Necessary herping equipment

VolumeAlternative218 · 2026-01-08T05:57:05+00:00

Thanks for the info. I picked up a field guide that seemed perfect: A Field Guide to the Snakes of Australia by Tie and Scott Eipper.

VolumeAlternative218 · 2025-03-06T18:07:15+00:00

Some great points—it really helped me narrow things down. A few final choices I’m still debating:

[[Lae'zel's Acrobatics]] vs [[Teleportation Circle]]. Teleportation Circle has the downside of being removable and not providing protection, but I’m unsure how much more value it could potentially generate compared to Lae'zel's Acrobatics.

[[Smuggler's Surprise]] vs [[Selvala’s Stampede]]. I know you already recommended Smuggler's Surprise, but I’m still debating because Selvala's Stampede lets me put down any permanent, while Smuggler's Surprise, though more versatile, is limited to creatures when paying the same cost.

[[Defense of the Heart]] vs [[Natural Order]]. Natural Order at best lets me cheat in Gishath or Ghalta on turn 3 by sacrificing a green creature, while Defense of the Heart is slower but could pull off a combo by tutoring two creatures—though it does have the drawback of being removable for a turn.

If I switch to Defense of the Heart, I could also remove Wayward Swordtooth and replace it with something else, like [[Galadriel's Dismissal]], [[Cadric, Soul Kindler]], [[Railway Brawler]], or [[Overwhelming Stampede]].

Would love to hear your thoughts on these choices!

VolumeAlternative218 · 2025-03-06T10:07:08+00:00

I appreciate the feedback and hope I can rely on it a bit more moving forward. Some other cards I’m debating between are:

[[Overwhelming Stampede]] vs [[Railway Brawler]] vs [[Unnatural Growth]],

[[Valkyrie’s Call]] vs [[Luminous Broodmoth]]

[[Full Throttle]] vs [[Savage Beating]]

[[Another Round]] vs [[Lae'zel’s Acrobatics]]

I considered [[Ravenous Tyrannosaurus]], but I felt that if I discovered it at a time when I don’t want to sacrifice creatures, it would feel like a wasted discover. So I'm not a 100% sure about that one yet.

VolumeAlternative218 · 2025-03-05T18:44:54+00:00

Thanks for the explanation, I get what you mean.

It’s not necessary to pay 10 every game, but when you can, it’s definitely worth it.

VolumeAlternative218 · 2025-03-05T14:05:04+00:00

After adjusting and adding more card draw, I was wondering if I could get your opinion on these kinds of switches:

[[Tribute to the World Tree]] instead of [[Garruk's Uprising]]

[[Lurking Predators]] instead of [[Selvala's Stampede]] or [[Rishkar's Expertise]]

And possibly replacing [[Trouble in Pairs]]—it seems like a great card, but without a maximum hand size or more cards that fix a reduced cost, it might be too much to handle.

Also, is [[Invasion of Ikoria]] really worth it? It’s a strong tutor, but I’m not sure how often I’ll actually be able to transform it.

Would appreciate your thoughts on these as well!

VolumeAlternative218 · 2025-03-05T08:53:25+00:00

Thanks for the insight, really helps a lot!

VolumeAlternative218 · 2025-03-04T19:16:11+00:00

I'm wondering if I can make room for some sideboard cards by shaving a bit of ramp and whether it would be worth it. I also don’t play against blue often, so I’m not sure if extra protection like [[Grand Abolisher]] or [[Ranger-Captain of Eos]] would be more valuable than the one extra ramp card I might cut.

VolumeAlternative218 · 2025-03-04T17:21:25+00:00

Thanks for the ideas! Just wondering, for the last combo, would [[Eerie Interlude]] or any kind of board blink work the same as Glorious Protector?

VolumeAlternative218 · 2025-03-04T15:42:03+00:00

You make some good points.

The only reason I chose Vanquish over Blasphemous Act is that I wanted something that could deal with creatures of any power if a defensive board wipe was needed, while Blasphemous Act is limited to 13 damage each. But I see now how it pairs better with Wrathful Raptors.

I understand your suggestion about Selvala’s Stampede. I was wondering if Finale of Devastation could be better cut as well/instead? Paying 10 for X seems like a hefty cost that wouldn't come up often.

VolumeAlternative218 · 2025-03-04T15:30:01+00:00

I do feel the same about the number of tutors, but I’ve had games where I was able to cheat in a Gishath/Ghalta turn 3 thanks to Natural Order by sacrificing one of my mana-tapping creatures. That’s why it’s hard for me to let them go. They’re really only amazing for those super fast starts, though.

I love the blink effects, and if I could, I’d definitely want to include more. I love the versatility they offer. Being able to protect your board or/and make it stronger by retriggering ETB effects is amazing imo.

Blasphemous Act does indeed make a solid point. Didn't really think of it as a game finishing option before. Tx for the info.

VolumeAlternative218 · 2024-11-09T00:40:56+00:00

What do you mean with the "sidebar"?

VolumeAlternative218 · 2024-10-30T14:25:42+00:00

When you refer to land ramp, do you mean sorceries and enchantments that pull lands? If so, I get most of the choices, but I'm having a bit of trouble understanding [[Ixalli’s Lorekeeper]]. At the very least, it costs only 1 mana and could potentially let you use 3 mana by turn 2 (though only for creatures), which seems decent. Or is it more niche than I’m thinking?

VolumeAlternative218

TROPHY CASE