This group here has rather low toughness
compared to past horde depictions (Balduvian, of
Notions, etc). I suppose that's because 2 life
per turn is not actually a huge price to pay for
the level of threat they offer. You still don't
want to pay it for a very long time, of course,
but you get what you pay for. Dash is an
excellent ability to pair with a disadvantage
like that - you're free to hit the opponent for
no disadvantage other than the card's
impermanence as long as that's more
advantageous, and you can use it the "normal"
way to finish off, or if you may need it to
block as well, or if you have later plays or
other dash cards you want to use. Actually, that
sounds like a very strong combination all
around.
Today's card of the day is Pitiless Horde which
is a three mana Black
5/3 with Dash for four and at the beginning of
your upkeep you lose two life. This is a
very aggressive card that functions as a
Juggernaut for Black, but the drawback if not
played with Dash is noticeable if an opponent
can stall it. Supported with effects like
Lifelink or repeatedly cast with Dash this is a
solid if somewhat high maintenance threat that
is likely to see play as a centerpiece of
mono-Black aggro.
In Limited this is a very serious threat that is
often better used with Dash to avoid the life
cost, particularly with cards like Pacifism
available to derail it. A reasonable first
pick in Booster and an easy inclusion in Sealed
as the drawback can be avoided with Dash which
leaves a higher toughness reusable Black version
of Arc Runner without Trample.
It’s the classic undercosted black creature with
a drawback - but this one gives you a choice of
drawbacks. Do you hard cast him on turn three
and hope you can hit them faster than the upkeep
cost hits you? Or, do you pay 4 mana every turn
for him to avoid the 2 life, netting the
additional benefit that non-instant speed spells
or effects can’t touch him? It’s a tough choice.
If you do play him for three, watch out for
Pacifism-type effects that make your creature
useless while it hits you for two every turn. I
was able to do that to an opponent at the
pre-release and it proved very effective.
While the Horde is powerful, I think there are
better, less fragile, less dangerous ways to go
about being aggressive.
