From: bmaiken@tardis.svsu.edu (da chicken)
Subject: Re: Phelldagrif - most useless Magic card??
Date: Tue, 01 Jul 1997 06:25:20 GMT

tom0075@aol.com (Tom0075) wrote:

>Has anyone ever used this card for anything but to complete a set??

Well, before you knock the card, lets analyze how it works in play.

Phelddagrif
WUG1
Summon Legend
4/4
W: Flying until end of turn.  Target opponent gains 2 life.
U: Return ~ to owner's hand.  Target opponent may draw a card.
G: Trample until end of turn.  Put a Hippo token into play under target
player's control.  

First of all, if this card had _zero_ special abilities, it would still be
an OK card.  4 mana for a 4/4 creature is a good deal, even with 3 of it
colored mana.  So, if nothing else, it is a relatively low-cost big
creature.  For the same reason Goblin Artisans is a good creature (well, an
OK one).  It is the _exact_ same as a Mons' Goblin Raiders, but it has a
special ability (albiet a rather useless one).  Remember you don't _have_
to use the special abilities of a card.

The first special ability allows you to give the creature flying at a cost
of giving to opponent 2 life.  As cards like Swords to Plowshares or
Necropotence should tell you, life is a rather _meaningless_ resource,
unless you have zero or less.  Giving an opponent 2 life is almost
insignificant, expecially if you use it to allow the creature to hit the
opponent.  Essentially, then, the creature turns into a 2/4 flyer, yes?
(i.e., you give the opponent 2 life, then hit 'em for 4, so they lose a net
of 2.)

The second ability, the blue one, is the most powerful ability, and has the
worst drawback.  Allowing your opponent to draw a card for free is bad.  I
know that, you know that, and everyone probably knows it.  

Let's look at a card with a similar ability: Blinking Spirit.  Blinky has
always been considered a strong card because it is so hard to kill.  But
when do you usually unsummon the Blinky?  Many people use it to slow a big
attacker.  This is a bad idea with the 'grif, since then they draw lots of
cards  while you waste lots of mana.  People also "blink" when the opponent
'bolts it, or StP's it, or to save it from your own Wrath, etc.  What if
you only blinked the 'grif when something like this occurs?  The opponent
has spent a card to kill a card, a normal 1-to-1 creature killer (like StP,
Terror).  So, if you blink the 'grif, all you're saying is that your 4/4
creature is better than any card the opponent might draw.  They totally
wasted one card since you nullified the effect of their card by blinking
the 'grif, and all they gained was drawing one card.  You gained no card
advantage, but _neither did they_.  Your opponent can Terror, StP, etc. all
day and can't kill the 'grif.  You are eliminating all their creature
elimination spells by being able to "draw" another 4/4 creature every time
they "kill" one.  Get it?  

The same kind of thought applies to Ivary Gargoyle.  Playing with this card
says "I'd rather draw an effective 0-cost 2/2 flyer w/o summoning sickness
than anything else".

The last ability is definately the worst.  Trample is a nice ability, but I
find the cost of giving the opponent a 1/1 creature too high.  If you keep
using this ability, your opponent may eventually be able to gang block the
'grif to death (although you could give it flying).  There are some very
weird combos with this ability though (Aether Flash + Asmira, Holy
Avenger).  Another advantage is that this card is almost impossible to
Balance away, since you can pop out a 1/1 in response.

So, at worst Phelddagrif is a 4/4 creature for 4 mana.  At best it is a 4/4
flying blinking spirit.  IMHO, this makes it a VERY nice card.  Although I
do hate the artwork.  The restriction of 3 different colors makes it very
difficult to play with, but if you do have a W/G/U deck, I'd strongly
consider playing it.


--
Brandon Aiken (a.k.a. da chicken)
Certified Level I Judge
bmaiken@tardis.svsu.edu

Brain:	Pinky, are you pondering what I'm pondering?
Pinky:	I think so Brain, but me and Pipi Longstocking?  I
        mean what would the children look like?

The self-proclaimed King of Recursion.
--Ultimate Card Advantage lies in Recursion--