Dimir Cipher

~
Happy Friday MTG peeps,

As it is Friday, we suggest you get out to your local gaming store tonight for Friday Night Magic.  We'll be off to OMG! Games tonight in Barrie, Ontario where snow is laying deep - which means we may even have to get our snow shoes on for this trek.

Anywhoos - enough of our transportation woes, check out the sweet new Gatecrash preview / 'Holiday present' from today.  If you cannot immediately find today's special Gatecrash spoiler on the page, click on the present appearing on today's article banner to open.  Let's have a looky-loo . . . .

~
Whispering Madness, 2ub
Sorcery, Rare
Each player discards his or her hand, then draws cards equal to the greatest number of cards a player discarded this way.
Cipher (Then you may exile this spell card encoded on a creature you control. Whenever that creature deals combat damage to a player, its controller may cast a copy of this card without paying its mana cost.)
Illustrated by Clint Cearley
#207/249

~
Almost like an improved variation of Haunt on potential repeating Urza Saga's Windfall or like an aweome version of Darksteel's Spellbinder.  Hold up though - did you see the art ? Don't get us wrong - we aboslutely love Clint Cearley (think Intangible Virtue or Destroy the Evidence) but this card art in our opinion is just awful (a creepy / evil Jon Finkel looking mage) - We don't put the blame for nasty art on Clint but rather the WotC art request (lead concept artist Rick Whitters or other MTG minion).

 






Anywhoos - let's have a closer look at the new House Dimir keyword 'Cipher' which reads (after resolution of that spell), 'then you may exile this spell card encoded on a creature you control. Whenever that creature deals combat damage to a player, its controller may cast a copy of this card without paying its mana cost'.We suggest you snap up all blue hexproof and unblockalbe now such as Geist of Saint Traft or Invisible Stalker now before there is none left - and - before MTG Realm readers go off the cliff screaming that this is the coolest most redonkulous and broken mechanic there is, we just want to remind everyone that altough very good, it still needs a resolved creature spell, the resolved Cipher spell and having that creautre land damage.

We are almost certain there will be cards supporting House Dimir such as unblockables, tap downs, etc. as well as some other cool and crazy Cipher spells which will make us drool.  Without seeing further cards, we are calling this the new cool tech from Gatecrash and can't wait to see what new constructed possibilities are out there.  For now however, we are dreaming up a modern format build with this and Dream Salvage making all those opponent discards a card draw for us, maybe even with an Alchemist's Refuge thrown in for combat / Cipher shenanigans.
~