Back in the first Innistrad block, I didn't
expect the ghosts to be among my (or close to my
absolute) favorite of the tribes that it
offered. But they turned out to be a much more
fair and interesting version of Lorwyn's Faeries
- and their captain was an actual factual
pirate. Spell Queller is an interesting addition
to that deck, and interesting just in general
too. It looks fragile and the fact that the
opponent may get their spell back later seems
like a risk, but the time they can do so might
easily be too late to be really relevant.
Indeed, I sort of like it just for the fact that
it uses the exile action in a place you rarely
see it happen (even if it ends up confusing
people about why exile works on spells but
protection and the like don't!).
Spell Queller is an extremely powerful card,
and it’s quickly made its name as the chase rare
of the set. A 2/3 flying body with flash is
reasonable enough for 3 mana, but the effect is
the main attraction: delay a spell for as long
as Spell Queller lives.
Exiling the spell means that it gets
around “can't be countered” clauses on spells
like Supreme Verdict; while they get the spell
when the Queller dies, delaying a spell they
tapped out for for even a turn might be the
difference between victory and defeat. Spells
with Sunburst or Converge become useless
because the game “forgets" what colors were
spent to cast the spell when it casts after it
leaves. Unlike most counterspells, it can batter
your opponent’s face, and it benefits greatly
from the Spirit support strewn throughout the
block. And Queller being only three mana means
you can effectively Collected Company into a
counterspell.
One last interaction: due to how Spell Queller
is worded, if you remove Queller before its
first ability finishes resolving, the spell is
gone forever, which makes for some absurd
interactions with blink effects. Keep an eye out
for this card: it might be the most powerful
card in the set, but it's no worse than top
five.
