Postby Khaospawn » Tue Jan 14, 2014 5:24 pm
Here's my opinion on the Phoenix -
A 5/5 Flier for 4 is pretty good. But is it good enough? Sure, a flying Deadbridge Goliath could "get there", but I'm not going to be able to attack with until turn 5. In that time, it could be killed by a D-Sphere, Chained to the Rocks, Selesnya Charm, Doom Blade, or Ultimate Price. I think I'd almost rather play with Stormbreath Dragon since it dodges most of that removal. However, the Big Bird does not die to Mortars, which I guess is nice.
I don't expect it to be a 3/3 flying with haste too much, if not ever. If I get that, most likely my opponent will have an answer for it. My opponent may take 3, but it can still be dealt with. All it would take is the having a big locker in the air, like Stormbreath Dragon, Desecration Demon, or something hideous with Reach.
Ultimately, when I look at my 4-drop slot, I don't think I would want to be playing with anything less
than Chandra in a burn-aggro deck or Purphoros in a big-mana deck. Or even Exava in a R/b deck. Shit, even Fanatic of Mogis would probably be more lethal under the right circumstances.
I'm kind of turned off by the fact that my opponent gets to decide for me what I'll end up getting. Because of that, it's often difficult to make the most optimized play when in these situations. You guys know what I like and how I play - I value consistency and strength over big plays and random blowouts. The bird doesn't exactly fit those criteria.
So while the card doesn't exactly suck, it'll never exactly be what I always want it to be. I may get it, I may not. I'm definitely not saying it's terrible or that it won't ever be good. Remember when Stonewright was barely playable before RTR? Remember when Desecration Demon was unplayable until Theros hit? Hell, the entire new set hasn't been spoiled yet, so the bird may get some weird, synergistic card with it that will make it bonkers.
But here's one
thing, guys, Hammer of Purphoros will make the bird better - that I know of. So maybe there will be hope for it. I'm not jumping on the hype train or the hate train in the meantime.
tl;dr - It's alright. Hammer of Purphoros makes the card better.
In a pinch, Khaos' beard can help turn this around.
I rarely skip a Khaospawn wall of text because I know there is always piss at the end of the rainbow.