I like this card because it reminds me of one of the original decks that I constructed with physical cards. I used lots of fliers (mostly "griffin"-type) that had first strike, because my best working theory at the time was to win in combat, and I considered those the most important abilities in dominating the field. It turned out that the casting costs were too high to be truly effective against other decks, but I still like those abilities when dealing with basic combat situations. I think, in the current game, combat isn't highlighted, and winning the game is much more about loop-holes than fundamentals - But, if you're trying to deal damage with creatures, the best way to do it is to use the "original" unblockable ability, Flying. Then, if you ran into trouble in the sky, First Strike is your best friend - It can go a long way to cover you on defense (stack defenders to kill without taking damage), or in combination with white or green instants, make your creature a sure victor in combat. So, this card can certainly help in fundamental combat situations, but the game needs to highlight (by design) those situations, or it renders such fundamentals useless - And, it's just wrong to have built your deck with sound fundamentals, only to have your good thinking subverted by cheap tricks. Sorry kids, the thought didn't count. Stay tuned for more Future Sight! |
