Pointed Discussion

The man that defeated Nicol Bolas once.

Way to go, descendant of Toshiro Umezawa

For a man that defeated Nicol Bolas, the card is quite lacking. Though many legendaries back then were, but still. He almost killed Bolas completely, and became number one on his blacklist. I wish he would appear again as another card, but then that would mean that he would be a planeswalker.

What do you mean "lacking"? It's a 3/3 for 3, which already makes him better than most of the creatures in the early sets, and his ability is better than that of Royal Assassin. My only complaint is that you can't cast Shielding Plax on him, but at least he's immune to Terror.

@achilleselbow

come on now, we aren't in the magic of yesteryear any more. This card IS lacking. First of all, it's a legend. You can only have one of these guys on the field at a time, which severely limits the usefulness of its ability. Secondly, it's casting cost is mediocre at best. Sure, better than most early creatures, but not remotely notable today. Being immune to enchantments is more of a hindrance than a benefit nowadays, as most people would sooner run path to exile than a pacifism. Finally, it's ability is NOT better than royal assassin. In fact it is worse if anything. You should go sit in a corner and think about how stupid that sounds. You have to pay 4 mana to use it, and you can only use it once a turn since it's a LEGEND. I'd just stick with 2 diabolic edicts. Which, by the way, has the same CMC. The ability to target blocking creatures isn't really that great, since you could always just use one of the legions of black creature-kill instants.

How did he almost kill Bolas anyway? Was he drugged and tethered down with his mouth sealed shut?

How come this guy is in Legends? He's not from Dominaria >.>
... OR IS HE?? :O

I sense a kamigawa>dominaria fusion haha jk

Give him Jitte.

There was a usable Legend in Legends? Woah...

Hey anyone else think of him as a good grixis EDH general?

@allmight abacus: I believe he did it with a hammer, from orbit..

Also wtf? This guy has some pretty random abilities just kind of piled on, am I right?

"Also wtf? This guy has some pretty random abilities just kind of piled on, am I right?"

Welcome to Legends.

@TPmanW: actually, his abilities make sense flavorwise. He was the Imperial champion of the Madaran Empire, so if anyone put up a fight, represented by blocking or tapped, he would come in and respectfully kick their asses until they gave in or died. His second ability references his feud with Ramses Overdark, who has the ability to kill a creature who is enchanted. since he is unable to be enchanted, he wins, just like he did in the story. I am not quite sure how Bolas fits into the card though, maybe he managed to tap him when the body was destroyed by the hammer? Anyway, I hope that clears the flavor issues up a little.

@Omenchild: He IS from Dominaria. He was part of the empire ruled by Nicol Bolas.

He should be a human samurai archer.

One of the best creatures in Legends.

"Fat guy in a little coat.
Fat guy in a little coat."

Tetsuooooooo! – NIcol Bolas, doing his best Akira impression

"Long ago in a distant land, I, Nicol Bolas, the Elder Dragon Master of Darkness, unleashed an unspeakable evil! But a foolish Samurai warrior wielding a magic sword stepped forth to oppose me. Before the final blow was struck, I tore open a portal in time and flung him into the future, where my evil is law! Now the fool seeks to return to the past, and undo the future that is Bolas!"


Come on Wizards. Do another Samurai block. Kamigawa doesn't count because there were too many ninjas, and not enough Scotsmen, mob gangsters, robot assassins, and most importantly, not enough GREAT FLAMING EYEBROWS!!!!

TETSUOOOOOO

automatic 5 star for "killing" bolas. That dastardly dragon.

KANEDAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!

hmm, could he be related to Toshiro Umezawa by any chance? Perhaps the magic sword that will destroy Bolas will be Umezawa's Jitte then haha

now all we need is a legendary scottmsan and a sword equipment with magic runes. I bet the equipment already exists actually

3/3 for three mana with a useful destruction ability (and immunity to Control Magic, which isn't likely to come up too often but doesn't hurt.) One of the better legends in Legends, although that's not saying much. His ability is a bit expensive to use, but it's nice to have.

Oddly, the same three colors are shared by this card, Sol'kanar the Swamp King, and Gwendlyn Di Corci, which are likewise usable legends from that set.

"I wish he would appear again as another card, but then that would mean that he would be a planeswalker."

Not necessarily. Several of the Ravnica guildmasters are represented on more than one card (Niv-Mizzet, for example).

What you have to understand about this guy isn't just that he defeated Bolas.

It's that he defeated Bolas by destroying all his lands and trolling him until Bolas conceded in a huff.

Umezawa, I salute you. You are truly a Dave.

His activated ability is mana-intensive, but he's a 3/3 for three mana, and for that alone is one of the more balanced cards in Legends. His aura-shroud ability and being black (which saved him from Terror, the most common black removal spell in those years) offered some protection.