The escalate keyword is pretty much the new
iteration on kicker, and just as useful. There's
not much to complain about when a spell remains
useful and even becomes more useful the longer a
game goes on, especially for fast decks that
sometimes get overwhelmed by late-game spells.
It happens that Blessed Alliance's modes have
obvious defensive applications, but there are
certainly plenty of times when it'll be worth
three or more cards in a creature race too.
Versatility is always good, and modal cards
supply it, and this new "Escalate" mechanic is a
combinatorial explosion of possible uses all on
a single card. My main concern with cards like
these is the "analysis paralysis" that drags
down games, makes board states nigh unsolvable,
and betrays your hand to your opponent (if you
start taking too long to read your cards, he'll
guess you've got a complicated one in hand.)
My advice? Blessed Alliance is good when you're
in a race situation, and you play it during your
opponent's combat. Remember that, and it'll go
smoothly. Also remember, if you're only paying
for one mode, don't make it the 4 life. Usually
you'll want the sacrifice mode, UNLESS you can
by untapping two of your creatures take out
something better than his worst attacker. Ask
yourself which attacker you'd sacrifice if you
were him, and if you have a tapped creature that
can block better without dying (if it dies, you
just gave him a 2-for-1) then you want the untap
option.
If you have four mana, by all means go for both.
At this point you might actually take the 4
life, if the untaps don't offer you any good
blocks (or even an extra use of a strong tap
ability).
Flexibility is a good thing for any card to
have, which is why modal spells like charms and
commands have been format staples for many
years. While the new escalate mechanic looks
fancy, it’s effectively a reworked entwine (from
the original
Mirrodin
block, most famous on Tooth and Nail).
Individual modes of a card tend to be
underwhelming on their own, but you pay for it
with the flexibility of the card itself.
Blessed Alliance is a card I can’t see doing a
ton outside of Limited, though it can lead to
some combat blowouts. Untapping two more
blockers and taking out an attacking creature
for 4 mana is a pretty good deal in itself, and
either of the two mentioned modes are a fair
deal for 2 mana (though hardly reason to justify
playing the card). The life gain won’t see play
unless you’re either desperate or have the extra
mana to spend on it (spending mana and a card
just to gain life is never a good deal, unless
it’s a lot of life, like 10), but it’s not the
worst thing in the world to have if you have the
extra mana and nothing to use it on. The value
of the card is in its flexibility, and
