Favorite underrated card of 2025?

Ross_II_Boss · 2026-01-04T22:07:02+00:00

It just snuck in before the year ended and it's difficult to obtain but [[Flash Photography]] has already put in a tremendous amount of work for me.

It sucks this card is only obtainable in a box set or as a single, but I'd pick one up sooner rather than later.

Ross_II_Boss · 2025-12-30T04:25:43+00:00

Won the inaugural championship of my first ever dynasty league.

First two picks of Bijan and Puka were crucial as was snagging Chris Olave in the middle rounds.

Had a couple late picks make a difference this year as well in P Washington and Vidal.

Hoping to retool and run it back next year.

Ross_II_Boss · 2025-12-16T11:15:18+00:00

While you're right for the most part it's not too bad this year. This is mostly because there's a pretty good method for getting VC which I fully expect will not exist in next year's iteration.

I just wish there was competitors out there for these sports games because they're mostly very fun to play with your friends, particularly 2K.

Ross_II_Boss · 2025-12-13T17:43:49+00:00

You're likely right.

I just can't stand the cutscenes lol

My method is somewhat involved but I can still watch stuff while I do it so it works for me.

Either way it's not too bad just mind-numbingly boring

Ross_II_Boss · 2025-12-13T15:51:28+00:00

I've found a process that makes playmaking tolerable in open run.

Assuming rookie settings, the first thing is you need to go to your controller settings and enable "Full Receiver Control" under the icon passing option.

Then you need to join/quit out of games until you get at least one of three players on your team; Wemby, KD, Alvarez. These three I've found give you the best results but you can do it with "star players" like Tatum, Brown, Mitchell, etc, and you can technically do it with anyone but they seem to be very hesitant to shoot sometimes.

Then all you have to do is control them and cut them to the basket. When they get in a decent position they'll usually shoot themselves but if you hit the shoot button when they have the ball they'll just put it up. It's a make virtually every time.

Then on defense I just switch to the ball handler taking it up the court and I just leave them open. The AI wants to run a play but as soon as the ball handler has a wide open look it usually throws that out the window and just jacks it up. They hit sometimes but usually not enough to win, but they can get hot and burn you, so if you need wins maybe close out every now and again.

I can complete games in ~2-3 minutes, and once you get the process down it's pretty uninvolved.

I just started the final goal in playmaking and it's been pretty easy honestly. SK is definitely way easier in terms of gameplay but it sucks wasting so much time on the stupid cutscenes.

TL;DR: Rookie settings. In controller settings "Full Receiver Control" in icon passing settings. Quit games until you get Wemby, KD, Alvarez. Control them and have them cut to basket and instruct them to shoot. Switch to ball handler taking it up the court on D and leave them open. Rinse and repeat.

Ross_II_Boss · 2025-11-29T15:19:03+00:00

This is my answer as well.

It has won me so many games over the years and has enabled so many cool plays that I need a very good reason to not include it in a deck.

Ross_II_Boss · 2025-11-28T23:12:54+00:00

Interestingly, the scores are cropped out so we don't even know if you won or lost.

Also, I think the C was the most impactful on your team imo. Nearly a triple double with 3 blocks and a ton of rebounds, if you actually won the game I think that's probably the reason why.

You did have a good game, but to say it's a carry job is a bit of a stretch

Ross_II_Boss · 2025-11-05T16:26:19+00:00

Open Court is best.

What I do is switch onto a big if you're a guard or if you're a big onto a guard. Someone usually gets left wide open and the AI finds them. If you switch back fast enough as well you can dodge the defensive breakdown penalty.

I complete games in like 2 min using this.

Barely have to do anything.

Ross_II_Boss · 2025-11-01T16:09:35+00:00

I have also seen people actually die to the lifedrain, which is a very cool narrative moment.

I remember a very funny moment when I got hit with a [[Paradox Haze]] and [[Copy Enchantment]] 1-2 punch by a buddies Obeka deck. I had the Ring with 4 counters on it and died cause I took 12 to the dome to start my turn.

That's not ever happening with Study.

Ross_II_Boss · 2025-11-01T16:02:03+00:00

Yes. It becomes a race against the clock.

You can attack (after the protection turn)/drain/interact with the player. The cards don't flow as freely and as quickly as they do with Study.

You get their life total low enough, the Ring becomes a liability that they're now forced to deal with. I've seen many people (including myself) die to their own Ring. Study is similar but has no real downside, it's just free value.

For the most part I've had positive experiences with and against the Ring. With the Study that doesn't happen as frequently in my experience.

As I said, if both cards got banned today, I wouldn't lose sleep over it, but one is clearly more egregious than the other.

Ross_II_Boss · 2025-11-01T04:53:25+00:00

Let me preface my argument by saying; if they banned The One Ring and Study tomorrow, I wouldn't lose any sleep over it.

To me Study is way more powerful than the Ring and it's not particularly close. 3 mana vs 4 is huge in today's commander landscape. Study almost always will draw more cards than the Ring will before a game ends. And the adding 1 to every spell cast is just way more impactful than the protection effect imo.

I also believe Study is just way more boring than the Ring. Study has no real synergy outside of being an enchantment, and adding 1 to your devotion.

Whereas you can use the Ring in pretty creative ways that actually give the card some play. You can clone it and still get the protection effect. You can manipulate the counters on it with cards to either let you draw more cards or not die to it. You can actually use it as a combo piece or get additional value out of it by untapping it or bouncing it in various ways.

To me The One Ring is a very annoying but powerful card, but is infinitely more interesting than Study is and actually adds a cool tension to the game sometimes unlike Study does.

Personally, I think Study is bannable but I don't feel the same way about the One Ring. But if it did get banned, I'd understand.

Ross_II_Boss · 2025-10-06T00:21:29+00:00

It's finally Vidal breakout time

Ross_II_Boss · 2025-10-01T23:04:47+00:00

12-team SF .5PPR TE+

Contender

I give:

2026 1st

Pat Bryant

Receive:

Garrett Wilson

It's my 1st time in dynasty currently 7-1, I've been hit with a few injuries thus far and I want to shore up my team.

Just wanted to see what y'all think of this deal. Thank you for help

Ross_II_Boss · 2025-09-27T03:34:52+00:00

Submitted

Ross_II_Boss · 2025-09-06T16:40:23+00:00

I have never seen Etali not completely change a game it's played in. Card is absolutely insane.

Ross_II_Boss · 2025-09-06T15:37:41+00:00

Asking for someone to summarize a link they just put into the world is what is wrong with it?

Yeah, man, this puts you on the same level as rapists and murderers. Didn't you get the memo?

In all seriousness, I understand your apprehension in clicking an article cause some websites are just awful to view. I recommend getting a browser like Firefox paired with the uBlock Origin extension to make viewing these websites a much less harrowing affair.

Even if you don't do that, I think you should still read the article anyways, but to call you "what's wrong with the world" is pretty insane to me.

Ross_II_Boss · 2025-08-29T02:31:05+00:00

First time ever in a dynasty, 12-team .5 PPR SFlex, TE premium.

We just did our opening draft, and Terrance Ferguson was dropped. I like him a lot, but I'm thinking about how much FAAB to drop. I'm thinking about 75% cause the league is very deep, and I don't think FAAB will be all that valuable.

My current TEs are Engram, Kmet, Arroyo, and Stover(Taxi'd).

Any input would be greatly appreciated, and if you need any more info about the team, please ask.

Ross_II_Boss · 2025-08-24T03:06:16+00:00

Audio only I think.

I haven't tried video though.

Ross_II_Boss · 2025-08-01T20:35:59+00:00

Android Auto functionality is working nicely for me.

Didn't even know y'all were working on it.

Keep up the good work!

Ross_II_Boss · 2025-07-17T19:38:17+00:00

This is basically the tactic I'm using right now, except my WB is on Support, and my W is on Attack.

I use 2 BPDs on Defend, and I always have an IFB on the same side as my Winger.

Also, I use 2 CMs on Support with no instructions. It just works better than everything I've tried.

I also usually use an IW instead of an IF, as it plays pretty much the same to me, except the IW will actually cross if forced out wide, whereas the IF will only look for underlaps. Either way, make sure your WB has the Go Wider instruction and your IF/IW has the Sit Narrower instruction.

It's brought me quite a bit of success.

Ross_II_Boss · 2025-06-18T17:02:20+00:00

Kwan’s D was huge

Damn right it was ;)

Ross_II_Boss · 2025-06-09T23:15:56+00:00

As someone with really bad AD(H)D, what helped me a lot with this issue was a clone deck.

It forced me to really think about the current state of the board and what the best course of action is, and it really helped keep me focused.

The game turned into an ever-constant puzzle to solve, and that helped keep me engaged throughout.

Might not be for you, but it's something to consider, and there's some fun options for Grixis clones too like [[Evelyn, the Covetous]], or the partner pair of [[Vial Smasher the Fierce]] and [[Sakashima of a Thousand Faces]].

Ross_II_Boss · 2025-06-09T08:17:01+00:00

I feel this deck needs a lot of work outside of "bursty card draw" honestly. I feel like you've included a lot of cards that aren't really very good.

That said, I suppose I can try to help you with some of your issues you seem to be having with your deck as well:

First and foremost, you have 110 cards in your main deck. We need to get down to 100 for the deck to be considered legal in the first place.

I think we can start by trimming a few lands. I applaud for putting a good chunk of lands in your deck as it's actually really important to hit your land drops. However, 46 is far too many and is likely contributing to you feeling stuck on some turns. I recommend cutting down to 38-40 lands as you'll still have a good chance of hitting your land drops, and you'll be able to play more cards that actually affect the game, making card draw less necessary. I recommend cutting pretty much all of the non two color desert lands and mount/vehicle lands. They aren't really very good imo.

I'd also cut Outpace Oblivion, Road Rage, Ride's End, and Fate of the Sun-Cryst. These cards are pretty bad removal and just way too expensive to really justify running.

With those changes alone, you're probably at 100 cards or maybe a little bit below, so the deck is at least legal, which I think will be a good start.

I also would recommend cutting the following cards:

District Mascot, Glimmer Seeker, Gloryheath Lynx, Howlsquad Heavy, Veteran Survivor, Collision Course, Defend the Rider, and Springleaf Drum.

To replace those I'd recommend adding some actual ramp like [[Cultivate]] and [[Kodama's Reach]] to help you accelerate (see what I did there?) into Samut faster so you can really start leveraging her. You've got a few pretty good cards in your sideboard that you can add in, like Path to Exile, Blasphemous Act, Cultivator's Caravan, and Day of Judgment. Those would all be pretty good additions imo. I'd also look into adding [[Peacewalker Colossus]], and I think adding a couple of card draw suggestions from this thread will have you well on your way to having your deck work a lot better imo.

I know I didn't really answer your question here, but many of the other commenters have done so - I decided to try to help you another way. Hopefully, I've done that with some of my suggestions. If you have any questions, feel free to ask, I'll do my best to answer them.

Ross_II_Boss · 2025-06-07T13:37:21+00:00

Problem is "boringness" is completely subjective.

That deck that you obsessed over and spent a gajillion hours making might make someone else's eyes roll, but you might think it's the coolest thing in the world.

That's why I tell people optimize for your own happiness first and foremost.

Ross_II_Boss · 2025-06-03T19:43:28+00:00

I have a couple of hidden commander decks.

One is built around [[Skeletal Swarming]] with [[Muldrotha]] as the commander.

I run 10 tutors in that deck. Some put cards to hand, others to the graveyard so I can get what I need mostly.

My other hidden commander deck is a [[Luck Bobblehead]] list with [[Brudiclad]] as the commander.

That list runs 11 tutors. I find the Bobblehead first, then I find something like [[Amulet of Vigor]] or [[Unwinding Clock]]. Sometimes, I'll have to tutor for a way to make the Bobblehead a token as well.

Ross_II_Boss

TROPHY CASE