 4 cards (they get exiled before she dies), and you need 4 targets so another creature needs to be in play.