Hello everyone and welcome to this review of Modern Horizons 2, the new expansion of Magic The Gathering designed to be directly legal for the Modern format. I will be your reassuring neighborhood Charon and I will ferry you safely to discover this set.
Modern Horizons 2 - An overview
Let's immediately establish what Modern Horizons 2 is.
It is a legal expansion designed as card support for the Modern format.
The cards that will appear in this expansion they are not playable in Pioneer or Standard formats, while they are legal in all other Eternal formats of Magic ie Vintage, Legacy, Pauper and Commander.
The expansion consists of 345 cards of which 101 common, 100 uncommon, 78 rare, 24 mythic e 42 reissues of various rarity which are first introduced in the Modern format.
It also features a particularity already introduced for some previous sets: this is the presence of several cards with the old layout of the pre-mirrodin cards, an element that will surely make old-time players feel bad and that will probably end up intriguing even the younger ones.
In detail, with the numbering from the card with expansion number 1 to 260 we will have new cards or reprints already appeared for legal sets in Modern, while the cards with numbering ranging from 261 to 303 will be the cards reprinted for the first time for the Modern format ([mtg_link]Gorilla Shaman[/mtg], [mtg_link]Isolation[/mtg], Counterspell among others).
New life, but with feet firmly on the ground
The first Modern Horizons caused a sort of earthquake in the world of Magic's organized play with the printing of cards that were apparently balanced, but so powerful that they turned the metagame upside down. In that case we were talking about cards like Hogaak, Arisen Necropolis, Wrenn and Six, new slivers, new ninjas, new cards with the snow supertype and many others that have contributed to enrich existing decks, revitalize some, create totally new ones.
Some cards turned out issues to the point of push Wizards of the Coast to carry out targeted bans, to preserve the balance of some formats.
The curiosity to see how the issue related to the cards present in Modern Horizons 2 will evolve is great, a lot of data on the impact of the new cards are already giving some responses, but we will have time and a way to make considerations in the future.
We said that all these new cards represent new life for many strategies of different decks and the news are many.
Let's start with some reprints that will make the whole community of Magic players happy: the reprint of the fetchlands of enemy colors. Marsh Flats, Scalding Tarn, Verdant Catacombs, Arid Mesa, Misty Rainforest are the combinations respectively of white-black, red-blue, black-green, white-red and green-blue, allow you to go and look for a land with the specific land type for the color played at the cost of a modest life point.
Their reissue will allow many players to have access to these important cards. The funny thing is, speaking of lands, we can't help but notice that they have been printed two absolutely incredible lands to overshadow the important reprint of the fetchlands.
I'm talking about two very special lands that they are Urza's Saga and Yavimaya, Cradle of Growth.
Urza's Saga it is both land and spell and saga; the latter type of card is linked to a particular type of particular spell introduced with the expansion Dominaria in which, proceeding by chapters, there are different effects.
Once you have reached its last chapter you will need to discard the card.
Let's get back to us: this land offers us colorless mana col first chapter, in second chapter the ability to generate a creature artifact construct that will have strength and toughness equal to the number of artifacts we will have in play and with the final chapter will allow us to go to search the deck artifacts with the specific cost 0 or 1.
The possibilities of this land are many and have given considerable support to different strategies in different formats such as Affinity, Food, Control, PO Mentor, Urza Karn Echo and so on.
The ability to create constructs and have a brace for useful artifacts depending on the situation pays off Urza's Saga a versatile and strong card.
Extremely particular it is Yavimaya, Cradle of Growth a land that adds the forest type to all lands in play.
The reference to Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth, first appearing in the Dimensional Chaos expansion, is evident. But where the latter polluted all the lands black and made them swamps, Yavimaya, Cradle of Growth shows the restorative side of nature.
If you play green this special land offers the opportunity to adjust the colored mana requirement, even if it was already a specialty of the green.
Undoubtedly in many Commander format decks that use green it will be welcome and goes to reinforce some strategies such as Golgari Rock in its various expressions, Jund Midrange and Green Tron.
A very strong land for Affinity is Power Depot, Artifact land with Modular 1 an ability that brings this land into play with a + 1 / + 1 counter on it. Arcbound Ravager will profit, Affinity players, be warned!
Will it be a Horizon of Glory?
The comparisons between Modern Horizons and Modern Horizons 2 continue and it would be absolutely unfair to overshadow the new spells with alternative cost.
While in the first Modern Horzon there were new Forces (Force of Negation, Force of Vigor and so on), in this expansion we have a cycle of elemental creatures which can be cast with the Evoke ability, a lower alternative cost that brings the creature into play, but then must be sacrificed.
It seems an exaggerated cost, since in this case it requires the exile of a card of the same color as the elemental we want to cast, but the effects are really solid.
So we have cards like Grief, black card that allows you to look at your opponent's hand to make him discard a non-land card, or cards like Solitude, representative of white and also with the Flash ability to be cast as an instant kills target creature; it is capable of giving life equal to the exiled creature's power to its owner.
We find cards like Subtlety, the blue elemental capable of delaying the entry of a creature or planeswalker by making the opponent decide whether to put the card as last or first of the library or cards as Fury, the red elemental that allows you to distribute 4 damage between creatures and planeswalkers.
Last creature of the cycle is Endurance, elementary green at the entrance to the field remixes a target cemetery with the grimoire.
All these abilities that trigger upon entering the battlefield (in English ETB ie Enter the Battlefield ability) refer to as many famous cards of the past.
Solitude resumes Swords to Plowshares, Grief is the creature version of Unmask, Subtlety recalls multiple effects of blue, Fury è Pyrokinesis, Endurance instead it turns out to be quite original in its effect.
On the net the discussions about the applications of this cycle of elementals are quite active and I personally can't wait to experiment some games with at least a couple of these. Surely Endurance is great against the Dredge and Reanimator strategies, Grief helps both Dredge and combo or midrange decks, Solitude it also solves pretty huge problems like an Eldrazi or a Blightsteel Colossus.
In the presence of the others in the cycle, perhaps alone Fury it seems to me less performing.
A look at the past, one at the future
As with Modern Horizons 1, Modern Horizons 2 also has a glimpse into the past and one into the future, thus perfectly capturing the present of our favorite card game and its growing diversity.
In fact, there is still a cycle of cards that recalls mechanics and effects that have already appeared, but poured into a new frame.
I'm talking about the cycle of cards with the suspend ability present in this expansion, namely: Resurgent Belief, Inevitable Betrayal, Profane Tutor, Glimpse of Tomorrow, Gaea’s Will. All without mana cost, all with suspend, all playable also in rather interesting alternative ways (see cascade).
Resurgent Belief it's a Replenish that brings our spells back into play from the graveyard; Inevitable Betrayal it is instead one Bribery to go and find a creature from the opponent's library and put it into play on our side. Profane Tutor gives us a Demonic tutor and Glimpse of Tomorrow a chaotic Warp World with which players must shuffle their permanents with their library and reveal a number of cards equal to the permanents shuffled and put all revealed permanents into play (really chaotic).
Gaea’s Will and instead very strong and gives the green the formidable effect of Yawgmoth’s Will which allows you to play all spells in your graveyard until the end of the turn, exiling all spells that will end up in the graveyard that turn.
The ties to the past don't end there, and many new players will get acquainted with an array of dark characters or Magic origins such as Dakkon Blackblade, here present as Dakkon, Shadow Slayer, a strong planeswalker with loyalty equal to the number of lands controlled, Garth One-Eye, a five-color legend that gives us copies of cards from the history of Magic and the dark sorceress and high-ranking chef of the best restaurant the underworld has ever had, word of your reassuring Charon who is guiding you and to, hold on tight, Asmoranomarkedistinaculdacar.
Asmoranomarkedistinaculdacar it is a legend that can be summoned at the cost of only one mana, but only if you have discarded a card. Then you will have, cookbook (The Underworld Cookbook) and several delicacies to cook and guests to eat. If they fail to enjoy the cooking of our sorceress and infernal cook, well, it will surely depend on their delicate stomachs. I forgot, it's also a 3/3.
The references to the past, adapted to the present are still many others like Brainstone, Diamond Lion, Sol Talisman, Tormod's Cryptokeeper. Asmoranomarkedistinaculdacar in particular it is a boon for a new deck that plays on the Food strategy.
By the way, try to repeat the name of without making a mistake Asmoranomarkedistinaculdacar.
Good fun.
Nutcracker nutcracker
It wouldn't be a worthy successor set to Modern Horizons 1 if there wasn't a tribal appeal worthy of the name. Well, all Magic fans have finally been satisfied. You're finally going to be an unstoppable, savage steamroller in upcoming tournaments.
Fearsome steamroller. Powerful steamroller.
Yes, even Popeye will bring you respect, but you don't need spinach, no sir! You will need good teeth and lots of nuts!
Yes, you got it right, the set in question he staked everything on squirrels and before you laugh at it, wait and see the big bucks that have been given to one of the less numerous tribes in Magic The Gathering.
Here are the new squirrel champions and beware of contradicting them: Chatterfang, Squirrel General, chatter storm, Chitterspitter, Scurry Oak, Squirrel Sovereign, Squirrel Sanctuary, Verdant Command.
At WOTC (Wizards Of The Coast) they had a great time, but we also pay some attention because it is unlikely that these cards will be the quintessence of the Modern format where instead they will make the happiness of the freest format par excellence: Commander.
Speaking of tribal interactions there are far stronger ones, but the effect of the legendary Chatterfang, Squirrel General to operate as a kind of Anointed Procession, however, proliferating squirrel tokens, it is so delicious that it allows loads of combinations or uses that I leave you to explore at your own pace.
A monstrous expansion
Modern Horizons 2 is unbelievable.
It's a 345-card set, but the strength of the set is such that this review is miniscule in the face of the huge potential for possible decks, reinforcements, and reprints on offer.
If it is true that there are cards like Fire//Ice, even printed as common in the past, there are however cards like Vindicate (versatile universal removal) or Karmic Guide (at the base of many cemetery resuscitation tricks), Counterspell, Patriarch’s Bidding, Goblin Bombardment (so exaggerated that it could be a candidate to be banned), Gorilla Shaman (the perfect old Zoo deck in Vintage card to eat Moxes and a huge impact anti-Affinity card), Imperial Recruiter, Quirion Ranger, Titania Protector of Argoth, Sterling Grove (excellent tutor for spells and protection for them), Cursed Totem (deadly against elf mana production and creature activated abilities), Cabal Coffers (I really have to tell you what's the use?), Shardless Agent that can heavily change the landscape of the Modern format that comes closest to Legacy and that offers blessed reprints for those who want to get closer to the latter format.
Among the new cards, cards such as Wait Sentinel, Void Mirror, Sword of Hearth and Home (the sword of white and green that has many things to say), Kaldra Compleat (a new target for Stoneforge Mystic), Academy Manufactor (the joy for those who produce one of the types of tokens to which it refers), Dermotaxi (a great pun for the taxidermists among you and it is a vehicle as well), Sythis, Havest's Hand, Grist, The Hunger Tide (among the planeswalkers one of the most bizarre, can be tutored and resuscitated as a creature), General Ferrous Rokiric.
Other weird cards with storm abilities, explosive components for certain decks and pieces capable of containing them.
Beyond the Horizon - Conlusions
The shrewd among you will have noticed that I only fielded a portion of the notable cards in the set.
There are many and you can write to the editorial office to ask for an encore and an analysis of some cards in particular that have captured your imagination.
I will be happy to put particular decklists on fire for you that are emerging day by day.
Forgive the rhetoric of this conclusion, but Magic The Gathering has broadened the horizons of the game quite a lot.
The possibility of variety offered for deckbuilding is truly sky-high, whether it is well-established strategies over time, or whether it leads to new types (true Asmoranomarkedistinaculdacar?).
Of course I hope you'll want to pop into your trusted game store or comic store to get yourself this awesome Modern Horizons 2.
I leave you now, dear Asmora is cooking excellent Granite Gargoyle.
Have a good exploration!
