Subject: RE: Why 6th Edition *WILL* kill MTG Date: Thu, 26 Nov 1998 19:50:37 -0800 From: Mike/Frances To: fkusumot@ix.netcom.com Okay let's look at this one thing at a time. This is the worst thing that I can think that will ever happen to the game if these rules are enforced. Mainly though is the interrupts. I feel that WOTC is trying to make everything like portal to make portal more attractive to new players. Portal is an okay set on its good day. How many times have you seen an avid magic player buying portal? Maybe buying the pre-constructed deck to get the Armageddon. How many packs of portal two do you think John Finkel has bought? 1. No more interrupts. This is true. But this doesn't mean that counterspells will go away. Counterspell and all other old interrupts will be played as instants. This has very little effect on game play. WHAT!? Think about it. Okay yes the one thing that pops up in everyone's mind is counterspell. Sure it'll work exactly like it does now. That means that interrupts will be the same right? WRONG! Think of Fork. Fork can now be responded to. That means that you can no longer Fork a capsize to capsize a disk before they can blow it. (Jim :)) Also, since there is no longer an interrupt phase the fork is just as slow as the original spell if its an instant. That defeats the prupose of its original speed. This makes fork worth less monatarally and in play value. Also, does that mean that if I fork a spell with buyback (in response to their spell?) I have to wait for their spell to resolve or do I still get my spell resolution faster than theirs? Next big interrupt, Sleight of mind. This can now be responded to. I'll cast gloom. Sligh says okay. I say sleight to red, he says in response before your sleight takes effect I will shock you shock you incinerate you. Okay I let sleight resolve now. Is this the intent of the card!? NO. Next big set of interrupts. Ertai and his minions.(i.e. Disruptive student, Vodalian Mage, Mundungu) Okay I have out Ertai. I say go. Opponent says shock Ertai. I tap Ertai and counter. He says in response to counter (??) he shocks him again. I laugh at him as I twiddle Ertai and counter a second time. Again this is not the intent of the card nor the game. Next big question comes from the new sleeping creatures. They awaken during the "successfully cast" part of a spell. The 5 steps of a spell are as follows: 1) announcement, 2) Interrupt phase(deleted), 3) Successfully cast, 4) responses, 5) resolution. Okay with the interrupt phase gone when does "successfully cast" happen? I am assuming (you know what happens when you do that) that WOTC has seen past this and is going to make the steps: announcement, instants(all counters and responses together), successfully cast, resolution. 2. No more Damage Prevention Phase. This is true, but it doesn't mean no more damage prevention. You'll still be able to play Healing Salve in response to my Lightning Bolt and prevent the damage. Not too rules guru'ish about damage prevention so I don't see much of a change here. I can see that it will get really confusing about people who are acquainted with the rules now. Player asks, "How can you prevent the lightning bolt damage if you respond to the lightning bolt? If in response the damage hasn't hit you yet." 3. No more Mana Pool. This is incorrect. You'll still have a Mana Pool. However, if you wish, you'll be allowed to play a spell then tap your lands to pay for it. This doesn't really have much effect on the player as much as it does judges. What happens when they announce the spell and then decide they can't pay the mana for it? Is it going to be counted as "showing your opponent your hand" which is not an infraction of the rules or misrepresentation of a card? 4. Tapped artifacts will function normally. (A tapped Winter Orb will still be turned on and have its normal effect.) This is true. We've decided to remove the rule from the rulebook and instead add it to the cards. Expect to see artifacts like "As long as this card is untapped, creatures can't attack." This is really more like errata than anything. WOTC will probably errata EVERY card but if it doesn't I'm sure someone will find some ultra sneaky combo that will work because he can now use the tapped artifact because WOTC forgot to errata that one card. Anything else I've left off? People voice your opinion on this to WOTC! This game is about players. It's us who love to play the game, its us that must tell WOTC what they are doing is not good for the game at all. Brent George Team Takklemaggot