For control decks you likely would earn both benefits, makes it a life gain + token generation. Life gain keeps your alive and tokens are extra blockers. However, Alucard311 is right when he said this card should be an Instant to be 'timely'.
jsttu
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.6/5.0)(9 votes)
Unfortunately, this card is a 'lose less' card, where it only does something if you are worse off than your opponent. preferably it would have a base effect, such as giving a token no matter what. This card is a bargain in the right situation, and that situation could probably be reached and manipulated by a specific deck, but for most this will be a dead draw when your deck is doing its thing.
ZEvilMustache
★★★☆☆ (3.9/5.0)(4 votes)
Always play it on the draw. Less life will usually be 17 vs 20, and fewer creatures will usually be 1 vs 2. Or 0 vs 1. For a card that is meant to swing games, the shift seems pretty subtle. This has me thinking about Survival Cache, though the two should never be in the same deck.
Elleran
★★★★☆ (4.9/5.0)(14 votes)
Strictly better when losing.
sonorhC
★★★★☆ (4.8/5.0)(10 votes)
> Unfortunately, this card is a 'lose less' card, where it only does something if you are worse off than your opponent.
Why is that unfortunate? If you're already winning, then you'll still be winning when you draw this. And if you're not already winning, this will help tip the balance towards you winning. Either way, the result is good for you.
It's win-more cards which are pointless, not lose-less.
Qazior
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(8 votes)
This is pretty good in multiplayer since it says 'an' opponent. You could be the one with the second highest life total and/or creatures and benefit from this.
majinara
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(4 votes)
I don't like it. Lifegain makes mostly sense in a deck that combos lifegain with stuff like well of lost dreams. If you have less life than your opponent, it means that this deck of yours doesn't work obviously. And adding this to a random deck that doesn't care about lifegain makes no sense. Getting three 1/1 tokens for three mana is not too fantastic either. All in all it's a card that sometimes gives you a "meh" effect and sometimes even doesn't do that. Slightly better in multiplayer, but if you think that three 1/1 tokens and 6 life do a lot for you in multiplayer... 1/5
iantewks
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
This is exactly the amount of life and board presence that a control deck needs to stabilize after three turns of aggro beatdown! If you have any kind of mid-late game, they're not catching up.
Sideboard 4 if Vampires and/or RDW get out of hand, and you won't be disappointed.
divine_exodus
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(7 votes)
"If you have less life than your opponent, it means that this deck of yours doesn't work"
-----
Or, you know, they actually have a deck that is worthy of playing. Are you expecting to have more life than your opponent at every single opportunity? What if they cast incinerate on you and you aren't running control blue? What if (God forbid) they actually attacked you with their creatures? Stating something like that is outrageous. I'm fairly certain you don't have the Power 9 in every deck you own. In addition, why would you bother facing a deck that is so helpless it can't even damage you? That's not even fun.
tcollins
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(7 votes)
To the naysayers, nothing felt more stupid than swinging at my opponent on turn 2 with Elite Vanguard, putting him at 18, then watching him gain 6 life and drop 3 1/1 creature tokens into play on his next turn for {2}{W}
Artan
★★★★☆ (4.5/5.0)(10 votes)
Damn you people. Simple lifegain is shit, as you feel the need to mention on every single lifegain card. Now that you get lifegain and tokens, its still shit cause...it gets you life when you need it? Whilst giving you three creatures? Geez.
This was wonderful at the prerelease. I would let them play a creature and hit me for 1, then I'd play this. Nothing like having 3 creatures and 25 life when all they have is one and 20 life =)...all for one well-timed card.
Enemy_Tricolor
★★★★☆ (4.1/5.0)(12 votes)
Aw man! My hand is full of all these worthless "lose less" cards. Pretty soon I won't even be losing at all! I scoop.
Wulfsten
★☆☆☆☆ (1.8/5.0)(2 votes)
This is a wonderfully flavourful card. It should definitely have been an instant though, for flavour (Read the word "timely" again, R&D!)
Also, for balance, I would have made this cost 2WW and produce 2/2 tokens, instead. That makes the reinforcements a bit beefier, so you're a little happier to see them. Three 1/1s aren't going to stop much.
VampireCat
★★★☆☆ (3.0/5.0)(1 vote)
Great card when playing against red burn decks. Of course, no one plays those in M12, right?
bfellow
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(2 votes)
This is obviously Kor Firewalker's replacement in standard when Innistrad hits.
jamiepm
★★★★☆ (4.0/5.0)(1 vote)
exactly what control needs to win. time. anything else and your probably doing something too specific with an underwhelming card
deth2munkies
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(1 vote)
This is the answer to red decks for any UW control, white weenie, or cawblade decks that are still around in standard, espeically once Kor Firewalker rotates.
SoulShatterer
★★☆☆☆ (2.0/5.0)(3 votes)
This started the tradition of shouting "THE CAVALRY, THE CAVALRY HAS ARRIVED" at the top of your lungs at the moment the losing party of a game plays it.
krauser-gogetthegirl
★★☆☆☆ (2.8/5.0)(4 votes)
i like it. i like playing mind games in magic. Maindeck four for your first game. Second game side all them out and watch your opponent hesitate to attack you while you setup your first couple turns. 25 points to anyone who does that. 50 points if they figure out you took them out the second game, then you put them back in the third game.
But in all seriousness, this works well with phyrexian mana.
wow this was one of the top five cards in the Australian National Championships. must be good.
BeastSoulEyes
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Like it! that's utility cards like they should be, and it has that feel of making something awesome happen when played!
Murder3
★☆☆☆☆ (1.6/5.0)(4 votes)
This card is perfectly fit the phyrexians maan decks deck. it is only 3 maan this is guarantee to you ahve more creatures than your opponent and because you use phyrexian maan you have less life... this is let to you have giant army in early game...
thisisnotmyname
★☆☆☆☆ (1.0/5.0)(3 votes)
This card buys a single turn. It's decent, and definitely constructed worthy, but not as big a deal as some people think.
This card is amasing in the current meta of Agro decks...with goblin grenade and zombies big atm this card will be great in U/W control when it gets big and popular agian, played my old U/W tapout with a few changes to make it standard legal and updated the mana base...put 2 timely reinforcments in and wrecked every aggro deck at FNM...was a blast
tworainclouds
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
play with four of these. Never know when things are going to get hairy. ALways buys me enough to time to see another day. One time i was playing this red burn deck and i got four of these. Ended up man landing him to death with my celestial collonade.
Gabriel422
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
This totally wrecks RDW. It's like you counter both their Goblin Grenade and Kuldotha Rebirth (which makes it a 4-for-1)... and you're still up 1 life!
busdude
★★★☆☆ (3.5/5.0)(3 votes)
I HATE THIS CARD, EFF you Wizards for printing non-stop red hosing white cards, this card is extremely overpowered against aggro, there is NO WAY 3 mana should get you all of that. It completely hoses aggro, not just mono-red but almost any aggro, vampires also has a very difficult time against this.
They know that aggro is almost always the most budget-friendly archetype (since it doesn't involve overpowered 50-100$ planeswalkers like control) so they keep printing cards that singlehandedly win the game against red decks like Kor Firewalker and now this. That way players need to spend a ton of money to win.
Lash_of_Dragonbreath
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(1 vote)
3 1/1s aren`t bad. 6 life is nothing to sneeze at either. And much better than Even the Odds.
I added one of it to my casual Griffin White Weenie deck (yeah, I have a Griffin Deck! Luv ya Griffin Rider) just to see how it worked. It may sometimes be a dead card, but with the right timing it's just brutal. Specially if followed by Guardians' Pledge, which turns makes you swing for 9. Also has a lot of positive sinergy with Pacifism, because the pacified creature still counts towards this. Probably the only reason I still have Pacifism in my deck instead of Oblivion Ring (maybe other than me being too lazy to move my ass away from the table and ask the guy behind the counter for a playset of Ring).
Of course, it's still a 2-of, at most, and there are people who don't like it because it involves some luck to get the right timing, unless you have some kind of creature sacrifice/pay life deck. But I like it.
deadeye1387
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
I love this card. I was playing a game with a buddy the other day, and it was going something like this:
deadeye1387: 3 life. Controls 5 Plains and 3 Mountains. Only other permanent was Honor of the Pure.
Friend: 11 life. Controls 15 swamps, and even more zombies.
Prices are dependent on supply and demand. If nobody demands your crappy aggro decks in a control meta then guess what happens to the prices of good decks?
Aggro =/= cheap. Try building a competitive Zoo deck.
decx100
★★★☆☆ (3.0/5.0)(1 vote)
It would be better if it were an instant, and obviously more timing but then i think it would cost 2 more to cast, because of the blockers you could get in your opponents combat phase. It's more fun to play as a sorcery for 3 mana.
Dr_Fletchers
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(1 vote)
This card is a saving a grace especially in Soldier Tribal. Where you can get boosts from other soldiers eg: Captain Of The Watch. A great card that can make the best of a bad situation 5/5.
This is too much card advantage in white for 3 mana, even at sorcery speed. In standard right now, you don't need luck to get the conditional, you need an opponent who's trying to kill you. Standard is very creature heavy right now. This card effectively allows you to ignore any creature deck for the first 3 turns and suffer little to no penalty, granting yourself 3 chump blockers for turn 4. That's the "worst" this card is. In reality the 2 buff cards in the environment for 2 mana, that apply to the tokens makes it far better.
My frustration with this card is sourced to my affection for a well groomed red aggro deck. I'm still testing the limits of "outplaying" this card, but it won't surprise me if I hit a brick wall in this environment. Lots of great in color cards combo nicely with this, Elspeth, Virtue, Honor. I need to learn to beat it or go hide in the corner licking my wounds until the next set comes out.
SIlverSkyz
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Hey, it at least helps to Even the Odds... Wait, What?
Salient
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Wizards keeps printing a pretty good White Weenie card in every set, but never quite enough to make a classic White Weenie build viable in Standard.
Another white card that has the spirit of Balance without the ridiculous power.
Pretty good in limited, and I could definitely see this as backup in a creature-less deck.
MechaKraken
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
This card is a great reason to play white right now. Or white/blue since Snapcaster Mage can rebound it.
Guaranteed to earn you enemies when using it, which means you are playing well =)
PinkleDadandy
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
So much for timely.. It's not even instant speed :P
zenitramleirdag
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
divineexodus..
turbo fog..
Totema
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
If you have neither, slap yourself in the face as you cast this spell.
DarthParallax
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(1 vote)
"Look to my coming at first light on the third day. At dawn, look to the East"
TheZombifier
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Better flavour text would be: "BANZAI!"
RiftenBlack
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.5/5.0)(1 vote)
If this card were instant (like some people want it to be in the comments), it would be more bananas than it already is. I don't know what is untimely about gaining lots of life and getting 3 creatures for just 3 splashable mana.
Heroes' Reunion is 2 mana, and that card only gives 7 life. Midnight Haunting is 3 mana, and it only gives 2 tokens (flying, but still only 2). Gaining 6 life and getting 3 tokens for the same cost is ridiculous.
This is almost as bad as Thragtusk, and at 3 mana, is comparable.
TheWrathofShane
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Really powerful card. Shuts aggro down. 1) They cant really use spot removal on 3 1/1 tokens. 2) They cant clear the board without losing there own creatures, aggro doesn't want to do that. 3) Unless first strike, they are going to have a tough decision if they want to keep turning there creatures sideways, they are going to lose something if not two things.
They could blow there maelstrom pulse or something on this, but you still might come out ahead in the end.
Lifegainwithbite
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(1 vote)
@Riftenblack: No. There are several things you don't take into account. 1) Midnight Haunting is an instant. That makes it far more useful. 2) This card is conditional. The two powerful cards you mentioned are both unconditional and great in most situations. This card is only great in these specific situations. 3) Thragtusk is green. Sure, they both give life and tokens but it's not a valid comparison. Green always has the most efficient large creatures, white has lots of small aggressive creatures.
Hunter06
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
This may be better than Lol-souls in Esper Stoneblade, with fetches paying life and Stoneblades low volume of creatures. 4.5/5 Stars
nevenshinko
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
What an awesome card. 5/5
Secksee
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
I love the art for this. "WE HAVE ARRIVED! .... And we brought snacks...."
blurrymadness
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
After seeing this in action in a White Weenie deck I built; it really works. If you get Wrathed or the other deck is a better aggro deck or is controlling you too hard, this thing swings games; and for 3 mana.
Why? because 6 health is *a lot*, 3 weenies is on par for a 3/3 for three, but easily made better by equipments or otherwise. Very effective at re-establishing, especially in multiplayer.
Also Accorder Paladin? Any aggro strategy will suffer for touching you when you can swing back for a very dirty 9 (without a 1 drop.)
and feel free to use this next to painlands and shocklands..
Mode
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
It's not the first card to do that, but the only one since Humans got instroduced as a creature type.
Just how are these raceless Soldiers?
Very solid card nonetheless, the condition to get both the tokens and the life is likely to be met against aggresive decks, and this can just buy you enough time. Three tokens for three mana is great itself; and 6 extra life is quite a lot of icing on the cake.
Comments (56)
Why is that unfortunate? If you're already winning, then you'll still be winning when you draw this. And if you're not already winning, this will help tip the balance towards you winning. Either way, the result is good for you.
It's win-more cards which are pointless, not lose-less.
Lifegain makes mostly sense in a deck that combos lifegain with stuff like well of lost dreams. If you have less life than your opponent, it means that this deck of yours doesn't work obviously. And adding this to a random deck that doesn't care about lifegain makes no sense. Getting three 1/1 tokens for three mana is not too fantastic either.
All in all it's a card that sometimes gives you a "meh" effect and sometimes even doesn't do that. Slightly better in multiplayer, but if you think that three 1/1 tokens and 6 life do a lot for you in multiplayer...
1/5
Sideboard 4 if Vampires and/or RDW get out of hand, and you won't be disappointed.
-----
Or, you know, they actually have a deck that is worthy of playing. Are you expecting to have more life than your opponent at every single opportunity? What if they cast incinerate on you and you aren't running control blue? What if (God forbid) they actually attacked you with their creatures? Stating something like that is outrageous. I'm fairly certain you don't have the Power 9 in every deck you own. In addition, why would you bother facing a deck that is so helpless it can't even damage you? That's not even fun.
This was wonderful at the prerelease. I would let them play a creature and hit me for 1, then I'd play this. Nothing like having 3 creatures and 25 life when all they have is one and 20 life =)...all for one well-timed card.
Also, for balance, I would have made this cost 2WW and produce 2/2 tokens, instead. That makes the reinforcements a bit beefier, so you're a little happier to see them. Three 1/1s aren't going to stop much.
anything else and your probably doing something too specific with an underwhelming card
But in all seriousness, this works well with phyrexian mana.
wow this was one of the top five cards in the Australian National Championships. must be good.
it is only 3 maan this is guarantee to you ahve more creatures than your opponent and because you use phyrexian maan you have less life...
this is let to you have giant army in early game...
They know that aggro is almost always the most budget-friendly archetype (since it doesn't involve overpowered 50-100$ planeswalkers like control) so they keep printing cards that singlehandedly win the game against red decks like Kor Firewalker and now this. That way players need to spend a ton of money to win.
I added one of it to my casual Griffin White Weenie deck (yeah, I have a Griffin Deck! Luv ya Griffin Rider) just to see how it worked. It may sometimes be a dead card, but with the right timing it's just brutal. Specially if followed by Guardians' Pledge, which turns makes you swing for 9. Also has a lot of positive sinergy with Pacifism, because the pacified creature still counts towards this. Probably the only reason I still have Pacifism in my deck instead of Oblivion Ring (maybe other than me being too lazy to move my ass away from the table and ask the guy behind the counter for a playset of Ring).
Of course, it's still a 2-of, at most, and there are people who don't like it because it involves some luck to get the right timing, unless you have some kind of creature sacrifice/pay life deck. But I like it.
deadeye1387: 3 life. Controls 5 Plains and 3 Mountains. Only other permanent was Honor of the Pure.
Friend: 11 life. Controls 15 swamps, and even more zombies.
I had this card, Lightwielder Paladin, Palace Guard, and Elite Vanguard in my hand.
Guess who won? :)
Prices are dependent on supply and demand. If nobody demands your crappy aggro decks in a control meta then guess what happens to the prices of good decks?
Aggro =/= cheap. Try building a competitive Zoo deck.
My frustration with this card is sourced to my affection for a well groomed red aggro deck. I'm still testing the limits of "outplaying" this card, but it won't surprise me if I hit a brick wall in this environment. Lots of great in color cards combo nicely with this, Elspeth, Virtue, Honor. I need to learn to beat it or go hide in the corner licking my wounds until the next set comes out.
Wait, What?
This would be pretty great with Serra Avenger.
Pretty good in limited, and I could definitely see this as backup in a creature-less deck.
Guaranteed to earn you enemies when using it, which means you are playing well =)
It's not even instant speed :P
turbo fog..
"BANZAI!"
Heroes' Reunion is 2 mana, and that card only gives 7 life. Midnight Haunting is 3 mana, and it only gives 2 tokens (flying, but still only 2). Gaining 6 life and getting 3 tokens for the same cost is ridiculous.
This is almost as bad as Thragtusk, and at 3 mana, is comparable.
1) They cant really use spot removal on 3 1/1 tokens.
2) They cant clear the board without losing there own creatures, aggro doesn't want to do that.
3) Unless first strike, they are going to have a tough decision if they want to keep turning there creatures sideways, they are going to lose something if not two things.
They could blow there maelstrom pulse or something on this, but you still might come out ahead in the end.
1) Midnight Haunting is an instant. That makes it far more useful.
2) This card is conditional. The two powerful cards you mentioned are both unconditional and great in most situations. This card is only great in these specific situations.
3) Thragtusk is green. Sure, they both give life and tokens but it's not a valid comparison. Green always has the most efficient large creatures, white has lots of small aggressive creatures.
4.5/5 Stars
Why? because 6 health is *a lot*, 3 weenies is on par for a 3/3 for three, but easily made better by equipments or otherwise. Very effective at re-establishing, especially in multiplayer.
Also Accorder Paladin?
Any aggro strategy will suffer for touching you when you can swing back for a very dirty 9 (without a 1 drop.)
and feel free to use this next to painlands and shocklands..
Just how are these raceless Soldiers?
Very solid card nonetheless, the condition to get both the tokens and the life is likely to be met against aggresive decks, and this can just buy you enough time. Three tokens for three mana is great itself; and 6 extra life is quite a lot of icing on the cake.
Time to punish those chaotic and lawless aggro maniacs