Pointed Discussion

This is one I my favorite cad names ever. I just love saying "MY filth is attacking for 2" or "My stone giant is throwing my filth at you".

Yeah the card name, flavor and artwork are all amazing on this dude...too bad he's almost completely useless and stains the name of such a great cycle of cards. Then again, I guess that's his job.

Filth truly is filth.

Filth was pretty mediocre…until they printed Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth; with that in play and Filth in your graveyard, all your creatures are unblockable.

I used to use him with zombie trailblazer, but that was a different day.

Wonder: Flying's cool and useful! Everyone loves flying!
Anger: Attack now! Why wait?
Brawn: Your fatties don't have trample! Let me help you!
Valor: First strike is very useful!
Glory: Your creatures need never fear anything!
Genesis: You'll have all the creatures you need!
Filth: BLAAAUUUUGHHHHH!

With effects like Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth and Zombie Trailblazer this is quite easy to make relevant.

contaminated ground= all your creatures are unblockable!

ummmm.. easiest combo ever:

Evil Presence

Hell, that is so cheap that you could splash black and make all of your creatures unblockable. This is devastating in any deck featuring tokens and/or mass creature creation.

Black/Green = Howl of the Night Pack = Unblockable wolves
Eldrazi... pick one
etc.

4/5

Honestly, I really think they should have given him fear. That would have fit the cycle much better. It's not even about Swampwalk being not very good; but Landwalk itself is a cycle.

Well, in the 250-card format, where everyone is running duals, this guy essentially makes all your creatures unblockable without any outside help on your part.

See also Valor, Wonder, Anger and Brawn.

I hate cops.

The artwork is fantastic. The effect, not so much. Should have been fear instead.

Filth is the weakest of the Judgment incarnations, but it was made so for a reason. Since black has the easiest time putting creatures in the graveyard and most often uses them to its advantage, the black incarnation's weakness makes it more balanced. Remember, too, that this was printed in the graveyard-heavy Odyssey block, where we were introduced to Entomb, one of the most powerful black cards ever printed. If Filth granted fear, you could Entomb it on turn one and win nearly every game you play against a non-black deck.

Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
Volrath the Fallen
swing for 10

I like how PhyrexianLobbiest thinks. I think that shows good insight into how design Magic cards- sometimes an effect will have to be weaker, that is just the way of things--- but they could have had a whole cycle of landwalk-granters separate from this, and added the much more on-theme fear to this card instead. Trample, First Strike, Fear, Haste, and Flying are all extremely combat tactics-relevant. Landwalk, since we already have flying, fear (intimidate) and protection, as well as outright unblockability, is usually used more for flavor than for purposefulness, and here it does not seem very flavorful.

In fact, compared to Wonder, Anger, Glory, and Brawn, this creature's name and flavor even seem to be not all 'there'- like it missed the meeting where they decided to make it a cycle.

If it weren't for 'filth', they could have errata'd all them all to be Elemental Incarnations to match the Lorwyn ones. :/

as a standalone card, Filth is a good card. in the context of the cycle, it seems more like it is supposed to be part of a whole cycle of landwalkers.

So, haste, trample, first strike, flying, and this guy. Damn, Wizards showed "black is bad" the right way.

This card is so easy to use these days, and since swampwalk is sort-of back with Golgari (Sewer Shambler etc.). Thus:

Filth + Evil Presence + Contaminated Ground + Nighthaze + Leshrac's Rite + any old or new swampwalkers you want, and go to town.

Splash blue and Wrexial, the Risen Deep can bring Cthulhu to your shores!

wow. i love incarnations.

Filth isn't as bad as he seams, hes just worse than his comrades, Combo with Urborg ftw

3.5/5 Stars

Currently it should be pretty good; Junk is popular and Liliana of the Veil is everywhere. When people run dual lands then you get your swampwalk for free. If you hardcast him you'll get to punch lily in the mouth every turn to get her off the field too. Damned if you do, damned if you don't, running 2!

This card seems to be getting a bad reputation, and I think some things need to be taken into account. Like a lot of “bad” cards, put Filth into the EDH environment and he really shines (or glistens, I guess :P). Even as a devoted black player who became a devoted EDH player, it actually took me quite some time to realise Filth’s potential, but once I did, this is what I found:

Black so far has: 3 Auras that can change lands into Swamps (Evil Presence, Contaminated Ground and Tainted Well); 2 Creatures that can change lands into Swamps (Zombie Trailblazer and Cyclopean Giant); 3 ways to turn ALL LANDS into Swamps (Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth, Nightcreep and Blanket of Night) PLUS access to Mystic Compass if you’re desperate. Any of these used with Filth will make all your creatures unblockable.

Add to that black is the easiest card to get things into graveyards, be it by discarding, sacrificing or Entomb/Buried Alive and so many tutors to get it into your hand anyway. Black currently also has 7 ways of retrieving this from your graveyard to your hand at instant speed to prevent the many graveyard exile effects, as well as 2 ways of returning to the battlefield at instant speed if necessary.

I realise that Filth giving swampwalk breaks the cycle, but aside from fear (which would have been ridiculous, and wasn’t even keyworded at the time to match the other Incarnations), black had no other keyword abilities to bestow besides regenerate, which still would have broken the cycle anyway as it requires an activation cost.

Sorry for the wall of text (which usually isn’t my style) but I think people need to appreciate this card a little more.