wereotter said: madwren said: The question to ask is not "what changes should the devs make", but "why would the devs be motivated to change planeswalkers to make them less set-dependent". It's fair to note that when Arlinn was designed, a standard rotation cycle wasn't a thing, so there's her now, and in the future I can see Chandra, Torch of Defiance, and Ajani Unyielding needing adjustments to untie them from set mechanics.I think when you look at the Gideon, Liliana, and Nissa from this current set, they're not tied to tightly to block mechanics. It's fair to assume that set tie in will be loosened going forward.
madwren said: The question to ask is not "what changes should the devs make", but "why would the devs be motivated to change planeswalkers to make them less set-dependent".
madwren said: wereotter said: madwren said: The question to ask is not "what changes should the devs make", but "why would the devs be motivated to change planeswalkers to make them less set-dependent". It's fair to note that when Arlinn was designed, a standard rotation cycle wasn't a thing, so there's her now, and in the future I can see Chandra, Torch of Defiance, and Ajani Unyielding needing adjustments to untie them from set mechanics.I think when you look at the Gideon, Liliana, and Nissa from this current set, they're not tied to tightly to block mechanics. It's fair to assume that set tie in will be loosened going forward. Nissa is tied as tightly as a planeswalker could be to block mechanics. All of her abilities involve cycling. =pThat being said, G3 and L3 are a bit looser, but that's because embalm and zombies are far more flexible mechanics than energize and werewolves. It'd be hard to enforce a set dependency on embalm. Anyway, I'm on Ekkias' side, I just don't think the devs are motivated to make these changes. One might remember how fervently I argued against the narrowing of Saheeli's ultimate, for example. There's a rather large assumption here that the devs would be displeased that a planeswalker would decrease in usefulness in Standard as his or her set rotates out. However, I've seen no evidence that's actually the case. Based on the changes we've seen since the start of the year, it seems apparent that their primary motivation is getting people to spend money by virtue of limiting both currency and rewards while increasing the time on the hamster wheel needed to accrue both. If your favorite red/green planeswalker isn't as good as it once was, then you'll be motivated to buy a new one when it's released with New! Set! Abilities!
PersonMan said: An easy fix Is to just add a few dozen or so Werewolves and Allies to the second half of the Amonket block when they release it in a few months. Most can be retreds of previous cards - there is no danger in releasing a bunch of Commons and Uncommons that are similar to those in previous blocks. And you'd only need 2ish Rare and Mythics of each tribe, which isn't a tall order.
Ekkias said: Currently I cannot activate Arlinn's 2nd or 3rd ability in Standard, no matter how I tweek my deck or how long the match goes.
ElfNeedsFood said: Ekkias said: Currently I cannot activate Arlinn's 2nd or 3rd ability in Standard, no matter how I tweek my deck or how long the match goes. Greatly weakened, but won't the third ability still transform her, giving fresh HP and the "make a werewolf" ability?
wereotter said: ElfNeedsFood said: Ekkias said: Currently I cannot activate Arlinn's 2nd or 3rd ability in Standard, no matter how I tweek my deck or how long the match goes. Greatly weakened, but won't the third ability still transform her, giving fresh HP and the "make a werewolf" ability? No. You cannot activate her third ability at all if you have no werewolves in play. Also her HP doesn't refresh when she transforms.
ElfNeedsFood said: wereotter said: ElfNeedsFood said: Ekkias said: Currently I cannot activate Arlinn's 2nd or 3rd ability in Standard, no matter how I tweek my deck or how long the match goes. Greatly weakened, but won't the third ability still transform her, giving fresh HP and the "make a werewolf" ability? No. You cannot activate her third ability at all if you have no werewolves in play. Also her HP doesn't refresh when she transforms. Wow. That effect doesn't say "target". I never bought her and probably never will now.
Drycha said: What about Gideon, Ally of Zendikar?
Laeuftbeidir said: Drycha said: What about Gideon, Ally of Zendikar? That's a white Planeswalker. He spawns creatures.
Drycha said: Laeuftbeidir said: Drycha said: What about Gideon, Ally of Zendikar? That's a white Planeswalker. He spawns creatures. Yes I know that.My point is; he's a Planeswalker built around the non-standard Ally mechanic.
Kyphonis said: That cycling Nissa feels a lot like Dovin baan. She will always have a use cause mana gain but is weakened a bit once out of native block. However...the first 2 abilities are pretty much all you need usually.