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Editor: Audrey Chin Quan. Monday 3 June 2002.
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Judgment Limited Review - Green
Enjoy!
Dan Turner
Card Name: Anurid Barkripper
This guy rocks at threshold sucks anytime else. Double green means a strong commitment to green and works well in a R/G deck that abuses threshold. How does second turn Book Burning, third turn Barkripper sound?? Still not stellar - a mid range pick.
Card Name: Anurid Swarmsnapper
Hmm, green creatures that sit back all day blocking - not my cup of tea. His second ability is probably more useful than the first but I wouldn't rely on this guy alone to defend "homebase". If you need creatures draft a bit earlier but other wise a mid to late pick.
Card Name: Battlefield Scrounger
I used this guy at the prerelease as my 17th creature and I never used his ability once. In reality the Scrounger is a 3/3 for five mana with a one or two shot ability at best. A mid range to late pick if ever there was one.
Card Name: Brawn
This card pretty much sums up green in Judgement - solid fat creatures for their casting cost. Brawn is good either on the table or in the graveyard and if you can discard this guy during combat even better, especially if you have Muscle Bursts, Sudden Strength, etc.
Brawn is definitely a high pick if you are playing green and only bows down to Elephant Pants, Phantom Centaur or a broken rare - such as Genesis.
Card Name: Canopy Claws
This card is very defensive and quite situational. A sideboard card at best, your opponent would need to have a lot of flying creatures to warrant playing this. A pick of the scraps, generally one of the last few cards in the booster.
Card Name: Centaur Rootcaster
I don't really like four mana accelerators with conditions. Play Harvest Druid or Werebear over this guy every time. If you happen to be playing the Rootcaster you probably shouldn't have drafted green. A late pick.
Card Name: Crush of Wurms
When I read the spoiler I thought this was insanely broken. A couple of weeks later and I've smelt the coffee - don't be deceived the Crush is only good if you have a lot of mana acceleration. Realistically you will need a couple of Harvest Druids and maybe an Elder Druid just to cast it. Forget about the flashback, if you can't win with three 6/6 wurms then three more ain't going to make a difference.
Unless you have drafted Mirrari's Wake then leave the Crush alone and let someone else find out how hard it is to cast. A late pick.
Best creature enchantment in the set? I think so. Elephant Pants rocks and is even better on fliers or ...forestwalkers. Bounce is the only real answer to this but I'd rather be playing with it than against it. This is one of those cards that can be splashed with ease.
A first pick every time unless there is a Genesis in the pack of course.
Card Name: Epic Struggle
So I already have drafted a Squirrel Nest, a Grizzly Fate and 3 Acorn Harvests, all I need is an Epic Struggle right? Wrong. This card sucks and you should be able to win with those cards without this. Complete chaff.
Card Name: Ernham Djinn
He's back with better artwork. The Ernham is still a force in limited play and has a "deal with it" quality. Watch out though - a sole Kirtars Desire or Nomad Decoy can shut him down. The Ernham works well within a deck that has either creature and/or enchantment removal. Ideally he fits into a R/G or a U/G deck with bounce - definitely not a W/G deck as his drawback will end up biting you in the backside.
Ernham Djinn is still a first pick and I would generally not want to pass this if I'm playing green.
Card Name: Exoskeletal Armor
Another good creature enchantment, although not as good as Elephant Pants, it is still worth playing. This is obviously a late game card and suits a deck that plays a decent amount of creatures. I would pick quality creatures over this but if you are faced with this or a Battlefield Scrounger I'm taking the armour. A mid range pick depending on your creature base.
Card Name: Folk Medicine
Wow, when I first saw this card I thought it was a printing mistake. Seriously this card is bad and you want a creature over it every time. This card will always be one of the last three cards in the pack that doesn't matter.
Card Name: Forcemage Advocate
Firstly I like 2/1 creatures for 2 mana as they offer great beatdown right from the get-go. The ability is interesting in the late game especially if your opponent has one or two land in their graveyard as it can sit back on defense and pump up your evasion creatures. Good for U/G or W/G. A mid to high range pick, somewhere around 5th to 8th.
Card Name: Genesis
Hello and welcome to the best green card in the set. Genesis is without a doubt the nastiest incarnation and is a beat machine in it's own right. If it goes to the graveyard things only get worse as you now have a recycle engine going. It fits into any green based deck and is a card that could be easily splashed. You can attack a bit more recklessly with this and is especially good with bombs such as Phantom Nishoba or Aboshan as it lets you bring 'em back again. You need to watch out for remove from game effects such as Second Thoughts, Faceless Butcher, Coffin Purge and Steamclaw and make sure that you don't target it with any of your wormfang creatures.
A first pick if ever there was one and your deck will only get better.
Card Name: Giant Warthog
Six mana trampling hogs are good are they not? You would only want one or two of these in your deck and it is the trample which really seals the deal. Especially nasty with creature enhancers and fast effects the warthog works best in a R/G style deck. Imagine an Arcane Teachings on this - more like Arcane Beatings.
Still not a high pick as there will always be better quality cards in the pack - but don't pass this when there are only 6 or 8 eight cards going around.
Card Name: Grizzly Fate
This sorcery is good by itself and nuts at threshold. The fact it has flashback is an added bonus. Combined with a Mirrari's Wake the game will be over quickly. If you are playing green draft this card because if you don't, you need a lobotomy.
A first pick and there would need to be some damn fine uncommons in the pack to sway this decision.
Card Name: Harvester Druid
We had Werebear and Rites of Spring in Odyssey, Far Wanderings in Torment and Harvest Druid in Judgement. The druid is one of the better mana accelerators. He works wonders with the Odyssey sac lands and makes double casting cost spells easy.
A mid range pick and maybe higher if you have a lot of 4 (and higher) drops in your deck.
Card Name: Ironshell Beetle
I've heard a lot of people say good things about this little guy but I'm not so sure. At the very least he is a 2/2 for 2 mana, which is cool, but nothing to get excited about. I think he works best in a U/G style deck where you can use the counter on evasion creatures. Phantom creatures benefit from gaining an additional counter so he could be useful there too. A mid range pick but if had the choice of this guy or Phantom Tiger I would draft the cat.
Card Name: Krosan Reclamation
These kind of cards rarely set the limited format on fire and Krosan Reclamation is no exception. This may see use as a sideboard card against incarnations and the like but is still very situational. Don't hold out for this, it will always be part of the scraps.
Card Name: Krosan Wayfarer
There are so many better 1/1's in this set than Krosan Wayfarer. I kind of feel sorry for this guy as he won't see play in limited or constructed. The Woodland Druid outranks him (and that is saying something) and unfortunately the wayfarer has been relegated to the chaff division.
Card Name: Living Wish
All of the wishes have an unique impact on the limited environment and Living Wish has a dual use. At the very least it can pull you out of a mana screw early in the game but it is great for pulling hoser style creatures out of the sideboard. Watch out for players grabbing Druid Lyrists, Pilgrims and Leaf Dancers from the board. A mid pick as there will always be better creatures worth taking.
Card Name: Nantuko Tracer
Another quick beatdown creature for green with an ability to nab opposing flashback cards. The Tracer is a good turn two drop even without it's ability. In the late game the tracer has more strategic value and is great for taking care of incarnations, flashback cards and recursive creatures.
A mid pick and will often vary depending upon the mana curve of your deck.
Card Name: Nullmage Advocate
The advocate is one of the better common 3 drops at the moment for green, the only other serious contenders being Krosan Avenger and Phantom Tiger. He is tough enough to block a lot of the 2 power creatures out there and has a nifty ability which is quite useful. Retuning 2 cards to your opponent's hand is never a good thing but if it destroys an enchantment which is really problematic for you (such as Persuasion, Mirrari's Wake etc) the advocate is worth it.
Amongst the common green creatures this guy is up there and may even be picked over the Phantom Tiger.
Card Name: Phantom Centaur
A 5/3 protection from black creature for 4 mana is really good and the fact it is a phantom makes it even better. The centaur gives any deck fits and can only really be silenced with creature enchantments or tappers. Activated abilities which deal damage are good against phantoms but it still would take 3 turns to kill. If you have mana rampers it makes this guy a lot better as a lot of decks will have problems with a creature of this size on the 3rd turn.
I would pick this over Brawn and is probably up there as one of the best uncommons (along with Elephant Pants) but the broken green rares in this set still have the edge.
Card Name: Phantom Nantuko
The Phantom Nantuko is the third best phantom creature for green being edged out by the Nishoba and the Centaur. If it started out with 3 counters rather than 2 it would pip the centaur out - but it doesn't. Trample makes this guy an absolute nightmare but you will have to wait at least 3 turns before he becomes a real threat.
Ironshell Beetles work well with this guy as so does any creature enchantment - Arcane Teachings, Seton's Desire anyone?? Could be played in any style of deck but suits an aggressive build that puts an opponent under pressure with cheap creatures while the shade amasses strength - typically a R/G build. A high pick but watch out for other powerful uncommons in the pack.
Card Name: Phantom Tiger
The Phantom Tiger is a solid beatdown creature which should find itself into nearly any draft deck. The fact it is a 3 power creature for 3 mana is great but it's phantom ability really makes it stand out. The tiger won't stay around for too long but will get in a few points of damage (or a couple of creatures) before it hits the graveyard.
The tiger should be picked around 5th or 6th, if these guys come round later treat them as a gift.
Card Name: Seedtime
I'm thinking this may see some play in limited as there are a variety of blue instants which fall into this category. The usual suspects including Aether Burst, Repel, Syncopate, etc. Still Seedtime is a situational card and should not be picked too highly - a late pick.
Card Name: Serene Sunset
This is as about as funky as green gets in the tricks department. I really like combat tricks and Serene Sunset ranks up there as it is selective removal. This card is a great stall breaker and can often swing the tide of the game. Also by preventing the damage your phantom creatures do not lose a counter - pretty good huh!
Because this is an uncommon you may open a solid green rare or another good uncommon in Judgement. I think Elephant Pants is better in that regard but it is a close call. Tough pick.
Card Name: Sudden Strength
Compare Sudden Strength to Giant Growth, you are playing 3 extra mana just to draw a card but in a set where green combat tricks are scarce this is playable. I definitely think you don't want to play with more than 2 of these especially if you already have some other combat tricks. Nevertheless Sudden Strength should always give you card advantage and at the very worst it can be cycled.
A mid range pick and you often will be faced between this and a Phantom Tiger/Nullmage Advocate.
Card Name: Sylvan Safekeeper
Olle Rade has finally got himself a card and he is on a spider! The safekeeper is a pretty good 1 drop and has an ability that can be extremely problematic the longer the game goes on. Providing you have enough lands he will help you reach threshold and make your creatures hard to kill. Watch out for opposing Muscle Bursts and Guided Strikes as he is useless against those effects. At the end of the day he is only a 1/1 and is still susceptible to Psionic Gift, Arcane Teachings, etc but will find his way into most beatdown style decks.
The other problem with Sylvan Safekeeper is when do you draft him?? I don't think he is a 1st pick but is definitely up there.
Card Name: Thriss, Nantuko Primus
I always think with these sorts of cards that you would rather be attacking than using their ability. This makes Thriss quite an expensive 5/5 creature so why not play with a Giant Warthog instead? I played against Thriss at the prerelease and it dominated the table as my opponent already had a lot of creatures out and was racing me, but I still think it is not that good. You want creatures that can create board control early in the game and Thriss is simply "icing on the cake".
I would pick this after any of the good uncommons in the set and maybe a couple of the common cards as well. If Thriss comes around late by all means snag her but she is really not all that great.
Card Name: Tunneler Wurm
The only regenerator in Judgement for green and it costs 8 mana! The Tunneler Wurm is massive and you should already have the game under control without the need for a 6/6 for 8.
If your deck is really lacking creatures then consider playing it otherwise let someone else worry about it.
Card Name: Venomous Vines
The vines are a sideboard card at best and great at picking off enchanted lands and creature enchantments. These sorts of cards should never be picked early and you would always want a good creature over this in a pack.
If it comes around late take it but it's not the end of the world if you don't have one.
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