Earlier this month, Mercadian Masques Block was released on MTGO. What started with Mirage several years ago has finally come full circle, and all the pre-Invasion sets are now available online. Long considered one of, if not the worst block of all time, Masques has a negative stigma to it that seemed to grow as the set approached release. I’m here to quell those concerns, though I’m not going to say the block is anything near Innistrad or Ravnica in terms of playability.
First, one needs to gain some perspective on the historical ramifications of Masques Block. The preceding block, the Urza Block, was at the time, perhaps the single most degenerate and broken block ever released. It was so powerful that Wizards needed to ban cards almost immediately upon release, and this was at a time where net-decking was nowhere near what it is today! After such an uproar, Wizards was compelled to lower the power level of the following block.
In this regard, Masques was set up to fail, almost instantly. It’s only natural to look at the cards that were released just one year earlier for comparison. Nearly card for card, Masques cards were just plain terrible when you consider the cards that were found in Saga, Legacy, and Destiny. Yawgmoth’s Will? Morphling? Masticore? Yawgmoth’s Bargain? You won’t find any cards in Masques that even come close to those cards in terms of power level. When the final set in the block was released, Prophecy, it was the straw that broke the camel’s back. That set, rightfully so, has been called the worst set since Homelands.
But, that doesn’t mean that the set is completely devoid of anything useful! In fact, there are several cards that are relevant in Eternal formats, including Commander. While a couple of these cards have already made their way onto MTGO through releases of promos, special sets, and re-prints in Core Sets, they are certainly welcome in their original (and more aesthetically pleasing) card frames.
Mini-SetBlock Review for Classic
The cards pictured above are all welcome additions to the Classic card pool as they had not been released on MTGO before.
Rishadan Port — Currently the most expensive card from the block, Port has a home in a few decks, and is a nice card for Singleton formats as a form of mana denial. Most notably for Classic, Port fits into Mishra’s Workshop decks as even more mana denial. It doesn’t tap for more than 1 mana, and you can’t tap a Workshop to use its ability. Therefore, most Workshop decks wouldn’t want more than one, possibly two, in their deck. That said, Port is uncounterable mana denial that is both re-usable and able to transition to more desirable targets (a strength Wasteland doesn’t have); there is no questioning the power of this card. Mono-colored aggro decks, like Goblins, could also find use for this land, though Merfolk probably isn’t interested.
Tangle Wire – Perhaps the most influential printing of the year in Classic, Tangle Wire is primed to swing the pendulum in favor of Workshop decks in the Classic metagame. Tangle Wire is very subtle in its power, but provides a massive tempo swing against most opponents. Unlike Smokestack, which does absolutely nothing to your opponent until their second turn after being played, Tangle Wire immediately affects your opponent’s next turn, requiring them to tap four permanents. Further, when timed properly during your upkeep, you can remove a fade counter before the trigger requiring you to tap your own permanents. In this way, you only have to tap three permanents on your turn, compared to your opponent’s four, and since Tangle Wire itself can be tapped, you only have to tap two other permanents! Here is a decklist for Espresso Stax that I would start with in Classic to find a home for Tangle Wire:
Espresso Stax
|
| ||||||||
Workshop pilots won’t simply be able to just jam four Tangle Wires into their decks and call it a day. A new breed of Workshop decks will need to be established. The introduction of Tangle Wire can now facilitate a more controlling and prison-like feel to Workshop. It will be interesting to see what Workshop decks emerge as the best use of Tangle Wire going forward. Regardless, Workshops have yet another tool in their arsenal; hopefully it’s not the final tool to break Classic in the vaccum of the artifact acceleration that blue-based decks enjoy in Vintage!
Misdirection – Very few free spells, especially those that are blue, have been unplayable. Misdirection has seen its best use in Vintage, redirecting Ancestral Recall, so it’s not as powerful in Classic. On the other hand, there are a few cards that Misdirection could gain a considerable amount of value from, such as Gush and removal such as Swords to Plowshares, Diabolic Edict, Path to Exile, etc. Legacy Merfolk decks will love to add this card to their arsenal.
Submerge – Similar to Misdirection, Submerge is another card that is most useful in Legacy, but there could be a time where GW Hate decks creep up in numbers, leaving Submerge as a possible sideboard card for Blue decks (though it can’t be cast on a Gaddock Teeg. Aside from that, there aren’t enough Forests running around the Classic format to consistently utilize this as a sideboard option.
Unmask – Yet another free spell! Unmask is almost exclusively a Dredge card, though it hasn’t been seen in many of the most recent Dredge lists in Vintage. Ultimately, Cabal Therapy is better in nearly every circumstance. Compared to other discard outlets available in black, Duress and Thoughtseize are better due to the card disadvantage of Unmask.
Food Chain – A creature combo enabler, Food Chain is a unique fit in Goblin decks. Goblin Recruiter and Goblin Matron can combine to empty your entire deck of creatures onto the battlefield with only a single Goblin Warchief required to give your army haste.
Accumulated Knowledge – The applications for “AK” are somewhat limited these days, which usually involves casting Intuition for three copies of the card. Other uses include imprinting on Isochron Scepter and Pyromancers Ascension, though both are likely more casual than competitive in Classic or Legacy.
Several cards will be more readily available on MTGO as a result of Masques being released. Additionally, there are several cards that have new (or rather, old) art, which some collectors and/or players may find more appealing.
Daze – Daze is a card that has been available in the client for a couple years, but its availability was severely limited by the fact that it was a one-of in the Jace Vs. Chandra Duel Deck that had very few other cards of value. As a result, it was not opened nearly as much as other Duel Decks, making its availability somewhat low. Basically, in order to obtain a playset of Daze, one needed to purchase four of the requisite Duel Deck (which must be purchased using cash instead of tickets), or pay the high market premium for a common that would eventually be released in a draftable set. Thus, Masques brings the all-important combination of availability and affordability, while also providing the card in its original frame. Perhaps more importantly for many Classic players, Daze will be available as a foil for the first time. Fish-style decks will likely be packing Daze much more often than in the past, which is something to be aware of. I know several people, myself included, who refused to buy Daze at the inflated market price knowing that Masques was right around the corner.
Gush – Much like Daze, Gush was previously available in the modern frame within a Duel Deck. Unlike Daze, Tezzeret Vs. Elspeth was a much better value and thus more copies of Gush found their way into the market, as well as into players’ decks. Nonetheless, Gush is now available in the original frame and also as a foil, which will be highly sought after by collectors and Classic players alike.
Invigorate – Yet another card that was previously only available in the modern frame in a Duel Deck (Garruck Vs. Liliana), Invigorate will now be available in the original frame and as a foil. Its applications are not very widespread, but perhaps an Infect “Combo” deck can be ported into Classic, similar to the Modern iteration, substituting Invigorate and Berserk for Blazing Shoal?
Brainstorm – A staple in Classic and Legacy already, there are several different versions of this powerful spell on MTGO. What will be appealing to some will be the Masques art in the old frame, which is new to MTGO. Previously, the Masques art was released as a promo, but in the modern frame. The demand for this new art will probably keep the value of previous versions from tanking.
Squee, Goblin Nabob – Squee has been available since 10th Edition but is now available in his original card frame and art. A mostly casual card for combining with several different cards, there isn’t as much of an application in Classic and Legacy, but Commander players may be interested.
Bribery – While more of a card for casual players and perhaps Modern, the introduction of the old card frame will be welcomed by collectors. Its high mana cost takes it out of the competitive formats like Classic and Legacy, but is certainly not prohibitive in a format like Commander or 100 Card Singleton.
Masques Draft Strategy
I have not done very many drafts, and I certainly won’t claim to have broken the format, though I do have some general thoughts that may be of value to those venturing into the queues for the first time.
- Removal is king. You might be able to win a match without removal, but winning the draft is difficult without any removal. There is almost no other way to win a match other than going into the red zone. Saying that most spells in the block are underwhelming would be a massive understatement.
- The format is full of X/1s and X/2s, much like many early sets. Pingers have added value since they can kill many creatures in one shot and screw-up combat math. Crossbow Infantry is one such card.
- Black is particularly strong with several removal spells and some strong creatures. Mercenaries, while it’s hard to count on them, can be effective in small doses, so keep you eyes out for the ones that can search up their friends.
- The largest concentration of big creatures is in green, much like many older sets. It is possible to overrun your opponent with an army of 4/4s, etc. if they are lacking in removal. Green is often best paired with black or red for access to removal. Draft as many Blastoderms and Spiders as you can find!
- In that same vein, combat math is very integral to winning and losing in Masques Block. Pay extra attention to possible combat tricks, especially from opponents playing green, though black also has a couple worth noting that decrease creatures’ power.
- Many colors’ top of the curve for non-rare creatures consist of nothing more than Hill Giants, many of which have restrictions on them or abilities that are next to useless. Just about any creature that has an “ability” that each player can use is worthless. Oftentimes, those cards favor your opponent since he will likely be able to untap first and use the ability before you can!
- Blue is a great color with lots of bounce spells and effects as well as numerous flyers. If you plan to play green, Spitting Spider and Spidersilk Armor are your trump cards against an army of flyers.
- Due to the high mana curve of the block, playing 18 lands in a draft deck is probably the best number. When you’re playing with 5-mana 2/2s, you’ll quickly understand what I mean.
- Red is a good support color, but pretty terrible on its own. As a secondary color, it has access to some useable burn spells such as Thunderclap and Seal of Fire as well as some mid-range creatures. Its lack of reach is what makes drafting it as the primary color inadvisable.
- White in general is pretty bad. There are far too many low power creatures and almost zero first-pick worthy non-rare cards. White does have a bunch of artifact and enchantment removal spells though, which can be a nuisance against some decks.
- Perhaps the most disappointing fact of Masques Block is that it is absolutely impossible to force an archetype. Mercenaries and Rebels seem like great draft archetypes, but the reality is that due to the collated pack release, you can go through an entire pack and not see any cards for your deck. As with many blocks, if you know that you can force an archetype based on the likelihood that the second pack has all the key cards, you can force that color in pack one with the hope that that color will flow to you in the second pack and you can scoop up the cards you need to build a powerful deck. The collated booster packs for Masques all but eliminates such a strategy, which is quite unfortunate.
I had planned to provide some draft videos for you all. In the first couple drafts, I was just trying to learn the format and thus did not record them. Unfortunately, those early drafts were my best, as I hit a real rough patch in both terrible draws, and probably even worse decks. Perhaps I was trying to think too much and as a result made too many poor drafting choices. Nonetheless, there was nothing worth showing to you guys this week. Sorry!
Wrap-up
Let me know what all of your thoughts are on Masques. I’d love to hear other people’s experiences in drafting, and any war stories trying to scoop up the best cards for Eternal formats.
One final note: I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the amazing year-end celebration that Wizards is throwing for the Classic community. The full details can be found here, but the gist is that there will be added Daily and Premiere Events as well as 8-Man Queues and a rotating 64-Player Draft. Rounding out the celebration is an invite-only Championship with some amazing prizes. Please come out to support Classic. I know the timing could be better with the Holiday Season and likely having family obligations, but I know I’m going to do my best to join as many events as I can manage. I hope to see you guys there!
yawn
Actually nah this is a pretty sweet primer for the format, cheers.