Pointed Discussion

Seems great for the Mirran side. Funny, that.

A colorless onesided Howling Banshee without flying sounds pretty good in limited.

this is better than Lava Axe. but HOW MUCH better? x2? x3?

Phasing!

One of these in play and one in your hand + Master Transmuter for a recurring 3 damage.

This guy seems a lot better than his brother.
But of course, if you play them both, it amounts to you both having played colorless mountain giants...

4 colourless for a 3/3 and a bolt on a player, sounds good.

love bouncing these guys with glint hawks, even with its 4 cost it was so solid in prerelease.

@Larsbek: Phasing doesn't trigger CIP abilities anymore.

at my play group theres always someone who has a 8 turn play of double pierce strider. its rather annoying.

More like a Lava Spike not really bolt

Come now, this is a 3/3 for 4 that makes your opponent lose life. Okay, it might have been better if it was cheaper, even with reduced power, but it's still not bad.

I actually had a buddy named "Pierce Strider" when I was a kid. If we were still in touch, I'd get him a foil one of these with his birthday card on his birthday.

He Pierces Pink P U S S Y 5/5

Nobody pointed out the obvious here, flick him in and out of the game with venser for 3 damage ever turn.

How do we feel about this guy when compared to Keldon Champion?

also, @Revelation666, you don't even need another one in your hand with master transmuter because he returns to your hand as the cost before the ability resolves, so he's in your hand before you chose the creature you want to put onto the battlefield.

This is basically a 3/3 for four that, on its first turn only, has vigilance, haste, and unblockable. What's not to like?

I know this is probably beating a dead horse, but Heartless Summoning anyone? you now have a 2/2 cast for 2 with a killer CIP effect.

@raptoman333, the key difference between that and Keldon Champion is that Pierce Strider causes loss of life, and Keldon does damage--a difference to consider against spells that prevent damage specifically.

Lifeloss for your opponent > lifegain for you.
EDIT: disregard that, forgot that Cloudstone Curio doesn't work for artifacts. It would be too easy if it did.

The flavor text on this card makes no sense.
"Pain isn't a negative stimulus. Pain is a sign of your imperfection."

But as Foul Presence shows, pain=evolution in phyrexian.
"The Phyrexians have one word that means both "evolution" and "pain.""

I suppose if they have a word that means evolution and pain (we'll call it Chuck Norris, or Storm Crow, or Insanity Wolf) and that word is separate from pain and evolution.

Evolution- A gradual process in which something changes into a different and usually more complex or better form. (See to be made compleat)

Pain - An unpleasant sensation occurring in varying degrees of severity as a consequence of injury, disease, or emotional disorder.

Storm Crow - (1) That card that many magic player hate or love for very little reason. (2) The pain you feel is of no consequence, it is evolution, to be made compleat.

If they have all three 'words' then it makes sense, I feel the flavor of Foul Presence is more of, there is no word for pain, or evolution, they are the same thing (Storm Crow) or each word means each other, and are interchangeable.

"Evolution isn't a negative stimulus. Evolution is a sign of your imperfection."

*NOTE*
Not intended as a Storm Crow primarily, but I felt it fit the flavor of the words I was using.

"One of these in play and one in your hand + Master Transmuter for a recurring 3 damage."

Actually, you don't even need another in your hand. Transmuter can drop the same creature that it bounces.

Rakdos, Lord of Riots has some cool synergy with this. Potentially free 3 damage + a 3/3 creature, and the life loss lets you play even bigger creatures for less.

I'm thinking if this might be useful in a midrange black/red deck, or black/red control. Possibly even as a late drop in a burn deck.