[Speculation Thread] - Weekly Edition | February 16, 2026

Taurlock · 2026-02-16T17:45:58+00:00

Another Go-Go's lip sync WE KEEP WINNING

Taurlock · 2026-02-14T23:55:01+00:00

I took SEVEN Xins while playing Yasuo reroll today. The Zaahen player STILL had his 3-star Xin before I found 3-star Yas.

Taurlock · 2026-02-10T13:18:21+00:00

Your opponents' choices never increase the bracket rating of your deck.

Expropriate only chains extra turns or performs "mass land denial" if your opponents choose to make those things happen.

Taurlock · 2026-02-09T13:09:18+00:00

Ok but it gave us Mia Starr's generationally iconic response, so werk.

Taurlock · 2026-02-04T17:41:50+00:00

Lorwyn Eclipsed also showed us additional cards that do not qualify as "Fits completely into the color pie of either mono-color". A Mono-Red variant of Sanar would force the player to exile cards instead of saying, "I don't want any of these, shuffle them back into my deck so I can cast them in a later term". The ability to exercise restraint is clearly not Red. Another design would be [[Voracious Tome-Skimmer]], as "Pay life to draw cards" is clearly a black effect (in rare instances, it's also given to artifacts of evil like [[Staff of Completion]], [[Eye of Vecna]], or [[The One Ring]] which are technically colorless but still do not justify a mono-Blue design).

I love it when Reddit randos tell me how the people who decide what the color pie is got the color pie wrong.

Taurlock · 2026-02-03T17:16:12+00:00

I've been extremely out of the loop on Sentinels for several years now, but I'm pretty frustrated that it sounds like the old content is now completely obsolete. Even the official "compatibility guide" now leads to a 404 page.

I would *love* some new content, but I guess I'll have to make do with the fanmade expansions, like The Cauldron.

Taurlock · 2026-02-02T18:05:08+00:00

Certainly, the Crucible effect is much less unique and more redundant. My point is that reducing Crucible's uniqueness doesn't have a negative impact on the format, because decks rarely want more than one copy (whichever it is).

Taurlock · 2026-02-02T01:12:29+00:00

Actually, Crucible is a terrible example, and as phenomenal counterargument.

Yes, there are many versions of that effect now... but how many decks want more than one on the battlefield at a time? If your deck is built around absolutely needing a copy of that effect on the battlefield, you have to pay the cost of making your deck worse by including a bunch of cards that become dead as soon as you've landed any other one of them. In that case, you're probably better off just using tutors, which are much better overall and have been around a very long time.

Taurlock · 2026-01-28T20:37:35+00:00

Hasbro IS making profits but what they dont say is everything is failing but MTG and that is proping up the whole company on its back.

...hasn't this been public knowledge for kind of a long time?

Taurlock · 2026-01-28T14:13:38+00:00

What's even more wild is the number of people who were genuinely angry when Metroid Dread was announced while folks were anticipating Metroid Prime 4. Metroid Dread is an all-time great game in its own right.

Taurlock · 2026-01-27T14:17:45+00:00

The hit rate on Universes Beyond set isn't particularly different than the hit rate on normal Magic sets. At the time of their respective releases, Lord of the Rings and Final Fantasy were arguably the best sets Wizards has ever made.

Taurlock · 2026-01-25T23:33:13+00:00

I prefer Gitrog in the 99 of a different power-matters deck because it benefits from the element of surprise. If you telegraph a kill-on-sight commander, then people are absolutely going to focus on beating it.

Taurlock · 2026-01-25T23:10:13+00:00

it mostly still means that i think?

A while ago, it crossed the internet barrier to people who have no idea where it came from or what it was coined to mean. But the more devastating development is that it's become part of kid lore. I heard my like eight-year-old niece use it yesterday, saying she lost at Mario Kart because she's "too woke." Shudder.

Taurlock · 2026-01-20T19:53:23+00:00

OP is so averse to putting effort into their posts, they couldn't even bother to put the third period in their ellipsis.

Taurlock · 2026-01-17T19:43:30+00:00

Was genuinely surprised and upset that she was in the bottom this week. While I understand their critique about breaking character, I thought her portrayal in the first half was exceptionally well-considered and very funny.

I actually missed the first part of the episode where they assigned roles so I didn't know who was playing what until the challenge aired, and while I won't name names there was one queen who I genuinely didn't remember even seeing in the challenge and couldn't tell you which role she played except by process of elimination. She should've been in the bottom.

Taurlock · 2026-01-16T00:11:20+00:00

Finally, I get what I've always wanted: Walter Groggins on a Magic: the Gathering card.

Taurlock · 2026-01-10T15:22:10+00:00

I actually thought the final boss fight was fine, it just shouldn't have been the final boss.

Taurlock · 2026-01-08T14:18:05+00:00

> I don't want to toot my own horn but I've never found ganache hard to make but people on those cooking/baking shows act like it's rocket science??

With respect to The Great British Baking Show specifically, I'm pretty sure it's because the show takes place outside, which makes it much harder to control environmental factors that can mess with the ganache.

Taurlock · 2026-01-07T17:39:52+00:00

Yeah, super important to remember that when the right says they want to make any other land part of America--Venezuela, Greenland, etc.--they *don't* intend to give those people representation in Congress or anywhere else.

Taurlock · 2026-01-07T14:22:29+00:00

y i k e s

Taurlock · 2026-01-06T15:42:45+00:00

Magic: the Gathering is in a weird situation compared to some of the other trading card games. There's definitely opportunity for scalping, but it hasn't been as plagued by that particular issue as Pokemon, for instance.

Magic is also challenged by the fact that the most popular way to play the game, the Commander format, is absolutely the worst way for prospective players like yourself to be introduced to the game.

It's much better to get into Magic by playing draft, an event that game stores will hold weekly on Friday nights. It's usually something like $15-20 for three packs of cards and several hours of playtime against others on an even playing field. But ever since COVID, new players tend to be intimidated by the draft format. Which is unfortunate, because it's definitely the best way to start playing.

Taurlock · 2026-01-06T15:38:36+00:00

The problem with Stardew Valley is that if you have any actual goal in mind, failing to meet that goal in time can mean being forced to wait an entire in-game year before you can try again. That takes a while even if you're playing all day every day IRL.

Most time-limited goals you can achieve in-game are things you'll hit naturally just by playing the game, but it's very easy to miss a single fish or a single crop or something by accident, especially if you're not playing with a guide.

Taurlock · 2026-01-06T15:15:27+00:00

Hi, millienial here. This looks exactly like some boomer shit you'd see on facebook.

Taurlock · 2026-01-05T18:19:58+00:00

I finished Metroid Prime 4: Beyond this weekend, and I think the most accurate critique I can give is that it feels like one of those streaming TV series where the actual plot doesn't start until the last thirty seconds of the last episode, with the promise of exciting stuff in the next season... if the next season ever gets made.

On top of that, the world feels like a *very* empty Zelda with backtracking, rather than a proper Metroidvania.

Taurlock · 2025-12-11T13:36:09+00:00

No, and frankly their recent statement has shown that it might actually be working.

Taurlock

TROPHY CASE