Seal Away changes

Brakkis

Following the 2.8 patch, Seal Away went from 2 shields to 1 shield and now has Flash.

This is listed nowhere in the patch notes and I question why this change was made.

Hateborn

Probably got flash since the paper MTG version has flash.  As for going from 2 shields to 1, that's likely due to just how powerful disabling two creatures for an extended time is.  It's basically a guaranteed lock for at least their attack and your turn since it will cast after all their matches and given that it can reinforce and stick around, it's not unreasonable to only have one shield since it is roughly the same cost as Sleep, which is a one-time effect and will frequently have the same outcome. 

Tilwin90

It is an incredibly powerful support. Not that this is necessarily a bad thing. I would personally rate it as the top common of the current Standard format (some TP9 mates can confirm I stated this just yesterday prior to the release!).

Think about it... Historic is a huge thing right now, and it's also super accessible in white (DOM has some very good accessible legendary creatures at common/uncommon), plus treasures also count for the historic condition and they are also a big thing of Ixalan block. It's no surprise activating the condition is not so difficult.

I remember how hated Suppression Bonds, as was Hixus (some people still rate it highly, I find it less of a nuisance nowadays though it's still a huge threat). Both of them were down to 1 shield to ensure they could be vulnerable to gem matching, and even so smart white players know how to play around this. Yes, I know, Desert's Hold was a strictly better Bonds. I call that straightforward power creep.

Seal Away has the potential of going somewhere in-between Bonds and Hixus, and it's merely a common. It can be incredibly oppressive tool, especially in lower tiers. So in my view this balance is not a bad thing. Would have been nice to be present in the balance report of the release, I agree, but let's see how it plays out. 

Note: White got some darn good removal in M19. It's naturally after black and not so surprisingly after blue, but even so, it got more removal opportunities - one of which is Take Vengeance, a simple common that costs just as little as Final Reward. It's not a strict comparison to Seal Away but it's another option.

Gideon

The problem isn’t that they nerfed it. The problem is that it wasn’t in the patch notes.

rafalele

Perhaps  (I really want  to believe it) it is another bug.

Mburn7

rafalele said:

Perhaps  (I really want  to believe it) it is another bug.

I highly doubt it is a bug, since all of the card icons indicate that it does have flash and it does in fact have 1 shield.

I actually really like the change, since it guarantees a hit without worrying about leaving it on the field.

I do wish they did the same thing for the older cards with similar effects, like Silverstrike and Gideon's Intervention.  Flash has a lot of potential, I want MORE

rafalele

Mburn7 said:

rafalele said:

Perhaps  (I really want  to believe it) it is another bug.

I highly doubt it is a bug, since all of the card icons indicate that it does have flash and it does in fact have 1 shield.

I actually really like the change, since it guarantees a hit without worrying about leaving it on the field.

I do wish they did the same thing for the older cards with similar effects, like Silverstrike and Gideon's Intervention.  Flash has a lot of potential, I want MORE

I do not referred to the flash effect being a bug but for just having 1 shield.

hawkyh1

maybe the 1+1 shields was to increase the chances that it
would work for at least 1 turn. now with flash replacing that
1 extra shield?

HH

madwren

Perhaps they saw my arguments that we needed more Flash cards to highlight the mechanic and properly test it. If so, blame me. =p

Note that Dire Fleet Poisoner, Raff Capashen, Garna the Bloodflame, and Merfolk Trickster all also gained Flash. 

Regarding the shield count, I assume it was a balance change. I don't necessarily oppose the change--Seal Away with 2 shields was simply awesome--but as pointed out, it's odd that this was snuck in under the radar. Final release notes should be final, not "well, here's 90% of the stuff that's changed".  /shrug

I will say that Flash really helps make the 1 shield more tolerable, though, as it makes it more durable to be able to hold it until absolutely necessary.

Enygma6

madwren said:

Perhaps they saw my arguments that we needed more Flash cards to highlight the mechanic and properly test it. If so, blame me. =p

And it's the exact subset I predicted would get it too, plus Flash itself (another Instant, as you suggested).

Brakkis

It's very much just the fact that none of the changes regarding Flash to other cards were in the Patch Notes. Or the change to Seal Away's shield count.

madwren said:

Final release notes should be final, not "well, here's 90% of the stuff that's changed".  /shrug

 This, exactly.