Calamity’s Wake – The Brother’s War
Date Reviewed: November 16, 2022
Ratings:
Constructed: 3.25
Casual: 3.50
Limited: 3.25
Multiplayer: 3.00
Commander [EDH]: 3.63
Ratings are based on a 1 to 5 scale. 1 is bad. 3 is average. 5 is great.
Reviews Below:
Calamity’s Wake is a powerful argument against the idea that you can’t make interest-worthy cards out of common game text. We’ve seen the two halves of its effect on numerous cards, but we’ve never seen both of them in one place, and the result is surprisingly versatile. Sometimes you’ll be able to use the ability to shut off noncreature spells as something approaching Time Walk, and the graveyard part will be a bonus. Sometimes it’ll be the other way around. Both halves are also surprisingly good against some popular decks in Legacy and Modern, as the spell- and graveyard-based ones have surprising overlaps. Underworld Breach is banned in Legacy but still legal in Modern, and there are also more obvious ones like Living End.
I’ll talk more about the Brothers’ War’s themes – and The Brothers’ War‘s themes – in my gameplay-free review, because they are, if anything, more relevant in 2022 than they were in 1993. But the moment portrayed here, right after the detonation of the Golgothian Sylex, was a turning point in the storyline, in ways that go beyond Dominaria. Since it was the catalyst for Urza’s spark igniting, without it there would have been no victory against Phyrexia in the Invasion block.
Constructed: 3.5
Casual: 3.5
Limited: 3
Multiplayer: 3
Commander [EDH]: 3.5
Calamity’s Wake is one of those neat tech cards that has a surprising amount of application; it’s graveyard hate and a way to rein in combo players, with the catch that this does stop you from casting other noncreature spells on resolution for the rest of the turn. It’s simple and elegant, and while it’s not apt to make the cut as a mainboard card outside of the most degenerate formats, this is a flexible weapon against a lot of strategies, particularly with unearth running around in this set.
Constructed: 3
Casual: 3.5
Limited: 3.5
Multiplayer: 3.5
Commander [EDH]: 3.75 (more graveyard hate and combo stop is always nice to have in a back pocket)
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