Disrupting Shoal

[raybomb]

From Inquest:

Disrupting Shoal XUU
Instant - Arcane
You may remove a blue card with converted mana cost X in your hand from the game rather than pay Disrupting Shoal's mana cost.
Counter target spell if its converted mana cost is X.
Illus. Scott M. Fischer
rare

[homestar]

Though many see this as the new Force of Will, I don't think it's all it's cracked up to be. Useless in Vintage (because of the real FoW), its uses in Standard are limited. Still, nice for countering a turn 1 disciple.

[Buthrakaur]

It is the new "un-broken" Force of Will, but I see it as too weak and limiting, since you have to match the cc. Who knows, though, since as you say, MUC might like to pitch Serum Visions to counter a Deciple, or pitch a duplicate Shoal to counter a Ravager.

[xak5150]

I'd have to agree with you guys - great for breaking the early burst of raffinity or perhaps even the early Slith but not so great late game.

Not having been around for the original FoW would have to play with it a few times b4 I used it consistently.

[Scopeless]

You all seem to be forgetting something important about Vintage. Almost all spells in vintage are CMC 3 or less. I would gladly pitch a brainstorm to counter a turn one welder. Also, it's actually casting cost is bearable.

[Risky]

This puts another interesting twist on deck construction. Trying to match cc of spells to other popular spells. Maybe you even run a functionally similar, but inferior card because that part of your curve is empty. Ok, that's probably going too far. But still, another thing to think about when making decks.

[GenericKen]

It could always be FoW 7-8, and hardcasting it's not entirely awful.

[DaWonder]

I quite like the card as it brings a 0 mana counterspell in Standard.

The regular CC is quite expensive, but playable.

About opponents CC :
- I played Void Challice a bit and sorted out that almost all core Raffinity cards are 1cc (vial and disciple) or 2cc (ravager, atog, cranial plating). WW is similar on this.
- On the other hand, this card is quite useless against mana-speeding decks like T&N or B/G, the cc varying from 2 to 11 :).

W

[ThomasTheGreat]

I like this card. You can easily have cards with low CMC in say a monoblue deck; mana leak=2, hinder/thirst/whatever=3, etc... maybe serum visions will start seeing more play or wayfarer's bauble to cover the 1 slot. I dunno, but this could help a lot in a mono blue control deck. Depends what else we get though. I'd like to see them reprint a certain two mana counterspell...

[Sibtiger]

When I first saw this card, I thought it was "unless that spell's controller pays X" and I thought it was amazing. Now I realize this card is terrible.

It's either card disadvantage, tempo disadvantage, or downright dead. What a choice.

[whiskey]

I see potential for this card in MUC. It would allow you to tap out to play and play a permanent (hopefully something that give you some card advantage) while still having a way to counter spells.

[Flaming ninja]

Quite a useful card if most the spells your opponents use are 4 mana or less as the majority of the blue counter spells are 4 mana or less. Can sideboard it out if the spells they use are high costing cost. Need to playtest with it to see its viability. But seeing its use of beating vial affinity using turn 1 vial, it sure gets my vote.

[ThanksPsyco]

actually, this is a pretty awesome card- it will see quite a bit of play everywhere i think. FoW is so awesome anyways, its no issue. besides there's no life loss

[kiwi749]

I guess it can be playable in standard, though i think with mana leak, hinder, condescend, and rewind there is already more that enough counters in type 2

[Akroma Angel of Wrath]

Definately viable although it is a little situational

[n0me_]

I think it looks good on paper, but when it comes time to cast it you're losing cards. You're opponent is getting a 2 for 1. Although I still really like it because you can tap out to play something and then counter you're opponents spell.

[Pink Mocha]

I think it looks good on paper, but when it comes time to cast it you're losing cards. You're opponent is getting a 2 for 1. Although I still really like it because you can tap out to play something and then counter you're opponents spell.

What you forget is you don't *have* to counter everything. Force of Will is not used to counter everything the enemy casts on Turn 1. Neither is this. It's something you use to counter a "must counter" spell that you can't deal with in case you tap out. FoW has always been about the ability to counter by sacrificing card advantage for tempo to stop a gamebreaking spell that the opponent uses when you tap out. No offense but I thought everybody knew that that was what FoW was for.

In current MUC for standard, you don't need it to counter Ravagers, you can use Annuls for that, and use Shackles to take the Disciple. But it's very useful for you once you cast Shackles on Turn 3, and the the ravager player uses the opening to cast Cranial Plating. Then you can counter the game-breaking plating by chucking a mana leak or something. Sounds like a winning formula.

Free counters what was blue was lacking in Type 2 (aside from, well, a decent hard counter -_-) and this fills the gap. It's a great card. It covers you in the early game and you can still use it in the end game. Being a true blue player, I definitely need several of this when Betrayers comes out.

[Sibtiger]

How often does a mono-blue player tap out on turn 3 to play shackles? Pretty much never. That's a very bad move- Shackles should be kept until at least turn 5, when you can play and activate them in the same turn.

Because of the mana cost on this one, it will rarely be hardcast- and if it is, it will hurt your tempo (you paid 2 more mana then they did). But the problem with the alternative cost is that it is difficult to control. You have to have a card with CC of exactly X in hand, or this card is dead. To counter a plating you have to have a 2CC card in hand- of which mono-blue runs 8 or so. FoW is good because it can counter anything at any time. This will never counter a T&N, or anything with CC over 4. You can't rely on it. That's why its bad.

[ElvishVanguard]

this works both early and late game. card disadvantage but can potentially turn a game. Late game you can just pay the X. Great Card

[Grimwall]

A rather good card, although I don't think it will be played that much. The fact that it is rare will make it even more of a "luxury" and most people just won't bother.

Does that mean that the whole "Shoal" cycle will be rare? Too bad. Getting 4 of the red ones will be kinda difficult then...

[c2h5oh]

AWESOME CARD. IT IS A HARD COUNTER AND HAS AN ABILITY. I think the part that most people are missing is the MAY. Most cards used in STD don't cost more then 4 so for 6 you have a hard counter for anything. This card has tons of merit on that alone. Lets compare it to its counter part condescend. Condescend cost XU but because you have to have tap an additionally to make sure you have one more then you opponent has to tap. It essential cost two plus their left over land. (i.e. if they are taped out you have to tap 2 so the only way you ever get this off is to tap two minimum) Shoul also costs two and is a hard counter. For 2 you counter (hard counter) no CC spells 3 for a 1, 4 for a 2, etc. Ok so on its own is a little rough and can get expensive but the fact that it is a hard counter IMO makes it better then condescend even without its ability. I see this card getting lots of play in MUC a possible space in any other deck that runs blue for the following reason. The power of this card is its speed you can counter things your opponents first turn even if you go second. Assuming the blue genju costs one like is green and red counterparts (another card MUC will probably run) it makes it possible to counter a turn one vial form affinity EVEN IF THEY GO FIRST. This card is decent on its own, not great but decent and in the fast format that currently exists it is a powerful asset.

[Flaming ninja]

I agree with c2h5oh that this card will be quite viable in T2 format as you need to deal with the new genjus costing just 1 mana to cast. Serum visions and annul will be more needed in blue deck now as you can just discard these to counter the new green and red genju. 2nd turn 4/4 and 6/1 is very scary especially for blue. If there is a genju for blue, wonder what is it like? Maybe a flying 3/1?

Don't worry about card advantage as blue got the best card drawing spells in the T2 format. Just play them to fill up your hand.

[c2h5oh]

there will be a blue genju that is not a question. when they previewed the green one at http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=mtgcom/daily/af49 it said that it was a SIX card cycle all of which cost one. so there will be ablue on and it will cost one. The article also included the original drafts for the genju cards the blue daft depicted a flyer so my guess is that you are right however I would also guess that its p/t may have changed a bit considering they reduced the cost to play it. Also say 6 cards does one color get two? is there going to be a gold one or maybe a colorless one? I'm very excited about some of the possabiliteis this new set brings.

Also at the end of the article there is a section about things that may or may not be true about the new set one of which is "There's a card in the set that almost died at numerous points because it carried with it the possibility of first turn kills in Standard, but it narrowly survived and still exists today." I belive that this is one of the things that is true and that it is one of the shoal cards that does so. A card that would deal X damage or give +X/+0 could very easily make turn one wins with two of them in hand. As a result I feal that this series will have a major impact on all forms of play and the this one will see a lot of play as a result. I believe that that these cards going to have an impact on the scale of affinity allowing extreamly powerfull spells to be played at the cost of a single discard. Just think of all the current possable X style cards X/X creatures, X damage, X prevention, X life, +X to p/t, -X to p/t, discard X cards, draw X cards. These spells can be huge and will most likly have a huge impact. I just hope that the abilitys are balanced so there is a rock paper sissors sinareo in which each one can defeat as well as be defeated by another. If these cards are balanced IMO they will change all formats and incurrage more diverse multi color decks.

[Axey]

Engineered Explosives. That could have been a great card, IF it had been:

Destroy each nonland permanent with converted mana cost equal to [or less than] the number of charge counters on Engineered Explosives.

instead of:

Destroy each nonland permanent with converted mana cost equal to the number of charge counters on Engineered Explosives.

The same cmc makes the card a lot more situational, and generally U/X control decks are light on the 1 and 2 cmc spells. Building the deck just to be able to play the shoal will not be worth it.

If it was: Counter target spell if its converted mana cost is X [or less] it would have been better, but then it would be too powerful and actually mess w Raffinity, which WotC does not want do for some reason or another.

[Kallak86]

what would be the rules for this card imprinted on an isochron sceptre??

I ask because i have a mono blue deck that relys alot on splice and alot of people over look the fact that this is a free card to splice onto even if you are not goung to actually counter anyhting.

Also the rule wiht this card and splice is you can splice the removed card onto it if you pay the cost for the splice as normal.

Mainly i want to know if you may still remove a card with CC of X to counter a spell or if no matter waht it will be 0. I know cards like Condesend dont work because x is in its cost but in this case X is also in a seccondry effect..... in short im all compuzzled:confused::confused::confused::confused: :confused:

[UnorthodoxDefense]

If you're playing the copy as imprinted on Isochron Scepter, you can't use its alternate casting cost, and you can't pay the X in its regular cost. In short, a Sceptered Shoal can only counter 0-mana spells.

[Galvatron]

the shoals are way to situational in the future they might be good in extended or legacy remember not every card in a new set is meant for standerd

[Haemoglobin]

It's not good as you have to match the cc. You can never tell if you can actually counter a spell. Condescend is 50 times better.