|
|
 |
 |
Pojo's Duel Masters Card of the Day
|
Image from
Wizards Duel Master site |
|
Essence Elf
Evo Expansion
Date Reviewed: 7.16.04
Constructed Average Rating: 2.7
Limited Average Rating: 3.15
Ratings are based on a 1 to 5 scale
1 being the worst. 3 ... average.
5 is the highest rating. |
|
Cecillbill |
ESSENCE ELF
In the CCG world Elves seem to find jobs as resource
producers or resource
managers. The two Elf creatures in Duel
Masters--actually they're both Tree
Folk--are no exceptions. Essence Elf's cost
reduction effect for spells puts
it in resource management heaven. Want a cheaper
Holy Awe? Of course you do!
PROS:
2 mana is cheap for any creature packing a helpful
effect. That's a good
thing when it comes to the Nature civ because its
mana gain fits
hand-to-glove with cheap ceatures. Let's be honest,
you'd only play Essence
to reduce the costs of your spells. The cost
reduction effect is best abused
if you cast Essence the same turn that you can cast
a key spell. At least
that's how I love to play this creature. Cast
Essence, play a 2 mana
Dimension Gate to fish out Barkwhip, then cast
Barkwhip. You've gotten to
your Evo for 6 mana instead of 7. That 1 less mana
can spell the difference
between being able to cast Barkwhip same turn or
not. That type of
"essence-abuse" is fairly easy to do with a
mono-Nature deck. Of course this
gets even better when you have more than one Essence
Elf in the battle zone
since both reduce the cost of your spells by one.
And, it just gets plain
nuts if you have both Essence Elf and Elf-X out on
the field--in multiples.
: )
CONS:
Two words: 1000 power. Every kill spell in the game,
except Critical Blade,
can toast this creature. Moreover, every creature
that is able to attack can
kill it too. Cost reduction in Duel Masters comes
with a price--you get
barely any attack power behind it. Essence Elf
doesn't have staying power,
and that's the reason its ideal to drop Essence in
the battle zone the same
turn you can cast a spell. Otherwise prepare to
block for this creature or
see it die before you can play spells for cheap.
OVERALL IMPRESSION:
I don't know about you, but I like getting good
stuff for bargin prices.
While Essence one of the most venerable creatures in
the game, its cheap
cost in conjunction with mana gain means its effect
can see use the same
turn its summoned.
FORMAT RATINGS:
Constructed: 2/5. In mono-Nature this card is super.
Essence makes it eaiser
to cast Natural Snare, slap down Mana Crisis, and
reap the benefits of
Dimension Gate. In 2 civ or more decks, the majority
of players skip Essence
in favor of the mana producers like Bronze and
Shouter.
Limited: 2/5. I'd go for the mana producers or pump
effect Nature creatures.
|
Fish
& Chips |
Fish
Hey
Everyone! Fish here(again) looking at Essence
Elf. With Essence Elf, all of
your speels cost 1 less mana to cast, meaning 1
mana Crimson Hammers. Play them
in multiples, and even cheaper spells. You
should definetly add at least 2 to
your deck, because they could save you. Spells
costing 1 mana less mean that you
can do more with your mana, and that's always a
good thing. It's also cheap,
costing 2 mana to play. Cheaper spells are
faster too, meaning Holy Awe on the
4th or 5th turn depending on how many you have
out. A lot better than Elf X in
it's department. Nature creatures are already
cheap, Elf X is a space waster.
But this isn't about Elf X. Only 1000 power
means that you can't attack with it
though, or your opponent will be more than happy
to pick it off. This is the
best card all week.
Pros: 1 less mana to cast, what more can you
say? It itself is cheap too.
Cons: Low power means it will get killed if it's
tapped.
Constructed: 4.5/5 Cheap spells :)
Limited: 4.5/5 Same thing.
Chips
Hey everyone this is Chips with a review of
Essence Elf.
This card is cheap
and the effect is good too. It makes all spells
you play cost 1 less to use, that's a good
effect definetely if you use them in multiples
then you can drop the mana you need to cast it
by 2 or 3 or even 4 mana. This card can only
really be used for it's effect because it only
has 1000 power meaning if it attacks it will
most likely be destroyed on your opponent's next
turn. This card is also very cheap because it
only takes 2 mana to play dropping most 2 or 3 mana
spells down early in the game is very good.
Pros: Cheap,
spells cost 1 less to play
Cons: weak, can
be destroyed easily
Constructed:4/5
Limited 4/5
|
|
Knives101 |
Essence Elf
This card can be very good in the right deck. First
of all it's a good card to play during your second
turn. Playing cards very early in the game is a good
thing. That's why a lot of people like Bloody Squito,
and Deadly Fighter Braid Claw. The low cost of
Essence Elf allows you to easily recast her if she
is bounced or destroyed. For every spell that you
play your mana pool gains one extra mana for the
turn. That is pretty much what Essence Elf can do
for you. If you have two of her in play then you can
pretty much use up your entire hand in one turn.
Essence Elf is much better than Elf-X because she is
much cheaper. Elf-X doesn't help you out until the
fifth turn of the game. Essence Elf can allow you to
play a Death Smoke on the third turn of the game.
Final Rating: 4 This card is just going to keep on
getting better as more and more spells come out.
Limited Rating: 4
|
Gordon
Kane |
Essence Elf - This card
looked good in theory, but right now most of the
good spells are 2 mana just like this Elf (Spiral
Gate, Ghost Touch, Crimson Hammer, Critical Blade).
It could help by helping you squeeze out a Turn 3
Death Smoke or Turn 4 Tornado Flame.
Maybe that works for your playstyle - for me, it is
a bit dangerous. A random Essence Elf can hep in the
late game when you need to combo a couple 2 to 5
mana spells to get cards off the field or out of the
opponent's hands, but there are also some creatures
that help in that regard. Essence Elf, however only
seems to be on the field to make things cheaper --
it is susceptable to the very spells it is trying to
accelerate, and Essence Elf just doesn't have much
beef to kill any tapped creatures and won't be
around long if it gets tapped. I think I'd opt for
paying full mana price for my spells and try to get
a creature on the board that has a little more
impact.
Constructed 2 / 5
Limited 2.5 / 5 (although there are not many choice
spells to find making the rounds of the draft table
in the colors one decides to play).
|
|
