TLK's Top Twenty Cards From Modern Horizons 3
Hello again, its me Kazi Baker. Today we are bringing the hot and spicy takes about MH3, complete with inaccurate rankings of cards and terrible opinions to farm engagement.
Hello again, its me Kazi Baker aka PT competitor aka Washed King, aka the BIG, aka MTG-ephen A. Smith. Today I am bringing the hot and spicy takes about MH3, complete with inaccurate rankings of cards and terrible opinions to farm engagement (full disclosure: I actually believe these things). Happy reading!
This list is not about fun (I may do another one for fun cards or build-arounds), but rather predicated on power level/impact alone. In this way, it's meant to be more predictive of what the modern metagame will shape out to be over the next few weeks/months, especially as the upcoming modern RCQ season kicks off. We are going to tier out these cards, with small blurbs as to what the tiers mean. Without further ado: the list!
HM: Disciple of Freyalise, Witch Enchanter, Invert Polarity
Just really quickly, there are some cards being left off I want to mention. First off, in Titan, Disciple of Freyalise represents a land fetchable with Summoner's Pact which also enters tapped, and will likely see play as a one-of or maybeboard card due to pure utility reasons.
Witch Enchanter is potentially playable, but isn't actually a card that moves the needle for the potential taxes/blink deck. However, if that deck does come to fruition, this card will likely be in the main at one or two, and therefore makes the list.
Invert Polarity is literally swag incarnate, don't @ me.
Tier 4: Has Potential, Likely Not in Strong Modern Decks
20.Priest of Titania/Wirewood Symbiote
These cards are good... I just doubt the efficacy of Elves. I will say, eventually, there will be a critical mass of good mana dorks which require spot removal, allowing the deck to consistently have a combo kill on turn three or four. Unfortunately, I just do not think we are there yet, especially in an Orcish Bowmasters format.
19. Phlage, Titan of Fire's Fury
This card is sweet, and really cool, and I love the design. However, historically, the white and red color pairing has not been amazing in modern. There is strong precedent for Titans being good (even bannable in Uro, Titan of Nature's Wrath's case), particularly the THB Titans where you pay seven mana over two different turns for a dude rather than six all at once. Even then I just don't think the front side is good enough to justify playing such a dedicated WR deck. I could see it slotting into Elementals, but I doubt a shell built around it really turns out to be strong in the format.
18. Ugin's Binding
This card is incredible. Like, really really strong. I think there are really two major issues with this card, the first being casting the front side is not very strong, and the second being that I picture the Eldrazi deck coming out of this set as colorless rather than UG (although there are plenty of cool UG cards) for speed and access to Tron lands. I also do not think there are solid discard outlets. Even then, this card has a lot of text, especially in those UG Eldrazi shells.
This one is probably controversial, but I just do not see this card being particularly good yet. Emphasis on yet. While I understand there are decks which will be built around this card which try to abuse it, I just don't think those decks will be fast or strong enough to be able to consistently make this into some game-ending permanent on turn three or four without more help in the future. That being said, while is the type of open-ended design which can eventually turn out to be extremely scary on its own, and I do believe being a land means it can slot into Titan and Yawgmoth with little to no downside. I just don't see it being relevant by itself by say, next RCQ season.
Tier 3: Sideboard Staples, Needle-Movers, and a New Archetype!
16. Meltdown
After discussion with my team, I decided this warranted a spot. This card is going to be good against specific things, but at the same time, it's going to be disgusting against those things. Because of that, it will likely see play in red sideboards going forward. The current decks (if there are any? It's MH3) most likely to pick this up are Scam and UR Prowess, which often want to use mana as efficiently as possible and care about clearing the many, many Karnstructs Urza's Saga produces.
15. Kappa Cannoneer
This is probably the card I feel the least confident about in this tier. I think this card (semi-)dodges a lot of the hate for artifact decks available, while also providing a very fast clock. At the same time, this card is significantly harder to cast in modern than legacy, and the modern artifact 8-cast deck hasn't really been a serious threat in a very long time (if ever). That being said, if this card is able to be cast consistently, the artifact deck is going to love it.
14. White Orchid Phantom Knights of Rusty Bardiche
Little in-joke for my former competitive Yu-Gi-Oh players who saw the light. This card is super sick, and potentially EXTREMELY punishing when paired with the white's new flicker package, which WOTC seems to be pushing as a large part of white's color identity for the past few year. I think this card just has a lot of potential upside, especially with what I anticipate from the upcoming meta centered around the card at the top of this list. It is also just a beater that will end the game as a 2/2 with evasion, and being able to be flickered for value or synergizing with your own Flagstones of Trokair is beyond nice.
13. Phelia, Exuberant Shepherd
Another blink-themed white card, I think this card in combination with Phantom is going to push a taxes/blink value deck pretty hard in modern. I think this card is strong, especially with flash to give yourself maximum options coupled with what is likely a clear path during your opponent's turn. I look forward to seeing the play patterns of this card, especially seeing as it is better templated than the insta-blink things we saw from past MH sets (looking at you, Ephemerate). The big downsides are that it lacks evasion, but coupled with cards such as Samwise, the Stouthearted and Solitudes to clear the way, I think we will be fine.
12. Vexing Bauble
With a cycle of free spells every MH set, all of which have been historically playable as long as they aren't red instants, this card is peaking right now. It seems like a very powerful piece, particularly in Urza's Saga decks. I expect it to still see play elsewhere, but it is at its best alongside other artifacts. I think being generic, having a potential cycle attached to it, and being so cheap just push it all the way over. Strong card.
On its own, this card moves the needle for Merfolk. A critical difference between this and Blood Moon is that Harbinger actually takes people OFF of a removal color, helping protect itself, preventing interaction, and usually buffing the board with unblockable thanks to Merfolk lords. The card will turn off the manlands in the deck, but I think this is likely a three-of in Merfolk moving forward, especially in the near future. Not to mention potential application in blue-based control shells, but I do not anticipate those being extremely strong on release, especially compared to Merfolk.
10. Primal Prayers
This card is NUTS. Aluren is a strong card, providing flash to all creatures with mana value three or less, and this version has the huge upside. I do think the decks playing it will struggle a bit to find it and find execute combo, however, the card is just very very strong. I think energy is still, even after this set, just a bit too parasitic to really break it, but it will likely still be a tier 2-ish deck moving forward, especially considering how many combos exist once the card is on the battlefield.
Tier 2: Slots into Good Decks/Pushes Established Decks
I think this card slots directly into domain Zoo as two-of. It adds both diversity and some longevity to the game plan, providing value and some amount of utility and inevitability. The deck already plays eight cats (this likely replaces some of them based on our initial testing), and even though it does not push a ton of damage, it just attacks on an axis decks will likely have trouble dealing with.
This card directly slots into the newest iteration of two old favorites, classic Tron and Eldrazi Aggro/Tron. The virtual Once Upon a Time is powerful, and coupled with a cast trigger bringing value as well as synergy with the #1 card on this list, I think this is an outright staple.
7. Phrexian Tower/Flare of Malice
This is the new Scam package. I decided to just include all of it, because I think both will slot in as one to two-ofs. They provide solid options to the deck and lines they did not have previously, and add more utility to an evoked Grief/dead on board critters which have historically been a bit dead after entering for the archetype.
6. Amped Raptor
I agree with AspiringSpike, this card is gas. It immediately slots into Burn, and is basically outright free. I do think there is potential for the card as a combo piece, but for now, it is just strong as a 2/1 first striker that's also a two-for-one. I think the upside on this card is there, and more importantly, the floor is extremely high compared to most of the other cards above.
Tier 1: Game Changers
This card (with fish moon in number eleven) pushes Merfolk to tier one in my opinion. I think its a generically strong card, only held back by blue creature's historic lack of playability in modern, and Merfolk will almost abuse this card. It will be a bit of a tempo loss on turns one, two, or three, but as an emergency button or the last card in hand, it is awesome (and certainly better than effectively losing the game). I also think it potentially slots into decks like 8-Cast, Wizards (I promise it's real), and probably some new decks MH3 introduces.
I think I could be wrong about this card, but the fact that it locks out Titan's worst matchup (Murktide) on turn two with an Amulet of Vigor and an Arboreal Grazer is kinda nasty. I think this card just has a lot of text, and potentially sees play in a few different places, potentially in Yawg, or even in Scapeshift. I'm unsure. But I do not look forward to dealing with another pactable utility piece out of Titan. I think its very possible I am way too deep in the weeds on this one, but it does just seem legitimately strong to me, and also slots in well with...
Card is DUMB pushed. You know it. I know it. Ya mama knows it. This card has so much text, so much power, and is such a good engine, it just feels like it is BEGGING for an entire archetype to be built around it. I think what this really feels like is Omnath, Locus of Creation, but for three mana instead of four, which is an absolutely insane difference. The shell will likely be a bit different than a lot of the initial lists going around before release, but I'll consume cardboard if this card doesn't see at least one competitive deck built around it.
Card makes mana for free, next.
I mean, if I have to explain more, combining this card with Arboreal Grazer, Young Wolf, Coiling Oracle, Strangleroot Geist, or even Dryad of the Ilysian Grove is just producing obscene amounts of mana. Turn 2 rings, titans, Yawgs, all seem like very good things to be doing in modern. Basically, the card is free, gives you lands, and goes relatively even on cards; it's just nuts.
Tier 0: Banned LOL
HOW MANY TIMES
DO WE HAVE TO DO THIS?
Dumb Deck
By WOTC
No, really. How many? Eye of Ugin, Chrome Mox, Mox Opal, Simian Spirit Guide... so four? This card is just stupid good. Its synergy with classic Tron staples like Karn Liberated and better, newer cards like Devourer of Destiny is ridiculous. I threw this absolute pile together when I saw this card spoiled, and I understand it's incomplete, but I think it showcases exactly how degenerate the strategies this card encourage and enable are. All is Dust + Leyline of the Guildpact is a combo deck I swear. Anything for turn one Scion of Draco, turn two Thought-Knot Seer. Turn one Chalice of the Void in modern? Sure, bro. Sick. Can't wait to see it go. Hopefully it's before the end of the modern RCQ season because I just don't want to deal with these piles. They aren't just Eldrazi, or just Tron, they be affinity, Moon prison, Dice Factory, or ANYTHING your heart desires. I just really don't want to deal with two mana on turn one. I think it's a line that was drawn with the banning of SSG, and I'm starting to think WOTC just likes putting a toe over it to mess with me.
Outside of Labyrinth, I'm very excited for the set. I think there are a lot of interesting cards, power levels are spread well, and there are buffs to bad decks while also not pushing the good decks excessively hard. I think we are moving in a positive direction with modern (excluding Labyrinth), and we are going to see highly interactive games with plenty of decision making and interaction (again, once Labyrinth is banned).
Thanks for reading!
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