This would be a great finisher in a casual goblins deck. Just keep this growing in the first few turns with the oodles of goblins, then you can take out whatever is left with this.
bezerker
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(4 votes)
Inb4 grinning ignus Way to make storm count carry through turns with the shrines Wizards!
WateryMind
★★★★☆ (4.8/5.0)(3 votes)
Murder straped to a card in mono red.
TheDonMega
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
This card is amazing one of the best of the new phyrexia set. First of all its colorless damage so bye bye protection from red, second in a mono red deck with a proliferate engine ( volt charge or tezzeret's gambit) its crazy and can get to 4 counters the turn after it was played.
Magnor_Criol
★★★★☆ (4.1/5.0)(5 votes)
Probably the second strongest of the cycle.
The Shrines have a tendency to just sit in the corner and be forgotten, and then all of a sudden your opponent looks over and is like "Oh, hey, that's a 12 damage cannon pointed at my face."
It's great in a Limited pool even if you're not running red, since it upticks every turn regardless, so it's a good source of a lot of damage. If you can drop this turn 2 and chip away for 5-6 turns, you're liable to have enough counters on here to blow them off the face of the earth. Or Mirrodin, as it were.
blindthrall
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(5 votes)
Compare to Torch Song, from the supposedly broken Urza's Saga. Not that I'm complaining, since I've been waiting for a decent version of that card for a while.
jstorrie
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Second turn Shrine, third turn Volt Charge is a legitimate game plan in Standard - especially on the play, where it can burn out a Stoneforge Mystic or Lotus Cobra before they get out of hand.
guitargamer79
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
This card is seriously dangerous. No reason to not throw atleast 1 of these in every Standard deck. A cheap win condition that goes in ANY deck. This is the sleeper card of the set, in my opinion.
Opaque
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Been standard testing with koth, this, a ton of burn spells, kargan dragonlord. These all benefit from Volt charge. It's pretty killer. They either get kothed to death on turn 5, or they realize that the shrine is going to kill them no matter what they do by turn 6. The shrine gets a counter even if the red spell gets countered right? that's what I've been doing.
cloneffect
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Played against this today, against a mate testing mono-red. Seriously, seriously dangerously card - unles you can gain some life (wurmcoil engine, kor firewalker, batterskull, and Tezzeret being ways to do so that came up today) this gives the red deck inevitability with a reasonable clock, something it never had before. Particularly sweet if you're packing a lot of burn spells, staggershock in particular (although volt charge seems good too). Definitely changes the dynamic of the mono-red matchup - no more suriving at 5 life. You now have to gain some life on a consistent basis, or race them. Interesting, interesting card, 5/5 for sheel coolness - let alone its considerable power level.
Worldwalker1
★★★★☆ (4.8/5.0)(6 votes)
Hey, it's like Burning Man!
You build up this big statue, sac it, and then people get wasted! XD
Halaphax
★★★★☆ (4.4/5.0)(5 votes)
Why do they not have the shrine subtype like their Honden brethren? They are shrines after all...
MasterOfEtherium
★★★☆☆ (3.5/5.0)(3 votes)
STRONGEST OF THE CYCLE
SleetFox
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(4 votes)
This ends games. Seriously.
Trent_Almighty
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
This card gives me so much trouble when I'm playing against it! Great card!
VampireChild85
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Just what the shaman ordered, coulourless "burn" to deal with those pesky Kor Firewalkers and Phyrexian Crusaders. This'll go nicely in the sideboard of my goblin/burn deck :D
Try4se
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
In my opinion the strongest shrine, as it's the only one I have died to.
Gabriel422
★★★☆☆ (3.5/5.0)(1 vote)
This is both powerful, and wonderfully skill-testing.
What if instead of Bolt you have Goblin Chieftain? Goblin Bushwacker? A fourth Mountain or a second Shrine? Does it matter which colors your opponent is playing?
lethalex
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
RDW just got another awesome card. :D
Fenizrael
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Got 2 of these in a monored burn deck. I don't imagine it would be pleasant to watch this baby constantly ticking upwards.
Artan
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(2 votes)
I love this card so much. Unless it's one of those topdeck-something-good-or-lose situations(in which 95% of a deck is useless anyway), it's at worst a rod(counter, permanent-removal or of attention, whichever you wish). No one wants to leave it on the table. You have people forgetting that they're dying thanks to the various burn spells you have in favour of paying attention to the counters building up. If it doesn't get removed, it wins the game. If it gets removed, you're a RDW, you don't care, just bolt the guy or something. It's also situationally great, since it can get rid of firewalkers, baneslayers, emrakul, whatever it is you're facing. Though it is a bit sad to have that much damage wasted on a creature rather than the opponent.
Also, it works great with non-red spells which belong in a red deck(like Tezzy's Gambit). Definitely the star of the red summer.
This can get out of hand even more quickly with the introduction of Chandra, the Firebrand. Copy proliferate spells with her -2 (preferably Volt Charge) and watch the counters stack up on your Shrine. Chandra doesn't even lose loyalty since she gains 2 loyalty counters – unless, of course, she was already or gets brought down to 2 before the spells resolve.
Looks like it will go particularly well in UR Counterburn between Chandra doubling the nice proliferate spells and Negate/Mana Leak to keep your shrine from getting hit with Into the Roil or Shatter (and of course to keep you in control of the game).
(Update) Looking at the Innistrad spoilers thus far, we can expect this card to get along nicely with Flashback since the text on flashback has been oracled to specifically say "cast." So you can use Devil's Play to Blaze a creature/player and throw down a counter, then Blaze them again with the Flashback a few turns later (for {X}{R}{R}{R}) and get another counter.
IUHoosier
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Amazing finisher in burn decks.
By the way, is that (and the other Shrines, too) supposed to be Karn-shaped?
jetzine
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
This card is just sick. Simply sick. I believe it has changed Red forever.
Need more for artifacts for Galvanic Blast in RDW... But what besides this? Molten-Tail Masticore? It can activate morbid for Brimstone Volley as well as deal moar damage... No those are too slow. Livewire Lash could do it I suppose. Hit the creature for 1 with Arc Trail, then two to something else... Maybe if there was enough high toughness creatures. hmm I guess I'll just have to go with more Mortarpods
I've got 2 of these in my mono red deck. Loaded it with cheap spells and monsters if I get this out on turn 2 or 3 my friends i play against usualy give up by turn 5 (if they arent dead already). Definately a must for any type of deck.
Comments (36)
Way to make storm count carry through turns with the shrines Wizards!
The Shrines have a tendency to just sit in the corner and be forgotten, and then all of a sudden your opponent looks over and is like "Oh, hey, that's a 12 damage cannon pointed at my face."
It's great in a Limited pool even if you're not running red, since it upticks every turn regardless, so it's a good source of a lot of damage. If you can drop this turn 2 and chip away for 5-6 turns, you're liable to have enough counters on here to blow them off the face of the earth. Or Mirrodin, as it were.
You build up this big statue, sac it, and then people get wasted! XD
Opening eight: Mountain x3, Goblin Guide, Ember Hauler, Lightning Bolt, Goblin Grenade, Shrine of Burning Rage. What would you play on your 2nd turn?
What if instead of Bolt you have Goblin Chieftain? Goblin Bushwacker? A fourth Mountain or a second Shrine? Does it matter which colors your opponent is playing?
Unless it's one of those topdeck-something-good-or-lose situations(in which 95% of a deck is useless anyway), it's at worst a rod(counter, permanent-removal or of attention, whichever you wish). No one wants to leave it on the table. You have people forgetting that they're dying thanks to the various burn spells you have in favour of paying attention to the counters building up.
If it doesn't get removed, it wins the game. If it gets removed, you're a RDW, you don't care, just bolt the guy or something. It's also situationally great, since it can get rid of firewalkers, baneslayers, emrakul, whatever it is you're facing. Though it is a bit sad to have that much damage wasted on a creature rather than the opponent.
Also, it works great with non-red spells which belong in a red deck(like Tezzy's Gambit). Definitely the star of the red summer.
Looks like it will go particularly well in UR Counterburn between Chandra doubling the nice proliferate spells and Negate/Mana Leak to keep your shrine from getting hit with Into the Roil or Shatter (and of course to keep you in control of the game).
(Update)
Looking at the Innistrad spoilers thus far, we can expect this card to get along nicely with Flashback since the text on flashback has been oracled to specifically say "cast." So you can use Devil's Play to Blaze a creature/player and throw down a counter, then Blaze them again with the Flashback a few turns later (for {X}{R}{R}{R}) and get another counter.
By the way, is that (and the other Shrines, too) supposed to be Karn-shaped?
Molten-Tail Masticore? It can activate morbid for Brimstone Volley as well as deal moar damage... No those are too slow.
Livewire Lash could do it I suppose. Hit the creature for 1 with Arc Trail, then two to something else... Maybe if there was enough high toughness creatures.
hmm I guess I'll just have to go with more Mortarpods