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Pojo's Magic The Gathering
Card of the Day
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Image from Wizards.com |
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Bringer of the Black Dawn
Fifth Dawn Rare
Reviewed May 10, 2004
Constructed: 2.5
Casual: 3.9
Limited: 3.31
Ratings are
based on a 1 to 5 scale
1 being the worst. 3 ...
average.
5 is the highest rating
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our
Card of the Day Reviews
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Scott
Gerhardt
* Game Store owner in
CA, ShuffleAndCut
*
Played on that Pro Tour thing a few times. |
Okay. New cards tend to make me come out
of a shell and talk a little bit.
Actually, since I've started working on
Pojo's
Marvel site, I've gotten more back into
the swing of this whole Card of the Day thing.
So...my two cents? Sure - why not.
First of all, I have
to say this. Overall, I'm furiously pissed
off at Wizards of the Coast. Some of you
know why, most of you have no clue, and the
people at Wizards sure know why I am, and know I
have every right to be. Whatever - that's
not what I'm writing about. I'm simply
setting a tone:
Wizards did
something right!!!!
Well, I don't
know if this is a completely true statement, but
my overall current resentment for the company as
a whole, it takes a lot for me to say something
like this. I should probably mostly be
giving props to MaRo and his design team, but I
figure since it was a couple of individuals that
made me hate WotC, it can be a few individuals
that make me give them props.
"So Scott -
why are you giving Wizards props? Any good
reason or are you just bored?"
A fast (I'll keep
it brief) story time is in order:
Mercadian Masques
made me hate Magic. The block was dumb,
the format was dumb, and it made Magic
incredibly stupid for almost a year. This
is the only time I ever claim to have "quit"
Magic. Well, technically, I started
quitting Magic after GP-Kansas City 1999 when it
was Extended, and I felt like the only decks
were High Tide (combo) and Forbidian (control).
Magic sucked rocks. Masques made it suck
larger, more painful rocks. Now,
while I "quit" Magic, I actually Top 8ed a PTQ,
won a Mox Ruby in a tournament, and at the end,
qualified for PT-NY 2000, but that's yet another
bad story.
"So what
changed things for you Scott? Why did you
'get back into' Magic?"
Simple -
Invasion. This set was fun. It
reminded me why I played the game, and why I
loved the game. I am a serious,
professional player who is DEFINITELY a Spike at
heart. I hate playing Tier 1 decks when I
can whip Tier 1 with Tier 3. I played a
GP-Trial and went 0-2 (getting a game win in
both games in extended) by casting COALITION
VICTORY! Yes - drop Shyft (Ice Age blue
rare - look it up) on turn 4, cast Victory on
turn 5. God I loved to see the look on
their faces. It was priceless. DAMN
Magic was fun then.
"Okay Scott -
you've been blabbing on for about a page now
about stupid nonsense. Get to your point,
okay?"
Gotcha - Fifth
Dawn gives me the same feeling Invasion did.
It's fun...REALLY fun. It makes Spike all
warm and fuzzy inside. Even as much time
as I spend playing with
Super Heroes these days,
this set is keeping my attention hardcore.
Probably one the reasons you're even reading
this right now.
So.....Bringer of
the Black Dawn. This is an awesome cycle
of cards. They are NOT overcost.
Yeah, if you have to pay 9 for them, they are.
You don't pay 9 for them. That's there
just because. There are a sick number of
ways to produce 5 colors, and often before turn
5. Ingots, City of Brass, Glimmervoid,
Birds of Paradise, that AWESOME new rare Joiner
Adept. Don't let the cost get you - it
won't get anyone else.
Get used to it.
9 casting cost creatures WILL see play, they
will see play fast, and they will kick your ass
if you're not ready for it.
In this case,
paying 2 life a turn to control your deck for
the rest of the game is quite well worth it.
Remember, a turn 4 5/5 Trample won't keep a game
going for long anyway. Controlling your
draw past that is WELL worth 2 life - especially
if it brings out other bringers. :)
I have no idea
what my fellow reviewers think of this card, but
I have a feeling that most of the bringers are
going to be between 3.5 and 4.5 in constructed.
This one is the higher end of that.
Remember - COLOR IS DAMN NEAR INCONSEQUENTIAL IN
THIS SET.
In limited, it's
almost as easy. Talismans, Myr, and a host
of other things make this thing quite castable
for 5 colors. Even if it's not, I'll pay 9
for this in limited. The tutor ability is
a virtual game lock in limited.
Moral of the
story: Release your inner Spike, and kick
some butt, Bringer-style
Constructed: 4.5
Limited: 4.5 |
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Chris
Gerhardt
*
game store owner in CA,
ShuffleAndCut |
Domain... turning
out to be sooo interesting in Fifth Dawn.
For those of you unfamiliar with the term, Domain
refers to decks that utilize 5 colors in a
synergetic way. The last time Domain was
truly viable was when Invasion was still legal,
and you actually did see a few domain decks
roaming competitively. While I am still
skeptical about its chances in the current
environment, you never know. It may find its place
in the rogue field, but this will all depend on
how well it is supported by the rest of Fifth
Dawn. Later this week we'll give you a
review of Joiner Adept, a huge step towards mana
smoothing for Domain or any multicolor that
includes Green. While Joiner is an amazing
card, there will need to be more support to truly
make multi-color viable in this set. We
shall soon see.
The ability of Bringer
is amazing...grab what you need and draw it with
your next draw. Amazing. This cards biggest
problem is its mana costs. 9 is stupidly not
even considerable in competitive constructed.
It's alternate cc of WUBRG isn't very manageable
either in the current environment. Unless
something else amazing shows up in Fifth Dawn, you
probably won't see this on the Pro Tour.
BUT.....
....In casual, I can see this as having huge
potential for abuse. Taking advantage of
various older sets, especially Invasion block,
Casual players can have a field day with this
card. Tutor, tutor, tutor...draw what you want,
when you want it. This ability is so powerful,
that Casual mages should not be able to resist the
chance to abuse it. Should make for some fun
decks. Look for some of the following Domain cards
to possibly find new life in casual decks:
Global Ruin,
Legacy Weapon,
Allied Strategies,
Collective Restraint,
Collapsing Borders.
In limited, it's a
difficult call. We're not sure at the time
of publishing what other and how many Fifth Dawn
cards besides Joiner Adept will support
multicolor. If you get enough in your card
pool, run it. Otherwise, 9 casting cost is steep.
If you're going black, I'd still include it in
case of a stand off.
Constructed:
2
Casual: 4.5
Limited: 3.5
Current Price:
Bringer of
the Black Dawn -
Fifth Dawn - TBA
Combos
Well With:
Global Ruin -
Invasion - $2.30
Legacy
Weapon -
Apocalypse - $3.54
Allied
Strategies -
Planeshift - $0.87
Collective
Restraint -
Invasion - $2.30
Collapsing
Borders -
Invasion - $1.62
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Judge
Bill
*Level 2
MTG Judge
*game store employee
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A repeatable
Vampiric Tutor on a stick. For 9 mana, shouldn't
you have already won the game? Even if you pay
the "one of each mana" cost, you've set up your
deck with rather unnecessary cards to get the
Bringers out. A great card for limited, and will
probably see some play in casual. I just don't
think it's any good in competitive constructed,
because of its high mana cost.
Constructed: 1
Casual: 3
Limited: 4.5
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Ray
"Monk"
Powers
* Level 3 DCI Judge
*DCI Tournament Organizer
*Game Store Owner (Gamer's Edge) |
Bringer of the Black
Dawn
I am officially naming
this guy “Luke Cage, Hero for Hire.” He’s big,
he’s black, and if you pay him enough, he’ll get
you anything you want. The alternate cost is going
to make him fun to play in Type Dan Gray, my
favorite casual format. If you play Type Dan Gray,
he’s a must.
In Draft, for this
block, it’s just going to be too hard to play him.
He costs too much and is over costed at his normal
casting cost, but the block does not have enough
mana fixers to make the five color cost feasible.
Maybe if you are playing black and green with the
Joiner (reviewed later on this week).
In Constructed, same
deal. You can build a deck around him, but it
won’t be tier one. All the same, I think its still
a fun card I’ll be using in casual play.
Constructed:
2
Casual:
4
Limited:
1
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Jonathan
Pechon
2 Grand
Prix Top 8's
Multiple Pro Tour
appearances |
Bringer of the Black
Dawn
A new mechanic brings
about some good cards, right? I really hope that
this ends up being one of them…though I just have
to say that I don’t think that it’s likely. I’d
like to thank Wizards for printing fun cards in
the same block with yet another painfully fast and
powerful mechanic (Affinity) as to hose up the
entire field and make cards that are just “good”
virtually unplayable unless they have the specific
purpose of wrecking said mechanic. A decent
card, but not good enough to make a dent in
competition.
I can definitely see
just about anything with this mechanic having
practical use in any form of casual play, from
prismatic to group games to good ol’ fun decks.
This guy is definitely going to be on the top tier
of those cards. I mean, who doesn’t want the
option of casting Vampiric Tutor every upkeep?
This isn’t to mention the sizable body with an
evasion ability attached to it. Mana-cost makes
it nigh-impossible to play in Mental.
I don’t see the
Sunburst mechanic making too much of a splash in
draft; therefore, the nine mana that could use on
this would probably be best spent on two or three
other, more efficient cards.
Constructed: 2.5
Casual: 3.5
Limited: 2.0
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Jeff Zandi
5 Time Pro Tour
Veteran
Level 2 Judge |
Bringer of the Black
Dawn
5/5 Trampler with amazing ability to Tutor for
whatever card you want during
your upkeep each turn. What's the downside? Mostly
the casting cost. The
regular cost of 7BB is very high, playable as an
expensive bomb in limited,
I suppose, with lots of Myr and Talisman cards. It
is extremely interesting
to have the alternate cost of one of each color of
mana. In limited, it's
pretty hard to get all five colors of mana. Even
in decks designed to get
multiple colors of mana, you might be able to pay
the 7BB cost by the time
you have the five mana alternate, supposedly
cheaper, available to you.
There can be no doubt that this card is extremely
powerful once it's in
play, which makes it SOMEHOW useful in
constructed. *shrug* Giant mana cost
for a big creature with a powerful ability, sounds
like a card for the old
Reanimator deck to me. Obviously great in casual
decks that still have
access to tournament-banned goodies like Lake of
the Dead and Dark Ritual.
CONSTRUCTED: 3.0
CASUAL: 3.5
LIMITED: 3.5 |
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Chase
Secret Squirrel
on the
Pojo.com
Message
Boards |
Bringer of the Black
Dawn
Wow. Vampiric Tutor every turn for 9 mana, 5
toughness, and trample.
Although it is expensive. 9 mana for continuous
tutor might not be the best
way to play with your life. I just don't think
this fits into any current
deck as decks are just so fast.. This should be a
good rule of thumb for
most constructed decks. Very cool for casual.
I could see this getting played in limited. If
and when you cast this, you
get another bomb next turn. That is to say if, as
you will never play a 5
color limited deck. 9 mana can be gotten but it
is not that desirable.
Constructed: 2
Casual: 4
Limited: 3.5
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Jason
Chapman |
Bringer of the Black
Dawn is one of those cards that I should hate. At
9 mana, or even 5 with alternate casting cost, I
would normally argue that it has to win the game
for you as soon as it comes down but the ability
to fetch a needed card each and every turn counts
for a lot. While I still think it is overrated
this card can see some abuse especially with
creative ways to get it in play fast.
Constructed - Slow
but a game breaker if only because it lets you
find the gamebreaker - 3.0
Limited - Possible
as it would make sure you draw the perfect card
for every situation - 3.0
Casual - A great
card for casual games where it is fairly balanced
- 3.5
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