Axis of Mortality

wereotter
wereotter Posts: 2,070 Chairperson of the Boards
in MtGPQ General Discussion


Someone help me understand how this is a good card? Is it? It looks like on both players turns they gain 5 life, then their opponent loses 5, so it almost feels like it does nothing, at least in standard. There are better methods of triggering Bloodbond Vampire in legacy events, so I don't think its meant for that, and can only see it being a benefit if you also have Alhammeret's Archive.

Anyone seeing something here I'm not?
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Comments

  • Mainloop25
    Mainloop25 Posts: 1,959 Chairperson of the Boards
    Alhamarret's archive would help
  • Firinmahlazer
    Firinmahlazer Posts: 417 Mover and Shaker
    I think maybe this is just one of those cards that didn't translate well to MTGPQ. The paper card reads "At the beginning of your upkeep, you may have two target players exchange life totals.". Seems like it could be a huge gamble if it were a tight match to ping yourself for 5 damage. But people here find creative uses for all kinds of seemingly useless cards so who knows.
  • Mainloop25
    Mainloop25 Posts: 1,959 Chairperson of the Boards
    edited February 2018
    Also, keep in mind that there are still plenty more cards that we still need to see, and that one or more of those would show the usefulness of it. 
  • FindingHeart8
    FindingHeart8 Posts: 2,731 Chairperson of the Boards
    I'm presuming it'll combo off with vampire cards, where gaining life sets off triggers as will losing life.  At optimum, it would probably translate to "have the right vampire cards in play: You get 2 triggers of awesome stuff each turn"

    Maybe one of the new cards has the ability of mtg card Tainted Remedy?

    Good for an extra mythic horse token since that's still standard?

    Or it's a completely useless card.
  • HypnoticSpecter
    HypnoticSpecter Posts: 190 Tile Toppler
    Triggers Sunmare and all those old SOI cards people used to play with Sorin.
  • Gotcha617
    Gotcha617 Posts: 88 Match Maker
    Crested  sunmare... Sorins 3rd ability. There will be more cards I’m sure that will trigger on life gain
  • Abenjes
    Abenjes Posts: 253 Mover and Shaker
    troll card for take x or less damage objectives????
  • Brigby
    Brigby ADMINISTRATORS Posts: 7,757 Site Admin
    edited February 2018
    Defiant Bloodlord combos well with that card too. Add in Alhammarret's Archive, like others have said, and now you're gaining 10 life and dealing 10 damage each of your turns.

    Edit: Added clarity to specify it's each of your turns.
  • wereotter
    wereotter Posts: 2,070 Chairperson of the Boards
    edited February 2018
    I forgot about Sunmare, so that's true, and there were a couple allies that got extra benefit for the turn if you gained life. It just seems a bit hanky, which normally I love, I'm just having trouble seeing many ways to really do something interesting with this translation of the card.

    Brigby said:
    Defiant Bloodlord combos well with that card too. Add in Alhammarret's Archive, like others have said, and now you're gaining 10 life and dealing 10 damage each turn.
    I mentioned Alhammeret's Archive, but yes, I forgot about Defiant Bloodlord (probably because I don't have it haha)
  • FindingHeart8
    FindingHeart8 Posts: 2,731 Chairperson of the Boards
    edited February 2018
    Brigby said:
    Defiant Bloodlord combos well with that card too. Add in Alhammarret's Archive, like others have said, and now you're gaining 10 life and dealing 10 damage each turn.
    Actually, as the card reads it would be only during your turn that you'd gain the life.

    During your opponents turn, they'd gain life and you'd only lose life.

    I can see where it would have 'some' uses.  But unless there's cards that combo with it in Ixalan it's too high mana cost for a card that needs additional specific high-cost cards to even function.
  • Stormcrow
    Stormcrow Posts: 462 Mover and Shaker
    Yeah, it can have a use as part of a combo - but it's probably a 3-or-more-pieces combo, and this card is awfully expensive for that role.
  • wereotter
    wereotter Posts: 2,070 Chairperson of the Boards
    FindingHeart8 said:
    Brigby said:
    Defiant Bloodlord combos well with that card too. Add in Alhammarret's Archive, like others have said, and now you're gaining 10 life and dealing 10 damage each turn.
    Actually, as the card reads it would be only during your turn that you'd gain the life.

    During your opponents turn, they'd gain life and you'd only lose life.

    I can see where it would have 'some' uses.  But unless there's cards that combo with it in Ixalan it's too high mana cost for a card that needs additional specific high-cost cards to even function.
    On further thinking, I remember there are some vampires that do something when you lose life. So it's possible its a combo piece with those cards. In fact I think there's one in Rivals that returns to play if you lose/gained life (I can't remember which)
  • FindingHeart8
    FindingHeart8 Posts: 2,731 Chairperson of the Boards
    wereotter said:
    FindingHeart8 said:
    Brigby said:
    Defiant Bloodlord combos well with that card too. Add in Alhammarret's Archive, like others have said, and now you're gaining 10 life and dealing 10 damage each turn.
    Actually, as the card reads it would be only during your turn that you'd gain the life.

    During your opponents turn, they'd gain life and you'd only lose life.

    I can see where it would have 'some' uses.  But unless there's cards that combo with it in Ixalan it's too high mana cost for a card that needs additional specific high-cost cards to even function.
    On further thinking, I remember there are some vampires that do something when you lose life. So it's possible its a combo piece with those cards. In fact I think there's one in Rivals that returns to play if you lose/gained life (I can't remember which)
    Yeah that's the only possible conclusion I can come up with to make this card useful
  • GrizzoMtGPQ
    GrizzoMtGPQ Posts: 776 Critical Contributor
    16 is a crazy cost and white? Yeck!
  • IM_CARLOS
    IM_CARLOS Posts: 640 Critical Contributor
    I think the mana costs are a little bit high, but test will tell. 
  • Marvaddin
    Marvaddin Posts: 129 Tile Toppler
    16 for something that does nothing alone, and will still heal your opponent / damage you first? Looks pathetic. In fact, several cards of this new set seem to be really mana expensive. Now that they said we won't get balancing cards for now, looks like I will just skip the entire set to use cycling a few more months.
  • Kardynal
    Kardynal Posts: 27 Just Dropped In
    Are we genuinely all talking about this card as if it's not a misprint? Ok.
  • Matthew
    Matthew Posts: 605 Critical Contributor
    If they have kept the "Lose X or less life" objectives while also creating and implementing this card in this form....I will have to rescind a lot of the favorable judgment I have passed on them over the past week.
  • DBJones
    DBJones Posts: 803 Critical Contributor
    If they replaced the lose x or less life and end with x or less life objectives with a lose x or more life, then this card would have a purpose. Sorry, italics won't toggle off for some reason.
  • bk1234
    bk1234 Posts: 2,924 Chairperson of the Boards
    I like GI-Nyx and Crested Sunmare in Elspeth. She has the mana to get them all out and the ponies will grow fast while her tokens handle control . 

    Something like:

    Starfield of Nyx
    Gideon's Intervention
    Axis of Mortality
    Gideon's Defeat
    Desert's Hold
    Crested Sunmare
    Forsake the Worldly
    Renewed Faith
    Swift Reckoning
    Healing Hands

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