EDITOR'S NOTE: Apologies on the lateness of this series.  While the first impressions are meant to be posted right after a set comes out, circumstances didn't work out that way -- even despite cpn's article being written quickly after the release of Future Sight.  However, this series is a good read if you like MDV's perspective of set reviews. Oh, and this would have been posted for Wednesday had my power not gone out during editing this. *grin* ~Streetz~

Self-reliance is a philosophy championed by Ralph Waldo Emerson in his essay of the same name, published in 1841. Western society as a whole has adopted this philosophy so readily and fully that most would rather languish in isolation than ask another for help. While I support many of the principles codified by Emerson and others of the transcendentalist movement, I also believe that humanity is better served by the John Donne meditation that "no man is an island". As we are defined by our actions, we are then required to display the courage of our convictions. As such, when someone asks for help, we must offer it readily and willingly.

Difficulty arises, of course, when we are - or at least feel that we are - neither capable nor qualified to lend assistance. Imagine yourself standing on the shore while some unfortunate soul is drowning, crying out to you for help. There is no time to seek others, yet you cannot swim. What must you do?

While not nearly so dramatic, I nevertheless find myself in a theoretically similar situation. I lack the experience of many years of Magic: the Gathering (MTG) tournament play, and due to a 10-year hiatus from the game, I have not the depth and breadth of knowledge and insight that comes from many years of new set evaluation and subsequent analysis as the mettle of the new cards is proven or disproven. At the same time, an elder statesman of the game and founder, primary author and chief editor of this series has built a bridge from his island to my shores. In other words, he has asked for my help, and therefore help must be given.

I am primarily a casual player, focused on Legacy deck building. While I am certainly aware of the various formats and tournament styles, I fear that you may find my analysis somewhat lacking. Nevertheless, it is offered, such as it is, and it is my hope that through this exercise I will gain some of that valuable experience whose absence I lament.

Now, as a colour, there are things that I like and dislike about White as a whole. I very much enjoy it's control-oriented aspects and at least respect the efficiency of some of it's more famous creatures. However, I find it's primarily defensive stance somewhat frustrating and it's inability to introduce truly unique and interesting creatures rather disappointing. Pre-dispositions notwithstanding, the release of a new set brings with it a certain excitement and anticipation, and despite the untimeliness of this article, I am keen to examine what this latest release from Wizards of the Coast has brought to the world of White Magic.

Angel of Salvation Rare 5/5 creature - Angel 6WW
Flash; convoke (Each creature you tap while playing this spell reduces its cost by 1 or by one mana of that creature’s color.)
Flying
When Angel of Salvation comes into play, prevent the next 5 damage that would be dealt this turn to any number of target creatures and/or players, divided as you choose.

On the surface, this latest addition to the chorus of angels seems like a decent card. Flash allows you to play her anytime you could play an Instant, which generally equates to unexpected blocking and a change of board position, ideally taking your opponent unawares and his or her big threat along for the ride. Add to that the fact that it can save itself by preventing damage, and this looks like a great ploy. In fact, if Akroma, Angel of Wrath is attacking, you can bring Angel of Salvation in for the block, preventing enough damage between itself and you to prevent any effect.

However, she can't take out said White Angel without help, and can't even block Akroma, Angel of Fury. Add to that the fact that you'll need to have some creatures that you're willing to tap to bring her into play early and she loses a little of her luster. What happens next turn?

She might fit in some decks fashioned to leverage her, but in general she feels unwieldy and needs some help.

Grade: B+

Augur il-Vec Common 1/3 creature - Human Cleric 1W
Shadow (This creature can block or be blocked by only creatures with shadow.)
Sacrifice Augur il-Vec: You gain 4 life. Play this ability only during your upkeep.

Another creature with Shadow is good. A 1/3 creature with Shadow is not very useful. How many decks are built to leverage Shadow for defense? My guess is not very many. The ability to sacrifice for 4 life points could come in handy, but restricting the use of this to your upkeep means it won't be there for you when you need it - you need Instant speed to save your life.

It might be an ok late pick in sealed play to defend against the 17 other creatures with Shadow in the Time Spiral block.

Grade: C

Aven Mindcensor Uncommon 2/1 creature - Bird Wizard 2W
Flash (You may play this spell any time you could play an instant.)
Flying
If an opponent would search a library, that player searches the top four cards of that library instead.

First, it's a Bird Wizard. Whatever. (See comments below, under Blade of the Sixth Pride).

If I understand this correctly, it has Flash so that it can come into play unexpectedly to limit (not prevent, exactly) your opponent when tutoring for that key card. Granted, there are a lot of Transmute and tutor-like effects in the Standard environment (e.g. Terramorphic Expanse, Homing Sliver, etc.). But I'd probably prefer something a little more traditional than a creature with Flash for this effect (perhaps Shadow of Doubt). After all, it still can't be played against Extirpate.

That being said, assuming you can use this card to it's desired effect, being left with a 2/1 flier isn't the worst thing ever.

Grade: C

Barren Glory Rare Enchantment 4WW
At the beginning of your upkeep, if you control no permanents other than Barren Glory and have no cards in hand, you win the game.

The title of this series of articles is First Impressions, so I'm going out on a limb here. My first impression of this card is that it shouldn't be too difficult for a control deck achieve this alt-win condition. I think I may have to give it a go. In the meantime, yeah, it might be ok.

Grade: B~

Blade of the Sixth Pride Common 3/1 creature - Cat Rebel 1W

Add one more creature to the ranks of the hyper-efficient. It continues White's presence in the area of cheap and efficient creatures and should see play in Zoo-variant decks primarily in Standard but also in other formats as well, especially in budget decks. With 1 toughness, it can be killed by a soft breeze, but I would think it would still see some action - an obvious candidate for toughness-pumping Auras, which is something at which White is very good.

Now, there has been some criticism of the new card format. Some have even compared it with Pokemon. Now, I have never seen a Pokemon card, but since this "full-screen" format really only applies to creature cards with no abilities, I'm not personally concerned that it will dominate the look and feel of the game for years to come. In limited use, it provides variety and an opportunity to see the artwork in a larger presentation. One intangible aspect of the game is just feeling the card in your hand, studying the artwork and reading the flavour text. The new format enhances that side of the game.

What I do take exception to is the continued use of anthropomorphic heroes. Bird Wizards, Fox Samurais and Cat Warriors give the game a distinctive Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles flavour that I personally don't support, yet seems to be on the rise. However, considering the long history of such creatures, I don't think they are going away anytime soon. I fully understand that some of these are actually good cards, and I also understand that the reader may quite enjoy them. I do apologize if this viewpoint is offensive, but these cards do not fit my own particular brand of MTG flavour. I choose abstinence.

Grade: B+ for playability, A for presentation, D for flavour.

Bound in Silence Uncommon Tribal Enchantment - Rebel Aura 2W
Enchant creature
Enchanted creature can’t attack or block.

Pacifism is cheaper to cast. I guess this may be your only option in block sealed, but for Constructed it's like playing Cancel when Counterspell is available. From a casual Legacy perspective, printing this is a waste of trees. I suppose you can discard it to pump your Tarmogoyf.

Grade: C

Chronomantic Escape Uncommon Sorcery 4WW
Until your next turn, creatures can’t attack you. Remove Chronomantic Escape from the game with three time counters on it.
Suspend 3—2W (Rather than play this card from your hand, you may pay 2W and remove it from the game with three time counters on it. At the beginning of your upkeep, remove a time counter. When the last is removed, play it without paying its mana cost.)

This card forms the White contribution to a series of recurring cards based on suspending and re-suspending. The series includes Reality Strobe, Arc Blade, Festering March and Cyclical Evolution. On the surface, this card can't take effect until your sixth turn, and then every third turn thereafter, effectively preventing your opponent from attacking you every now and then. On it's own, I'd say that this card is pretty weak. However, with some manipulation, and perhaps with a couple of them in play, this card could make it's way into an appropriate control type of deck. Still, it's a lot of work for the desired effect.

Grade: C+

Daybreak Coronet Rare Enchantment - Aura WW
Enchant creature with another Aura attached to it
Enchanted creature gets +3/+3 and has first strike, vigilance, and lifelink. (Whenever it deals damage, its controller gains that much life.)

Well, if your deck is all about pumping up a single creature, this Aura gives your creature some nice abilities. I'm not sure that the strategy is all that viable in constructed where your single creature could probably be taken out fairly easily. But in sealed, when your opponent may not always have a card handy to deal with your multi-enchanted beast, it should have some legs for 2 mana.

Grade: B

Dust of Moments Uncommon Instant 2W
Choose one — Remove two time counters from each permanent and each suspended card; or put two time counters on each permanent with a time counter on it and each suspended card.

For the most part, I don't like cards that cost mana to remove a counter or two from a suspended card (e.g. Clockspinning, Fury Charm, Timecrafting), since the point of suspending a card is to pay less mana for the power of the spell in exchange for having to wait for it. However, for 3cc this card can remove two time counters from each suspended card, or add the same if you like, at Instant speed. As a general utility card, it's probably not that great, but in constructed I think that this card has value in the right deck.

Grade: B+

Even the Odds Uncommon Instant 2W
Play Even the Odds only if you control fewer creatures than each opponent. Put three 1/1 white Soldier creature tokens into play.

Three chump blockers if you don't have enough creatures. Ok. Without the restriction it would be quite good, but with it, it's a situational card, which generally have lower intrinsic value, in my opinion.

Grade: C+

Gift of Granite Common Enchantment - Aura W
Flash (You may play this spell any time you could play an instant.)
Enchant creature Enchanted creature gets +0/+2.

Surprise! My creature isn't dead! Yawn. At least it sticks.

Grade: B-

Goldmeadow Lookout Uncommon 2/2 creature - Kithkin Spellshaper 3W
W, T, Discard a card: Put a 1/1 white Kithkin Soldier creature token named Goldmeadow Harrier into play with “W, T: Tap target creature.”

Another Soldier engine! Wait, I don't have a Soldier deck. Maybe I should look into it...

Grade: B

Imperial Mask Rare Enchantment 4W
When Imperial Mask comes into play, if it’s not a token, each of your teammates puts a token into play that’s a copy of Imperial Mask.
You can’t be the target of spells or abilities your opponents control.

Team protection from targeted attacks. Still, don't most decks win with Combat damage anyway?

Grade: B-

Intervention Pact Rare Instant 0
Intervention Pact is white.
The next time a source of your choice would deal damage to you this turn, prevent that damage. You gain life equal to the damage prevented this way.
At the beginning of your next upkeep, pay 1WW. If you don’t, you lose the game.

This card forms the White contribution to a series of Pact cards. The series includes Slaughter Pact, Summoner's Pact, Pact of Negation and Pact of the Titan. This one is the weakest of all of them. Still, it could be a handy escape in sealed.

Grade: C+

Judge Unworthy Common Instant 1W
Choose target attacking or blocking creature. Scry 3, then reveal the top card of your library. Judge Unworthy deals damage equal to that card’s converted mana cost to that creature. (To scry 3, look at the top three cards of your library, then put any number of them on the bottom of your library and the rest on top in any order.)

Not bad if you have a lot of cards in your deck with high casting cost. Still, it's a gamble and I don't like to gamble. I suppose if you've used something like Congregation at Dawn previously to put something on top of your library, it wouldn't be so bad.

Grade: C+

Knight of Sursi Common 2/2 creature - Human Knight 3W
Flying, flanking
Suspend 3—W (Rather than play this card from your hand, you may pay W and remove it from the game with three time counters on it. At the beginning of your upkeep, remove a time counter. When the last is removed, play it without paying its mana cost. It has haste.)

If your deck can compensate for the delay of suspend, then this guy is pretty good for one mana.

Grade: A-

Lost Auramancers Uncommon 3/3 creature - Human Wizard 2WW
Vanishing 3 (This permanent comes into play with three time counters on it. At the beginning of your upkeep, remove a time counter from it. When the last is removed, sacrifice it.) When Lost Auramancers is put into a graveyard from play, if it had no time counters on it, you may search your library for an enchantment card and put it into play. If you do, shuffle your library.

Four mana for a 3/3 body that can only attack twice before it dies. The upside is that I get to search for an enchantment when he dies. I can't think of when I would use this. Maybe I could search for the next card...

Grade: C

Lucent Liminid Common 3/3 Enchantment creature - Elemental 3WW
Flying

Eh? A 3/3 Flyer for 5 that's not only subject to all normal creature hate but also Enchantment hate? No thank you.

Grade: C-

Lumithread Field Common Enchantment 1W
Creatures you control get +0/+1.
Morph 1W (You may play this face down as a 2/2 creature for 3. Turn it face up any time for its morph cost.)

Well, it's got some utility, I would think more for sealed than constructed. It's defensive pump for your creatures if you want, it's a creature if you need one. I'm not burning up inside to build a deck with it though.

Grade: C+

Lymph Sliver Common 3/3 creature - Sliver 4W
All Sliver creatures have absorb 1. (If a source would deal damage to a Sliver, prevent 1 of that damage.)

Well, I made a decision not to bag Slivers just because they are Slivers. I mean, that is the kind of discrimination that has our world in the turmoil that surrounds us each and every day. No, the best way forward is to judge each individual on their merits, so that is what we must do.

Well, I know that someone is going to correct me on technicalities, but isn't giving all Slivers Absorb 1 almost the same as giving all Slivers +0/+1? Basically, they can take one more damage each turn. Except that the virtual toughness bump doesn't count when you play Last Gasp or Sudden Death. So, what we have here is something slightly less than a 3/4 creature for 5 that gives some defensive capability to other Slivers. Based on merit alone, I say "no".

In all honesty, I recently built several Sliver decks that relied heavily on White Slivers and this guy never got a second look.

Grade: D

Magus of the Moat Rare 0/3 creature - Human Wizard 2WW
Creatures without flying can’t attack.

Ok, following along with the Magus theme, this card brings back an ability from a pre-existing card and puts it on a Creature's body, allowing it to eliminated with creature removal rather than Enchantment removal. Time Spiral brought back Teferi's Moat, which is a weaker version of the original Legends card Moat. This guy mimics the original. Now, I like the original very much, but I don't have $80 to spend on each copy, so I think that I may have to use Magus of the Moat as a quality stand-in.

Grade: A

Marshaling Cry Common Sorcery 1WW
Creatures you control get +1/+1 and gain vigilance until end of turn.
Cycling 2 (2, Discard this card: Draw a card.)
Flashback 3W (You may play this card from your graveyard for its flashback cost. Then remove it from the game.)

Well, it always depends upon the situation, but I think that vigilance is underrated and pump for all of your creatures is a good thing. I like this one. Too bad it only lasts for one turn. However, with both Cycling and Flashback, this card shows some versatility as well.

Grade: B+

Mistmeadow Skulk Uncommon 1/1 creature - Kithkin Rogue 1W
Protection from converted mana cost 3 or greater
Lifelink (Whenever this creature deals damage, you gain that much life.)

Mistmeadow Skulk is screaming out to be pumped up to maximize the advantage of Lifelink. He's also enlisted to serve double duty as a prime chump blocker against your opponents' fatties. If only this creature also had Vigilance. Wait, how about teaming him up with Marshalling Cry? This guy could have some utility.

Grade: B+

Oriss, Samite Guardian Rare 1/3 Legendary creature - Human Cleric 1WW
T: Prevent all damage that would be dealt to target creature this turn.
Grandeur — Discard another card named Oriss, Samite Guardian: Target player can’t play spells this turn, and creatures that player controls can’t attack this turn.

I think it's pretty well known by now that the Grandeur ability turns excess copies of this Legendary creature into a virtual Orim's Chant, and for no cost. That's pretty good. See the combo pages for ideas on how to make this even more effective.

Grade: A

Patrician's Scorn Common Instant 3W
If you played another white spell this turn, you may play Patrician’s Scorn without paying its mana cost.
Destroy all enchantments.

A control card that has the ability to be played without paying it's cost. This could potentially come in handy.

Grade: B

Ramosian Revivalist Uncommon 2/2 creature - Human Rebel Cleric 3W
6, T: Return target Rebel permanent card with converted mana cost 5 or less from your graveyard to play.

Flashback for your Rebels.

Grade: C+

Saltskitter Common 3/4 creature - Wurm 3W
Whenever another creature comes into play, remove Saltskitter from the game. Return Saltskitter to play under its owner’s control at end of turn.

A 3/4 body for four that keeps bouncing out of the game. I don't get it.

Grade: C+

Samite Censer-Bearer Common 1/1 creature - Human Rebel Cleric W
Prevent the next 1 damage that would be dealt to each creature you control this turn.

Not bad for a weenie army, I suppose.

Grade: B

Scout's Warning Rare Instant W
The next creature card you play this turn can be played as though it had flash. Draw a card.

Yeah, that's not bad. I can give Flash to any creature I want and draw a card all for one mana. I'll take it.

Grade: A

Seht's Tiger Rare 3/3 creature - Cat 2WW
Flash (You may play this spell any time you could play an instant.)
When Seht’s Tiger comes into play, you gain protection from the color of your choice until end of turn. (You can’t be targeted, dealt damage, or enchanted by anything of the chosen color.)

Yes. This is the kind of innovation that I like about Future Sight. Granting a player protection from a colour for a turn is a unique twist on the rules and something that hasn't been seen before. Add Flash to that, and suddenly four mana for a 3/3 body doesn't seem like such a high price to pay. Imagine your opponent's surprise when you play this one. I don't know whether this card would fit into any of my current decks, but I sure do like it!

Grade: A+

Spirit en-Dal Uncommon 2/1 creature - Spirit 2W
Shadow (This creature can block or be blocked by only creatures with shadow.)
Forecast — 1W, Reveal Spirit en-Dal from your hand: Target creature gains shadow until end of turn. (Play this ability only during your upkeep and only once each turn.)

Shrug. Eh, it's ok.

Grade: C+

Future Sight has shown some good innovation in terms of card design. Starting with the unique dual lands and continuing with cards like Seht's Tiger, it's this kind of innovation that will keep players interested for years to come.

Overall, I think that Future Sight has brought some interesting elements to the Standard format for White, but I suspect that only a very select few will find their way into my casual Legacy decks. I suppose, however, that only time will tell.

You can discuss this article in the MDV forums here.
Find other articles by this author here.
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Articles Spotlights from 2007:
Lorwyn Theme Week Intro & Schedule of Events
Blink And Bounce: Timing is Key
Going Blind: XCB Metagaming - A Prolonged Conclusion.
The Science of Magic: Genetic Engineering, Part Two.
Shifting Lineaments: Casual Metagaming (Pt. 2).
The Dungeon Of Malefict: Pure Evil!
Land Week Introduction & Schedule.
Combofusion: Legends Timeshifted.
One Card to Rule Them All: Coastal Piracy
Irrational Love: Chimeras. The Lego's of Magic.