Nemesis, Part Five

Gary Wise

The following is a preliminary analysis of the Green cards in Nemesis for the purpose of limited play. They are listed in alphabetical order.

Animate Land - Another interesting concept, this card will usually either kill an opposing attacker or allow you to attack with an extra creature when swarming for the kill. Good enough for the main deck. 6/10

Blastoderm - A very strong, very fat card, on most occasions it will be able to do 5 points of damage or kill a chump blocker for three successive turns, but regenerators can throw a big wrench into that plan. For longevity purposes, Silverglade Elemental seems preferable. 8/10

Coiling Woodworm - If you need something to trade for an opposing fatty, this will do it, but generally it won't be good enough to make your main deck. 4/10

Fog Patch - If you have spellshapers and you're laying an aggressive deck, this may be good enough to play as it can win you the race or be discarded for other uses. That said, it just doesn't do enough most of the time, especially when you consider the ineffectiveness against tramplers and Lacoliths. 3.5/10

Harvest Mage - The payment here is just too much for the effect in limited play. If you're playing three colors with double casting cost cards and have a Squee though...3/10

Mossdog - Doesn't do enough, but at least it's better than Sacred Prey. 2/10

Nesting Wurm - The good news is that if you have 4 and can cast one before drawing the other three, you're set. The bad news is the mathematical probability of that situation hat said, If you were to get 4 of these, it probably wouldn't matter, and more than one is very playable. 6.5/10

Overlaid Terrain - Unplayable in limited play. 1/10

Pack Hunt - See Overlaid Terrain 0.5/10

Refreshing Rain - Generally not good enough main deck, it will be sideboardable against aggressive decks. Don't you with its alternative casting cost involved Mountains instead of Swamps? 3.5/10

Reverent Silence - An interesting alternative to Tranquility, it seems unlikely that the alternate casting cost will be used that often. 6.5/10

Rhox - Wow is this guy a beast, and that wasn't meant as a creature class joke. At 4/6, Rhox is virtually unstoppable, and even if you can block it, it'll deal its damage. Protected by regeneration, if your opponent isn't playing black, it will likely end the game in mere turns. Probably the best Green card in the environment. 9.5/10

Saproling Burst - A skill intensive card the burst can get you a lot of card advantage or absolutely nothing. Capable of doing 20 points if unimpeded, it will be impended, so it's main function is board control, allowing all out assaults while serving as a number of blockers for a couple of turns, with those creatures you do make turning around to attack the next turn. 7/10

Saproling Cluster - Unlikely to benefit you much more than your opponent, it could be interesting with Groundskeeper or Squee. 2/10

Seal of Strength - More than any of the other seals, this card is hurt by the lack of a surprise factor. That said, it's still a solid addition to any deck, protecting your creatures trading for an opposing blocker or doing that three points of damage needed to finish an opponent off. 7/10

Skyshroud Behemoth - This card looks great until you look at the text box. Essentially, for seven mana, you can kill your opponent's two worst creatures, assuming they don't have a regenerator. This big guy really needs some special abilities. 4/10

Skyshroud Claim - Its card advantage, its time advantage, and it may not be worth it. While this card thins the deck nicely and boosts your mana, fourth turn is not the time to tap out searching your deck for land. This may be playable if you have some 7 casting cost breakers in your deck, but generally wont make your deck. 3.5/10

Skyshroud Cutter - How often will a 2/2 do more than 5 points of damage? If this makes your deck, you're in trouble. 3/10

Skyshroud Poacher - Like the red and blue variants, there just aren't enough good creatures to search for with this guy when paying 4 mana for a 2/2. 3.5/10

Skyshroud Ridgeback - Optimally, this card will do a combined 4 damage on turns 2 & 3, but even that won't happen too often. With too few Fading counters, this guy won't make the cut. 3/10

Skyshroud Sentinel - 10 of these and 13 Spellshapers could be the ticket... 1.5/10

Stampede Driver - one of the better one-drops in the environment, either the +1/+1 or the trample could be good, together they're very playable. 7/10

Treetop Bracers - Put this on a Silverglade Elemental and you have an unblockable 5/5. You don't want more than 1 or 2 in a deck, but it's good enough to see some play time. 5.5/10

Wild Mammoth - Obviously better in an aggressive deck, spellshapers are an absolute must. Really big for its casting cost, Aggressive RG or WG decks could be destructive with a few of these. 6/10

Woodripper - Obviously large, this card can be stopped by Alabaster Walls while only lasting three turns. That said, it does provide some versatility with its ability to destroy artifacts, making it very playable. 7/10