Amonkhet Set - Second Impressions

Mainloop25

I was curious if I still had the same feelings about the cards from AKH/HOU that I had when I first made the First Impressions threads.

If you want to cross-reference the threads, here is the one for Amonkhet: https://forums.d3go.com/discussion/64476/amonkhet-spoilers-first-impressions#latest

Masterpieces:

Aggravated Assault - I've run into this one a few times. Masterpieces are still rare enough that I rarely see it. I'm really glad I don't see this more often. It is tailor-made for Koth but really any red deck would be happy to have it.
Chain Lightning - Again, another card I'm happy not to see more of. Not a powerhouse, but definitely a big pain in my side whenever I see it.
Consecrated Sphinx - One of the more feared cards whenever I faced it in the Trial of Zeal boss matches. I never see it otherwise.
Counterspell - I have no idea why overrated it so much when I first saw this card. I never see it played, and sure it could be powerful in the right situation, it's too situational to use with any regularity without Swarm Intelligence
Dark Ritual - Still think it's great. Still wish I had it.
Loyal Retainers - I've heard mixed reviews about this card. All I know is that I hate playing against it. Much better in Standard?
Maelstrom Pulse - Another card I've never seen played against me. Still don't know what to think of it.
Pact of Negation - Can be very powerful, especially when you forget it's out there. Fortunately, many times the AI plays it really stupidly.
Vindicate - Always a bummer to see a creature removal card played against you so this is no different. Solid card.
Wrath of God - See Vindicate.

Mythics:

Anointed Procession - A very good card, especially with G3 token spawners. Great card to build around.
Bontu The Glorified - Probably the worst mythic in the set, and I would go so far as one of the worst mythics in the game.
Cascading Cataracts - It's an OK mythic. Sometimes awesome but more often than not it fizzles.
Combat Celebrant - I first compared it to Lightning Runner but it's far inferior. Still on the upper tier of cards in its cost range but a bit disappointing.
Curator of Mysteries - A great card to have in any NP/Drake deck, really hard to think of a downside. Perhaps I didn't think a whole lot of it in my initial assessment... I judged it a 6 when it's really an 8.
Glorious End - It's a pretty situational card, but you really have to be paying attention when you're using it. A pretty awesome card to end games quickly but a lot of times counterproductive to earning secondary points so I don't use it much. Still I've had fun building niche decks around it.
Glorybringer - Its cost is really its only drawback, otherwise it's as solid as I thought.
Hazoret The Fervent - This can be a pretty annoying card to face sometimes. Perhaps the AI sucks at piloting it but it's been mostly underwhelming when I faced it.
Kefnet The Mindful - I had my moments of using this card and actually kinda liking it, but the gods are so inconsistent in practice. This is actually one of the better ones.
Neheb The Worthy - This is a card I really underrated! Get it off the board ASAP or it will ruin your day! Easy card to build an effective hand-disrupt deck around.
Oracle's Vault - This did turn out to be a pretty solid card in play. Not amazing but still good.
Rhonas The Indomitable - Rhonas/Mantle turned out to be a really effective combo. The AI gets it wrong more often than not, but it has won many games for coalition mates. For that alone I'll say that this is the best God.
Sandwurm Convergance - Easily the most broken card in the set. Wins games on its own. So oppressive! Without targeted support destruction, this is a really hard card to have a good answer to. It's funny how in the original post how much it was underrated by someone. There was the big TSN debate from a few months ago. After all that, it's clear that Sandwurm Convergence is the winner of that debate.
Temmet, Vizier of Naktamun - Glad I was right on about this card in the original post. Great card. It gets used a lot with me.
Vizier of Many Faces - Not quite as amazing as I thought it was, but it's still a great card. Has the potential to be ridiculously strong or ridiculously weak. Just depends on luck. Still glad I have it.
Vizier of The Menagerie - It's fun once it finally reaches the board, but I don't use it much any more. Just too expensive to get on the board.

There were a bunch of cards that I never reviewed in the original post for some reason, so I will go ahead and do that now:

Angel of Sanctions: How did I miss this one? Really one of the most feared cards I go against, simply because it has the chance to kill your creatures twice. This dropped during Not Another Dime/Not Enough Funds or else I likely would have bought it.
As Foretold - Seen some nasty things happen with this card. A must-have for Tezz2/J2, but the introduction of Standard knocks its overall effectiveness down a bit. Still a very very good card in the right deck.
Champion of Rhonas: An OK mythic, but yeah, that mana cost is prohibitive. It's too weak as a 3/3 to make it something that I would want to play. Also, Exert-3 is just not a good mechanic. It's almost as bad as Overload-3.
Cruel Reality - Easily one of the better black mythics in the set. Really a pain to play against. Becomes a real threat in Enraged matches.
Oketra The True - One of the better Gods. May be the best? Easiest to activate and doesn't punish you for doing so.
Pyramid of the Pantheon - Might be the best colorless mythic support of the set. Seen it become quite the mana generator.
Samut, Voice of Dissent -  Surprised that this wasn't one they made you pay for. Sure it's expensive, but once its on the board, look out. Also one of those cards that can win games on its own, and just gets better with a little help.
Throne of the God-Pharaoh - Very underwhelming. The effect hardly justifies the cost. I rarely see it played.


Rares:

Approach of the Second Sun - A staple card in many creatureless decks as well as Swarm Intelligence builds. Even without seeing the combos in my head I thought this was a cool card, and now I love it. One of my favorite rares in this set.

Archfiend of Ifnir - Meh. It has its uses but it's too expensive to justify using even in a cycling deck. It's not even worth cycling.

Aven Mindcensor - One of the most useless rares. Never saw it as a useful card, and its even less useful in practice. I would have to know that I am going up against a heavy embalm/eternalize deck and even then it would have limited usefulness.

Canyon Slough, Fetid Pools Irrigated Farmlands, Scattered Groves, Sheltered Thicket - They are what they are. Interestingly enough I find myself using gem changers less and less because there are so many alternatives that are more effective. Still, I use Fetid Pools in just about every T2/J2 deck.

Bounty of The Luxa - Better in usage than on paper. Really kind of underrated, at least by me. Great little card. One that I might need to use more often.

Channeler Initiate - Decent card but more just something to hold you over until you get Shefet Monitor.

Deem Worthy - This gets used fairly often for some reason. It's better than I thought at first, but I really only use it when I don't have access to anything cheaper in red.

Drake Haven - Boy did I underestimate this card. I just didn't see how broken cycling as a mechanic turned out to be. Calling it a "poor man's Metallurgic Summonings" might get me an award for biggest underestimation ever.

Dread Wanderer - Just never really liked it. Having a blocker not block when you need it to is beyond annoying, plus the way it takes valuable support effects like cartouches away from something that could actually use them just makes me hate using this card. Does more harm than good most of the time.

Gideon's Intervention - A life saver in certain situations. I slightly underrated it before getting my hands on it. Great card on its own but a real star in a Starfield deck. It's as good as you think there.

Glyph Keeper - This is a card I like, and for some reason I rarely use. I think it's another one I should use more often. I think it's mostly the mana cost. I really hate playing against it because of the resources it takes to get rid of it.

Hazoret's Favor - Another card I really like but for some reason don't use a lot. I have gone through phases with it. I think it's one I'll start putting back into my red decks more often. I think I just run out of deck space for it.

Hapatra, Vizier of Poisons - I think I got this one right in my first impression. Also fun to put Samut's first ability on. It's a little expensive which slows it down, but it's a fun card once it's on the board.

Heart Piercer Manticore - It takes some strategy to make it shine, but I have grown to really like this card in certain situations. I don't use it often but it has saved my butt so many times that I'm glad I have it.

Honored Hydra - This card is better than OK for sure. The trick is not hard-casting it. Getting it on the board with Gather The Pack is the much better option. Once it's on the board. it's a pretty solid dealer of damage.

New Perspectives - I mean, what more can I say? The most essential part of a mechanic that should have never left the development stage as is. Way too cheap for what it does, but it's too good at any cost.

Plague Belcher - As I said in the original thread, it's ok.

Prowling Serpopard - Its best feature is that Regal Caracal gives it lifelink. It's just so boring that it rarely gets used unless you go all-in with cats.

Regal Caracal - If it was just a tad cheaper I'd use it more, but still a really good card to pull out from time to time. 

Shefet Monitor - Oh, Shefet Monitor. Is there anything you can't do? A beautiful Swiss Army Knife of a card. Most broken rare in the set. Even bugged at Cycling 8 it was still so so good. A great spell disguised as a creature, and even a decent creature in a pinch.

Shadow of The Grave - Kinda good in theory but hardly warrants a deck slot. I forget I have it sometimes, but I guess it has its uses. I never see it played.

Sweltering Suns - One of the most underrated cards in the set actually. Can function as a pretty decent board wipe, and I've used it in many decks when I need to wipe my own board to hit objectives. Definitely has its uses.

Trial of Knowledge - I never use this turn. One of the worst rares in the set, if you ask me.

Trial of Solidarity - Yea, it's just too expensive, and supports are such a precious commodity for most Planeswalkers that there is just so much better for this to take up a precious slot.

Trial of Strength - See above

Trial of Zeal - It's actually not as bad as I thought it was, because I've seen it used effectively against me. It's still far too expensive.

Rares I missed the first time:

Cryptic Serpent - I have it, never use it. Just seems like something I would have to build around, but I have much better options in a spell-centered deck.

Dispossess - It's the closest thing to support removal that black has in standard, unfortunately. I have used it before, but the effectiveness is so questionable that I never use it any more.
Glory-Bound Initiate - Love this card. I use it a lot. Can really sneak up and become quite the card. Sort of this set's Lone Rider.
Harsh Mentor -  Its damage is nothing to sneeze at in Enraged mode, but he's not much of a threat otherwise. It's a better than OK card. I give it a 6 and a half
Harvest Season - Similar to Animist's Awakening in that sometimes it's a dud, other times it's a godsend. It still gets plenty of usage in my decks.
Liliana's Mastery - It's a decent card. Again, rarely makes the cut because supports are so valuable, and it just doesn't compare to Oath of Liliana.
Manglehorn - Yet again, another card I don't use often enough. I have a bit more of an excuse with this one. It's a tad on the expensive side, and Dissenter's Deliverance is so cheap that I am rarely without support destruction where I need to rely on Manglehorn. Still, it's a card I hate when it's played against me. I try to deal with it ASAP.
Pull From Tomorrow - A ridiculously undercosted card that rarely leaves any blue decks of mine. The ability to reshape your hand for 2 mana makes this just such a crazy good card.
Seraph of the Suns - Overall not bad. It's decent as a berserker. Took me a bit of tinkering to figure out its best uses for me.
Soul-Scar Mage - Just way too expensive for what it does. It'd be a good card if it costed half of that or was a 7/7 or something.

Notable Commons/Uncommons:

Bontu's Monument - Unfortunately, most of the monuments were rendered obsolete by the power of New Perspectives. So they don't get used in any of my decks, really.

Cartouche of Ambition - This gets heavy use in most of my black decks. Also great for bouncing Trial of Ambition back to my hand.

Cartouche of Knowledge - Hmm also nice to automatically give flying to a creature. Also very good for a common.

Cartouche of Solidarity - My least used Cartouche. Not that it's bad, but it has to be crucial to my deck to give my first creature flying.

Cartouche of Strength - I don't use this one too much but obviously has its uses.

Cartouche of Zeal - I would use it more if I didn't have Hazoret's Favor, but I like that this one works on tokens as well.

Cast Out - An all-star of PvE since the bosses stupidly have very little support destruction. I would 

Consuming Fervor - This has so many uses. One of my favorites is to buff a first-strike blocker or a double striker.

Cradle of the Accursed - It's an ok card but I use Manalith more often.

Dissenter's Deliverance - As I had thought. A true staple of any deck that can use it, unless you have Demolish.
Exemplar of Strength - Never used it much just because I have so much better at my disposal but I still think it's decent.

Faith of The Devoted - Black cycling's best friend. Can really do some damage, and was likely underestimated by the designers. Should have been a rare.

Final Reward - Yep

Floodwaters - I tend not to use it because I always forget to turn it off. Really just an annoyance when played against me. I never did get around to putting it in a creatureless deck, but it was very effective in a Baral/Imminent Doom deck that still haunts me.

Forsake the Worldly - A staple in just about every white deck.

Hazoret's Monument - Monuments are usually just to expensive to justify their slot space.

Honed Khopesh - Usually a waste of deck space.

In Oketra's Name - I never did find a reason to use it...

Kefnet's Monument - See Bontu's Monument.

Labyrinth Guardian - This actually got a decent amount of place from me in Trial of Ambition mostly because I needed cheap embalmers, but it's really not too bad for the cost. You'd be surprised at how infrequently it's targeted by spells.

Oketra's Monument - It's one of the more useful monuments but again, it's just ok.

Painful Lesson - I really only ever use it when I need to damage myself.

Painted Bluffs - I would use it in mono color decks if it wasn't bugged.

Pitiless Vizier - Never ended up using it as much as I thought. I think just because there is so much other cool stuff to do with Cycling that this was on the low end of all that.

Renewed Faith - Solid little card to have in any Dovin Drake 

Rhona's Monument - See Oketra's Monument.

Spidery Grasp - Pretty much nailed it before, but Mantle is usually more useful.

Stir The Sands - It's a really good card both to cast and cycle. Lived up to its first impression.

Supernatural Stamina - I never did use this one as often as I thought I might. It just ended up being too situational.

Trial of Ambition - Fantastic card. Just turn it off until you need it.

Unburden - It does have its times you want to cast it. Otherwise I mostly just cycle it.

Violent Impact - For some reason I thought Demolish was a BFZ card. Nevertheless, sometimes you don't want to use Demolish, so this fits that bill quite well.

Wayward Servant - I don't use it unless I have to. Never really did a whole lot for me.

Weaver of Currents - This is a very good card for mana gain once it's on the board. It's just a little too weak to be a solid creature to win battles with.

Winds of Rebuke - Sometimes the destroy effect is helps you, other times it helps your opponent. Either way, a cheap bounce spell is great to have when you need it.

Notable commons/uncommons I missed:

Ahn-Crop Crasher - Not too bad on its own. Obviously even better with Neheb but it's this set's 4-power red hasty guy, which is never a bad thing.
Angler Drake - This card has come through in the clutch for me multiple times. Good for when you can't cast spells.
Baleful Ammit - I haven't used it much recently, but it's really kind of an underrated creature.
Defiant Greatmaw - Another underrated creature. A couple of reinforcements can sneak up on you.
Doomed Dissenter - I have found myself using this stupid little card more often than I ever expected to.
Enigma Drake - When combined with the right cards, this card far exceeds its rarity level/cost. A sleeper hit!
Galestrike - Renders Anchor To The Ether obsolete. Don't leave a blue deck without some bounce! Might as well be this one.
Greater Sandwurm - Great as a card to cycle but actually not that bad when you have to cast it.
Honored Crop-Captain - Another underrated card I have used a bunch of times.
Lay Claim - Mana cost, shmana cost. It's useful at any cost. The fact that you can replace your creatures when you cast it makes it rare-level quality. Creature-steal has saved my bacon so many times, plus also if I combo with Swarm and/or Baral, forget about it.
Miasmic Mummy - I dont use it, but I'm always annoyed when it's played against me.
Oketra's Attendant -  Not amazing, but more useful than I expected it to be. 
Sacred Cat - How did I miss my sweet little Sacred Cat before? This card has turned out to be way more useful than I ever imagined. From fulfilling objectives to buffing it, it quickly became one of my favorite common creatures of Amonkhet.
Scaled Behemoth - A heavy hexproof creature will always have its uses in this game.
Trueheart Duelist - As long as you have something to buff it with, it's pretty solid for an uncommon.
Vizier of the Tumbling Sands - I don't know if this card is bugged or what but its effect has never really worked for me.

rafalele

Nice rereview. I have enjoyed a lot. Thanks 

sjechua

@Mainloop25
re Counterspell
see my sig 

GratefulDead

Very nice! I got some great ideas from your list. Thanks! I adore Sacred Cat as well.

Laeuftbeidir

Mythics : vizier of many faces deserves a better overall rating IMO - you have to build around it. You can reach several k power in legacy easily, and it can be helpful to reach secondaries (drop one, 1/1 and hold additional copies after you dropped other creatures / reached secondaires for a kill blow)

That cycling dude : make a broken strategy more broken.. Hm.. I'd rate it below alhammarets archive

As Foretold: tez 2 still has his token to fabricate + it works with treasures, so better than described, but still really shines in legacy.

Rares :

Deem worthy: + because good in cast x or less spells scenarios

HomeRn

@Mainloop25 Loyal Retainers is likely the best masterpiece in standard currently due to it's ability to combo with certain cards.  The trick is to figure out a way to load up your graveyard ahead of time; Gather the Pack comes to mind to load up the graveyard while adding a few creatures to your hand - this means you have to run either G/W Ajani or the new G/W Huatli.  Then again, this provides you with HUGE creatures to "cheat" out into the battlefield with Loyal Retainers, mana ramp spells since you're green, and decent control with white (or to trigger said Loyal Retainers yourself!).

Mainloop25

@HomeRn I can also see it combo well with Journey to Eternity.

HomeRn

Mainloop25 said:

@HomeRn I can also see it combo well with Journey to Eternity.

Even more so with both!  I have only seen it been played once by the AI, which makes me wonder if nobody has seen the vicious potential of Loyal Retainers.  Or if you have The Great Aurora, you can also cause a massive wombo combo that allows Journey to Eternity to flip, Loyal Retainers to bring things out of the graveyard, AND destroy everything else in process while leaving Loyal Retainers and the now flipped Jouney to Eternity after Aurora resolves!! 

Mainloop25

Can't say I know very many people with that card, and the ones who do couldn't make it work for them

jsabotin

While I realize this post is from awhile ago, the recent bump has brought it to light for new(ish) folks like me (early gold), and has been awesome as sort of a "review" of many of the cards in the set.

The newer a player is, the more "new" cards one gets, and it can be overwhelming to just understand all their uses.  I understand the uselessness of a ranking system, but a general overview of useful and non-useful cards has been very helpful... for this set.

I'm happy that I've found the use of the cards presented as useful have been so for me, and that I'm learning to assess cards as they relate to the other cards I have to make decks with.  

Don't know if the OP is still around, but thanks for the list!

Mainloop25

@jsabotin thanks, yeah I'm still very much around  and I plan on doing one for Ixalan soon! 

rafalele

Mainloop25 said:

@jsabotin thanks, yeah I'm still very much around  and I plan on doing one for Ixalan soon! 

Waiting it. Thank you in advance .

HomeRn

Just realized something important regarding Aven Mindcensor... it's no longer USELESS!!  If you happen to have Profane Procession at your disposal... you have a very interesting - if unreliable - combo.  Profane Procession allows you to exile the last creature your opponent controls when you manage to trigger the activate gem.  Mindcensor will automatically exile the top card of your opponent's deck, and if that's a creature... you'll be having fun with it as soon as you can flip Profane Procession!  You'll be able to take control of your opponent's creatures without them having to play them (now that's downright nasty, AND they won't see it coming at times)!

Mainloop25

Hmm interesting! I guess it can work with anything that exiles creatures from their library  which is petty cool