Saturday, 18 July 2015

Some Updates

In the past, I had made it a point to limit the number of updates to this page. When I started writing about the formats, I wanted the ban/restricted lists to be at the forefront of the website. The reason for this is simple: they are essentially what make each format unique. The other reason for the lack of updates was because of how much time I spend already on brewing, research and writing about decks. I really enjoying exploring what the format has to offer, and feel that it is a great way to show its diversity. While my focus shall remain on brewing and writing about decks, I have decided to post the occasional update to the main site. I don't plan on following any sort of schedule, but I think it is important to bring attention to any changes and/or even just some general discussion on strategy, deck construction and the format in general.

Now with that said, I'm going to mention a few things that had occurred without proper notice:

Changes to the Ban/Restricted Lists

This one is simple - I removed Flash from them. The card was only banned in Legacy due to a more modern printing, and as such I see no reason for it to be banned in Ancient. To date, this marks the second real change that has been made between the lists (the first being Survival of the Fittest, which was also banned for similar reasons).


Regarding the Ban/Restricted Lists

Please note: there is no guarantee all changes to the lists are going to involve the removal of cards. The Ancient formats have their pieces locked in for the most part, meaning nothing new is going to get printed - good thing we have thousands of game pieces already, eh? While I've always been a strong believer in keeping a low Ban list, I do not want certain cards to completely limit archetypes. I've reviewed Ban/Restricted lists from the past and have noticed certain cards were banned then that aren't now (due to changing power levels within the 'new' Legacy/Vintage formats). For the moment, I feel as though the lists are where they should be, but that doesn't mean a ban/unban won't ever happen.

I am aware there is always going to be certain cards that are better, and if some get banned then the next best option is going to take their place. With that in mind, I would consider future banning to be on cards that simply negate archetypes. While there are no cards I have in mind currently, I did just want to mention that to everyone. I also want to mention that the opinion of others does matter, so any thoughts/feedback are always welcome.


Decks

The other thing I wanted to mention was the 'Decks' section. As you know, this is where most of my focus has been. I write about decks that I think are interesting and I always encourage other to brew and tweak the decks that I've written about. I mention this because the format is supposed to be about fun and nostalgia, as well as an escape from the more modern philosophies of WotC's R&D. Up until now, my focus has been on tournament level lists. I plan on continuing to write about such decks, but I also want to brew a bit more on the casual side. This format is about enjoyment, and I think creativity and doing cool things with under-represented cards can be really fun and also help us stumble upon even more archetypes. As I mentioned a long time ago, this format is very unexplored and new (ironic, I know), as Wizards never really promoted a format quite like Ancient before.

So in short: I am going to keep writing about different decks. Some are going to be more 'tournament-level' known deck types, while others are going to be more on the casual side (although that's not to say they won't be competitive either). I would also like to start writing about Ancient Power decks as well, although for obvious reasons of accessibility I am going to continue to focus on Ancient.

Cheers.
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Saturday, 7 September 2013

Ancient Magic

Ancient is a Magic the Gathering format that only allows cards printed in the old frame (Alpha through Scourge). While this does limit the card pool, it also allows players the opportunity to play the game under Magic's original philosophies, with less of a focus on creature battles and more on the casting of all spell types.

What's Allowed?

The Banned List is very similar to that of the Legacy Format for now. This could change in the future however, as it becomes more clear if certain cards remain 'broken' when they only have access to the original framed cards.

Current Banned List
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