If the Brothers Grimm wrote Dumbo, it would look like this.
windwaker
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(11 votes)
At first I was like "meh." but then I looked at the art and realized that the art was of an exploding elephant . I now love this card, even if it's pretty bad.
Tetsu_tora
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
in a red/black deck this turns a pumped Sokenzan Spellblade into a board clearer.
who you will obviously cast raise dead on and resummon so you can use him later for....well, whatever.
Leonidus78
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Well its basically a mass removal card that uncommon. Not bad but not to great either.
NoobOfLore
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(1 vote)
An indestructible/protection-proof field wipe. It just won't totally end the hugest of the huge. Chances are it's overcosted by 1 or 2.
supershawn
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
I wanted to like it but I can't get over the fact that black sun zenith is easier to use and more reliable. if only there was a card that said, every player sacrifices all creatures they control.
ZEvilMustache
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Power? then why are you exploding a loxodon? I mean, they almost all have really low power! Maybe this is a Loxodon Convert...
metalevolence
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
I needs lots of mana and a creature in play? One or the other, but not both.
RathJinx
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Finally, the perfect card to complement my pair of Havoc Demons.
Overcosted unless you're sacrificing a Blightsteel Colossus, but why would you do that?
SeiberTross
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
I guess this isn't so bad as a sideboard option if you're planning on using Life's Finale...
but this card seems pretty bad all around. Especially due to the existance of black sun's zenith in the same block.
I guess its maybe a serviceable option in limited against puny flying aggro. If you live long enough to spit it out.
BastianQoU
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
2.5 for the flavor text XD
Wanderer25
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(3 votes)
It should either cost {2} less or be an instant.
{7} cmc gets me an instant-speed Rout; there's no reason Ichor Explosion couldn't have been an instant.
However, the first time I saw it, I did think of one thing it could be used for: Kresh the Bloodbraided EDH. The sacrifice is part of the cost, so Kresh gets the pump before this resolves; he survives, everything else dies. Just sac something arbitrarily large like Lhurgoyf or Lord of Extinction.
On second thought though, this isn't so good: Kresh will also get the -X/-X, so he has to be already pumped if you want to get a swing in. Also, he probably won't get pumped by the other creatures who die in the boardwipe because because their power will be 0. Then you'll have to survive a go-around in which you've become the prime target...
Yeah, what am I thinking- for this cmc I could just about be playing Bloodfire Colossus, which is far more effective in this scenario...
I guess I can only give this 1.5 stars. Looks like crap at first, then seems like it might be combo-able, but it's probably still crap in the end.
You wonder why? F-ing exploding elephants in the artwork! That imagery is pure awesomeness.
mike_stubbs1
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(5 votes)
Seven?! They could have at least used Phyrexian mana symbols for this one.
Paleopaladin
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Awww! Poor Babar! :'-( C'est tres mal!
JoralG
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
7 mana and a creature to pay for a card that will kill your other creatures as well as your opponents?
Even if it only affected your opponent's side of the board this would be way over costed.
The only possible situation I can think of for this, that isn't done better by another card in the exact same block, is if your opponent has out Melira and Asceticism with the mana to regen his important creatures. That would make him immune to targetted removal and BSZ, as well as effectively immune to Day of Judgement/Life's Finale. But how often is that going to happen even in standard play that you would feel the need to side this crap card in?
DeathDark
★☆☆☆☆ (1.7/5.0)(3 votes)
Pauper Field Wipe
Salient
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Here's the only decent-sized art image for Ichor Explosion that I could find:
http://img.aegen.nl/NPH/Ichor%20Explosion.jpg
...This was disappointing. I wanted exploding elephant wallpaper.
DoragonShinzui
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(1 vote)
The first explosion that didn't excite...anyone.
MojoVince
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
With phyrexian mana symb it would have been too good and maybe rare , 3 and two black should have been the cost , it's the same cost as havoc demon which you can sacrifice to something to get the same effect or keep it as a 5/5 flyer and use it when you want .
psychichobo
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Well, it IS only an uncommon. Sorry guys, but you're not geting a Damnation replacement at Uncommon, even if saccing a big enough creature is required. You're just gonna have to accept there are particular standards that have to be adhered to in card design (even if Wizards does completely miss the point with some).
One area in which this beats Damnation is it's not only going to wipe anything >9 toughness, indestructible or not, but it's going to wipe anything >9 toughness that comes out as a triggered ability from something dying (e.g. Moldgraf Monstrosity. Mind, anything that triggers from those creatures ETB/dying would take place as well.
OstravaBoletaria
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
haha, any Hyalopterous Lemure type effect means that this can give infinite +X/+X to all creatures :)
sarroth
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
If you sacrifice a creature with power less than 0, such as a Hyalopterous Lemure whose ability was activated 5 or more times, Ichor Explosion counts the power as if it was zero. It doesn't suddenly give +X/+X because the creature has negative power. See 107.1b. Ichor Explosion and the Lemure is just 7 mana spent to sacrifice your Lemure and do nothing else.
I agree that it seems this should have cost at least {1} less. My guess is WotC didn't want it to be too good as its an uncommon and could have warped draft, and at 7 CMC it would be safe from doing that. I wish it were cheaper, as I'd be much more tempted to run it. I guess iIf I had a deck with a sacrifice theme and wanted one more board wipe, I would consider running this. I think it'd be better in Kresh, the Bloodbraided than Wanderer25 gives it credit for, and could be run in addition to Bloodfire Infusion, another underplayed card, rather than one or the other.
leomistico
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Well, and I thought that Disaster Radius wasn't very good... At least Spontaneous Combustion let you sacrifice the weakest creature, not the weakest of the strongest, if you know what I mean. 1/5
Continue
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
107.1b. Most of the time, the Magic game uses only positive numbers and zero. You can’t choose a negative number, deal negative damage, gain negative life, and so on. However, it’s possible for a game value, such as a creature’s power, to be less than zero. If a calculation or comparison needs to use a negative value, it does so. If a calculation that would determine the result of an effect yields a negative number, zero is used instead, unless that effect sets a player’s life total to a specific value, doubles a player’s life total, sets a creature’s power or toughness to a specific value, or otherwise modifies a creature’s power or toughness.
Since this modifies power and toughness, I'm led to believe that you can in fact use this in conjunction with Hyalopterous Lemure/Viscid Lemures to give an arbitrarily large pump. For another example of negative numbers coming into play, see Wild Beastmaster.
Comments (32)
who you will obviously cast raise dead on and resummon so you can use him later for....well, whatever.
if only there was a card that said, every player sacrifices all creatures they control.
I can just picture the devastation now.
but this card seems pretty bad all around. Especially due to the existance of black sun's zenith in the same block.
I guess its maybe a serviceable option in limited against puny flying aggro. If you live long enough to spit it out.
{7} cmc gets me an instant-speed Rout; there's no reason Ichor Explosion couldn't have been an instant.
However, the first time I saw it, I did think of one thing it could be used for: Kresh the Bloodbraided EDH. The sacrifice is part of the cost, so Kresh gets the pump before this resolves; he survives, everything else dies. Just sac something arbitrarily large like Lhurgoyf or Lord of Extinction.
On second thought though, this isn't so good: Kresh will also get the -X/-X, so he has to be already pumped if you want to get a swing in. Also, he probably won't get pumped by the other creatures who die in the boardwipe because because their power will be 0. Then you'll have to survive a go-around in which you've become the prime target...
Yeah, what am I thinking- for this cmc I could just about be playing Bloodfire Colossus, which is far more effective in this scenario...
I guess I can only give this 1.5 stars. Looks like crap at first, then seems like it might be combo-able, but it's probably still crap in the end.
EDIT: Also, look at Bloodfire Infusion
You wonder why? F-ing exploding elephants in the artwork! That imagery is pure awesomeness.
Even if it only affected your opponent's side of the board this would be way over costed.
The only possible situation I can think of for this, that isn't done better by another card in the exact same block, is if your opponent has out Melira and Asceticism with the mana to regen his important creatures. That would make him immune to targetted removal and BSZ, as well as effectively immune to Day of Judgement/Life's Finale. But how often is that going to happen even in standard play that you would feel the need to side this crap card in?
http://img.aegen.nl/NPH/Ichor%20Explosion.jpg
...This was disappointing. I wanted exploding elephant wallpaper.
I agree that it seems this should have cost at least {1} less. My guess is WotC didn't want it to be too good as its an uncommon and could have warped draft, and at 7 CMC it would be safe from doing that. I wish it were cheaper, as I'd be much more tempted to run it. I guess iIf I had a deck with a sacrifice theme and wanted one more board wipe, I would consider running this. I think it'd be better in Kresh, the Bloodbraided than Wanderer25 gives it credit for, and could be run in addition to Bloodfire Infusion, another underplayed card, rather than one or the other.
1/5
Since this modifies power and toughness, I'm led to believe that you can in fact use this in conjunction with Hyalopterous Lemure/Viscid Lemures to give an arbitrarily large pump. For another example of negative numbers coming into play, see Wild Beastmaster.