This card has completely messed up my mana curve on more than one occasion =( Great card. Wish it was black blue to be more consistant with other zombie spells =(
Messatsunokami
★☆☆☆☆ (1.5/5.0)(2 votes)
I wouldn't say average. Turn 1 Seize, turn 2 Sculler is nice. He's good for aggro control, but not for Control especially if you play Wrath Effects. I plan on using him in a White/green/black aggro controllish deck with Ajani Goldmane and Creakwood Liege. That way Sculler can become bigger.
Ballynock
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.7/5.0)(3 votes)
This is actually a perfect card with recent zombie decks, seeing as zombie decks are mainly in the Esper scheme by color. The only cards that need red are Unscythe, and Thraximundar, and a small splash of red using Black/Red filter lands can totally answer for those two. ((Assuming you want them.)) Hell. Necromancer's Covenant is awesome, and it is Black-White.
nineyears
★★★☆☆ (3.0/5.0)(3 votes)
great card. removing any treats from your oppennent hand, and for him to get the spell back has to spend another spell to get rid of Tidehollow Sculler.
True_Mumin
★★☆☆☆ (2.7/5.0)(3 votes)
Just awesome. 5/5.
silentbobus
★★★☆☆ (3.5/5.0)(4 votes)
It seems like every Black/White deck should field 4 of these. A very compelling 2 drop.
Elysiume
★☆☆☆☆ (1.2/5.0)(3 votes)
I have no idea why it's BW. Why wouldn't it be BU?
Regardless, it's a good card. A 2/2 for 2 with a nice effect.
Vinifera7
★☆☆☆☆ (1.6/5.0)(5 votes)
Seems that this card's mechanics reflect more of a Black/Blue flavor, rather than a Black/White one.
MasterOfEtherium
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.8/5.0)(7 votes)
Black White Is Perfect It Looks Cooler Like That Anyways. Plus This Is Easily One Of Shards Best Cards And Guess What Got Four Of These In My Black White Deck I Take A Bant Charm Now You Gotta Waste A Bant Charm
Tenlaven
★★★☆☆ (3.5/5.0)(4 votes)
It's a new version of Mesmeric Fiend from Torment which was just black. I think the exiling of the card is the white aspect (considering Path to Exile), while returning the card from exile is possibly the black aspect, but it could be the other way around. One of the more interesting things I found back when Torment was still standard legal, on the wizards site, was that you could manipulate the stack in such a way that you could permanently exile cards via sacrificing the Nightmare Horrors to say Nantuko Husk. I expect one could do the same with this and Vampire Aristocrat instead.
bowlofgumbo
★★★★☆ (4.8/5.0)(6 votes)
Just average. Hahahaha, good one ;). Best two drop in the block, hands down.
{W}{B} for removal and -- if needed -- a 2/2 creature!
Abyzz
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(1 vote)
Would it be for the card alone, a 2/2 body with a temporary Path to Exile effect is pretty hefty. But it's when you combine Tidehollow Sculler with cards like Call to Heel or Into the Roil to bounce for the effect alone that you truly realize the potential - looking at the opponent's hand, permanently exiling a card of your choosing, and, oh, the ability to play Sculler the next turn.
Fixtures in any Esper deck really.
4.5 / 5.0
Ava_Adore
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
I believe you could play this, than transmute it to your hand while his ability is still on the stack, then his second ability would trigger, so when the stack resolve, first you would use his second ability, which does nothing as its first ability has not resolved, then you can put an artifact into play from your hand, then exile a card from your opponents hand, permanently. then you can repeat
I give it 5/5 I reckon it shoulda been a zombie cleric
Willyum
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
OMG has no one realised that his is a creature version of castigate ??? seriously... how could u guys miss that!
reddaemon
★★☆☆☆ (2.8/5.0)(4 votes)
Awesome card when used with Master Transmuter. Play Tidehollow Sculler, then while his coming into play ability is on the stack, Bounce him to your hand with transmuter and put it back into play. You will exile 2 cards from your opponents hand, 1 gets exiled forever and 1 gets exiled until Tidehollow Sculler leaves play. Excellent for control decks, just bounce your Tidehollow Sculler during your opponent's draw step and play it again to make sure you always remove their strongest card from their hand. 5/5
spicayd
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
I can't give this guy less than a 5/5..really.
If you have a deck that even remotely involves Black and White..throw this guy in it and tell me how much it improves the deck.
Being able to throw down a 2/2 on turn two with a Thoughtseize built in? That is just delicious right there.
MDStrawHat
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.8/5.0)(3 votes)
@Tenlaven As i recall mesmeric fiend didn't let you choose the card nor was it a zombie so. Its awesome
RafiqTheMiststalker
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
This guy is cool. Artifact zombie, good cmc to pt ratio and a good effect, too. Plus, BW cards just look good. Pretty much everyone can agree in that. 4.5
Evermint
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
If you guys are trying to abuse this guy with B/W, you could throw in a few of Momentary Blink or Ghostway and build around that.
Gezus82
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
so it's a castigate on a boat. I prefer castigate for straight control but this is really nice in esper
Achon333
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
4 of these
4 castigate :)
i like it
Kryptnyt
★★★★☆ (4.7/5.0)(10 votes)
Why are people always asking why cards aren't blue? Wtf? let them be what they are. This guy is remeniscent of Castigate. Leave him be.
citrusdeath
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(2 votes)
the reason this card is {B}{W}:
White removal doesn't destroy and there is usually a way to get the card back. Flavourwise it pertains to white mages' reluctance to actually kill something. Most relevant to cards like: Journey to Nowhere and Oblivion Ring. You can get your own card back if you destroy them.
Black is the only colour that lets you choose a card in someone's hand.
There really is nothing blue about this card. It isn't returning anything from the battlefield, it isn't countering a spell, nor is it wiping the entire hand to draw seven cards.
infernox10
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
This card is actually quite brilliant.
2/2 for 2 CMC is pretty nice, obviously.
You get your opponent to REVEAL his/her hand, letting you know what is going on: strategy, upcoming future, etc.
You get to exile any nonland card, which can easily mess with tempo.
And costs another removal spell to get the said card back.
Simply put, for 2 mana, you have a wonderfully efficient card,
And what's wrong with that?
Nothing, that's what I say.
Szentekkel
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
5/5 to this guy
lets say you have a bomb in your hand, forcing your opponent to waste a removal in an early drops is almost priceless to any strategy
we can call this guy castigate cuz of 2 reasons first and obvious is Castigate itself and then it castigates combo players who just care about build his combo faster forgeting about good removal
Your opponent can still cast Path on top of this ability, though you would still get to take a card from their hand. Same goes for Vendilion Clique.
http404error
★★★★☆ (5.0/5.0)(30 votes)
"I'm on a boat!" -Castigate
TheEtheriumMaster
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(1 vote)
I played this with a full set of Unsummons a while back. I thought it was pretty sweet but I should have been using Master Transmuter.
djflo
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
@reddaemon, that's OK, better idea is to pull him back with the transmuter and put something like Inkwell Leviathan/Platinum Angel/your artifact fatty of choice down. Then do it again next turn with another guy.
Mode
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Very well design. A solid and playable card yet not broken at all either.
I'd love it even more if you could exile your own cards, though. Imagine the shenanigans with effects that require discarding your hand like Lion's Eye Diamond :D
JFM2796
★★★☆☆ (3.7/5.0)(3 votes)
At first I was skeptical about putting him in my Esper deck, but once I did I was very impressed. His 2/2 for 2 helps hold the ground early game, but if that removed card was something good don't expect him to stick around long. I also love the combo with Master Transmuter. Exile one card permanently and another temporarily. And the on an artifact frame looks very nice. 4.5*
TrueBloodWolf
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
@nineyears: Actually, because of the fact he leaves the field when he returns to the hand, they get that card back anyway. He goes "Bye, bye, have you're card back" and then comes back and says "Okay, not I get to choose a new one~"
give this guy Sword of War and Peace, and you have the most goddamn annoyingly hard to kill *** ever made. :P
That would not be killable by:
Doom Blade, Go For the Throat, Victim of the Night, Lightning Bolt, Shivan Meteor, Comet Storm, Into the Maw of Hell, Path to Exile, Swords to Plowshares, Oblivion Ring, Faith's Fetters, etc etc etc.
Wrath of God would be the minimum amount of firepower required to take it out.
Throw on Sword of Body and Mind, and it won't die to big monsters, and Unsummon, Diminsh, Turn to Frog, et al. stop working too.
And if he ever DOES die, all you've managed to do is to play right into your insane opponent's incredibly evil convoluted plot, triggering some strange awful trap when the removed cards return to your hand. What a *** prick of a card. o.o
Totema
★★★★☆ (4.0/5.0)(1 vote)
Doom Blade? No... Go for the Throat? No... Victim of Night? No... Ah. Terminate.
Annoyingblueplayer
★★★★☆ (4.6/5.0)(6 votes)
@Totema You mean the terminate that he just took out of your hand?
Salient
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
This card needs Flash more badly than any other card in the game.
Can you imagine responding to a combo junkie's sorcery-speed mana ramp with this, stealing their supermega draw spell?
Jannissary
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Absolutely insane two drop. 2/2 for two, and a (sort of) discard effect is pretty strong.
Don't we all love Orzhov-colored cards? I'm already stoked for Gatecrash, but unfortunately this guy probably won't be seeing a reprint...
gman92
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(5 votes)
With the recent printing of Ultimate Price, Wizards seems downright determined to not have a Instant kill this thing for 2 mana.
Homelands
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Okay, so it dodges most of the premier black removal spells in Modernl. It's aggressively-costed. And on top of that, it forces a Distress of sorts. I get it, but why don't I like it?
Nice way to not only see their hand but: -Force removal to get their card back (unless it was removal..) -start layin' the beats -can really screw up their plan if they have no removal and now no win con/combo piece/big beater
Comments (56)
Hell. Necromancer's Covenant is awesome, and it is Black-White.
Regardless, it's a good card. A 2/2 for 2 with a nice effect.
Fixtures in any Esper deck really.
4.5 / 5.0
then his second ability would trigger, so when the stack resolve, first you would use his second ability, which does nothing as its first ability has not resolved, then you can put an artifact into play from your hand, then exile a card from your opponents hand, permanently. then you can repeat
I give it 5/5 I reckon it shoulda been a zombie cleric
If you have a deck that even remotely involves Black and White..throw this guy in it and tell me how much it improves the deck.
Being able to throw down a 2/2 on turn two with a Thoughtseize built in? That is just delicious right there.
4.5
I prefer castigate for straight control but this is really nice in esper
4 castigate :)
i like it
White removal doesn't destroy and there is usually a way to get the card back. Flavourwise it pertains to white mages' reluctance to actually kill something. Most relevant to cards like: Journey to Nowhere and Oblivion Ring. You can get your own card back if you destroy them.
Black is the only colour that lets you choose a card in someone's hand.
There really is nothing blue about this card. It isn't returning anything from the battlefield, it isn't countering a spell, nor is it wiping the entire hand to draw seven cards.
2/2 for 2 CMC is pretty nice, obviously.
You get your opponent to REVEAL his/her hand, letting you know what is going on: strategy, upcoming future, etc.
You get to exile any nonland card, which can easily mess with tempo.
And costs another removal spell to get the said card back.
Simply put, for 2 mana, you have a wonderfully efficient card,
And what's wrong with that?
Nothing, that's what I say.
lets say you have a bomb in your hand, forcing your opponent to waste a removal in an early drops is almost priceless to any strategy
we can call this guy castigate cuz of 2 reasons first and obvious is Castigate itself and then it castigates combo players who just care about build his combo faster forgeting about good removal
A wonderful two drop. Probably my favorite.
Your opponent can still cast Path on top of this ability, though you would still get to take a card from their hand. Same goes for Vendilion Clique.
-Castigate
I'd love it even more if you could exile your own cards, though. Imagine the shenanigans with effects that require discarding your hand like Lion's Eye Diamond :D
That would not be killable by:
Doom Blade, Go For the Throat, Victim of the Night, Lightning Bolt, Shivan Meteor, Comet Storm, Into the Maw of Hell, Path to Exile, Swords to Plowshares, Oblivion Ring, Faith's Fetters, etc etc etc.
Wrath of God would be the minimum amount of firepower required to take it out.
Throw on Sword of Body and Mind, and it won't die to big monsters, and Unsummon, Diminsh, Turn to Frog, et al. stop working too.
And if he ever DOES die, all you've managed to do is to play right into your insane opponent's incredibly evil convoluted plot, triggering some strange awful trap when the removed cards return to your hand. What a *** prick of a card. o.o
You mean the terminate that he just took out of your hand?
Can you imagine responding to a combo junkie's sorcery-speed mana ramp with this, stealing their supermega draw spell?
Terror: Nope.
Doom Blade: No.
Go for the Throat: Still no...
Victim of Night: Seriously?
Ultimate Price: Are you kidding?!
Terminate: THANK YOU
... Oh, thank GOODNESS for those 4x Terminate I kept!
Nice way to not only see their hand but:
-Force removal to get their card back (unless it was removal..)
-start layin' the beats
-can really screw up their plan if they have no removal and now no win con/combo piece/big beater
Geth's Verdict.
Grasp of Darkness.
Heck even Sorin's Thirst.